Category: Toronto

1912: Letter Fm Hester Soules Prosser

5/11/2014

1912 RPPC Ethel Draper with horses, Adams, SK. Photo by Noah Draper from Noah & Ethel's 1912-1924 Photo Album. Courtesy of the Norma Draper Family Photograph Collection

Ethel is now in Adams, Saskatchewan and enjoying her life as a newlywed. How do I know? Because this week's post contains a letter from Hester Prosser - close neighbor and friend of Ethel back in Belhaven - and Hester mentions what Ethel wrote her.

In the above RPPC, it looks like the object on the near right is the CNR track laying machine from last week's post.

Author of Letter: Hester Prosser (nee Soules, wife of Walker Prosser)
Dated: Mar 21st, 1912
Addressed to: My Dear Friend Ethel
Mailed from: Belhaven (Ontario)
Relationship: Close friend and neighbor
Profession: Farmer's wife
Writing instrument: Black ink
Written on: Linen-like cream-colored folded notepaper. Hester hasn't numbered the pages but if she had they would read 1, 2, 3, 4 in booklet form

People/places mentioned in this letter:

- *Noah Draper, age 23 (Newlywed, moved west in 1905)
- *Ethel Nelson, age 21 (Newlywed, moved west Feb 1912)
- *Christie - Ethel's 11 yr old sister
- *Sadie/Sadye - Ethel's 16 yr old sister
- *Ethel & *Will Rigler - Noah's sister and her husband, living near Noah & Ethel

- **Mr. Brooks & Martha - we find them in Regina later on
- Annie *King & Mr. King - neighbor
- Mr S. *Winch - Stephen Winch? - neighbor
- Lulu ?
- Mr Dave *Sprague's - neighbor
- Mary *Sheppard, John *Sheppard - neighbor
- *Breuls boys, Whetford & Mr. Breuls - neighbors
- Herbert *Winch, Erwin *Winch, Adele *Winch - neighbors
- **Prof. Dales & Lowell - ministers (mystery solved)
- Mr. Frank *Morton's - neighbor
- Blanche B ?
- Alma & Johnnie - probably elementary school-aged children
- Alice - Hester Soules & Walker Prosser's only daughter, Alice Alma (1896-1901) died at 6 yrs old from diphtheria
- Isaac Prosser (1846-1912) died 24 hrs after apoplexy attack (stroke)

Places/things mentioned in this letter or in the Genealogy Notes:
- *Toronto
- Owen Sound - 170 km/106 ml fm Keswick on the southern shore of Georgian Bay
- Paisley - 55 km/34ml south of Owen Sound
- The West - Canadian prairie provinces of Man, Sask and Alberta
- Newmarket Era - local newspaper
- the car - the streetcar

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

Belhaven Mar 21st 1912

My Dear Friend Ethel
Your very welcome
letter was duly received and read
with a great deal of interest. Am
so glad to hear you like your
new house, and that the climate
agrees with you. so far, I presume
it is pretty well settled, Where you
are. So nice to be near Ethel Rigler.
I would like that part of it myself.
She was my neighbor here for a short time
and I was sorry indeed to lose her. I
liked both her and Will, give them
my kindest regards. When you see
them next. Mr Brooks called in
for a while yesterday. Martha is at
home this week, but expects to start
for the West next week. She and a

sister-in-law, their husbands went
a couple of weeks ago. I think you are
wise to subscribe for the Newmarket Era
am sure it would be an interesting
letter to me, if I were to move away
there is so much home news in it.
Say, Ethel. We had the worst storm
last Friday that I ever witnessed, all
day long, and half the night. the roads
were in a terrible state, and the scholars
from High School, will not be apt to
forget it very soon, they had such
an experience getting home. & some did
not reach home. Annie King stayed at
Mr. S. Winch's all night, and Lulu stayed
at Mr Dave Sprague's. Mr King started
to go for Annie, but only got as far
as your place, the road was full.
We heard the sleigh pass here about

nine o'clock, with Mary Sheppard and
the Breuls boys. Whetford & Mr Breuls
had went after them, each put in a horse
the car was late getting in, and then the
horses tired out, or got discouraged, several
times, the men had to go ahead, and
tramp roads. Herbert Winch & his family
(they had been to the city.)
were all in the sleigh, and Erwin Winch
so it was heavily loaded, twelve altogether,
but Saturday morning the road breaking
commenced. Our Choir was invited to
Mr John Sheppard's that night, and
bad as the roads were, there was eleven
young people there for practise. We
had a very pleasant evening. Lowell
preached on Sunday, his last two
sermons have been the best he has
ever preached, he is a fine boy
just what he seems to be. We are
expecting Prof. Dales for the next two

