Family and Community Life in Northeastern Ontario: The Interwar Years 9780773576148

Table of contents :
Contents
Tables, Maps, and Figures
Illustrations
Acknowledgments
Introduction
1 Population Origins and Growth
2 Family Life and Household Economy in Town and Country
3 Family Celebrations and Domestic Occasions
4 Rite-of-Passage Rituals
5 Building Communities of Faith
6 The Elementary School Experience
7 “Delayed Responsibility”: High School and Normal School
8 Community Recreation and Leisure
9 Community Building through Sports
10 Community Celebrations
Conclusion
Notes
Bibliography
Index
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D
E
F
G
H
I
J
K
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M
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Citation preview

Family and Community Life in Northeastern Ontario

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Family and Community Life in Northeastern Ontario The Interwar Years françoise noël

McGill-Queen’s University Press Montreal & Kingston London Ithaca G

G

© McGill-Queen’s University Press 2009 isbn 978-0-7735-3591-6 (cloth) isbn 978-0-7735-3592-3 (paper) Legal deposit fourth quarter 2009 Bibliothèque nationale du Québec Printed in Canada on acid-free paper that is 100% ancient forest free (100% post-consumer recycled), processed chlorine free This book has been published with the help of a grant from the Canadian Federation for the Humanities and Social Sciences, through the Aid to Scholarly Publications Programme, using funds provided by the Social Sciences and Humanities Research Council of Canada. Funding has also been received from Nipissing University. McGill-Queen’s University Press acknowledges the support of the Canada Council for the Arts for our publishing program. We also acknowledge the financial support of the Government of Canada through the Book Publishing Industry Development Program (bpidp) for our publishing activities. Library and Archives Canada Cataloguing in Publication Noël, Françoise, 1952– Family and community life in northeastern Ontario : the interwar years / Françoise Noël. Includes bibliographical references and index. isbn 978-0-7735-3591-6 (bnd) isbn 978-0-7735-3592-3 (pbk) 1. Family – Ontario, Northern – History – 20th century. 2. Community life – Ontario, Northern – History – 20th century. 3. Ontario, Northern – Social life and customs – 20th century. I. Title. hn110.o5n64 2009

306.8'50971313

c2009-902248-6

Typeset by Jay Tee Graphics Ltd. in 10.5/13 Palatino

To the memory of Robert J. (Bob) Surtees

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Contents

Tables, Maps, and Figures Illustrations

xi

Acknowledgments Introduction

ix

xiii

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1 Population Origins and Growth

14

2 Family Life and Household Economy in Town and Country 3 Family Celebrations and Domestic Occasions 4 Rite-of-Passage Rituals

65

83

5 Building Communities of Faith

104

6 The Elementary School Experience

134

7 “Delayed Responsibility”: High School and Normal School 8 Community Recreation and Leisure 9 Community Building through Sports 10 Community Celebrations Conclusion Notes

257

Bibliography Index

253

333

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35

229

179 206

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and Figures

Tables, Maps, and Figures

tables 1.1: 1.2: 1.3:

Population of the study area, 1881–1941 17 Birth place of the population of the study area in 1901 23 Population of the study area by ethnicity and religion in 1901 27 1.4: Birth place of the population in North Bay, 1911 29 1.5: Languages commonly spoken, North Bay, 1911 29 1.6: Religion of the population, North Bay, 1911 30 1.7: Ethnicity of the population of North Bay, 1921–41 30 1.8: Religion of the population of North Bay, 1921–41 31 1.9: Ethnicity of the population in the study area in 1941 32 1.10: Religion of the population in the study area in 1941 33 6.1: Population over 5 who cannot read and write in Nipissing District, 1931 138 6.2: Schools in the study area, 1920, 1927, and 1935 140 6.3: Average values for primary schools in the study area in 1935 140 6.4: Type of certificates held by teachers in the study area, 1935 141 7.1: Students (%) in school by age group, Canada and Ontario, 1931 157 7.2: Gender and origin of students attending North Bay Composite High School in 1930–31 158 7.3: Teachers at North Bay Collegiate 1925 173 7.4: Vocational school teachers at nbc&vs, 1935 174

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7.5: 8.1: 8.2: 8.3:

Tables, Maps, and Figures

Staff at the Normal School, 1920 177 Types of voluntary associations in North Bay, 1920–35 183 Community dinners held in North Bay, 1925 185 Community dinners for over 100 people held in North Bay in 1935 187

maps 1.1: 1.2: 1.3:

The study area 15 City of North Bay, core area, ca. 1930 20 Ethnic origin of the population, 1901 26

figures 1.1 7.1 7.2

Birthplace of railway and other workers, North Bay, 1911 Attendance at North Bay Normal School, 1909–59 160 Average salaries at North Bay Collegiate/nbc&vi, 1925, 1935 175

