James Watson Curran (April 24, 1865 – February 20, 1952) was a newspaper publisher and editor who settled in Sault Ste. Marie,

Ontario Ontario ( ; ) is one of the thirteen provinces and territories of Canada.Ontario is located in the geographic eastern half of Canada, but it has historically and politically been considered to be part of Central Canada. Located in Central Ca ...

after purchasing a local weekly newspaper in 1901. He went on to publicize and promote the city and the

Algoma District Algoma District is a district and census division in Northeastern Ontario in the Canadian province of Ontario. The name was created by an American ethnologist, Henry Rowe Schoolcraft (1793-1864), who was appointed Indian agent to the Ojibwe in ...

. He played a leadership role in the formation of the

Rotary Club Rotary International is one of the largest service organizations in the world. Its stated mission is to "provide service to others, promote integrity, and advance world understanding, goodwill, and peace through hefellowship of business, prof ...

of Sault Ste. Marie in 1918 and was actively involved in local history and tourism promotion.

Early life

James Watson Curran emigrated to Canada from

Ireland Ireland ( ; ga, Éire ; Ulster-Scots: ) is an island in the North Atlantic Ocean, in north-western Europe. It is separated from Great Britain to its east by the North Channel, the Irish Sea, and St George's Channel. Ireland is the s ...

in 1873 at the age of eight. His father John Jones Curran was a miller operating a flax mill in Greggs Mill,

Loughgall Loughgall ( ; ) is a small village, townland (of 131 acres) and civil parish in County Armagh, Northern Ireland. It is in the historic baronies of Armagh and Oneilland West. It had a population of 282 people (116 households) in the 2011 Censu ...

County Armagh County Armagh (, named after its county town, Armagh) is one of the six counties of Northern Ireland and one of the traditional thirty-two counties of Ireland. Adjoined to the southern shore of Lough Neagh, the county covers an area of an ...

and later

Crossgar Crossgar () is a village and townland in County Down, Northern Ireland. It is about south of Belfast – between Saintfield and Downpatrick. Crossgar had a population 1,892 people in the 2011 UK Census. History Crossgar has had an interest ...

County Down County Down () is one of the six counties of Northern Ireland, one of the nine counties of Ulster and one of the traditional thirty-two counties of Ireland. It covers an area of and has a population of 531,665. It borders County Antrim to th ...

before leaving for Canada in 1873. The family traveled on the Sarmation. They settled in

Toronto Toronto ( ; or ) is the capital city of the Canadian province of Ontario. With a recorded population of 2,794,356 in 2021, it is the most populous city in Canada and the fourth most populous city in North America. The city is the anch ...

where they operated a millinery and dry goods store on

Queen Street West Queen Street is a major east-west thoroughfare in Toronto, Ontario, Canada. It extends from Roncesvalles Avenue and King Street in the west to Victoria Park Avenue in the east. Queen Street was the cartographic baseline for the original east ...

between 1874 and 1875 before moving to

Orillia Orillia is a city in Ontario, Canada. It is in Simcoe County between Lake Couchiching and Lake Simcoe. Although it is geographically located within Simcoe County, the city is a List of municipalities in Ontario#Single-tier municipalities, single ...

. John Jones worked for and later owned the ''Essex Centre Chronicle'' (1880–1884). He started the ''Orillia News-Letter'' in 1884, and also published the ''Canadian Workman'' (1879-1920).

Journalism

Newspapers

* 1881–1884: ''Essex Chronicle'' * 1884–1890: ''News-Letter'', Orillia - News editor * 1890–1897: ''Empire'', Toronto - News reporter and later city editor * 1897–1901: ''Montreal Herald'' - city editor * 1901–1952: '' Sault Star'' - publisher and editor Curran started on his father's newspaper in

before moving to progressively responsible positions in newsrooms in Toronto and

Montreal Montreal ( ; officially Montréal, ) is the second-most populous city in Canada and most populous city in the Canadian province of Quebec. Founded in 1642 as '' Ville-Marie'', or "City of Mary", it is named after Mount Royal, the triple- ...

