When New Brunswick became its own colony in 1784, the government concluded several peace treaties with the Mi'kmaq and Maliseet in the territory that protected First Nations lands. But as settlers, loyalists, and disbanded soldiers moved into New Brunswick, they moved onto the reserves, often without official sanction. This squatter problem led the New Brunswick government to pass an act in 1844 that allowed them to sell reserve land. Author Brian Cuthbertson explores the history of the defense of reserve lands by the Maliseet and Mi'kmaq of New Brunswick, from eighteenth-century peace treaties to the present. With reference to the 1844 act, Cuthbertson examines the legality of the sale of reserve lands using specific cases from Buctouche, Red Bank, Tobique, and Burnt Church and Eel Ground. Includes 60 images, including maps and contemporary paintings and sketches.

A native of Sackville, New Brunswick, Brian Cuthbertson received a PhD from King's College, London. He was an archivist at the Nova Scotia Archives (1974-1982) and Head of Heritage in the Nova Scotia government (1983-1995). He is the author of eight books, including The Loyalist Governor, which received the Evelyn Richardson Literary Award. His most recent book is Melville Prison and Deadman's Island: American and French Prisoners of War, 1794-1816. Brian lives in Halifax, Nova Scotia.