28

Illustrations

Ferris pioneer, Mr Birch, ca. 1920 24 House on Second Avenue 41 The Milne House, North Bay 49 Informal playing spaces 55 Boys playing 56 Farm work with children watching 61 Farm children with a violin 63 Théophile Gauthier with family members 63 Children in Halloween costumes 79 Halloween party 80 Frank Scappatura in a baptismal cape 85 Frances Scappatura, First Communion portrait, ca. 1930 86 Confirmation group photo 87 Hooey family wedding photo, 1929 90 Floral tributes, Anthony Scappatura 101 Headstone for Duncan [Yung] 102 Pro-Cathedral of the Assumption, North Bay 106 Window, Pro-Cathedral of the Assumption 107 Church pews, Chisholm United Church 110 St Margaret’s Anglican Church, Rutherglen 111 St John the Divine Anglican Church, North Bay 112 Ste Philomène Catholic Church, Bonfield 115 St Louis de France Catholic Church, Chisholm Township 116 Banner, St Louis de France 117 Steeple, Grand Désert Church 118

xii

Illustrations

North Bay churches in 1925 121 Rural school children, ca. 1930 139 Rural and urban primary schools 144 Student nativity scene, ca. 1931 152–3 Graduation, St Joseph’s Academy, 1939 168 North Bay Collegiate Institute, ca. 1915 172 The Ezylyfe Canoe Club, ca. 1924 192 Trinity Young People’s Society, Cast, 1933 196 E. Virgili’s Premier Band, ca. 1926 198 act Boys Band, ca. 1935 200 The Golf Club, North Bay 209 The North Bay Garage Hockey Team, 1935 222 Old Home Week 1925, button 241 Old Home Week 1935, invitation envelope 242 Main Street, North Bay, ca. 1920 245

ents

Acknowledgments

The writing of a book such as this would not have been possible without the help and co-operation of a large number of people in the local community. I am grateful to all those who helped me in any way, although it is impossible to name each one. I am particularly grateful to the many individuals and couples who agreed to be interviewed for this project. While they often felt they had little to offer, their stories add a great deal to our knowledge of their communities. While I was not able to use a small number of interviews that did not fall into the time period or study area I finally decided upon, those interviews were also useful in providing me with local context. I would also like to thank those who suggested suitable interviewees, and particularly Claudette DesRoches who was instrumental in persuading people in the Mattawa area to agree to an interview. The Rev. Dr Wayne Short at St John’s, Rev. Kathy McCallum at Trinity and Rev. Jane Howe at St Andrew’s gave me full access to their church archives. They and Rev. Dave Tramontini at Pro-Cathedral also allowed me to take photographs of the interior of their churches, themselves an archive of family involvement in the community. For help finding or for arranging access to other sources I would like to thank Ed Driedger at Discovery North Bay, Sharon Clark-Berard at the North Bay Chamber of Commerce, the North Bay Public Library, Stephen Tomlinson, Julie Champagne, Lisa Demarco, and Paul Trussler. Nestor Prisco, Doug Mackey, and Wayne Lebelle were generous in sharing their knowledge of the local community with me. I would also like to pay special tribute to the members of the Nipissing Branch of the Ontario Genealogical Society, who devote much effort to the collection and dissemination of local historical information.

xiv

Acknowledgments

The research for this book benefited from a grant from the Social Sciences and Humanities Research Council for which I am most grateful, as I am for the comments of their reviewers. Nipissing University provided me with a sabbatical leave to do research. The Nipissing University Research Award funded by nufa has been used to defray some of the publication expenses. The Research Office and the Department of History at Nipissing University have also assisted in that regard. A number of student assistants helped move the research for this study forward more quickly than I could have on my own. I would like to recognize most particularly the efforts of Rob Shields, Emily Weiskopf, Heather Barkey-Laing, Christine Orlando, Graham Fix, and Theresa Parisee. I have also benefited from the work of the students in my community history seminar, particularly that of Amy Toms and Natalie Priest. My colleagues here and elsewhere, Steve High, Martha Gould, Katrina Srigley, and Danielle Coulombe, offered advice and suggestions. The anonymous readers for McGill-Queen’s University Press were particularly helpful with regard to navigating the fine line between local and micro-history. Qingyuan (Chin) Xue helped with the study area maps. The staff at McGill-Queen’s have been wonderful to work with. I would especially like to thank Jonathan Crago for his timely suggestions and Joan McGilvray for her oversight of this project. Special thanks also to Bernard Rochefort for the cover art. To my greatest supporter, my husband, Stephen Tomlinson, thank you.

Family and Community Life in Northeastern Ontario

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mmunity Life in Northeastern Ontario

Introduction

This study examines family and community life during the interwar years in a small section of Northeastern Ontario that stretches from Mattawa at the confluence of the Ottawa and the Mattawa rivers to the shores of Lake Nipissing at North Bay. A small segment of the well-travelled route from Lachine to the Great Lakes, this territory was traversed by Samuel de Champlain in 1615 and by many others – missionaries, voyageurs, explorers, and travellers – during the fur trade era. When the economy shifted to lumber, it became part of the vast forest resources tapped by the lumbermen of the Ottawa Valley, including J.R. Booth. Settlers of both Irish and French Canadian origin moved into the area as a result. When Canada was formed and national ambition required joining sea to sea, and when Ontario dreamed of agricultural settlement in the Great Clay Belt to rival the territories in the West, railways replaced water routes and became the chief means of transportation to New Ontario and beyond. At that point, this narrow stretch of territory between the Ottawa and Lake Nipissing, both waterways not easily bridged, became the logical route for travel between southern and northern Ontario and for railways heading west along the Ottawa. Within a few years of the construction of the Canadian Pacific Railway (cpr) in 1882, the Grand Trunk and the Temiskaming and Northern Ontario Railway (t&no) converged at the shore of Lake Nipissing where the cpr had established a divisional point. The new settlement that emerged there was called North Bay. The discovery of silver at Cobalt and the development of New Ontario brought many more settlers to the area, most of them migrants from Old Ontario. North Bay claimed the title of

