Thomas E. Flanagan

ISBN 0919813984 $17.95 paper
ISBN 0919813879 $24.95 hardcover
June 1991

About the Book

When Manitoba entered Confederation in 1870, the Dominion government promised to give the Metis population a large amount of land. It is widely thought that the Metis never got this land or were cheated out of it; and in line with that view, the Manitoba Metis Federation is today suing Manitoba and Canada for compensation. Based on exhaustive research into government archives, land titles records, and other manuscript sources, this book shows that the government of Canada fulfilled, indeed overfulfilled, its legal obligations to the Metis. It confirmed the title of Metis farmers to their river lots, distributed over 1.4 million acres of Dominion Lands to the Metis children, and made many other grants of land and scrip to the Metis. They, however, chose to sell most of these lands because they where surplus to their needs at the time. They obtained good prices for their lands and made a great deal of money from the sales. Present-day complaints are based on an anachronistic misreading of history.

About the Author

Thomas Flanagan has taught political science at the University of Calgary since 1968. He has written extensively on native politics and history, including Louis 'David' Riel: 'Prophet of the New World' and Riel and the Rebellion: 1885 Reconsidered. He was also Deputy Editor of the Louis Riel Project, which edited the five-volume Collected Writings of Louis Riel.

Table of Contents

1. The Problem
2. Red River
3. The Manitoba Act
4. The Constitutional Question
5. The Metis Children's Land Grant
6. The Sale of Children's Allotments
7. Metis Scrip
8. Confirmation of Titles
9. The Hay Privilege
10. Conclusion

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