Who Killed Tom Thomson?: The Truth about the Murder of One of the 20th Century's Most Famous Artists

by John Little

Tom Thomson was Canada's Vincent van Gogh. He painted for a period of five years before meeting his untimely death in a remote wilderness lake in July 1917. He was buried in an unofficial grave close to the lake where his body was found. About eight hours after he was buried, the coroner arrived but never examined the body and ruled his death accidental due to drowning. A day and a half later, Thomson's family hired an undertaker to exhume the body and move it to the family plot about 100 miles away. This undertaker refused all help, and only worked at night. In 1956, John Little's father and three other men, influenced by the story of an old park ranger who never believed Thomson's body was moved by the undertaker, dug up what was supposed to be the original, empty grave. To their surprise, the grave still contained a body, and the skull revealed a head wound that matched the same location noted by the men who pulled his corpse from the water in 1917. The finding sent shockwaves across the nation and began a mystery that continues to this day. In Who Killed Tom Thomson? John Little continues the sixty-year relationship his family has had with Tom Thomson and his fate by teaming up with two high-ranking Ontario provincial police homicide detectives. For the first time, they provide a forensic scientific opinion as to how Thomson met his death, and where his body is buried. Little draws upon his father's research, plus recently released archival material, as well as his own thirty-year investigation. He and his colleagues prove that Thomson was murdered, and set forth two persons of interest who may have killed Tom Thomson.

Genres: True Crime, Nonfiction, Canada

499 pages, Kindle Edition

Published August 21, 2018

About the author

There is more than one author by this name in the Goodreads data base.

Reviews

[Richard Derus · Rating 3 out of 5]

Real Rating: 3.5* of five, rounded down for many editing and proofreading missteps

I RECEIVED A DRC FROM THE PUBLISHER VIA EDELWEISS+. THANK YOU.

My Review: Wondering who Tom Thomson was?

The Jack Pine, Winter 1916-1917

He was a founding member, if a posthumous one, of The Group of Seven Canadian artists. It is not too much to say that Thomson's untimely, and long mysterious, death was a major catalyst in the Group of Seven (then called "the Algonquin School") emerging from obscurity to claim a place in the world artistic establishment.

That does rather make solving the mystery surrounding Thomson's death problematic. Especially for the family, who (via eldest sibling George Thomson) visited the area where Tom's body was discovered and spoke to his contacts there; as well as the letters Tom had sent home, we can feel sure that George felt clear in his mind about what Tom's death involved. And he forcefully, from the day he got there to the day he died, shut down speculation about "what really happened." The Official Story, however, made not one whit of sense. The author, son of a man whose involvement in the case began accidentally almost forty years after Thomson's death, tells a thoroughly researched and forensically vetted story about the death that, had the family not refused to cooperate with a routine exhumation and DNA test, would've made the world's headline machine whir into life.

I think, having read this tendentious tome, that the author and his trained detectives and forensic experts are correct about the outlines of the case, and probably have the final solution covered in their several options as detailed in the book. So it seems like a safe bet that someone in Thomson's remaining family already knows what the truth is and doesn't want it told, OR doesn't want the mysterious cachet that adheres to Tom Thomson's name and thus his work (and their patrimony) to be even slightly dispelled.

[BAM doesn’t answer to her real name · Rating 3 out of 5]

“What really happened to Tom Thomson?” A question that’s been asked since the early 20th century. He was on his way to being one of the world’s influential landscape artists, or, if you could have asked him, the most avid fisherman. His paintings go for hundreds of thousands of dollars, (I use dollars because although this mystery took place in Canada dollars was used.)
So basically this content and talented man was spending his yearly campground sabbatical painting and, what became more important, using his canoe around the lake.
I finished the book still confused as when I started it. Sooo many theories, and part of the problem was the coroner system, a system too many people who read true crime are aware of. I feel like the closer I got to the end, the book was going to turn into a pick-your-own-adventure story. I am still shaking my head and changing my mind. So much made zero sense. What if NONE of the theories is the truth? I kinda feel that way about all of them, except maybe one MAYBE. But I can’t say because I’m not ruining the book
Happy Reading!

[Amanda (bookedwithamanda) · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is the story of a posthumously famous, Canadian landscape painter named Tom Thomson and his disappearance/death.

I thought the book provided as much facts and information as it could but with enough pizazz that I didn't find it boring.

I did enjoy chapter 20 and the police perspective on what happened after being presented with all of the author's research.

I might have missed it but what happened to the toe that was kept by one of the men who found the grave in the 50s, and why couldn't they attempt at least a preliminary DNA testing on that?

