James Walsh

Inspector James Morrow Walsh.

Photos of James Morrow Walsh often show him dressed in buckskins, looking the part of an adventurer in the Wild West. A man of many talents, Walsh had run a hotel, worked on the railway and been a salesclerk before joining the military and finding his calling. He was offered a position as an officer with the NWMP, and accepted it without hesitation.

Walsh treated the men in his command well. The Commissioner noted that he was capable and reliable. Walsh's stature grew, and he was given the task of setting up a post in the Cypress Hills, not too far from the Cypress Hills Massacre. At first, Walsh busied himself in crushing the whisky trade in that area. By 1876, the Sioux began to arrive, running away from the slaughtering American Army. Walsh gained the respect and friendship of Sitting Bull. Unfortunately, the Canadian Government wanted the Sioux to return to the United States, and they replaced Walsh. In 1882, Walsh was forced to resign. He liked to do things his own way, which was not always the way of the NWMP! Walsh stayed in the west running a business, then returned to the NWMP for a year as Commissioner for the Yukon. He retired to Brockville, Ontario where he died in 1905.