UnBQ Boiler Room

The boiler room and former coal shoot at University nuhelot’įne thaiyots’į nistameyimâkanak Blue Quills (UnBQ). This large space continues to house the utilities used to heat this large masonry building. Click on the triangle to load the point cloud.

“Their education must consist not merely of training of the mind, but of a weaning from the habits and feelings of their ancestors, and the acquirements of the language, art and customs of civilized life.” – Egerton Ryerson, 1847 Report for Indian Affairs

Heating, Water and Plumbing

Young students dressed to work, likely either in the boiler room or on the farm that was maintained on the grounds of the school. Between 1959-1966. PR2010.0475 from The Provincial Archives of Alberta, Open Copyright.

The boiler room is one of the areas of UnBQ where function and appearance have changed very little since its operation as a residential school. While there have been technological updates and modernization of the utilities, the boiler room retains much of its original appearance.

Students at the school were often responsible for tasks related to the operation of the school such as laundry, washing dishes, harvesting food from the gardens, serving staff meals, taking care of livestock, and shoveling coal. Children working at these tasks would be assigned them both as daily living chores but also occasionally as punishment.

Water Quality and Quantity

Soon after its construction, chemical analysis of Blue Quills water supply revealed high levels saline/sodium sulfate, which is said to have a laxative effect when consumed. The extreme hardness of the water with high amounts of rust would have been harmful for both human consumption and the plumbing system itself. Despite these safety concerns, government representatives deemed the installation of a water softener to be unnecessary and too expensive.

Fire Hazards and Protective Measures

Students organized by gender and age in front of Blue Quills. between 1938-1949. PR1973.0248/871 from The Provincial Archives of Alberta, Open Copyright.

Many of the risks faced by Indigenous students attending residential schools such as Blue Quills came from the buildings themselves. The architectural plans for Blue Quills which have been constructed using the laser scanning data, illustrate how poorly these schools were designed from a safety perspective. In 1952, a very dangerous fire hazard was identified at Blue Quills following the construction of a new wing of the school which was accessible from two levels. Inspector F.A Ingram advised that the stairwells be enclosed so that they acted as a natural fire break to prevent the spread of fire.

The relatively remote location of Blue Quills required that fire suppression be done on site. Blue Quills had been designed to accommodate 200 students. However, a feasibility study showed that well water productivity was only able to support 100 students. This was inadequate for both fire protection and student use (hygiene and consumption). As a result, water tanks at the school were of a size that was inadequate for extinguishing any fires that might occur. Fire escapes, as seen in the virtual 3D model of UnBQ above, were also documented as being inaccessible to many students. Inspectors report that while fire escapes were accessible to students on the first floor, they were inaccessible to students on the second floor.

This image includes modern images of the boiler room. If anyone has historic photos of the boiler room at Old Sun that they would like to submit to this archive, please contact us at irsdocumentationproject@gmail.com or submit through "Submit your Memories" button at the top of the page.

UnBQ boiler room, largely unchanged since its time as a residential school. Taken during digital documentation, August 2022. From Madisen Hvidberg.

UnBQ coal shoot, largely unchanged since its time as a residential school when students would have to work here or be locked in for punishment. Taken during digital documentation, August 2022. From Madisen Hvidberg.

Staff or visitors in a granary truck, which would have been used for work around the school grounds as well as for picking up students to bring to the residential school. Date unknown, likely 1950s. PR1973.0248/287 from The Provincial Archives of Alberta, Open Copyright.

Farm buildings on the grounds north of the school building, 1938-1949. Students at the school were made to maintain and work the farm, along with grow vegetables for their own consumption. Milk from the cows on site was a leading cause of tuberculosis at Blue Quills. PR1973.0248/871 from The Provincial Archives of Alberta, Open Copyright.

Students on school farm, between 1959-1966. PR2010.0475 from The Provincial Archives of Alberta, Open Copyright.

Students and staff working on school harvest, between 1959-1966. PR2010.0475 from The Provincial Archives of Alberta, Open Copyright.

Jerry Wood- When It Was My Turn

My early childhood was one of the greatest times I had, ya know. Living on a reserve and that was the only world that I knew.

You know, I didn’t know anything about the outside world. So, I was very happy with my family and all my relatives and especially with my connection to my grandfather. He was a veteran of the Riel rebellion, he was Métis. With him and his five brothers, they were all involved that night. So it was a happy time of my life.

And my dad passed away. I was you know, and I was very young. So, my mother raised me and all my other siblings, went to residential, gone to our residential school and when it was my turn, I was very excited because I was going to a new place. I remember after uh I was raised a Catholic, one day after mass, I guess a farm truck, you know, came out there and picked us up and they’re all these little guys you know in this box you know, looking over.

That time my mother had prepared me a little flour bag of bannock and rubber car, still remember, Bluto. I had my bannock, we were all excited, and when we got to Blue Quills, where I spent 10 years in residential school and one year at Ermineskin residential school for a total of 11 years. And oh, my, my excitement dissipated in a heck of a hurry.

I mean, we got there then they separated us from the boys and the girls and when… they had my new clothes taken away, my bannock, my Bluto was taken away, and I never saw them again. We were issued coveralls and army tight boots, and woollen socks, cotton shorts, and that’s the way we dressed and we were given numbers.

My first language is Cree, that’s all I spoke then, you know. I probably knew “hello,” “good night,” and “goodbye,” that was the extent of my English at the time. We weren’t encouraged. We were forbidden to speak our language, so it was very hard. And also you know, we weren’t allowed to contact or talk to our siblings from the, from the opposite sex. Because there was a sin to do that, you know. We couldn’t even look at them.

So it was it was a total different way of the life I just left, you know of caring. We were given numbers, we were known as numbers, and, and on our first day, we all got a haircut. I had braids, then, you know, and my braids came off. They gave me a haircut right to the skin, put some kerosene on my head to kill the so-called lice that I have.

– Jerry Wood

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Notes:

Jerry Wood Testimony. SC143_part02. Shared at Alberta National Event (ABNE) Sharing Circle. March 29, 2014. National Centre for Truth and Reconciliation holds copyright. https://archives.nctr.ca/SC143_part02