Chief Keeseekoowenin Cardinal

CHIEF KEESEEKOOWENIN (OTHERWISE MOSES BURNS)

Chief Keeseekoowenin (aka Moses Burns) is the son of Chief Okanase (aka Michael Cardinal) and an Orkney mixed-blood woman of Canadian Biography His mother may be Lizette Slater, who was the wife of Michael Cardinal and the mother of William Cardinal Genealogy.com Lizette Slater may also be the mother of Okanase, also known as Baptiste Bone Dictionary of Metis Biography

Keeseekoowenin was born in or around 1818 in the Bow River area of what is now the province of Alberta. His father was Chief Okanase, meaning "Little Bone", also known as Michael Cardinal, of the Saulteaux branch of the Ojibwe people. His father's band were fur traders who had drifted westwards from Quebec to the Rocky Mountains over several generations. His mother was of mixed Orkney and native American ancestry.

Keeseekoowenin is described as over six feet tall, of magnificent physique, an excellent buffalo hunter, trapper, and farmer, and an outstanding runner. A true Christian, he also retained his native belief in the Great Spirit. He revered wildlife and promoted native pow-wow ceremonies. His mixture of traditional and Christian religious beliefs harmonized with the teachings of Flett.

Keeseekoowenin’s children continued the family’s colourful history. Harriet Burns married Glen Campbell, and together they enlivened the social scene in Winnipeg and Ottawa during his terms as a legislator. Solomon Burns became a deeply respected Presbyterian elder and religious leader. Victoria Burns married Walter Scott who, with her brother David, played a key role in Campbell’s famous trek to the Yukon during the Klondike gold-rush. Keeseekoowenin, who had become blind shortly before his death at age 88, was succeeded in the chieftainship by his half-brother George Bone.

Biographical Accounts

1. Dictionary of Canadian Biography: Keeseekoowenin
2. Wikipedia: Keeseekoowenin
3. Virtual Museum of Metis History