4

Family and Community Life in Northeastern Ontario

“Gateway to the North” and quickly surpassed the much older settlement of Mattawa in population. In 1925 it became a city. This study area includes three urban municipalities and six townships. While it is entirely in Ontario, its position on the boundary of the zones of influence of Quebec and Ontario in terms of both settlement and Catholic jurisdiction subjected it to conflict with Catholic hierarchy for control of the Ottawa Valley (up to but not including North Bay) and the entire region to the north. In the end, Ontario clerics were never successful at wresting this area away from the control of Quebec and it remained in the Archdiocese of Ottawa, which included both sides of the Ottawa River. This conflict was a confrontation of two very different world views. Ontario bishops, led by Archbishop Lynch of Toronto, saw Ontario as a zone of English settlement where settlers of other origins would all become assimilated and speak English; French Canadian bishops saw the Ottawa Valley as a natural zone for French Canadian settlement and an important alternative to potential out-migration to New England. They worried about the fate of French Canadian settlers if they were to fall under the jurisdiction of the Ontario bishops, and therefore chose to maintain the connection between the Diocese of Ottawa and the Quebec church rather than allow the area to fall under the jurisdiction of the Ontario church. Later subdivisions of this territory kept the area to the east of North Bay under the protection of the French Canadian hierarchy, eventually in the Diocese of Pembroke, but placed North Bay and the area to the west under the jurisdiction of Ontario clerics who shared Archbishop Lynch’s world view, first in the Diocese of Peterborough, and later, in that of Sault Ste Marie. This territorial conflict affected only Catholics, but Ontario Protestants were even more hostile to French Canadian expansion into Ontario than their Catholic counterparts, and on this question, Ontario Catholics joined forces with their Protestant counterparts.1 The French Canadian and English Canadian communities that emerged in this area could not help but be affected by this struggle and the world views that supported it. While there have been various degrees of interaction between North Bay and the population in the townships to the east, for this and other reasons the area examined here does not constitute an economic or social “region.”2 The term “study area” is therefore used throughout rather than region. The first chapter of this study, which examines the settlement of the study area and the origins and growth of the population as revealed by both

Introduction

5

manuscript and published census data, provides essential context for the study of family and community life that follows. The history of the Canadian family in the twentieth century has focused largely on childhood, motherhood, fatherhood, divorce, marriage, the relationship of the family to the state and the gender division of labour in the home.3 Very seldom do individual families receive attention from historians. One twentieth-century Canadian family, however, stands out as an exception. Oliva and Elzire Dionne and their six children were just one of many French Canadian farm families facing the difficulties of the Depression in the township of Ferris near Corbeil – until 28 May 1934. When Elzire Dionne gave birth naturally to five identical girls that day, the family’s life was entirely changed. All five survived, and the “Dionne quints” became a tourist attraction of the first order even before they were a year old. They were made wards of the state and separated from their family until the age of nine. When the parents turned to French Canadian political organizations for support in their attempt to regain control of their children, their struggle was transformed into another battle between French and English Canada.4 It also became a clash between “modern” experts in child-rearing and “traditional” ways of doing things,5 and their reunion in a new “Big House” was far from successful.6 It is impossible to study the interwar years in this area without reference to the Dionne family, as “Quintland” had a tremendous economic impact on the area, and almost everyone who lived nearby was personally touched by this event, if only by making the same pilgrimage to visit the “Quints” as millions of tourists. Family rituals and celebrations have received considerable attention among historians of the United States who have studied the rise of the “domestic occasion” and the Victorian sentimentalization of holidays such as Christmas and Thanksgiving.7 These, however, have seldom been studied in the Canadian context.8 This study, based particularly on Elizabeth Pleck’s, Celebrating the Family, addresses this significant gap in the Canadian literature. Pleck defines a family ritual as “a highly stylized cultural performance involving several family members that is repeated, has a formal structure, and involves symbolic behaviour (gestures; highly scripted or repeated words, such as ‘I do’ in a wedding and ‘Dayenu’ in the Passover seder; or actions).”9 As she points out, however, the term can apply to very elaborate events and to simple rituals such as the reading of bedtime stories. Unlike anthropologists, Pleck also uses the terms ritual, rite,

