Fonds AFC135 - James Evans fonds

James Evans was born in Kingston-upon-Hull, England on January 18, 1801 to James and Mary Evans. Educated at a Lincolnshire boarding school, in 1822 Evans followed his family who had immigrated to Canada two years prior. He obtained a teaching position near L'Orignal, Ontario and married Mary Blithe Smith, with whom he had two daughters.

James Evans and his family moved to Augusta Township, Ontario about 1826; while he had been interested in scripture since his youth, Evans only officially converted to Methodism in 1828. That same year, He accepted a position teaching at the Rice Lake School for Indian Children and after being immersed in the Ojibway language, Evans was soon able to speak it fluently and perform some scriptural translations.

Evans studied for the Methodist ministry for three years beginning in 1830, and was ordained in 1833. His first missionary posting was to the St. Clair Mission, near what is now Sarnia, Ontario. By 1839, the Hudson's Bay Company agreed to allow Methodist missionaries, under the direction of London, England's Methodist Missionary Society, to work in its large territories in Northern Ontario and in the Canadian west. Evans was appointed to Norway House, Manitoba in 1840 and ministered there for five years. In 1844, Evans accidentally killed his interpreter, Thomas Hassall, while duck hunting. Evans experienced considerable remorse over this event, and this likely weakened his health.

Evans often spoke openly about his concerns that the Hudson's Bay Company was mistreating Norway House's indigenous peoples, and clashed with the company over some of its official policies. In 1845, Evans was charged with sexual improprieties relating to an aboriginal girl in his care, and the Hudson's Bay Company asked that he be removed from Norway House. It has been suggested that his outspokenness with the Hudson's Bay Company led to false allegations. Evans was recalled by the Wesleyan Society to England, where he was tried and acquitted of the sexual misconduct charges.

James Evans died of a sudden heart attack in November, 1846. In 1955, his body was disinterred and reburied in Norway House. During his time amongst Canada's indigenous peoples, Evans wrote many books and articles about native language and culture. He is best known as the person who devised the system of Canadian Aboriginal syllabics, first working with the Ojibwa and Cree languages, between 1836 and 1840.