the Aboriginal peoples they encountered. Marie-Anne was often regarded as an object of curiosity by the Natives during her travels as she was invariably the first white woman they had ever seen (some were even led to believe that she possessed supernatural powers). Return to the Red River On hearing that Lord Selkirk was establishing a permanent colony at the Red River, they returned to help establish the new Red River Colony in the spring of 1812. The early history of the settlement was characterized by struggles between the Hudson's Bay Company (HBC) and its rival, the North West Company, culminating in the Battle of Seven Oaks in 1816. Although the Lagimodières managed to avoid involvement with the violent confrontations, Jean-Baptiste was asked by HBC representative Colin Robertson to take news of the events to Lord Selkirk. Over the winter of 1815–1816, Lagimodière travelled over 2,900 km on horseback and on foot in fulfillment of this mission. During this time, Marie-Anne was obliged to seek shelter among the aboriginal tribes when the Nor'Westers took possession of Fort Douglas. On his return from the east, Jean-Baptiste was taken prisoner by the Nor'Westers and was imprisoned in Fort William until August 1816. The Lagimodières were not reunited until September 1816, after the unrest had subsided. In recognition of his service, Lord Selkirk awarded Jean-Baptiste a tract of land near the Red River, which the Lagimodières successfully homesteaded for many years. They had six more children, including, in 1822, Julie Lagimodière, the future mother of Louis Riel. Dying at age 95 in 1875, Marie-Anne lived to see Manitoba become part of the Canadian Confederation following Riel's actions during the Red River Rebellion of 1869–1870. Legacy She is sometimes remembered as the "Grandmother of the Red River", and many of the Métis people of the Canadian Prairies can trace their ancestry to her. École Marie-Anne-Gaboury, a French immersion elementary school in St. Vital, Winnipeg, Manitoba, was named in her honour, as is Rue Marie Anne Gaboury in Bonnie Doon, Edmonton, Alberta, which is the home to the French-language section of the University of Alberta, the Campus Saint-Jean. The 1978 Canadian feature film Marie-Anne tells a fictionalized story of "the first white woman in Western Canada". See also Isobel Gunn, an HBC labourer who travelled to Rupert's Land disguised as a man. References Further reading Goulet, Agnès. Marie-Anne Gaboury: Une femme dépareillée, Editions des plaines,