995 995 1 2 2 1 LL LL A F • • RY RY STO I H N N A W !E I I ATC K AS S

5. 5. 92 1 n i a a anad C f f o Board Board

s s 11t e 1111111 o M d d an tes tes i S c c ri o t is /-l the the by by d d e t ec r e im im ca e e th nd nd y a y r e t e m ce e e til f f o n n o i t ca lo e e th s s w o sh so so l a t I . . e it s nt nt e m e l tt se ake ake L og og r F c c ri o t s hi

he he t gh gh u ro th cut cut ch ch i wh roads roads day day - t n ese r p he he t shows shows ghan ghan a n o R n n e All y y b p p a m s s thi 9, 9, 4 9 1 t t u o ab in in n n ro e m a C by by n n aw dr p p a m a a n n o ased ased B \\'l.B. \\'l.B.

ates. ates. i Assoc and and na na n Ha y y b s Cro Witty Witty rman rman e d l Hi of of esy esy rt Cou

13 13

1111 1111 1

I I I

5 5

1 1 1 1

Gilchrist Gilchrist I I

l

Uo Uo

H H Dill Dill o_ o_

E E I

Williscroft Williscroft G G

(/) (/)

0 0 L. L.

Marchand Marchand F F

oo oo I

c c Q. Q.

E E

Gowanlock Gowanlock .. ..

CIJ CIJ

Fafard Fafard D D le le

Delaney Delaney C C ~ ~

Gouin Gouin B B

A A Quinn Quinn

Bodies Bodies of of Location Location

Cairn Cairn and and . . 15 Cemetery Cemetery

Store Store 14. 14. Dill's Dill's

field field plowed plowed Mission Mission 13. 13.

Buildings Buildings Mission Mission 12. 12. Other Other

House House Priest's Priest's 11. 11.

Church Church R.C. R.C. 10. 10.

. . House House 9 Simpson's Simpson's

8. 8. Store Store HBC HBC

7. 7. Warehouse Warehouse Agency Agency

. . 6 House House Quinn's Quinn's

field field 5. 5. plowed plowed Agency Agency

. . 4 Stables Stables NWMP NWMP

House House 3. 3. Delaney's Delaney's Scale Scale

. . 2 Barracks Barracks NWMP NWMP to to Not Not

House House Prttchard's Prttchard's 1. 1.

1885 1885 2, 2, April April

Scene Scene Settlement Settlement Lake Lake Frog Frog Who Was The "Fine Young Man"? The Frog Lake "Massacre" Revisited

by Allen Ronaghan

Saskatchewan Archi ves Bo ard, R-A 3429. Scene of the Frog Lake "massacre".

I t may appear presumptuous to reopen the question of ered that they had won a victory, and this news travelled how many people died at Frog Lake on 2 April 1885. The quickly throughout the North-West. Mobilization of mili­ event took place 110 years ago, and the figure nine is tary forces began all across Canada. firmly established both in regional folklore and in western The killings at Frog Lake on 2 April by a group of Canadian history. The number nine first appeared in the Plains Cree warriors coincided with the Metis uprising. An report given to Major General Thomas Bland Strange by isolated expression of pent-up anger directed at specific William Bleasdell Cameron immediately after the latter's individuals, these killings were also celebrated by the Indi­ release from captivity in late May 1885.1 Cameron wrote ans as if they had won a victory, if only fo r a few days. But with the authority of one who had been involved in the the news of the killings-and of the taking of two white events of that Holy Thursday morning and who had revis­ women as hostages-did much to crystallize the sense of ited the scene of the action later in April. Nevertheless, purpose in the young and untried volunteers making their there is evidence which suggests that another person was way West over the Canadian Pacific Railway and the killed at Frog Lake on that fateful day. prairie trails. Many of the young soldiers would soon be The first shots of the North-West Rebellion were fired making their own count of the casualties at Frog Lake. on 26 March 1885 at Duck Lake, where Meris under Their writings make an in valuable contribution to our knowledge of what happened in that isolated little outpost. Gabriel Dumont's command fought an engagement with In 1885 Frog Lake was a village still vety much at its begin­ North-West Mounted Police under Superintendent L.N.F. nings. It owed its location to the decision of the Wood Cree Crozier. After counting the casualties, the Metis consid- Chief Chaschakiskwis to choose a reserve at Frog Lake where his people had long maintained a fi shery. An Indian Department Allen Ronaghan spent his wor!~ing career as a teacher. subagency was established at a convenient place not fa r from He received his Master's degree in history from the Uni­ the mouth of Frog Creek at the south end of the lake. A Hud­ versity of Saskatchewan, and his doctorate from the son's Bay Company trading post, a Mounted Police detach­ University of Manitoba in 1988. Recently, he has been ment, and a Roman Catholic mission soon followed. During conducting research in the Oblate Papers at the Provin­ the winter of 1884-85 a grist mill was under construction at cial Archives of Alberta. Frog Creek several kilomeu·es to the west of the settlement.

