1911 Courtship: June 4, Dear Noah

Clipped from The Newmarket Era. May 26, 1911 - Page: 7, Courtesy of OurOntario.ca Community Newspapers Collection

In this week's letter, Ethel writes, There is going to be a wild beast show in Newmarket on June the 6th. I think it's cute that she would call it a "wild beast show" instead of of a circus.  But don't you wish Ethel had a chance to go?

Sorry for the delay this week... I've had a bit of a problem with one of Ethel's letters because she dated it June 2nd, 1911, but after I had it all done, I realized that it was all out of context. So that meant research to jive the events in her letter with the events in the June 1911 newspaper. Of course, I had wondered why she'd written one letter on June 2nd and one on June 4th, but I figured she may have been missing Noah, eh. However, dates mentioned about her father's barn raising, her trip up to Aunt Sarah, etc all point to her writing June when she meant July. Hence, you'll get that letter in a a few weeks.  Now, back to our regularly scheduled programming: 


Author of Letter: Ethel Isabell Nelson, age 21 (born 31 May 1890)
Dated:  June 4th, 1911
Addressed to: Mr. N. C. Draper, Grand Coulee, Sask. (Dear Noah)
Mailed  from:  Belhaven Post Office, Ont. 
Relationship:  Courting
Profession:  Farmer's Daughter  
Writing  instrument: Fine point  pen, blue ink
Written on: Light bluey/gray, slightly thick, textured, linen-like paper, 9 inches x 6 inches, folded in half. The paper is folded in half with the first page on the front and last on the back, but inside, she's turned the paper and written across the short width and turned both pages into one long page. Hence this letter has only 3 pages.


People/places mentioned in this letter:
- *Veda - 16 yr old daughter of Noah's sister, Eva Amelia and Joe Perrault
- Noah's mother - *Sarah Sophia Deverell
- Aunt Sarah -  Sarah Elizabeth Glover, sister of Ethel's mom, Ida Amelia Glover 
- Dora *Mahoney - Ethel's neighbor and schoolfriend

**Howe's Great London Circus

Legend: 
* Look under the Categories/Labels in the right side column for more posts on this 
  person/place/thing.
** see Genealogy Notes below

Belhaven. P. O.
June 4th, 1911.

Mr. N. C. Draper,
             Grand Coulee,
                            Sask,

Dear Noah,-
                       Rec'd your letter 
Friday evening, and the same 
as usual, was flad to get it,
and to know you still continue
to have good health, the main
thing in this world, "eh".
                         I had a card from
Veda, Thrusday, I think I
shall have to tell you how
she started it.

2.

     Dear Aunt Ethel, "ha, ha," said she
was glad you had got a girl for she
was afraid you was'nt going to get
any. I think I shall write and tell
her. I am glad I had the chance then
to help you out a bit. She certainly is
quite a girl. Say I am glad your mother
is going down to stay with you this
summer. If she does'nt come down East.
Now, will she come with you this winter,
Well you certainly did fine at your
ball game. There is going to be a wild
beast show in Newmarket on June the 6th. 
but I don't hardly think we will be able 
to go. we will have 7 or 8 men then.
They start in the morning at the wall.
I got a letter from Aunt Sarah, wanting
me to go up there for July and August,
I may be able to go for a week or so, but
I am afraid it will be hard work to get
away from work.
      And as to your message it certainly
does seem hard to get away.
     Wish you were coming down to the
raising. I think they intend to raise the 

barn about the first of July.
Dora Mahoney has quit school.
The teachers told her there was no
use of her trying her exams
than anything.
We had some quite windy 
weather a little while ago. I suppose
about the time you had your
snow storm.
The plan for the house seems
allright so far as I see now, and
I guess if you build the way you
think best, it will be allright.
And Noah built it Just as you
feel that you can. For everything 
put to gether means a lot, I know.
I guess I will write Veda a card
when I get your letter finished, and 
I guess it is nearly to a close for this
time. So must say good-Bye. with
love from Ethel. (Yours) "eh" xxxxxxxx

Genealogy Notes

Here's a write-up I found in the Newmarket Era about Howe's Great London Circus that Ethel calls, the wild beast show. 

The Newmarket Era. June 2, 1911, Courtesy of http://ink.ourontario.ca

Many Great Features

Coming With Howe's Great Lon-
don Circus.

   The shake-ups to the nerves, the
rag-time beat of your heart, the
fear that someone will be hurt,
with the accompanying apprehen-
sion that they may not, all of this
--and this is the delight of the 
Great London Circus, to be at
Newmarket, June 6th, must be giv-
en by the professionals who shake
dice for their lives with fortune
every performance.
   The Great London Circus is high
hygiene. It is a Yankee Doodle
circus for Yankee Doodle kids from
"six" to "sixty." One of the big
acts is the original Eddy Family.
What this wonderful family do
looks easy. Suppose you try it,
and newspapers will write a story
about it, with a diagram showing
the place where your body struck.
   Another of the best-ever acts is
the leaping contest. Fifty leapers
take part. Charles Lumkin is the
champion and does a double som-
ersault over elephants, camels and 
horses. Marle McPhall, Elding
Wallotts and many other big acts
are presented in many new riding
stunts.
   You will see the Ben Hur herd
of Arabian stallions and the Black
Hussar horses perform. They prove
what a perfect world this would
be if all men had as much intelli-
gence as horses. You will see ele-
phants waltz, teeter, play hide and
seek, and undress and go to bed
like people. You will see dog
shows and mule? shows and count-less clowns. The Howe Circus is a
great show, presenting magnificent
good old barbarous sport that
makes you happy in feelling that
civilization has not eliminated all
the traits your grand-dads of the 
stone age left you as a message.
The $25,000 Dublin Gray Horses are
also coming and they are a show 
in themselves.

---