Anita Mae Draper
  • Home
  • Books
    • Secret Admirer
    • American Heiress Brides
    • Austen in Austin
    • Here We Come A-Wassailing
    • Riding on a Christmas Wish
  • Blogs
    • Writing/Author Blog
    • Author Memories
    • Inkwell Inspirations
    • Heroes, Heroines, & History
    • Draper's Acres
    • Photo Blog
  • Research
    • The Oregon Trail Ruts
  • Contests & Giveaways
  • Fun
    • Text-Free Photos
    • Recipe Blog
    • Jigsaw Puzzles >
      • Christmas
      • Fauna
      • Flora
      • Travel Destinations
    • Free Reads >
      • The Shepherd
    • Poetry >
      • You Were By My Side
  • About Me
    • Long Bio
    • Media Kit
  • Contact

Sep 1912: Letter from George Draper

5/25/2014

0 Comments

 
Picture
The Adams, SK house that Noah Draper built for Ethel Nelson in 1911 prior to their 1912 marriage. Photos courtesy of the Norma Draper Family Photograph Collection.
Picture
The Draper's house at Adam's, SK after enclosing the veranda in screens. Noah and Ethel's album says the front windows were blown out in the 1912 Regina cyclone.
In this week's letter, Noah's cousin George Draper comments that Noah probably witnessed the Storm from his place at Adams, SK.  Although Ethel didn't mention it in her post card in last week's post about the June 1912: Regina's F4 Cyclone, they may have spotted something because the distance along the track from the C.N.R. station in Regina to the siding in Adams is an official distance of 13 miles (20 km).


Author of Letter:  George Draper
Dated:  Sept 15th, 1912
Addressed to: Mr Noah Draper, Grand Coulee
Mailed  from:  Keswick (North Gwillimbury Twp, York County, Ontario)
Relationship: Paternal 1st cousin of Noah Draper
Profession:  Farmer
Writing  instrument: Blue-Black ink 
Written on: Textured ivory-colored notepaper 5" x 8", 2 pages written on the front only.


People/places mentioned in this letter:

- *Noah Draper, age 23 (Newlywed, moved west in 1905)
- *Ethel Nelson, age 21 (Newlywed, moved west Feb 1912 upon her marriage)
- *Stewart Draper - George's brother near Indian Head, SK
- *Joe Perrault - married to Noah's sister, *Eva Amelia, and
living near Grand Coulee
- *Will Rigler - married to Noah's sister, *Ethel Maud and living near Grand Coulee
- Aunty - Noah's mom, *Sarah Sophia Deverell Draper
- *Edith & *Frank - George's sister, Edith who married Frank *Kavanagh


Places/things mentioned in this letter or in the Genealogy Notes:
- the storm - the 1912 Regina F4 cyclone I blogged about last week
- a man engaged - the hired man



Cliches/Phrases
- cuz - George signs the letter "your Cuz, Geo Draper"


Legend: 
* Look under the Categories/Labels in the right side column for more posts on this 
  person/place/thing. If you don't see a label, use the search box at the top of page.
** see Genealogy Notes below



Picture
Keswick  Sept 15th 1912

Mr. Noah Draper
                                Grand Coulee
Dear Noah.
                     Pretty near time I answered
your Card July 12th. was glad to
hear from you  My was'nt that
Cyclone desperate  Suppose you could
see the Storm from your place.  It
would certainly look fierce  Stewart said
He went & saw the ruins and is
going to send me some pictures of it
I got a letter from him on the 9th Sept
has all his wheat cut & oats
without Frost or Hail  pretty Lucky  I hope
you escaped the same  was your
crops pretty Good this year. It dont
seem long ago. since Iwas up 
there with you. driveing around
through the wheat.  How is Aunty

Picture
2
I hope She is well.  is She liveing
with you or Ethel Rigler
we are not through Harvest yet Barley
to Draw yet & some Peas to cut. & Draw
Pretty slow In Ont, Eh. But In order to have
a crack shot He has to come from
North Gwillimbury and show Noah how to
tumble the Ducks.  no doubt you have 
said to your self many times | if I
could only shoot like | George Draper |
I would give a good deal | But you
may learn after a long time.  of
course I showed you quite a Bit.
I am going up at the Head of the Baye
Tomorrow to shoot a few Doz Ducks
Come along Noah and I will give you
another Lesson  It is raining to
Beat the Devil to Day we have had a
Desperate lot of Rain this Summer.
Come East this Winter and we will do
nothing but Fish I have a Man Engaged
for the Winter & I am going to Fish
everyDay  Come along  I know Ethel
would like to come Home  guess Edith
& Frank are comeing for the Winter
write me Noah soon  With kind Regards
   to all In your Home   your Cuz GeoDraper


Genealogy Notes

George Milburn Draper has been mentioned several times in Noah & Ethel's 1911 Courtship letters - most recently Feb 1912: Letter from Noah's Cousin, Edith Draper. 