WHO WAS THE "FINE YOUNG MAN "? • FALL 1995 13 rants, with the trail from John Gowanlock's mill to Fort Pitt as the horizontal or east-west axis, and the ravin e road from John Pritchard's house north to the Indian camp as the vertical or north-south axis. In the northeast quad rant were P r itchard's house, the North-West Mounted Police barracks, Delaney's house, the Mounted Police sta bles, a ploughed field , and, beyond that field to the east, Indian Subagent Quinn's house and agency ware­ house. In the northwest quadrant were the Hudson's Bay Company store and Factor James K. Simpson's house and garden, not fa r from the ravine road. In the southwest quadrant, a nd several hundred metres from Pritchard's house, were the buildings of the Roman Catholic mission: a church, a school,3 two houses, a shed, a stable, a ceme­ tery, and a ploughed fi eld. In the southeast quadrant the only building of importance was George Dill's store. There may have been other buildings in this and other quad­ rants, but of these we are certain. In addition, several kilo­ metres to the west, near Frog Creek, were the buildings making up the establishment of Gowanlock's mill. 4 On the morning in question a group of Plains Cree India n s under the leadership of young warnors,

WANDERI NG SPI R11'.

Saskatchewan Archives Board, S-Bb024. Wa11deri11g Spirit, the head warrior in Big Bear's ba11 d, led the attack 011 the white me11 of frog Lake. Sketch copied from "The North-West R. ebellio11" by C.P. Mulva11ey, 1886.

A large band of Plains Cree under the leadership of Chief Big Bear moved onto the Frog Lake reserve fo r the long and bitter winter of 1884-85. Their traditional food source, the buffalo, had disappeared from the prairies, and while at Frog Lake they received food rations from the Indian Department in exchange for !about: Big Bear had refused to select and settle on his own reserve as part of his strategy to negotiate better treaty provisions with the Canadian govern­ ment. George Stanley (Mesunekuwepan) recalled the day his father, Chief Ohneepahao, gave his permission for Big Bear to camp on his reserve with the understanding that the fol­ lowing summer another reserve would be found for Big Bear's band.2 Ohneepahao did not know the extent of the trouble brewing among Big Bear's people. Resentment and unrest built up throughout the difficult winter. Some 600 cords of wood were cut by Big Bear's band in exchange for food, yet people continued to suffer from hunger. Fears of impending starvation and anger against whites, such as the arrogant and brutal Subagent Thomas Trueman Quinn, had the young men of the band spoiling for violence. They grew less and less inclined to listen to their old chief as he attempted to achieve diplo­ matic solutions to their problems. News of the fi ghting at Duck Lake excited them to act out their feelings of hatred toward certain white men at Frog Lake. Big Bear was no longer in control of his band, and he was unable to pre­ Saskatchewan Archi ves Board, R-A 5093. vent the resulting "massacre". The Indian Subagent at Frog Lake, Thomas Trueman Quin11, The events of 2 April 1885 may be visualized best by was considered by many to be an arrogant a11d brutal man. considering Frog Lake village as consisting of four quad- Q 11i1111 was the first man shot on 2 April 1885.