Sundays. the Choir spent a pleasant
evening at Your Father's two weeks ago
(We are invited to Mr. Frank Morton's this week.)
and I got Sadie to come home with us
we spent the next day together, it was
a busy one too. We went to Isaac Prossers
funeral in the morning. S.S. in the afternoon
and Belhaven service in the evening.
hope to have her again if she will
come. Adele came home with us last Sunday
from S.S. She & her Father have gone away
to spend a couple of weeks, they started out
Monday. will visit in Toronto, Owen Sound, &
Paisley, his two brothers live in the two
places & his sister in Toronto. Adele deserving
the trip. She is a good worker. Christie sang
(she did fine)
a pretty solo in S.S. last Sunday. Blanche B.
is to sing one next Sunday. Alma & Johnnie
sang one two weeks ago. I love the pieces from
the little ones, it reminds me so much of Alice
Glad to hear you are attending Presbyterian Church.
How much we miss you here, but our loss is Noah's
gain. God bless you both in your far away home.
Your Sincere friend,
H. Prosser
Write again

Genealogy Notes

Genealogy Note 1 - Mr Brooks and Martha

At the bottom of page 1, Hester mentions Mr. Brooks and his daughter Martha:

Mr Brooks called in for a while yesterday. Martha is at
home this week, but expects to start for the West next week. She and a sister-in-law, their husbands went
a couple of weeks ago.

And here's what the local newspaper had to say about the wedding:

The Newmarket Era. March 8, 1912 - Page: 2

The Newmarket Era. March 8, 1912 - Page: 6

Genealogy Note 2 - The Great Storm

Hester relates about kids unable to get from school due to the snowstorm that descended upon them that March. Here's what the newspaper said about it:

The Newmarket Era. March 22, 1912 - Page: 7

The Newmarket Era. March 22, 1912 - Page: 1

The Newmarket Era. March 22, 1912 - Page: 6

Genealogy Notes 3 - Prof. Dales & Lowell

Prof Dales has been mentioned as a minister several times over the course of the 1911 Courtship letters, and the closest I've came to his identity was that he came from the Toronto area.

And now in this week's letter, Hester Prosser mentions:

Lowell preached on Sunday, his last two sermons have been the best he has ever preached, he is a fine boy just what he seems to be. We are
expecting Prof. Dales for the next two Sundays.

From Hester's words, I wondered if Lowell might be a son of Prof Dales and following in the old man's footsteps. A quick search on Ancestry.ca for Lowell Dales brought up this 1911 census listing:

In 1911 Professor John Nelson Dales, and his family, including 20 yr old Lowell, were living in Drayton, Ontario. A few columns to the right on this census shows Prof Dales as a minister and Lowell as a student. Although we don't know what or where Lowell was studying, I'm presuming it was theology like his dad.

Stay tuned for next week when we find out about the 1912 Regina cyclone which Ethel mentions on the back of the RPPC shown at the top of this post.

Feb 1912: Noah's Cousin, Edith Draper

4/13/2014

1911 Togo, Saskatchewan, Canada. Courtesty of UofA Prairie Postcards Collection

Noah and Ethel are about to head West, but there was one event they would have attended before they left, and that was the wedding of Noah's cousin, Edith Draper, to Frank Kavanagh.

While blogging about Noah and Ethel's Courtship letters I couldn't help but notice how concerned Noah was about Edith and her siblings, his 1st cousins, the children of Stephen Draper and Martha Barnhart. If you recall, Stephen was the brother of Noah's father, David, and their 2 farms pretty much backed up to each other when Noah's family lived in North Gwillimbury.

In other posts I've detailed the lives of Stewart and George. Edith meanwhile was mentioned in these 1911 Courtship Letters:

Mar 5, Dear Noah - explains the spelling of Edith/Edythe
May 7 Dear Ethel - 1906 image of combined Draper family incl'g Frank
Aug 28 Dear Ethel - George Draper and his history
Sep 10 Dear Noah - Edith asks if she can go west with Ethel
Oct 15 Dear Noah - mentions that Edith will be married

As for the events leading up to Edith Draper marrying Frank Kavanagh, I found this humorous newspaper snippet:

The Newmarket Era. December 13, 1907

Miss Edyth Draper returned from
the West a few weeks ago. She says
it is too cold there for her.

I laughed when I saw that, knowing she would eventually marry and move to the West. I figured she must love Frank very much and heartened at the thought of her deep love. But then I read the next snippet and realized Frank didn't head west until 1908.

The Newmarket Era. May 15, 1908

The image at the top of this post shows what Togo, Sask looked liked in 1911.

So if Frank wasn't out West in 1907, who did 22 yr old Edith go to visit? Noah has mentioned Edith's brother, Stewart Draper, many times in the Courtship letters, and Stewart and Bertha's daughter, Norma, submitted a very detailed write-up on her family in the local history book, From Basket to Bridge - White Bear, Kyle, Matador in which she wrote that her father, Stewart Truman Draper, rented land from Eli Williamson, east of Indian Head, in 1907 prior to homesteading in the White Bear area.

Since Noah's family was already in Grand Coulee by that time, I'm guessing Edith visited her brother, Stewart, and Noah's family - her Uncle David and Aunt Sarah.

So we know that Edith was a spinster, a farmer's daughter, and that she doesn't like the West because it's too cold. And although we don't know for sure that Frank and Edith are courting, there must have been a good reason for him to be included in this 1906 family photo.

