Wendake, Quebec
Encyclopedia
Wendake is the current name for the Huron-Wendat reserve
, an enclave within Quebec City
, Quebec
, Canada. One of the Seven Nations of Canada
, this was formerly known as Village-des-Hurons ("Huron Village"), and also as (Jeune)-Lorette.
Since the late 20th century, archeologists have found large 16th-century villages of the Wendat (Huron) in the northern Lake Ontario region, which is where they believe the people coalesced as a distinct group. Later they migrated south and by the early 17th century had settled in their historical territory of Wendake in the Georgian Bay
region. The Wyandot Confederation was made up of loosely associated tribes who spoke a mutually intelligible Iroquoian language.
area, where they encountered Europeans in the 17th century.
Until the middle of the 17th century, the Wendake ancestors occupied a vast territory straddling part of what is now the United States
(from Detroit as far south as Oklahoma
), south-eastern Ontario
(Penetanguishene and Midland
) and Quebec
. They hunted and trapped throughout this territory (mainly in the Laurentian Mountains
, between the central section of the Saint-Maurice
and the Saguenay
rivers).
Between 1634 and 1650, the Wyandot Confederation was dismembered; its families, having been gathered into four or five tribe
s, were dispersed. It is estimated that the Huron population totalled approximately 20,000 to 30,000 people in 1634. By 1650, only a few hundred individuals remained. Most had been decimated by infectious disease
epidemics, to which they had no natural immunity
; survivors were attacked by wars, especially by the Iroquois Confederacy, who pushed from the south (present-day New York) trying to control hunting grounds and the fur trade
.
Part of the Huron population had also been integrated into the Iroquois Confederation. The survivors of this tragic period divided into two groups in Canada: the Great-Lake Wyandot and the Huron-Wendat. The latter were the ancestors of the Huron-Wendat of Wendake. This marked the beginning of a period of exile for the 300 or so Wendat who remained, an era during which they would occupy as many as six different sites in the province of Quebec. They finally settled for good in the village of Lorette in 1697. First established on Île d'Orléans in 1651, the community moved to Quebec City in 1668. Subsequently, the Wendat temporarily resided in Beauport, Notre Dame de Foy, Ancienne-Lorette and then New Lorette in 1673.
The current population of the Indian reserve is 1,555 persons (2001 census
). The land area is only 1.46 km² (about 360 acres). The leader of Wendake is Grand Chef Konrad Sioui
, who succeeded Max Gros-Louis
in 2008.
The Huron had called their historic homeland Wendake
; it was the territory south of Georgian Bay
in present-day Simcoe
and Grey
counties. The region was informally known as "Huronia" or the Georgian Triangle
. A very large 15th-century Huron-Wendat settlement (the Mantle Site
) was recently been discovered in Whitchurch-Stouffville, Ontario. Its discovery has added to archeologists and anthropologists believing that the Wendat arose as a people in this area.
Other remnants of the Wendat and Petun peoples formed the Wyandot and migrated south, to present-day Michigan, and later to Indian Territory in Kansas and Oklahoma. In the United States, there are three federally recognized Wyandot tribes: the Wyandotte Nation,
Indian reserve
In Canada, an Indian reserve is specified by the Indian Act as a "tract of land, the legal title to which is vested in Her Majesty, that has been set apart by Her Majesty for the use and benefit of a band." The Act also specifies that land reserved for the use and benefit of a band which is not...
, an enclave within Quebec City
Quebec City
Quebec , also Québec, Quebec City or Québec City is the capital of the Canadian province of Quebec and is located within the Capitale-Nationale region. It is the second most populous city in Quebec after Montreal, which is about to the southwest...
, Quebec
Quebec
Quebec or is a province in east-central Canada. It is the only Canadian province with a predominantly French-speaking population and the only one whose sole official language is French at the provincial level....
, Canada. One of the Seven Nations of Canada
Seven Nations of Canada
The Seven Nations of Canada were a historic confederation of Canadian First Nations living in and around the Saint Lawrence River valley beginning in the eighteenth century. They were allied to New France and often included substantial numbers of Roman Catholic converts. During the Seven Years War...