I also found it hard to relate to the Thomson family and their refusal to confirm the resting place of Tom Thomson. I guess I understand how they feel the mystery keeps the country/world talking about Tom Thomson but is that really worth not knowing? Maybe the author made the Thomsons out to be slightly more villainous then they are but I still feel that if I were in their position I'd want to know where my family was with 100% certainty... Unless they already know he's not in Leith.

I digress. I did enjoy this real life mystery and I look forward to hopefully seeing its conclusion in the future.

[John · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is the second book I've read concerning Tom Thomson's mysterious death (the first was "The Many Deaths of Tom Thomson" by Gregory Klages).

John Little presents, in chronological order, all the detailed events and people associated with Tom Thomson's mysterious death at Canoe Lake in 1917, along with many references as to the sources. He then has two detectives evaluate the evidence, and present their views on the cause of death as well as where Thomson may have been buried. The entire book reads like a story, so that the reader almost feels like they are there witnessing the events.

John Little and the detectives present a very convincing argument, and there is little doubt, not only that foul play was involved in Thomson's death, but that the burial place in Leigh does not contain Thomson's body. There are numerous serious contradictions in the many accounts of what took place, which is either related to poor memory, hearsay, or deliberate obfuscation. John Little tries to limit his suspicion of the possible suspect, primarily to two individuals. Based on the number of contradictions by so many different people, it's surprising that John Little did not consider the possibility of more than one individual being involved in the foul play, not necessarily in the actual murder, but in the attempted subsequent covering up of evidence.

The style of writing is enjoyable, and as mentioned earlier, it reads like a story, so the facts are easily digested and not cumbersome. There are a number of typos throughout the book, so whoever edited it did not do a thorough job. There is also a lot of confusion over wind direction. At one part of the book, the wind is blowing from the east on the day of the murder ("easterly winds"), and at other parts of the book, the wind is blowing from the west, moving the canoe in the direction of the island located to the east. Wind direction is always reported by the direction from which it originates. After re-reading these parts, I assume that the author really meant that the winds were "westerly", not "easterly".

Another source of confusion was the assumption, provided by the detective Scott Thomson, that Thomson was murdered while getting ready to portage at the south western part of Canoe Lake (to Gill Lake). He stated that the suspect wanted to conceal the body quickly, and was most likely dumped "out from the shore area where he was murdered" (thus close to the portage location). From one perspective, this makes sense, since whoever murdered Thomson would not risk moving the body all the way further north, as it would take time, and he might have been spotted doing so by other lake residents. Yet, this assumption is not valid since the body was actually spotted surfacing much further north. Thus, if Thomson was actually in the process of portaging, the suspect must have boated the body a mile north and dumped it where others could have witnessed him/her doing so. This does not make any sense, since the suspect would have assumed that the body would remain submerged indefinitely (unfortunately for the murderer, this did not happen). Yet, based on the oar or oars being tied in the canoe by the suspect, he/she must have deliberately wanted investigators to assume that Thomson was in the process of portaging when he had a mishap. That very important assumption was not really evaluated in the book. In other words, why would the suspect make it look like Thomson met his death through an accident while getting ready to portage, and yet take the time and risk to dump the body much further north?

Another important fact that the author seemed to have entirely missed is the possible existence of the foot bone by the family of Leonard Gibson. Gibson had taken the foot bone from the gravesite. Thus it could be used to conduct a DNA test without having to open the grave again. Gibson's family might still have this foot bone, ans should therefore be contacted.

[Dean Dibling · Rating 4 out of 5]

The book is not very well written, but the subject matter is fascinating!

[Ben📮 · Rating 4 out of 5]

Who Killed Tom Thomson? is a true crime book focusing on the death of Tom Thomson who is a Canadian painter known mainly for his landscape paintings. In early July 1917, Thomson was staying at Ontario’s Algonquin Park. He was last seen alive on July 8th when he left in the middle of the day for a short fishing trip on his own. The next day his canoe was found overturned, floating in Canoe Lake close to where he left. Even with extensive searching, it took another 7 days until Tom Thomson was found dead in the same lake. He was spotted less than a kilometer from the dock from which he departed from.

John Little presents the vast amount of evidence and stories from his findings and leaves the conclusion up to reader interpretation. He puts it as, “it is my intention to present the material that I gathered for the Ontario Provincial Police detectives . . . in a matter that will reveal a factual and fascination story, but I shall leave the conclusions, where and if they can be drawn, the professionals” (Little, 19). I do think Little provided too many details at times. There were a few parts of the book that could have been said in half the amount of words. There were times while reading where I wished he would just move from telling me about certain backstories for example.

I found chapter 20 especially interesting. John Little said that he provided the same information to the reader that he shared with two actual detectives. The detectives then proceeded to give their thoughts and opinions on the case.

