John Little & R.J. Anderson

Authors of Larry Dixon’s Cabin

R.J. Anderson and John Little first met in 1988 while both were living in Bracebridge Ontario — a town deeply entwined with the legacy of Tom Thomson and the mystery surrounding his death. At the time, Little was working as a journalist, while Anderson was employed with the local gas utility. Despite their very different professional paths, the two men shared a deep and abiding fascination with the unresolved questions surrounding Thomson’s final days at Canoe Lake.

Canoe Lake from the porch of the "Trainor Cottage"

John Little’s connection to the subject ran deep. His father, Judge William T. Little, was the author of the bestselling book The Tom Thomson Mystery, a rigorously researched work built on documented facts and sworn testimony. While the book focused primarily on the uncertainty surrounding Thomson’s final resting place, it stopped short of resolving the larger and more troubling question: how did Tom Thomson actually die?

Anderson and Little took up that challenge. Beginning in the late 1980s, they committed themselves to a long-term investigation that would go far beyond previously published accounts. Drawing on all known material — and uncovering new evidence along the way — their focus shifted toward evaluating the probability of what truly happened on Canoe Lake in July 1917.

In 1989, the two men led a diving expedition on Canoe Lake with the goal of charting the scene of Thomson’s death both above and below the surface. This hands-on exploration allowed them to better understand the physical environment of the lake, its currents, depths, and shoreline — elements often discussed but rarely examined firsthand.

John Little with his father, William T. Little, assisting Steve Lewis (left) & Chester Morrison (Center) as they prepare to dive at Canoe Lake (1989) 

Around the same time, John Little came into possession of an extraordinary artifact: an audio recording of Daphne Crombie recounting her personal recollections of Canoe Lake before and after Thomson’s death. Her voice — candid, intimate, and reflective — proved to be the creative catalyst that transformed years of research into something more personal and narrative-driven.

Daphne Crombie at Mowat Lodge  (1917)

What followed was nearly three decades of investigation that included consulting with retired Ontario Provincial Police homicide detectives, speaking with Indigenous leaders, and sifting through mountains of first- and second-hand testimony left behind by people long gone, but whose memories, letters, interviews, and observations formed a lasting historical record.

It is this accumulated body of evidence — factual, circumstantial, and human — that ultimately shaped Larry Dixon’s Cabin. The novel is built around one woman’s recollection of events, using her memories as the emotional and narrative backbone for a story grounded in real history, unresolved questions, and the enduring mystery of Tom Thomson’s death.

John Little 

A Canadian journalist and author with longstanding ties to the Muskoka and Algonquin regions. John Little is also the author of over 40 books, including the best-selling “Who Killed Tom Thomson?” (Skyhorse Publishing)" -

Little’s journalistic background guided decades of interviews, archival research, and careful evaluation of firsthand and second-hand testimony. His work has been marked by a commitment to listening to voices often overlooked and to preserving historical memory before it disappears.

R.J. Anderson 

A Canadian author and filmmaker whose work focuses on unresolved historical events and the human stories that surround them. Living in Bracebridge Ontario in the late 1980s, Anderson developed a deep interest in the mystery of Tom Thomson’s death at Canoe Lake — an event that continues to haunt Canadian cultural history.

Beginning in 1988, he partnered with journalist/author John Little to examine all known evidence related to Thomson’s final days, while actively seeking out new material that had been overlooked or forgotten. 

Over the following decades, Anderson and Little assembled a body of evidence that blends historical documentation with lived experience. This work emphasizes probability, context, and human memory rather than easy conclusions. Larry Dixon’s Cabin represents the culmination of over thirty years of investigation, transforming factual research into a narrative that explores how history is remembered, misunderstood, and passed down through generations.