Person

Jimmy, Jimmy

• Chief Jimmy Jimmy

Jimmy Jimmy (Indian name-Swahsh) and his wife lived quite far up the Squamish river; past Baynes Island and a little farther up past the end of Judd Slough. He claimed that he was chosen to present a gift of Indian baskets on behalf of the Squamish Indians to Prince Edward (who later became King Edward, but abdicated) in the late 1800's. Jimmy Jimmy was very pockmarked from his bout with smallpox.

His wife was quite a character. Wherever she went, she carried her chamber pot with her. Whenever she rode in Mr Judd's "taxi service", he knew he would have to stop and let her out somewhere along the trip.

Account of Chief Jimmy Jimmy from Ta Kaya (Lone Wolf) [I Remember, page 9]: No one knew his age. When asked his age, he always said "seventy snows", meaning seventy years. He must have been nearly a hundred years old when he passed away. When his eyes started to fail, he had to hang up his rifle and use his shotgun loaded with buckshot to get a deer. After a few years, I really felt sorry for Jimmy. He came and told me that his eyes had failed him completely and that he couldn't see a deer more than forty feet so had to quit hunting. A few of us always shared our meat with him. He never had any children of his own to carry on his skills.
[Page 30] He was noted as the best canoe man that we ever had on the Squamish River. He had a large thirty-three foot dugout canoe that he made himself. He charged ten dollars a day for himself and the canoe to carry freight on the river and charged extra for any help he needed. A day then was from daylight until dark.

Squamish Public Library, Squamish Files: First Nations.

Ta Kaya (Lone Wolf). (1988). I Remember. Unpublished book. [Available at the Squamish Public Library].