In 1858, the Roman Catholic Church opened the Sacred Heart Mission at Fort Providence. From there, missionaries were sent to various communities along the Mackenzie River. In 1858, Father Henri Grolier became the first member of the Oblates of Mary Immaculate (O.M.I.) to visit Fort Simpson. His visit was followed by the arrival of Bishop H. Grandin in 1861 and Father Emile Grouard in 1866. In 1867, the first Grey Nuns arrived at Fort Providence to work with the Oblate Fathers. Between 1858 and 1894, many other members of the Oblates visited Fort Simpson to conduct religious services. In 1894 Father Laurent Brochu became the first resident priest at Fort Simpson, remaining there until 1903. The mission at Fort Simpson continued to grow and eventually the headquarters of the Sacred Heart Mission was moved to Fort Simpson from Fort Providence. In 1916, the Roman Catholic Mission opened its first hospital in Fort Simpson, l'Hopital Ste. Marguerite [St. Margaret's Hospital]. When this accidentally burned down in 1930, a second facility was built and was in operation by 1931. In 1917, the Sacred Heart Mission opened its first school, a residential school, in Fort Simpson. Other members of the Oblates of Mary Immaculate who worked at the Sacred Heart Mission in the early twentieth century were J. Turcotte, Father J. Sareault, Father L. Gosselin, Father H. Tesniere, J. Dessy, Father F. Turcotte, J. Lusson and Father Henri Posset.
The provision of western education in Fort Providence began at the Providence Mission School in 1867, sometimes known as “Our Lady of Fort Providence Residential School” but more consistently known as the “Sacred Heart Mission School” or “Sacred Heart Residential School” (“École du Sacré-Coeur” in French). The school was operated by the Grey Nuns and initially was meant to provide a boarding and day school for Hudson Bay Company employee children. It soon focussed on orphaned and needy children and is known as the first residential school in Canada’s north, although other sites of shorter duration possibly predate Sacred Heart.
Sacred Heart Residential School took in both day pupils and residential boarders. It was chronically under supported, and the Grey Nuns threatened to close or possibly did close it in 1881/82, and reopened with Federal Government funding later in the 1880s. The original log structure was expanded in 1912, and a new three story school built in 1930. An extension was added to this in 1948.
Students came from communities throughout the north, and even as far south as Fort McMurray and Fond-du-Lac. In later years children came from primarily the Deh Cho region; home communities included Fort Providence, Fort Simpson, Fort Liard, Wrigley, Norman Wells, Tulita, Ptarmigan Point, Yellowknife, Fort Smith, Trout Rock and Hay River, and sometimes others. It is unclear when the residential school closed, as historical sources give dates ranging from 1953 to 1960, but the Federal Elizabeth Ward Elementary School opened in 1958 and Sacred Heart Residence likely closed in 1959.
Mary Saich was born in Quill Lake, Saskatchewan on November 26, 1913 to parents Dr. Alexander J. Saich and Alma T. Saich. She was educated at the University of Saskatechewan Normal School. In August 1940, she travelled on the S.S. Distributor to Aklavik where she had accepted a teaching position at All Saints Residential School. She taught in Aklavik for two years and returned to Biggar, Saskatchewan at the end of her teaching contract. Her career included the position of Assistant Superintendent in Kindergarten and Primary Education in the Greater Victoria School District, however she spent her last two years prior to retirement teaching in the classroom at View Royal Elementary School in Victoria, B.C. She died on July 29, 2002 in Victoria, B.C.
In 1993, Sandra Dolan co-ordinated an oral history project with Clayton Burke and Dora Unca to record the reminiscences of elders who had lived at the Chipewyan village near Fort Smith. It was anticipated that the recordings would be used in the production of a history of the Salt River settlement. A portion of the funding for this project was derived from the Government of the Northwest Territories Oral Traditions Project.