On Sep 23rd, 1908 George, 28 yrs old, bachelor farmer, married Eliza Alberta Hamilton, 23 yrs old, Spinster, daughter of David Hamilton & Priscilla Stevenson. George and Eliza both reside in North Gwillimbury, and both attend the Christian church. 

The 1911 census finds George and Eliza living on the Draper Homestead near Keswick in the house where he'd been born, where his father Stephen Draper had been born, and where his grandfather Joel Draper Jr had worked the crown-deeded virgin uncleared land when York County was first being settled. 

(Joel Draper Sr is my husband Nelson Clement Draper's 3rd great grandfather born 1789 in Boston, Mass)

Picture
1911 Canada census showing George and Eliza living on the Draper homestead along with his parents, Stephen Draper and Martha Barnhart, and his unmarried sister, Edith.
I'm not sure where George's oldest brother, Charles J, is in 1911, but he'll eventually take over the family farm while the rest of the siblings headed west, returning to Ontario to spend the winters with family and friends. 

In this letter, George mentions driving through the wheat fields with Noah and although he doesn't give a date, we can surmise he's talking about the trip he took west during the summer of 1911, partly because of this clipping:

Picture
The Newmarket Era. August 18, 1911 - pg. 6
George also mentions the 1912 Regina cyclone in his letter, and how he's waiting for pictures from his brother Stewart, who's renting a farm at Indian Head, east of Regina. I don't have Stewart's photos, but if you haven't looked yet, check out last week's post for images of the ruins.

1913 finds George heading west on a business trip. Perhaps the trip was to buy land?
Picture
The Newmarket Era. October 3, 1913 - pg. 6
I only make that assumption because a mere 4 months later, George and Eliza are preparing to move to Wolfe, Saskatchewan.

Picture
The Newmarket Era. February 13, 1914
By the time the special 1916 Western Canada census rolled around, George's sister, Almeda and her husband, James Edward Baker  and their 2 children, Milburn and Ruby, had joined George and Eliza on their quarter section of land at Wolfe, RM of Reford, Saskatchewan.

It isn't until 1919 where we find the first mention of a child born to George and Eliza and that's thanks again to the newspaper back in York County:

Picture
The Newmarket Era. December 12, 1919 - pg. 2
George and Eliza named their son, Ernest David and there is no record of any siblings for him. I spent hours searching for Ernest.  Thanks to the Sask Genealogical Society, I found obits for an Ernest and Lillian Draper who retired from farming in the same area and moved to North Battleford. Every matched ... until I realized it couldn't be George's son because this Ernest was born in the late 1800's in Wisconsin and not 1919 in Saskatchewan. What a letdown.

George, Eliza, and Ernest show up on the 1921 Canada census and I have newspapaper clippings of them for a few years after that, but then they fall off the radar. A very brief - too brief and sketchy - description is given in the Landis Record history Book, where it shows them renting the land and moving back to Ontario until 1950, and then spending the summers at Wolfe, and the winters in York County. 

There's hope though because I still have Noah's WW1 letters to post and although we know where George and Eliza are during the war, I still have several years of Ethel's diaries from the 1940-50's left to go as well as a batch of letters which I glanced at but not made notes for. Hopefully somewhere in there is a clue to their whereabouts. 

Of course, if you have any information about this family - pictures would be lovely - please help us fill in the blanks:
  • George Milburn Draper
  • Eliza (Elizabeth) Alberta Hamilton
  • Ernest David Draper
0 Comments

C.N.R. at Adams, Saskatchewan

5/5/2014

0 Comments

 
Adams, SK, 2013
August 2013, Adams, Sask. The depot is gone, but the original Canadian Northern Railway tracks remain.
When posting about Noah and Ethel's homecoming, I said they might get off at the Grand Coulee station - 3.5 miles from their home in Adams. I knew that the Canadian Northern Railway (C.N.R.) was laying track near Adams, but I had forgotten that Noah said it would be ready in time for Ethel's arrival as when he mentioned it in the 1911 Courtship Letter dated June 5:
Well I guess when you come up
we wont have to come very far from
the station as they are gradeing
next farm to mine now & will be
on mine by the end of the week & the
station is to be on my place. isnt
that handy.

The farmhouse and yard in the top photo isn't the Draper homestead as it's been gone for a long time, but it stands in the same yard as the house Noah built for Ethel 100 yrs ago.  

This next image is a land map using Google Earth to show a bird's-eye-view of Noah's land to show exactly how close the house was to the Adams station.

Picture
Bird's-eye-view of Adams, Saskatchewan c2013. Map courtesy of Google Earth.
Below is one of the photos I took last summer while exploring the roads around Adams. The farmyard and house are to the left of the power pole. The railway siding is still intact and being used as a parking spot for reserve rail cars. The track itself looked good in both directions as I'm sure it's still being used although not like it was 100 yrs ago when elevators lined the route.

Picture
Adams, SasK, Aug 2013 - Yardsite with farmhouse on the left, reserve rail cars on the siding, CNR track intact
These next 2 photos were taken by Noah Draper and show the C.N.R. crew laying track near Adams. The 1st photo was found in Ethel's Treasure Box whereas the 2nd one came from Noah and Ethel Draper's 1912-1924 photo album courtesy of the Norma Draper Family Photo Collection.