While Edith stayed in her Keswick, North Gwillimbury Township home, we can read a series of news snippets showing Frank's trips back to his family in Queensville, East Gwillimbury Township. It seems he still calls Queensville home and from the looks of these snippets, he made more trips than I could find in the Newmarket Era:

The Newmarket Era. December 24, 1909

The Newmarket Era. June 17, 1910

The Newmarket Era. September 30, 1910

Mr. W. H. Kavanagh mentioned in the middle snippet is Frank's father, William Harvey Kavanagh, b 1857, living in Queensville with an occupation as a butcher and auctioneer.

That got me wondering what Frank's occupation was way out there in Togo, Sask, so I started researching the records.

1887 Birth Record for James Franklin Kavanagh, East Gwillimbury Twp
1912 Marriage Record doesn't state an occupation
1921 Canada census states Frank is a butcher

But where was he in the 1911 census? Not only that, but Noah and Ethel refer to Frank as living in Winnipeg. Even his marriage record states he's from Winnipeg. But Winnipeg was a big city even back then and I didn't have time to browse dozens? hundreds? of pages of census records. And where did Togo fit in all this?

I spent hours searching for anything I could find about Togo and located it on a map north of the Transcontinental Railway line, just kissing the Manitoba/Saskatchewan border:

Google Map showing approximate route from Keswick, Ontario, to Winnipeg, Manitoba on the Transcontinental Railroad. From there, a person would have to take a secondary train to get to Togo, Saskatchewan.

As you can see from the map, Togo is a very long way from Keswick. I stopped researching and started cropping the snippets. But as I cropped the snippet for Frank's first trip west in 1908, I had an idea. It says Frank and Walter Kaiser went to Togo together. Could I find Walter Kaiser in the 1911 census, and if I did, would Frank still be with him? After all, 3 years had passed. I pulled up the search box and typed in Frank Kaiser. The only other info I had for him was the locations of Ontario and Togo.

Bingo! The first name that came up was a Walter Kaiser living in Togo, Sask. I pulled up the census and guess what... he was single, a lodger, and a butcher. And yep, right above him was the messy scribbled name of Frank Kavanagh. Why hadn't Frank come up in all the searches? Look for yourself:

Part of the 1911 Canada census for Togo, Saskatchewan (click to enlarge)

The top blue arrow is pointing to the messy scribbled name of Frank Kavanagh, Male, lodger, single, born Apr 1887, 26 yrs old, born in Ontario. The blue arrow in the bottom Index points to Frenk Kewenigh which is what the transcriber saw when he/she looked at Frank's name, scribbled by the census taker.

We know the wedding is coming soon because of this following snippet:

The Newmarket Era. January 5, 1912

Lila is Frank's 17-yr-old sister and my belief is that the week she spent with Edith was a planning session for Edith's wedding. Although the post-wedding news article doesn't come right out and say that Lila is Edith's bridesmaid, it does state:

"...Miss Lila Kavanaugh sister of the groom, looked charming in shell pink satin with lace and gold fringe, and carried pink roses. The groom was assisted by Mr. J. C Purdy of Keswick..."

Here's the article about the Edith Draper & Frank Kavanagh wedding. Note that the article starts by misspelling Kavanagh with an 'u' and ends without it, as it should be spelled.

The Newmarket Era. February 2, 1912

Since the wedding took place at Edith's home in Keswick, the reception took place about 8.5 miles away at the home of Frank's family in Queensville, East Gwillimbury Township.

Listed under KESWICK in The Newmarket Era. February 2, 1912

So Edith has married Frank Kavanagh who was living in Togo until the census was taken a few months prior to their marriage. The snippet says they're heading back to Frank's home in Winnipeg, yet I couldn't find them in Henderson's Winnipeg City Directory for 1911, 1912, or 1915.

The Newmarket Era. November 27, 1914

However, I found this snippet which places them in Manitoba in 1914. Winnipeg is in Manitoba, but not Togo which is just a spit away inside the Saskatchewan border.
But where in Manitoba?

Again, we end a post with more questions. Feel free to jump in if you know the answers.

And now that Edith is married to Frank, there isn't anything to report on that would hold Noah and Ethel in Ontario. The next post then will be Noah guiding Ethel on her first trip to the West, and to her new home on the prairies at Adams, Saskatchewan.

1911 Courtship Special: Letter from Noah's Mother

3/10/2014

Grand Coulee, Saskatchewan, Octobert 1913; Courtesty of the Norma Draper Personal Photograph Collection

Noah is on his way to Ethel!
For more info, read the Genealogy Notes below.

Author of Letter: S S Draper
Dated: The 17 (presumed to be Dec 17, 1911)
Addressed to: Mr N C Draper, My Dear boy
Mailed from: Grand Coulee
Relationship: Noah's mother (Sarah Sophia Deverell)
Profession: Widow of Farmer
Writing instrument: Fine BlueInk
Written on: Very thin Ivory-colored lined notepaper 5" x 8"

People/places mentioned in this letter:

Eva - *Eva Amelia Perrault, Noah's sister who married *Joe Perraul
Veda - *Veda Perrault, 16 yr old daughter of *Eva and *Joe
Viola - *Viola Rigler, 14 yr old daughter of Noah's sister, *Ethel and *Will Rigler
Will - *Will Rigler, husband of Noah's sister *Ethel Maud
Fred & Louie - *Fred Coventry, who married Noah's sister, *Sarah Louisa aka *Louie
Percies - *Percy Draper - Noah's brother