Samuel Hearne Secondary School (SHSS) began operating in 1966 and was officially opened two years later by Minister Jean Chretien. Prior to 1966, Inuvik students from all grades attended Sir Alexander Mackenzie School, which continued operating as an elementary school after SHSS opened. The school was originally administered by the federal government; it was transferred to the Government of the Northwest Territories in 1969, and then to the Beaufort-Delta Divisional Education Council, which was established in 1989 to administer regional schools.
The original high school building included two science rooms, a library, industrial arts and home economics facilities and a gym. A 10 classroom addition was completed in 1972, and several trade shops were added in the early 1980s to meet the needs of a vocational certificate program, including an auto shop in 1982, carpentry shop in 1983, and general mechanics shop in 1984.
In addition to residents of the town of Inuvik, the student body at SHSS also included residential school students brought from communities across the Beaufort Delta region and the Arctic to stay at the two major Federal hostels, Stringer Hall (which closed in 1975) and Grollier Hall (which closed in 1996). After the closure of the hostels, students from some small communities continued to attend SHSS for the upper high school grades while boarding in private homes in the town.
SHSS closed in 2012 when it was replaced by the new East Three Secondary School, and the building was demolished in June 2013.
The Sanavisak Guild was formed on September 8, 1965 by a group of women from Pine Point. The objectives of the guild were twofold; to allow women to meet on a regular basis and work together on handicraft projects; and to provide instruction for women who wanted to learn new craft skills. The first executive consisted of Esther Scarborough (President), Bubbles Hodgson (Vice-president), Dolores Logan (Secretary), Muriel Hampton (Treasurer), and Dolly Lovlin (Class convenor). The guild remained in operation until the town of Pine Point was closed in 1987.
Donald (Don) Sandilands was born in Pulborough, Sussex, England in 1904. He emigrated with his family to Canada in 1914 and settled in the Edmonton Alberta area for the rest of his life. With training as a draftsman and artist, Don worked in various capacities and positions as draftsman and artist through his professional life. He painted in both oils and watercolours but also designed in pen and ink and photography. He specialized in technical drawings as well as maps. He married Margaret Lavallee in 1937, and they had two children, Joan and Mark. Don loved the wilderness of Alberta, BC and the north, and he travelled to the NWT at least twice, visiting friends and family. He leaned far to the left politically and remained passionate about social justice until his death in Lethbridge in 1992.
Dr. Otto Schaefer was born on October 2, 1919 in Betzdorf, Germany. He graduated from high school in 1938 with the intention of studying medicine; however in September 1939 he was drafted into the German Army and served as medical personnel at the front in France and in Russia. During the war he was able to pass his medical and surgical examinations and in the fall of 1944 he functioned as a field medical officer until April 1945 when he became a prisoner of war until July 1945. After the war, he practiced medicine in Betzdorf and resumed post-graduate studies in 1946 where he worked in several different hospitals in Germany obtaining his internal medicine specialist degree in 1950. He immigrated to Canada in June 1951 with the aim of assisting with the healthcare of the aboriginal people in the Canadian North. Before being able to practice medicine in Canada, he had to pass basic science examinations and in the fall of 1951 he moved to Edmonton where he worked at the Charles Camsell Hospital. In July 1952, Dr. Schaefer's wife joined him in Edmonton and the couple moved to Aklavik in January 1953 where she assisted him in the laboratory and accompanied him during the Eastern Arctic Patrol aboard the "C.D. Howe" between 1955-1957. Dr. Schaefer worked for two years in both the Western Arctic, Eastern Arctic and the Yukon and after further post-graduate work at the Camsell and University Hospitals in Edmonton he passed specialist examinations and became a Fellow of the Canadian and American Societies of Internal Medicine. In 1964, he became the Director of the newly created Northern Medical Research Unit. He also spent several months each year in the late 1960s and early 1970s conducting community health and nutrition surveys in the NWT and visited many communities as a member of the Water Board and Science Advisory Board. Dr. Schaefer has received several awards and honors for his work in the North and in the field of internal medicine, including the Jack Hildes Medal and Award in 1987 (Canadian Society for Circumpolar Health and the Donner Foundation); Order of Canada (1976); and the Commissioner's Award for Public Service at the Highest Level GNWT, 1985); and Centenary Medal and Award for Northern Science of Canada (1985). Dr. Schaefer currently resides in Edmonton, Alberta.