Picture
1912 Laying the C.N.R. track near Adams, SK. Found in Ethel Draper's Treasure Box
Picture
c1912 C.N.R crew laying track near Adams, SK. Courtesy of the Norma Draper Family Photo Collection
 The Canadian Pacific website page on Building the Railway explains the tracklaying machine this way... In fact the apparatus moved rails and ties forward to the end of the leading car where they were carried to the work site by the men on the construction gang. This machine lessened the distance over which the ties and rail had to be handled manually.

If you're interested in steam locomotives, google the archives of any railway company. Model train societies are also an excellent way to find information because members usually base their models on actual rolling stock. 
0 Comments

1911 Courtship: The 1912 Wedding

3/16/2014

0 Comments

 
1912 Marriage Certificate image
The image on the top page of Noah Draper's and Ethel Nelson's 1912 four-page Marriage Certificate
It's finally here...

Noah's and Ethel's 1912 Wedding Day!


If you read last week's post, you know that Noah Draper is now with Ethel Nelson in the Belhaven area of York County, Ontario, and their wedding day is finally here. Unfortunately, I haven't been able to locate a photo of the happy event, although I was able to scan their Marriage Certificate when we visited Nelson's cousins, granddaughters of Noah and Ethel, last summer. Norma's girls are the holders of the albums and photos which I refer to as the Norma Draper Personal Photograph Collection.

Scanning the marriage certificate was very tricky though as I didn't want to disturb its 100 yr old appearance by undoing the polished twisted cotton string because I knew I'd never get it back in the same position and it would then end up looking messy. Instead, I scanned each page as best I could which means you don't get to see the ribbon running through the holes at the top, and have to trust me that it's there. The dark areas are from the scanning process due to the knotted string.

The handwriting in Noah's and Ethel's Marriage Certificate is written in black ink and it's approx 5 inches x 6.5 inches. Made of 4 vellum sheets tied together, there is a copyright notification on the bottom left cover as such:  COPYRIGHT 1898,  J. S. KENNARD. 



1912 Marriage Certificate for Noah Draper & Ethel Nelson
1912 Marriage Certificate for Noah Draper & Ethel Nelson - front cover/Page 1
1912 Marriage Certificate for Noah Draper & Ethel Nelson
1912 Marriage Certificate for Noah Draper & Ethel Nelson - Page 2
1912 Marriage Certificate for Noah Draper & Ethel Nelson
1912 Marriage Certificate for Noah Draper & Ethel Nelson - Page 3
1912 Marriage Certificate for Noah Draper & Ethel Nelson
1912 Marriage Certificate for Noah Draper & Ethel Nelson - Page 4
1912 Marriage Certificate for Noah Draper & Ethel Nelson
1912 Marriage Certificate for Noah Draper & Ethel Nelson - back of Page 4
As usual, I wanted more, and since newspaper snippets of the wedding weren't included in either Ethel's Treasure Box, nor Norma's Collection, I pulled up The Newmarket Era looking for any information about Noah and Ethel surrounding this date. As stated last week, there is no record of December 1911 issues on file, but I had hopes for January. 

Nope. There were no mention of them - or anything Belhaven - in the first 2 wks of Jan 1912. And then when I pulled up the January 19, 1912 edition, I almost cried. Instead of telling you about it, I made this collage to show you what found...
Picture
Collage of remaining pages of The Newmarket Era, January 19, 1912 edition.
And when I checked the following week's January 26 edition, there was no mention of Noah or Ethel either. But that couldn't be, could it? After all those letters and news snippets?  I needed closure!

For the lack of anything else to do, I pulled pulled up the Our Ontario News website which shows not only the Era but many more Ontario historical newspapers, and I searched for both Draper and Nelson. Two hits came up - both for the Jan 19 edition above. Ugh!

But a blink later, I realized Ethel's shower news made it through ... in the bottom right corner of Page 7:

Belhaven.
    On Sat. Jan. 6, the young ladies
of this vicinity met at the home of
Miss Ethel Nelson and gave her a
shower. We are sorry to lose Ethel
from our midst.

Picture
The Newmarket Era. Jan 19, 1912, Pg 7
Well, that was something at least. With trepidation, I checked on the next hit and this time almost cried with relief because miracle upon miracles... it was the snippet I was looking for. Now, you have to ignore the dark parts, and I've adjusted the exposure a bit, but it's quite legible considering that we have it at all.

Wedding News:
Picture
The Newmarket Era. January 19, 1912 - Page: 8
                                 BELHAVEN
Too Late for last week.
     Belhaven has now been invaded by
the prevailing North Gwilimbury
fever and has taken away one of our
bright young women.     Miss Ethel
Nelson who on Wednesday, Jan. 10th,
at the home of her parents, Mr. and
Mrs. James Nelson, was married to
Mr. Noah C. Draper.     The wedding
was a very quiet one, the ceremony
being performed by Rev. W. P. Flet-
cher, Keswick.    The bride was mar-
ried in her travelling dress, and the
young couple left after the wedding
dinner for Huntsville and other plac-
es.    They expect to return to Bel-
haven to say good-bye to their friends
before leaving for their new Western
home at Grand Coulee, Sask.    The
bride will be very much missed by
her many friends and the workers in
the Belhaven Sunday School.