Mrs H Winch - Margaret & Herb *Winch
Nettie - Nellie? Winch - records show Margaret & Herb having a Nellie born in 1910
Sam - Will's *hired man
Alf - Noah's *hired man

Places/things mentioned in this letter or in the Genealogy Notes:
dora - the sow (pig) will "come in" or farrow (give birth)
wheat 91 cts - he sold his wheat for 91 cents a bushel
sistern - a big tank called a cistern to hold water
Regina, Saskatchewan
Ravenshoe, Ontario
Keswick, Ontario
Toronto, Ontario
West - the Western Canadian provinces

Cliches mentioned in this letter:
"...will wonders never sease" (cease)

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

Grand Coulee The
17

Mr N C Draper

My Dear boy
received your letter and
too cards on the 14 was glad to hear you
was well hope this may find you the same
we are all well and getting on nicely was
up home on sunday the children have all
got bad colds Viola was real sick but
is better the things all loock well but
I never seen the snow piled up around
there as it is now we have had very cold
weather and the worst stormes I ever seen
but it is a lovely day to day the snow
is settling fast I stayed up all night
then Fred and Louie come up Monday
and I come down with them they are well
Fred come and got Veda and I last wens
day and toock us to his place it is far
better than I thought They are very
comfortiable but the roads are a fright to
travel on but then I se you have had

Stormes down there to but before this
I sapose it has stopped so you haie got to
belhaven Well how did you find them at Mr
Nelsons all well I hope remember me to
Them and all inquireing friends I sapose
ere this you have been to our old home
how does it loock did you goe and se
Mrs H Winch I feel so sorrow for her
I hope Nettie is better ere this you did
not say what ailed her
Alfs was Just up to our place and said
one of Percies horses was sick Will and
Percy are goind to kill the pigs this
week they are not goeing to kill dora
they think she will come in in a fiew
weeks wonders will never sease
Sam got drunk and brought to
flasks home with him so Will
shipped him so he is doeing the chores
alone but when the roads get do he
can get straw and watter he will get
a man the sistern is dry and
they have to melt snow for all the watter
they have and feed the horses snow

Alf said Myres was drawing watter
with fore horses and the tank slewed of
the road and went down so far that the tank
up set and he said they lost their watter and
had a turble time to get it up again ' '
So you doe not think as mouk of down there
as you might. but I hope you will have a
good time I had a letter from Eva she
seemes to think they are haveing a big
time your letter reads as tho you had a good
time goeing down ' ' you wanted to
know how much Will got for the
wheat he got 91 cts but could have got
more if he could have held it longer
but when it was drawed on he had to
sell it well I will close my scribble
now be a good boy and remember
your Mother never for gets you in
her prair, that god may keep you
safe from harm from your ever
loveing Mother S S Draper
let me hear from you often

Genealogy Notes

Last week I posted the last of the 1911 Courtship letters between Noah Draper and Ethel Nelson. Ethel's Treasure Box didn't contain any from Noah for November, and there aren't any more from Noah or Ethel until Noah joins the Royal Canadian Naval Voluntary Reserve and starts writing to Ethel once more. (I do have much more to post of the family though.)

For whatever reason, the December 1911 issues of The Newmarket Era are not online. It seems that every issue before and after is accounted for, but not the one that announces Noah's homecoming.

Hence, I'm so thankful for this week's letter where Sarah Sophia Deverell Draper writes to Noah or we wouldn't know when he left. It also seems that Noah travelled with his sister, Eva Amelia, although we don't know who else went along since no mention of Joe is made and Veda is still back in Grand Coulee. When Sarah writes that "...Eva she seems to think they are haveing a big time..." could be Eva and Joe, or Eva and the family she left behind when she moved West with Joe.

Although Sarah isn't clear about which date she sent the letter, certain events in the letter show it to be December 1911. Namely, the mention of:
- how she hoped everyone was well at Mr. Nelson's place (Ethel's home)
- the Herbert Winch Family and Nettie's burns (see 1911 Courtship: Oct 22)
- cold weather and the worst storms she's ever seen (weather info below)

The Morning Leader (Regina) - Dec 19, 1911

Sarah says she received a letter and 2 cards on the 14th, so Noah was gone by then. I'm guessing he left soon after December began because Ethel's letters stop at the end of Nov. (I sure would have liked to have been there for that meeting between them!)

The ad on the right is from Regina's Morning Leader newspaper from December 19 of that year and shows the most likely way Noah would have traveled east. If he chose the Canadian Northern Railway, then his fee would have been $47.15 from Regina to Toronto.

At Toronto, Noah would have taken the Toronto and York Radial Railway north to either Ravenshoe or Keswick. We don't know which relative he's staying with, but there are many since Noah's great grandfather and his siblings were some of the original settlers of York County and the township of North Gwillimbury.

1910, Keswick, Ontario Radial Station; Courtesy of Wikipedia and the Georgina Pioneer Village exhibit at Virtual Museum

About that cold weather... Grand Coulee is within sight of Regina and the coldest Nov 11th on record was in the year 1911 where temperatures dropped to -37.2C /-35F. (Wikipedia's List of Extreme Temperatures in Canada). Although it didn't stay that cold, the temperatures over that winter averaged out to being one of the coldest winters on record.

