John Daniels was born on June 1,1874 in Long Plain First Nation on hillside where the present-day arbor is located. He was also treaty member of Swan Lake before they moved to Long Plain. John was also known as John Batoche Ducharme. The older people called him Bajoosh because they couldn’t pronounce Batoche. He was also known through his Indigenous name as Assinewaykapow. On his marriage certificate his parents are listed as Ferlandeua Daniel and mother is listed as Hodgson. He was the son of Jean Maurice (Moise) Ducharme and Jane. His mother’s surname name may have been Lepine or Assebit. He died at the age of 92 years of age on July 2, 1966
In 1902, he married Elmire McKinney, also known as Lizzie. They had five sons and five daughters. John and Lizzie embraced their Ojibway culture and traditional ways and their Catholic faith. John would often pray on his knees while Lizzie would say her prayers using the Catholic rosery beads. They realized the importance balancing their lifestyle. They were self sustaining, owning cattle, horses, and other farm animals.
He relayed messages of births, deaths and other significant news between Dog Creek, Ebb & Flow, Long Plain, Swan Lake all the way into Turtle Mountain, USA. He was widely known through these social connections with the communities as he delivered messages by foot, running from one community to another.
He was also a respected leader in his role as a traditional healer and highly regarded for his strong Christian spiritual beliefs. Both John and Lizzie were knowledgeable about the various plants and roots used as traditional medicines to treat people throughout the territory. Lizzie conducted her role as a midwife with utmost responsibility, excelled and skilled in delivering babies. Both excelled in moral excellence and were engaged in the communities for their gifts, spiritual wisdom, integrity, and knowledge.
During an epidemic that was sweeping throughout the Indigenous communities, families of the community asked John to find a medicine that would cure or prevent further deaths. He was also known to be a prayer warrior with a strong faith in the Creator. During this time, he prayed for guidance to find a cure. One night an angel being appeared in his dream. In this dream, he received instructions. The angel spirit told him to look to the east of his house and the first thing that John saw would be the cure to prevent further deaths from the epidemic. Upon waking up he went outside to offer tobacco for the dream and for the instructions as this was his custom. The first thing he saw was a skunk and immediately knew this was the answer. The liquid from skunk’s gland became the medicine for this dreaded epidemic. This skunk liquid mixed with an oil was the remedy to prevent further sickness and deaths from this dreaded epidemic. No one in the local area got sick once they drank this mixture.
