Missing First Nation Bigfoot Mask Returns 75 Years Later

The mask disappeared in 1939 from Sts’ailes First Nation, near Harrison Hot Springs in B.C.’s Fraser Valley.

The Vancouver Sun tracks interesting Bigfoot news as a man's journeys across nations and decades to find a mask that was rumored to be taken by a man consumed and obsessed by the Sasquatch legend. Read an excerpt from the story below.

VANCOUVER - Hunting for an elusive sasquatch mask revered by a British Columbia First Nation has been a 16-year journey for James Leon, taking him through London, Boston, New York and Ottawa.

In the end, all it took was a question to the lady sitting next to him at a Vancouver event that led him to his nation's Sasq'ets mask that vanished 75 years ago.

Leon was at a repatriation event for another First Nations artifact held by the Vancouver Museum when he asked the lady sitting beside him if she knew of the ape-like mask partially covered in bear fur.

"Her eyes lit up and she said 'We were just looking at that mask the other day.' And they were gracious enough to go get it for me," he said with a chuckle.

The mask disappeared in 1939 from Sts'ailes First Nation, near Harrison Hot Springs in B.C.'s Fraser Valley.

Community elders told Leon that the mask had been taken by J.W. Burns, a teacher at the Chehalis Indian Day School, and a man obsessed with the sasquatch legend.

Burns, who is often credited for bringing the word "sasquatch" into common use, donated the mask to the Vancouver Museum.

Leon took the job of finding the mask seriously and learned it had been on travelling display. He searched through the archives of several museum's known for having artifacts from British Columbia.

While all those elders are gone, he said they'd be pleased the mask has been returned.

"We do burning for the sasquatch. It's our belief that his primary role is to ensure that the land is being taken care of. Because everyone of us, as Sts'ailes people, we carry an ancestral name, a rich name from the land."

Read more: Mask associated with Sasquatch lore returned to B.C. First Nation

Scientific Poll: Bigfoot Believers; Americans vs. Canadians

A new Angus Reid Public Opinion poll has found three-in-ten Americans (29%)
and one-in-five Canadians (21%) think Bigfoot is “definitely” or “probably” real.

"One out of five Canadians believe the legendary Bigfoot stomps through the forests. Americans are even more inclined to believe Bigfoot lives in the West Coast mountains." --Vancouver Sun

Drilling deeper into the Canadian profile

The Vancouver Sun cites a new Angus Reid Opinion Poll. The poll compares West Coast Americans compared to varying provinces in Canada.

One out of five Canadians believe in Bigfoot (Sasquatch)

Bigfoot, also often known as “Sasquatch” in Canada, is said to be an extremely tall and hairy primate, almost nine feet (2.75 meters). The rarely-seen, or never-seen (depending on your view), creature is said to live in remote areas of Canada and the United States, particularly in Cascadia (also known as the Pacific Northwest).

Artist's rendering of a Bigfoot, aka Sasquatch

Wikipedia says: “Even though many people claim to have seen a Bigfoot, or seen their tracks, no one has ever captured one, or found a dead body. For this reason, some people do not believe in Bigfoot. Some also believe Bigfoot is a dangerous monster, because of some scary stories told about them. Most people who study Bigfoot, however, agree that the species is probably gentle and intelligent, just like humans.”

The Angus Reid survey of more than 1,000 Canadians and 1,000 Americans found that the Bigfoot phenomenon is bigger in the U.S., where 77 per cent of respondents claim to have heard “a great deal” or a “moderate amount” about Bigfoot (compared to 61% of Canadians).

In Canada, Albertans (29%) are more likely to think that Bigfoot is real than British Columbians (18%), even though B.C. is supposed to be prime Bigfoot territory. Nineteen percent of Quebecers believe Bigfoot could be the real deal, compared to 17 per cent of Ontarians (17%). In the United States, respondents in the West (32%) are more likely to believe that Bigfoot is real.

SRC: Vancouver Sun