14 SASKATCHEWAN HISTORY • FALL 1995 Wandering Spirit and Big Bear's son, lmasees, disarmed Dill, Gilchrist and Williscraft-lay where they had fa llen a and collected together most of the white people of the vil­ considerable distance to the north, subject to indignities lage. In a series of moves which probably cannot now be from time to time. So it was that , w hen the Indians explained, the Indians led the whites on a march extend­ returned from Fort Pitt with their prisoners in late April, ing from Pritchard's house at the main intersection north Elizabeth McLean thought she saw the body of one of the along a lane which eventually became a prairie trail veer­ priests "propped up against a tree with a pipe stuck in his ing in a slightly northeast direction.5 mouth." 16 She was wrong in her identification, of course. Quinn and Charles Gouin were shot in front of She was only one of the people who saw the bodies of one Pritchard's house.6 Gowanlock, Delaney, and Fathers or other of the three men that day. Father La urent Legoff Leon-Adelard Fafard and Felix-Marie Marchand were recognized Gilchrist. 17 The bodies of Dill and Gilchrist killed in a sort of cluster several hundred metres north of were recognized as well by Cameron, Louis Patenaude this main intersection.7 and Stanley Simpson. 18 The next day, 20 April, Elizabeth's John Williscraft, Father Fafard's lay assistant, ran north father, W.J. McLean, assisted by Stanley Simpson and oth­ past this cluster and tried to make his escape to a clump of ers, buried these three bodies in sha llow graves near where trees somewhat off to the side of the trail, but he was shot they had lain , placing markers on the graves. 19 and killed before he got there.8 Dill and William Gilchrist, As of 20 April, then, six bodies lay in the cellars of burned Gowanlock's clerk, also ran; they were not overtaken and buildings. Three bodies lay in shallow graves. According to killed until they had reached a point more than a kilome­ the statements of soldiers who later saw these graves, earth tre north of the main intersection at Pritchard's.9 had been removed from one or more of the bodies, possibly All those who were present at the time of the killings by marauding animals, leaving them partially exposed.20 The and who have left us accounts of them-Cameron, Mrs. soldiers may have dug deeper graves for these bodies or may Delaney, Mrs. Gowanlock, Louis Goulet, Isabelle Little have thrown more earth over them. Bear Johns- saw or heard only events which occurred More than a month later, the Alberta Field Force under along the line from Pritchard's house north. George Stan­ the command of Major Thomas B. Strange arrived at Frog ley, a member of the Frog Lake Indian Band who also Lake. These troops found the four bodies in the cellar of wrote an account, heard shots and came from the north the church and laid them out on the grass beside the cellar. shortly after the killings. Stanley saw the bodies of those in The stench from decomposition was overwhelming, and the cluster; he also saw the bodies of Gouin and Quinn. the men who ha ndled the bodies wore masks of sponge H e then went over to the mission a nd saw the young saturated with army rum.2 1 The surgeon with the force, Indian men cavorting there. Joined by his father, Stanley John J. Pennefather, was ordered to examine the bodies also saw the activity around the Hudson's Bay Company and make what identification he could. H e was able to say buildings. 10 Our knowledge of what occurred at Frog Lake that two of the bodies were those of the pri ests. He that April morning is limited to these six accounts. guessed that a th ird was that of farming instructor, Those who had done the killings were not content with Delaney, but he could make no certain identification of the killing. They had to move and mutilate the bodies as well. fourth, suggesting only that it might be that of a lay When Mrs. Gowanlock saw this she asked Louis Goulet brother. Strange gave order s for the making of four whether it would be possible to have her husband's body wooden coffins for these four bodies. This was done using moved and buried. 11 Goulet spoke to Big Bear and got his rough lumber scrounged from somewhere, possibly permission to do this. Goulet borrowed a team and wagon Gowanlock's mill. Graves were dug just at the southern from Pritchard, and, with the help of Andre Nault, edge of the mission cemetery. Before the troops left Frog William Gladu, and a Native person, transported the bod­ Lake on Monday, 25 May, these four bodies were given a ies of the four men who had been killed in a cluster­ Christian burial. A correspo,ndent of the Manitoba Free Delaney, Fafard, Gowanlock, a nd Marchand-to the Press was with the troops, and an account of the burials mission, laying them in the cellar of the church. 12 later appeared in that newspaper. 22 Goulet wanted to do the same for the bodies of Quinn While the troops were thus occupied, William Parker of and Gouin. He was warned, however, by the young Indian the Mounted Police did some scouting around in the men that he and his friends would be killed if they did immediate vicinity of the settlement and found a body this. 13 Shortly afterwards, several of the young Natives w hich he supposed to be that of "young Gilchrist." carried the two bodies and laid them in Pritchard's cellar. Parker later wrote that the man was At least, this is what the survivors who later wrote about lying on his face along a footpath from his shack. Evi­ the event believed had happened, and it is corroborated by dently he had been running away in his underclothes reports of where those bodies were later found. 14 from mounted Indians and had been shot at close range O n that Easter weekend, buildings in t he village, in the back: his undershirt was a ll black from the pow­ including the church and Pritchard's house, were set on der. As he fell on his face in his death agonies he had 23 fire by the Indians and destroyed. 15 bitten a mouthful out of the prairi e sod. By the end of the Easter weekend, six of the bodies Pennefather, who also later wrote of this discovery, were in the ashes of two buildings. The others-those of used the words " fine young man" in hi s description.

WHO \Y/AS THE "FINE YOUNG MAN"? • FALL 1995 15

16 16 SA S KAT C HE WAN WAN H I STO RY RY • • F AL L L 1 995 995

F a th e r r Fafard, Fafard, "Fa th e r r Lafl ac, " " and and a a " l ay ay brot h e r . " " h or ses a p a , l o u g h , , a a b u c kb oard, oard, a a farm farm wagon, wagon, a nd nd a a

th e e fo ll ow in g g d ay. ay. Gra ndin 's 's eye eye f e ll ll up o n n r e f e r e n ces ces t o o hou ses, ses, a a sc h oo l l w ith ith a a goo d d lib ra r y, y, a a sta bl e, e, thr ee ee

Fi e ld ld Fo r ce ce o n n 2 4 4 May May an d d of of th e e buri a l l o f f th ose ose b o di es es in in th e e Ca th o li c c outr eac h h sys t e m. m. T h e r e e was was a a c hur c h , , two two

t h e e di sc ove r y y of of th e e four four b o di es es b y y th e e m e n n of of t h e e A l berta berta zea l ; ; by by 18 85 85 th i s s mi ss i o n n was was so m e thin o g f a a f s h ow pi ece ece

