Elsie Knott

Elsie Marie Knott ( Taylor; September 20, 1922 – December 3, 1995) was a Canadian Mississauga leader and activist. Knott was the first woman in Canada to be elected as Chief of a First Nation. She became Chief of the Curve Lake First Nation in 1954, three years after the Indian Act was amended to give First Nations women the right to vote and hold positions in band governments. She was also known for her work relating to preserving the Ojibwe language and supporting children's education.

Early life Knott was born on 20 September 1922 in the Mud Lake Reserve (Curve Lake First Nation) in Ontario, Canada. Her parents were George Henry Taylor, a caretaker, and Esther Mae Taylor. She was raised only speaking Ojibwe until the age of nine.

As a child, Knott had an illness which meant that she started school late. After recovering from her illness, she began attending the local reserve school. The school was run by the Department of Indian Affairs and the use of the Ojibwe language was banned.

At the age of 15, Knott was married to Cecil Knott, who was 12 years her senior. They had three children by the time she was aged 20. As her husband suffered from tuberculosis (TB), Knott became responsible for the family finances, picking berries or sewing pyjamas for Indigenous children in federal hospitals. known at the time as the Mississaugas of Mud Lake, which is a Mississauga Ojibway First Nation near Peterborough, Ontario. She was elected in a landslide victory. She later said that "it never dawned on me that I was making history."

Elections of other female First Nation chiefs and councilors followed across Canada. By 1960, 21 women held elected band council positions, but elected First Nation female leadership was not widely embraced until the late 1990s–early 2000s. Knott herself went on to win eight consecutive elections and served as chief for sixteen years until 1976.

As Chief, Knott obtained federal funding to improve services on the reserve, which was used to build 45 houses, a daycare, community centre and senior citizens’ home. The funding was also used on infrastructure including digging wells and road improvements. She also visited prisoners to teacher them the Ojibwe language while they were in jail.

As an elder, Knott helped revive the community's powwow celebrations. She served as an elder in the Union of Ontario Indians.

Awards and legacy Outstanding Women Award (1992) Her memory was honoured as part of the Anishinabek Nation's Celebration of Women Conference (1998) Life Achievement award, awarded posthumously by the Union of Ontario Indians for community work and leadership (1999)