Fiddler Jimmy Isnardy

James “Jimmy” Isnardy (1879-1978), son of Amédée and Julienne Waillamalkwa, attended St. Louis College of the Oblates in New Westminster, where he learned how to play the violin. He became one of the best fiddlers in BC. Fiddle music was shared between cultures and was the main source of music for community dances.

An elderly “Jimmy” Isnardy was interviewed by the CBC in 1964 and played 11 tunes on his fiddle on tape.

During the interview, Jimmy played two tunes which he called “Old Hall”. He claimed to have learned these melodies from the partner of outlaw Jesse James, who Jimmy remembers as “Hall”, who apparently hid out in the Horsefly area and started a ranch there. When Hall thought enough time had gone by to allow for a safe return to the U.S., he did so but was captured and hanged.

The years might have warped Jimmy’s memory as to these details, as “Hall” was probably Will P. Hall, a miner from Iowa who worked for Buffalo Bill Cody in Montana. He came to Horsefly in 1894 (when Jimmy was 15 years old). Buffalo Bill Cody ran his Wild West Show around the world from 1872 to 1906, time enough for Hall to have perhaps performed in the show.

James died in 1978 at 99 years of age.

“Pioneer son marks 91 years”, Williams Lake Tribune, May 16, 1969