Actually, weather men are still talking about it. Check out this recent blog post from the United States National Weather Service Weather Forecast Office which talks about The Great Blue Norther of November 11, 1911:

...As dramatic as these weather changes were, we must go back further in time to look at one such cold front (also known then as The Great Blue Norther) that established a set of weather records that arguably are unique in modern weather history. On November 11, 1911 (remembered easily for now as 11/11/11), the afternoon temperature in Oklahoma City reached a record high for the date of 83, before plunging 66 degrees to a record low of 17 at midnight that evening. Both daily temperature records remain unbroken and untied since 1911...

The Wikipedia entry for The Great Blue Norther of 11/11/1911 has this to say:

The Great Blue Norther of 11/11/1911 was a cold snap that affected the central United States on Saturday, November 11, 1911. Many cities broke record highs, going into the 70s and 80s early that afternoon. By nightfall, cities were dealing with temperatures in the teens and single-digits on the Fahrenheit scale. This is the only day in many midwest cities' weather bureau jurisdictions where the record highs and lows were broken for the same day. Some cities experienced tornadoes on Saturday and a blizzard on Sunday. A blizzard even occurred within one hour after an F4 tornado hit Rock County, Wisconsin. The main cause of such a dramatic cold snap was an extremely strong storm system separating warm, humid air from frigid, arctic air. Dramatic cold snaps tend to occur mostly in the month of November, though they can also come in February or March.

So finally, Noah and Ethel are together once again and can now plan the details of their wedding. Next week I'll post everything I can dig up on that happy event. Hope to see you here for the happy event.

1911 Courtship Letter: Nov 12 Dear Noah

2/17/2014

Elva Nelson Mitchell and Ethel Nelson Draper, cousins, Swift Current, Saskatchewan. From the Norma Draper Family Collection.

The above photo is one of several I scanned from the photo albums passed down from Ethel Nelson which now make up the Norma Draper Family Collection. I'm including the others in this week's Genealogy Notes below.

Author of Letter: Ethel Isabell Nelson, age 21 (b 1890)
Dated:  Nov 12th 1911
Addressed to: Mr. N C Draper, Grand Coulee, Sask.
Mailed from: Belhaven, P.O.
Relationship:  Courting
Profession:  Farmer's Daughter
Writing instrument: Fine point pen, blue ink
Written on: Off-white, textured, plain, linen-like paper, 9.5 inches x 6.5 inches, folded in half in booklet form with pages numbered 1, 3, 2, 4 but I've posted them here in the order they are to be read.

People mentioned in this letter of part of the Genealogy Notes:

Pa - *James H Nelson
Mother - *Ida Amelia Glover
*Christie - Ethel's 11 yr old sister
*Sadie - Ethel's 16 yr old sister
S. Draper's - family of *Stewart Draper, paternal cousin of Noah
Walter *Yorke - stepson of Noah's 1st cousin 2x removed
Squire *Yorke - Walter Yorke's son
*Fanny - niece of Noah's brother-in-law, Joe Perrault
*Mary Smith - Ethel's neighbor and friend
**Elva Mitchell - Ethel's paternal cousin
**Aunt Mary - Mary Glover *Linstead - Ethel's maternal aunt
**Florence P - Ethel's 2nd cousin (they share great-grandfather George *Croutch)

Places/things mentioned in this letter:

*Indian Head
the *West & North West - Canadian prairie provinces (Manitoba, Saskatchewan, Alberta)
*Toronto

- Bram or Brown Dick - ? - book or story - possibly in a reader

- Peck's Bad Boy - by George W. Peck , late 1800's
Stories of a naughty boy. Free online read available at http://www.readbookonline.net/title/32610/

- Astray in the Forest - by Edward S Ellis, Illustrations by Stanley Wood, 1908

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

Belhaven. P. O.
Nov 12th 1911.

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

My Dear Noah, -
Sunday is here once
again, and say such a cold
stormy day as it is. I think it
must be one of your North West
blizzards. We were up to Sunday
School this afternoon, and you would
certainly think the wind would blow
your head off. Would'nt be any loss
if mine did go, be some body's gain
for when they found it they'd
think they had a pumpkin sure.
Talk about blizzards. Indeed I wouldnt

care a bit, if one would land you right
here on this farm. Hope something will
bring you along soon, anyway. Six weeks
sounds much better than six months
but 6 days will sound ever so much
better "eh"
I had a letter from Elva Mitchell
on Friday, she spoke as though
they were going to stay with Mr
S Draper's this winter. Said they
had been looking for you down
but that you never had come yet.
Mr Walter Yorke is talking of
going West in the spring, Say's
after he and Squire have been out
there two or three years they will
own over half of the West. He
has high ideal's "eh"

We are not going to church to-night
I guess we. think we will be most
comfortable here in the house. Christie
is reading, "Bram Dick" to Pa & Ma
and Sadie is here with me reading
"Pecks bad boy" Say! it certainly is
a book worth reading, I read "Astray
in the forest" this forenoon.
How is your face now? and did it
prove to be much of a comforter, "ha ha"
The mason's are coming to-
morrow to put in Stable floors
and we certainly will be glad when
the Stables are finished, for it certainly
is getting cold enough for to put
the stock in.
Mary Smith is in Toronto now.
A cousin of her's is to be married this
month so of course she is to be at the wedding

