Alderville First Nation

Alderville First Nation
Type	Organization

Alderville First Nation is an Anishinaabe First Nation in Ontario.

In Anishinabek News

• April 2013: Alfred Simpson grew up on this reserve and attended a one-room schoolhouse there for his early education. Alfred Simpson published a website based on research conducted by his grandmother regarding the Rice Lake Indians.
• June 2013: Susanne Decock, a citizen of this community, was appointed to the Order of Merit of the Police Forces in 2013.
• June 2015: Citizen Maurice Switzer suggested that the Nipissing First Nation flag be flown permanently at the North Bay city hall.
• January 2016: The community health team has included Melissa McKeown as a member for over two decades. The nation operates programs for youth and addiction support, including the National Native Alcohol & Drug Addiction Program.
• March 2016: Members of this community attended the education ratification workshop held in Toronto in February 2016.
• September 2016: Mississauga First Nation is working to realign with this community.
• May 2017: The Southeast Regional Chiefs met in this community during the last week of April 2017.
• June 2017: The community was formerly known as the Alnwick Reserve. It was one of seven First Nations coerced into the 1923 Williams Treaty, which resulted in the loss of harvesting rights. The community is part of the Mississauga nation that has dominated the Canadian shore of Lake Ontario for 400 years.
• January 2018: The community was the home of 2018 Heroes in Health award recipients Nora Sawyer and Marcie Simpson. The First Nation operates various health and child development programmes to support its residents.
• June 2018: The community's leader, Jim Bob Marsden, was acclaimed to a regional deputy position in the Anishinabek Nation in 2018.
• November 2018: Approximately 500 members of the community gathered at the community centre in November 2018 to receive per capita distribution cheques from a treaty settlement. The community was one of seven First Nations that signed the Williams Treaties in 1923. The First Nation chose to retain a portion of the settlement funds for future land investments and community development projects.
• May 2019: The community was home to Moses Marsden, who served as its Chief from 1905 to 1909. In 2018, a federal official announced the formal resolution of the Williams Treaty claim affecting the community. Former Chief J.R. Marsden spent much of his 16-year tenure working toward a settlement for the community's treaty claims.
• October 2019: A story from this community describes the Devil attending a dance at the old hall and later chasing a couple in a horse and buggy.
• November 2019: The community is the home of Chanelle Smoke, who served as an assistant to the local cultural coordinator in 2019. The First Nation staged a pow wow in July 2019.
• March 2020: The community was the birthplace and final residence of Olympic marathon runner Fred Simpson Sr.. Early signatories to Treaty 27 in 1819 were ancestors of Fred Simpson Sr. from this community.
• May 2020: The community lost its oldest citizen, Ruby Marsden Hicks, who passed away in May 2020 shortly before her 101st birthday. The community's historic cenotaph includes the names of four members of the Marsden family who served during world wars.
• November 2020: The community is the home of storyteller and writer Leanne Betasamosake Simpson.
• December 2020: Suzanne Smoke, a recipient of a 2020 Atlohsa Peace Award, is a member of Alderville First Nation.
• March 2021: The community is home to James Marsden, who advocated for better financial support for on-reserve businesses.
• October 2021: This community is the home nation of Deputy Grand Council Chief James Marsden.
• November 2021: The community held a Remembrance Day ceremony on November 7, 2021, to honour citizens who served in the military. As of November 2021, there are 1,300 citizens of the community, with 320 members residing on the reserve. Nine members of the community died during the First World War and two died during the Second World War.
• December 2021: The community's Manager of Health and Social Services, Phyllis Williams, is a member of the Anishinabek Nation Health Transformation Working Group.
• February 2022: The community's leadership participated in the opening welcome addresses for the Elders and Traditional Peoples Gathering in 2022.
• March 2022: James Marsden spoke from this community during the 2022 climate forum regarding water security issues.
• April 2022: The community is the home nation of retired captain Bryan Pennell.
• April 2022: Maurice Switzer, the author of We Are All Treaty People, is a member of Alderville First Nation.
