The Sagkeeng First Nation found 190 irregularities in the ground and the Minegoziibe Anishinabe First Nation identified six. Initial data show that the irregularities meet some of the criteria for graves, but both communities say they need more information. The news was recently shared with community members. “We will take our time and make sure we do the right thing,” said Sagkeeng chief Derrick Henderson. Sagkeeng’s efforts began last year. School survivors shared their memories of areas they believed might have tombs associated with the Fort Alexander Residential School. The school opened in 1905 in the community of Fort Alexander, which later became the Sagkeeng First Nation. He ran until 1970 and had a reputation for abuse. The survivors told the Truth and Reconciliation Committee about hunger and harsh discipline. The community partnered with an unmanned aerial vehicle company that conducted ground penetration radar on three levels. Henderson said he found two sites with anomalies. Neither is a known cemetery, but both were points that school survivors had marked on the maps before the investigation began. Henderson said the leadership will consult with the elderly, survivors and pipe transport operators to decide on the next steps to confirm if there are any graves. “How do we start the excavations?” Henderson thought. “I should probably bring archaeologists. There is still a lot of work to be done.” When the information was shared with community members, they had a party and a ceremony, he said. Many members of the community struggle with unanswered questions as more anomalies are identified, Henderson said. It will take time to find the certainty, he added, and only then can closure and treatment begin. “Now we know locations. Now we know there is something.” In Minegoziibe Anishinabe First Nation, six anomalies are located under a church on the site of the former Pine Creek Residential School, said Derek Nepinak. Survivors had asked to be examined in the area because of “horror stories” about what happened in the church basement, he said. First Nation sees the area as a possible crime scene, he said. “We are looking for answers, but what we are doing is getting to more questions,” he said. Minegoziibe Anishinabe also hired a drone technology company specializing in ground penetration radar. The company used a stroller to conduct ground research under the church due to limited space, a community statement said. Survivors and community members called on the leadership to conduct another, more detailed radar search in the basement. The community is still awaiting results from another area suspected of having insignificant landfills, the leader said. Pine Creek School operated from 1890 to 1969 in a few different buildings on a large plot. The National Center for Truth and Reconciliation has a record of 21 school deaths and survivors have long spoken of abuse at the institution. Nepink said the First Nation has gone through records and knows of dozens of children who died while attending school, but there may be others that are not part of this story. The treatment will take time, he said. The hope is that it will inform the next generations. “We want the truth to be told and the truth to be known.” India’s Residential Schools Health Support Program has an open line to help school survivors and their relatives suffering from trauma caused by past abuse recall. The number is 1-866-925-4419. This Canadian Press report was first published on June 11, 2022.