Although we don't have a record of Noah and Ethel's gifts, I found some gift tags in Ethel's Treasure Box amongst a couple Congratulatory letters which I'll be posting in the coming weeks. 

This 1st one is from Alice Winch, a Belhaven friend of the family.
Alice has written in black ink on a beige manilla card, blank on the back.

To Ethel
                  With Best Wishes for
a very Happy Life.
                               Alice Winch

Jan. 6th 1912.




Picture

This card is from close neighbor Cecil Daniel Prosser who has been spoken of often this past year and will marry Sadie in 1915. Cecil has used black ink on a card that is similar in thickness to the letters Noah has sent Ethel. From the 2 holes above the word, YOU, I suspect this card may have been pinned to a package or bouquet.

Picture
 With All Good Wishes
        for You    a
              Happy Future
                      Sincerely C.D.P.
Cecil Prosser.   

Florence Sweet is the 15 yr old daughter of neighbors Willson Sweet and Susannah Thompson, the oldest of their 8 children. Florence has written in black ink on a cream colored piece of lined foolscap, newsprint weight. It is 5 inches wide and has a watermark with 'Vic' before it runs off the right edge.
To Ethel with Best Wishes
From       Florence Sweet.
Picture

This last one is a bit over 3 in x 5 in unfolded and consists of some type of slippery paper reminiscent of parchment. It's blank on the back and without a name so we don't know who gave the gift, but it must have meant something for Ethel to have kept it. My guess is that it came from a box of candy or chocolates - from Noah perhaps?
Picture

As for the house Noah spent the summer building for them... here's one of the best views because it shows the depth of the house. It's also  the only photo of the house before the porch was damaged and subsequently changed after the Summer of 1912 Cyclone hit the Regina area.  More of the cyclone in a couple weeks. 

Picture
The house Noah Draper built for Ethel Nelson in 1911 at Adams, SK. Courtesty of the Norma Draper Personal Photograph Collection.
The photo looks neglected because of the ripped corner and edges, but most of the ones I've found in this condition were once glued in those old photograph albums with the black pages. When the owner wanted to remove the photo to either put it in a frame or give it to someone, etc, it was physically pried from the page with dire results. 

With this photo of Noah's house, I didn't want to cut the damaged portion off because a good part of the house - and porch detail - would have been lost in the process. 

Doesn't this remind you of the problem we're having with those magnetic photo albums of the 70's and 80's? The glue at the back is ruining the photos, but ripping them out is sometimes doing more damage than leaving them in. I'm so glad I saved all my negatives, especially since Nelson bought a negative reader to turn all our photos into digital images. 

Well, that's it for this special wedding post. Noah and Ethel are on their way to Huntsville for a honeymoon. January in cottage country? Well, they'll certainly have privacy and solitude. I daresay they'll have to cozy up to each other for warmth, too. Ha!

Next week we'll keep the celebration going with a letter from Veda Perrault asking Uncle Noah how it all came off. 


0 Comments

1911 Courtship Letter: Oct 29 Dear Ethel

1/26/2014

2 Comments

 
Picture
c1915 - (L to R) Mrs. Walter Young, Ethel Nelson, Midge Draper (b Sep 1913). Photo back: Mrs. Walter Young. He was killed in elevator at G.C. Mom - Midge. From the Norma Draper Family Personal Collection.
Author of Letter: Noah Clement Draper (24 yrs old)
Dated: October 29/11
Addressed to: Miss E. Nelson, Belhaven, Ont., Dear Ethel 
Mailed from: Grand Coulee, Sask.
Relationship: Courting
Profession: Farmer 
Writing instrument: Pen with Black Ink
Writing Paper: Thick, textured, linen-like paper, 9 inches x 6.5 inches. Paper is folded in half and written in booklet form with the unnumbered pages. However, if they were numbered, they would read 1, 3, 2, 4, but I've posted them here as if they were in order.

People/places mentioned in this letter:


- Mrs. W. *Young  - see photo on 1911 Courtship: Oct 1 Dear Ethel
The photo at the top of this week's post is from the an album dated 1912-1924 which belonged to Noah and Ethel's daughter, Norma. It's not clear who the man in the vehicle is from the notation on the back of the photo.


