History
The Mohawk Institute, or "Mush Hole" as it was known to its students, was a Residential School located in Brantford, Ontario. It was in operation from 1828 to 1970, making it the longest operating residential school in Canada. While the school was operated by the New England Company (also known as the Society for the Propagation of the Gospel in New England) and the Government of Canada, it was largely staffed and overseen by the Anglican Church of Canada, particularly by clergy appointed by the Diocese of Huron.
This school directly affected over 4,600 children from at least 60 First Nations. These children were largely from Six Nations of the Grand River; however, the home communities of roughly half of the children documented in the records have not been identified (Survivor's Secretariat, 2022).
Archival Holdings
The Reverend Canon Dr. J. Douglas Leighton Archives, formerly known as the V.P. Cronyn Memorial Archives, maintains a collection of records pertaining to the Mush Hole, but in its current state, the collection is not easily accessible to researchers due to a lack of archival arrangement and comprehensive finding aids. The only comprehensive box list that exists is available only in a hard-copy at the Archives and does not provide contextual details about the contents of the records. The Diocese of Huron recognizes that the current state of this collection creates a significant barrier to access, particularly for Hodinohsho:ni and other First Nations, Inuit, and Métis researchers.
Current Work
In 2023, the Archives received funding through the Documentary Heritage Communities Program (DHCP) through Library and Archives Canada. This funding will support efforts to address the ongoing barriers to access created by the current state of the Mush Hole records. The collection must be properly arranged and described to archival standard and made as accessible as possible through digitization and sharing of the digitized files with Hodinohsho:ni knowledge institutions.
The Archives has partnered with Six Nations Public Library, Woodland Cultural Centre, and the Survivors' Secretariat to ensure the project is community-led and centres the information needs and voices of the Hodinohsho:ni community. DHCP funding supports three Archives Assistant filled by members of the Hodinohsho:ni community who are carrying out this project. The Diocesan Archivist will work alongside the partners and Archives Assistants to provide guidance and advice from an archival perspective, while recognizing the importance of working alongside the community to challenge harmful colonial methodologies embedded in traditional archival practices and to develop approaches that better serve community needs. This project will largely be guided by the Reconciliation Framework document that was published in 2022 by the Steering Committee on Canada's Archives.
This project has been made possible by Library and Archives Canada.
Ce projet a été rendu possible grâce à Bibliothèque et Archives Canada.
For more information about the Documentary Heritage Communities Program and the 2023 funded project, please visit the Library and Archives Canada website.
References
Recovery, reclamation and revitalization. Survivors’ Secretariat. (2022, September 24). https://survivorssecretariat.ca/#about