Between the years 1758 and 1810 the New Brunswick Executive Council began to reserve land for Indian use only. In all, some 62,000 acres of land was reserved for Indian use. In a short time white men bought about 15,000 acres of this land from the Micmacs. Soon it became law that the Micmacs could not sell this reserved land even to pay bills.
On the Miramichi the Micmacs settled on three main reserves. The Red Bank Reserve and the Eel Ground Reserve are about eight miles above Newcastle. The third reserve was at Burnt Church. This is about twenty-five miles downriver from Newcastle. Burnt Church is the oldest and second largest Indian reserve In New Brunswick.
But giving the Micmac people land was not good enough. Their way of life slowly continued to die. By 1841, there were only 1377 Indians still living in New Brunswick. Many had died from European diseases. Those left lived very poorly. In 1844, the New Brunswick Legislature finally saw how bad things had become. In that year they passed a Bill for the Management and Disposal of the Indian Reserves. The Bill saw the need for schools and jobs on the reserves. But very little was done. Some people at the time thought the Micmacs should become part of the white world. Others were happier to see the Indians living away from white settlements. Because they were so few in number the Micmacs were soon forgotten. In 1867, when Canada became a country, the Indian problem was passed into the hands of the Canadian government in Ottawa. Today, the Department of Indian and Northern Affairs in Ottawa looks after most Indian problems.