- by Anne Finlay-Stewart, Editor

For those who have been asking about the name Gitche Namewikwedong or “Great Sturgeon Bay”, this photograph might give you some idea.

The label says: “Roland (Grandpa) Edmonstone with Grandson Gerald McKay” and it is a mid-twentieth century image of a fisher, his net winder, and his catch – a Lake Sturgeon. Edmonstone fished off Vail's Point, expropriated in 1942 for what became known as the Meaford Tank Range.

According to Ontario government documents, “Lake Sturgeon are Ontario’s largest and longest–lived fish and exhibit physical characteristics that have remained unchanged for over 200 million years.” They were plentiful in our region before European contact, but they are now an endangered species due to habitat disruption, over-exploitation, and deliberate destruction to make way for more lucrative fish species.

The sturgeon has always been central to the Ojibwe who live on the Saugeen territories, for food, ceremony and a spiritual connection to the land and water.

Thank you to Eula Jones for permission to use the photograph.