The Star Blanket Cree Nation says using ground-penetrating radar, they have discovered more than 2,000 areas of interest at the site of the former Qu’Appelle Indian Residential School. The school near Lebret was one of the longest running residential schools in the country. It was run by the Roman Catholic Church from 1884 to 1973 and then it continued to operate for another 25 years until 1998.

Project lead for the search, Sheldon Poitras says a jawbone fragment of a child between the ages of four and six was found, and the bone is estimated to be from about 125 years ago. It’s not believed all 2,000 sites are unmarked graves. What comes next, Poitras says, is looking at options, including DNA testing, to confirm what is there. Poitras adds that they got help on how to do the ground search from the Cowessess First Nation, which had its own search. (CKRM)

The Indian Residential Schools Crisis Line: 1-866-925-4419