Kate Rice: Prospector

Kathleen Rice was an inspiring woman who lived ahead of her time. Born in St. Marys, Ontario, she graduated as a gold medallist in Mathematics at the University of Toronto in 1906. After a conventional beginning teaching school in Ontario and Saskatchewan, Kate broke free of the mold, searching for new frontiers as a prospector in Manitoba during the gold rush. She formed a partnership with Dick Woosey and began a life in the remote areas around Herb Lake, prospecting and trapping. After Woosey’s death, Kate faced her final and most difficult challenge - living alone in the wildness of the north.

Helen Duncan was born in St. Mary's, Ontario, where, as a child, she met Kathleen Rice. She graduated from the University of Toronto and then attended the Sorbonne, studied writing at Columbia University, and received a library degree from the Pratt Institute. She spent years working as a researcher for Reader's Digest.