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The Nipissing First Nation consists of first nation (i.e. aboriginal) people of Ojibway and Algonquin descent who have lived in the Lake Nipissing area for about 9,400 years. As such, they are generally classified as Anishinaabe people, a grouping which includes the Odawa, Ojibway and Algonquins. This broad heritage is likely the result of the Nipissings living at a geographical crossroads - in fact at a watershed divide.
Geography
Lake Nipissing itself drains via the French River into Lake Huron and, to the east of Lake Nipissing, Trout Lake drains via the Mattawa River into the Ottawa River. Thus the Nipissings lived at the crossroads between two watersheds, and were key to trade to the East, West, North and South of Lake Nipissing. This watershed divide was later portaged extensively by the French in accessing the Great Lakes by canoe from settlements around Montreal.
To the west their trade routes extended as far as Lake Nipigon and their Ojibway neighbours, and to the north as far James Bay where they traded with the Cree and, later, the English. Their trade network to the east extended as far as present day Quebec City. The Hurons lived nearby to the South, and there is archeological evidence that the Nipissings integrated some Huron styles and techniques in their pottery.
They obtained food primarily through hunting, fishing and gathering although their extensive trading likely allowed them to supplement their diets with corn, beans and squash as well. Certainly the land in the lake valleys would have supported some horticulture.
Great Lakes-Ottawa River Watershed Divide
History
The trade routes that had been under the Nipissings' control became increasingly desirable during the early colonial period, as the French proved a large market for the inland pelts. As a result, the Iroquois executed military campaigns against the Huron and Nipissing and, by 1647, the Nipissing regrouped in the Lake Nipigon area. The Nipissing nonetheless continued to use their historical trade routes, but at greater risk to themselves. By 1670, the Nipissing are documented to have returned to Lake Nipissing.
By the early 19th century, the Europeans were actively trapping the area in and around Lake Nipissing themselves, which lead to a sharp reduction in the amount of pelts available to the Nipissings and other first nation peoples in the area.
In 1850 the Nipissing signed the Robinson Huron Treaty, in part to solidify their claim to the north shores of Lake Nipissing and its main waterways in the face of increasing European encroachment.
Society
Traditionally, the Nipissing nation was structured around families and clans (or dodems). The five dodems were: blood, birch bark, heron, beaver and squirrel. In turn, each clan was based on family lines, with each family consisting of about thirty people and the "head man" usually being the patriarch of the family. The head men met in council to decide on the rules by which the nation would operate. There was nonetheless a great respect for an individual's right to decide their own path, whether they be a man or a woman.
The Nipissings are a very spiritual people, and traditionally used many natural medicines and had an extensive spiritual life that also encompassed interment ceremonies.
External links
History of Ontario
"Nipissing First Nation"