Places/things mentioned in this letter:

- *Regina
- G.C. - *Grand Coulee
- Jobe's comforters - It sounds like a commercial product for a tooth ache, but I couldn't find anything other than a term for imagined pain
- Thanksgiving
- plumber 
- **tin-smith
- *hired man
- threshing - see *harvest
- drawing wheat - threshing without using a threshing outfit


*Cliche/Phrase:
- Rome was not made in a day


Legend: 
* Look under the Categories/Labels in the right side column for more posts on this 
  person/place/thing, or use the search box in the header at the top of this page
** see Genealogy Notes below



Picture
Grand Coulee, Sask.
October 29/11.
Miss. E. Nelson
         Belhaven, Ont.
Dear Ethel; -
     Well one more week has passed
& I will be glad when seven more
has become the past instead
of the future for it seems
lonesome out here dont suppose
it is the same down there.
     Well it is 12 oclock but we
did not go to church this moining
as mother has a bad cold & I
havew one of Jobe's comforters
on my cheek I tell you I am 
fat. Ha. Ha. 
     I suppose you remember
Mrs. W. Younge she is here now
making mother a dress say she
has been away for four years  &
hasnt changed a bit. I wonder

Picture
if there are many people like that.
Oh. say Ethel tomorrow is thanks-
giving I wish we could have
dinner togeather & that would
be something to be thankful
for. eh. but I look forward to the
future (to h--l with the present.)
it seems far more cheerful. say
only 7 more weeks it does'nt sound
like a long time but it seems
like it to me any way.
     Well Ethel I expect the
plumber will be out here on
Tuesday & the tin-smith 
Wednesday to finish up their
work then the house will be
all finished but painting
& I don't hardly think I can
get it painted this fall on
account of the bad weather
but Rome was not made in 
a day was it. & I know it took
me longer than that to get an 

Picture
an answer to a question I asked
a certain young lady, What do
you know a bout it. eh. dont you
think she was mean. Ha Ha.
     Well I have finished drawing
wheat at last. & it took some work
but I am glad it is out now instead
of having it to draw in the winter.
     Well this is another blue day did
not get your letter last week so you
see there is a reason. eh.
     Say Ethel just to give you
an idea of the work going on
around these parts I will tell
you of a few of the troubles of
a farmer. to start with Icould
not get a man for a week after I
fired that man & his wife. & I have
to pay him $50 a month what do you
know about that but still some
people will say they cant get work.
     Well again the threshing gang I
had here went on strike they

Picture
were geting $2 1/2 a day but wanted
$3 but I got them to stay untill they
finished my job. but I was in Regina
Friday & saw some of the men in
town they said they had been
offered $3 a day but would not
take it I know of four other
gangs that have gone on strike
and that is the way things
go.
     Well I guess you will think this
is a funny letter but you know
these things do not bother me
now. as I am all through Ha. Ha
     Well old girl I guess that I
will have some help next summer
all right but I certainly need
your love more than help that
is the best thing of all. Well I
guess I will have to ring off for
this time. So Bye Bye.
Love & x x x x      N. C. D.



Genealogy Notes

Tin Ceiling

Noah mentions that the tinsmith will be in to finish up their work so that got me thinking about what work a 1911 tinsmith might need to do. I came up with these possibilities off the top of my head:
- stove chimney, heat registers, etc
- tin ceiling

I remember seeing my first tin ceiling in a recreated drug store with soda fountain up in Cold Lake, Alberta back in the 1980's. The ceiling reflected light from the large front windows, but it was deflected from the eye by the amazing workmanship. I found out later that tin ceilings could be made with tiles or pressed metal panels. I've been impressed with them ever since. 


Picture
1912 - Interior of Hagel and Held general store, Beiseker, Alberta. Courtesy of Glenbow Archives.
According to Wikipedia, tin ceilings found favour in North America as an alternate for detailed plaster work used in Europe. As rolled metal sheeting became available for pressing or stamping, residential and commercial buildings were installed with the beautiful and fireproof tin. 

Picture
Music room in a private home, 1906. Interior view of a music room which features a pressed tin ceiling and two large windows. Courtesy Wikipedia.
Now I'm wondering if Noah installed a tin ceiling in the home he built for Ethel at Adams, Saskatchewan. So far, I haven't found a photo of the interior, and the house itself is long gone. 

Does anyone know if there was a tin ceiling in Noah and Ethel Draper's house in Adams, near Grand Coulee, SK? Or what else a tinsmith would have been used for in 1911?
2 Comments

1911 Courtship: Dear Ethel Sep 3

10/28/2013

4 Comments

 
James H Nelson and driver
ca 1930s James Henry Nelson and his driver, Belhaven, Ontario. Courtesy of the Norma Draper Photo Collection.
The back of the above photo is written in Norma Draper's hand and says, "Grandpa and driver." It was only from reading the early 1900 newspapers that I knew the driver was the horse. Actually, the first time I read a news article about a runaway driver I thought they were talking about a person and didn't understand why he'd be running away. After re-reading it though, I came to understand the terminology of the driver being the horse that was used mainly for pulling the family's buggy, wagon, sleigh, or what have you. So when Noah mentions that he's working his driver, he means he's got his main driving horse working out in the field, and since most work horses weren't trained to pull wagons, etc, he has to walk if he wants to go anywhere. 