6

Family and Community Life in Northeastern Ontario

ceremony, celebration, and occasion synonymously.10 The family, particularly through its rituals, played an important role in maintaining cultural traditions and creating in its members a sense of ethnic (or religious) identity. While oral histories indicate some of the cultural borrowing and the loss of tradition that took place in new settings, my concern here is more with the family’s role in maintaining community boundaries than with what sociologists would view as “assimilation.” The loss of certain traditions does not necessarily imply that community boundaries were not being maintained. Conversely, as Herbert Gans has pointed out, third and fourth generation ethnic groups, while largely integrated into the dominant community, could still maintain certain ethnic rituals as a sign of their “symbolic ethnicity.”11 The celebration of holidays in schools, both public and Catholic,12 is of particular interest because of the expectation in Canada at the time that schools would play a significant role in the assimilation of the non-English population. Separate schools could also reinforce ethno-religious group identity, however, as they were often closely linked to a particular parish. According to Pleck, the reinvention of holidays as domestic occasions that celebrated home and family and put an emphasis on consumption in order to display a family’s status and wealth took place in the period from 1820 to 1890, beginning with the middle classes and slowly diffusing to the masses. These occasions replaced or tamed earlier more carnivalesque holiday celebrations. Into the twentieth century, and especially after the 1970s, a postsentimental attitude toward family rituals emerged, which questioned the excesses of the sentimental occasion and was more reflective of “family diversity as well as ethnic and racial pluralism.”13 The evidence from my study area does not always fit this timeframe. In rural areas many holidays continued to be celebrated more as community events than as family occasions in the interwar period. The same was also true of funerals. This difference does not refute Pleck’s timeframe so much as suggest that the diffusion to the “masses” could take longer in some places. Much of the information about family life in this study is based on life stories gathered through interviews with persons who grew up in the study area in the 1920s and 1930s. Interview candidates were found through contacts in the community, and a conscious effort was made to interview persons from a variety of ethnic groups and from North Bay, Mattawa, and the rural countryside. The interviews included persons in the Catholic, Protestant, Jewish, and Greek

Introduction

7

Orthodox religious traditions, and of French, Greek, Italian, and British descent. Conducted as full life-course interviews, they are particularly rich with respect to family life while growing up, attending school, and early work life. Although we asked specific questions about holidays, family rituals, daily life, and school experiences, these questions were open-ended and interviewees were invited to tell their story in their own way in their own homes. Most interviews lasted about two hours and were recorded using video or audio tapes. Our evidence on family life therefore depends heavily on the childhood recollections of adults in their mid-seventies to their late-eighties. Neil Sutherland has raised the question of the validity of adult recollections in the study of childhood. As he points out, memory is fallible and we need to be as sceptical of childhood memories as of any others. In addition, each life story is told or written from the perspective of the present and at each new life stage people reorder their past. Memories can only be reconstructions rather than reproductions of original events. After a stage called “life review” by psychologists, some people will be more willing to tell their story without concern for social norms; others will see the past “through a golden haze” and omit references to, or change, the unpleasant or shameful things in their lives. Despite these valid concerns, Sutherland argues, recollections in the form of oral histories are no different from recollections found in other historical sources. Furthermore, recurrent activities are more readily remembered because they have become “scripts” or mental representations. “Thus, although people cannot recall any particular morning, they find it relatively easy to remember the breakfast routines and other family scripts of their childhood. They can describe in what way Saturday and Sunday scripts differed from weekday ones.” While there are also personal scripts, and each story is unique, Sutherland points out that common patterns emerge from among the many scripts that make up the daily, weekly, and seasonal routines of children’s lives. Oral histories also have the practical advantage of providing historians with information about the great majority of people who do not write down their memories.14 These practical considerations were a major factor in the decision to use oral histories for this study, as there are no existing archival collections of private papers touching on family life in this area. The number of interviews conducted for the major groups was sufficient that new interviews tended to confirm previously established patterns rather than produce major new information.15 For smaller groups (the

8

Family and Community Life in Northeastern Ontario

Jewish and Greek communities), however, the interviews were conducted so as to elicit information about the community as well as the individual, as it was only possible to find one or two people to represent such groups. Attempts to find a representative interviewee from the Aboriginal population were unsuccessful.16 While oral histories provide much information that cannot be obtained elsewhere, they need to be used in conjunction with other sources wherever possible. The most important supplementary source used for this study was the local newspaper, The Nugget. Originally based in Cobalt and published as a daily during the silver boom, it moved to North Bay in 1921. It did not do well as a daily in North Bay, and when William Edge Mason, a printer, purchased it in 1922, he reduced it to a bi-weekly paper (Tuesday and Friday). In the 1930s it came out on Monday, Wednesday, and Friday. It retained some aspects of a daily paper but also resembled a traditional weekly, with many district correspondents who reported on the local news from a wide area.17 In order to deal with the large amount of local information this represented, it was necessary to narrow down the sample. In the end, the sample consisted of all papers published for two full years, rather than a selection of more sporadic samples from every year. I chose 1925 because it was the year that North Bay became a city and celebrated its first Old Home Week (ohw), a major community celebration that brought many Old Timers back to North Bay. It is considered in some detail in chapter 10. A second ohw in 1935 was also of interest, and since a year in the middle of the depression promised to be more revealing than one at the very beginning or end, the choice of 1935 as the second year to be examined seemed evident. I summarized all the articles on local events into a database for both chosen years, but included the “personals” only from 1935. Only some weddings and funerals were included (more information on these was obtained later), and advertisements and references to theatre shows were included only sporadically. Club events were part of the local news in 1925 but separate in 1935. Items that repeated information about an upcoming event were sometimes omitted. I chose this sampling method over others because it provided the best in-depth view of the seasonal rhythm of community events.18 This approach also had the great advantage of allowing an authoritative account about what was occurring – or at least what the newspaper reported on – in the years examined. The seasonal round of local church activities in chapter 5 is an example of how this was used. As

