MOHAWK+GRAND RIVER

Gazette No. 7 — Declaration of Territorial Jurisdiction

Be it known and placed on record: That the territorial jurisdiction of the Mohawk Nation of Grand River extends over the Mohawk Acquired Territory as defined by the Haldimand Proclamation of 25 October 1784: the lands six miles on each side of the Grand River from its mouth at Lake Erie to its source in Dufferin County, Ontario.

I. The Territorial Description

The Haldimand Proclamation sets apart “a tract of land of six miles deep from each side of the [Grand] River beginning at Lake Erie and extending in that proportion to the head of the said river.” This description encompasses:

• 950,000 acres / 3,844 square kilometres within the six-mile corridor
• 17 municipalities across the Regional Municipality of Waterloo, County of Brant, Haldimand County, County of Wellington, and the City of Brantford
• The riparian rights over the Grand River as the waterway dividing and defining the Territory
• The Grand River Watershed of 6,800 square kilometres extending to the Lake Erie shoreline

II. The Character of the Grant

The Proclamation grants the Territory “for them and their posterity to enjoy for ever.” This is not a reserve under the Indian Act. It is not a licence or a privilege. It is a grant in perpetuity to the Mohawk Nation and their posterity — a covenant that survives Confederation, domestic legislation, and the passage of time.

III. The Doctrine of Dedication

The Doctrine of Dedication applies to the Grand River Territory. The dedication of the Territory to the Mohawk posterity by the Haldimand Proclamation of 1784 is irrevocable without the consent of both the dedicating party and the beneficiary. No formal act of un-dedication has ever occurred. No court has declared the dedication void. The Territory remains dedicated to the Mohawk posterity.

IV. The Constructive Notice Problem

Director Dan Petoran of the Land Registry Services Branch, ServiceOntario, confirmed on 1 April 2026 that no mechanism exists in Ontario’s land titles system to record or give effect to the Haldimand Crown covenant interest. This means that all purchasers, mortgagees, and registered owners of land within the corridor hold their interests without formal notice of the constitutional encumbrance — not because the encumbrance does not exist, but because the Province has failed to build a mechanism to record it. The Application for Writ of Mandamus (G63) seeks to remedy this.