On January 12, 2024 Sturgeon Lake First Nation, Muskeg Lake First Nation, Montreal Lake First Nation and Crutwell Metis community members held a demonstration at the Provincial Forestry Centre in Prince Albert to protest plans to clear cut a pristine and ecologically sensitive part of the Nisbet Forest and encroach on an area of incredibly rich heritage density where multiple Forts and Trading posts operated during 1700s including the Lower Hudson House fort. This is traditional territory that is in use by community members who want to ensure the forest will be there for future generations too.
Lower Hudson House was designated as an official provincial heritage site in 2022. Lower Hudson House operated from 1779 to 1787 as an important trading centre for First Nations residents in area, and as a post for provisioning fur traders working farther to the west. It is believed that victims of the 1781-82 smallpox epidemic that devastated Indigenous communities in the region may have been buried in the designated area. Except for some limited investigations by historians and archaeologists, the site has remained undisturbed for more than 200 years.
Photos from January 12 demonstration:
Protect Our Forest 