Manit oba oba Fr ee ee i ss P u ress ress e o e f f th e e w hi c h h ga v e a e n n accou nt nt of of befo r e . . H ere ere F a th er er F a fard fard w o rk e d d w ith ith h i c s u s t o m a r y y

h i s s way way h o m e. e. W h i l e e in in w h Ca e r e e l ga Fa r y, y, th Gr e r r a Th ndin ndin i bault bault r ea d d had had th e e 8 8 h a Jun d d a a e e mi ss i o n n m a n y y ear s s

A ft e r r v i s it i n g g B a ttl e fo rd B , , o h n n e e Co h ope n s t d e i l -was -was o o s t op op a b t t eg Fro un un g g Lake Lake a t t F r o og og n n Lake , , n ot ot far far from from

w h e r e e t h e e m a i n n ac tion s s of of t h e e r e b e ll ion ion h ad ad b ee n n fo u g ht . . R eg i s s was was cl ose d d and and a a n e w w mi ss i on-No tr e e Dam e e d e e

e m b a rkin g g on on a a tou r r th t h e e a t t Nat w ou i ve ve ld ld peop t a ke ke l es h . . i m m In In to to th e e th ea e e rl a y y r ea ea 1 88 0 s , , S t. t. J ea n - F r a n co i s s

I n n Ju n e, e, B i s h op op Grandi n n v i s it e d d Ca l ga r y. y. H e e was was n o o l o n ge r r e njo ye d d a a ce nt ra l l po s iti o n n in in t h e e mo ve m e nt s o s f f

w h a t t b e l i e v e . . to to ever, ever, t h a t , , w ith ith th e e d i sa pp ea r a n ce ce of of th e e buffalo, buffalo, Fort Fort Pitt Pitt

Var i ous ous n ews ews r e port s s co Ca nt tho in u li e c c d d c to to ommunit co m e, e, b y y ut ut th n ere o o o . n e e It It knew knew soo b n eca m e e cl ear, ear, h ow­

30 30

s uff e r e d d b y y t h e e mi ss i o L n es s s t at at a n c c Fro we g g nt nt Lak into into e e a Battl n d d Onion Onion efo rd rd to to L a se k rv e . . e e th e e grow in g g Rom a n n

in g g L a k e e to to mini s t e r r 7 7 Apr th e C e il ; ; r th ee ee at at Indi se ttl a n e s, s, me a n n d d t t h w to to a hil d d e e been been Fa th s e h r r ocke b d y y th e e l osses osses

w hil e e Fat h e F r a fard fard of of w e t nt nt h e e out out in c o id nt e n o o t t th at at e e F p r l a o in g g s s L pa a ke ke s t t So h a un r d d­ eac h e d d St . . A l b e rt rt o n n

Y it a i - Ju s tin tin G r a ndin ndin of of 187 S t. t. 7 . . A That That l b ert ert mi i n n ss June June i o n n was was of of 1885. 1885. se u d d for for Ne ws ws a a t i m e e as as a a h ead quart e r s s

t h e e r eco rd rd of of th e e Frog Frog in L g g ake ake of of t killin h e e St. St. gs gs J ea was was n -Fra m ade ade n c o b i s s y y R Bi eg s h i s s o M p p i ss i on on at at Fort Fort P i tt tt in in

Ther e e i s s ev id e n ce ce t o o s u Fath gges e t t r F s th a afard afard t t a n n att an e L d mpt mpt es t t a o o n co c c h rr a ec d d t t ass i s t e d d in in the the found ­

W es t t in in th e e 1 870s 870s a nd nd "yo 1 u 880s n g g G . . ilchri s t. " "

R o m a n n Cat h o li c c o utr body body each each r efe in in rr th e d d a t t t o o pa by by rt rt Pa o r f f k th e r r C e a nd nd a n P e ad nn i a efa n n th e r r was was not not th a t t o f f

Gra nd i n 's 's c orre s pond A A e s n tud ce ce y y we we o f f ca th n n e e se ge qu t t a a e n go ce ce od od of of pi eve c tu nt r s s e e h of of as as s h ow n n u s s th a t t th e e

in in graves graves sca tt e r ed ed ove Pr r r ov m ore ore in c i than than a l l A rchi a a kil ves ves ometre ometre o f f A l b a e nd nd rt a a a . . T h a hrou lf. lf. g h h th ese ese r e p o rts rts a nd nd

mi ss i onary onary wo r k, k, are are L a part part k e: e: fo o u f t f r r h of of e e Ob t h e m m l a t s e e i de de Co b ll y s y ec t id i on on e e at at i n n th the the e e s cemetery; i x x of of th e m m

ea rl y y F e bruar y . . Hi s s r e po So, So, rt, rt, by by alo ea n rl g g y y w Jun i th th e e ea 1 rli 885, 885, e r r r ten ten e port b o s s di of of es es l ay ay buri e d d a t t Fro g g

