<
 
 
 
 
×
>
hide You are viewing an archived web page collected at the request of University of Alberta using Archive-It. This page was captured on 17:52:11 Dec 08, 2010, and is part of the HCF Alberta Online Encyclopedia collection. The information on this web page may be out of date. See All versions of this archived page. Loading media information
Heritage Community Foundation Presents
Alberta Online Encyclopedia
The Métis in Western Canada: O-Tee-Paym-Soo-Wuk

    Home     |     About Us     | Contact Us |     Partners     |     Sitemap    

The BeginningsThe People and Their CommunitiesCulture and Lifeways
Toys (rattles, dolls, games)

Toys

The Métis dolls were likely made out of what they had around them. They were probably leather dolls, as well as the crocheted, knitted and fabric dolls. There were likely balls in the Métis toy box, as the Cree had balls they played used in games. There were miniature objects like the parents’ tools. There would have been miniature canoes, toy guns, and wooden knives. We know the girls had miniature cradleboards because we have examples of them. They must have had some form of dolls that they put in the cradleboard. Once china-headed dolls were available in trade, they would have been purchased for the girls.

One example of what parents did for their children was found in a HBC journal. A father, a fur trade post master, ordered a fancy red Spanish child’s saddle from London for his child. So, much like other items, Métis children would have had access to European toys and clothes as well as Aboriginal toys and clothes. Their baby toys were probably aboriginal, including rattles, balls and dolls. Older children probably moved fairly quickly into the adult world, and a lot of their play would have taken place in the context of their chores. Their horses were companions, and chores like berry picking became family / community outings, like huge picnics. Another example of this type of quick transition is the naming of personal items.

[Top] [Back]

Quicklinks

Clothing

Needlework

Tools (snowshoes, traps, scrapers)

Toys (rattles, dolls, games)

Heritage Community Foundation The Alberta Online Encyclopedia The Alberta Lottery Fund

Albertasource.ca | Contact Us | Partnerships
            For more on Métis Alberta, visit Peel’s Prairie Provinces.
Copyright © Heritage Community Foundation All Rights Reserved