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Present. Preserve. Protect.

This bench overlooks the river and burial mounds (Photo: Chris McEvoy, Rusty Anchor Productions)

By

Kayleigh Speirs and Art Hunter

Indigenous heritage, Community

Published Date:01 Oct 2019

Photo: This bench overlooks the river and burial mounds (Photo: Chris McEvoy, Rusty Anchor Productions)

Kay-Nah-Chi-Wah-Nung Historical Centre, the Place of the Long Rapids, is a historically significant meeting place located along the banks of Manidoo Ziibi (Spirit River or Rainy River) in Northwestern Ontario. Also known as Manitou Mounds, it is the largest concentration of known burial mounds in North America; it was designated a National Historic Site in 1969. The centre is owned and operated by Rainy River First Nations, and offers interpretive tours and galleries, a collections space with over 20,000 objects and artifacts, a gift shop that showcases artwork by local Indigenous artists, and a restaurant with a menu that features traditional Anishinaabe ingredients.

The construction of a historical centre was talked about for decades by Rainy River First Nations members before it became a reality in the mid-1990s. As described by James Leonard, former Rainy River First Nations Chief, “For thousands and thousands of years we’ve been here. We’ve traded here, we’ve hunted here, we’ve fished here, and we’ve always wanted to share this place with the rest of the world.”

Kay-Nah-Chi-Wah-Nung Historical Centre (Photo: Chris McEvoy, Rusty Anchor Productions)

Kay-Nah-Chi-Wah-Nung Historical Centre (Photo: Chris McEvoy, Rusty Anchor Productions)

At the time of its construction, it was important to community Elders that the centre be built near the burial mounds themselves. All land is sacred and has its own history and importance, and the grounds of Kay-Nah-ChiWah-Nung have a long and rich heritage, holding the record of more than 8,000 years of recurring use or occupation by Indigenous people. While countless Indigenous communities have travelled, traded, lived and mourned on the grounds of Kay-Nah-Chi-Wah-Nung, Rainy River First Nations considers themselves the stewards of the mounds. As Art Hunter, a band member and centre employee, puts it, “They are our ancestors, we are the caretakers. It is our responsibility now because we are the ones that are here.”

Community members have described how, growing up, they were always aware of the mounds and would hear stories from their parents and grandparents about them. For many, however, it was not until the centre was built and they were able to see exhibits and displays that represented those stories and histories that all of that knowledge was able to be truly conceptualized.

Kay-Nah-Chi-Wah-Nung operates in two worlds: a cultural world and a business one. In the cultural world, the centre exists to preserve and protect the burial mounds and all associated items and knowledge for the people of Rainy River First Nations. In the business world, the centre is here to present that knowledge and share it with our visitors through tours, cultural programming, workshops and more. While these two worlds may seem distinctly different, in reality they are inextricably linked, and in many ways one could not exist without the other.

Burial mounds and the legacy of Indigenous mound builders in North America is not widely known or well understood. Much of the cultural knowledge, traditions and information about why mounds were built has been forgotten, and many of the mounds themselves have been destroyed. KayNah-Chi-Wah-Nung is a unique and sacred place, it is one of the few museums and cultural centres in Ontario that is owned by an Indigenous community whose history and knowledge is on display within its walls. The importance of having communities in charge of their own stories, lands and material culture – both the tangible and intangible aspects – is essential, and the need for more centres and museums that make this possible is urgent.

Kay-Nah-Chi-Wah-Nung is a gathering place, a place for sharing and experiencing unique cultural knowledge and traditions. As explained by Willie Wilson, former Chief of Rainy River First Nations, “Kay-Nah-Chi-Wah-Nung is part of our homeland and our heritage. It has a deep significance to our people and we have struggled long and hard to preserve and protect it. We now have the chance to share it with everyone.” A sentiment echoed often by community members and others engaged in cultural tourism is that the best way to protect and preserve something is to educate people about it. Art Hunter describes a time when he was conducting a trail check at the site and came across fourwheeler tracks covering one of the burial mounds. While his initial reaction was anger and sadness, it also cemented his belief of the importance of having the centre and having a presence here in order to teach people to respect the land and those that are buried here.