For the most part, I found the book intriguing and thought provoking. I don’t think I have read a book before that made me think this much. I recommend this book to anyone with an interest in mystery or true crime.

[East Gwillimbury · Rating 5 out of 5]

Well written book about the murder of Tom Thomson. A hundred and one year old cold case. "Who killed Tom Thomson" and "where do his remains really lie? " What really happened to Tom Thomson? Read this book and see if you agree with John Little's conclusion.

[Janice · Rating 4 out of 5]

Readable account of a great Canadian mystery. If only modern techniques could have been applied to the messy investigation! True crime lovers will enjoy this book.

[Jennifer · Rating 4 out of 5]

An in-depth and fulsome look at this enduring mystery. It also provides a view into the times Thomson lived in. I enjoyed this read.

[Shelley · Rating 3 out of 5]

Interesting, but needs a good editing. Very repetitive. Could be said in 1/2 the words.

[Uayelyk · Rating 4 out of 5]

“Who Killed Tom Thomson?” by John Little is about the unknown death of Tom Thomson, one of the 20th century’s most famous artists. The events in the book are easy to follow because it is in chronological order. The book starts off with a few local guides and a doctor discovering Thomson’s body floating on Canoe Lake. They take the body out of the lake and examine it. Then, Little reveals those that were associated with Thomson and all the signs found on his body after the examination. He also presents what witnesses think led to Thomson’s death. Next, he talks about a coroner that arrived eight hours after Thomson's burial to declare his death as an accidental death by drowning. By the end, however, Little interviews two experienced police detectives presented their views based on the evidence gathered throughout the events. They both disagreed with the coroner and declared that Thomson was murdered and was able to draw out two potential suspects that could be responsible for the century-old crime.
This book really demonstrated how excellent our technology is opposed to Thomson’s time. Back then, people had to determine how a person died almost purely based on reasoning. Now, we have forensic lab equipment such as fingerprinting and facial recognition, making human identification much easier.
It was interesting to read since there were many people involved, some having a different perspective or explanation of what led up to the mystery. In addition, I liked how the book is filled with a lot of research and facts about the case and contains several pages of historical photos providing information about the locations and individuals. Although I’m not a fan of non-fiction, Little provided a detailed insight into the case that made me want to continue reading.
I haven’t heard of the name Tom Thomson and the case before, so I definitely learnt about Thomson, his family, the people involved in the case and the locations nearby the crime scene. I also learnt that John Little’s father also played a role in trying to solve the mysterious death of Tom Thomson. I’ll recommend this book to those that are fans of real unsolved mysteries and thrillers.

[Mick Treloar · Rating 5 out of 5]

Who killed Tom Thomson is a true crime book, explaining the mysterious circumstances surrounding his death. In July of 1917, Thompson’s body surfaced in a lake in Algonquin Park after decomposing at the bottom of the lake for a week. The death was ruled an accident by drowning. However, how the artist met his end has been raising theories of foul play ever since Thomson met his end. Who was it that killed one of Canada’s greatest artists? Was it the owner of the lodge? Was it a cottager he argued with? Was it suicide, or was it an accident? Read along as John Little explains the story of Thompson’s life and death, and posits theories along with two detectives.

Before reading this book, I had never heard of Tom Thomson. My knowledge of Canadian artists only went as far as reading about Emily Carr in elementary school. I learned not only his life story, but also how his life impacted Canada from reading this book.

I loved how the author of this book, John Little, told Thomson’s story. Often, true crime can be a bit boring in the way it is retold, but Little wrote the events of the book in a way that kept me engaged. His style of writing made me feel as if I was reading a crime novel that was fiction, which I think is part of the charm. It doesn’t feel like facts are being shoved down the reader’s throat like non-fiction books can so often do. Instead, it felt like everything a great crime story should be- intriguing, mysterious, dramatic.

Thomson’s death, as tragic as it is, was instrumental to the development of Canadian art. He was the most influential Canadian artist of the early 20th century, and his work is still highly appreciated today. He has been described as Canada’s Van Gogh, and as embodying the Canadian artistic identity. He is a vital piece of history for Canadian art, something which Canada is known for to this day. Without Thomson, art in Canada wouldn’t be as vibrant as it is today.

I would recommend this book to fans of true crime, history, and art.

