The Tom Thomson Mystery

"The Tom Thomson Mystery" is a book by Canadian judge William T. Little. It was first published in 1970 by McGraw-Hill Ryerson.

Little's book has been considered the work that propelled the Tom Thomson mystery. Thomson was Canada's most famous painter. He died in 1917, drowning in Canoe Lake in Ontario's Algonquin Park, and was buried there by his friends. Two days later, his family sent an undertaker to exhume the body and send it back for re-burial in Leith, Ontario. In 1956, Little and some friends decided to dig up Thomson's burial place at Canoe Lake.

The book tells the story of Thomson's life and the startling discovery made by Little. It suffers from factual errors and the author's self-congratulations, but it is considered an important text for those interested in the Thomson mystery.

Neil J. Lehto self-published a biography about Thomson in 2005, in which he documents the many errors in "The Tom Thomson Mystery". Using historical records, correspondence, and newspaper reports, Lehto demonstrates that Little altered the facts to suit his theory of Thomson's death and burial.

References

*Little, William T. "The Tom Thomson Mystery". Toronto: McGraw-Hill Ryerson, 1970. ISBN 0-07-092655-7.
*Lehto, Neil J. "Algonquin Elegy Tom Thomson's Last Spring". iUniverse, 2005. ISBN 0-595-36132-3.