TRUE NATURE STORIES(1)
by
T.A. Reynolds (pen-name Martin Hunter)(2)
Mr. Reynolds lived at Long Lake Post (modern Longlac) ca 1875 where he was a clerk with the Hudson’s Bay Company. In Longlac he married Elizabeth Finlayson, an Indian lady.(3)
In retirement at his Brockville, Ontario home, “The Last Camp” he wrote articles for several outdoors magazines.(4)
He wrote two books
1. “Canadian Wilds” by Martin Hunter, 1907
2. “A Collection of Articles” for his daughter Willow. This latter was never published and this collection is a copy of some of the stories from this second volume, copied with permission of his daughter-in-law, Mrs. Maurice Reyolds of Brockville, Ontario, ca 1958
Library of
Catherine H. & A.L.Kenneth Switzer(5)
END NOTES
1 This was the the working title of the Reynolds’ manuscript. Perhaps a more appropriate title would have been “Canadian Wilds, Volume 2”.
2 T.A. Reynolds was Thomas Adridge Reynolds.
3 W. Andy Switzer, son of A.L.K. Switzer, donated this collection of unpublished stories to this author. In an attached note dated April 17, 2014, , Andy stated Elizabeth Finlayson was the daughter of John Finlayson. More recently, another son, Bruce, donated to this author the same collection, which in turn has sparked the publication of this series.
4 This transcription retains the diction and punctuation of the original manuscript, which was written in block print.
5 This author, Edgar J. Lavoie, visited the late Ken Switzer in his Orillia, Ontario, home. Ken shared many of his typescripts with this author in anticipation of his writing a definitive history of Longlac. However, given his many other commitments, and no prospect of funding for such a gargantuan project, this author has so far failed to produce a manuscript.
Comments
2 responses to “NO. 2, MARTIN HUNTER SERIES – Preface to True Nature Stories”
In the photo that is John Finlayson on the left (1823-1898) HBC Postmaster at Long Lake from 1863-1877, buried at Pic Mobert reserve. In the middles is his son Louis Victor Nicholas “Nick” Finlayson, also worked for the HBC at the Long Lake subposts of Sullivan Lake and Kowkash, born at Fort William Indian Mission 1857, died at St Joseph Hospital in Ft William 1931 and is buried with a headstone in the old Indian Point cemetery at Long Lake. On right sitting is John’s brother Hector Finlayson, 1826-1901, also worked for the HBC, originally throughout Sask but last postings were at Fort Francis. John and Hector’s father was the Scottish Nicol Finlayson (1794-1877) of the HBC and his first “country wife” Nancy Kanakishiwaite, probably a James Bay or Albany River Cree or Oji-Cree woman. John Finlayson entered the HBC at age 16 in 1839 at Ft William, he and his brother Hector lived with their uncle Duncan Finlayson (also HBC man) at the Red River Settlement for a time and went to school there. John was baptized first at RRS but later converted to Catholicism at Ft William by Father Choné and married Ojibway woman Angelique Ikwens Shebagijig at Ft. William Indian Mission in 1849. Their first three children died in infancy at the Ft William Indian Mission before 1853. Angelique was the daughter of Michel Shebagijick and granddaughter of John Ininuway AKA Chief Illinois, they signed the Robinson Superior 185o Treaty representing Ft William Ojibway bands with their cousin hereditary chief Joseph Peau de Chat. Thomas Reynolds AKA Martin Hunter, married Elizabeth Finlayson at Red Rock in 1880. Reynolds had met Elizabeth through her father John at the HBC Long Lake Post in 1876/77. John Finlayson is my 3x great grandfather.
Thanks for this contribution to regional history. If you have no objections, I will re-post this comment in my history page, Greenstone History PLUS. Also, I will see if I can find another pic of the Finlayson family.