, this was formerly known as Village-des-Hurons ("Huron Village"), and also as (Jeune)-Lorette.
Since the late 20th century, archeologists have found large 16th-century villages of the Wendat (Huron) in the northern Lake Ontario region, which is where they believe the people coalesced as a distinct group. Later they migrated south and by the early 17th century had settled in their historical territory of Wendake in the Georgian Bay
Georgian Bay
Georgian Bay is a large bay of Lake Huron, located entirely within Ontario, Canada...
region. The Wyandot Confederation was made up of loosely associated tribes who spoke a mutually intelligible Iroquoian language.
History
Archeologists have excavated 16th-century settlements north of Lake Ontario at the Mantle Site (2005), Aurora Site and Ratcliff Site (both in the 1950s), all attesting to distinctly Wendat (Huron) occupancy. They have concluded the people coalesced in this area as a distinct group. Later they migrated to the Georgian BayGeorgian Bay
Georgian Bay is a large bay of Lake Huron, located entirely within Ontario, Canada...
area, where they encountered Europeans in the 17th century.
Until the middle of the 17th century, the Wendake ancestors occupied a vast territory straddling part of what is now the United States
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
(from Detroit as far south as Oklahoma
Oklahoma
Oklahoma is a state located in the South Central region of the United States of America. With an estimated 3,751,351 residents as of the 2010 census and a land area of 68,667 square miles , Oklahoma is the 28th most populous and 20th-largest state...
), south-eastern Ontario
Ontario
Ontario is a province of Canada, located in east-central Canada. It is Canada's most populous province and second largest in total area. It is home to the nation's most populous city, Toronto, and the nation's capital, Ottawa....
(Penetanguishene and Midland
Midland, Ontario
Midland is a town located on Georgian Bay in Simcoe County, Ontario, Canada.Situated at the southern end of Georgian Bay's 30,000 Islands, Midland is the economic centre of the region, with a 125-bed hospital and a local airport. It is the main town of the southern Georgian Bay area...
) and Quebec
Quebec
Quebec or is a province in east-central Canada. It is the only Canadian province with a predominantly French-speaking population and the only one whose sole official language is French at the provincial level....
. They hunted and trapped throughout this territory (mainly in the Laurentian Mountains
Laurentian mountains
The Laurentian Mountains are a mountain range in southern Quebec, Canada, north of the St. Lawrence River and Ottawa River, rising to a highest point of 1166 metres at Mont Raoul Blanchard, north east of Quebec City in the Reserve Faunique des Laurentides. The Gatineau, L'Assomption, Lièvre,...
, between the central section of the Saint-Maurice
Saint-Maurice River
The Saint-Maurice River is a river in central Quebec which flows south from Gouin Reservoir to empty into the Saint Lawrence River at Trois-Rivières, Quebec. The river is 563 km in length and has a drainage basin of 43,300 km² ....
and the Saguenay
Saguenay River
The Saguenay River is a major river of Quebec, Canada.It drains Lac Saint-Jean in the Laurentian Highlands, leaving at Alma and running east, and passes the city of Saguenay. It drains into the Saint Lawrence River at Tadoussac....
rivers).
Between 1634 and 1650, the Wyandot Confederation was dismembered; its families, having been gathered into four or five tribe
Tribe
A tribe, viewed historically or developmentally, consists of a social group existing before the development of, or outside of, states.Many anthropologists use the term tribal society to refer to societies organized largely on the basis of kinship, especially corporate descent groups .Some theorists...
s, were dispersed. It is estimated that the Huron population totalled approximately 20,000 to 30,000 people in 1634. By 1650, only a few hundred individuals remained. Most had been decimated by infectious disease
Infectious disease
Infectious diseases, also known as communicable diseases, contagious diseases or transmissible diseases comprise clinically evident illness resulting from the infection, presence and growth of pathogenic biological agents in an individual host organism...
epidemics, to which they had no natural immunity
Immunity (medical)
Immunity is a biological term that describes a state of having sufficient biological defenses to avoid infection, disease, or other unwanted biological invasion. Immunity involves both specific and non-specific components. The non-specific components act either as barriers or as eliminators of wide...
