Forty Years In Canada: Reminiscences of the Great North-West

by Samuel Benfield Steele

Reading the life story of Sam Steele is like taking a guided tour through Canadian history. His life can be summed up in three words: He was there. He was there at the rebellion at the Red River Settlement. He was there when the first North-West Mounted Police made their long and agonizing trek to the territory they were to control. He was there when they faced Louis Riel in 1885, and when they negotiated the last treaties with the plains Indians. he supervised the construction of the Canadian Pacific Railway, and confronted the chaotic and lawless forces at work in the Yukon Territory during the Gold Rush.

Genres: Canada, History, Nonfiction

428 pages, Hardcover

First published August 8, 1913

About the author

Major General Sir Samuel Benfield Steele was a distinguished Canadian soldier and police official. He was an officer in the early days of the North-West Mounted Police and was later head of the Yukon detachment during the Klondike Gold Rush, and commanding officer of Strathcona's Horse during the Boer War.

Reviews

[Roberta · Rating 4 out of 5]

I came very close to giving this book 5 stars. The beginning of the book took place in the Northwest Territory of Canada during the early days. The "taming of the west" was very interesting and kept me reading steadily for a while. There is a lot of history imparted along the way. This included a simple overview of the Blackfoot Confederacy so now I know the difference between the Blackfoot Confederacy and the Blackfeet Nation. There are several places in the book where Steele takes the opportunity to tell readers that the official reports of an incident were so much bushwah and who really deserves the credit. Towards the middle of the book it became more difficult for me to stay focused because, oddly, the difficulties that the Mounties faced and the fact that Steele came through victorious became sort of repetitive.

But I was glad that I kept reading through the chapter or two that didn't interest me that much because, at Chapter 15 and 16, Steele is sent north during the Yukon Stampede. I had read in other books about the gold rush that crime on the American side of the border was out of control while the Canadian side was ruled with an iron fist by the Mounties and the Mountie that was responsible for that was none other than Steele. Actually, it is acknowledged in other places, that his inspections of gear saved hundreds, possibly thousands, of prospector's lives.

From the -60ºF weather in the Yukon, in chapters 17, 18, and 19, Steele went to the heat of South Africa. What went on there, both good and bad, was a real eye-opener. It certainly was a different world back then.

The place that I thought the book fell short was concerning Steele's personal life, such as it was. He was married but his wife is only mentioned a couple of times. The very first time he mentions her is kind of funny because it comes at us out of nowhere. "I stayed there (in Montreal) for a day or two, and then went to the village of Vaudreuil, in the county of that name, and on January 15 was married to Miss Marie Elizabeth Harwood, the eldest daughter of Mr. Robert Harwwod, M.P., a seigneur of the county and maternal grandson of Michel Gaspaar Chartier de Lotbiniere, the last Marquis de Lotbiniere, a direct decendant of Allan Carter, a Scottish officer who as a youth accompanied Margaret of Scotland to France when she went to that country to marry the Dauphin." OMG! Steele, you didn't even tell us that you were dating! They went on their honeymoon to New York City where he says they visited "many of the police precincts and met all of the principal officers." Mrs. Steele must have been a saint.

Towards the end of the book, his wife is mentioned again when, after Steele's retirement, they travel together for a holiday in Scotland. About their trip he says "I had a glorious time. We visited all the major battlefields..." Somehow, the couple apparently managed to have children but you won't find anything about them in this book.

A photograph of Col. Steele in uniform following page 392 bears an uncanny resemblance to Agatha Christie's Hercule Poirot.

[Garrett Hunter · Rating 3 out of 5]

This book had a lot of very interesting context and stories from the old canadian west. Unfortunately Steele's writing style leaves a lot to be desired. His tone I would describe as "Propaganda-y" its full of British exceptionalism that makes it hard to get through some chapters. It was very boring. Despite just how interesting his life was. I could only get through this by reading 5 pages a day, otherwise I would start to fall asleep. Still, a remarkably good book for people interested in that period of Canadian history, I know I got a lot out of it. Would recommend however maybe looking at a biography of him, not his auto-biography. Only necessary for those who value first hand sources.

[Mason · Rating 5 out of 5]

Forty Years in Canada by Sam Steele is an epic tale about Mid Victorian era Canada. From the Fenian Raids to some of his time in the South African War, this is a must read for any Canadian historian.

[Robert Davidson · Rating 5 out of 5]

Excellent read providing insight to the life of a titan and one of Canada's premier figures in 19th century history. Well written in a conversational tone making it exceptionally easy to read without minimising impact.