Large Native Population in Canada?

In OTL by the 1940s, Canada's Native population was about 160,000. With a POD in the 1860s, what is the highest I could hope to get it too? This would be an increase in "Canadian" Native population, but also allowing for larger migration of "American" Native peoples coming to the Dominion.
 
Well, probably the best thing would be for the metis population of the praisies to be considered "native", and to remain the dominant culture in western Canada. I believe in the 1860s the metis were still the majority of the settled population of Manitoba. If they became allies rather than enemies of the government in Ottawa they could maybe remain dominant. You'd have to have a slower stream.of settlers to western Canada so that the newcomers were always the minority and would assimilate into the metis population and intermarriage with them. Thus their descendants would also be metis.
 
You're not starting with much - by 1871 there are census documents giving you 102,000 natives in Canada or thereabouts, but who knows how accurate they are? You also still have pressure from colonists from Ontario moving westward. You could have Riel do better, but Métis and natives will always have to deal with the challenge of fighting a better-armed, more organized group of conquerors. Even if you get a more secure Manitoba, eventually Europeans will look at the province as an attractive place for farming and start heading west.

Even before 1860, there was a mindset deeply entrenched in Canada that it was the right thing to do to administer First Nations peoples in such a way that they would be compelled to become enfranchised - that is, Europeanized, giving up their Indian identity. Residential schools were already getting their earliest iterations going before Confederation, too.

You could always have John A. Macdonald lose the 1867 election, but there's not really much hope for getting someone "pro-First Nations" at that point. Maybe a hypothetical Prime Minister George Brown is too busy ranting about "French Catholic priestcraft" and the Irish for a real systemic action against First Nations - the Catholic Church did administer a majority of the residential schools, as far as I know, and maybe Brown sees their presence in the west as unacceptable. That said, I don't know that he'd be any more mild towards First Nations than John A would've been.
 
When Sitting Bull comes north in 1877, have him stay.
Then the US gets the bright idea of moving most of their natives north.
???
Natives become productive farmers (how?) and grow in numbers, leaving less room for the 'White' influx that filled up the Prairies after 1900.
 
When Sitting Bull comes north in 1877, have him stay.
Then the US gets the bright idea of moving most of their natives north.
the Nez Perce war was famously fought when the tribe tried to flee to Canada. I always wondered why the US didn't just let them go there (and any other natives who wanted to go)....
 
When Sitting Bull comes north in 1877, have him stay.
Then the US gets the bright idea of moving most of their natives north.
???
Natives become productive farmers (how?) and grow in numbers, leaving less room for the 'White' influx that filled up the Prairies after 1900.

IIRC the Canadian government really wanted Sitting Bull and his Sioux to leave. James Walsh got the boot because he was being too cozy with Sitting Bull if I'm not mistaken. I think they were afraid that his continued presence would endear American hostility. Have that perception change though and they may be willing to overlook it.
 
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