Without education and the meaningful dissemination of knowledge, many of Ontario’s heritage sites would be in danger of being forgotten or destroyed. It is important to continue to present these unique cultural spaces in order to protect and preserve them. As expressed by Art Hunter, “It is important that we keep this place going not only for visitors, but for our future generations. It is here for learning and for our own people. If we didn’t have it, I don’t know what it would be like – I wouldn’t know as much about my own people, my history. My desire to know more has been brought to life with the centre.”

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What’s happening in your community? With significant amendments to the Ontario Heritage Act in April 2005 and a strengthening of the Provincial Policy Statement (PPS)...

Port Carling plaque unveiling, from left: Mr. R.J. Boyer, MPP, Muskoka; Miss Elizabeth Penson; The Honourable Leslie Frost, Premier; The Honourable Bryan Cathcart; The Honourable William Griesinger; and Reeve Robert Bennett.

In the beginning . . . the first provincial plaque

Fifty years ago – on a fine fall afternoon, September 26, 1956 – I witnessed the unveiling of Ontario’s first provincial plaque in my hometown...

Clark-McCleary House, rear elevation

Exploring Country Heritage Park

In March 2006, the Ontario Heritage Trust acquired a cultural conservation easement on Country Heritage Park. Located in Milton, this designed heritage attraction was created...

Parading into the Spencerville Mill grounds is the Glengarry Pipe Band (Photo: The Spencerville Mill Foundation)

Saving the Spencerville Mill – Preserving community heritage

The Spencerville Mill, a fine cut-stone flour and grist mill, is located on the bank of the South Nation River in the small rural village...

Richview-Willow Grove Cemetery

Rush and remembrance

On a windswept summer day in 2005, a small congregation gathered beside a cloverleaf off-ramp at the western fringe of Toronto. In Richview-Willow Grove Cemetery...

Today, the Ashbridge Estate is widely known in Toronto’s east end for its lush gardens. The Estate is owned and operated by the Ontario Heritage Trust. Its extensive collection of artifacts and archaeological discoveries celebrate the evolution of the Ashbridge family.

The biography of a house: If these walls could speak

Researching family history is a popular pastime for many who want to uncover their family’s unique past and discover how they contributed to Ontario’s growth...

Peterborough's Market Hall, before

Winning the battle

There are countless examples across the province of successful restorations of Ontario’s treasured heritage sites. Although the challenges are great – funding being the primary...

Peel Heritage Complex, Brampton

Our cultural heritage places: how heritage buildings adapt

Although heritage remains a year-round activity for many of us, Heritage Day is celebrated annually on the third Monday in February. This year’s theme speaks...

Penetanguishene Centennial Museum and Archives

Small-town museums key to small-town success

For 18 years, my wife and I raised our two sons in the Town of Richmond Hill just north of Toronto. When we moved to...

The earliest brick structure in the City of Hamilton – the Book House, located in Ancaster – was recently lost to a suspected case of arson. (Photo: Sharon Vattay, City of Hamilton)

Moving forward with heritage conservation

Thirty years ago, when the Ontario Heritage Act was new, I was a young planner with about a year’s experience working in London, England and...

Coldwater Grist Mill – serving the community since 1833; an active part of Doors Open Huronia since 2002

The new Ontario Heritage Act: The evolution of heritage conservation

An important shift has occurred in Ontario’s legislative framework for heritage conservation. On April 28, 2005, the Ontario Heritage Amendment Act (Bill 60) received royal...

Flooding in Toronto caused by Hurricane Hazel (Photo: Madeleine McDowell)

Hurricane Hazel 50 years later

There was little warning about Hurricane Hazel – one of the worst storms in Canada’s history. At the time, few Canadians paid attention to tropical...

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