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Kainah Reserves

After signing Treaty Seven the Kainah were given a "miserable" reserve adjacent to the Blackfoot on the Bow River (Dempsey, p. 23). Originally the Kainah were intended to share a reserve with the Siksika and Tsuu Tina but their chief, Red Crow, opposed this idea. In 1880 the tribe moved to a much bigger reserve, now known as the Blood Reserve, which is by far the largest in Alberta and also ranks as the largest in Canada (DB). The reserve is located between the St. Mary and Belly Rivers west and south of Lethbridge. Despite having acquired a larger land base, life for the Kainah remained precarious. "The year 1884, with 126 deaths and eight births, is typical of that decade" writes Dempsey. From 1878 to 1920 the Kainah population dropped from 2,488 to 1,111 (Dempsey, p.25).


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