[hm]

"Who killed Tom Thomson" by John Little is a book that goes through how one of Canada's most famous artists died. Although it was ruled an accident, further investigation showed that he had received blunt force trauma to the head that had not been formerly reported. The artist had gone out for a canoe ride and had supposedly died but many think foul play may have been involved. The book goes into possible suspects and if it really could be an accident.
Two adjectives I'd use to describe this book as a whole are, educational and intriguing. As the story progresses you start to believe some ideas and trust others less, while learning a lot about how crime investigations work.
Something I learned was more about the artist and what his life was really like. Often artists bad habits or real thought are not talked about so it was interesting to see what his life was like.
Something I wish were different is that back when the case first happened, more was recorded in the autopsy so that with the technology we have now we can see what happened.
An implication from the book is that the author believes foul play may have been involved or it was a drunk accident. There are many speculations that the author and others have come up with to how the death could have happened, so the author may have a few he is implying are quite likely to have occurred.
I would recommend this book to people who have an interest in true crime stories along with those who are curious to how crimes are investigated, as the book goes into quite a bit of detail.
A quote i enjoyed from the book is also i quote the author took. It is "To the living we owe respect, but to the dead we owe only the truth" - Voltaire. I feel that this quote sums up what the book is about as with all the ideas and investigations made it is clear that people are trying to give Tom Thomson the truth and to let him rest in peace.
Overall I enjoyed this book and learning about Tom Thomson and how i was able to see how much forensics have evolved since this time.

[Vic Lauterbach · Rating 4 out of 5]

This fascinating though ultimately frustrating story brings to life the early years of tourism in Algonquian Park, Ontario. The fascinating part is how difficult it is to get a sense of who Tom Thomson was before he was 'canonized' by his family and the Canadian fine arts community. What kind of man was he and how did he die? Mr. Little gives you all the evidence you need to form your own opinion. There are few if any clear right or wrong answers in this book. That's the frustrating part, but that's what sets real life (or rather the history of it) apart from fiction. Recommended to those who enjoy a good (unsolved) mystery and anyone interested in recent Canadian history.

[Janet · Rating 5 out of 5]

A true Canadian crime from 1917 that still has not been fully solved. The book is very detailed, piecing events from over a hundred years ago. It is especially good when the facts are presented to 2 present-day Ontario police detectives and their conclusions are stated.
The mystery could so easily be solved if the deceased extended family would agree to DNA testing. Everyone from 1917 died years ago. Perhaps a future generation of Tom Thomson will agree to test the bones for DNA, and the mystery of where Tom Thomson is buried will be solved.

[Christina · Rating 5 out of 5]

I loved this book! If you are at all interested in the mysterious death of Tom Thomson this book has all the information you could ask for. It is so well researched, and I appreciate the passion and concern for one of Canada's great artists that has been passed from one generation to the next. The only thing I wish the book contained was a map of Canoe Lake, describing where the various events took place and cottages and the Mowat Lodge were situated.

[Jane · Rating 4 out of 5]

Very credible exploration of evidence. So much conflicting evidence. Sadly, I doubt the murderer will ever be known.

But it seems clear he was murdered. And seems likely that the body at Canoe Lake is his. It seems really wrong to me that body at Canoe Lake is not being examined with modern methods. If not Thomson seems sad not to find out who, and if Thomson, well so be it.

[Jeannie · Rating 4 out of 5]

A pretty thorough treatment of the Tom Thomson case. Persuasive in its conclusions that foul play, likely murder, occurred of one of Canada's artistic icons. It only suffers slightly from insufficient editing, and that more information could have been presented on timelines, for example on when other principal characters died. Overall, an enjoyable, thought-provoking book.

[Pam · Rating 4 out of 5]

Originally skeptical about this story and partway through wondering why I even cared I found I was drawn into this epic story concerning the grave misfortune of TomThomson
I feel I now have a far greater understanding of what happened, but the question still lies
This will be some great discussion at our upcoming bookclub

[Elena Smith · Rating 5 out of 5]

I was unaware of this artist or his mysterious death. Loved the way the author unfolded the narrative. In addition to a tantalizing tale, it took my imagination to a geographic region I’ve never visited.

[Mary · Rating 3 out of 5]

Hmmmm, while an interesting look at the mystery of Canadian artist Tom Thomson’s
death, this book solves nothing. Albeit well researched and documented, the author only succeeds in continuing to fan the fires of Thompson’s cultural meaning for Canadians.

[Beverley Lombardi · Rating 3 out of 5]

I did not like the ending. Mr. Little did a good job of investigating.

[Adam · Rating 5 out of 5]

A thrilling murder (?) mystery about an iconic canadian artist. This book reviews the evidence and various hypotheses surrounding Tom Thomson's death.

[An Redman · Rating 2 out of 5]

More like a 1.5 rating. It was a slog.

[Sarah · Rating 5 out of 5]

4.5 stars rounded up. An awful lot of footnotes some being repetitive, but other than that this is a very good book.

[Sugardrawers · Rating 5 out of 5]

Very good read about the mystery that was Tom Thompson's death...on another note it seemed every time I wanted to read this book it would cause people to want to strike up a conversation, nothing good mind you, just like they didn't want me to finish this book....