Donald Morrison (1858 – June 19, 1894) was a Canadian

outlaw An outlaw, in its original and legal meaning, is a person declared as outside the protection of the law. In pre-modern societies, all legal protection was withdrawn from the criminal, so that anyone was legally empowered to persecute or kill them ...

, convicted of

manslaughter Manslaughter is a common law legal term for homicide considered by law as less culpable than murder. The distinction between murder and manslaughter is sometimes said to have first been made by the ancient Athenian lawmaker Draco in the 7th cen ...

, who became a

folk hero A folk hero or national hero is a type of hero – real, fictional or mythological – with their name, personality and deeds embedded in the popular consciousness of a people, mentioned frequently in folk songs, folk tales and other folklore; a ...

. Morrison was the son of Scottish immigrants to Canada from the

Isle of Lewis The Isle of Lewis ( gd, Eilean Leòdhais) or simply Lewis ( gd, Leòdhas, ) is the northern part of Lewis and Harris, the largest island of the Western Isles or Outer Hebrides archipelago in Scotland. The two parts are frequently referred to as ...

, born in the

Canadian Gaelic Canadian Gaelic or Cape Breton Gaelic ( gd, Gàidhlig Chanada, or ), often known in Canadian English simply as Gaelic, is a collective term for the dialects of Scottish Gaelic spoken in Atlantic Canada. Scottish Gaels were settled in Nova Scot ...

-speaking immigrant community near Lac-Mégantic in

Quebec Quebec ( ; )According to the Canadian government, ''Québec'' (with the acute accent) is the official name in Canadian French and ''Quebec'' (without the accent) is the province's official name in Canadian English is one of the thirtee ...

, Canada. At the age of 20, Donald moved to Western Canada and the United States where he learned the

cowboy A cowboy is an animal herder who tends cattle on ranches in North America, traditionally on horseback, and often performs a multitude of other ranch-related tasks. The historic American cowboy of the late 19th century arose from the '' vaquer ...

trade, and became skilled both with guns and horses. The money he earned was sent home to help pay for the family farm. Unfortunately, Donald's father Murdo Morrison mortgaged the homestead to Lieutenant Colonel Malcolm MacAulay, who took advantage of Murdo's illiteracy and cheated him out of his farm. When Donald returned home he hired a lawyer and tried to keep them from losing the farm. Nevertheless, the farm was sold and the Morrisons were evicted. Donald was angry enough to harass the new owners at this point, and when the barn burned down, a warrant was issued for his arrest for

arson Arson is the crime of willfully and deliberately setting fire to or charring property. Although the act of arson typically involves buildings, the term can also refer to the intentional burning of other things, such as motor vehicles, wat ...

. The longest manhunt in Canadian history then followed. An unsavory American special constable and whiskey smuggler named Jack Warren was called in to capture Donald, bragging that he could outshoot him; he paid with his life. Donald was hunted in the wilds of Lac-Mégantic from June 1888 until April 1889; for 10 months he evaded lawmen. Much of the time he was hidden by sympathetic supporters in the Scotstown community. At times he passed by detectives with such cool reserve that they did not suspect him, unwittingly having him inches within their grasp. A truce was finally arranged, but Donald was ambushed and shot. He was arrested and tried in

Sherbrooke Sherbrooke ( ; ) is a city in southern Quebec, Canada. It is at the confluence of the Saint-François and Magog rivers in the heart of the Estrie administrative region. Sherbrooke is also the name of a territory equivalent to a regional count ...

, and although he had acted in self-defense was convicted of manslaughter and sentenced to 18 years hard labour. The worst punishment of all was the removal of his freedom, and he stopped eating, contracting

tuberculosis Tuberculosis (TB) is an infectious disease usually caused by '' Mycobacterium tuberculosis'' (MTB) bacteria. Tuberculosis generally affects the lungs, but it can also affect other parts of the body. Most infections show no symptoms, in ...

. He died four hours after being released from prison (on clemency), and was buried on the Stornoway road in the Gisla cemetery in Megantic. A yearly festival is held in the Donald Morrison domaine to commemorate Donald Morrison and the Scottish Gaelic-speaking pioneers of the Megantic area. His story was romanticized in poem-form in the book ''The Canadian Outlaw'' (1892) by Oscar Dhu (Angus Mackay), ''Donald Morrison 'The Megantic Outlaw (1948) by Henry G. Kidd, Ron Kelly's 1971 television film '' The Megantic Outlaw'',"Folk hero's story told"
''

Calgary Herald The ''Calgary Herald'' is a daily newspaper published in Calgary, Alberta, Canada. Publication began in 1883 as ''The Calgary Herald, Mining and Ranche Advocate, and General Advertiser''. It is owned by the Postmedia Network. History ''The ...

'', January 22, 1971. and in ''The Outlaw of Megantic'' (1973) by Bernard Epps. His life is the subject of a

Gaelic Gaelic is an adjective that means "pertaining to the Gaels". As a noun it refers to the group of languages spoken by the Gaels, or to any one of the languages individually. Gaelic languages are spoken in Ireland, Scotland, the Isle of Man, and Ca ...

-language

concept album A concept album is an album whose tracks hold a larger purpose or meaning collectively than they do individually. This is typically achieved through a single central narrative or theme, which can be instrumental, compositional, or lyrical. Som ...

''The Megantic Outlaw'' (2007) by Calum Martin. The 78th Fraser Highlanders Pipe Band has issued a CD entitled, "The Megantic Outlaw Concert."

Gallery

File:Morrison killing Warren.jpg, Morrison killing special constable Warren. File:Scene of Donald Morrison's capture.jpg, Scene of Morrison's capture.

References

* * Stanford, Richard (2003) ''At Any Price: The Story of the Megantic Outlaw'' The Beaver Canada's History Magazine, Winnipeg. October/November 2003

External links

Information on Gaelic Settlers from the Outer Hebrides to Eastern Quebec, including Donald MorrisonEastern Townships, QuebecCanadian Encyclopedia entry

(Book)

{{DEFAULTSORT:Morrison, Donald 1858 births 1894 deaths Canadian folklore Canadian Gaelic Canadian outlaws Canadian people convicted of manslaughter Canadian prisoners and detainees 19th-century deaths from tuberculosis Tuberculosis deaths in Quebec Persons of National Historic Significance (Canada) Prisoners and detainees of Canada 19th-century Canadian criminals People from Lac-Mégantic, Quebec