Pegahmagabow : Life-Long Warrior

by Hayes, Adrian

• ISBN13: 9780978498290
• ISBN10: 0978498291
• Format: Paperback
• Copyright: 2010-02-01
• Publisher: Blue Butterfly Book Pub Inc

Summary

Francis Pegahmagabow was a remarkable aboriginal leader who served his nation in time of war & his people in time of peace-fighting all the way. In wartime he volunteered to be a warrior. In peacetime he had no option. His life reveals how uncaring Canada was about those to whom this land had always been home. A member of the Parry Island band (now Wasauksing First Nation) near Parry Sound, Ontario, Francis served with the Canadian Expeditionary Force in Belgium & France for almost the entire duration of the First World War, primarily as a scout & sniper. Through the horrific battles & inhuman conditions of trench warfare, his actions earned him three decorations for bravery -- the most ever received by a Canadian aboriginal soldier. More recently, they inspired the central fictional character in Joseph Boyden's highly acclaimed novel Three Day Road. Physically & emotionally scarred by his wartime ordeals, Francis returned to Parry Island to try to rebuild his life. He had been treated as an equal in the army, but quickly discovered things hadn't changed back in Canada. As a status Indian his life was regulated by the infamous Indian Act & by local Indian agents who seemed bent on thwarting his every effort to improve his lot. So, Francis became a warrior once more -- this time in the even longer battle to achieve the right of aboriginal Canadians to control their own destiny. In compiling this account of Francis Pegahmagabow's remarkable life, Adrian Hayes conducted extensive research in newspapers, archives, & military records, & spoke with members of Pegahmagabow's family & others who remembered the plight & the perseverance of this warrior. Originally published by Fox Meadow Creations, Pegahmagabow emerges again in this new Blue Butterfly Books edition, which incorporates additional material & updates some aspects of this unforgettable story -- & the confusion that still surrounds it.