An Echo Down the Road: July 2011

Tuesday was a gorgeous day in Niagara Region. I rode to the Fall’s tourist area and did about a 3 mile walk along the river walkway taking about 150 shots of the water and scenery. I’m sitting in my room now in the Hotel California North feeling good about the day and good about life.

I picked up mail at the post office yesterday and there in the bundle was special delivery notice from the Department of Indian and Northern Affairs (now called Aboriginal Affairs and Northern Development Canada but, I guess they were using up old envelopes). Inside was a formal letter acknowledging my application for status as Indian, under the new Gender Equity legislation passed in June. The letter notified me of my file number and stated that my application was being processed. I spoke to a friend who is Indian and she told me her brother waited over a year for the process to be finalized so now me, Mr. Full Speed Ahead, will get another lesson in patience as the wheels of government grind their way through the approval process.

There are many reminders of the First Nations here in Niagara. From the Seneca-owned casino across the river in Niagara Falls, NY to the history of the woods at Queenston Heights that tell the story of Chief John Norton from Six Nations Mohawk who began the rout of invading American forces from the heights, and of course, the Maid of the Mist boats that carry tourists into the waters below the falls to get wet and go oooo and ahhhhh. This tourist attraction is named after the daughter of a Neuter First Nations woman, the daughter of the chief, who was sent over the falls as a gift to the gods as the legend tells.

My brother has been gathering information about our family and photographs to fill in the gaps of our family history. He has spent long hours at this work and has established contact with other relatives of ours in the native community so the long concealed history of this part of our family becomes open and accessible to all of us.

This summer and fall I hope to make some rides to the reservations to view first hand, the documentation they have and to embrace this very important part of my heritage. It is a journey of discovery; maybe not a search for the Maid of the Mist but rather a quest to solve the mysteries of where my family came from and our roots in this nation.

Here are some of the photographs that have surfaced through the hard work of my brother Bruce and the good folks at the Tyendinaga, Deseronto reserve and our distant relatives who have given their time generously to make this story complete.