Whether through their work as guides, the sharing of harvests, or advocacy for their rights, the many customs of Métis life in northern Ontario have been observed and recorded across generations.  Again and again, observers have remarked on Métis people who celebrated their community and culture openly, without shame, and with an unmistakable sense of pride. Métis gatherings were social occasions and the embodiment of belonging. One such moment was recorded by a visitor who a

George Dusome's brief life is best remembered not just for his sacrifice, but for the joy, warmth, and sense of togetherness that once shaped it and continue to define his memory. Family gatherings were central to the Métis household in which George grew up in Penetanguishene, where time spent together offered comfort, strength, and a sense of belonging. George’s niece, Leona Paul, recalled the care George carried for his family.  George voluntarily enlisted in the First Worl

The Swanson family has been an active part of the Upper Great Lakes and Abitibi Inland regions for generations. As Hudson’s Bay Company employees and community advocates, they left a significant mark on the region, though not without facing resistance along the way. While six of William Swanson and Frances Robinson’s Métis sons travelled throughout the region and beyond, continuing the family’s work with the HBC, their Métis daughters remained in the Abitibi Inland area. Ther

The Labatte family’s story of relocation from Drummond Island to Penetanguishene was filled with years of movement, adaptability, and resilience.  Originally departing Drummond Island for Penetanguishene in 1827, the Labattes once again boarded a steamer, the Penetanguishene , in 1834 intending to take up a nearby land grant that they had been awarded for military service during the War of 1812.  But the unpredictable late-autumn waters of Georgian Bay had other plans. A stor

Michael Labatte’s life reflected the patterns of travel, endurance, and kinship that have long defined Métis families across the Upper Great Lakes and the larger North-West. The circumstances of his birth are themselves a testament to that resilience. Michael’s parents were Louisa Cadotte and Louis George Labatte, who along with other Métis families had established their home next to the naval base on Drummond Island. A veteran of the War of 1812, Louis George maintained long

The Métis families of Agawa Bay, along the shores of Lake Superior, share a rich and enduring history shaped by deep love, kinship, and a collective way of life.  For more than sixty years, these Métis families—the Davieauxs, Roussains, Bussineaus, and Mirons—lived closely together, building homes, raising children, and sustaining each other through hunting, fishing, and harvesting from the land and water. Their way of life was rooted in cooperation, shared responsibility, an