Short Stuff: The Mad Trapper of Rat River

Summary

Summary of "Short Stuff: The Mad Trapper of Rat River" – Stuff You Should Know Podcast

Release Date: January 8, 2025

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Introduction

In the episode titled "Short Stuff: The Mad Trapper of Rat River," hosts Josh and Chuck delve into one of Canada's most enigmatic historical mysteries—the tale of the Mad Trapper of Rat River. Accompanied by Jerry, who fills in for Dave, the trio embarks on an adventurous retelling of the 1931 manhunt that remains unsolved to this day.

Background of the Mad Trapper

[00:46] Chuck: "That's right, the Mad Trapper of Rat River, AKA perhaps, I don't even know about perhaps almost certainly Canada's most infamous unknown person on the lam."

The Mad Trapper, believed to be Albert Johnson, emerged in July 1931 when he relocated to the remote northwest territories near Fort McPherson. His origins remain cloaked in mystery, with some speculating a Swedish background based on limited interactions.

[01:04] Josh: "Yeah, this is, I saw it referred to as like an iconic Canadian story. This guy just tore us up in 1931, made international headlines and died. It's still to this day, no one knows who he is."

The Escalation: Initial Confrontations

By November or December 1931, tensions rose when local First Nations trappers reported Johnson for interfering with trap lines. This prompted the involvement of the Royal Canadian Mounted Police (Mounties).

[03:07] Josh: "...they knocked on Johnson's cabin door, assuming that they were just going to talk to him and tell him to stop doing that, and that would be that, right."

However, the initial encounters swiftly turned hostile. Johnson reportedly brandished a gun during the first visit, leading to escalating confrontations.

The Manhunt Intensifies

Over the course of seven grueling weeks, a massive manhunt ensued, marking the largest in Canadian history. The Mounties employed unprecedented tactics to capture Johnson:

1. Armed Confrontations:

   • [04:02] Josh: "And finally, a gunfight with this posse that the Mounties had assembled to go take this guy out..."
   • Johnson engaged in multiple firefights, resulting in the death of Constable Millen and others.

2. Use of Dynamite:

   • [04:28] Josh: "They threw dynamite on his roof to flush him out..."
   • Despite the destruction, Johnson survived these explosive attempts and continued evading capture.

3. Aerial Surveillance:

   • [07:12] Chuck: "That's right. They got a pretty legendary WW1 Canadian fighter pilot named Wilfred..."
   • For the first time, aircraft were utilized in a manhunt, with pilot Wap May conducting aerial reconnaissance to locate Johnson.

Notable Moments and Quotes

• Survival Against Odds:

  • [05:35] Chuck: "This poses was hunting him down. He was a very successful evader for a long time."

• Public Fascination:

  • [08:10] Chuck: "One of the weird parts of this case is... this guy didn't say a word the whole time."

• Enduring Mystery:

  • [12:00] Josh: "Why would he do this? Yeah, which is just deepens the mystery further."

The Climactic Conclusion

After enduring extreme weather—temperatures plummeting to -45°C—and navigating treacherous terrain, Johnson's resilience was unmatched. The Mounties, running low on resources and battling brutal conditions, eventually succumbed to the elements and logistical challenges, allowing Johnson to disappear again.

[07:38] Josh: "When you understand what you're looking at, it's just astounding what these Guys were running through over the course of seven weeks. It's nuts."

Tragically, four days after their last encounter, the Mounties found Johnson's destroyed cabin empty, his tracks buried by a blizzard.

Post-Manhunt Developments

Decades later, in 2007, advancements in DNA technology offered new avenues to potentially identify Johnson. Despite extensive genetic comparisons, his true identity remains elusive, with theories suggesting Swedish heritage and possible ties to Midwestern United States origins.

[14:12] Chuck: "They made comparisons with more than two dozen families... pretty sure that his background is Swedish."

Additionally, forensic examinations revealed remarkable physical attributes:

• Extensive dental work
• Scoliosis
• Asymmetrical foot sizes

[14:46] Chuck: "I think one foot was bigger than the other one too, which, good Lord."

Legacy and Public Perception

The Mad Trapper's story captivated the public, especially during the Great Depression, when sentiments often swung in favor of outlaws perceived as rebels against establishment failures.

[12:00] Josh: "...people by this time... were actually rooting for him because... the establishment had basically screwed everything up."

Despite numerous tips and widespread media coverage, Johnson's true identity and motives remain shrouded in mystery, cementing his status as a legendary figure in Canadian folklore.

