150th Anniversary of the Halfbreed Adhesion to Treaty 3

On September 12, 1875, the Northwestern Ontario Métis Community secured a place in Canada’s treaty history with the signing of the Halfbreed Adhesion to Treaty 3 at Fort Frances. Led by Nicolas Chatelaine, the “Halfbreeds of Rainy River and Rainy Lake” signed as a distinct Métis community, not as mixed-ancestry “Indians”.

The Adhesion promised the Métis annuities, payments, and presents equal to those of Treaty 3’s 1873 Anishinaabe signatories, while also setting aside two tracts of land for the Métis community, one for a village and another for hunting. Significantly, the Adhesion did not require the Métis to become “Indians” or join existing First Nations bands. Instead, it recognized the Métis of Rainy Lake and Rainy River as a distinct collective, affirming their identity and rights as Métis.

The 1875 Halfbreed Adhesion was—and remains—the only time that Métis entered into one of Canada’s historic numbered treaties as a distinct Métis collective.

Though many of the Adhesion’s promises remain unfulfilled, its legacy endures one hundred and fifty years later. This Adhesion stands as clear evidence that the Crown recognized the Métis of Northwestern Ontario as a self-governing Métis community.

As the Halfbreed Adhesion to Treaty 3 marks its 150th anniversary in 2025, it remains an enduring foundation for the Crown’s continued recognition and renewed partnership with the Northwestern Ontario Métis Community today, including through Canada’s signing of an Agreement on Advancing Reconciliation with the Northwestern Ontario Métis Community in 2017.

See Our Sources

• Agreement with the Halfbreeds of the Rainy Lake & River

• Advancing Reconciliation with the Northwestern Ontario Métis Community

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