J. Patrick Boyer

Between Samuel Champlain’s first map in 1615 and today’s satellite images of Muskoka from outer space lies a centuries-long drama which proves that putting Muskoka on a map was neither easy nor simple. In this second book of his MODERN HISTORY OF MUSKOKA series, author J. Patrick Boyer presents a parade of human endurance and ingenuity, the indispensable roles of First Nations, the role of military planners, treachery and betrayal, the aspiration of land developers, the relationship between First Nations and settlers, the unique Muskoka role of legendary Canadian map-maker David Thompson – and the mystery of his “lost” maps just when they were needed most for Muskoka settlement. It is the full story, integrating global forces with local realities, including the tribulations of land surveyors endeavouring to subdivide raw Canadian Shield landscape into a neat grid, the challenges facing road-builders in the same terrain, governmental policies often in conflict, and the shift from logging and homesteading to a vacation economy which finally also put Muskoka on the continent’s social map.