Conclusion

The episode effectively unravels the gripping saga of the Mad Trapper of Rat River, highlighting the extreme measures taken during the manhunt and the enduring mystery surrounding Johnson's identity and motivations. Through engaging storytelling and insightful discussions, Josh and Chuck shed light on a fascinating chapter of Canadian history that continues to intrigue and baffle to this day.

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Notable Quotes with Timestamps:

• Chuck [00:46]: "Almost certainly Canada's most infamous unknown person on the lam."
• Josh [01:04]: "This guy just tore us up in 1931, made international headlines and died."
• Josh [05:35]: "This guy was already a big deal by this time..."
• Chuck [07:12]: "They got a pretty legendary WW1 Canadian fighter pilot named Wilfred..."
• Josh [08:10]: "This guy didn't say a word the whole time."
• Josh [12:00]: "Why would he do this? Yeah, which is just deepens the mystery further."
• Josh [14:12]: "He was just amazing in a really kind of specific way."

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This summary captures the key discussions, insights, and conclusions from the podcast episode, providing a comprehensive overview for those who haven't listened.

Transcript

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[Josh]

Hi and welcome to the Short Stuff. I'm Josh. There's Chuck, Jerry's here too, sitting in for Dave. And the three of us are on the run through the Canadian Arctic recreating the story of the Mad Trapper. And it's not going very well for us.

[Chuck]

That's right, the Mad Trapper of Rat River, AKA perhaps, I don't even know about perhaps almost certainly Canada's most infamous unknown person on the lam. And the largest manhunt in Canada's history conducted to try and get this guy.

[Josh]

Yeah, this is, I saw it referred to as like an iconic Canadian story. This guy just tore us up in 1931, made international headlines and died. It's still to this day, no one knows who, who he is. And not one of those things where like, we're pretty sure it's this guy. We just can't prove it. They have no idea who this guy is. They're starting to kind of chew around the edges of it. But the fact that he is still unidentified just makes it that much more interesting. But even if you were identified, Chuck, his story is still just totally fascinating on its own.

[Chuck]

Yeah, it's not like Somerton man, because that was the most interesting thing about that was the mystery of who he was. It wouldn't care. It wouldn't matter if this guy was indeed Albert Johnson, who was his alias. It's a remarkable story that started in July 1931 when this guy, Albert Johnson came and moved there. They think he may have come from Sweden, according to, you know, certain people who talk to him here and there. But he was a man of very few words, as we'll see when he arrived in the vast remote area of the northwest territories near Fort McPherson and built a little 8 by 10 foot cabin near the Rhett River.

[Josh]

Yeah, and we're talking like the northernmost parts of Canada, like basically along the Arctic Ocean in the 30s. Yeah, he was essentially living where the guys from the Terror and the Erebus that we talked about were trying to get to when they were, like, on their march down toward Canada. Had they done this in 1931, they might have run into Albert Johnson. He was that far up. Right. So this is a really, really rugged, wild, dangerous place to live. And like you said, he arrived in July, and a few months after that, I think in November or December of 1931.

[Chuck]

December.

[Josh]

Okay, December of 1931, a couple of trappers from the first nations who lived up there got in touch with one of the local police and said, hey, there's this guy, his name's Albert Johnson, and he's messing with our trap lines, and he's not supposed to do that, so can you go tell him to stop doing that? And three days later, a couple of cops just knocked on Johnson's cabin door, assuming that they were just going to talk to him and tell him to stop doing that, and that would be that, right? Yeah.

[Chuck]

I mean, these are the Mounties, so these guys are not messing around. The story is a little confusing because everywhere you look it's a little different. But from what I gathered, there were three total visits. One visit when he basically said, get the heck out of here and pointed a gun at them. A second visit when two guys came back, and this time he supposedly refused to talk at all. And when they went to look through his windows, he just covered his windows up and ignored them.

[Josh]

And then he pulled down the line and went masher.

[Chuck]

I guess four total. Because the third one was when those two guys plus two more, I think it was Alfred King and Joe Bernard. And two more guys came back with warrants, forced the door over, and he shot King. And a brief firefight ensued. And then finally the fourth visit, when they brought a bunch of guys with dynamite and camped out for three days outside his cabin.

