How a GM president forged a relationship with the chief and people of Star Blanket Cree Nation

A headdress that belonged to a prominent First Nations leader in Saskatchewan is on display at the First Nations University of Canada in Reginaafter being in Ontario for decades.

The headdress belonged to Chief Red Dog of the Star Blanket Cree Nation, near Balcarres, Sask.

Chief Red Dog met the president of General Motors (GM) of Canada, Sam McLaughlin, in 1928at the official opening of the new GM auto assembly plant in Regina. It was the beginning of a long friendship between the two leaders.

GM was outgrowing its Oshawa facilities and opened the Regina plant at Winnipeg Street and Eighth Avenue to turn out Buicks, Chevrolets, Maple Leaf trucks, Oldsmobiles and Pontiacs for all of Western Canada.

People from the Star Blanket Cree Nation were invited to take part in the grand opening of the plant in December 1928.

The Globe newspaper in Toronto reported, "Hundreds of Regina citizens who thronged the vast new industrial plant cheered and applauded as Chief Red Dog decked out Mr. McLaughlin with the green blanket, moccasins and sweeping feathered headdress, which signified his acceptance into the tribe Mr. McLaughlin's new name is Kitchie Kah-So-Kin-Esko, which, when translated, means Strong Arm."

Chief Michael Starr of the Star Blanket Cree Nation said in a recent interview that the headdress was the kind of gift rarely presented.

"They were given to not only chiefs, but also to leaders who had qualities, in particular to people who were very wise. So it was an honour that they were given a headdress," he said.

Chief Red Dog's father was Chief Starblanket and his grandfather was Chief White Buffalo Calf, who signed treaties in the 1870s.

Launch of Pontiac automobile

The reason for including First Nations people in the official opening in 1928 was that two years before, a new GM product called the Pontiac essentially a dressed up, more expensive Chevrolet had been introduced. For marketing purposes, GM played up the fact the Pontiac was named after a First Nations leader, Chief Pontiac.

In ads for early Pontiacs, the tag line was"Chief of the Sixes." For years, the hood ornament on a Pontiac was a head of a First Nations person. Ads for Pontiacs often showed First Nations people with a new Pontiac automobile. That marketing approach faded in the 1950sand the Pontiac name was dropped in 2010.

When the Pontiac was introduced in Canada, GM in Oshawa invited First Nations chiefs from the Six Nations in Southern Ontario to be part of the product launch. They rode in the new Pontiac automobiles, dressed in traditional outfits.

When GM opened its plant in Regina, the company decided it would be good to once again invite First Nations people to take part.

Sam McLaughlin stayed in touch with some of the people at Star Blanket throughout the 1930s. The Regina GM plant was shut down in 1931, but the relationships forged at the opening day ceremony continued.

Chief Red Dog's death and will

When Chief Red Dog died in 1940, he made a bequeathment to Sam McLaughlin.

The Leader-Post reported in August 1940 that,"In his will, Chief Red Dog emphasizes his headdress is to go to Chief McLaughlin'who has never forgotten the Star Blanket reserve since he was made chief.' "

The headdress was put on display first at the McLaughlin estate in Oshawa and then, in 1954, at the library in Oshawa.

One Oshawa resident who remembers seeing the headdress when she was growing up is Nicole Adams, who now is the local history and genealogy librarian at the Oshawa Public Library.

"On the suggestions of our CEO and the library board, in early 2006 I began to try to find out, if we weren't going to keep it and have it on display here, could we find out where it came from, and who might be the logical inheritors of this sacred object. That began a quest for me, to figure out where it should go," Adams explained.

Through old newspaper articles and documents in the library's collection, she learned the headdress came from the Star Blanket Cree Nation in Saskatchewan.

"The concern was we couldn't just say, 'Hey do you want this, and we'll just ship it to you?' It's a sacred object. It couldn't just be sent via courier to Saskatchewan," Adams said.

The headdress is returned to Saskatchewan

Arrangements were made for some members of the Star Blanket Cree Nation to travel to Oshawa to pick up the headdress. They made the trip In August 2008and a ceremony was held to transfer the headdress back to the people of Star Blanket.

When Michael Starr became chief of the Star Blanket Cree Nation in 2009, he became the holder of the headdress. He used it for special occasions.

"I would wear it maybe once every two years, because I had a headdress of my own. I looked after it, and stored it in a safe place. I would wear it for special occasions, like at a grand entry at a pow wow," Chief Starr recalled.

Then in September 2018, an urban reserve was created in Regina, where the First Nations University of Canada is located at the University of Regina.

Chief Starr saidit was decided that's where the headdress should be put on display.

"Because the reserve is named after Chief Red Dog, it fit, from our perspective, to have it placed there."

He said the friendship it represents is something that can be a lesson for others.

"You can see that trust that they built, see that trust they had at that particular time," he said of Chief Red Dog and Sam McLaughlin.

"Moving it to now, we still need to be mindful of that trust, we need to be mindful of getting along. Absolutely, we can learn from that."