Thanadelthur National Historic Person
Churchill, Manitoba
"Ambassadress of Peace" by Franklin Arbuckle
(© The Manitoba Museum, Hudson's Bay)
Address :
Churchill, Manitoba
Recognition Statute:
Historic Sites and Monuments Act (R.S.C., 1985, c. H-4)
Designation Date:
2000-03-28
Life Date:
0 to 1717
Other Name(s):
-
Thanadelthur
(Designation Name)
Research Report Number:
1999-50
Importance:
Aboriginal woman created a bridge between two cultures; played an important role in the English fur trade in the Canadian north in early 18th-century
Plaque(s)
THANADELTHUR
(died 1717)
This young Dene woman, a skilled interpreter and negotiator, played a crucial role in the expansion of the English fur trade in the Northwest. In 1715-1716, she guided Hudson’s Bay Company trader William Stuart and a contingent of Cree from York Factory into Dene territory. Thanadelthur’s diplomacy led to peace between her people and their traditional enemies, the Cree. The expedition’s success opened direct trade between the Dene and the Company, resulting in the building of a post at Churchill River in 1717. Thanadelthur’s story of courage is recorded in the Company’s journals and honoured in Dene oral tradition.