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Nisichawayasihk Cree Nation is more commonly known in the predominately English-speaking world of North America as Nelson House, Manitoba.
NCN is a Cree speaking community in northern Manitoba, Canada. The people of Nisichawayasihk are largely ancestral descendants of indigenous Cree peoples who have populated the Canadian Shield region of northern and central Canada for between 10,000 and 35,000 years.
Largely left alone by the Government of Canada during initial colonization and settlement of the New World, by the late 1800s a move was made by the government to isolate and relocate members of the Nisichawayasihk Cree Nation to a single, pre-defined location which no European Settlers had expressed an interest in. This area was defined by the government in the agreement known as Treaty 5, a document which established that NCN Band Members and their descendants were guaranteed certain rights and benefits under this treaty.
During the 1960s and 1970s, massive hydroelectric developments were underway in northern Manitoba. Consequently, large areas of traditional hunting, fishing, and trapping lands were severely flooded. The people of Nisichawayasihk were forcibly relocated to their current location.
With a population of approximately 2,000 residents, Nisichawayasihk Cree Nation is a large and widespread community, though many of its residents are still living in third-world conditions. The local infrastructure does not support full water and sewage services to all residents, and many still rely on fresh water and liquid waste to be hauled in and out by truck from holding tanks.
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