Métis mail carriers delivered more than just letters. In some cases, they were relied upon to make long, treacherous journeys through frigid winter storms to obtain vital supplies needed for the survival of entire communities.
One such example was documented by Christy Ann Simons, a settler woman who grew up on St. Joseph Island, in her memoirs about life in the Upper Great Lakes during the late 1800s.
In her memoir, Simons detailed the terrible winter of 1878-79. She recalled that Métis or “half-breed” mail carriers and their dog teams saved nearby communities from starvation by collecting and delivering flour from far away Collingwood:
“That winter very little food for man or beast… The store keepers in Hilton, Richards, Bruce Mines, Soo all sent to Collingwood by half-breeds with their dog teams for flour. The roads were unbeaten, deep snow, blizzards, few white men knew the road but the half-breeds bravely tackled the job. What rejoicing when the first barrel of flour came thru.”
The Métis kept the supply lines open for as long as the community needed that winter:
“I dare say there were others similar to this on the Island, but the half-breeds kept the barrels of flour rolling in and the worst was over.”
The bravery and sacrifices of Métis mail carriers throughout history have helped keep the Upper Great Lakes Métis Community and their settler neighbours alive and well so the entire region could continue to grow and prosper to this day.