Canada’s Residential Schools - Volume 1 - The History, Part 1, Origins to 1939

Oct 16, 2026

Canada’s Residential Schools: The History, Part 1 Origins to 1939 is Volume 1 of the Final Report of the Truth and Reconciliation Commission of Canada. It documents the historical context and development of residential schooling up to 1939, covering colonialism, church missions, key regional phases, treaty-making, and the expansion of the system. The volume presents detailed analysis and topic-by-topic coverage, including schooling operations, student experiences, health impacts, discipline, and abuses within residential schools.

LanguageEnglish

CategoryResearch & Report

FormatPDF

Pages1025

Reading Time43 h 3 min

AccessFree to download

Contents

Section 1: The historical context for Canada’s residential schools

Section 2: The Canadian residential school system, 1867 to 1939

Canada’s Residential Schools: The History, Part 1 Origins to 1939 The Final Report of the Truth and Reconciliation Commission of Canada Volume 1 Canada’s Residential Schools Volume 1 • Part 1 Canada’s Residential Schools: e History, Part 1 Origins to 1939 􀀎e Final Report of the Truth and Reconciliation Commission of Canada Volume 1 Published for the Truth and Reconciliation Commission by McGill-Queen’s University Press Montreal & Kingston • London • Chicago This report is in the public domain. Anyone may, without charge or request for permission, reproduce all or part of this report. 2015 Truth and Reconciliation Commission of Canada [Website: www.trc.ca](Website: www.trc.ca) ISBN 978-0-7735-4649-3 (v. 1, pt. 1 : bound) . ISBN 978-0-7735-4650-9 (v. 1, pt. 1 : paperback) . Printed in Canada on acid-free paper An index to this volume of the final report is available online. Please visit http://nctr.ca/trc_reports.php Library and Archives Canada Cataloguing in Publication Truth and Reconciliation Commission of Canada [Canada’s residential schools] Canada’s residential schools : the final report of the Truth and Reconciliation Commission of Canada. (McGill–Queen’s Native and northern series ; 80–86) Includes bibliographical references and index. Contents: v. 1. The history. Part 1, origins to 1939—The history. Part 2, 1939 to 2000—v. 2. The Inuit and northern experience—v. 3. The Métis experience—v. 4. The missing children and unmarked burials report—v. 5. The legacy—v. 6. Reconciliation Issued in print and electronic formats. ISBN 978-0-7735-4649-3 (v. 1, pt. 1 : bound) . ISBN 978-0-7735-4650-9 (v. 1, pt. 1 : paperback) . ISBN 978-0-7735-4651-6 (v. 1, pt. 2 : bound) . ISBN 978-0-7735-4652-3 (v. 1, pt. 2 : paperback) . ISBN 978-0-7735-4653-0 (v. 2 : bound) . ISBN 978-0-7735-4654-7 (v. 2 : paperback) . ISBN 978-0-7735-4655-4 (v. 3 : bound) . ISBN 978-0-7735-4656-1 (v. 3 : paperback) . ISBN 978-0-7735-4657-8 (v. 4 : bound) . ISBN 978-0-7735-4658-5 (v. 4 : paperback) . ISBN 978-0-7735-4659-2 (v. 5 : bound) . ISBN 978-0-7735-4660-8 (v. 5 : paperback) . ISBN 978-0-7735-4661-5 (v. 6 : bound) . ISBN 978-0-7735-4662-2 (v. 6 : paperback) . ISBN 978-0-7735-9817-1 (v. 1, pt. 1 : ePDF) . ISBN 978-0-7735-9818-8 (v.1, pt. 1 : ePUB) . ISBN 978-0-7735-9819-5 (v. 1, pt. 2 : ePDF) . ISBN 978-0-7735-9820-1 (v. 1, pt. 2 : ePUB) . ISBN 978-0-7735-9821-8 (v. 2 : ePDF) . ISBN 978-0-7735-9822-5 (v. 2 : ePUB) . ISBN 978-0-7735-9823-2 (v. 3 : ePDF) . ISBN 978-0-7735-9824-9 (v. 3 : ePUB) . ISBN 978-0-7735-9825-6 (v. 4 : ePDF) . ISBN 978-0-7735-9826-3 (v. 4 : ePUB) . ISBN 978-0-7735-9827-0 (v. 5 : ePDF) . ISBN 978-0-7735-9828-7 (v. 5 : ePUB) . ISBN 978-0-7735-9829-4 (v. 6 : ePDF) . ISBN 978-0-7735-9830-0 (v. 6 : ePUB) 1. Native peoples—Canada—Residential schools. 2. Native peoples—Education—Canada. 3. Native peoples—Canada—Government relations. 4. Native peoples—Canada—Social conditions. 5. Native peoples—Canada—History. I. Title. II. Series: McGill–Queen’s Native and northern series ; 80–86 E96 .5.T78 2016 971.004’97 C2015-905971-2 C2015-905972-0 Contents Statement from the Chair, Justice Murray Sinclair ..................................... vii Statement from the Commissioner, Dr. Marie Wilson................................ xi Statement from the Commissioner, Chief Wilton Littlechild..................... xiii Introduction................................................................................................. 3 Section 1: The historical context for Canada’s residential schools............ 7 1. Colonialism in the Age of Empire......................................................... 9 2. The churches and their mission of conversion.................................... 25 3. Residential schooling in French Canada: 1608–1763........................... 39 4. Treaty-making and betrayal: The roots of Canada’s Aboriginal policy..........................

FAQs

What timeframe does this volume cover?

This volume focuses on origins to 1939, covering residential schooling history from early developments through 1939.

What are the two main sections in the table of contents?

Section 1 covers the historical context for Canada’s residential schools, and Section 2 covers the residential school system from 1867 to 1939.

Which commission report does the volume belong to?

The volume is part of the Final Report of the Truth and Reconciliation Commission of Canada.

Oct 16, 2026

Uploaded by Olivia Brown