Author of Letter: Noah Clement Draper (24 yrs old)
Dated: Sept 3rd 1911
Addressed to: Miss E.Nelson, Belhaven, Ont., My Dear Ethel 
Mailed from: Grand Coulee, Sask.
Relationship: Courting
Profession: Farmer 
Writing instrument: Fine point pen, Black ink, but looks grey in places and then darkens as he dips his pen in the ink jar.
Writing Paper: Thick, textured, linen-like paper, 9 inches x 6.5 inches. Paper is folded in half, written in booklet form, but for the 2nd page, Noah turned the paper and written down the length of the 2 pages before closing it, turning it again, and writing page 4 on the back. 


People/places mentioned in this letter:

- Mother - *Sarah Sophia Deverell Draper, Noah's widowed mother 
- *Veda - Noah's 16 yr old niece, daughter of his sister *Eva Amelia and *Joe Perrault
- *Sadie Nelson - Ethel's 16 yr old sister back in Belhaven

- plasters (plasterers)
- carpenters
- painters

- **harvest
- the office - the Post Office
- my driver - Noah's main horse for pulling the wagon, buggy, sleigh, etc (see pic above)

Cliche/Phrasing:
- "Well kiddo..." 


* Look under the Categories/Labels in the right side column for more posts on this 
  person/place/thing or use the search box in the header
** see Genealogy Notes below 



Picture
Grand Coulee. Sask.
Sept. 3rd 1911.
Miss. E. Nelson,
          Belhaven, Ont.
My Dear Ethel: -
     Well kiddo I missed your
letter last week & wonder
if you got mine, hope so
any way for if it is with
you like it is with me it
is a blue Sunday. I was not
down to the office last night
but mother was there in the
afternoon I am working my
driver, so could not go unless
I walked & I was to lazy for
that. eh. 
     Well harvest has started at
last & I have about 160 or 170 acres

Picture
of wheat cut and about 120 more to cut
will finish about Thursday if it doesnt
rain any more. had a rain at noon that
will stop us tomorrow & it looks as if
it were not all over.
     Well Ethel the plasters have got thro
with the house & the carpenters
are here now & will be for about.
two weeks then the painters will
have a turn at it & then for a
move out of the tent. and you bet
I will be glad. I wish you were
here to move into it with me
& it would seem more like home
to me. but I guess if nothing
happens you will be before
long. Eh.
     Well I dont think I will get
down to church to day but I will
have to go twice next Sunday
to make up for it. ha ha. hope
you do better than that.
     Well Veda is going to college
the 26 of Sept. and I bet she will
have a big time wheather it
will do her any good or not for she
is so full of mischief that she
cant keep still.
     Say you never told me wheather
Sadie passed her exams or not
hope she did tell her I enjoyed
her letter fine. ha. Ha.

Picture
The duck season opened. last 
Friday but I have been to
buisy to go. but will go to-
morrow I guess if it dont
rain any more.
     Say it sure seems like a
long time since I saw you
and I will be glad when the
time comes when I can go 
down wish it were tomorrow
but Ihave got along so far &
guess I can untill the time
does come. eh.
     Well this is a queer letter but
it is from a queer fellow as you
well know so I guessyou will
over look that part and
remember only that I love you
& that there is a long road between
or else I would not be writing but
talking instead. Well I guess this
is all for this time so good bye with
lots of love & kisses.  N.C.D. xxxxxx



Genealogy Notes

In this week's letter, Noah writes that he has 160-170 acres of wheat cut and about 120 acres to go. That's just the binding and stooking. Sometime in the next month or so, Noah will get a harvest crew together and they'll thresh the stooks which separates the wheat kernels from the chaff. 

Some farmers owned their own threshing machines, but many hired threshing crews that went from farm to farm similar to the corporate harvest crews of today.

The following photographs were copied this past summer from one of the albums in the Norma Draper Photo Collection.  The album is mostly in chronological order starting in 1912 with the harvest photos being the first pictures in the album. Noah served in WW1 from 1916 to 1919 and then the family moved to Victoria, BC where they lived from 1920 to 1924. 

Picture
Noah & Ethel Draper and Family History in Picures 1912-1924, courtesy of the Norma Draper Family Collection.
There are 2 harvest scene photos below and each has been cropped a couple times. The originals show so much sky and ground that the people are minuscule.  Therefore, I cropped each photo first by cuttting one third off the top and the same from the bottom. What you see in the next 2 images are the result of that first cropping.

Picture
The 1st image shows the men standing around, posing. This was the first photo in the album. But the image below shows the men working as can be seen by the stream of chaff from the thresher blowing out above Percy's head on the far right. (click the image for a bigger view - I hope.)

Noah Draper Harvest Scene
ca 1912-1916 Noah Draper's Threshing Crew, Adams, Saskatchewan. Percy Draper far right standing on the wagon. Noah Draper 3rd from right standing on thresher behind horses.
These next 2 images have been cropped further by cutting another third off the left side so we can clearly see Noah and Percy. 

Noah Draper Harvesting Scene
ca 1912-1916 Noah Draper's Threshing Crew, Adams, Saskatchewan. Noah Draper farthest on the right, Percy Draper 3rd from the right. (Cropped from wide image above.)
The image below wasn't annotated by Ethel like the one above, however, it appears that the men stopped their work and then moved forward together for the shot. When I zoomed in as much as I dared without losing definition, I could clearly tell that Percy Draper is on the wagon because of the jaunty angle of his light colored hat. But where was Noah?

