William Bleasdell Cameron, dressed in his outfit as guide and scout with the Alberta Field Force, with Horse Child, 12-year-old son of
Big Bear. Horse Child was dressed up in Cameron's collection of Indian regalia for the photo. They were photographed together in Regina in 1885 during the trial of Big Bear. Cameron testified in Big Bear's defence.
William Bleasdell Cameron was born July 26, 1862, in
Trenton, Canada West. He is best known as being one of the survivors of the
Frog Lake Massacre, and his book The War Trail of Big Bear that recounts his experiences of the massacre and his captivity.[1]
Cameron was in Regina in 1885 during the trial of Big Bear, where he testified in Big Bear's defence. He testified he had heard Big Bear try to stop the massacre at Frog Lake.[7]
Cameron founded and edited the newspaper Vermilion Signal, served on the town council of
Vermilion, Alberta, and was briefly editor of the magazine Field and Stream, New York.[8]
He died in
Meadow Lake, Saskatchewan, on March 4, 1951, of
double pneumonia at age 88. The inscription on his headstone reads "G. Scout, William B. Cameron, Northwest Field Force, 4th March, 1951—Rest In Peace."(p. 155)[4]
^Dempsey, Hugh A. (1957).
The Early West. Edmonton: Historical Society of Alberta. p. 6. Archived from
the original on 2015-09-24. Retrieved 2014-04-13.