Head-Smashed-In Buffalo Jump

Head-Smashed-In Buffalo Jump
Estipah-skikikini-kots / Áístipahskikikínikots (Blackfoot)
The cliffs at Head-Smashed-In Buffalo Jump
Head-Smashed-In Buffalo Jump is located in Alberta
Head-Smashed-In Buffalo Jump
Location within Alberta
49°44′58″N 113°37′30″W / 49.74944°N 113.62500°W / 49.74944; -113.62500
LocationMunicipal District of Willow Creek No. 26 near Fort Macleod
Alberta
History
Founded1955
Site notes
Area73.29 km2 (28.30 sq mi)
Governing bodyAlberta Culture
TypeCultural
Criteriavi
Designated1981 (5th session)
Reference no.158
Country
Canada
Region
North America
Official name
Head-Smashed-In Buffalo Jump National Historic Site of Canada
Designated1968
TypeProvincial Historic Site
Designated1979

Head-Smashed-In Buffalo Jump (Blackfoot: Estipah-skikikini-kots) is a museum of Blackfoot culture 18 kilometres (11 mi) west of Fort Macleod, Alberta, Canada. The now disused buffalo jump is a UNESCO world heritage site in an area where the foothills of the Rocky Mountains begin to rise from the prairie.

Joe Crowshoe Sr. OC (1903–1999) – Aapohsoy’yiis (Weasel Tail) – a ceremonial elder of the Piikani Nation in southern Alberta, was instrumental in the development of the site. The Joe Crow Shoe Sr. Lodge is dedicated to his memory. He dedicated his life to preserving Aboriginal culture and promoting the relationship between Aboriginal and non-aboriginal people and in 1998 was awarded the National Aboriginal Achievement Award for "saving the knowledge and practices of the Blackfoot people."