The Promise: Love, Loyalty and the Lure of Gold the Story of Caribo Cameron

by Bill Gallaher

It was 1862 and the Cariboo Gold Rush was in full swing. Sophia Cameron, the Beauty of Barkerville, lay dying of typhoid when her husband, John Cariboo Cameron, made one last promise to his fading young wife. The Promise is a compelling story of a great love and an epic struggle to honour a dying wife's final request: to take her body home to eastern Canada. Told in the voice of Robert Stevenson, Cameron's friend and mining partner, the story travels with the two men as they leave the frozen goldfields of BC and carry Sophia's body by sled, ship and rail to a tree-shaded cemetery near Cornwall, Ontario. However, she was buried amid mistrust and dark suspicions because Cameron refused to open the coffin-did it truly contain his lovely, young wife? In this his first novel, Bill Gallaher provides unique insight into a famous legend of the gold rush. Intrigued by the level of commitment and loyalty in the Cariboo Cameron saga, Bill Gallaher first wrote a song about the Camerons and as a result of further extensive research, wrote The Promise. He is now an author of several well-received books, The Journey: The Overlanders' Quest for Gold ; A Man Called Moses: The Curious Life of Wellington Delaney Moses ; Deadly Innocent ; and The Frog Lake Massacre . Bill lives with his family in the Cariboo region of British Columbia.

180 pages, Paperback

First published June 1, 2001

Reviews

[Kerry Dunphy · Rating 5 out of 5]

Bought this book in Barkerville and it's difficult to imagine what sort of promise could be made in todays world that would match the promise in this book. Absolutely incredible! Thoroughly enjoyed it. (The book I read has a different cover than the one shown here that I presume is the first edition.)

[Love-to-read · Rating 5 out of 5]

I liked this book but it shouldn’t be read as a novel. It’s simply the true story of one man’s struggle to fulfill a promise, his gold strike and the problems he had later. It’s also well foot-noted which adds to its authenticity. This is a great way to learn history.

[Debbie Hill · Rating 4 out of 5]

Enjoyed the read and to learn a little Canadian history in the Gold Rush days and their gruelling challenges.

[Connie · Rating 2 out of 5]

I picked up this book while on a driving trip through British Columbia. During that trip, I saw some spectacular scenery and was surprised to find how much this part of Canada looks like Southwest US. While on my trip, I stopped in an old mining town called Lillooet and picked up this book in one of the shops.

It's set in the Gold Rush era, a time when millions of ordinary people left the comforts of their old lives behind to seek out fortunes in the rivers and mountains of Western U.S. and Canada.

The story, based on true events, involves two miners from the same county in Ontario who become fast friends in Victoria and strike it rich in "Cariboo Country" of BC. But their fortune is overshadowed by the death of the older man's wife and child. Her dying wish was to be transported back to Eastern Canada, and so began an epic journey with the two friends pushing, pulling and hoisting her coffin through thick snow and ice for thousands of miles until till they are finally able to board a boat back to Ontario.

The first part of the book was gripping, but it seemed to lose steam towards the end and the main character seemed to dissolve into a shadow figure. The author doesn't really explore in depth what happened to his character and why he sinks into a more dissolute life towards the end of his life.

[Bea · Rating 4 out of 5]

I stumbled across this book by accident at a discount store, and I knew that I just had to read it. I used to go to Barkerville every summer as a child, and I worked there for 4 summers as an adult. John 'Cariboo' Cameron is a name that comes up often, as does the story of Sophia's unconventional journey back to Ontario. This story gets told often on the cemetery tour. Many of the names that cropped up are legends who still live on in the tours and exhibits around Barkerville.

Quite often when I read local historical fiction, it feels like the author is trying too hard to turn a history lesson into a flesh and blood story. Sometimes the result is a little awkward or artificial. However, I found that this book did a very good job of bringing the people and era to life. I view the Williams Creek communities a little differently now. I also like it that there were historical photos from the BC archives inserted throughout the book. It was so fascinating to see places that I know so well from the lens of a different era. A really excellent book, not just for British Columbians.

[Laura Atwood]

This biography is about one of my ancestors - John Angus "Cariboo" Cameron. He was my great-grandmother's uncle.