Manson George
kw’eluqup | Manson George
May 1894 – July 10, 1967
’uwu kws ’ikw’s tthu sqwul’qwul’
Manson George, Clallam Story: Whale Hunter
And stories never get lost.
’u kwthu ’ush yu tu’e kw’us yu ts’its’usum’.
They’re always passed on. As you’re growing up, you are told of stories that are true.
kw’eluqup Manson George, also known as Melson, was a respected Elder and Knowledge Keeper from the Quw’utsun First Nation. He was a fluent speaker of the Hul’q’umi’num’ language as well as of English. During his lifetime he generously shared his knowledge of the language, as well as the history, culture, songs and traditions of his people with linguists and scholars including anthropologist Wayne Suttles.
kw’eluqup Manson George was born in kwa’mutsun village in 1894 to Manson George Sr. and his wife.1 His father’s mother was from stl’e’lum’ (Clallam) and his father’s father was from kwa’mutsun (Quamichan). Because of his connection to these two communities, his father held two names: kwexchtun, from stl’e’lum’ and syalukwuthut, from kwa’mutsun.2
Manson George had at least two siblings, Moses George Jr. and wuwalshumaat Mrs. Tommy Modeste. He was also the uncle of late Elder Dr. Ruby Peter.
Manson George was married twice. When he was approximately 24 years old he married his first wife, Elsie Sammy. They married on July 23, 1917 and had at least one child together, a son named Casper. By 1921 the family was living together on Penelakut (Kuper) Island. Ten years later however, in 1931, Manson George was living with tth’ut-siye’ Elizabeth Tom on the Kwamutsun reserve. The couple later married in a government ceremony on December 15, 1941. Elizabeth had a son by a previous relationship, Willie George. Both Elizabeth, who he fondly referred to as “Queen Lisapet,” and Manson’s son with Elsie Sammy predeceased him. Elizabeth died on August 4, 1961 at the age of 70.
Manson George was very knowledgeable about tradition and culture, having been taught by his father, a skilled speaker and Knowledge Keeper in his own right.
When he was young, his father used to tell him stories about the way it was a long time ago and he always remembered these stories. In addition to teaching his son about these important traditions, Manson George Sr. and his wife were also active in traditional ceremonies and harvesting activities. The couple constructed, owned and managed a weir on the Cowichan River, just below Skutz Falls. They also had a longhouse with a platform built for throwing blankets from as part of potlatch ceremonies.
During his own lifetime, Manson George generously shared his knowledge of the Hul’q’umi’num’ language, culture, stories, and traditions with linguists and researchers, including Wayne Suttles. He also knew many Hul’q’umi’num’ place names and shared this knowledge as well. He died on July 10, 1967 at the age of 73. We are thankful for the important work that he carried out during his lifetime, and are grateful for the knowledge repository his sharing created.
- His father is also referred to as Manson as well as Moses, and both names were also held by his sons. His wife’s name is unknown–it is possibly Mary. ↩︎
- According to the artist Arthur Pitts, Manson George’s father, Manson George Sr., was “considered a great lawyer as a young man by the Cowichan.” ↩︎