
Fred Payton
Prince Albert Historical Society
In August 1939, a list prepared by Edward Ahenakew was submitted to a committee preparing for the Jubilee celebrating Emmanuel College. Of the fifty-eight First Nations men on that list, at least eleven had been, or were, members of the Canadian Armed Forces. Of those men, three had been killed in action, while two had died later as a result of wounds incurred.
Outside of the Band Office at Muskeg Lake Cree Nation, there are three monuments on which are engraved forty-five names. The Band’s website indicates that they “show appreciation for what the veterans have done for Canada and the native community”.
At the time of the 1885 Resistance, members of the bands which now make up the Mistawasis First Nation and Ahtahkakoop Cree Nation rode to the Prince Albert Settlement to offer protection to its citizens. Although no action was required on their part, they remained camped outside the community until there was no longer a threat.
These examples are just a few of many which could be listed which indicate the willingness of First Nations people to serve within and alongside the Canadian military. That willingness extends further back, before the Treaties, before Canada became a nation.


Prince Albert and area Indigenous veterans Thomas Settee (left, seen here in this photo from November 1959) and and Urban Leonard Vermette.
We have at the Prince Albert Historical Museum a George III medal which was presented to Chief Flying Thunder in the War of 1812 for their loyalty and the respect that they had shown to “the Great Mother across the water”. The medal was passed from Chief Flying Thunder to his descendant, Chief Hupa Yakta, and in turn to his son, Chief Tamah. Chief Tamah was the last hereditary Chief of Wahpeton Dakota Reserve. He passed on the medal to the Reverend J.C. Meek who had been the minister to the Wahpeton band. Meek in turn, gave it to the Prince Albert Historical Society. The Society formally holds the medal in safe-keeping on behalf of the Wahpeton Band. Both the Band and the Society have replicas of the medal. These replicas are on display for the public to see.
The loyalty to the Monarch which resulted in receipt of the George III medal was further cemented when the Treaties, such as Treaty Six, were signed. This instilled a sense of patriotic duty, which in turn led many members of the First Nations to volunteer for service in the First World War. That same sense of patriotism also served to encourage men to join the Canadian Forces in successive wars, although other factors contributed. For example, the lack of employment and the poverty of the Dirty Thirties encouraged men to join the forces at the start of the Second World War.
Joseph Okemasis of Muskeg Lake was only seventeen years old when he dropped out of school, travelled to Prince Albert, and signed up to join the Saskatoon Light Infantry. Two years later, in 1943, he was in southern Italy, making strides northward as they fought their way towards Rome. The First Canadian Infantry Division, of which the Saskatoon Light Infantry was a part, drove the Germans from one deep river valley to another. In December, with snow falling, they fought some of the bitterest battles along the Moro River. The Germans repeatedly counter-attacked, often fighting hand-to-hand. Two thousand one hundred and nineteen Canadians had been killed to that point in the Italian campaign, and on Dec. 7, 1943, Joseph Okemasis became one of them. Private Okemasis was buried with some 1,600 other war casualties in the Moro River Canadian War Cemetery near Ortona.
One of the names on Edward Ahenakew’s list was Mrs. Joe Dreaver. Her husband was Chief of the Mistawasis First Nation. Joe had served in World War I, receiving the Military Medal for his service. Two of Dreaver’s brothers had also served in the Great War, one of whom died in the Battle of Vimy Ridge, and the other who died later as a result of the wounds which he received.
At the start of the Second World War, Chief Dreaver brought seventeen young men from his community to sign up in Prince Albert. Three of these young men were his sons. In addition, two Dreaver daughters signed up. Chief Dreaver, now too old to enlist, joined the Veterans Guard to watch over German prisoners of war being held in Medicine Hat.
Chief Dreaver’s son, Harvey, joined D Company of the Regina Rifles. He trained at Dundurn, Saskatchewan, and Debert, Nova Scotia, as well as various bases in Sussex, England, before landing on the beaches near the French town of Courseulles-sur-Mer on D-Day.
