Today I was looking for something on the Internet I came across something that just baffled the mind.Who knew fifty years later old social columns would be posted on line.Obviously someone who was into genealogy ,or had way too much time on their hands has posted years and years of pages of a small local paper we had back in the Eastern Townships in Quebec, Canada called The News and Eastern Townships Advocate.
Most newspapers had a column for residents to submit local news that might be of interest to others. This would often include such tidbits on area residents as birthday announcements, illnesses, job promotions, wedding announcements, visitors to the community, and other news of a more personal nature like who was where and when and why.To sum it all up it gave people something to talk about from week to week.
Today, I was mesmerized and read years of the paper on line.
I even verified today that I had graduated from Grade 3.There it was in bold print and I jumped up and down and exclaimed,
“Look I graduated from Grade 3 !!”
“There is my name !! ”
Of course other names of fellow students were there and I remembered each one as I read their names.Dickie Miner will always be the kid I remember the most with the flaming red hair that was sheared into a Mohawk as he loved the wrestler LITTLE BEAVER.Of course he had to be escorted to school most times by his father as the kids made so much fun of him.:)Or Bobby Perkins the smart kid.Or Arnel Williams (changed the name to protect him hahah) the kid that never took a bath and was a dead ringer for Pigpen from Peanuts.
What also caught my eyes from the social column from the late 50’s paper were the following words:
“Mr and Mrs Arthur Knight with their little girls, Linda and Robin spent a weeks holiday in Montreal.”
Me, being Linda, marvel at age 57 that I was formerly “little”.Seems like it never happened and every day when more things fall apart on me like in the movie Death Becomes Her ,it feels like it might be someone else.Seeing my parents nor Robin are no longer here,I wonder if they existed too sometimes.What the paper never stated was my mother was in the Darlington Rehabilitation Centre for years and years and we were probably in Montreal staying with my grandfather while she was under going some new process trying to get her to walk again.She became paralyzed from the waist down one New Years Eve and never walked again.No matter what great master mind they brought in, they were just baffled at her condition.She died at age 34 with a listed “heart attack” as the cause of death as they didn’t want us to have to explain that no one knew what she died from.
The mystery was solved when my sister died in 1997 at age 40.It was finally pieced together that my mother had lymphoma on the spine and my sister died from lymphoma also.It is hard to detect now. so in the 50’s and 60’s they had no clue what they were dealing with.So yes, little Linda and Robin vacationed in Montreal.They vacationed in the hospital all that week and sat on chairs for a very long time waiting for my mother to come down as anyone under the age of 16 was not allowed anywhere above the reception area.
There was a full article about the wedding shower of our next door neighbour Verna Wilson.It explained in detail about each gift and how people fawned over the hand painted glasses and other things.I had watched my mother a talented pianist and artist meticulously paint each glass and each one was a work of art.I had not thought about them until I read about it today.Of course it was mentioned that her dog Tippy and her bird Budge had given her a china puppy.I remember the puppy well,I broke it during the party.Of course that was never mentioned..:)
Then I read about how The Brownies closed their season of 1959 with a doll exhibition at the church hall.If you remember I have written about the doll show and how I was ratted on by Mrs Wilson,same mother of the bride mentioned above that my mother had mostly sewn the dress for my Miss Revlon doll.Needless to say the paper said that Judy Clough and Linda Lee Pratt won out of the 30 entries.There was a picture of each girl with their doll and I learned a lesson that day to finish what you start.What I most remember about that day (and was in the adjoining article) was my father being amazed that television signals were finally coming from Newfoundland to Nova Scotia and my father said that he hoped the residents of Newfoundland would be able to see the Queen’s address on Christmas Day. God Bless the Queen..:)He was telling us that ( or yelling it) as he was standing precariously on the peak of the roof of the house installing a TV Antenna with the neighbour screaming at him that he was going to break a leg.
On January 21st 1959 it was written in The Advocate that my mother had a shower for Mrs Wilson’s daughter in law.Elaborate adjectives were used for all the decorations my mother made and there was a complete list of all the women that attended.Every mother of every childhood friend I ever had was listed.Of course there was a parasol cake.If I remember correctly the “cakes du jour” were either a parasol or a swan.There was either one or the other at every party as Woman’s Day Magazine had probably had a picture essay on how to do it at some point.
It was also mentioned that all the ladies were all accompanied by their children for whom entertainment was arranged.Yes it was Sparkey the Clown from the local Legion.Sparkey liked to have a good time and alcohol and smoking were his perks.If I remember correctly one of the fancy paper table cloths caught on fire when Sparkey tried to hide a cigarette under the table.My father was summoned from his business and I don’t believe Sparky ever appeared again outside Legion functions.
I could go on and on about all the comings and goings,but my favourite entry on July 9th ,1959 was:
Mr and Mrs Murray Wallet and their children Sheila and Gary spent a week at their summer cottage in Iron Hill.
This is what I will always remember until the day I die.Their cottage standing there in all it’s glory hidden partially by the lilac trees and there isn’t a week that does not go by that I don’t think of it.
Wonderful memories of walking along the stream that came down from the top of the mountain and the abandoned shack that stood beside it up the road.Their swimming hole that was more a mud hole and how we made evening gloves on our arms with the mud while we swam.
Toasting marshmallows and hot dogs in a bonfire by the stream late at night while the fireflies buzzed around us.Having to shake the hose that ran up the hill to the underground water source when the water flow slowed and unsure if a bear was going to pop out..:) Well ,that was what her Dad kept telling me..:) Finally sitting inside sipping cocoa and laughing at stories while the rain pounded on the tin roof.
So the Social Columns of days gone by did give some details of what went on in their towns and now it seems to be documented for life.But, it never told the full story and as my favourite late story teller Paul Harvey said,
“and now you know the rest of the story”
Linda Seccaspina
Savannah Devilles
Shopping cart :
My grandmother once told me that if you did not talk to people you would never learn anything.She was totally right and that is why I will forever be…..
