Situated directly west of Calgary, the Tsuut’ina Nation reserve shares its eastern boundary with the southwest city limits of one of Alberta’s largest urban centres. The reserve covers a land area of 283.14 km2 and recorded a population of 1,982 in the 2001 Canadian census. Historically known by the Blackfoot exonym Saahsi, commonly spelled Sarcee or Sarsi, the Tsuut’ina people now use their own name, which translates roughly as ‘a great number of people’ or ‘beaver people.’ The northeast portion of the reserve served as part of CFB Calgary, a Canadian Army base, from 1910 until 1998, after which the Government of Canada returned the land to the Nation in 2006.
The Tsuut’ina are an Athabaskan people, originally part of the Dane-zaa nation to the north, who migrated south onto the Great Plains in the early 18th century. Their traditional way of life centred on bison hunting during summer months and forest-edge hunting in winter, with five distinct bands – the Big Plumes, Crow Childs, Crow Chiefs, Old Sarcees, and Many Horses – each led by their own chief. Explorer Captain John Palliser visited and estimated their population at around 1,400 between 1857 and 1860. In 1877, the Tsuut’ina signed Treaty 7 alongside other Indigenous peoples, leading to the establishment of their reserve, where they settled in 1881 following significant hardship caused by the disappearance of bison and outbreaks of disease. Their traditional territory spans a much broader area across southern Alberta beyond the current reserve boundaries.