Introduction

9

there was definitely a bias in favour of the mainstream denominations, other forms of sampling could easily have missed the few articles on the other groups. The disadvantage is that some major events that fell in other years risked being missed. I compensated for this in part by using local history sources19 to find references to noteworthy events that occurred in other years, and then researched them individually. The Rinkey Dinks’ Provincial Championship victory of 1929 examined in chapter 9 is a case in point. Family life was lived, not in isolation, but in a community context, and historical studies of community in twentieth century Canada have varied considerably. Some historians have focused on the development of a particular place and examined the interplay of all the various social groups present within a broad definition of community.20 Others have looked at ethnic communities.21 Studies of rural communities, however, are not as numerous.22 Rather than focusing on a particular town or city community, this study uses “community” as a lens through which to study daily life just beyond the boundaries of family in a study area that includes both rural and urban places. This concept of community is defined by Cohen in The Symbolic Construction of Community as “that entity to which one belongs, greater than kinship but more immediately than the abstraction we call ‘society.’ It is the arena in which people acquire their most fundamental and most substantial experience of social life outside the confines of the home.”23 In chapters 5 to 10, the focus is on churches, schools, community halls, parks, rinks, and the streets, the arenas in which community life was played out. Within a particular community, social interaction is easier than outside that community because of shared beliefs that are often expressed through symbol and ritual. The boundaries of community, Cohen points out, are maintained through the manipulation of symbols which, because they can mean different things to different people, provide for a certain amount of flexibility. Certainly community is not static, but a social process, as John Walsh and Steven High have suggested.24 In an area of relatively new settlement such as that studied here, a number of factors influenced the nature and number of communities that were established. By the interwar years most ethno-religious groups of more than a few individuals formed a community and had their own organizations, but the extent of their “institutional completeness” varied. Some of these communities would later almost disappear, while others remained strong. This examination of community life in the interwar years

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Family and Community Life in Northeastern Ontario

sheds light on the interaction of the various communities that co-existed in the same physical space and the extent to which community boundaries were fluid. While others might examine these social processes through the framework of assimilation, secularization, or modernization, here they are examined using the lens of community. While not everyone attended a church or synagogue, these were important cultural and social as well as religious institutions during the interwar years.25 At the local level, the congregation was probably the most important community that many individuals belonged to. The ethnic homogeneity of most congregations facilitated the emergence of community, as did the many social activities sponsored by congregations. Chapter 5 summarizes the establishment of communities of faith in the study area in the early years and examines their concerns and activities in the interwar years, as gleaned from childhood memories, newspaper accounts, and local histories. The recreational activities they provided are examined together with those provided by other voluntary groups in chapter 8. Primary schools were the first major community arena to which children were exposed outside of the protective zone of their neighbourhood and family. Schools sometimes acted as community institutions to reinforce the existing cultural and religious identity of their students. They could also be an instrument of assimilation or cultural hegemony by a dominant group. Parental expectations had much to do with whether schools became a contested terrain. Italian children had to learn English in school, but as this was expected by the parents, no conflict resulted. The much-contested prohibition against the use of French in Ontario schools in 1912 (Regulation 17), had it been enforced, would have turned primary schools into agents of assimilation aimed at the French Canadian population. In our study area, however, it seems that Regulation 17 was almost impossible to enforce, and after 1927 there was no further attempt to do so. Many of the schools in the study area were in fact very supportive of the French Canadian community. Separate schools, French, English, or bilingual, supported the Catholic communities of the area and helped them to maintain their boundaries. In the townships with large French Canadian and Irish Catholic populations, separate schools were established as a matter of course at the time of settlement. In North Bay separating school children along the lines of language and religion was far more important to parents than to children, whose neighbourhood friendships were interrupted by such divisions. On

