The Skeetchestn Indian Band is a member of the Secwepemc (Shuswap) Nation with a reserve located near Savona, British Columbia. in the Central Interior region of that province.
Connection to our land (Secwépemcu?ecw), language (Secwépemcstín) and cultural and spiritual customs and practice define the Skeetchestn community. Fishing, Hunting and plant gathering for food and medicines has long sustained the community. Not only do cultural practices help define the Skeetchestn community, but strengthening and internalising those traditions and values will help mitigate the effects of racism and discrimination and engender pride in person and community. This strength leads to success in daily life and interactions with others.
The Secwépemc language, culture and way of life are being threatened by the results of historical actions by state and church and current tendencies to assimilation
Before the establishment of the reserve in 1877, our ancestors wintered in many pit house villages along both sides of Kamloops Lake, and for a distance below the outlet of the lake. During the spring, summer, and fall they would travel throughout their territory to gather important resources at critical times and places. Traditional custom dictated by knowledge allowed the people to make the most efficient use of the earths’ harvest. When the first Europeans arrived, they shared in the wealth of the land with our ancestors. They valued our ancestors’ knowledge of the land and their skills in the acquisition of furs. Traditional Secwepemc protocol was predominantly followed during the fur trade era.
In 1858 a blanket of American miners began to cover the land. Our ancestors had made no used of gold and were not practiced in its extraction. Consequently, they were menial participants in the gold trade.
Initially, as much and whatever land our ancestors wanted was to be reserved for them. In 1862, Chief Sisiyesq’t claimed an area of nine miles on both sides of the Thompson River starting at Sk’emqin. Since some people wintered at Ck’ecse7tn (Back Valley) and along Deadman River, the reserve was reduced and relocated only along that river in 1868.
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