Oral History Workshop

Somehow 3 weeks have passed since I attended an Oral History Workshop at the Gabriel Dumont Institute in Saskatoon. Does this indicate how quickly time passes, that I was absorbed in other things or I procrastinated? It is in fact a statement of the times we live in. Maybe too busy but actually I felt I needed time to think, to let it simmer, to stew about it. Then I thought will future generations even know what those phrases mean?

 It is in fact easy to go to the net and find information on topics, mechanics, release forms and procedures on conducting oral history interviews so obviously that is not why I went. I enjoy meeting people, hearing their experience with trying to conduct oral history and sharing ideas. Of course many workshops can happen online, but I guess I am old school I like to see people in person, the interaction with each other and the shared environment. (note to self – I must get back to the Gabriel Dumont Institute it was amazing and the people there wonderfully open and helpful)

 We live in a world of immediacy. We have instant access to all kinds of information too often speculation or rumour, but it doesn't seem to bother us. I worry often that something is slipping away.

Oral history has been around since humankind first began to communicate with each other, to pass on knowledge. There was a period when it appeared to be dying out. For some, especially First Nations it was the attempted destruction of their culture by others. Fortunately a concerted effort is being made to save and pass on what still exists. 

For other people it may have simply been changing times. I met a man from Cape Breton who said when he was young the old folks told stories over and over, but that has passed. We live on our computers / i phones / and tablets chained to facebook or what ever other social media you prefer.

 

For the people who remember these stories it's time to record them. Thanks to technology there are a number of very reasonably priced and simple to use recording devices. The Museum Association of Saskatchewan has a very compact kit that they can loan out to member museums. So don't wait for someone else, you can do it yourself while your parents or grandparents or neighbours are still alive.

Visit your local museum

It's time to start thinking of day trips to your local museums. Following are dates and times open for the museums in the Qu'Appelle Valley Network. There are also dates given for special events.

Barnyard Animals Run Wild

I have always been fascinated as to the rationale behind By Laws. I came across a ratepayer's meeting dated 14 April 1908 in which it was moved that no cattle, horses, pigs and poultry be allowed to run at large at any time of the year and that the Overseer be empowered to appropriate funds for the erection of a pound. First offence would be taken before the Justice of the Peace and second offence imprisonment. In the Cupar Herald 20 November of 1908 it was still a hot issue but the actual bylaw listed as By Law #2 was not passed until 18 May 1909. My imagination runs wild thinking of the terror of “the old west” and the desire to impose “ civilization”

Chinese Merchants in Cupar

According to The Encyclopedia of Saskatchewan there were 41 Chinese in the province in 1901, and in 1911 there were 957. These immigrants were heavily discriminated against. The Federal Government imposed a head tax in 1885 of $50 and increased it in 1903 to $500 which was equivalent to 2 years wages. One exception were merchants. 

It is a bit of a cliche to say that many prairie towns had either a Chinese laundry or cafe owner. Very little is known about them and therefore it is difficult to appreciate the role they played and the hardship they endured having left their families behind.

In the Census for Cupar in 1916 I found a John Lee, Methodist, Laundryman who came to Canada in 1900. In the Cupar Herald of 1935 I found mention of Sam Lee doing hand laundry and Ben Lee proprietor of the Cupar Cafe.

Why did this come into my mind? Well, as we were reorganizing our displays at the museum we decided to put all our local cookbooks together in the kitchen exhibit. We found a very battered cookbook donated by Charlie Rein with a note saying “came from cafe maybe Jim Lee” 

 I found it sad, that it had been defaced and not treated as the treasure it was. It is more than a cookbook, it gives well used phrases in english and chinese for day to day use, and to this point appears to be the only artifact we have.

Online shopping - old school

Online shopping is becoming more prevalent. Soon we are told that drones will deliver items to our very door. Isn't that so 21st Century.  Is it all that new?  Some people may remember Eaton's. They  of course no longer exist. Sigh, a sign of the times, changing tastes and demographics. I found an ad for the various Eaton's Catalogues available in 1926-27.  You could buy most anything from groceries, bulbs for fall planting, plans for building a house and barns, radios, organs, clothes etc. I also found a 1955 catalogue and it was quite apparent who the company was catering to.

Sask Culture Grant

On behalf of the Cupar and District Heritage Museum I would like to thank Sask Culture for awarding us a Sask Culture Museum Grant for 2015. Our Board and our many volunteers have spent countless hours in meetings, assisting with programming, fundraising , communication, research, social events, and up keep of our building and grounds. These monies are greatly appreciated and will be well used.

We also realize that Sask Culture support is also assisted by Saskatchewan Lotteries.

Thank you.

cupar herald online

The Saskatchewan Archives in collaboration with Sask History Online have started to put on line The Cupar Herald.  At the present 1914 and 1915 are available.  Please understand it will take some time to have them all up, after all Cupar was not the only small town to have a paper. Our paper went from Nov. 30, 1906 to approximately 1954. Unfortunately not all years were saved. Although we have paper copies at our museum they are disintegrating as they were not meant to last.  I have told people that copies exist on microfilm at the archives in Regina, but many people live too far away to access them.  Having these papers online is critical for historical research, for families, for church groups, sports groups etc. 
Please check the Saskatchewan Archives site   www.saskarchives.com for these papers.  Or better yet go directly to sabnewspapers.usask.ca and search the name of the community.