Introduction

11

the basis of childhood memories and other sources such as Schools and Teachers,26 the varied nature of primary schools, their teachers, and the school experiences of children in this study area are explored in chapter 6. As the number of students who attended high school increased in the 1920s, the high school became the “central institution of modern adolescence.”27 Attendance was still far from universal, however, and since many students in rural areas never attended school beyond grade eight, high school was largely an urban experience. High schools, with their school teams, yearbooks, and school colours, excelled at creating a new community from their diverse student populations. For this reason, public high schools with mixed populations could be seen as threats to communities trying to maintain their identity and community boundaries. Ontario Catholics in particular were concerned and sought to extend public funding for separate schools to high schools, with no success. North Bay had private English Catholic high schools but members of the French Catholic community had to send their children to boarding schools or English high schools – or not send them to high school at all. Thus high school experiences varied considerably from one community to another. The North Bay Normal School provided a one-year program of teacher training after high school for students the same age as high school students, and many of their extra-curricular activities were integrated. In Chapter 7 we examine these schools, their teachers and curricula, and the experience of both high school and normal school students. Recreation and leisure activities became an increasingly important component of middle-class, and later, working-class life in the nineteenth and twentieth centuries. As a growing number of commercial leisure activities such as movies, amusement parks, and dance halls emerged in urban areas, the ability of parents or churches to control the leisure activities of young people and adults alike was seriously challenged. Denyse Baillargeon found, for example, that young adults in working class Montreal attended movies, dance halls, skating rinks, and amusement parks even against the specific dictates of the church.28 Kathy Peiss has shown the great attraction such forms of entertainment held for young women in her study of New York.29 While attempts to curb male sporting culture in the nineteenth and early twentieth century had been partially successful, commercialized leisure activities were not so easily defeated. Fewer were available in smaller cities and the countryside than in larger cities,

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Family and Community Life in Northeastern Ontario

however. What, then, did people do with their free time? Did they, as we are often told about the Depression years, make their own fun? The last three chapters of this study address these questions by looking at the available recreational activities, sports, and holiday celebrations, including two important community festivals, the North Bay Old Home Week (ohw) celebrations of 1925 and 1935. Historians as well as anthropologists and sociologists agree that the study of leisure, especially holidays, celebrations, and community festivals, can provide key insights into the structure and values of a community.30 Keith Walden argues: “Leisure was central to the practices and structures through which groups defined their existence, constructed interpretations of the ‘proper,’ and tried to impose more widely their own particular values. Entertainment embodied power and therefore produced contestation.”31 While the extent of participation in leisure activities based on class, ethnicity, and gender is not known, the dominance of “respectable” forms of leisure in the public record and the role of voluntary associations in providing these for the community is evident. This study uses a microhistory approach to focus on a small area of northeastern Ontario, and recreates the nature of family and community life during the interwar years through detail gathered from oral and other sources. Such a detailed exploration of family and community life is only possible at the level of the local. Despite this, academic historians find it difficult to be taken seriously when their focus is local, and micro-histories are judged by the extent to which they contribute to an understanding of the larger society. As Sigurdur Magnusson has pointed out, without links from the local and the particular to larger meta-narratives, most historians would contend that the line into “anecdotal antiquarianism” has been crossed.32 He argues that an opportunity for a truly bottom-up social history has been lost as a result. The local serves here as a window into the nature of family and community life during the interwar years beyond the large urban centres that have more often been the focus of scholarly study. The chosen area encompasses an urban and a rural component, and was determined in part by the place of origin of those who agreed to be interviewed. That this particular area lies on the boundary of two population movements and embodies in its community development the clash of two world views with respect to national development, and, that this area was the home of Canada’s perhaps most

Introduction

13

famous family, certainly adds to the interest of the study, but is not essential, as every local area has its own particular story to tell, all of them valid. My goal has been to offer readers a better understanding of family and community life during the interwar years, not only in this particular place but, indirectly, in other places that resemble it.

mmunity gins and Growth Life in Northeastern Ontario

1 Population Origins and Growth

European settlement in peninsular Ontario had filled much of the available land by the mid-nineteenth century. In the 1870s and 1880s settlement and resource exploitation moved further north and reached the boundaries of what was called New Ontario. Lumbermen in particular pushed against the boundaries of this frontier. The Upper Ottawa River led them up the Mattawa River and from there into Lake Nosbonsing and Trout Lake in search of virgin timber stands. Lake Nipissing and the vast regions to which it gave access were just beyond the height of land. The communities examined in this study are located in this narrow band of settlement, which extended from the Quebec border at Mattawa, the meeting place of the Ottawa and Mattawa rivers, to Lake Nipissing at North Bay. Except for Widdifield Township adjacent to North Bay on the north, the townships and settlements studied here are situated to the south of the Mattawa River–Trout Lake system.1 (See Map 1.1.) Fur traders had used this route to the Great Lakes for centuries, and Champlain and many others are known to have rested on the shores of Lake Nipissing as they journeyed inland. Hudson’s Bay Company forts had done business in this area at the La Vase portage and at Mattawa, but only the one at Mattawa remained open up to the time of settlement. French missionaries to the Aboriginal people had visited the region continuously throughout the nineteenth century, and Mattawa was the first location within this region to make the transition from missionary outpost to settled parish for Canadians. It was the lumber industry rather than the fur trade, however, that attracted settlement into the area.2 The reach of the timber trade had extended into the Upper Ottawa by mid-century and the farmer was

