Historic Dunvegan Provincial Park

10/15/2026

What Was Happening Wednesday?

October was when canoe brigades arrived at Fort Dunvegan with new stock for the fort store. Trappers gathered to trade their furs for winter supplies. The post from 1829 illustrates some of the hazards and inconveniences associated with transporting goods long distances by canoe.

10/14/2026

💬Tuesday Tales📖 - The Grey Lady of Dunvegan Crossing

Hallowe'en is just around the corner! Most locals are familiar with this particular ghost story. The Lady of Dunvegan has been reported by several people and usually is said to be wearing white or grey. While we do not have any records of nuns living or working at the St. Charles mission at Dunvegan, there are some who have identified her as wearing a nun's habit.

What stories have you heard?

Newspaper Articles: Grande Prairie Daily Heral-Tribune, October 31, 1983 and 1997.

10/12/2026

Happy Thanksgiving, everyone! There are many different ways to give thanks. This article provides an Indigenous perspective.

From the article: “…she described Ojibway understandings of gratitude: “Our language and ways of doing things are all done with respect…” …gratitude is lived through reciprocity: offerings to the beings that provide food, feasts shared so no one goes without, and respect extended to ancestors and descendants alike.”

We'd love to hear about your traditions and ways of giving thanks!

10/09/2026

- Dunvegan Connections

Today’s comes from the October 11, 1994 edition of the Fairview Post. This one is for all you dinosaur fans out there!

The last paragraph of the article reads, “The only other example of skin impressions is from the duckbill dinosaur, so this could be a first.” What will come of the specimen is not known, but Tanke said a mold would probably be made of it at Drumheller and it would be made ready for display or research.”

A mold of the footprints is indeed on display at the Historic Dunvegan Visitor Centre and can be viewed when you visit the site next summer!

10/08/2026

What Was Happening Wednesday?

Both journal entries were written by Colin Campbell, who stayed at Dunvegan the winter of 1812-13, came back as Chief Trader from 1828-1832, and again from 1839-1841, after which time he was promoted to Chief Trader of the entire Athabasca District. The 1841 journal entry is the last he makes as man in charge of Fort Dunvegan before handing the responsibilities over to Francis Butcher.

Colin Campbell was born in Upper Canada around 1787 and worked at Fort Dunvegan when it was a North West and Hudson’s Bay company fort. Both his daughter Catherine and son James were born at Fort Dunvegan in 1815 and 1840 respectively. Fourteen (possibly fifteen) children were born to Liza (McGillivray) and Colin Campbell.

Francis Butcher (possibly also spelled Francois Boucher) was born about 1810 in Lower Canada. He was the Clerk in Charge at Fort Dunvegan for a decade. At this point in time, we can’t find any further information about his family life!

10/06/2026

Truth and Reconciliation doesn’t only happen on September 30th. This is a great guide for Allyship.

https://www.facebook.com/share/p/1GbN4Cf26v/

How to Be an Active Non-Indigenous Ally: Practical Steps for Truth and Reconciliation 🌲

Allyship is not a label we claim; it is an ongoing practice of learning, listening, and taking meaningful action. To support Truth and Reconciliation, non-Indigenous allies must actively work to dismantle systemic barriers and foster cultural safety in their personal and professional lives.

If you are looking to move from awareness to action, here are practical steps you can take to practice active allyship:

1. Do the Groundwork: Educate Yourself First.
Read the Calls to Action: Familiarize yourself with the Truth and Reconciliation Commission’s (TRC) 94 Calls to Action. Identify how they apply to your specific field, workplace, or community.
Learn the Local History: Research the treaties, traditional territories, and languages of the land where you live and work.
Listen Without Interrupting: Seek out books, podcasts, and articles by Indigenous authors, historians, and Elders. Focus on listening to understand, rather than responding.
2. Challenge Bias and Speak Up
Address Harmful Stereotypes: Gently but firmly challenge myths, racist remarks, or systemic biases when you encounter them in social, familial, or professional settings.
De-center Yourself: Use your platform to amplify Indigenous voices, rather than speaking on their behalf.
3. Support Indigenous Sovereignty and Economy
Buy Indigenous: Make a conscious effort to support Indigenous-owned businesses, artists, and community-led initiatives.
Support Grassroots Organizations: Donate to or volunteer with organizations that support Indigenous youth, language revitalization, and land-based healing.
4. Reflect and Adapt Your Practice
Examine Your Workplace: Ask how your organization can integrate cultural protocols, provide trauma-informed spaces, and recruit and retain Indigenous staff equitably.
Embrace the Discomfort: Acknowledging difficult truths can be uncomfortable. Accept this discomfort as a necessary part of growth and healing.

Reconciliation is a shared responsibility. By taking consistent, respectful action, we can build a foundation of mutual respect and genuine partnership.

10/03/2026

🎉Friday Fun😄 – Tag Your Friends! 🏷

You have travelled back in time to Fort Dunvegan in the 1880s. Who’s coming with you?

To play: Copy the text below into a new comment. For each line type in @ and select the first person to pop up on your tag list. Tag your friends to see who will join your time travel adventure!

🕰Loves singing loudly and is appointed the chanteur of the voyageur canoe:
🕰Tries to take advantage of the new fur trader by telling him his muskrat furs were baby beaver furs:
🕰Steals 8 pounds of candy from the Revillon Freres trade store:
🕰Broke their arm as a kid while rolling down the hills behind the Factor’s House:
🕰Can outlast anyone doing the Red River Jig during New Year’s Eve dances at the Factor’s House:
🕰Knits toques for all the voyageurs before they go to York Factory:
🕰Can cook 100 different meals with potatoes:
🕰Has a rotten tooth pulled out by the dental turnkey:
🕰Empties the chamber pots every morning:

09/30/2026

https://orangeshirtday.org/

Inspired by Phyllis Webstad’s story of having her orange shirt taken away on her first day at Indian residential school, we uplift the voices of Survivors and invite all people in Canada to walk the path of truth & reconciliation together. The Orange Shirt Society was established in 2015 to: Under...

09/30/2026

📖Tuesday Tales💬 – Do YOU have a Dunvegan tale to tell?

Perhaps it’s a historic story, family memory, or something that happened more recently during a visit at Dunvegan. Either way, we’d love to share YOUR Tuesday Tales.

If you’ve got a Dunvegan story you’d like to share, you can comment below or sent it to us by private message!

09/29/2026

This Wednesday is Truth and Reconciliation Day. The Municipality of Jasper has put together an excellent Truth and ReconciliACTION calendar with practical steps for anyone to take.

https://www.jasper-alberta.ca/p/reconciliation-calendar?fbclid=IwY2xjawUOq-FwZG9mAWV4dG4DYWVtAjEwAGJyaWQRMWZhWFZjYlNQUHc2dHF1bm9zcnRjBmFwcF9pZBAyMjIwMzkxNzg4MjAwODkyAAEe8psOffe500_kKLF4SvzyNm-LTNK4BnmvFB8e0JIqW9yFuRHd97auKWYOC7s_aem_Ijt1Rd4JJ4bb69ETnjERag

Truth and reconciliation is a year-round commitment to understanding how colonization continues to shape communities, systems, and daily life today. To support that ongoing learning and action, we’ve created a 30-Day Truth & Reconciliation Action Calendar with practical steps anyone can take. Move...