Now you never told me in your
last letter. how Fanny was getting
along. you must'nt forget to mention
her, for you know how anxious I am
to hear about her. "ha ha", not her,
but your the one I am anxious to hear
from. Oh Noah if you were only here,
we would forget all about the storm
just think though only five more
letters we will have to write, and
then the next Sunday instead
of writing we can just make
our tongues run "eh" I am afraid
there would'nt be any church
for us, even if it was'nt
storming. I guess I must say
Good Bye for this time with
love and kisses from your Sweetheart.
x x x x x x x E. Nelson.

Genealogy Notes

Ethel Nelson Draper and Elva Nelson Mitchell at Swift Current, Saskatchewan. Courtesy of the Norma Draper Family Collection.

Ethel has mentioned her paternal cousin, Elva Jane Nelson, several times before in these courtship letters, but this is the first time I'm posting photos which I scanned from Ethel's albums. If you recall, Elva married Will Mitchell and are working on the Indian Head area farm of Stewart Draper, paternal cousin of Noah.

In this week's letter, Ethel says she received a letter from Elva saying her and Will were staying with Stewart through the winter and that they hadn't run into Noah yet. The 1911 Canada census shows William and Elva Mitchell living near Indian Head. This is confirmed in the Courtship Letter Special: July 15 From Elva Mitchell where Elva writes that "we only live 4 miles from the head."

The caption written in the album that holds the above photographs says "Elva and Ethel in the coulee, Swift Current." According to the 1916 and 1921 census records though, Elva and Will lived in Johnston Lake near Mossbank which is a couple hours east of Swift Current, and a couple hours west of the Grand Coulee/Regina area.

Google map showing Swift Current (left), Mossbank (middle), Grand Coulee (right).

From reading Ethel's journals I know she had a penchant for travel. So it's quite possible Ethel & Noah, and Elva & Will had gone on a sightseeing trip to Swift Current. Especially since the back of this next photo shows them in Mossbank in 1926.

1926 Mossbank, SK possibly at the Mitchell farm. Contains Ethel, Noah and Norma Draper; Elva, Will and Merle Mitchel; Laura and Wes Cain.

As you can see, I've added the names on the front of the image so it's easier to make them all out. Also note that Will and Elva's only child (that I can find so far) is Hannah Merle Mitchell who is standing between Laura Linstead Cain and Wesley Cain.

Ida Glover, Florence P Croutch, Mary Glover

Laura Linstead is Ethel's cousin as her mother, Ida Amelia, is sister to Mary Ann Glover who married William David Linstead.

Mary is the Aunt Mary mentioned in several of these letters who was living in Sintaluta, Saskatchewan in 1911, although they had only moved there from the Gwillimbury area in the past few years.

This photo on the right was taken at the Ida Glover & James Nelson house on Baseline Rd, Sutton West sometime in the 1940's. The back of the photo is written in Ethel's handwriting and it is one of the photos she passed on to her daughter, Norma.

Florence P was a mystery to me but after some time spent in research, I believe her to be Florence P Croutch, daughter of John Francis Croutch and Cordelia/Fedelia Cryderman of East Gwillimbury. Florence P is Ethel's 2nd cousin as they share a paternal great-grandfather George Caleb Croutch.

Back of photo of Ida Glover Nelson, Florence P Croutch, Mary Ann Glover Linstead

1911 Courtship: Oct 30, Dear Noah

2/4/2014

c1932 - Miss Hunt at 82 yrs and Cousin Alice

This week we learn the identity of Miss Hunt, a retired teacher according to Ethel's granddaughters, who lived her remaining years with Ethel's parents. The girls showed me Miss Hunt's 1849 Bible which they'd received from their mother, Norma, a daughter of Ethel.

Although Noah & Ethel included Miss Hunt several times in their letters, they never referred to her by a Christian name, so this week's research was discovering the identity and life of Miss Hunt.

A puzzle for another time however, is the woman in this photo with Miss Hunt. The woman is also in the Nelson Family photo below and is simply identified as Cousin Alice in Ethel's handwriting, although after that someone has added Great, Great Cousin. The latter writing looks like Nelson's and probably is because he sat down with his father, Wayne Draper, and looked over the contents of Ethel's Treasure Box when he first inherited it upon his sister Norma's death.

Author of Letter: Ethel Isabell Nelson, age 21 (b 1890)
Dated:  Oct 30th. 1911
Addressed to: Mr. N.C.Draper, Great Coulee, Sask. (should be GRAND Coulee)
Mailed from: Belhaven, P.O.
Relationship:  Courting
Profession:  Farmer's Daughter
Writing instrument: Fine point pen, blue ink - Ethel starts this letter with a light colored ink, but then changes to blue. This is better quality ink than she's been using as it is dry and doesn't smear.
Written on: Off-white, textured, plain, linen-like paper, 9.5 inches x 6.5 inches, folded in half in booklet form and written as 1, 3, 2, 4 although I've set them in order here for legibility.