Map 1.1 The study area

16

Family and Community Life in Northeastern Ontario

not far behind the lumberman; indeed, most farmers combined lumbering with farming. Many of the settlers who came into the region had moved from further downstream, places like Pembroke on the Ontario side of the Ottawa and Quyon on the Quebec side. J.R. Booth began exploiting the timber from the land around Lake Nosbonsing in the 1880s, and the three townships around the lake, Ferris, Bonfield, and Chisholm, were surveyed in 1880. As Booth’s operation moved west, he began cutting around Lake Nipissing. At this point, water transportation alone could no longer suffice, as Lake Nipissing drained into the French River and into Georgian Bay, not into the Mattawa and the Ottawa River. Booth got around this by floating the logs to Callander Bay where they were hauled overland to Lake Nosbonsing. He would later link the two with a narrow-gauge railroad.3 By 1881 there were pockets of settlement in the area, especially at Mattawa, Rutherglen, Eau Claire, and at the head of Lake Nosbonsing, later Bonfield.4 The cpr was the first railway into the area. Having established that a route to the north of Lake Nipissing would be necessary, its builders pushed through the forest beyond Mattawa in 1882. Rather than continuing in a direct line to the shores of Lake Nipissing, however, the route dipped southward to reach the eastern end of Lake Nosbonsing at Bonfield before continuing in a northeasterly direction. Lake Nosbonsing therefore became accessible by rail at its easternmost point. The western end of the lake continued to be accessed by water for some time. The first settler in the area, J.A. Lévesque, named the new settlement that arose there Lévesqueville after himself. However, English settlers in particular found this name difficult, and in 1905 it was renamed Astorville for its first parish priest.5 The arrival of the cpr and lumbering brought about a rapid increase in the population especially in Bonfield Township, which by 1891 had a population of more than 2,000 (Table 1.1).6 Calvin also saw important growth and soon surpassed five hundred. Papineau and Widdifield had about four hundred people each, and the other townships remained unsettled, or nearly so. As the large lumbering operations in the area came to an end at the turn of the century, those who wanted to remain adjusted by turning to farming; but many left. This exodus affected Bonfield in particular; its population declined and remained below its 1891 level thereafter. The population of Papineau peaked in 1901 and that of Chisholm and Calvin in 1931. Ferris, part of which was located on the edge of North Bay and experienced suburban growth, began to

Population Origins and Growth

17

Table 1.1: Population of the study area, 1881–1941

townships Bonfield Calvin Chisholm Ferris Papineau Widdifield

1881

1891

1901

1911

1921

1931

1941

360 111

2,249 549

205

370 362

1,304 509 793 962 670 710

1,158 543 1,051 1,223 633 1,256

1,267 496 1,041 1,358 606 1,314

1,158 572 1,404 2,036 568 1,439

1,132 555 1,229 2,636 621 1,691

1,848

2,530

7,737

10,692

15,528

15,599

cities North Bay towns Bonfield Mattawa

322

1,438

403 1,400

484 1,524

421 1,462

493 1,631

497 1,971

study area total:

998

6,816

9,281

15,609

18,657

24,829

25,931

source: Census of Canada.

surpass the more rural townships in population in 1931. Widdifield, also adjacent to North Bay, began to show signs of suburban growth in 1941.7 The cpr crossed the La Vase River several miles inland and reached Lake Nipissing at its most northeasterly point where an old portage route led to Trout Lake. It was here that Champlain is thought to have spent the night while travelling through the area in 1615. A 288-acre land parcel along the shore of Lake Nipissing, which was purchased in advance of the railway’s arrival by John Ferguson, the nephew of cpr vice-president Duncan McIntyre, became the site of a new settlement. It is not known how this emerging settlement came to be known as North Bay, but the most likely reason is its geographical location. The future prospects of this place, described as rock and swamp in the middle of the bush, became much brighter once the cpr announced that North Bay would become the next divisional point after Chalk River. Ferguson sold a large parcel of land to the cpr for its yards and right of way for $1,000, the starting point of the fortune he would amass from land sales and other ventures.8 The land adjacent to the cpr lands was surveyed into town lots and became the core of the new “town.”9 Thus it was that Ferguson earned the title of founder of North Bay. As the cpr went to great lengths to avoid buying land from speculators along its route as it pushed westward, this convenient purchase of land from Ferguson suggests nepotism, despite McIntyre’s claims to the contrary. The cpr continued its west-

18

Family and Community Life in Northeastern Ontario

ward advance and the driving of the last spike in 1885 symbolically marked its completion across the continent. Access to the study area was greatly improved as a result of its construction. North Bay grew quickly and by 1891, with a population of almost 2,000, it was already larger than the much older settlement of Mattawa (Table 1.1). Since North Bay’s initial growth was largely the result of having been designated as a divisional point on the cpr, numerous railway jobs were available. The difference between North Bay and Mattawa in that respect in 1891 is striking. In North Bay, 46 percent of those with an occupation worked for the railway as compared to only 5 percent in Mattawa.10 The largest group of workers in Mattawa, including those in the shanties, were employed in lumbering and sawmilling. They made up 23 percent of the occupations. Mattawa also had occupations that did not exist in North Bay, such as hospital workers, Hudson’s Bay Company personnel, hunters and trappers, and river boat operators. Except for teamsters, North Bay had few of the occupations related to the care of horses that Mattawa did. North Bay also had a jailor, a magistrate, and a bailiff, which Mattawa did not have. The presence of a small village with a few services at the mouth of Lake Nosbonsing was already evident in 1891 with the presence of one or more representatives of the following occupations: banker, boarding house keeper, boot maker, butcher, cpr station agent, dress maker, dry goods and grocery merchant and clerk, hotel keeper, music teacher, parish priest, and telegraph operator, but the village of Bonfield was not detached from the township until the 1901 census. At that point it had a population of 403; by 1941 it had grown to only 493. North Bay also benefited from the advantage of having been chosen as the capital of the District of Nipissing in 1895. Those vying for the honour had been Sturgeon Falls, North Bay, and Mattawa, which at that time were close to the same size. We are told that in the first election “dead men and children voted.” In the second, Sturgeon Falls opted out, and Mattawa and North Bay battled it out. Tradition has it that the vote was won thanks to the railway men who pushed their engine at top speed to reach North Bay before the polls closed. Their votes made the difference, and North Bay came out of it the victor – but only by eight votes.11 The prize was “the establishment of judicial and governmental offices ... a court house, registry office, and jail, [and] two judges.”12 This would give North Bay a distinct advantage

