Algonquins of Greater Golden Lake First Nation

Algonquin Heritage

General Information about The Algonquin Tribe 

The Algonquin is a tribe that arrived on the shores of the Ottawa River that flowed between Quebec and Ontario. In their language (which has many dialects) Algonquin means, “At the place of spearing fishes and eels”.

Communications with others

In 1760, The Algonquin made an alliance with the British, before they aligned with the French. When the Europeans came, the Algonquin were influenced to make their own written language. The language does not look similar to roman style lettering, it was more like symbols.

The Algonquin would also trade fur from their hunts with the Europe merchants which used it for clothing. This was the main trade with Europeans, but the Algonquin trained amongst themselves with wampum beads.

Roles of Men and Women 

Men and Women had separate tasks to do. Sometimes both genders could have the same role, such as medicinal work. Every gender had the role of teaching the younger generation how to do the tasks. Their roles are as follows;

The young men mainly hunted and fished. They were also the ones who could become chiefs one day.

 

Women had many more tasks such as gathering herbs, berries, catching small fish, making meals (cooking), preparing for the harsh winter, cleaning tools, cleaning homes and making clothing were all amongst their tasks.

 The Algonquin were quite skilled artists, whether it came to bead or basket work.  The tribe was very religious and believed in the afterlife and witchcraft. They also believed to respect objects such as trees and stones, because they have a purpose and are a part of the circle of life. Also, the Algonquin believed in visions and dreams which had very important meaning to them.

Nowadays, many Canadians proudly say they descend or are a part of the Algonquin Tribe.

Connie Mielke, ANR/Chief

Democratically elected in July 2017 and re-elected in 2021

Representing people of Algonquin heritage living throughout our Algonquin Territory & beyond.

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Who Are We?

We are descendants and one of the ten communities located across the settlement territory that makes up the Algonquins of Ontario (AOO).  We are one of the ten Non-status Communities under the AOO umbrella. The ten communities who are part of the Algonquin Land Claim are comprised of Antoine, Bonnechere, Greater Golden Lake, Kijicho Manito Madaouskarini (Bancroft), Mattawa/North Bay, Ottawa, Pikwakanagan First Nation, Shabot Obaadjiwan (Sharbot Lake), Snimikobi (Ardoch) and Whitney Area.

What Is A Community?

More and more everyday, people find out information on their ancestry and want to join our community. The Algonquins of Greater Golden Lake First Nation is a community which has grown over the past few years.  We are like a huge family, we are here to support each other and assist one other in any way we can.

When Did We Evolve?

In 1993 our community was called Kichissippi South. The following year our community was renamed “Algonquins of Greater Golden Lake First Nation”.

In 2016 the Agreement in Principle (AlP) was signed allowing the Land Claim to proceed. We are now working on the beneficiary criteria that will define who will be beneficiaries of the Algonquin Land Claim.

Where Do We Reside?

We are a Non-Status Algonquin First Nation Community comprised mainly of members from the Pembroke, Petawawa, Black Bay Area and the surrounding Ottawa Valley.  We now have 3000+ members who now span across all of Canada as well as some members live in the USA and Europe.

How Do We Assist Our Community Members?

We can point you in the right direction on where to apply for and possibly obtain Educational Funding such as Grants, Scholarships and Bursaries.

At this present time we are working on trying to get our new Treaty passed along with creating/producing our new Constitution.

Through the first year of Covid-19 Pandemic, we purchased and mailed out Grocery Gift Cards to help our community members get through the tough times and job losses.

Through the second year of Covid-19 Pandemic, we assisted some of our community members and or their children by providing them with brand new Chrome Book Laptops.

Yearly, we ask a couple of our members to harvest some Community Moose. We send it to a butcher to have it cut and wrapped. We distribute the moose meat to our Community Members at some of our meetings. We also send out an email notification about the availability and it goes by First Come – First Serve basis.

We pass on as much information & knowledge to our Community Members that we have in regards to Harvesting (Hunting and Fishing).

We attend daily and weekly zoom meetings to control and resolve any issues at hand.

We hold monthly Community / Elders Meetings with lunches and beverages (Covid-19 Permitting) to keep our community members informed of any new information or outcomes.