Salis Timentwa ("Sarah" / "Sally" Ross)
1798 - 1884

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Salis Timentwa (aka Sarah "Sally" Ross)

Early life

Salis Timentwa, later known as Sarah “Sally” Ross, was born in the Columbia River area of British Columbia, in 1798. Sarah was a member of the Syilx (Okanagan) Nation. While information on her family is limited, her father could have possibly been named Shenamaken and her mother Kinemtaqu, but there are no definitive sources that can confirm this.

Her birth name (Salis) was only uncovered in 2023, in an obscure publication written by a Ross family descendent. We have continued to use the name 'Sarah' in this text to avoid confusion with other sources.

Syilx territory

Family and life in the settlement

Sarah married Alexander Ross in 1813 at the age of 14; he was 30. At that time Alexander was the head trader at the Hudson Bay Company's Fort Okanagan.  Alexander retired from the HBC in 1825 and relocated to the Red River Settlement, to establish a farm.

In May of that year, their 12 year old son Alexander was sent on a dangerous journey to the Red River Settlement along with Slough-Keetcha (Spokane Garry) and Kootenay Pelly. They were part of a small group of Indigenous boys "collected" by HBC Governor George Simpson and sent on a 2,000km journey east to be baptized and educated by Anglican missionaries at Red River. (Read more here)

Sarah remained in the Okanagan for one year after Alexander left for their new home. During this time she raised their children and prepared to move to the Red River Settlement in 1826.

Her journey across the Rockies and prairies with four children must have been unbelievably difficult, and was likely accomplished with the aid of connections through the fur trade. Sarah ended her trip in the Spring with one child strapped to her back, one sitting in front of her sharing the saddle, and the other two on a separate horse. Unfortunately, when Sarah arrived, she was met with the devastating 1826 flood that had ruined the home Alexander had set up for his newly arrived family. 

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Older sources identify Sarah as the daughter of a Chief and frequently describe her as a "princess". This is a common, stereotypical trope seen in colonial-era writings with no historical basis. 

Mourning Dove: A Salishan Autobiography  (1994) sheds more light on the Timentwa family. It explains that the family rose to prominence after Salis married the head trader at Fort Okanagan (Alexander Ross). This arrangement would have provided both sides with preferential treatment during trade. Her great-nephew became Chief in 1915, even though he was "...not descended from chiefs".

Sarah’s unexpected departure was traumatic for her family, as they never saw her or her children again. The same book states:

"The Timentwa family remains suspicious of white husbands ever since, fearing they would desert the children or take the wife away.

This story offers an interesting lesson about historical perspectives: while Alexander took it for granted that "his" wife and "his" children should follow him, the Timentwa family likely saw him as an outsider who was welcomed into their family and their community. He repaid their hospitality and support in trade by breaking apart their extended family for his own benefit.

Colony Gardens - the home of Sarah & Alexander Ross - c.1884 (Archives of Manitoba)

Main Street (Winnipeg), 1870 - Colony Gardens is shown on the far right labelled "Alex Ross, Sherriff"

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Sarah and Alexander had a total of nine children together before he passed in 1856: 

• Alexander Ross (1812-1835). Named after his father.
• Margaret (Ross) Matheson (1819-1841). She married a notable local carpenter, Hugh Matheson, who built Ross House. 
• Isabella (Ross) Green (1821-1864). Her first marriage was to William Gunn, and her second was to James M. Green. 
• Mary (Ross) Flett (1823-1884). She married Reverend George Flett Jr, a noted missionary in Western Canada with Cree ancestry. 
• William Ross (1825-1856). He and his wife Jemima (McKenzie) Ross Coldwell were the original owners of Ross House Museum.
• Henrietta (Ross) Black (1830-1873). She married Reverend John Black, the first Presbyterian minister in the Settlement. 
• Sarah (Ross) Cunningham (1832-1868). She married James Cunningham. 
• James Ross (1835-1871). James became a noted lawyer and served as Minister of Justice in Riel's Provisional Government in 1869/1870.
• Jemima (Ross) Coldwell (1837-1867). Jemima married William Coldwell before her sudden death at the age of 30. William Coldwell later married her widowed sister-in-law, also named Jemima. ​​

Sarah was remembered as a kind and caring mother who taught her children traditional skills from her upbringing in the Okanagan. There are some indications that her children spoke the nsyilxcən language. She was seen as a Grandmother figure, called "Granny Ross", by many in the Settlement.

Alexander wrote about their marriage in one of his books, where he described their relationship as tender and expressed his love for her. Other aspects of their relationship raise questions for modern readers: Sarah was a child who was married to a man twice her age; her birth name was never recorded by her author husband, Alexander simply writes that "he called her Sally"; and he also wrote describing his fears about the influence her Indigenous heritage would have on their children. Family letters reveal that Sarah's own daughters were ashamed of being seen in public with their visibly-Indigenous mother, and would walk separately to church.

Salis was baptized into Christianity with the name "Sarah" when she married Alexander, and carried on devoutly practicing her faith until her death in 1884 at the age of 86. She outlived all of her children but one, who died later the same year.

Salis' grave at Kildonan Presbyterian Cemetery

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The Manitoba Daily Free Press (February 27, 1884) published a strange obituary, which provides a few questionable details about her journey to Red River. Most of the lengthy text focuses on her husband's importance.

"The death of Mrs Alexander Ross at Colony Gardens in this city at the ripe old age of 86, removes another of the early settlers in this country. The stooped and feeble form of Mrs. Ross, known to many citizens of late, had little to indicate the good-looking, active woman who arrived here 58 years ago, having crossed the Rocky Mountains...

...About forty-eight years of her life have, it is stated, been passed in the house where she died. It is dingy, dilapidated and ancient enough now, dear knows, but it had its day when it was regarded as one of the very best and most substantial buildings in the country; and was the centre of much public life and activity… at Colony Gardens they “kept an open house” and the old mansion was constantly thronged by visitors on business or pleasure."
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