[Josh]

Yeah, they threw dynamite on his roof to flush him out, and it certainly blew up the roof, as expected. It also took down some of the walls of the cabin. And amazingly, Albert Johnson survived. And even more amazingly, he still refused to come out and engaged in a gunfight with this posse that the Mounties had assembled to go take this guy out, because, like, he shot at an officer who just wanted to tell him to stop messing with trap lines, like, shot and tried to kill him. Right. So this guy was already a big deal by this time, and he managed to hold off this posse from taking him alive. They actually had to get out of there because they were running low on food. And the weather was terrible. This is. Yeah, this is December in the northernmost reaches of Canada along the Arctic. Not a time you want to be outside. Apparently the temperature was negative 45. And this guy's holding these guys down in a gunfight. And then they leave. And four days later they come back, and now they find that this destroyed cabin is now empty. He's fled, and a blizzard has covered up his tracks.

[Chuck]

Yeah, I saw that it was like a 60 mile hike just to get to his place. So the fact that they came back four times when this guy probably could have opened the door the first time and said, all right, I won't mess with their traps anymore, and that probably would have been the end of it. But, yeah, he managed to evade them on this manhunt by stepping in caribou tracks and from these storms that would come through. And maybe that's a good time for a break.

[Josh]

Yes.

[Chuck]

All right, we'll be right back.

[Josh]

So I don't think we've said yet this, this. Now there's a manhunt underway. This guy, who they want to take in for shooting at cops is on the run in the Canadian wilderness. And this manhunt lasted seven weeks, from December to mid February. This guy kept evading them. They'd catch up to him, he'd shoot at them. They'd have a firefighter. One time he killed a cop, Constable Millen, who was like a member of this posse that was hunting him down. And he would manage to fend them off every time they caught him in a firefight. And one of the other interesting facts about this, Chuck, is this is the first time an aircraft was ever used in a manhunt, as far as anyone knows.

[Chuck]

That's right. They got a pretty legendary WW1 Canadian fighter pilot named Wilfred. Wilfred Wap May to come in. A little side note here, Wap May was in the dogfight that ended the Red Baron's life. So a very sort of famous Canadian fighter pilot flying above for the first time, seeing if they could. Seeing if he could just spot trails from above.

[Josh]

Yeah, I saw a photo that he took from his aircraft of like this. Like he was really high up, and there's a little tiny speck in the middle of a frozen river, and it's identified as Albert Johnson. And then there's like three more tiny specks coming out of the wood line chasing after Johnson. And Wat May got a picture of it. And it's just. When you understand what you're looking at, it's just astounding what these Guys were running through over the course of seven weeks. It's nuts. Yeah.

[Chuck]

That's amazing.

[Josh]

And so people heard about this thanks to. To the radio, which was still a pretty new invention. But this story that was kind of playing out over the news in real time actually helped sell a bunch of new radios because people didn't want to miss out.

[Chuck]

Yeah, supposedly this is one of the really first big news stories to be broken via electronic media. So you've got your first search and rescue, or I guess not search and rescue. Search and destroy mission featuring a plane. You've got the first big news stories breaking on radio for the first time. One of the weird parts of this case I said he was a man of few words, is, as the story goes, this guy didn't say a word the whole time. Like, there was never, like, you know, it's my right to be here, you know, get away. I'm just trying to live. Like, supposedly this guy said nothing to any of them.

[Josh]

That is so unsettling. And it is totally. It's another thing that just kind of adds to his legend, too.

[Chuck]

Yeah, for sure.

[Josh]

So, yeah, people by this time, this is during the depression, and a lot of the public that was following the story were actually rooting for him because, remember, this was a time when the public rooted for, like, bank robbers and other criminals and outlaws because the establishment had basically screwed everything up and taken advantage of everybody. So there were people who were pulling for him. And even if you weren't pulling for him, it was just astounding what this guy was doing with just some. I think he had a rifle and a shotgun. He had his clothes, and he was, like, outmaneuvering and surviving against this posse that was on his trail. And I also saw, Chuck, that one of the unsung or overlooked groups that was part of this posse were some of the First Nation members who helped track him. That this posse probably would have lost his trail in the first few days had it not been for the trackers that came with them.

[Chuck]

Yeah, I think the Lusheaux people were the ones who initially filed the complaint. Did you see which tribes helped out in the search?

[Josh]

I didn't. I just saw that one of the members last name was Rat. So I'm guessing he was named after the Rat river of the Rat river race. His family was. Yeah, exactly.

[Chuck]

So another part of the kind of a fun fact of this story is, or at least part of the lore is that at one point they had him pinned in a steep canyon and he supposedly scaled a near vertical Wall of ice, basically, to get out of there.

[Josh]

Yeah. So at this point, they're like, this guy is not human.

[Chuck]

Yeah.