Warren Schmitke, Director of the Norman Wells Historical Centre in the 1990s, travelled to Camp Canol several times between 1976 and 1978. During these visits, he took many photographs of the camp. In the summers of 1977 and 1978, the federal Department of Indian Affairs and Northern Development burned down many of the buildings in the camp.
Dr. Herbert T. Schwartz was employed as a medical doctor on the Distant Early Warning (DEW) line, and published several books on the legends of indigenous peoples.
Peter Schwerdt was a prospector in the Yellowknife, Great Slave Lake Region from 1937 to 1941. In 1941, while working with his brother Chuck, they collected an estimated $50,000 in gold in about four months in the Indian Lake area.
The Science Institute of the Northwest Territories (SINT) was established April 1, 1985 by the NWT Legislative Assembly as a non-profit corporation operating at arm’s-length from the GNWT. SINT was headed by an Executive Director, reporting to a Chairman and Board of Directors. The Board consisted of seven to thirteen members, 50 percent of whom had to be NWT residents.
SINT grew out of the Science Advisory Board, which had filled the need to provide advice to the Legislative Assembly on scientific, engineering, and technology matters from 1976 to 1984. By the time the Science Institute Act was passed in May 1984, the desire for a Science Institute was already well-established, being discussed previously in the Legislature and by the federal Department of Indian and Northern Affairs.
SINT was established “to foster science in the Northwest Territories, to increase public awareness of scientific activities and ensure northern participation in scientific and technological research, programs and activities.” SINT aimed to assist the scientific community, identify, coordinate and conduct research, provide advice, and license scientific research under the NWT Scientists Act. The first meeting of the SINT Board took place in August 1985 under Chairman Dr. James M. Harrison, a former member of the Science Advisory Board. Robert R. (Bob) Janes was appointed to the position of Executive Director later that year and began work in March 1986. Harrison was succeeded as Board Chairman by John H. Parker, former NWT Commissioner in March 1989. Janes was succeeded as Executive Director by J. D. (Doug) Heyland in August 1989.
Activities of SINT included: advising Legislative Assembly, licensing scientific research, publishing papers and a newsletter, training, conducting research and studies, engaging in liason and committee work, encouraging science fairs and creating resources, running cross-cultural science camps, teaching and participating in workshops and seminars, writing newspaper and radio scripts on northern science topics, delivering the National Research Council’s Industrial Research Assistance Programme (starting in 1989), and directing the Technology Development Program (starting 1990) to seek technologies which could be adapted for use in the NWT. In 1988, the Northern Scientific Resource Centres of Indian and Northern Affairs Canada, located in Inuvik, Igloolik (Iglulik), and Iqaluit, were transferred to SINT, which continued to operate them to provide logistical support to scientists in the field.
In June 1992, the Government Leader announced decentralization of some government areas, including the Science Institute, to various communities outside Yellowknife. Options were proposed and debated by the SINT Board and NWT government. In March 1993, direction was given by the Minister Responsible for SINT to examine the relationship between SINT, Arctic College, and the Department of Education to see how relations could be strengthened. The amalgamation of SINT and Arctic College began to be discussed. At the end of May 1993, the Minister announced that Arctic College and the Science Institute would be integrated. Executive Director Heyland was requested to retire early and Mark Cleveland, president of Arctic College, was appointed in his place. Steve Richards became the new Chairperson of Board when John Parker’s term ended in April 1993.
After the division of the Territories into NWT and Nunavut in 1999 and the resulting division of Arctic College, SINT devolved into the Nunavut Research Institute at Nunavut Arctic College and Aurora Research Institute at Aurora College.
