Park Residents

[ Annie Fraser, in front of Mowat Lodge fireplace ]

Annie Fraser, in front of Mowat Lodge fireplace, Unknown, Algonquin Park Archives, APMA 1016

While living and working in Mowat, a small settlement in Algonquin Park, Thomson interacted with a number of people important to the story of his death.

Martin Bletcher, Jr., and Louisa Bletcher: Martin Bletcher, Jr., and his sister Bessie, vacationed with their parents (Martin Sr. and Louisa) in a Canoe Lake cottage, next to the Trainor family. They were perceived by many locals as an eccentric and not particularly friendly family.

J. S. “Shannon” and Annie Fraser: J.S. (Shannon) Fraser was the Mowat village postmaster as well as the proprietor of Mowat Lodge in Algonquin Park. His wife, Annie, operated the Lodge and did the cooking for their guests. Tom Thomson often stayed at the Fraser's lodge during his trips to the Park, when he was not camping.

J.S. Fraser, Telegram to Dr. James MacCallum, July 10, 1917
J.S. Fraser, Letter to Dr. James MacCallum, July 12, 1917
J.S. Fraser, Telegram to John Thomson, July 16, 1917
J.S. Fraser, Telegram to T.J. Harkness, July 17, 1917
J.S. Fraser, Letter to John Thomson, July 18, 1917
J.S. Fraser, Letter to Dr. J. MacCallum, July 24, 1917
J.S. Fraser, Letter to T.J. Harkness, August 6, 1917
J.S. Fraser, Letter to T.J. Harkness, September 8, 1917
J.S. Fraser, Letter to Dr. James MacCallum, November 11, 1917
J.S. Fraser, Letter to [George] Thomson, December 29, 1917
J.S. Fraser, Letter to Dr. James MacCallum, December 29, 1917

Mark Robinson: Mark Robinson was a close friend of Tom Thomson’s who served as an Algonquin Park Ranger from the early 1900s until the 1930s. Between 1916 and 1917, he served in Europe with the Canadian army. Based in Mowat during July 1917, Robinson supervised the search for Thomson.

Mark Robinson, Daily journal, May 18, 1912
Mark Robinson, Daily journal, April 28, 1915
Mark Robinson, Daily journal, July 30-31, 1915, july 30, 1915
Mark Robinson, Daily journal, April 16 & 21, 1917, April 16, 1917
Mark Robinson, Daily journal, May 14, 1917
Mark Robinson, Daily journal, June 30, 1917
Mark Robinson, Daily journal, July 10-15, 1917, July 10, 1917
Mark Robinson, Daily journal, July 16-18, 1917, July 16, 1917
Mark Robinson, Daily journal, July 19, 1917
Mark Robinson, Note re.: Tom Thomson, artist, July 31, 1917
Mark Robinson, Daily journal, August 11-13, 1917, August 11, 1917
Mark Robinson, Letter to Blodwen Davies, March 23, 1930
Mark Robinson, Letter to Blodwen Davies, September 4, 1930
Mark Robinson and Blodwen Davies, Response to Blodwen Davies' questions, September 4, 1930
Mark Robinson, Interview with ark Robinson, The Tom Thomson Mystery, October 31, 1956

Winifred Trainor: Winifred Trainor’s father, Hugh Trainor, a lumberman, leased a cottage at Canoe Lake, in Algonquin Park. Local gossip suggested Winifred and Tom Thomson might have been involved in a romantic relationship. Her idiosyncratic behaviour after Thomson’s death garnered much attention from the Canoe Lake locals. She never married.

Winnifred Trainor, Letter to T.J. Harkness, August 11, 1917
Winnifred Trainor, Letter to T.J. Harkness, September 8, 1917
Winnifred Trainor, Letter to [George?] Thomson, September 7, 1917