In this eclectic collection, Who Shot Estevan Light?: Tales from the Salish Sea and Beyond, author Douglas Hamilton shares stories of maritime history and local folklore: The Flying Dutchman, a notorious BC pirate reputed to have been part of Butch Cassidy’s gang and who eluded the police only to resurface on Lasqueti Island; a BC lighthouse that was shelled by a Japanese submarine in 1942; an undeservedly little-known French explorer who rivalled Captain Cook in the extent of his travels in the Pacific, and more.

Hamilton introduces us to a band of rumrunners who narrowly escaped police while using speed boats outfitted with WWI aircraft engines, and to the tragic history of the steamship Grappler. He takes us inside a horrendous maritime disaster event exacerbated by racism and greed, and he shares the tale of a Spanish map of “California Island” that looked suspiciously like Vancouver Island at a time when maps were state secrets or deliberate deceptions. As in his previous publication Accidental Eden, Hamilton treats the reader to tales of local west coast folklore, including the perils of moonshine, a mysterious disappearance, and a titillating intergenerational tale. Who Shot Estevan Light? offers an enthralling escape into the world of adventure, intrigue and timeless west coast maritime stories.

Douglas L. Hamilton was born in Washington, DC, and received his MA in history from the University of California, Riverside. After a brief vacation to British Columbia in the early 1970s, he moved to the Gulf Islands to farm. Soon after, Hamilton began writing history pieces for magazines, and his stories have appeared in Pacific Yachting, Canadian West, and True West. He has also contributed to the three most recent volumes of Raincoast Chronicles. Hamilton has covered such diverse topics as the smallpox epidemic of 1862, the Pig War, rum-running, Typhoon Frieda, and the submarine attack on Estevan Lighthouse. Hamilton lives on Lasqueti Island with his wife and her harpsichord, three cows, four sheep and a flock of chickens.

Douglas Hamilton's profile page