David Harry Searle was born in Edmonton, Alberta in 1936. He moved to Yellowknife in 1946 where his father worked for Con Mine. Searle was educated in the Yellowknife public school system. During his high school years, he worked summer jobs at Con Mine.
Searle attended the University of Alberta and earned degrees in history and law (1961). As a young man, joined the Canadian Officers Training Corps and served in the Royal Canadian Army reserve as a military policeman.
David Searle returned to Yellowknife and, in 1963, co-founded the law firm de Weerdt Searle with Mark de Weerdt. Searle was the founding President of the Law Society of the Northwest Territories in 1978. He practiced law in the NWT until 1981.
While practicing law, Searle was also involved in politics in the NWT. First elected to the Northwest Territories Council in 1967 in the riding of Mackenzie North, Searle was elected again in 1970 and 1975 for the riding of Yellowknife South. From 1975 to 1979, he served at the Speaker of the House, and as such was the first Speaker of the Legislative Assembly. Searle ran for federal politics in 1979 but narrowly lost.
David Searle was the first President of Scouts Canada in the NWT and played a large role in the scouting community in the north. Searle also served on a number of other boards during his time in the north.
David Searle and his family moved to Vancouver in 1981, where Searle continued to practice law until his retirement in 2006. He was an adjunct professor at the University of British Columbia (Faculty of Law) from 1991 to 2004. In the 1990s, Searle also played a role in the corporate world, where he served as a lawyer during the development of diamond mines in the NWT.
In 2000, Searle was awarded the Order of Canada for his roles in government, law, and with Scouts Canada during his time in the north.
David Searle married Dorelle Edna Parsons and they had two children, Marc and Kristi. Following Dorelle’s death in 1994, Searle married Celia Stock in 2000.
David Searle died March 1, 2021, aged 84, in Saanich, British Columbia.
Tom Shandel was born and raised in Winnipeg, Canada. He completed high school in Burnaby, British Columbia, and has a BA in Theatre from the University of British Columbia (1962) and a Diploma in Communications from Stanford University (1966).
He is the president of Getaway Films Inc., and a producer, director and writer. He has been producing film and television documentary and drama since 1969 for Canadian Broadcasting Corporation, Global, CityTV, TVOntario, Bravo!, VisionTV and BC’s Knowledge Network, as well as public broadcasters in Alberta and Saskatchewan, for PBS in the United States and BBC & Channel 4 in England.
Getaway Film Inc. was incorporated in British Columbia in 1985 to produce socio-political and cultural documentaries for the educational market worldwide. “I, Emile Petitot/Moi, Emile Petitot” is one of its many productions. Http://www.shandel.ca lists his full biography and film resume.
Merle Shaw was born in Calgary, Alberta on June 19th, 1921. After graduating from Western Canada High School, she began training as a nurse at Calgary General Hospitcal from [approx.] 1940-1943. Following graduation, she obtained a job at the Toronto General Hospital, where she worked until 1946. In 1947 she moved up to Yellowknife where she obtained a job as a nurse at the Red Cross Hospital (now Stanton Hospital). Throughout her time in Yellowknife, Merle established relationships with other nurses and families in Yellowknife as well as the surrounding mining communities. She returned to Calgary in 1949, where she married Ed Featherstone. She died on December 6th, 2001.
Between 1973 and 1980, David Sherstone was employed by Environment Canada to study river ice break-up on the Mackenzie and Liard rivers. Much of the work was connected to the scientific studies supporting th initial Mackenzie River Pipeline Project. To conduct his duties, he travelled extensively to northern communities including Yellowknife, Fort Simpson, Fort Liard, Fort Good Hope, Fort Wrigley, Inuvik and Frobisher Bay [Iqaluit]. He also worked in conjuction with the Hay River emergency committee to deal with spring break-up and flooding. Part of this work was to develop an electronic ice depth monitoring guage which did not require ice drilling and allowed rapid reading. While doing this work Sherstone documented his travels with photography, and took pictures of communities, unique buildlings and landmarks, transport vehicles, and natural phenomena related to his career.