Famous Canadian Animals (but Not Overly Well Known) Part 2: Black Bear – White River

Geoff Corfield

Geoffrey Corfield has been active in Conservative politics in Canada since 1976, both federally and provincially. But he won’t always write about politics because he has more experience with writing history and humour. He lives in London, Ontario, frequents used book shops, swims lengths, drinks beer, plays croquet, has his own town in north-central Queensland and six books published, and would very much like to find a publisher for this New Zealand book and its companion one for Australia.

This is the true story of a soldier, a town, a bear, a zoo and a book;
and how they all became connected.

August 1914. The First World War is on and Captain Harry Colebourn, a
veterinarian from Winnipeg, Manitoba, Canada, is on a train heading
east with The Fort Garry Horse Regiment. The train stops at White
River in Northern Ontario; an area of rocks, trees, lakes, rivers,
small towns, not many roads, and lots of wildlife, including Black
bears. While the train is stopped Captain Colebourn buys a small Black
bear cub for $20. Not unusual. Orphan bear cubs were often found
around White River and sold as pets. He takes the bear on the train
with him and names her “Winnipeg”, or “Winnie’ for short.

When Captain Colbourn’s regiment goes overseas to England, Winnie goes
along too. She lands at Plymouth, is stationed on Salisbury Plain,
sleeps under Captain Colebourn’s cot, follows soldiers around like a
dog, and becomes the mascot of The Second Canadian Infantry Brigade.
But when the brigade is posted to France in December 1914, Winnie
cannot go along, so Captain Colebourn loans her to The London Zoo. Not
unusual. During the war four other bear cubs would also end up at the
zoo.

When the war is over Captain Colebourn returns to the zoo to get
Winnie. But she has become such a popular attraction that he decides
to leave her there. Children love Winnie. She is the only bear
considered completely trustworthy by the zoo. Children ride on her
back and she eats from their hands. So Captain Colebourn returns to
Winnipeg where he retires in 1945 and dies two years later at the age
of 60. Which is when the connection between a soldier, a town, a bear
and a zoo comes to an end; and the connection between a town, a bear,
a zoo and a book begins.

Alan Alexander Milne takes his son Christopher Robin to The London Zoo
to see his favourite animal, Winnie.  A.A. Milne is a writer. One day
he writes a children’s story about a bear and a boy. The boy is named
Christopher Robin. He changes the bear from a girl bear to a boy bear
but keeps the name Winnie. In 1926 the story becomes a book called
“Winnie-the-Pooh”.

Meanwhile the town called White River has taken to calling itself “The
Coldest Place In Canada”. In 1936 it was -50C/-72F in White River, but
then the record is broken by lots of other places, so White River
decides to call itself  “The Birthplace of Winnie-the Pooh” instead.
So it does. And every year on the third weekend in August they hold a
“Winnie Hometown Festival”, which is a whole lot better than holding a
“Coldest Place In Canada Festival” sometime in January.

The bear named Winnie lived in The London Zoo for 20 years and died in
1934. She was the best bear the zoo ever had. There is a statue of her
there, and one of Captain Colebourn too; and there  are also two
plaques, one with some wrong information on it, and another presented
to the zoo by school children from White River in 1997.

And that is the true story of how the soldier, the town, the bear, the
zoo and the book all became connected. And all because of a soldier,
a town and a bear from Canada.

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