Tthe Zra ̧y Kek’it (Black City) is an archaeological site located on the banks of the Blackstone Riverand is approximately 100 kilometres northeast ofJëjik Dhä Dënezhu Kek’it(Moosehide Village), on the east side of the Dempster Highway. The site is contained within Tr’ondëk Hwëch’in Settlement Land.

While the Blackstone Uplands and area have been used by the Dënezhu from time immemorial, the former settlement ofTthe Zra ̧y Kek’it (Black City) was most heavily occupied in the late nineteenth and early twentieth century to take advantage of new economic opportunities presented by the arrival of a large population of newcomers. It was strategically situated within a sheltering grove of spruce trees, close to a caribou migration route. The river supplied srejil (Arctic Grayling) and Dolly Varden fishing while the trees provided shelter and fuel. This was an excellent base for hunting, trapping, and fishing as well as a welcoming refuge for people travelling the land.

The site consists of remnants of previous dwellings that were a combination of semi-subterranean pit houses, log-walled tents, and canvas tents.Oral historic investigations also identified a low flat area that the inhabitants of the site used for recreational purposes.

Tthe Zra ̧y Kek’it (Black City) is a place that demonstrates Tr’ondëk Hwëch’in ingenuity, resistance and adaptation in the face of continued colonial actions by the newcomers. Here, ancestors adopted the tools of the migrants (rifles and metal trade goods), while using traditional hunting knowledge to harvest caribou meat, which was then sold using the new cash economic system.This is a place where Tr’ondëk Hwëch’in continued ancient relationships with animals and land, while also acting as active participants in the new world created by colonialists. Tthe Zra ̧y Kek’it(Black City) represents Tr’ondëk Hwëch’in refusal to be assimilated, but also their refusal to be shutout of the new colonial society and their ongoing commitment to a relationship with our ancestral lands.This site is not currently open for visitors.