A site in Brandon north of the Assiniboine River, within the former public Curran Park (now privately owned), is believed to be where children who died while attending the Brandon Indian Residential School in the early 20th century were buried. In 1972, the Brandon Girl Guides placed a commemorative monument for the “Indian Children Burial Ground” here, as a Manitoba centennial project. They maintained a fenced area around the monument for many years although it is not known with certainty whether the monument was located at the exact burial location.
Another cemetery, north of this site, contains later burials from the school.
Site of the original Indian Residential School Cemetery at Brandon (circa 2000)
Source: Robert Haglund
Commemorative plaque for those buried in the original Indian Residential School Cemetery at Brandon (circa 2000)
Source: Robert HaglundSite Location (lat/long): N49.85840, W99.99616
denoted by symbol on the map above
See also:
A Cup of Cold Water: Alfred Kirkness and the Brandon Residential School Cemeteries by Anne Lindsay, Clare Cook, and David Cuthbert
Manitoba History, Number 78, Summer 2015Investigation of unmarked graves and burial grounds at the Brandon Indian Residential School by Katherine Lyndsay Nichols, MA thesis, Department of Anthropology, University of Manitoba, 2015.
Historic Sites of Manitoba: Brandon Indian Residential School (RM of Cornwallis)
Historic Sites of Manitoba: Brandon Indian Residential School Cemetery (RM of Cornwallis)
Historic Sites of Manitoba: Brandon Old Indian Residential School Cemetery (Brandon)
Historic Sites of Manitoba: Birtle Indian Residential School (Birtle, Municipality of Prairie View)
Historic Sites of Manitoba: Elkhorn Indian Residential School (Elkhorn, RM of Wallace-Woodworth)
Historic Sites of Manitoba: MacKay Indian Residential School (Opaskwayak Cree Nation)
Historic Sites of Manitoba: Portage la Prairie Indian Residential School (Crescent Road West, Portage la Prairie)
Historic Sites of Manitoba: Pine Creek Indian Residential School / Camperville Indian Residential School (Pine Creek First Nation)
Historic Sites of Manitoba: Norway House Indian Residential School (Norway School)
Historic Sites of Manitoba: Julia Clark School (611 Academy Road, Winnipeg)
Historic Sites of Manitoba: Residential School Totem Pole (Assiniboine Park, Winnipeg)
Historic Sites of Manitoba: Rupert’s Land Indian Industrial School / St. Paul’s Industrial School (Middlechurch, RM of West St. Paul)
A list of burials in this cemetery is available from the Manitoba Genealogical Society, including a searchable online database available to members at the MGS Manitoba Name Index (MANI). Some additional information is contained in the 1996 MGS publication Carved in Stone: Manitoba Cemeteries and Burial Sites, revised edition, Special Projects Publication, 106 pages.
“Girl Guides dedicate plaque at Indian Children’s Cemetery,” Brandon Sun, 7 June 1972, page 19.
We thank Katherine Nichols, Diane Haglund, and Anne Lindsay for providing information used here.
This page was prepared by Gordon Goldsborough.
Page revised: 11 June 2021
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