J osep h-J ea n- Ma ri e e L h es o ses ses u tan c w sa e h ad ad w t w v h i s e e it r e e d d m a th in e e s s o mi f f two two ss i o n of of s s th in in e e v i c ti m s s ...... "

29 29 2 7 7

th e e clo se st st p oss ib l e e pro s up v e i d r e v d d i s ion ion th e e d over over e t a il il th t h a a t t t t wo " i n n rk. rk. o n e e Fa of of t h t er er h c e ell a r s s of of t h e e bu rn t t

reg i o n , a , nd nd hi s s cor r es did did pond n o t t e appea n ce ce s h r r ows ows in in pr th i nt nt at at unt he he i l l m 1 a 955 i ntai . . Hi n ed ed s s entr y y for for 8 Jun e 1 885 885

acq u a int e d d w i th th th were were e e work work found found of of a h nd nd i s s buri m i ssiona e d. d. " Th ri es es e e di i a t n r y y h of of e e Li e ut. ut. J. A.V. A.V. Pr es ton ton

26 26

G r a ndin ndin h ad ad n o H t t e e co forgo r robora tt e n. n. t e d d H t h e e at at wa "whi s s intim l e e a t t Frog Frog a t e l L y y a k e e two two m ore ore b o d i es es

p l y y forgot forgot ab o ut ut hi m . . T h e e n ex t t acco unt unt to to ap p ea r r was was P e nn e fath e r 's 's in in 1892. 1892.

occ

urred urred

e

ith

er er

did did not not know know h e e was was a t t F r og og o Lake r r s im ­

a nd nd no no l o n ge r h r ave ave a a hum a n n fo rm. H H

a r e a a th a t t mo s t t w hit s e ur v iv o r s s w h o o l a t e r r told told what what h ad ad

o f f th a t t sa d d d ay ay of of 3 3 [ s i ] ] c Apri l , , the y y a r e e h a l f - burn e d d

Michaux, Michaux, a a per so n n so so r ece ntly ntly a rri ve d d in in th e e Frog Frog L ake ake

t h e e b o di es es of of Qui nn nn a n d d Gou in: in: l i ke ke th e o e th e r r v i c tim s s

k n ow n. n. In In co rr ect in g g th e e r eco r d, d, t h e e bi s h op op n a med med M r . . t h em. em. Ce rt a in in indi ca ti o n s s m ake ake u s s b e l ieve ieve that that t h ey ey a r e e

a r ea ea were were ki ll e d , , a nd nd h e e wante a a d e d d r a i th l l fr e ir ir o m m tru Co e e id mp e n a tit n y y i es es No. No. m a 3 3 d e e was was or d e r e d d bur y y to to

thre e e of of hi s s p eo p l e e in in se r v i ce ce in in th e e Fro g g L a k e-O nio n n L a k e e

Fro g g L ake ake a n d d we nt nt on on to to say say that that

in in th e e ce ll a r r of of th c e hur c h . . Hi s s ass umpt i o n n was was th a t t all all

li s h e d d in in 1 886 D . ao s u t t to l d d of of th e e di scove r y y o f f bod i es es a t t

o nl y y g u ess ess at at th e e i dent i t y y of of th e e fo ur ur b urn e d d bodies bodies found found

Ce nt -Yi n g t t ] o ur s s d e e Serv i ce ce A c tif tif a u u No r d - O u est, est, pub ­

G r an din din mu s t t h ave ave s urm i se d d t h at at P e nnefat h e r r cou ld ld

T h e e fir s t t acco unt unt a ppear ppear was was that that to to of of C. R. R. Daou s t t in in

of of th e i r r advent ur es . . l awye r r i n n Fran ce. is is

Brother , , was was a a sc h oo l l t eac h er er a nd nd h ad ad fo r me rl y y b ee n n a a it it fo r r th e e seco nd nd ti m e . . T hr ee ee m e n n of of th ese ese unit s s lat er er wrote wrote

Mic h aux, aux, w h o o was was buri e d d w it h h t h e o e th e r s s as as a a L ay­ t i m e, e, w hil e e m e n n of of th e e 92 n d d W innip eg eg Li g ht ht I nfantr y y saw saw

Th e r e e was was n o o Lay-B r other other k ill ed ed in in th e e m assac re. re. Mr. Mr.

m e nt nt from from O nt a ri o o saw saw Frog Frog Lak e e vi ll ag e e fo r r th e e fir s t t

