At the Bridge chronicles the little-known story of James Teit, a prolific ethnographer who, from 1884 to 1922, worked with and advocated for the Indigenous peoples of British Columbia and the northwestern United States. From his base at Spences Bridge, BC, Teit forged a participant-based anthropology that was far ahead of its time. Whereas his contemporaries, including famed anthropologist Franz Boas, studied Indigenous peoples as members of "dying cultures," Teit worked with them as members of living cultures resisting colonial influence over their lives and lands. Whether recording stories, mapping place-names, or participating in the chiefs' fight for fair treatment, he made their objectives his own. With his allies, he produced copious, meticulous records; an army of anthropologists could not have achieved a fraction of what he achieved in his short life. Wickwire's beautifully crafted narrative accords Teit the status he deserves, consolidating his place as a leading and innovative anthropologist in his own right.

At the Bridge lifts from obscurity the story of James Teit (1864-1922), an outstanding Canadian ethnographer and Indian rights activist whose thoughtful scholarship and tireless organizing have been largely ignored.

About the Author
Wendy Wickwire is professor emerita in the Department of History at the University of Victoria. Her publications include Stein: The Way of the River (with Michael M'Gonigle), which won the Bill Duthie Booksellers' Choice Award at the BC Book Awards; Nature Power: In the Spirit of an Okanagan Storyteller (with Harry Robinson), which won the Roderick Haig-Brown Prize for best regional book at the BC Book Awards; Write It On Your Heart: The Epic World of an Okanagan Storyteller (with Harry Robinson), which was shortlisted for the Roderick Haig-Brown Prize; and Living by Stories: A Journey of Landscape and Memory (with Harry Robinson). For more information, visit www.wendywickwire.com.

Reviews

Wickwire painstakingly unearths the life and legacy of someone who was undeservedly 'invisibilized'...she does a thorough job of unearthing Teit's legacy. Her book is filled with detail, anecdotes, and personal reflection. It's an inspiring must-read for anyone interested in reconciliation today.

-- Nelle Oosterom, Senior Editor * Canada's History *
When Wickwire talks about Teit, there is an obvious excitement at the chance to highlight such an interesting character. That excitement comes across on the pages of the book as lively, solid reportage with a healthy dash of deserved reverence. At the Bridge is dense without being dry. -- Dana Gee * Vancouver Sun *
Wendy Wickwire's groundbreaking historical investigation places James Teit as a key figure in early North American anthropology, but also as central to historical Indigenous rights activism in British Columbia. -- Julie Cruikshank, author of Do Glaciers Listen? Local Knowledge, Colonial Encounters and Social Imagination
Wickwire has done B.C. scholars and Indigenous peoples an essential service in deftly peeling back the layers of personality, family, and life circumstances of one of Canada's unsung heroes ... [her] work is not only highly recommended, but a definite must-read for anyone concerned with the unresolved Indigenous "land question" that continues to haunt the province to this day. -- Dan Marshall * The Ormsby Review *
It is a remarkable book about a remarkable man and deserves a place on the bookshelf of everyone who understands that knowing where we've come from is essential to navigating our course to somewhere else and to somewhere that we hope to make better rather than worse. -- Stephen Hume * Walhachin Press *

Wickwire draws her audience into a style of anthropology that is situated, participatory, and strives to be contextually self-aware at every turn.

-- Mark Zion, Kate Plyley, Hester Lessard, Rebecca Johnson * Alberta Law Review *

"Wickwire painstakingly unearths the life and legacy of someone who was undeservedly 'invisibilized'...she does a thorough job of unearthing Teit's legacy. Her book is filled with detail, anecdotes, and personal reflection. It's an inspiring must-read for anyone interested in reconciliation today."

-- Nelle Oosterom * Canada's History *
It is an exceptional book about a remarkable man who never received the recognition he deserved for his major input to what was then the new science of anthropology. -- Jim Cooperman * Salmon Arm Observer *


Awards
Winner of Labrecque-Lee Book Award, Canadian Anthropology Society 2020 (Canada) and Clio BC, Canadian Historical Association 2020 (Canada) and Canada Prize in the Humanities and Social Sciences, Federation for the Humanities and Social Sciences 2020 (Canada) and Best Book in Canadian Studies, The Canadian Studies Network 2020 (Canada) and Pierre Savard Book Award, International Council for Canadian Studies 2021 (Canada). Commended for The Wilson Book Prize, McMaster University 2020 (Canada). Short-listed for Ryga Award for Best Book on Social Justice Awareness in Literature, The George Ryga Society 2020 (Canada) and Lieutenant Governor's Medal for Historical Writing, BC Historical Federation 2020 (Canada) and Best Scholarly Book in Canadian History, Canadian Historical Association 2020 (Canada) and Basil Stuart-Stubbs Prize, UBC Library 2020 (Canada) and Roderick Haig-Brown Award, BC and Yukon Book Prizes 2020 (Canada).



Book Information
ISBN 9780774861526
Author Wendy Wickwire
Format Paperback
Page Count 400
Imprint University of British Columbia Press
Publisher University of British Columbia Press
Weight(grams) 500g