Essipit (known as Les Escoumins until 1996) is an

Innu The Innu/Ilnu ('man, person'), formerly called Montagnais (French for ' mountain people'; ), are the Indigenous Canadians who inhabit northeastern Labrador in present-day Newfoundland and Labrador and some portions of Quebec. They refer to ...

Indian reserve In Canada, an Indian reserve () or First Nations reserve () is defined by the '' Indian Act'' as a "tract of land, the legal title to which is vested in Her Majesty, that has been set apart by Her Majesty for the use and benefit of a band." ...

in the

Canadian province Canada has ten provinces and three territories that are sub-national administrative divisions under the jurisdiction of the Constitution of Canada, Canadian Constitution. In the 1867 Canadian Confederation, three provinces of British North Amer ...

Quebec Quebec is Canada's List of Canadian provinces and territories by area, largest province by area. Located in Central Canada, the province shares borders with the provinces of Ontario to the west, Newfoundland and Labrador to the northeast, ...

, located on the north shore of the

Gulf of Saint Lawrence The Gulf of St. Lawrence is a gulf that fringes the shores of the provinces of Quebec, New Brunswick, Nova Scotia, Prince Edward Island, Newfoundland and Labrador, in Canada, plus the islands Saint-Pierre and Miquelon, possessions of France, in ...

in the

Côte-Nord Côte-Nord (Region 09) (, ; ) is an List of regions of Quebec, administrative region of Quebec, on the Quebec-Labrador peninsula, Quebec-Labrador Peninsula, Canada. The region runs along the St. Lawrence River and then the Gulf of St. Lawrence, ...

region. It belongs to the Innue Essipit First Nation. The reserve is named after the historical name of the Escoumins River, that around 1664, was known as ''Esseigiou''. Charles Arnaud, who spent many years of his life among the Montagnais stated that the river was also called ''Etshipi'', meaning "river of shells".

History

The Montagnais have frequented the place for thousands of years, gathering berries that covered the rocks and adorned the mossy plains in the spring. The

Jesuit Relations ''The Jesuit Relations'', also known as ''Relations des Jésuites de la Nouvelle-France (Relation de ce qui s'est passé ..'', are chronicles of the Jesuit missions in New France. The works were written annually and printed beginning in 1632 an ...

reported on the presence of "Excomminquois" in the region since 1611. It presented them however as an enemy nation of the French and distinguished them from the Montagnais of the region who were recognized as friends. It is assumed that they likely were

Mi'kmaq The Mi'kmaq (also ''Mi'gmaq'', ''Lnu'', ''Mi'kmaw'' or ''Mi'gmaw''; ; , and formerly Micmac) are an Indigenous group of people of the Northeastern Woodlands, native to the areas of Canada's Atlantic Provinces, primarily Nova Scotia, New Bru ...

tribes that from the middle of the 16th century onwards sporadically left their territory around

Chaleur Bay frame, Satellite image of Chaleur Bay (NASA). Chaleur Bay is the large bay in the centre of the image; the Gulf_of_St._Lawrence.html" ;"title="Gaspé Peninsula is to the north and the Gulf of St. Lawrence">Gaspé Peninsula is to the north and t ...

and visited the North Shore of the Saint Lawrence Gulf. In 1863, about 40 Montagnais people were counted at the Mission of Escoumins. In 1881, the Superintendent of Indian Affairs appointed surveyor Elzéar Boivin to delineate the land occupied by them. On July 23, 1892, the Government of Canada purchased the land and the ''Réserve indienne des Escoumins'' (Escoumins Indian Reserve) was formed.Natural Resources Canada - Legal Surveys Division, Historical Review
Innue Essipit
In 1994, the reserve changed its name to ''Communauté montagnaise Essipit'', made official by Commission de toponymie du Québec on June 7, 1996. On August 7, 2003, the name was changed again, and it is now known as Innue Essipit.

Demographics

Reserve population trend: * Population in 2021: 310 (2016 to 2021 population change: 4.4%) * Population in 2016: 297 * Population in 2011: 268 * Population in 2006: 247 * Population in 2001: 258 * Population in 1996: 252 * Population in 1991: 237 Private dwellings occupied by usual residents: 128 (total dwellings: 134) The total population of the Essipit First Nation is 1,050, with only 228 band members living on the reserve.

References

External links

Site de la communauté EssipitRegroupement PetapanEntreprises Essipit

{{authority control Innu communities in Quebec Communities in Côte-Nord