People/places mentioned in this letter:

- *Sadie - Ethel's 16 yr old sister
- *Christie - Ethel's 11 yr old sister
- the kids - includes Ethel's other siblings: JA (Jay) 3, Emanuel (Manuel) 6
- **Veda - 16 yr old daughter of Noah's sister, Eva and her husband, Joe Perrault
- Pa and Ma - *James H Nelson and *Ida Amelia Glover
- Margaret *Barker - Ethel's maternal aunt
- Uncle Emanuel (newspaper shows Manuel) - Ethel's paternal grand uncle

- **Miss Hunt
- Herb *Winch - neighbor whose little girl received burns from hot ashes/coals
- Orville *King - friend and neighbor who went West for harvest
- Edna *Crowder - friend and neighbor
- Jorden *Crowder (Gordon?) & Miss Little John
- Helen Munro - friend
- Desten *Sheppard - 19 yr old neighbor
- Mr. Stiles

  Places/things mentioned in this letter:
- Sutton - a few miles northeast of Belhaven
- *Toronto - within an hours drive of Belhaven
- *Brandon- where Veda is attending school

Cliche/Phrase
- 'kids' in reference to Ethel's siblings

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

Belhaven, P.O.
Oct 30th. 1911

Mr N.C. Draper.
Great Coulee,
Sask.
My Dear Noah, -
Received your letter
Friday evening and as I always
am. was much pleased to get it.
We are not going up to Sunday School
to-day. it is so awfully windy and I guess
perhaps a little on the lazy side 'eh'
I think maybe we will be able to
get ready in time for church.
Sadie & myself were in to
Mr Herb Winches for a few minutes
last night before going to choir practice
There little girl is getting along
nicely. Well Orville has reached
home at last. but hav'nt had a
talk with him yet. to know how
he likes it out West.

We had the threshermen yesterday
threshing buckwheat and cutting corn.
Sadie & Edna Crowder were to Sutton
yesterday. said they heard that I was
married and living in the West.
Helen Munro was telling them, so of
course when I heard the news. I
congratuled my self imensely.
You ask who I had tea with at the
Social. Desten Sheppard and say what
a time. Suppose you know what a
sport he is.
Good ness me! I thought fruit season
was over long ago. you people out
there must be behind times. fruit
is all gone here unless it is some
grapes and say I had some grapes the
other day that came from a friend
of Miss Hunts in California.

Pa and Ma got ready and went
to Church this morning and it
happened their was'nt any.
Edna Crowder was telling Sadie
yesterday that she thot Jorden was
engaged to a Miss Little John in toronto
She told Sadie she was'nt to tell so you
see she only told me. and so on I am
only telling you. "ha ha" I don't care
how many get married, I've got the
best of them all. Well Noah I
started this letter when the kids where
going to Sunday School and Christie
has just come in now. I have simply
just been sitting here dreaming
writing part of it down and the
rest I am dreaming over it yet I am
a great day dreamer as well as a
night dreamer. I often see you in my
dreams.

I only wish some of them were real,
Herb Winch is here, trying to bother
the kids.
Is Veda's special subject at school
Music. I like you do think that music
is some thing worth while. I often wish
that I had taken more time and so
understood music better, I guess.
I can talk enough Mr Stiles says I
use to be able to talk a wheel of a
wagon. I've never tried it yet. ha ha
Well time seems to be passing
but very slow it seems sometimes
In two more months at the least
I hope to see you, do you think I
will? Well this certainly is a funny
letter. but you can guess my mind
to-day. I am lonesome, just simple
love sick as you may call it.
Must close for this time with lots
of love and xxxx Ethel

Genealogy Notes

Genealogy Note #1 - Veda Josie Perrault Thomson

Veda Thomson

On the right is the only photograph I have of Noah's young niece, Veda Josie Perrault born 1895, who has been mentioned so many times in these Courtship Letters. First, Noah and Ethel were talking about Veda's hands and how she was being treated by x-ray for them, and now about Veda going to school in Brandon, Manitoba. Veda married Leslie Peter Thomson in 1913. This cropped photo is from the Norma Draper Personal Photo Collection and was taken in the late 1960's.

Genealogy Note #1 - Miss HuntMiss Hunt has been mentioned several times in these Courtship Letters:

1911 Courtship: May 21 Dear Ethel - Info and photo
1911 Courtship: May 14 Dear Noah - Uncle Emanuel is very sick. We are afraid he'll not recover. Miss Hunt speaks of you each time I see her.
1911 Courtship: Oct 15 Dear Noah - Uncle Emanuel & Miss Hunt were here last tuesday.
Courtship Letter Special: July 15 From Elva Mitchell - is Uncle better now. is Miss Hunt married yet.

Prior to this week's research, this was all I knew of Miss Hunt:
- the 1911 Canada Census shows Miss Hunt working as a domestic for Emanuel Nelson. Uncle Emanuel is the brother of Henry Nelson, Ethel's paternal grandfather who died in 1900 down in Iowa.
- that Miss Hunt was included in a family photo because she lived with Ethel's parents.

Back in August when I visited Norma's girls, they'd lent me Ethel and Norma's photo albums to scan. Upon my return to Grand Coulee after digitizing all the images and information, Norma's girls bestowed Miss Hunt's Bible in my care to be kept with Ethel's Treasure Box.

