Even in the Great White North, things aren’t always what they seem….
CONSERVATIONIST, HERO, FAKE
From 1930 to 1938, a man named Grey Owl was an international superstar—a gripping public speaker, environmentalist, and philosopher. He declaimed powerfully on the need to preserve unspoiled wilderness, and he upheld a strong Native identity for Canada. “I want to arouse in the Canadian people a sense of responsibility they have for the north country and its inhabitants, humans and animal,” wrote Grey Owl. His goal was to establish wildlife sanctuaries throughout Canada. He was also interested in restricting commercial traffic in animal skins to protect animal life. Grey Owl wanted to prevent Native culture from becoming commercialized and fueled by European fashion trends. He tried to convince white Canadians to support a conservation plan, arguing that an untamed North within Canada was vital to its national identity. He wrote the best-selling books, Pilgrims of the Wild and The Adventures of Sajo and Her Beaver People. He made movies and traveled on lecture tours throughout North America and Europe. He presented before the royal family in England, saluting King George VI and speaking a few words in Ojibwe.
ALL THAT GLITTERS
For Victoria Day 1923, Belaney organized a “war party” in Biscotasing, Ontario. Belaney played the role of Indian chief and tied a symbolic white prisoner to a pole. He told the man of the wrongs white men had committed against Native people. The event was a great success, and the local paper published an account of the drama.
In time, Belaney grew to believe trapping was wrong. After adopting a pair of beaver kittens, he recognized that they were affectionate, intelligent creatures, and he could no longer justify killing these animals.
AUTEUR, AUTEUR?
When Belaney died in 1938, details of his background caused some surprise and consternation: His given name was Archie Stansfeld Belaney, and he was raised by two maiden aunts in Hastings, England. The press had often called the blue-eyed Grey Owl a “full-blooded” Indian, though Belaney had said he was half Apache and half Scottish. Actually, he had zero Native blood.
At age 18, he immigrated to Canada. His desire was to live in the wilderness. He learned trapping from a band of Ojibwe and a woodsman named Jesse Hill. He worked summers as a guide or forest ranger, and in winter he trapped and sold furs.
Belaney wasn’t always a saint. Before he became Grey Owl, he was a hard-drinking, womanizing rogue. He abandoned two wives, a girlfriend, and a total of three children. He was a notorious drunkard. He would go on two- to three-week binges—even as Grey Owl—because he feared his identity might be uncovered.
As he grew older, he became so captivated by Indian culture that he wanted to become a native. He dyed his brown hair black and darkened his fair skin with henna.
After the posthumous revelation of his identity, many forgave his transgressions, appreciating the efforts he made for conservationism. You can visit the grave of one of Canada’s greatest naturalists and imposters in Prince Albert National Park in Saskatchewan.
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A NEWFOUND WAY TO TELL TIME
There’s something more than just the laid-back pace of life on Newfoundland and Labrador that makes time feel like it’s moving differently. The province has its very own time zone, Newfoundland Standard Time, which it shares with no other inhabited region.
And while most of the world—including the rest of Canada—calculates its local time in differences of whole hours from Greenwich Mean Time for the sake of convenience, NST doesn’t. It’s 30 minutes ahead of Atlantic Standard Time, used by the closest parts of the coastal mainland.
The only other place in the world that varies from the rest of its home country by a fraction of an hour is Eucla, an isolated region of West Australia that is perpetually 15 minutes out of synch with its neighbors.
Winnipeg goldeye fish were a popular luxury delicacy in the early 1900s.