Manitoba History: Red River Descendants Reunion, 13-21 August 2005

by Barbara Gessner
Winnipeg, Manitoba

Number 49, June 2005

This article was published originally in Manitoba History by the Manitoba Historical Society on the above date. We make this online version available as a free, public service. As an historical document, the article may contain language and views that are no longer in common use and may be culturally sensitive in nature. Please direct all inquiries to webmaster@mhs.mb.ca. Help us keep history alive!

Ballenden, Birston, Clouston, Fidler, Fraser, Grant, McDermot, Pruden, Ross, Setter, Sinclair, Sutherland and Tait. What do all these names have in common? These, plus countless others, are the names of men who worked for the Hudson’s Bay Company in various capacities. The HBC played a vital role in the settlement at Red River, particularly after the amalgamation with the North West Company in the 1820s. Many of the retired HBC employees opted to settle in the Red River Settlement that stretched from St. Peter’s parish, north of Lower Fort Garry to St. Norbert in the south.

To help celebrate the 175th anniversary of Lower Fort Garry National Historic Site of Canada, the Lower Fort Garry Volunteer Association is organizing a “Red River Descendants Reunion” at Lower Fort Garry 13-21 August 2005. We are asking descendants of these HBC families who originally settled in the Red River Settlement to join us at Lower Fort Garry to celebrate their heritage and to reestablish connections.

Lower Fort Garry National Historic Site will be the site of the “Red River Descendants Reunion” in August 2005.
Source: Barbara Gessner

The schedule is updated constantly. On Monday, 15 August the arrival of the Red River carts and outriders will be an awesome sight as they make their way into the Fort walls. This event will mark the official opening of the Reunion. The Living History Encampment will be set up Tuesday through Friday. Throughout the week there will be talks and a musical presentation on the Orkneys, Métis culture, crafts, and entertainment, a NWMP encampment and an antique and vintage car show and shine.

The most important aspect of this event is the genealogy component. Families will gather in the tents at different intervals throughout the week to discuss family trees; compare notes and meet long lost relatives. There will be various workshops and talks offered on all aspects of researching and recording family histories, and preserving documents and pictures. Please watch our web site for more information on the above as plans unfold.

Our web site can be found at www.redriverdescendantsreunion.org. [Note: As of January 2011, this web site is no longer active.] You may contact us at Box 394, Selkirk, Manitoba R1A 2B3, by phone: (204) 785-8577 or contact Barbara Gessner (chair) at (204) 338-7483.

Page revised: 12 January 2011