[Josh]

And again, another first nations member comes through. I think somebody came back and mentioned that they heard a rifle shot in this, like, totally desolate area. And the Royal Canadian Mountie posse were like, well, they can only be Albert Johnson. And they headed that way and they found his trail and they started chasing him. They engaged in one last firefight with him. And this one, Albert Johnson didn't come out of alive.

[Chuck]

That's right. They got him finally after this long, long manhunt. A very successful evasion for a long time, but, yeah, they eventually got him. No one knows. I mean, part of the, you know, the second part of this is just the mystery. Like, not only who was he, literally, but like, who was this guy to move way out there to not, you know, they supposedly back, you know, closer to town. Even though I'm sure that was super small as well. It was like a very friendly place. And he was known as a loner and very unfriendly, which was not the norm. And, like, who was this guy who just moved out to the middle of nowhere and, like, didn't speak a word this entire time?

[Josh]

Right.

[Chuck]

Yeah. Why would he do this?

[Josh]

Yeah, yeah. Which is. Just deepens the mystery further. By the way, one other thing. It was Charlie Rat who was the guy that helped the Mounties find Albert Johnson.

[Chuck]

What a name.

[Josh]

So they had a picture of him. There's a very. Well, I guess famous, if you're Canadian. Picture of his dead body on like a morgue slab.

[Chuck]

Wouldn't mess with the guy.

[Josh]

No. He looks rough and tough. For sure he does. You could not know his story and see that picture of his dead body and be like, I'll bet that guy could survive in the Canadian wilderness for seven weeks with the cops on his trail.

[Chuck]

Yeah, for sure. I wouldn't. Would want nothing to do with this guy.

[Josh]

So they took this picture because they wanted to circulate. Everybody wanted to know who this guy was. And it made it in all the papers in Canada and the United States and no one came forward. The details of his life and demeanor didn't match anything that anybody knew of. I mean, like, people came forward with tips, but none of them were legitimate or panned out. And very quickly, this guy just became this anonymous weirdo who did some crazy stuff in the winter of 1931.

[Chuck]

Yeah. So like you said, they exhumed his body in 2007, once DNA sampling was, you know, a viable Thing. And that has enabled some genetic comparisons to possible relatives. They obviously didn't. You know, no one has come forward with like a perfect match or anything, but they made comparisons with more than two dozen families. And they have some strong circumstantial evidence that what family he may have been from. And where they have landed now is they're pretty sure that his background is Swedish and he has been linked to multiple descendants of a gentleman named Gustav Magnussen, who died in 1853, and Britta Svendottir, who passed away in 1846. And they are pretty sure that he's a descendant of them. But nobody from any of those bloodlines has come forward either.

[Josh]

No. And this company called othram, a genome sequencing company, they have figured out a few other things about him that he almost certainly grew up in the Midwestern United States. His autopsy revealed that he had extensive and expensive dental work and then he had scoliosis. So this guy did this for seven weeks, scaled a near vertical face cliff with scoliosis as well. He was just amazing in a really kind of specific way.

[Chuck]

I think one foot was bigger than.

[Josh]

The other one too, which, good Lord.

[Chuck]

I thought was a very strange little add on.

[Josh]

Yeah. But also if he grew up in the Midwest, like the stuff he was doing, there's not many places to learn that. I mean, I guess if you're from like upper Minnesota or something. But I'm guessing comparing an upper Minnesota winter to an upper Canada winter is like night and day.

[Chuck]

So they contend he was never like a Swedish resident.

[Josh]

They don't necessarily contend that he could have been a transplant from Sweden who was just raised in like a Swedish speaking community.

[Chuck]

Yeah.

[Josh]

So he could have Swedish.

[Chuck]

That's what I just wonder about, like ice wall climbing and stuff. He could probably do that in Sweden.

[Josh]

Oh, I see what you mean. Yeah. Apparently based on his teeth isotopes, that he was born, he was raised in or grew up in the Middle East. Yeah. All right, so maybe one day we'll know.

[Chuck]

Maybe. I mean, we found out the Somerton man's identity, right?

[Josh]

Yeah, but I don't think we ever mentioned it on the episode on the podcast, did we?

[Chuck]

Yeah, I think we read a listener mail because we got like 10,000 Australians writing us.

[Josh]

Great, great. Well, if it ever comes out who the mad trapper of Rat river was, everybody we want to know so we can tell everybody else. For sure. Yeah. And in the meantime, Chuck, I think Short Stuff is out.

[Chuck]

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