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In the Wake of the War Canoe: Forty years of mission, travel, and encounters on the Pacific Northwest coast
352 pages, Paperback
First published January 1, 1915
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June 30, 2026
William Henry Collison (1847 - 1922) was one of several missionaries who operated in British Columbia, primarily among the province's First Nations. In the Wake of the War Canoe is his memoir of his experiences. It is a fascinating combination of inspiring devotion and amateur ethnography.
Collison was an English Anglican who, along with his wife, arrived in BC in the 1870s, first serving with William Duncan at Metlakatla among the Tsimshian. Collison was an avid learner of indigenous languages (this book is sprinkled with transcribed indigenous phrases), a great asset in the mission field (even as he reveals that often the First Nations preferred missionaries use English rather than their own dialects).
In 1876, Collison was tasked with being the first permanent missionary among the Haida, who were greatly feared for their ferocity. Collison would only be based on the Queen Charlotte Islands for three years but he writes of the Christianization of the Haida. Among the many changes introduced were the overcoming of the medicine men, persuading the Haida to end, or at least diminish, the practice of slavery (freed slaves would often be adopted into their owners' families), medical and technological progress, and negotiating peace between various First Nations groups.
Collison is no blithe champion of white empire; he regularly denounces the liquor trade and whites who take advantage of First Nations. Collison was ordained to the priesthood and worked with fellow missionaries such as R.A. Tomlinson is establishing missions amongst various First Nations groups.
The chapters have titles but often these titles are somewhat misleading, as what is referenced in the title only occupies a few pages of the chapter. Many of the chapters also end on some devotional flourish, as:
In the Wake of the War Canoe is an insightful missionary memoir, regarded as one of the best of its genre by Charles Lillard.
Collison was an English Anglican who, along with his wife, arrived in BC in the 1870s, first serving with William Duncan at Metlakatla among the Tsimshian. Collison was an avid learner of indigenous languages (this book is sprinkled with transcribed indigenous phrases), a great asset in the mission field (even as he reveals that often the First Nations preferred missionaries use English rather than their own dialects).
In 1876, Collison was tasked with being the first permanent missionary among the Haida, who were greatly feared for their ferocity. Collison would only be based on the Queen Charlotte Islands for three years but he writes of the Christianization of the Haida. Among the many changes introduced were the overcoming of the medicine men, persuading the Haida to end, or at least diminish, the practice of slavery (freed slaves would often be adopted into their owners' families), medical and technological progress, and negotiating peace between various First Nations groups.
Collison is no blithe champion of white empire; he regularly denounces the liquor trade and whites who take advantage of First Nations. Collison was ordained to the priesthood and worked with fellow missionaries such as R.A. Tomlinson is establishing missions amongst various First Nations groups.
The chapters have titles but often these titles are somewhat misleading, as what is referenced in the title only occupies a few pages of the chapter. Many of the chapters also end on some devotional flourish, as:
We rejoice that evangelisation has preceded civilisation, and that so many have been won for Christ and the truth before these great changes have occurred. And though they may not long survive the great inrush of our civilisation, and the new population, yet we know they will have a name and a place in that Kingdom which shall never be destroyed, but which shall endure for ever (p. 306).
In the Wake of the War Canoe is an insightful missionary memoir, regarded as one of the best of its genre by Charles Lillard.
Displaying 1 - 1 of 1 review