Archival Records DisclaimerMany of the records contained in this archive were created by colonial institutions, including government agencies and residential school administrations. As a result, these materials reflect the biases, assumptions, and power structures of these institutions. For example, administrative records such as student lists were produced for reporting and funding purposes rather than to document students’ lived experiences. For this reason, these lists may not accurately reflect who attended the school, when, or for how long. The records are also incomplete—some documents have been lost, destroyed, withheld, or not yet collected due to persisting barriers to archival record collection— and only open access records have been included in the archive. This living archive is the property of Wauzhushk Onigum Nation and Kaatagoging; it will be updated as additional records are sought and gathered.
All users are encouraged to approach these records with care and critical awareness, recognizing both their historical value and their limitations in conveying the
truths of Survivors’ experiences.The images and written records contained in this archive may also be upsetting, triggering, or cause distress. The National Indian Residential School Crisis Line has a 24-hour toll-free number at 1-866-925-4419 where Survivors and their families can receive immediate support.
This archive has been created through the Kaatagoging Journey to provide access to archival records related to the former St. Mary's Indian Residential School. To protect personal information of former students, this archive contains only open access records. The copyright-holding archives have granted reproduction permissions for these records.
This archive includes photographs retrieved from the Centre du Patrimoine (Société historique de Saint-Boniface) and The Muse: Lake of the Woods Museum and Douglas Family Art Centre. It also includes quarterly returns from the years 1941-1952 and 1959-1971, retrieved from the National Centre for Truth and Reconciliation (NCTR) and Library and Archives Canada (LAC). Quarterly returns are student attendance lists that were submitted to the federal government four times annually to access residential school funding.
A collection of open-access photo records that can be filtered by student name, start date, end date, and archival subject tag.
View Photo RecordsA collection of open-access quarterly returns that can be filtered by student name, start date, and end date.
View Attendance Records
A collection of administrative records, including maps and school blueprints, that can be filtered by start date, end date, record type, and archival subject tag.
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