• Northern Saskatchewan - Chipewyan, the Beaver and the Slavey
• Central Saskatchewan - the forest and plains Cree and the Blackfoot
• Southern Plains - Assiniboine, Gros Ventre and Sioux

• The northern wooded areas of the province were developed first because of the fur trade.
• Henry Kelsey ( 1690 ) of the Hudson's Bay Company traveled along the Saskatchewan River trying to get the Indians to trade their furs. He was the first white man to enter the Saskatchewan territory.
• Anthony Henday ( 1754 ) traveled into the plains area, and Samuel Hearne (1774) built a Hudson's Bay Company post at Cumberland House where the Indians could come and trade furs. This was the first permanent settlement in Saskatchewan.
• The fur traders continued to explore the province. Many other posts were built along the rivers.
• Small settlements grew near the trading posts.
• By the 1850s the fur trade had declined

• To maintain law and order in the west the Canadian Government created the North West Mounted Police. The force marched west (1874) and established Fort Walsh in the Cypress Hills in 1875. Other forts included Fort Battleford, fort Pitt, Fort Carlton and Wood Mountain Post.
• After 1878 the Canadian government began to encourage settlement in the west
• The Metis (people of mixed French or European and Aboriginal parents) settled and farmed.
• It was decided to build a railroad to join the eastern provinces with British Columbia in the west. The railroad could be used to bring settlers to the west and for shipping farm products to eastern Canada.
• Construction of the Canadian Pacific Railway began in 1872 but was not completed until 1885.
• The government gave free land to people who were willing to settle in the west. Homesteaders began arriving.

Metis uprising

• The Plains Indians who travelled about following the herds of buffalo were placed on reservations.
• The M�tis (mixed Indian and French heritage) were concerned about all the settlers coming to Saskatchewan. They had difficulty finding places to settle down and farm.
• In 1883, the M�tis of Saskatchewan united under the leadership of Louis Riel and began to seek self-government. They wanted their own land but their requests were ignored.
• Louis Riel led the Metis in an uprising in 1885 called the Northwest Rebellion. The uprising ended quickly.

More homesteaders arrive

• More settlers came from eastern Canada, Europe and the United States.
• The pioneers managed to survive the long cold winters in their log cabins or sod huts.
• Towns grew along the railroad tracks.

Saskatchewan becomes a province (1905)

• Between 1895 and 1914 much of the prairies was turned into farmland.
• By 1914 the population was 750,000 people.
• By 1931 the population reached 921,785.
• In the 1930s the farmers had to deal with drought (very little rainfall) amd crop failures. Farming came to a standstill.
• Many people left the province to look for jobs. The population dropped by 26,000 between 1931 and 1941
• In the 1940s and 50s there was growth in mining and oil production.