By Jeremy Appel Local Journalism Initiative Reporter The Michel Callihoo Nation Society (MCNS) is in search of people who are descended from members of Michel Band #472 as it seeks to obtain official federal government recognition for a new band,,Michel Callihoo Nation. Chief Michel Callihoo signed onto Treaty 6 in 1878, resulting in the establishment of Michel Band two years after the Treaty was initially signed. In 1880, the nation received 40 square miles of reserve land on the Sturgeon River near St. Albert. Michel was disbanded in 1958 when former prime minister John Deifenbaker enfranchised the entire band’s membership as a means of forced assimilation, except for four women and one child, who lost their band membership but maintained their Treaty status. This was the first and only time…
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