; survivors were attacked by wars, especially by the Iroquois Confederacy, who pushed from the south (present-day New York) trying to control hunting grounds and the fur trade
Fur trade
The fur trade is a worldwide industry dealing in the acquisition and sale of animal fur. Since the establishment of world market for in the early modern period furs of boreal, polar and cold temperate mammalian animals have been the most valued...
.
Part of the Huron population had also been integrated into the Iroquois Confederation. The survivors of this tragic period divided into two groups in Canada: the Great-Lake Wyandot and the Huron-Wendat. The latter were the ancestors of the Huron-Wendat of Wendake. This marked the beginning of a period of exile for the 300 or so Wendat who remained, an era during which they would occupy as many as six different sites in the province of Quebec. They finally settled for good in the village of Lorette in 1697. First established on Île d'Orléans in 1651, the community moved to Quebec City in 1668. Subsequently, the Wendat temporarily resided in Beauport, Notre Dame de Foy, Ancienne-Lorette and then New Lorette in 1673.
The current population of the Indian reserve is 1,555 persons (2001 census
Canada 2001 Census
The Canada 2001 Census was a detailed enumeration of the Canadian population. Census day was May 15, 2001. On that day, Statistics Canada attempted to count every person in Canada. The total population count of Canada was 30,007,094. This was a 4% increase over 1996 Census of 28,846,761. In...
). The land area is only 1.46 km² (about 360 acres). The leader of Wendake is Grand Chef Konrad Sioui
Konrad Sioui
Konrad Sioui is the current Grand Chef of Wendake, a native reserve near Quebec City, Canada. He succeeded Max Gros-Louis in 2008.Sioui is a hereditary chief of the Bear Clan of the Huron-Wendat Nation....
, who succeeded Max Gros-Louis
Max Gros-Louis
'Magella Gros-Louis AKA Max Gros-Louis or Oné Onti , son of Cecile Talbot and Gerard Gros-Louis is a Canadian politician and businessman in Quebec...
in 2008.
The Huron had called their historic homeland Wendake
Wendake
Wendake may refer to:* the historical homeland of the Huron/Wendat/Wyandot nation, on the south shore of Georgian Bay in modern-day Simcoe and Grey counties in Ontario,...
; it was the territory south of Georgian Bay
Georgian Bay
Georgian Bay is a large bay of Lake Huron, located entirely within Ontario, Canada...
in present-day Simcoe
Simcoe County, Ontario
Simcoe County is located in central portion of Southern Ontario. The County is situated just north of the Greater Toronto Area stretching from the shores of Lake Simcoe in the east to Georgian Bay in the west...
and Grey
Grey County, Ontario
Grey County is a county and census division of the Canadian province of Ontario. The county seat is in Owen Sound. The population was 92,411 in 2006. It is located in the subregion of Southern Ontario named Southwestern Ontario...
counties. The region was informally known as "Huronia" or the Georgian Triangle
Georgian Triangle
The Georgian Triangle is the name of a geographic region in Southern Ontario containing the counties surrounding Georgian Bay, mostly Nottawasaga Bay, in particular. The main urban centers in the region are Collingwood, Owen Sound, and situated on Lake Simcoe Barrie...
. A very large 15th-century Huron-Wendat settlement (the Mantle Site
Mantle Site, Wendat (Huron) Ancestral Village
The Mantle site in the town of Whitchurch–Stouffville, north-east of Toronto, is the largest and most complex ancestral Wendat-Huron village to be excavated in the Lower Great Lakes region to date....
) was recently been discovered in Whitchurch-Stouffville, Ontario. Its discovery has added to archeologists and anthropologists believing that the Wendat arose as a people in this area.
Other remnants of the Wendat and Petun peoples formed the Wyandot and migrated south, to present-day Michigan, and later to Indian Territory in Kansas and Oklahoma. In the United States, there are three federally recognized Wyandot tribes: the Wyandotte Nation,