Aspen Parkland - Human Cultures

Human Cultures

The First Nations of this region were not solely buffalo-hunting nomads, as were tribes to the south. They also relied to a great extent on trapping (rabbits, etc.) fishing, and deer and moose hunting, as well as gathering parkland berries such as the Saskatoon berry or the high bush cranberry.

This area was one of the most important regions of the fur trade in North America. Both the Assiniboine and (North) Saskatchwen rivers were major fur trade routes, with a number of fur trade posts, much moreso than rivers to the prairie south. Around these posts the Metis people were formed from the intermarriage of white furtraders and native trappers.

Once European settlement began this region was desired by the peasant farmers of Eastern Europe and the smallholders of Quebec for its wooded land, so that they could build and heat their own homes. This is as opposed to the primarily British and American settlers who desired grasslands that were easier to break and plough. At this time people of similar backgrounds were allowed to concentrate in to block settlements by the federal government.

As a result, the ethnic makeup of the Prairie Provinces is somewhat divded north-and-south. Cree people, Métis people, French Canadians, and Ukrainian Canadians are concentrated in the parkland belt, and in cities such as Edmonton and Saskatoon. As opposed to Calgary and Regina which are primarily English and German.