Miss Hunt's 1849 Bible included a marriage record and birth information for the Joseph Joshua Hunt and Emily Lundy and Family. And that's where my search for Miss Hunt began.

Hunt Family as recorded in their 1849 Bible

Joseph J. Hunt and Emily Lundy were married by
Rev'd Edmund Sheperd, August 27th 1839

Joseph Joshua Hunt Born Carlton Nottinghamshire, England
April 19th 1815
Emily Hunt Born the township of Windham, London District,
Canada West, December 31st 1818

George Lundy Hunt
Maria Jane Hunt
Margaret Ann Hunt
Ann Eliza Hunt

Whitchurch, CW. April 26th. 1841 Whitchurch, Dec'r 12th. 1842
East Gwillimbury, Jan'y 5th. 1847
East Gwillimbury, Feb'y 4th. 1849

Starting at the bottom, I added Ann Eliza Hunt's information to the ancestry.com search box and received hints for dozens of females named Ann Hunt, Annie Hunt, Eliza Hunt, Elizabeth Hunt, etc as both maiden and married names. For the location, most said York County but when I checked them, they were for the city of York - the old name for Toronto - instead of the rural areas of York County.
I tried searching for Lundy but there were dozens of hits and none were names I recognized.

My next step was to see if there were any newspaper items such as birth, wedding, and death announcements, so I pulled up the Newmarket Era and typed Lundy with the same results as above. Finally, I put Hunt into the search box although I didn't have much hope. Sure enough, hundreds of hits popped up for Hunt, Huntley, Hunter, and all other names with those letters. Included in the hits was everything I wanted to know about hunting like who was hunting, what was hunted, and when were they doing it. And back then, many if not most people hunted for their food.

Finally, I pulled up the free www.familysearch.org site. I've used this a few times before when I was stymied, but not often because it only gives a name or two and not all the records that you find on www.ancestry.com (which is where your membership fees go). However, in this case, all I needed was a name confirmation and hopefully a death date.

On the Family Search site, it's easy to get overwhelmed with lists of names, so I only typed in Ann Eliza Hunt with North Gwillimbury for the location since that's where the Nelsons lived. And then I clicked Death as my search filter.

I couldn't believe it when Eliza Anna Hunt showed up on the first page with the parents as Joshua Hunt and Emily Lundy thereby confirming I had the right person! I clicked the link to pull up the record and there it was - Ann Eliza died in North Gwillimbury on 23 Feb 1934. That date is consistent with the Nelson Family photo which was taken in 1932.

I now had a name, location, and enough vital statistics to kick the ancestry system into gear and start giving me some hints to relevant records.

I started searching the parents' census records and discovered that Miss Hunt was known as E. Annie and or just Annie and that she lived with her parents in Aurora until 1881 at which time she was 32 yrs old without an occupation listed. Here's what follows:

1881 - No further information found on mother, Emily Lundy after this census
1884 - Death of father, Joseph Joshua Hunt
1891 - No census record found for Miss Hunt
1901 - No occupation listed; Living with Uncle Horace & Aunt Kate Lundy, Aurora
1911 - Working as a Domestic for widower, Emanuel Nelson, North Gwillimbury
1913 - Emanuel dies in April and in June, Miss Hunt goes to stay with Maggie Barker

The Newmarket Era. April 4, 1913

The Newmarket Era. April 18, 1913

The Newmarket Era. June 13, 1913

1921 - Miss Hunt, 72, is living with her widowed sister, Margaret, 74, in Toronto
1932 - Miss Hunt is living with Ethel's parents, James and Ida Nelson

The Nelson Family c1932, (L to R back) Leona Thompson, Christie Nelson, James A Nelson, Emanuel Nelson and wife Vera May Horner, Cousin Alice ?, Miss Hunt, Ida Amelia Glover and James Henry Nelson; (L to R front row) Frank Thompson, Leeland Nelson, Glenna Nelson, Clifford Thompson, Benny Thompson

The above photo of the Nelson family looks like it was taken at the house Ethel grew up in just south of Belhaven on Concession 5, but around that time her father was building a new house on the Baseline, Sutton West. Since I have over a dozen photos taken on that day, I'm wondering if this was a celebration for the 'big move'. Only James and Ida moved to the new house along with Miss Hunt, and also Ethel when she visited during the winters. The house was left to JA (James A) who married Leona in Feb 1933 and raised their family there.

Feb 23, 1934 - Miss Hunt dies and the newspapers report:

Newmarket Era, 2 Mar 1934, Page 4

Newmarket Era, 2 Mar 1934, page 8

And there you have the story of Miss Hunt which will be typed up and placed in her Bible near the Family Record page for when her Bible is passed on to the next generation.

<<Previous

1912: Letter Fm Hester Soules Prosser

Genealogy Notes

Feb 1912: Noah's Cousin, Edith Draper

1911 Courtship Special: Letter from Noah's Mother

Genealogy Notes

1911 Courtship Letter: Nov 12 Dear Noah

Genealogy Notes

1911 Courtship: Oct 30, Dear Noah

Genealogy Notes

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