The history of every legendary figure includes
tall tales, deliberate embellishments, and apocrypha. Bill Johnston, the
nineteenth-century, Thousand Islands folk hero is no exception. Commercial
interests, journalistic excess, historical mistakes, and political propaganda
have all contributed to myth and mis-fact. This post aims to correct the commonest errors. There are others.
Topic Categories
- About this Blog (1)
- Bill's Early Years (4)
- Bill's Family (3)
- Bill's Later Years (1)
- Bill's Rebel Years (16)
- Hickory Island (3)
- Historical Misfacts (1)
- Mysteries (4)
- Peel Raid (3)
- Windmill Battle (3)

Page Links
August 12, 2012
August 10, 2012
Ada Burleigh Aids Bill Johnston in Hiding
The legend of Bill Johnston includes a cast of interesting supporting characters. In 1838, while Bill hid in the Thousand Islands from two armies searching for him, his niece Ada spent the summer aiding her family in a time of trouble. She consoled her aunt Ann Johnston and often helped her cousin Kate Johnston run supplies to the family fugitive.
January 1, 2012
Bill Johnston: 15. No Prison Can Hold Him
After Bill Johnston skipped bail in mid-April 1839, he returned to the Thousand Islands. As they had in the summer of 1838, the Canadian and US military launched joint patrols to find him.
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)