Gabeshiwin – the camp

Discover Gabeshiwin at Lower Fort Garry National Historic Site!

Gabeshiwin, the Anishinaabemowin word for camp, includes a pair of 10-foot-by-10-foot birchbark dwellings known as wigwams, as well as a 12-foot buffalo-hide tipi. These structures replicate the temporary dwellings that Indigenous peoples in the area would build.

Gabeshiwin is an area that creates space for more knowledge, culture and history to be shared from an Indigenous perspective.

Gabeshiwin is also a place to gather, hosting programming like Gabeshiwin Stories and Tipi 101, as well as hosting artisans and speakers to present at events throughout the year, including the Knowledge Sharing Series in July and August. Stay tuned to the calendar of events, and follow Parks Canada, Manitoba on Facebook to keep up to date with events and programming at Gabeshiwin all summer long.

Visitors to Gabeshiwin are encouraged to step inside the structures. See how the buffalo hide is fastened together; marvel at the intricate details holding the wigwams in place.

Since their installation, these structures have strengthened Lower Fort Garry’s ties with partners like Treaty One Nation and the Manitoba Métis Federation. These connections have resulted in a more fulsome representation of the history, perspective and stories of Indigenous peoples being shared at Lower Fort Garry, the site where Treaty No. 1, the first of the numbered treaties, was made in 1871. View our gallery below, showcasing Chris Wabie and Jo Seenie-Redsky, the builders who assembled the wigwams in 2021.

View our gallery below, showcasing the builders who assembled the wigwams.