Lecture Series - Historical Society

Submitted on October 27, 2011 - 2:49pm

The lecture below is part of our Lectures at the Library series - this one is Nov. 4 at 2:00 PM in the theater at the John M. Cuelenaere Public Library in Prince Albert.

Sharing Indigenous Knowledge

This presentation will look at the role of indigenous knowledge past, present and future. Some Elders are worried that the traditional knowledge and the oral traditions are going to be lost and want to see them passed on to younger generations. It is an exciting time in our communities as long as this knowledge is protected and respected. It is important to share our stories, not only in this province, but also internationally. Sharing is a way of building bridges between people; helping our young people be proud of who they are; and of trying to repair our relationship with the environment.

Bente Huntley is a Cree-Metis from Muskoday First Nation; Her mother is from Muskoday and her father from Denmark.

She is currently retired from Saskatchewan Urban Native Teacher Education Program (SUNTEP) in Prince Albert where she worked from 1992 to 2010. In 1975 she received a Diploma in Renewable Resources Technology from SIAST in Saskatoon, one of the first women and one of the first Aboriginal people to go through the program.

She worked in forestry, had 3 children and eventually went back to school to become a teacher in the SUNTEP program. After graduating from SUNTEP she decided to do a Masters degree and enrolled in curriculum studies with an emphasis on science.

She did a project on Traditional Environmental Knowledge of the Cree people of North Central Saskatchewan working with Elders to created a slide presentation on plants which is accompanied by the oral stories of Elder Vicki Wilson.

Stay tuned for the Nov. 18th lecture on Weather. Feel free to pass this on to anyone you think might be interested. We hope to see lots of you out for this excellent opportunity to learn something new.

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About the author

Prince Albert Historical Society

The Prince Albert Historical Society is one of the oldest historical societies in Western Canada, first established in 1886 by residents who realized that the previous generation and they themselves were making history by developing Prince Albert and the surrounding region. A fire in 1890 at the Nisbet Academy destroyed the artifacts and records that the Society had collected, which also put an end to the Society for a time. In 1923 Professor Arthur Morton, the City of Prince Albert and citizens interested in local history reorganized the Historical Society. The Society established a museum in the Nisbet church located in Kinsmen (then Bryant) park and an archive in 1932. The museum was moved to the Prince Albert Court House on Central Avenue in 1946. The Nisbet Church was again established as a museum in 1972 and operated until 1975. When the Fire Department vacated the original fire hall in 1975 the City of Prince Albert invited the Society to establish a permanent museum in that building. Since 1977 when the permanent museum opened to the public the Prince Albert Historical Society has been based at the appropriately historic original fire hall at 10 River Street East. The Bill Smiley Archives are named in honour of the man who has done more to preserve Prince Albert history than any other, having spent years collecting and organizing important historical items. Today over 15,000 photographs. 300,000 negatives and 15,000 documents are kept at the Historical Museum. These records are a significant source for information on Prince Albert, the surrounding region and all of Canada. Access to the archives is available to the public and if you are interested in acquiring information please check our archives page. As of 2009 our Society is made up of 55 members and 14 member volunteer board of directors. Membership fees are $ 10.00 per year. We hold many annual events including the spring Crocus Tea, participate in the downtown Street Fair and host a Christmas Party. During the summer season a staff of 13 tour guides keeps the museums open while during the rest of the year the museums can visited accompanied with one of our dedicated volunteer members. The Prince Albert Historical Society is committed to preserving local history and being able to showcase it to local residents and visitors alike.

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