Thank you, thank you, thank you to those involved for beginning this process.

Just an after thought.  I spent a week slowly and carefully photographing  local items out of the 1914 Cupar Herald knowing that it was too fragile to probably ever look at again. We have a sketch of the downtown businesses in 1914 and I obsessively was searching for ones that might not be listed. Sigh.  I think I hurt may back trying to photograph and then label each file.  How wonderful it will be too access them online.

Alone in the Cemetery

I am one of those people who have spent a great deal of time in cemeteries. Originally my family would go out to the cemetery where my relatives were buried and we would have a picnic and clean the grave sites. There is just my sister and I left and we still go out in the spring, get rid of the weeds and have a picnic. It is a family tradition, but I don't know what will happen after we are gone. My sister and I have also searched throughout Saskatchewan to find and photograph headstones of extended family members. 

A couple of years back I was searching for graves of WWI vets in the Cupar cemetery and I came across a grave for a child named Stanley Robert Whiskin who was not even 3 when he died. There was no mention of his parents and there were no other family graves. He was totally alone. I found it sad. 

                                                                                                            Cupar Herald 19 February 1914

Since then I have found out a lot about the family and about his death. 

 His father was B.R.(Bert) Whiskin from Great Yarmouth Norfolk England.

 He came to Cupar in 1905 and opened one of the first businesses here, a barbershop and pool hall.

 Later he had a land company. 

Three other brothers came later, one (Fred) would become editor of the Cupar Herald.

 Two (Arthur and Frank) would serve in WWI and survive. Both young men sent letters home, which were published in the Cupar Herald.

 A sister (Cicelyn) would also come and marry a fellow from Saskatoon named William Simpson. The grandfather (Robert) of little Stanley would also come later but returned frequently to England, especially in the winters, and eventually stayed in England. 

None of the descendants of the Whiskins live in the Cupar area, but they are an important part of it's history. 

credit and cash

I found this article in the Cupar Herald dated 5 March 1914 and wondered about how applicable it is today. Today credit cards can be got through banks and hopefully businesses are now in a better position.  Unfortunately farmers still rely on mother nature for a good crop, that hasn't changed.

 I am not really sure that big banks are our "friends"

Yesterday and Today

As I go through the early photos of Cupar one significant feature strikes me, there were no trees. It was farmland. Through the years the town and individuals planted trees and today it is one of our most welcoming features. I found a brief article in the Cupar Herald dated 6 March 1908 about the purchase of land for the Cupar Cemetery out on the bald prairie. You would not recognize it today.

Off on a Tangent

So. I decided to spend the winter researching and putting together a display for Cupar's 110 th anniversary celebration. I thought, well I can't do the full history, so I will concentrate on the first 5 years, that is possible. However, even that could take a lot of effort so I will narrow it down to early businesses, the people who ran them, possible ads and location of buildings. I can manage that. I found what I believed were the only existing photos from that time period at the museum, I added ones I found in Cupar's history book and put out a call for photos. As I began to go through the Cupar Herald from 1906 to 1910 I thought, well I really should include the churches, and maybe about the school and of course about the Masonic Order, maybe I should include the overseers in the village. Then I came across the first 17 bylaws, well that is important too. Well of course information on the elevators, oh yes and fires in the village. No I will stay away from the development of a rural telephone system, won't deal with districts outside Cupar like McDonald Hills, although it is really interesting, no to the concern to find safe drinkable water. Sports and sports days no no no stay focused. Oh look, marriages, funerals and births no no no. Stay focused. What is the Canadian Order of Foresters Cupar Court # 1184, and what is the Cupar L.O.L # 2053. ? No no no. I'm losing it, time for a long break to refocus. .................................

Okay, I'm back, I'm focused and I can continue.

Then I found the following article dated 12 April 1907.

Oh, interesting. Roumanians, what, this is basically Hungarian in the Cupar area. So I check in the Cupar history book page 8. Bukovina, an eastern European territory. I was rather confused by the end and the map didn't help. So the borders have been shifting for years, either we have Roumanians from Hungary or Hungarians from Roumania, or a local english journalist thinks they are the same. I think I am getting a headache. I will pursue another avenue. The group of 80 travelled 20 miles north. Where is that? Someone said well that would be Gordon Reserve, and that is impossible so it must be Lestock. Well I'm sure the roads were different so how far is that? Obviously a homestead map with townships would be helpful. Another tangent as I not only work through how big is a section, how big is a township, actually 36 sections, a range – which way do they run? Then where is ground zero, Cupar, located. Eventually I find myself somewhere near Lestock. Then I think okay 1907, I'll check the census records for 1911, how hard can that be? Skip to the punch line there are no Roumanians just Hungarians in the area. Scream. Okay the Lestock history book, that will have the answer, so off to my neighbour's to borrow the book. Another distraction, found 2 sets of my husband's great grandparents, and great grandparents of a woman across the alley. I'll just mark that for later. So it seems in the Lestock book, anyone who arrived in 1907 seemed to come through Lipton. Just great. Finally success, maybe, Joe Buki Senior and family arrived in Cupar by train in the spring of 1907. Okay that is not 80 people, but................ Wait a minute what was I doing, oh yes, the first 5 years of Cupar and the early business men and there businesses. By the way I've taken up shuffle board as a distraction..... Oh look, Church of the Nazarene, I wonder, no no no.

