The Promise: Love, Loyalty and the Lure of Gold, The Story of "Cariboo" Cameron
TouchWood Editions
Description
Sophia Cameron, the Beauty of Barkerville, lay dying of typhoid. It was 1863 and the Cariboo Gold Rush was in full swing. She begged of her husband one promise. To take her home to Eastern Canada. "It is not death I'm afraid of, John," she said. "It's spending eternity among these desolate mountains."
John "Cariboo" Cameron made the promise.
This is the story of a great love, the lure of gold, and the epic struggle to take Sophia's body from B.C.'s frozen goldfields to a tree-shaded cemetery near Cornwall, Ontario, where she was buried amidst mistrust and dark suspicions. Was it really his young wife in that coffin?
The story of John Cameron, the man who made the richest strike in the Cariboo, is told in the voice of Robert Stevenson, his friend, partner in mining, and fellow traveller on the long voyage to take Sophia home. Because he, more than anyone, knew the truth of the matter.
About the Author
Bill Gallaher is well known as a singer and songwriter in the west coast folk-music scene. He wrote a lovely, tender song about John and Sophia Cameron, and was then interested enough to dig deeper into the story. Discovering Robert Stevenson's memoirs gave him a unique insight into the real circumstances of a famous legend of the gold rush.