I finally found him by looking for his clothes - the partially unbuttoned coat over coveralls - the only worker to wear his coat in this fashion. He's on the thresher, behind where the horses are standing. Unfortunately, his face appears to be a blur so he might be looking down and his hat is hiding his face, but he's using the same stance in both images and it's one that I've come to recognize from many of his pictures - thanks again to his daughter Norma's preservation of the family pictures.

Noah Draper Harvesting Scene
ca 1912-1916 Noah Draper's Threshing Crew, Adams, Saskatchewan. Percy Draper far right standing on the wagon. Noah Draper 3rd from right standing on thresher behind horses. (Cropped from wide image above.)
There's a good probability that the husbands of Noah and Percy's sisters, Ethel Maud and Eva Amelia, are somewhere in the photographs so if any of those family members see this and recognize someone, please contact us.

4 Comments
<<Previous
    Picture

    Recent Posts

    Picture
    Picture
    Picture

    Genealogy Posts Index

    Archives

    February 2019
    January 2017
    December 2016
    November 2016
    November 2015
    April 2015
    November 2014
    October 2014
    September 2014
    August 2014
    July 2014
    June 2014
    May 2014
    April 2014
    March 2014
    February 2014
    January 2014
    December 2013
    November 2013
    October 2013
    September 2013
    August 2013
    July 2013
    June 2013
    May 2013
    April 2013
    March 2013
    February 2013
    January 2013
    December 2012
    November 2012
    October 2012
    September 2012
    August 2012
    July 2012
    June 2012
    May 2012
    April 2012
    March 2012
    February 2012
    January 2012
    December 2011
    November 2011
    October 2011
    September 2011
    August 2011

