Ernest could not see himself returning to a life as an artist when he was on the Manitoba prairie. He threw the letters from the British Museum board of trustees into the fire. Those letters were from the Prince of Wales, the Archbishop of Canterbury, and Lord Beaconsfield.
About Ernest Thompson Seton
Answer to Q #10
He first heard the voice when he was in London studying at the Royal Academy of Art. Later, he named the voice “The Buffalo Wind”. The voice guided him throughout his life.
Answer to Q #9
Seton considered art to be his vocation because it was how he earned a living in his early years. He considered natural science to be his avocation because he was largely self-taught.
Answer to Q #8
As Ernest approached his brothers’ homestead near Carberry, Manitoba, he saw three men. He didn’t recognize his brothers and friend at first because they were all sunburnt.
Answer to Q #7
Q #7: In what year did Seton become a US citizen?
A: In 1930 the paperwork finally went through the entire process with the US immigration office. He had unsuccessfully started the application at least twice. He was a British citizen until that time. In 1915, Theodore Roosevelt was very surprised to find out he wasn’t a US citizen. The issue was one of the stated reasons that he was released from the BSA that year.
Answer to Q #6
Q #6: What was Black Wolf’s given name?
A: Ernest Evan Thompson. His middle name was conferred upon him in honor of Evan Cameron of Lochiel, an ancestor who was known as the greatest wolf hunter of his time, credited with hunting the last wolf in Scotland. More about the Seton ancestry can be found in Trail of an Artist-Naturalist: the autobiography of Ernest Thompson Seton.
Answer to Q #5
Q #5: What was the name of the youth organization ETS established in 1902?
A: The Woodcraft Indians (also known as Seton Indians). This was an EASY question! The program for the first BSA handbook was based on this organization’s development.
Answer to Q #4
Q #4: Name the valley that was terrorized by wolves and became the backdrop for the story of Lobo.
Currumpaw or Corrumpa. According to New Mexico Place Names, A Geographical Dictionary (1965), the word is an Indian term meaning “wild or isolated”. Corrompa is another alternate spelling meaning “corrupt” in Latin.
A personal thought: I image that when Seton was giving a title to his most famous story, he capitalized on the “paw” in Currumpaw, emphasizing the association with animals, particularly canines –wolves and coyotes.
Answer to Q #3
Q #3: What was the name of Seton’s nature paradise in Connecticut?
Wyndygoul. ETS began buying up small farms in Cos Cob, CT in 1900 and transforming the land into a wilderness paradise where he and wife Grace hosted many outdoor events for the Woodcraft Indians, the Camp Fire Club, the Boy Scouts and other groups. The Seton’s sold the property in 1913 to Maurice Wertheim and moved to Lake Avenue in Greenwich, CT.
Answer to Question #2
What was ETS’s father’s name?
Joseph Logan Thompson was ETS’s father’s name. When Joseph was a young man, he wanted to become a railroad engineer because it was an exciting new field. His father rejected the idea, saying that the railroad was just a passing fad and that horse and buggy would make a great comeback. He insisted that Joseph follow him and his father in the family business as a ship broker.