The Canadian Indian residential school system was a network of boarding schools for Indigenous peoples. The network was funded by the Canadian government's Department of Indian Affairs and administered by Christian churches. The school system was created to isolate Indigenous children from the influence of their own culture and religion in order to assimilate them into the dominant Canadian culture. Over the course of the system's more than hundred-year existence, around 150,000 children were placed in residential schools nationally. By the 1930s, about 30 percent of Indigenous children were attending residential schools. The number of school-related deaths remains unknown due to incomplete records. Estimates range from 3,200 to over 30,000, mostly from disease.
An unmarked grave is one that lacks a marker, headstone, or nameplate indicating that a body is buried there. However, in cultures that mark burial sites, the phrase unmarked grave has taken on a metaphorical meaning.
Tkʼemlúps te Secwépemc, abbreviated TteS and previously known as the Kamloops Indian Band, is a First Nations government within the Shuswap Nation Tribal Council, which represents ten of the seventeen Secwepemc band governments, all in the southern Central Interior region, spanning the Thompson and Shuswap districts. It is one of the largest of the 17 groups into which the Secwepemc (Shuswap) nation was divided when the Colony of British Columbia established an Indian reserve system in the 1860s.
The Kamloops Indian Residential School was part of the Canadian Indian residential school system. Located in Kamloops, British Columbia, it was once the largest residential school in Canada, with its enrolment peaking at 500 in the 1950s. The school was established in 1890 and operated until 1969, when it was taken over from the Catholic Church by the federal government to be used as a day school residence. It closed in 1978. The school building still stands today, and is located on the Tk’emlúps te Secwépemc First Nation.
The Truth and Reconciliation Commission of Canada was a truth and reconciliation commission active in Canada from 2008 to 2015, organized by the parties of the Indian Residential Schools Settlement Agreement.
Marieval is a hamlet in Saskatchewan.
Sioux Valley Dakota Nation (SVDN) or Wipazoka Wakpa is a Dakota (Sioux) First Nation that resides west of Brandon, Manitoba.
The Indian hospitals were racially segregated hospitals, originally serving as tuberculosis sanatoria but later operating as general hospitals for indigenous peoples in Canada which operated during the 20th century. The hospitals were originally used to isolate Indigenous tuberculosis patients from the general population because of a fear among health officials that "Indian TB" posed a danger to the non-indigenous population. Many of these hospitals were located on Indian reserves, and might also be called reserve hospitals, while others were in nearby cities.
St. Mary's Indian Residential School was the name of two Indian residential schools in Mission, British Columbia. The first was operated by the Roman Catholic Church of Canada, and the second was operated by the Canadian federal government. Approximately 2,000 children attended the schools while they were in operation, most of them Stó:lō.
The Battleford Industrial School was a Canadian Indian residential school for First Nations children in Battleford, Northwest Territories from 1883-1914. It was the first residential school operated by the Government of Canada with the aim of assimilating Indigenous people into the society of the settlers.
Shingwauk Indian Residential School was a Canadian residential school for First Nations, Métis, and Inuit children that operated in Canada between 1873 and 1970 in Sault Ste. Marie, Ontario, by the Anglican Church of Canada and the Government of Canada.
The St. John's Indian Residential School, also known as the Chapleau Indian Residential School, was a Canadian Indian Residential School operated by the Anglican Church of Canada from 1907 to 1948 in Chapleau, Ontario.
The National Day for Truth and Reconciliation, originally and still colloquially known as Orange Shirt Day, is a Canadian holiday to recognize the legacy of the Canadian Indian residential school system.
The Kootenay Indian Residential School, composed of the St. Eugene's and St. Mary's mission schools, was a part of the Canadian Indian residential school system and operated in Cranbrook, British Columbia between 1890 and 1970. The school, run by the Missionary Oblates of Mary Immaculate of the Roman Catholic Church, first opened in 1890. It was replaced by an industrial school in 1912 that continued to operate until it was closed in 1970. Between 1912 and 1970, over 5,000 children from across British Columbia and Alberta attended the school. The building has been home to the St. Eugene Golf Resort and Casino since 2000.
The Kuper Island Indian Residential School, also known as Kuper Island Indian Industrial School, was a Canadian Indian residential school located on Kuper Island, near Chemainus, British Columbia, that operated from 1889 to 1975. The school was operated by the Roman Catholic Church, with funding from the Department of Indian Affairs.
The Marieval Indian Residential School was part of the Canadian Indian residential school system. Located on the Cowessess 73 reserve in Marieval, Saskatchewan, it operated from 1898 to 1997. It was located in Qu'Appelle Valley, east of Crooked Lake and 24 km (15 mi) north of Broadview.
Hundreds or thousands of child graves surround the sites of former Canadian Indian residential schools, with some marked and others never marked or with markers that have since been removed. On 27 May 2021, the Tkʼemlúps te Secwépemc announced that ground-penetrating radar had confirmed the presence of 215 undocumented child graves on the grounds of the former Kamloops Indian Residential School. National and international news media outlets reported the discovery of the graves. Several similar reports from other former residential schools followed over the ensuing months, leading to many commemorations and protests. Christian denominations involved in the operation of residential schools faced increased criticism following the investigations into the gravesites. In the ensuing months, a series of arsons were set at Catholic and Anglican churches and Pope Francis made a "penitential" visit to Canada in 2022.
The Birtle Indian Residential School was a school within the Canadian Indian residential school system that operated in Birtle, Manitoba from 1888 to 1970. Operated by the Presbyterian Church in Canada, attendance during the school's operation ranged from 19 to 170 students.
The Muscowequan Indian Residential School was a school within the Canadian Indian residential school system that operated on the lands of the Muskowekwan First Nation and in Lestock, Saskatchewan, from 1889 to 1997.
The Missionary Oblates of Mary Immaculate (OMI) is a missionary religious congregation in the Catholic Church. As part of their mission to evangelize the "abandoned poor", the Oblates are known for their mission among the Indigenous peoples of Canada, and their historic administration of at least 57 schools within the Canadian Indian residential school system. Some of those schools have been associated with cases of child abuse by Oblate clergy and staff.