Although the landing was difficult, with fewer than half of his company of about 120 men landing safely, Harvey Dreaver made it ashore and joined the rest of the regiment in its goal of clearing Courseulles. Continuing inland, the Rifles took the village of Reviers, capturing thirty-five enemy prisoners.
Promoted from Lance Corporal to Corporal, and finally to Platoon Sergeant, he commanded thirty men as the Rifles prepared for their assault on Caen, which would include the capture of Abbaye d’Ardenne. Amid the fighting around the abbey, Harvey Dreaver never faltered and became a real Canadian hero. His cool and courageous leadership helped his Company and the Regina Rifle Regiment to win several key battles, including the Battle at Leopold Canal. A well-equipped and experienced German infantry division was garrisoned behind the Canal, and a relentless counter-attack ensued with heavy losses on both sides, resulting in a half-hour truce requested by the Germans.
Sergeant Harvey Dreaver was killed on the first day of the assault. An eyewitness account indicated that he was looking over a parapet with binoculars when a sniper’s bullet hit him in the forehead. He was buried at Adegem Canadian War Cemetery in Belgium, with the Belgian government awarding him posthumously the Belgian Croix de Guerre avec Palme.
Harvey Dreaver also has place of honour in Buckingham Palace. King George VI and his wife, Elizabeth, commissioned portraits of Commonwealth aboriginal servicemen. Dreaver’s portrait hangs in the palace, alongside other portraits from Australia and New Zealand.
Most people from Prince Albert and area are familiar with the Isbister name. James Isbister, along with his brother Adam and their sister, settled in what is now Prince Albert’s West Flat in 1862. Three descendants of that family also served with distinction in the Second World War.
Born and raised in the Mont Nebo district, Archie, Russell, and Vern (better known as Tony) had been active in farming before enlisting to serve King and Country. All three served as rifleman, Archie and Russell with the Royal Winnipeg Rifles, and Tony with the Regina Rifles. Both the Royal Winnipeg and the Regina Rifles were part of the Seventh Canadian Infantry Division which landed on Juno Beach on June 6th, 1944. Both Archie and Russell were killed the first day, two of the 335 officers and men lost in that campaign. Archie is commemorated by the Bayeux War Memorial. Russell is interred at Beny-sur-Mer Canadian War Cemetery. Meanwhile, Tony’s war lasted two more days. On the eighth of June, in a counter-attack by German tanks, Tony Isbister lost his life. He is buried at Brookwood Military Cemetery near Woking, Surrey, England.
These were just some of the Indigenous men who gave their lives for the freedom which we enjoy today. There were many more, from across this province and the entire nation. Unlike most members of the Canadian Armed Forces who lost their lives, the death benefit was not paid out to members of their family. Instead, the benefit was paid to their Band’s Indian Agent. Dependent upon the agent, the family may have received all of the benefit, although far too often the family received only a portion, if any, of it.
Others members of our Forces, considered to be more fortunate, survived to return to their lives in Canada. But for the First Nations veterans who returned home, things were much different than for the non-First Nations veterans. They did not receive housing or monetary grants. Instead, they were returned to the homes on the reserve from which they had come. They were expected to continue living the life which they had been living prior to enlisting. The only exceptions would be for those individuals who were willing to give up their treaty status, which resulted in them being disenfranchised from their Band.
Possibly more difficult was the loss of the freedom of movement which they had enjoyed while serving in the Armed Forces. Once back on the reserve, they were required to request, and receive, permission to leave the reserve to travel elsewhere, including to meet with those comrades with whom they had fought. More than one non-First Nation veteran bemoaned the fact that, once back in civilian life, he was no longer able to have a beer with his former First Nation comrade.
The contributions made by our Indigenous people have helped to preserve our freedoms from before Canada became a nation. Let’s honour them.
fgpayton@sasktel.net