SHARED HISTORY
NAPDA has documented the life stories of its members for over a hundred years. With thousands of pages of pioneering history, some hand written as early as the mid 19th century, NAPDA is now looking at filling in the gaps and expanding our archives to include more of the history of Edmonton and Northern Alberta. As we digitize our existing archives they will be made available online, so that researchers, historians, and the public can search and reference the important history the NAPDA has collected since its inception. The earliest settlers to the Edmonton area interacted with Indigenous communities regularly. Cree was the main language in the area until the late 1890's. Rossdale flats, were a bustling trading area and important lands since time immemorial. The harsh winters were not the same as European or southern states winters. It was the early relationships that provided the pioneers with the tools and knowledge to grow crops, find medicines, and trade. In 1877, when treaty six was signed, the Indigenous communities welcomed the settlers as their relations- or Family. It is for those reasons and more that NAPDA, with the facilitation of Lewis Cardinal, and our incredible Elders Counsel (who we will get featured on the site soon) have identified four projects that when completed will highlight the shared history of the Indigenous community and the settlers to the region. |
| Three Sisters Garden - Companion Gardening This was a gardening technique that contains important Indigenous cultural history while providing crops that survive into our winters, and rejuvenate the soil, while each plant supports the others. This technique allowed settlers to survive winter and maximized output on land size. The Three Sisters Companion Planting poster was created by Charlotte Ricker |
Park Boards - Historic Information The Rossdale Flats hold an important place in history. It is where Edmonton blossomed. We are so fortunate to overlook the Edmonton River Valley and the Rossdale Flats. Our Park Boards will offer a glimpse of what life was like in the 1870-80's for both the Indigenous Communities and the early settlers of the area. This will be designed with Indigenous consultation and information contained in NAPDA's archives |
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| Edmonton's Chronological Timeline wall Edmonton has an incredible history. From pre-colonial settling to today. Our Chronological timeline will have facts and figures of interest. It will serve to highlight the people and events that shaped our region. The timeline will include people such as Chief Papaschase, a signer of treaty 6 in 1877, and his bands eventual removal from the land they occupied. It will also include people like Frank Oliver. A successful businesses owner who had a major impact on Edmonton's growth. But his story much contain the whole story- Therefore the inclusion of his efforts to remove the Indigenous Communities, and its impacts felt up to today must be presented. Other areas of highlight would be the pioneers of other cultures, including the Al Rashid Mosque - the first mosque in Canada, built in 1938 (second in North America by a matter of weeks) |
While the projects themselves involve collecting important knowledge and sharing culture from one group to another- It is important to have a visual of the projects within the spaces they will impact. Although final designs are not completed, as tenders will be put out for the work when funding has been secured, the following represent the projects in a broad overview
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