Mount Mount R oya l l Rifl es es of of Montr ea l l a nd nd of of t h e e M idl a nd nd R eg i ­ broth e r." r." H e e wrote wrote as as fo ll ows: ows:

und e r r Ge n e ra l l Midd l e ton. ton. In In ear l y y Jun e, e, m e n n of of th e e 65 th th s eason . . Finall y, y, Gra ndin ndin c ame ame to to t h s e ubj ect ect of of th e e " l ay ay

o f f B i g g Bea r r a nd nd eve ntu a ll y y were were j o in ed ed b y y tr oops oops se r v in g g Frog Frog Lake Lake to to ass i s t t Fa th e r r Fafa rd rd durin g g th e e bu sy sy Ea ste r r

tl e e of of Fr e n c hm a n' s s Butt e e on on 28 28 M ay . . Th ey ey wen t t in in pur s uit uit p l ace ace o f f se rvice rvice was was Onion Onion Lake, Lake, a nd nd th a h t e e was was o nl y y a t t

s m o kin g g ruin s s of of Fort Fort Pitt Pitt an d d th e n n t o o tak e e p a rt rt in in th e e Bat ­ was was r ea l l y y March a nd. nd. H e e ex pl a in e d d th a t t Marc h a n d 's 's

T h e e m e n n of of th e e A lb e rt a a Field Field Fo r ce ce we nt nt o t n o o see see t h e e n a me, me, G randin randin p oi nt e d d o ut , , h a b d ee n n g i ve n n in co rr ec tl y; y; it it

s id e r r t h e m m now. now. tra inin g g a nd nd se r v i ce ce in in t h e e No rth - W es t. t. The The seco nd nd p ri es t 's 's

b od i es . . Th ose ose of of Go ui n n a nd nd Q uin n n mak e e t e n. n. L e u t s s co n ­ wo rd s s a bout bout Fat h e r r Fafa r d, d, g i v in g g d e t ai l s s o f f hi s s birth , ,

" fi n e e yo un g g m a n, " " we we k n ow ow of of th e e di s p os it i on on o f f e i g ht ht th e e b o di es es C hr i s ti a n n buri a l s . . H e e t h e n n went went o n n t o o s a y y a a few few

po int e d d ou t t th a t , , wi h th th e e d i sc ove r y y o f f th e e b o dy dy o t f h e e bi s h op op e x pr essed essed h i s s a pp r ec i a t ion ion to to t h ose ose w h o o h a d d g i ve n n

w hi c h h we we mu s t t now now turn. turn. But But b e for e e d o in g g so so it mu it s b t e e purp ose ose of of s etti n g g the the r eco rd rd st ra i g ht. ht. F ir s t t of of a ll , , th e e

W h o o was was thi s s "fine "fine yo un g g m a n ?" ?" Th a t t i s a a s qu es ti o n n t o o ate l y y wrote wrote a a Free Free l et t e r r Pr to to ess ess t h e e e d it or of of or t h e e w ith ith th e e

co mm o n n grave grave and and d ece ntl y y covere d d ove r. r. " th e e m i ss ion s s at at Fr og og L a k e e and and Onio n n L a k e . . H e e i mm e di ­

