Prophecy of the Swan covers twenty-nine years in the history of the Peace River valley in northeastern British Columbia. A vivid portrayal of life in some of the most isolated fur trade posts, it describes the intense competition between the North West and the Hudson's Bay companies, the individuals who were involved in exploration and commerce, and, finally, the shocking 'massacre of St. Johns.' It is unique in its integration of historic information and archaeological discovery, as it combines information recovered from many years of archaeological excavation with first-hand impressions of day-to-day life drawn from the few existing journals kept by company clerks.

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David V. Burley and Knut R. Fladmark are professors in the Department of Archaeology at Simon Fraser University. J. Scott Hamilton is an associate professor in the Department of Anthropology at Lakehead University.

A model of cross-disciplinary scholarship, this study will be treasured by historians and archaeologists for its scope, its methodology, its attention to detail, and its recovery of a past now, alas, of very distant memory.
- B.M. Gough, Choice

Burley et al have produced a highly readable account of ... events, and an excellent introduction to histoprical archaeology in northern BC.
- Peter Whitridge, Prince George Citizen

The authors masterfully document their recovery efforts and present a reliable chronicle of the upper Peace River fur trade ... Students interested in Western Canadian, fur trade, and First Nations history will find much to admire in this book.
- John W. Heaton, Pacific Northwest Quarterly, Fall 1997