The Disappearance of Indiantown

This spot, now quiet, was once where a Wet'suwet'en neighborhood known as 'Indiantown' stood, right on the edge of Smithers. This mountain town in northwestern British Columbia, located between Prince George and Prince Rupert, was built on swampland that is part of the traditional Wet'suwet'en territory, or "yintah."

The town of Smithers itself came into being in 1913 because a railway station was needed here. Before that, the Wet'suwet'en community was here. Over time, town officials made several attempts to evict the people living in Indiantown. Eventually, the neighborhood just disappeared.

Even though they were systematically pushed to the margins, the local Wet'suwet'en people still took part in some parts of the settler community. You would see them involved in sports and at the annual agricultural fair in Smithers during the 1950s.

One figure, Jack Joseph, known as a peacemaker between the Wet'suwet'en and the settlers, was photographed in 1917 holding his son, Frank. Joseph even served as a government-appointed chief for the Moricetown Band.

The Grand Trunk Pacific Railway tracks were being laid near Telkwa, a village about 15 kilometers south of Smithers, back in 1913. This whole area has a long history tied to that railway development and the subsequent growth of towns like Smithers. But the story of Indiantown, and its disappearance, is a part of that history too. By 1967, the Wet'suwet'en were seen as "squatters" on their own territory.