Paget Code's Images

	This photograph shows a Cree man hunting with a trade gun, clad in Hudson’s Bay Company clothing. I found it to be of interest as typifying the fur trade era. It also typifies life in the transitional Aspen Parkland, which is usually overlooked while emphasis is placed on the horse culture of the open prairie, or the northern forests.
	This image comes from the Muskoday First Nation southeast of Prince Albert, Saskatchewan. I found it of interest as it depicts a decidedly contemporary scene, as opposed to the bulk of the project which depicts historical ones. In it we see Cree youth in the Canadian Armed Forces on parade, following in the footsteps of several generations of veterans from this particular First Nation.
	This portrait depicts Thomas McKay: an English Métis or “Countryborn” man from Prince Albert, Saskatchewan. I thought it notable as he was a prominent opponent of Louis Riel, and the first mayor (1886) of Prince Albert. McKay was allegedly nearly executed by Riel as a traitor to the Métis nation. Thomas had strong ties to both the Conservative party of his day, and the Hudson’s Bay Company, through his extended family, and his brother-in-law Lawrence Clarke (who some Métis, such as James Isbister, claimed instigated the 1885 uprising by uttering false threats). From a local perspective: like him or loathe him, he was a key player in the events of his day.
	This image is a portrait of Charles-Eugene Boucher of Batoche, Saskatchewan. Traditional Canadian history depicts the Métis story at Batoche as ending with the aftermath of 1885, although the community continued on into the early 1920s as shown through the work of Diane Payment. Charles is an example of a dynamic, young, post-uprising political leader, having served as an MLA (for the Northwest Territories Legislature) and community leader in the 1890s.
	This image appears to be from an early twentieth century postcard. I found it interesting because I’d never heard of a “half-breed prophet” and I think it says more about society in southern Canada and the vision of the north as a mystical otherworld than about the people there.
	This image depicts a thunderbird on a stone near Kamsack, Saskatchewan. I found it interesting as a photograph of the depiction of a being with spiritual significance to the Aboriginal people of the area. It also brings to mind the past prevalence of such sites in rural southern Saskatchewan, many of which have unfortunately since been lost to the ages, or destroyed by development (such as the famed Mistaseni rock at Outlook).

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