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Abstract
This thesis explores the social history of the Indian Agent in Kahnawake 1 from the late nineteenth century until 1973. The Indian Agent was a key figure in Native-State relations from the late 19th until the mid-to-late twentieth centuries in Canada. In the pre-Confederation landscape Indian Agents were responsible acting as mediators between Native peoples, surrounding settler society and the Crown. The role of Indian Agents in the lives of Indian peoples was greatly altered following the passage of the consolidated Indian Act of 1876. Following the passage of the consolidated Act, Indian Agents became responsible for enacting the clauses of the Act on reserves, exercising surveillance over Indian populations and transmitting information about the state of reserve affairs to the Indian Department, as well as ensuring the health and 'well-being' of those in their charge.
Despite the central role that they played as the 'eyes and ears' of the Canadian State on reserves across Canada, Indian Agents have remained largely under-researched in the disciplines of history, anthropology and Native Studies. Utilizing an interdisciplinary methodology which combines elements of traditional historical research with anthropology, this thesis is an archive and ethnographically-drive examination of the tenures of several Indian Agents in Kahnawake. This thesis seeks to understand their role in the interpretation and application of Indian policy on reserve and to explore the experiences, memories and responses of those people who were impacted by them most, Kahnawakero:non.
1Kahnawake is a Mohawk reservation located just south of Montreal.
