Join local West-Bend author Keith Ross Leckie as he recounts the outrageous tale of one of Canada’s most mythologized families – the Donnellys!  The Donnellys were blamed for numerous arsons, murders, and inciting violence in their local community north of London Ontario. Five members of the same family were slain by locals in their home Feb 4th, 1880. This led to one of the most sensational murder trials in Canadian history. No one was ever convicted of the murders despite eyewitness accounts. The community keep the secrets of these murders hush-hush for nearly a hundred years.  But were the Donnellys really as black as historians think? 

Keith Ross Leckie, author of Coppermine (Viking, 2010), has worked in the film and television business as a dramatic scriptwriter for more than thirty years. His credits include multiple movies and miniseries, including Everest!, Shattered City, Milgaard, The Arrow and Lost in the Barrens. He is currently working with Bell Media to develop a dramatic series based on his book Cursed: Blood of the Donnellys. 

Minutes from December 2nd Meeting: