"Embedded: The Incredible Story of Two Journalists A Burlesque Star and the Expedition to Oust Louis Riel" presented by Tedd Glenn

In the spring of 1870, two reporters set off from Toronto to cover one of the biggest stories in Canadian history:  Colonel Garnet Wolseley’s 1870 Expedition to Red River.  Over the course of six months, the Daily Telegraph‘s Robert Cunningham and the Globe’s Molyneux St. John brought readers along as they paddled and portaged alongside the expedition’s 1100 troops and 400 voyageurs and guides from the shores of Lake Superior through the wilderness of northern Ontario to heart of the rebellion at Fort Garry.

But that’s not the whole story.  Buried well below the fold was the fact St. John’s wife – the international burlesque star Kate Ranoe – accompanied him and the expedition all the way to Red River.  And not just as an adventurer: owing to an accident early on, Ranoe ended up ghost-writing many of St. John’s stories.

In this presentation, Ted Glenn tells the remarkable story of two reporters and one extraordinary woman as they journey to Red River with Colonel Garnet Wolseley and his Expeditionary Force.

This presentation is part of the 2020-21 Thunder Bay Historical Museum Society’s Lecture Series sponsored by the Department of History.  Since 1908, the Thunder Bay Historical Museum Society has been regularly holding talks on a wide range of topics on the fourth Tuesday of each month at the Thunder Bay Museum (425 Donald Street East) from September to April. All presentations are free and open to the public.