The Arctic Prairies - Softcover

Seton, Ernest Thompson

Softcover

ISBN 10: 1499611056 ISBN 13: 9781499611052

Publisher: CreateSpace Independent Publishing Platform, 2014

Synopsis

The great nature writer, Ernest Thompson Seton produced another nature classic with this work, The Arctic Prairies-A Canoe-Journey of 2,000 Miles in Search of the Caribou which details the author's adventures in northern Canada while on an expedition to study the wild caribou. In the author's words, "In 1907 I set out to journey by canoe down the Athabaska and adjoining waters to the sole remaining forest wilds--the far north-west of Canada--and the yet more desert Arctic Plains, where still, it was said, were to be seen the Caribou in their primitive condition."Ernest Thompson Seton (born Ernest Evan Thompson[1] August 14, 1860 – died October 23, 1946) was an author (published in the United Kingdom, Canada, and the US), wildlife artist, founder of the Woodcraft Indians in 1902 (renamed Woodcraft League of America) and one of the founding pioneers of the Boy Scouts of America (BSA) in 1910. Seton also influenced Lord Baden-Powell, the founder of Scouting. His notable books related to Scouting include The Birch Bark Roll and the Boy Scout Handbook. He is responsible for the appropriation and incorporation of what he believed to be American Indian elements into the traditions of the BSA.Seton was born in South Shields, County Durham (now part of South Tyneside, Tyne and Wear), England of Scottish parents. His family emigrated to Canada in 1866. Most of his childhood was spent in Toronto, Ontario and known to have lived at 6 Aberdeen Avenue in Cabbagetown. As a youth, he retreated to the woods of the Don River to draw and study animals as a way of avoiding his abusive father. He won a scholarship in art to the Royal Academy in London, England.[2]On his twenty-first birthday, Seton's father presented him with an invoice for all the expenses connected with his childhood and youth, including the fee charged by the doctor who delivered him. He paid the bill, but never spoke to his father again.[3][4]He changed his name to Ernest Thompson Seton, believing that Seton had been an important family name. He became successful as a writer, artist and naturalist, and moved to New York City to further his career. Seton later lived at Wyndygoul,[5] an estate that he built in Cos Cob, a section of Greenwich, Connecticut. After experiencing vandalism by the local youth, Seton invited them to his estate for a weekend where he told them what he claimed were stories of the American Indians and of nature.[6]He formed the Woodcraft Indians in 1902 and invited the local youth to join. Despite the name, the group was made up of non-native boys and girls. The stories became a series of articles written for the Ladies Home Journal, and were eventually collected in The Birch Bark Roll of the Woodcraft Indians in 1906. Shortly after, the Woodcraft Indians evolved into the Woodcraft Rangers.Woodcraft Rangers was established as a non-profit organization for youth programming in 1922, the founder of the organizations was Ernest Thompson Seton (1860-1946)Since 1922, Woodcraft Rangers has served Los Angeles youth with Seton's model of character building which encompasses-service, truth, fortitude, and beauty. [7] Since then, Woodcraft Rangers youth have been received in a safe environment to relish in their natural instincts to then support the discovery of their own talents. Today the Woodcraft Rangers organization serves over 15,000 youth in the Los Angeles county by helping them find pathways to purposeful lives. They offer expanded learning opportunities to youth from kindergarten to twelfth grade. Youth participants are encouraged to ignite the discovery of natural talents and are embraced daily with the belief that all children are innately good.Seton met Scouting's founder, Lord Baden-Powell, in 1906. Baden-Powell had read Seton's book, The Birch Bark Roll of the Woodcraft Indians, and was greatly intrigued by it.

About this title

From the Back Cover:

In 1907, Ernest Thompson Seton, self-made outdoorsman, embarked upon a 2,000-mile, six-month canoe journey across northern Canada in search of the caribou. What he found was lazy Indian guides, swarms of mosquitoes, and frontier characters galore... as well as abundant wildlife, lush vegetation, and singular experiences such as hunting buffalo and acting as medicine man in remote villages, all of which he shares with us with a dogged spirit and an unflagging enthusiasm.

Illustrated with dozens of Seton's charming line drawings and numerous photos of lost places and a time now almost forgotten, this is a hearty, real-life adventure yarn to appeal to the little boy in all of us.

About the Author:

Ernest Thompson Seton (1860 1946) was a British-born author, wildlife artist, cofounder of the Boy Scouts of America, and an early pioneer of the modern school of animal fiction writing whose best-known book is "Wild Animals I Have Known."

About this edition

• Publisher: CreateSpace Independent Publishing Platform
• Publication date: 2014
• ISBN 10: 1499611056
• ISBN 13: 9781499611052
• Binding: Paperback
• Number of pages: 222