Yukon Land Claims
Overview
Yukon
Yukon is the westernmost and smallest of Canada's three federal territories. It was named after the Yukon River. The word Yukon means "Great River" in Gwich’in....
, Canada
Canada
Canada is a North American country consisting of ten provinces and three territories. Located in the northern part of the continent, it extends from the Atlantic Ocean in the east to the Pacific Ocean in the west, and northward into the Arctic Ocean...
.
Unlike other parts of Canada
Canada
Canada is a North American country consisting of ten provinces and three territories. Located in the northern part of the continent, it extends from the Atlantic Ocean in the east to the Pacific Ocean in the west, and northward into the Arctic Ocean...
, Yukon First Nations did not conclude any treaties until the 1990s, despite Chief Jim Boss of the Ta'an Kwach'an
Ta'an Kwach'an Council
The Ta'an Kwach'an Council is a First Nation in Whitehorse and Lake Laberge area in Canada's Yukon Territory. It split from the Whitehorse Indian Band to negotiate a separate land claim. The language originally spoken by the Ta'an people was Southern Tutchone....
requesting compensation for lost lands and hunting grounds as a result of the Klondike Gold Rush
Klondike Gold Rush
The Klondike Gold Rush, also called the Yukon Gold Rush, the Alaska Gold Rush and the Last Great Gold Rush, was an attempt by an estimated 100,000 people to travel to the Klondike region the Yukon in north-western Canada between 1897 and 1899 in the hope of successfully prospecting for gold...
in 1902. Jim Boss' letter was ignored and it was not until the 1970s that the issue was raised again.
The current process started in 1972 with the publication of Together Today For our Children Tomorrow by Chief Elijah Smith.
Negotiations took place in the late 1970s and early 1980s, culminating in an agreement which was ultimately rejected.
Negotiations resumed in 198? and culminated in agreeing to an Umbrella Final Agreement (UFA) in 1990.
Unanswered Questions
