Book Description

Crowfoot, a Blood Indian who became chief of the Blackfoot Nation, was a great warrior and peacemaker during the time of settlement of the Canadian West.

In one shattering decade, from 1875 to 1885, the great buffalo herds diappeared from Western Canada, forcing the Plains Indians who had depended on them for food, shelter, and clothing, to change their way of life.Crowfoot became a leader by merit, establishing his leadership in battle.He survived smallpox epidemics, fought in 19 battles, and provided generous leadership, sharing his wealth with the less successful.

Crowfoot tells the story of how one Canadian First Nation was led through years of cataclysmic change by a wise chief, a great warrior, a diplomat and peacemaker who viewed peace as the key to survival.
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This is the story of the fascinating and challenging life of Stoney Chief Frank Kaquitts-Sitting Wind. It includes his time as an actor, when he played Sitting Bull opposite Paul Newman in Buffalo Bill and the Indians. This award-winning biography explores cultural differences with eloquence and sensitivity. ... Read more

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Reviews (1)

A fascinating look at the Ohio Frontier
Alexander McKee died in 1799. A few months after his funeral, Soloman McCulloch remembered that several hundred Indians arrived at the gravsite. Assisted by McKee's son, Thomas, they began "a slow, measured, and dignified dance that celebrated the memory of their departed friend. The ritual began in the morning and continued throughout the night and well into the following day. Simon Girty confided to MuCulloch that in all his years amont the Indian tribes, he had seen the ceremony conducted only twice before. The Indianse reserved the ritual, he claimed, 'Only for men of dintinction among them'" Alexander McKee (1735-1799) is an often overlooked character in historical accounts of the Ohio Frontier, particularly because he worked for the British Crown, thus was on the "wrong" side to be glorified in American History.

McKee's father was an Irish immigrant, his mother a Shawnee, and he was a fur trader like his father. He was equally cuturally adept among the Europeans and Indians. The Indian nations were themselves very diverse and independent, having different culture, language, and interests. Present also were British, American colonists, French, Spaniards, Dutch, all looking to profit in one way or another from the resources or land in the Ohio Frontier. Alexander McKee worked his way up in the Indian Department, employed by the British Crown to oversee Indian affairs. Serving in various capacities for nearly fifty years, he was educated by experience and motivated by alleigance to the Crown, but with sympathies to Indian interests. McKee was an important contributor to the Ohio Frontier. He exploited his extensive knowledge of differences in cultures and language, and became a valuable tool in the evolution of the frontier throughout the Revolutionary War and afterward as inevitable migration by settlers to the West. At the beginning of his career, McKee's cultural identification was primarily with the Indian nations, whom he considered his people, His keen negotiating skills and knowledge of Indian customs, as well as his own economic self interests, led him to become a wealthy, respected member of both the British community and the Indian nations, but now more culturally aligned with the British. As the political climates and land boundaries were constantly evolving, McKee was instrumental and influential in those changes.

McKee's life is a micro example of the tremendous diversity of cultures that was present in the Ohio Frontier in the 1700's, and how those cultures were integrated into what Ohio would become. He was instrumental in the evolution of those changes, as he spent his life negotiating the self interests of many factions for a mutually satisfying resolution. This is an interesting, engaging book by Dr. Larry L. Nelson, rich in history and a personal look at a man who was a contributor to that history. ... Read more

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When Clayton Mack was a child, his parents wrapped him in wolf skin and dumped him in water four times so he would grow up strong and fierce in the woods like a wolf. True to this Nuxalk tradition, Mack grew up to be a world-famous grizzly bear hunter and guide.Clayton Mack's first book of amazing tales about bears and q'umsciwas (white men), Grizzlies and White Guys, became an instant best seller when it was published in 1993. In Bella Coola Man, Clayton Mack continues his hair-raising stories about pulling bears out of the bushes by their legs, eating fresh bear meat with Thor Heyerdahl, finding gold nuggets in the bush, murder in the Big Ootsa country and dead men's talking beans, plus Crooked Jaw the Indian agent and where to find good fishing. Clayton Mack was a walking encyclopedia of tribal lore, and one of the best storytellers ever born. The stories in Bella Coola Man are the last he told, and reflect his desire to pass on as much information about Nuxalk life and legends as he could before his death. Hear about the man-eater dance performed at River's Inlet where the dancers ate a dead woman's head, or about the last Indian war on the coast, native remedies like devil's club tea which is "good for anything," Alexander Mackenzie's travels through Bella Coola country along the Grease Trail, how native hunters killed mountain goats by prying them off cliffs with sticks, and about forgotten villages and places, which come alive again through Clayton Mack's words.Clayton Mack had a deep understanding and appreciation of life on British Columbia's rugged coast. His stories are unique lessons in history, as well as pure entertainment. Here are the stories of the legend himself, Clayton Mack. ... Read more

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Grey Owl was known to millions of people as an outstanding Native Canadian spokesman who championed the cause of nature, conservation, and preservation. His cause was true, but the truth about Archie Belaney's mysterious ancestry was another story. ... Read more

Book Description

1923. Found in this volume are short biographies of the lives and sufferings of the Jesuit martyrs of early Canada. All the testimony of their beatification, given before the Apostolic Commission at Quebec reached Rome where it was being submitted to the scrutiny of the Sacred Congregation of Rites. Contents: Father John de Brebeuf; Father Gabriel Lalemant; Father Anthony Daniel; Father Charles Garnier; Father Noel Chabanel; Father Isaac Jogues; René Goupil; John de la Lande. Illustrated. ... Read more