Louis Riel was the founder of the Canadian province Manitoba, and a leader in the independence movement for Saskatchewan. A century and a half after his death, he remains one of the more controversial figures in Canada‘s history.
He was a political leader of the Métis people (mixed Indigenous and European ancestry) at a time when they actively resisted the Northwest Territories integration into the Dominion of Canada in the late 1860s and 1870s. So why did he find solace (and escape) in Keeseville, NY?
Rich Frost, author of several books on regional travel and history, most recently Rich in History: A Lake Champlain Reader, will try to answer that question, while introducing the audience to one of the more famous unknown individuals with whom their forebears may have crossed paths.
His talk, “Louis Riel: A Rebel Comes to Keeseville,” sponsored by Anderson Falls Heritage Society, will take place on Wednesday, September 17, 2025 at 7 pm at Keeseville Fire Department, 8 Pleasant Street in Keeseville, NY. Admission is free.
Rich Frost grew up in Glens Falls. After earning degrees from Wesleyan University and Duke University College of Medicine, and completing a residency in internal medicine at the University of Kentucky, he practiced medicine in Plattsburgh for over three decades.
He also wrote a regular travel column for the Plattsburgh Press-Republican and the regional column “Rich in History” for Lake Champlain Weekly. In addition to books on regional travel and history, he wrote the novel Final Season.
Read more about Louis Riel in New York State.
Illustration: Louis Riel in 1873 (Provincial Archives of Manitoba).
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