• May 2022: Alderville First Nation is home to the Black Oak Savanna, a sensitive tall grass prairie ecology containing species at risk. As of May 2022, a group of young people in the community have been learning Anishinaabemowin and are doing well with their fluency.
• January 2023: The community's health and social services department is managed by Phyllis Williams. The nation is represented on the Health Transformation Working Group.
• March 2023: The Gen7 Fuel station in Roseneath donated $2,000 toward a new splash pad project for the local day care. The project aims to provide a new play area for children attending the Alderville Day Care.
• May 2023: The Anishinabek Nation Southeast Regional Chiefs Meeting was held in this community on May 12, 2023.
• May 2023: The community was formerly led by John Wesley Beaver, who is the namesake of an Ontario Power Generation scholarship.
• June 2023: The community's Williams Treaty trust is used as an example of how settlement funds can ensure post-secondary education for all qualified students.
• July 2023: The community is one of the six First Nations served by the Ogemawahj Tribal Council.
• September 2023: Maurice Switzer is a citizen of the Michi Saagig of this First Nation.
• April 2024: Kyla Fleming is a member of this community.
• May 2024: Allen Salt taught at the mission school located in this community after graduating from the Toronto Normal School.
• May 2024: The community initiated a lawsuit regarding the Williams Treaties in 1992 to fight for harvesting rights on traditional lands. The Chief and Council established a 50-year trust using 60 per cent of their treaty settlement funds to benefit future generations. Trust funds have supported post-secondary students, the purchase of additional reserve lands, and Anishinaabemowin language projects.
• July 2024: Alderville First Nation is hosting the return of its classic regatta at Vimy Ridge in 2024. The community historically provided wild rice for trade in the Peterborough region. The First Nation held its first pow wow in 1995, though the Alderville Regatta predates it as a major homecoming event.
• January 2025: Alderville First Nation was the site of a Marsden family reunion where Moses Marsden shared stories with his relatives. Moses Marsden served as the elected leader of Alderville First Nation from 1904 to 1909.
• January 2025: The community is engaging in early discussions with the Province of Ontario regarding energy infrastructure plans. Leadership expressed hope for meaningful dialogue concerning the various phases of the proposed Wesleyville project.
• January 2025: This community is the home First Nation of Irene Starr, the owner of BTC Fight Promotions.
• March 2025: Representatives from the community took part in a ceremonial puck drop at a Peterborough Petes game in February 2025. Dancers, singers, and other performers from the community provided entertainment throughout the Indigenous Heritage Night event.
• April 2025: The community is developing manufacturing opportunities to support energy initiatives and battery storage. As of April 2025, the community operates multiple gas stations and approximately 15 to 20 cannabis shops.
• August 2025: This community is the home of the Smoke family and the location where Lindsay Happyjack Smoke was raised. As of August 2025, Lindsay Happyjack Smoke works remotely from this community while visiting her grandfather.
• December 2025: The community passed its largest band council resolution in history to recognize Rice Lake as a legal person. The First Nation spearheaded a two-year effort involving municipalities and conservation groups to establish a guardians council for the lake. Representatives from the community worked with the International Observatory for the Rights of Nature to draft the legal resolution.
• February 2026: Adam Crowe, the founder of The Butter Tart Empire Bakery, is a citizen of this First Nation.
• February 2026: Citizens Derek Marsden and Lanny Ferguson represented the community at a business conference in 2026.
• February 2026: The community hosted a 100th birthday celebration for veteran Don Smoke in February 2026. Don Smoke is the last remaining veteran from this First Nation to have served in the Canadian military during World War II.
• March 2026: The community is a member of the Energy Corridor First Nations consortium supporting a new transmission line. The nation's treaty territory includes Barrie, the starting point for the proposed 290-kilometre energy project. Leadership expects the community to gain recognition of treaty rights and potential financial benefits from the infrastructure development.
• April 2026: Kathy MacLeod-Beaver, the keynote speaker for the Urban Indigenous Health Fair, is a citizen of Alderville First Nation.
• May 2026: The community is considered a leader in the field of archaeology.
• October 2026: Moses Muskrat Marsden attended a training school in this community before running away at age eight.