ABSTRACT
The drawings produced by the Beothuk woman Shanawdithit at the behest of the entrepreneur and historian William Eppes Cormack in the period 1828–1829 are often studied for the insights that they can provide into the history and culture of the Beothuk, an Indigenous people of Newfoundland. This chapter argues that some of the drawings were deliberately conceived by Shanawdithit as visual histories. Through them, she articulates a Beothuk history that is unbeholden to Cormack. Although Cormack captioned the images, seeking to frame their subsequent reception, Shanawdithit’s storytelling often diverges from the narratives he sought to impose. The drawings speak to her own aims and wishes and embody a Beothuk understanding of place, time and history.
