Albert Lacombe (1827-1916) was a Canadian missionary priest and one of the great figures of the early Canadian West. A supporter of the Indians and Métis, he founded schools, churches, and industrial institutions.

Albert Lacombe was born in Saint-Sulpice, Quebec, on Feb. 28, 1827, and educated at L'Assomption College. In 1849 he was ordained into the priesthood and joined the Oblate order as a missionary priest. His field was to be the Canadian West, and Lacombe was quickly on the way. His first year was spent at Pembina, a rough forest mission that served the Métis, a half-breed population of Assiniboia, and here he experienced all the hardships and glories of the country: the buffalo hunt, the seriocomic raids of pillaging Indians, the rough life of the time.

"Black-robe Voyageur"

After a brief visit to Montreal in 1850 Lacombe was soon on his way west once again, this...