Jewish settlers in Cupar

The Cupar Historical Committee made a valiant effort when accumulating information for the Cupar History book to contact Jewish settlers in the Cupar area. Unfortunately the results are minimal, but what they could find was included on page 509.

Since then the internet has come into being and there is information on Jewish settlers around Cupar, Dysart and especially Lipton, but in the future much more needs to be done. Today we are also able to access for free census records of this time.

Small town newspapers can be a wonderful resource, but too often they are overlooked. It requires time. They may contain only a kernel of information, a possible hint, that can lead to something bigger elsewhere. I was not looking for Jewish settlers in Cupar when I found some. They need to be included as part of our 110 years of history.

Sadly there is reference to a news article from 2 March 1910 which attests to the harsh conditions of an isolated farm life, especially for a woman.

I found in the 1911 and 1916 Cupar census a number of Jewish settlers in Cupar who were businessmen. I have included only 4 because I have ads or other information for their businesses. I do not know when they left. Also the census records are rather hard to read. According to the Cupar History book Mr. Nadler was a councillor 1913, and W. Pechet mayor 1921.

From the 1911 and 1916 census records I found the following:

Max Baratz: Roumanian, immigrated to Canada 1902, Hebrew, watchmaker.

William Pechet: Roumanian, immigrated to Canada 1902, Hebrew, merchant.

(for a time Max and William would be in business together)

Leon Nadler: Roumanian, immigrated to Canada 1902, Hebrew, taylor.

(I wondered did these 3 men know each other in the old country)

Samuel Freedman: Russia, immigrated to Canada 1906, Hebrew, liveryman.

  Cupar Herald ad 22 November 1907

 

Cupar Herald 22 September 1910

 
 Cupar Herald 3 November 1910

 Cupar Herald 8 June 1910

Sadly the Pechet and Baratz store would succumb to fire in 1911, and Pechet's store would be destroyed by fire in 1921.

 Cupar Herald 2 December 1915

110th anniversary methodist church cupar

This year the town of Cupar will celebrate the 110th anniversary of the incorporation of Cupar as a village. July 4th is the official day for the town celebrations but the museum will be open all summer. The museum will have a number of special exhibits on the early years, one of these will be on The Methodist Church which will include artifacts, photos and other documentation.

The CPR Cometh

In 1905 the Canadian Pacific Railway ended at Lipton, but tracks were being laid west toward Cupar.

It was therefore a 20 km overland trip to Cupar by horse.

According to Mr. John Donald in Pioneer Portraits “... everyone seemed to be going to Cupar. That was the first time I had heard of Cupar.... Cupar at that time looked to me like a small farm, the only buildings were a small livery stable, one store which had been moved into the village from the country just before the snow had melted, a pool hall and four small houses, the lumber for all these buildings being brought from Lipton. Cellars were being dug for the Hotel, the Red Store and George Meldrum and Son Hardware, which did business in a tent until the buildings were finished, their living quarters also being in a tent. The Gibson Lumber Co. were also building an office, getting ready for their first car load of lumber. There were no streets, no sidewalks, nothing but the prairie....The first night I spent in Cupar, I slept on the bald prairie, but finding it rather cold, I decided to spend the next two weeks in the hay loft of the livery stable, not too comfortable, but an improvement on the prairies...”

Although I have been unable to find a photo of Cupar in 1905 the photo below, taken in 1906 shows the rapid growth in one year. Notice that the hotel has not yet gotten it's brick veneer.

By the late 1800's settlers were claiming homesteads in what we now call the Cupar Plains, but it was the coming of the Canadian Pacific Railway which made Cupar a central hub for the surrounding rural farming communities. Over the years freight of all kind and passenger service expanded. Times of course change. The passenger train is gone as is the train station. At one point Cupar boasted 7 elevators. There is only one elevator now. The CPR freight train still stops here, but the arrival of a train is no longer a major social event.

The Cupar Museum is fortunate to possess an important artifact from this by gone time. It is a CPR platform baggage cart from Cupar. The process of restoration has only just begun. Hopefully it will become, along with other train artifacts and photographs, a focal point and teaching aid on the role of the railway in the development of this town.

 

Eddie Shore before Hockey

What true blue hockey fan has not heard of Eddie Shore who played as defenseman for the Boston Bruins from 1926-1940, jersey number 2. But what of Eddie before hockey?

Below is a photo of Eddie age 13, about 1915 as cowboy. The photo was taken in Cupar.

Another photo this time in a Cupar baseball team photo from 1923 shows him front row left

Like many small town sports heroes Cupar has their own special display, many of the items were contributed by the Shore family. If you are ever in the area this summer come check it out.