    Categories

    All
    19th Century
    19th Century
    20th Century
    20th Century
    21st Century
    Abingdon Press
    Adams
    Agriculture
    Alberta
    Albert Rogers
    Alcohol
    Ancestry.ca/com
    Ancestry.ca/com
    Anniversary
    Antique
    Antique Photograph
    Antique Photographs
    Arnold
    Auction Sale
    Aunt
    Aurora
    Australia
    Banff
    Barbour Books
    Barker
    Barn
    Barnhart
    Baseball
    Beechnuts
    Belhaven
    Belhaven School
    Belle Plaine
    Bellhaven Choir
    Bertha Hamilton
    Bethany House
    Bible
    Birthday
    Birth Records
    Blessing
    Blizzard
    Book
    Books
    Box Social
    Box Social
    Brandon
    Brighton Beach
    Brooks
    Brother
    Bruels/breuls
    Buggy
    Burks Falls
    Canada
    Canadian War Museum
    Car/streetcar
    C Deverell
    Cecil Prosser
    Census Records
    Census Records
    Certificate
    Chapman
    Charisma House
    Charivari
    Chatham
    Childhood
    Children
    Christie Nelson
    Christmas
    Church
    Circus
    Civil War
    Cliche Or Phrase
    CNR
    Cole
    Connecticut
    Consumption
    Coronation
    Courtship
    Cousin
    Cowieson
    Cozy Mystery
    CPR
    Crafts
    Croquet
    Crossway Books
    Croutch/Crouch
    Crowder
    Cyclone/tornado
    Dafoe
    Dales
    David Draper
    Davidson
    Davidsons3828f1982c
    Depression
    Destruction
    Deverell
    Deverell In Toronto
    Diphtheria
    Discala
    Disease
    Document
    Dora
    Easter
    Eatonaposs30973d10cc
    Eatonscf75de7cf3
    Edithedyth Draper7f425b64a8
    Education
    Ella
    Elva & Wm Mitchell
    Emanuel Nelson
    Emmanuel Nelson
    England
    Entrance Exam
    Ernie Glover
    Ernie Winter
    Ethel Marie
    Ethel Maud
    Ethel Nelson
    Europe
    Eva Amelia Perrault
    Even Before Publishing
    Excursion
    Exhibition
    Fabric
    Fair
    Fanny Joes Niece
    Farm
    Farm Equipment
    Farm Equipment
    Fashion
    Father
    Fauna
    Fern
    Finland
    Fire
    Fire Insurance
    Flag
    Flewell
    Florida
    Food
    Foresters
    Fort Battleford
    Fountain Pen
    Fox Island
    France
    Fred Coventry
    Fred Coventry
    Fundraiser
    Genealogy
    Generations
    Geoff Bowerman
    George Caleb Nelson
    George Metcalf
    George Milburn Draper
    Geraldton
    Ghosts
    Glover
    Google Earth
    Grainery
    Grand Coulee
    Grand Coulee
    Grandparents
    Graveyard
    Great Grandparents
    Great Great Grandparents
    Great Lakes
    Great Lakes Romances
    Great Parents
    Greenwood
    Hail Insurance
    Halifax
    Hamilton
    Harlequin
    Harvest
    Hearst
    Henry Nelson
    Herbert
    Hired Girl
    Hired Man
    Historical
    Historicals
    History
    HMCS Niobe
    HMS Pembroke
    Holiday
    Holland Landing
    Hollywood
    Holt
    Homestead
    Horses
    Hot Springs
    House
    Housework
    Hunting
    Huntley
    Huntsville
    Hustle
    Hymn
    Ice Harvest
    Ida Amelia Glover
    India
    Indian Head
    Industry
    Ink & Inkwell
    Insurance
    Iowa Relatives
    Ireland
    Irwin Or Erwin Perrault
    Jacksons Point
    James A
    James H Nelson
    JD (James David)
    Jennie Draper
    Joe Perrault
    Kavanagh
    Kellington
    Kelowna
    Kentucky
    Keswick
    Kidnapping
    Kids
    King
    King George V
    Kings
    Kit
    Lake Superior
    Lanigan Dist Ha
    Laundry
    Lennox
    Lepard
    Leslie Nelson
    Leslie Thomson
    Letter
    Life Insurance
    Lighthouse
    Linstead
    Little Willie
    Liverpool
    Location
    London
    Longlac
    Louie
    Louie Sarah Louisa
    Louie Sarah Louisa39defa3554
    Louisiana
    Love Inspired
    Love Inspired Historical
    Love Inspired Suspense
    Lyceum
    Mabel-winter
    Mahoney
    Mail
    Maine
    Man
    Manfredmanford
    Manitoba
    Mann
    Map
    Margaret Glover
    Marguerite
    Markham
    Marriage Record
    Mary Smith
    Massachusetts
    Matt Or Matte
    Maud Bruels
    Medieval
    Memoirs
    Memorabilia
    Memorial
    Merlin/Murland
    Midge (Mildred)
    Military
    Ministry
    Miss Hunt
    Mitchell
    Montana
    Moody Publishers
    Moose Jaw
    Morrison
    Mortgage
    Morton
    Morton Park
    Mother
    Mothers Day
    Mount Albert
    Mr Brooks
    Mr Young
    Music
    Muskoka
    Navy
    Nelson
    New Daly House
    New England
    Newlywed
    Newmarket
    New Orleans
    Newspaper
    Niobe
    Noah Draper
    Norma Draper
    Norman Draper
    Norman Yorke
    North Bay
    North Dakota
    North York
    Oak Tara Publishers
    Ohio
    Olympic
    Ontario
    Orillia
    Ourroots.ca
    Owen Sound
    Parthena Fisher
    Party
    Patty
    Pense
    Percy Draper
    Percy Draper
    Pets
    Phillips
    Photograph
    Photography
    Pie Social
    Playhouse
    Politics
    Pollack
    Pollock
    Portage Flyer
    Postcard
    Poster
    Post Office
    Prairies
    Prince Albert
    Prohibition
    Prosser
    Queen Mary
    Queensville
    Quincy/quinsy
    Railroad/railway
    Ravenshoe
    RCNVR
    Realms
    Recipes
    Reciprocity
    Regina
    Remembrance Day
    Reuben Perrault
    Rheumatism
    Rigler
    River Mersey
    River Thames
    RNCVR
    Rodeo
    Rose
    Royalty
    Roys
    RPPC
    Ryland
    Sadiesayde Nelson
    Sarah E Greenwood
    Sarah Elizabeth Glover
    Sarah Louisa Louie
    Sarah Louisa (Louie)
    Sarah Louisa (Louie)
    Sarah S Deverell
    Saskatchewan
    Scent
    School
    Scotland
    Sedore
    Seeding
    Seneca
    Series
    Sharon
    Sheppard
    Ship
    Shivaree
    Singing
    Sintaluta
    Sister
    Sk
    Sleighs
    Slideshow
    Snow
    Soldier
    Song
    Soules
    Speech
    Sprague
    Stamp
    Stephen Draper
    Stewart Draper
    Stockings
    Store
    Summerside Press
    Suspense
    Sutton
    Sweet
    Taimi Discala
    Tarter
    Teacher
    Terry
    Thames River
    The Waltons
    Thomas Nelson
    Thunder Bay
    Togo
    Tomlinson
    Tornado
    Toronto
    Toys
    Train
    Transportation
    Travel
    Traviss
    Tubercolosis
    Tyndale
    Udora
    Uncle
    Uncle Emanuel
    Uncle Frank
    Uncle John
    Update
    Veda Perrault
    Victoria Maud
    Video
    Vintage
    Viola
    Violet
    Wagon
    Wardell
    Washing Machine
    Wass
    Wawa
    Weapons
    Weather
    Wedding
    Well Water
    West
    Western
    Westgarth
    Whitaker House
    Whitefire Publishing
    White Rose Publishing
    Whooping Cough
    Willie Sedore
    Willoughby
    Will Rigler
    Winch
    Winnipeg
    Winter
    Women
    Woodblock Print
    Word
    Work Bee
    World War 1
    World War 2
    WW1
    YMCA/YWCA
    York County
    York/yorke
    York/yorke
    Zenuk


Created on Weebly  - Copyright Anita Mae Draper 2011-2020