Lhatŝ’aŝʔin (also known as Klatsassan or Klattasine; died 1864), a chief of the Chilcotin (
Tsilhqot'in) people, led a small group of warriors in attacks on road-building crews near
Bute Inlet
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British Columbia
British Columbia (commonly abbreviated as BC) is the westernmost province of Canada, situated between the Pacific Ocean and the Rocky Mountains. It has a diverse geography, with rugged landscapes that include rocky coastlines, sandy beaches, ...
, in April and May 1864. The road crews had been starving and underpaying Tsilhqot'in workers, which provoked Lhatŝ’aŝʔin to declare war. On 29 April 1864, Lhatŝ’aŝʔin arrived at a ferry site up the
Homathko River
The Homathko River is one of the major rivers of the southern Coast Mountains of the Canadian province of British Columbia. It is one of the few rivers that penetrates the range from the interior Chilcotin Country to the coastal inlets of the Pa ...
. He and his warriors killed ferry-keeper Tim Smith, plundering the food and stores kept there.
The next day, Lhatŝ’aŝʔin attacked the unsuspecting and unarmed road workers at the main camp, killing 9. Further up the trail, the band came upon foreman William Brewster and three of his men. All were killed, Brewster's body being mutilated and left while the other three were thrown in the river. The band also killed William Manning, a settler at Puntzi Lake. Proceeding into the interior to escape justice, Lhatŝ’aŝʔin and his followers ambushed a pack-train led by Alexander McDonald; three more white workers were killed. In all, 19 white settlers were killed by Lhatŝ’aŝʔin and followers.
Lhatŝ’aŝʔin and his followers were captured on August 11, 1864 under false pretenses of peace parley to end the
Chilcotin War
The Chilcotin War, the Chilcotin Uprising or the Bute Inlet Massacre was a confrontation in 1864 between members of the Tsilhqot'in (Chilcotin) people in British Columbia and white road construction workers. Fourteen men employed by Alfred Waddi ...
. They were shackled and tried as murderers, and were hanged at Quesnellemouth (
Quesnel Quesnel or Quesnell means "little oak" in the Picard dialect of French. It is used as a proper name and may refer to:
Places
* Le Quesnel, a commune the Somme department in France
* Quesnel, British Columbia, a city in British Columbia, Canada ...
, B.C.) on October 26, 1864. Lhatŝ’aŝʔin and his fellow war chiefs were exonerated for any crime or wrongdoing on October 23, 2014, by British Columbia Premier
Christy Clark
Christina Joan Clark (born October 29, 1965) is a former Canadian politician who was the 35th premier of British Columbia (BC), from 2011 to 2017. Clark was the second woman to be premier of BC, after Rita Johnston in 1991, and the first female ...
.
See also
*
Chilcotin War
The Chilcotin War, the Chilcotin Uprising or the Bute Inlet Massacre was a confrontation in 1864 between members of the Tsilhqot'in (Chilcotin) people in British Columbia and white road construction workers. Fourteen men employed by Alfred Waddi ...
*
William George Cox
William George Cox (ca. 1821 – 6 October 1878) was Gold Commissioner for the Cariboo and Boundary Districts in the Colony of British Columbia, Canada during the Rock Creek Gold Rush. He was born in Ireland.
Cox was among the war party ...
*
Frederick Seymour
Frederick Seymour (6 September 1820 – 10 June 1869) was a colonial administrator. After receiving little education and no inheritance from his father, Seymour was offered a junior appointment in the colonial service by Prince Albert. Seymour ...
*
Chartres Brew
Chartres Brew (31 December 1815 – 31 May 1870) was a Gold commissioner, Chief Constable and judge in the Colony of British Columbia, later a province of Canada.
Brew's name was conferred on two mountain summits in British Columbia, bo ...
*
Donald McLean
*
Alfred Waddington
Alfred Penderell Waddington (October 2, 1801 – February 26, 1872), during his later years, was actively involved in the Colony of Vancouver Island in what later became the province of British Columbia, Canada.
From 1860 to 1861 he was a re ...
*
Fort Chilcotin Fort Chilcotin was a short-lived trading post of the Hudson's Bay Company, located at the confluence of the Chilko and Chilcotin Rivers, British Columbia, Canada. It operated between the years 1836 and 1844. A commercial failure due to the lack ...
*
Nicola (chief) Nicola ( – ) ( Spokan: ''Hwistesmetxe'qen'', ''Walking Grizzly Bear''), also Nkwala or N'kwala, was an important First Nations political figure in the fur trade era of the British Columbia Interior (early 19th century to 1858) as well as into the ...
*
Chief Hunter Jack Hunter Jack of Shalalth inhabited the Bridge River Country region of southwestern British Columbia. He was a larger-than-life indigenous personality who died in 1905.
Character
His formal name was Jack Tashpola or Tash Poli. He was born at 22-Mile ...
References
External links
We Do Not Know His Name - Klatsassin & The Chilcotin War - Great Unsolved Mysteries in Canadian History
Year of birth missing
1864 deaths
19th-century First Nations people
19th-century Canadian criminals
Canadian spree killers
Chilcotin Country
Executed Canadian people
Executed spree killers
Indigenous leaders in British Columbia
People executed for murder
People executed by British North America by hanging
People executed by the Colony of British Columbia (1858–1866)
Pre-Confederation British Columbia people
Tsilhqot'in
People executed by Canada by hanging
1864 murders in Canada
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