24 24

P en n efa th e r r r e p or t e d d that that t h e e " rema i ns ns we r e e pl ace d d i n n a a G r a ndin ndin was was i n n a a po s it io n n to to kn ow ow who who h ad ad b ee n n at at land H o u se by the first eastbound steamboat in the spring.33 If Fafard acted with his usua l energy, this box of books was ready and waiting and was destroyed by fi re along with the rest of the mission in early April. In the days after the killings at Frog Lake, Grandin waited impatiently at St. Albert for news of who had been killed. The news was vague, sometimes contradictory, and in a letter to his superior dated 24 April, Grandin specu­ lated a bout wha t had happened. "All reports say," he wrote, "that Father Fafard has been massacred along with another father and two lay brothers. Since there are at present no lay brothers in the district we suppose that they a re Fathe rs Fafard , Marchand an d LeGoff with M r. Michaux, Father Fafa rd's helper. Please God these reports are false or at least exaggerated ... " 34 As we have seen, the truth was not quite as Grandin feared; Father Legoff had not been at Frog Lake (he was at St. Raphael's Mission on the Beaver River) and was not killed. N or w as the trut h quite as t he newspapers reported. As a result, Grandin sent his letter to the Free Press mentioning Mr. Micha ux, a person who had been very little noticed at Frog Lake. It is curious that the presence of Mr. M ichaux, the school teacher, is not mentioned in any of the accounts of Frog Lake at the time of the troubles. One can only specu­ late on the reasons for this, bearing in mind that the accu­ racy of reporting was hampered by such varia bles as the speed with which the killings occurred, the trauma experi­ enced by the witnesses, their position at the time of the Saskatchewan Archives Board, R-A 3428. events, the natural limitations of the spectators, to name Fa ther Leo11 -Adelard Fafa rd fo 1111ded the new mission- Notre onl y the most obvious. As well, M ichaux was a teacher­ Dame de Bon Conseil-at Frog Lake i11 the early 1880s. a common civilian. As such, he was more or less unno­ ticed by the populace. Bi shop Grandin's letters are the cart.31 A large field had been ploughed and there Fafard only sources w hich name the man who was teaching at grew potatoes, turnips and other vegetables . Notre Dame de Bon Conseil mission in April of 1885. The mission work at Frog Lake prospered. The school Even the school itself receives very little mention in later was so successful that Father Marchand was sent to help accounts. We would not even know that classes were held Father Fafard. M archand mastered Cree quickly and was on that Holy Thursday at Frog Lake if Isabelle Little Bear so satisfactory as a teacher that he was given permission Johns had not told her story long after the event. Many to start a mission of his own-St. Louis-at Onion Lake. years after the kil li ngs at Frog Lake, she told of her experi­ This left Fafard alone again at Frog Lake, and G randin ences as a twelve-yea r-old girl that fa teful April day. She did all he could to replace M archand with someone who said she was late for school that morning and "the priest" could teach. was very angry with her. He wanted to give her a whip­ In November of 1884 Grandin reported to his superior ping, but she ran home. Later that morning she witnessed that he was going to send-on a provisional basis-a new Wandering Spirit's killing of Quinn.35 A study of the events man to Frog Lake. This man had volunteered to come to a makes it clear that "the priest" w ho was teaching that frontier country where a lcohol was not readily available. morning could not have been either Fafard or Marchand.36 H e had, it appeared, a drinking problem. Grandin did not Of the remaining na rrators such as Mrs. Delaney, M rs. give the man's name, but said he hoped he could make a Gowanlock, Stanley, and Goulet, none witnessed all of the teacher out of him.32 Presumably, this man was Mr. action. It was not until the survivors were prisonei·s in the Michaux, and he was sent to Frog Lake to begin his duties. Indian camp that they compared notes and determined the Grandin wanted the best use made of scarce resources. number killed in the line of march north from Pritchard's. In what may have bee n his last letter to Fafard, written on There was no one to speak about what had happened at 9 M arch 1885, the bishop asked Fafard to make a selec­ the mission. Cameron was asked by M aj or Strange to tion of Cree books that could be spared for use by Father make a statement, and that statement-fixing the number Bonald at the Cumberland mi ssion. Fafard was instructed of victims at nine--has remained gospel ever since. to place these books in a sturdy box to be sent to Cumber- A second ti ny shred of evidence that M ichaux was the

WHO WAS THE " FIN E Y OUNG M AN" ? • FALL 1995 17 us So m eone, p ossibly a Native person, mentioned a " brother" or this entry would not have been made. H ow­ ever, n o ne of the eyewitnesses to t he k ill ings-no t Cameron, Goulet, Mrs. Delaney, or M rs. Gowanlock­ said anything about a "brother" being shot. T his refer­ ence simply disappeared into obli vion. It is a lso strange tha t, while the Ro man Catho li c Church was carefu l to honor the memory of the two slain priests, it apparently d id nothing to acknowled ge M ichaux. Bishop Grandin visited the scene of the killings several times and did all he could to find out exactl y what happened on that 2 April morning. He interviewed Native people and marked the spots they indicated as being the places where Fafard and M an.: hand had fa llen. Grandin considered the two priests to be martyrs, and had crosses erected at these two spots. The crosses have since disap ­ peared. Eventually, Grandin had the bodies of Fafa rd and Marchand exhumed and removed to the new mission at Onion Lake. Later, they were moved again to St. Albert. Why was there no recognition fo r M icha ux? The To .., e tf "1'\F\T'f'\s Oc L\ a nswer is p robably tha t Gra ndin could not find the ' d~ \fi_i rcioJ/Lrf B~u~ teacher's grave and be sure of his fate. It will be remem­ bered that both Parker and Pennefather thought that the dfl.•f.LcJ tJoij11,1rJ.r ' Oc/ "fine young man" was Gilchrist. If they marked the grave Jl. ".J'\iL . 1665 1 they more than li kely used the name "Gilchrist". Grandin could find no grave mar ked "Mich a ux" . If he saw Gilchrist's grave near Dill's-more than a kilometre and a ha lf to the north and east of the mission- he probably realized that he was confronted w ith a problem that he was in no position to solve. He may have begun to won­ National Archives of Ca nada, C597. der if the man he had sent to teach at Frog Lake had, in Fa ther Felix-Marie M archand, O blate Missionary at 0 11io 11 L ake, fact, made his escape. The bishop may be excused if he had been sent to assist Fa ther Leo11 -Adelard Fafard at the Frog decided to leave matters at that. Lak e 111issio 11 d11ring the busy Easter season in 1885. A close study of the disposition of the bodies of the vic­ tims at Frog Lake on 2 April 1885 shows, however, that tenth victim at Frog Lake is in a " list of prisoners" now in ther e wer e not n ine but ten people killed tha t d ay. the M ann Papers at the Glenbow Archives in Calgary. Grandin's letter to the Free Press reveals the identity of the This list contains the names of a number of Indians await­ " fine young man" discovered and buried by members of ing trial before Judge Rolleau. Beside the number fifteen the Alberta F ield Force. T he tenth victim was Mr. are the enigmatic words, "Koo pise Kanew Big Bears son Michaux, the new schoolteacher who had "formerly been Killing Brother [sic]. " 37 It is difficult to explain this entry. a lawyer in France."

