Gabriel Dumont

Gabriel Dumont (1837–1906) was a Métis political figure best known for being a prominent leader of the Métis people. Dumont was well known for his movements within the North-West Rebellion at the battles of Batoche, Fish Creek, and Duck Lake as well as for his role in the signing of treaties with the Blackfoot tribe, the traditional main enemy of the Métis.

Dumont was born to Isidore Dumont and Louise Laframboise in 1837 in Red River. Growing up Dumont had little in the way of education – he was illiterate but could speak seven languages. In the early stages of his life, Dumont relied on buffalo hunting in order to gain a source of food. His family made a living through hunting buffalo and trading with the Hudson's Bay Company. After his time leading the Métis people alongside Louis Riel, Dumont spent time travelling throughout the United States where he spoke at public speaking events and political campaigns. In 1889 he dictated his memoirs in Quebec.

Dumont was known throughout the Métis community for his various political and military endeavours. Among his major political campaigns was the severing of a treaty between the Métis and the Dakota in 1882. Just one year later, Dumont was elected hunt chief of the Saskatchewan Métis. Dumont was known as the adjutant general of the Métis people – he played a large role in the well-being of the Métis community and their subsequent rebellion against the Canadian government during the North-West Rebellion. Dumont also figured prominently in the Battle of Duck Lake, as well as the battles of Fish Creek and Batoche.

Dumont's legacy is marked by his grave in Batoche, as well as through his mark on the Métis people. Gabriel Bridge, a bridge that spans the Saskatchewan River, is named after Dumont, as are several research institutions and schools. In addition, many books and poems have been written about Dumont's life, his works, and his legacy as a political figure.

Early life Gabriel Dumont was born in December 1837 in what is now known as Winnipeg as the fourth child and eldest son of 11 children. and Louise Laframboise, who made their home in the Red River Colony. Dumont was not educated in a traditional European education system, rather he learned important skills during his childhood travelling across the Canadian Prairies (Great Plains) following the bison and learning the skills to become a hunter. Throughout his travels as a hunter, Dumont traded with different tribes and picked up different languages making him more valuable to his tribe. In 1868, Dumont and his wife settled in the Batoche area permanently. Although they lacked the numbers to truly put a dent in the Canadian forces, Dumont's group handicapped a military steamer and managed to repel several of Middleton's infantry pushes. The Métis utilized the tactic of digging holes approximately every to allow for the Métis troops to hide and advance throughout a vast majority of land, Clarke sent their concerns on to Lieutenant Governor Alexander Morris, Batoche – the site of a Métis Provisional Government, has been declared a National Historic Site.

The Gabriel Dumont Institute of Native Studies and Applied Research in Saskatchewan was named in his honour when it was founded in 1980. In 1985, a scholarship fund was formed in his name with a $1.24-million capital investment. In 1993, an agreement was set up between the institute and the University of Saskatchewan creating the Gabriel Dumont College. The Gabriel Bridge was built in 1969 over the South Saskatchewan River east of Rosthern, Saskatchewan. It is located at the site of Gabriel's Crossing, where he ran a small store, billiards hall, and ferry service in the late 1870s and early 1880s. In 1998, the public French-first-language high school in London, Ontario, was renamed École secondaire Gabriel-Dumont in Dumont's honour.