. Curran was News Editor of the Montreal Herald and was on his way west when he stepped off the

Canadian Pacific The Canadian Pacific Railway (french: Chemin de fer Canadien Pacifique) , also known simply as CPR or Canadian Pacific and formerly as CP Rail (1968–1996), is a Canadian Class I railway incorporated in 1881. The railway is owned by Canadi ...

train in Sault Ste. Marie in 1901, and stayed. He spent a week looking into the work of industrialist Francis Hector Clergue, and wrote 32 columns for the ''Montreal Herald''. He bought the weekly newspaper ''The Star'' from Moses McFadden. Together with his brother John Edward Gardiner Curran, Curran launched into his new newspaper business with enthusiasm and optimism. Many of his children and grandchildren continued to publish the ''Sault Daily Star'' up until the sale of the newspaper to Southam Press in 1975.

Books

One of the benefits of owning your own press is that you can publish your own books. Curran published two books which were drawn from stories which appeared in the pages of the ''Sault Daily Star''. The first one was Here was Vinland (1939), drawn from 26 articles which appeared in the newspaper from August 1938 to February 1939. The stories sought to prove that Norsemen settled in the Great Lakes Region about 1,000 A.D. The stories chronicled discoveries of Norse relics, and the author opens with a plea for "open minds" and acknowledges the "Vinland debate" which is still ongoing. Some of the relics recorded by Curran remain in the collection of the Royal Ontario Museum, in Toronto. The controversy about the Beardmore relics remains current. Later, in 1940, Curran published ''Wolves Don't Bite'', a collection of stories about wolves. Some stories were drawn from outings of the Algoma Wolf Club. The book opens with a sketch of Old Sam Martin, which the caption "Any man who ssys he's been et by a wolf is a liar." Curran offered $100 to anyone who could prove he had been "et" by a wolf, a bet which was never paid.Curran, James. W. Wolves don't bite. Sault Ste. Marie: The Sault Daily Star,1940.

Sault Ste. Marie

Promotion

The wolf became the symbol of the ''Sault Daily Star'', and is found in the masthead at the top of the first page. Curran wrote stories about wolves from about 1920 to 1940, many of which appear in his book ''Wolves Don't Bite'', published by the ''Sault Star'' in 1940. The Sault and Algoma District became famous through Curran's offer to pay $100 if they could prove they had been the victim of a wolf attack. The money was never paid during Curran's lifetime, although there were many claims. "This is to inform the public that the Sault Daily Star will pay $100 to the first person who can establish to the satisfaction of the editor that any timber or 'brush' wolf has attacked any person in Algoma." Wolf week, which took place during the depression in 1932, was a six day jamboree organized by Curran, the Board of Trade, City Council, the Rotary and Kiwanis clubs and local businesses. Reports placed attendance between 10,000 and 30,000 and it was the most successful tourist attraction in the city's history. "Wolf Week, from July 25–30, 1932 gave the people of Algoma and 10,000 visitors form across North America a chance to forget the dismal economic situation and kick up their heels and howl," wrote Linda Richardson.

Rotary Club

Curran played a leadership role in the formation of the Rotary Club of Sault Ste. Marie in 1918, and served as its third President in 1922. Community Night, which began in 1922, was an idea Curran proposed in an editorial, based on an "Old Home Week" event he had attended in his home town of Orillia. The event continues today a
Rotaryfest
and remains a major fundraising event for Rotarians.

Local history

As one of his efforts to promote the Sault and celebrate local history, Curran, together with members of the Sault Ste. Marie Historical Society, organized The New Ontario Soldier's Reunion and Discovery Week held in August, 1923. Local industrialist Francis Hector Clergue was invited to return to the Sault to participate in a ceremony, laying a cornerstone at the cenotaph outside the Court House on Queen Street. The event commemorated Sault Ste. Marie's contribution to World War I by welcoming over 1,000 soldiers from the District of Algoma. The city's heritage was commemorated in the unveiling of two cairns, two war memorials and eleven plaques. Part of the Discovery Week festivities, and later part of the Wolf Week program, was the staging of the play Hiawatha. Written by L.O. Armstrong, it was first performed in Desbarats for the entertainment of Longfellow's daughters in 1900., The "dignity of chieftainship in an Ojibway tribe" was given to Curran in 1923. His Indian name "Geeche-me-zhe-nah-we", means The Great Messenger.