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Bloody Falls of the Coppermine: Madness, Murder, and the Collision of Cultures in the Arctic, 1913

McKay Jenkins

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Mar 11, 2024 Jim rated it really liked it

Shelves: non-fiction, true-crime, aboriginal_studies, religion

Back in the days before mounties got their kicks by riding over wheelchair-bound protestors, they were actually an organization worthy of admiration. This book explores one of the strangest and, probably, one of the most grueling investigations conducted by that agency. Just imagine trekking thousands of miles, much of it by dogsled, through a hostile environment to investigate a two-year-old cold case, the suspected murder of two priests. To add to their woes, they had no communications and bas Back in the days before mounties got their kicks by riding over wheelchair-bound protestors, they were actually an organization worthy of admiration. This book explores one of the strangest and, probably, one of the most grueling investigations conducted by that agency. Just imagine trekking thousands of miles, much of it by dogsled, through a hostile environment to investigate a two-year-old cold case, the suspected murder of two priests. To add to their woes, they had no communications and basically no resupply: what you had for supper depended on what animal wandered within range of your rifle. Amazingly, not only was the murder site found, but the mounties were successful in identifying and arresting two suspects and brought them back for trial in Edmonton.

Jenkins has done a good job of fleshing out the main characters, and even though the outcome of the case is known in advance, the reader is still bound by the expert narration. He pays due respect to the Eskimo or Inuit or whatever they like to be called these days, and it is obvious that he has the greatest respect for their way of life way out there on the edge of starvation. He holds forth on their history and customs, and how those were at odds with those of European ancestry. Jenkins also relates how contact with the white man affected the Inuit; in just a few years after contact the indigenous people became more dependent on trade goods and modern weaponry. Drunkenness and indolence affected many of those who survived the illnesses to which they had no immunity.

The trial of the two indigenous suspects is thoroughly covered, and Jenkins follows up on their tragic lives after their return to the north. Apparently, they were celebrities during their stay in Edmonton, not so much after their return to the north where it was alleged they brought white man's diseases back with them.

The book is provided with lots of great photos and thorough notes. There is also a Bibliography you can mine for further reading on the land north of Nowhere.

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9 likes · Like · see review

Jan 19, 2016 Oana marked it as to-read · review of another edition

Shelves: polar-history

Feb 22, 2021 superawesomekt marked it as bibliocurious

Shelves: history-and-bio, wccls

Jan 03, 2022 Brenda marked it as to-read

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