Endnotes

Major General T. B. Strange, Gunner Jingo's Jubilee (Lo ndon and The Frog Lake "Massacre"; Personal Perspectives on Ethnic Con­ Sydney: Remington & Co., ] 893), 473-4. flict (To ronto: McClelland and Stewart, 1976), 43-6. Hughes' book 2 George Stanley (Mesunekwepan), "An Account of the Frog Lake contain s several documents and publications that are either difficult Massacre," in The Frog Lake "Massacre"; Personal Perspectives 0 11 to consult or are long out of print, notably Theresa Gowanlock and Ethnic Co11(/ict, Stuart H ughes, ed. (Toronto: McClel land and Stew­ Theresa Delaney, Two Mo11ths i11 the Camp of Big Bear: The Life art, 1976), 160. and Ad ven tures of T heresa Gowanlock and Theresa Delaney 3 The exact location of the school is not known. There are three cellar ( 1885), and \Xl.B. Cameron, The War Trail of Big Bear (1926), later depressions at the sire of the Frog Lake mission, bur there is no clear issued as Blood Red the Sun ( 1950). H ughes has been cited when evidence as to which was the school's cellar. referring to any of these sources. 4 See map. John J. Pennefather, Thirteen Years on the Prairies (Lon­ 6 C harette, Vanishing Species, 128. Cameron in H ughes, The Frog don: Kegan Paul, Trench, Tribner & Co. Ltd., 1892), 34-5. Lake "Massacre'', 43; 54. 5 G uillaume Charette, \!anishi11g Species: Memoirs of Louis Goulet 7 Stanley in Hughes, The Frog Lake "Massacre'', 162. (Winnipeg: Editio ns Bo is-Brules, 1976. Origi nall y published as 8 Gowanlock in H ughes, The Frog Lake "Massacre", 180; Delaney in L'Espace de Louis Goulet), 124-6. W.B. Cameron in Stuart Hughes, ibid., 226.

18 SASKATCHEWAN H ISTORY • FALL 1995 9 Cameron in ibid., 5 1; Charette, Vanishing Species, 126; Narional 25 Charles R. Daoust, Cent-Vingt }ours de Service Act if a11 Nord-Ouest Archi ves of Canada, RG 18, Royal North-West M ounted Police (Montreal: Senecal et Fils, 1886), 97. Translation m ine. See also Records, Report of Sergeant Hall, 20-7- l 909. In his description of Howard Angus Kennedy, "Memoirs of 1885," in Canadian G eo­ the shooting o f George Dill, Hall states that Dill " made a dash fo r it graphical }011mal, Vol. LXX, No. 5 (May 1965), 154. when the s hooting commenced and succeeded in getting nearl y a 26 Pennefarher, 45. mile away, when he was overtaken and shot in the head." Gilchrist, 27 Preston, 102. Hall reports, "made a dash for it and caught up to George Dill, and 28 Manitoba Free Press, 16 June 1885. A copy of Grandin's original both fell together. ... " letter i s in PAA, Oblate Collection, Grandin Papers, 84.400, Boice 10 Stanley in Hughes, The Frog Lake Massacre, 162-3. 33, Item 927, Grandin to the editor, I 0 June 1885. 11 Gowanlock in ibid., 184; Charette, Vanishing Species, 127. 29 The Dictionary of Canadian Biography, vol. XII (Toronto: Univer­ 12 Charette, Vanishing Spaces, 127. sity of Toronto Press, 1986), gives Lesranc's Christian names as 13 Ibid., 128. Jean-Marie-Joseph. The undated account in the Oblate Papers refers 14 Cameron in Hughes, The Frog Lake Massacre, 5 J. See endnote 26. to him as Joseph-Jean-Marie, and this is the version used here. 15 Ibid., SJ; C ha rette, Vanishing Spaces, 130; Mrs . Gowanl ock in 30 PAA, Oblate Collection, Lest

GRANT RECEIVED The Advisory Board of Saskatchewan His­ tory acknowledges with thanks a generous grant received in 1995 from the Saskatchewan History and Folklore Society.

The Sa skatchewa n History a nd Folklore Society provided $1,000 to assist with the production of the journal.

WHO WAS THE "FINE YOUNG MAN"? • FALL 1995 19