Population Origins and Growth

19

over its rivals, as the services it could now provide were not obtainable elsewhere. Further growth, however, continued to be driven by North Bay’s location in the emerging transportation network. In 1896 the Grand Trunk Railway was extended to North Bay, giving it access to the cpr line, and in 1902 the Ontario government decided to build its own railway into New Ontario. The Temiskaming and Northern Ontario (t&no) railway was formed as a crown corporation and decided to use North Bay as “its headquarters, its southern terminus and the main settlement along its lines.”13 That decision gave North Bay a major boost, as the railway construction was also organized from North Bay. Even more significant, however, was the discovery of silver at Cobalt along the t&no line during its construction. The mining boom that followed, first in Cobalt and then in the gold-producing areas around Kirkland Lake and Porcupine, resulted in population growth and development in the North far beyond initial expectations based on agricultural settlement. As the entry point into this area, North Bay was well placed to benefit from the development of mining, lumbering, and agriculture in the regions to the north. The impact of this population boom can be seen in the 1911 census: with a population of 7,737, North Bay was now almost four times the size of Mattawa, which remained stable with a population of 1,524. Its spectacular population growth saw it rise in rank between 1901 and 1911 from the 93rd to the 57th largest city in Canada (among cities having a population of 5,000 or more in 1931).14 The war had slowed growth down, but only momentarily, and North Bay had reached a population of 14,000 when it was incorporated as a city in 1925. It remained the largest city in the area. In 1931 North Bay had a population of 15,528; ten years later, that number had risen only to 15,599. The decade of the Depression had taken its toll. As jobs in lumbering and other resource industries declined, so did those on the railways, and growing numbers of families in the city went on relief. In December of 1933, the worst year of the Depression, 2,832 people received relief, among which were 602 families. A year later this number had declined to 1,701 but in May 1935 it was up again to 2,401.15 This represented 515 heads of families, 1,855 dependents, and 31 single people. Many men were underemployed in government work-for-relief programs. Of the $250,000 in relief dispensed by the city in 1935, $55,000 was paid by the city, the remainder by the Ontario or federal government. Of this only $30,000

20

Family and Community Life in Northeastern Ontario

Map 1.2 City of North Bay, core area, ca. 1930.

Population Origins and Growth

21

was on unemployment relief.16 North Bay, as a railway centre, also faced a constant influx of transients, on average fifty-four per day. Although they were not allowed to stay, for over four years transients were provided with two meals, usually soup or stew, and an overnight stay at the hostel in the Old Jail. The city paid about a quarter of the cost ($100 a month), and the province of Ontario paid the remainder.17 Those on relief faced serious hardships, as the amount they received barely covered essentials. While the country as a whole began to recover slowly after 1933, North Bay was particularly favoured in that it benefited tremendously from the boost to tourism that began almost immediately after the birth of the Dionne quintuplets in May 1934 in nearby Corbeil, Ontario (Bonfield Township). In 1901 the population of the study area originated overwhelmingly in other parts of Ontario (68%) and Quebec (23%) (Table 1.2). The remaining 9 percent of the population came primarily from Great Britain, with a few from the United States and Germany. The census does not, unfortunately, state with any more precision where a person was born within Quebec or Ontario. Some of the current residents interviewed for this study, however, were able to share family memories as to when and how their grandparents had come. The Boulanger family and others who had settled around Grand Désert in the 1880s came from the area around Escoumains in Quebec where the men worked on the St Lawrence River to make extra money. Every year some of them drowned. It was the women, primarily, who decided to move to a place that was so far from water that drowning would no longer be a problem.18 In a second example, Paul Emile Boulanger’s knowledge of his grandfather Charles, while slight, is still more than can be gleaned from the census. According to Paul Emile, his grandfather was born at Lévis, Quebec, and his grandmother was born at Casselman (Russell, Ontario). They came to the Mattawa area in 1882. Charles had a skilled trade as a harness maker. In the 1901 census, “Charle” Boulanger is listed as a 37-year-old “labourer cultivateur” born in Quebec. His 29-year-old wife Délia and all of their six children are listed as born in Ontario. The eldest was ten. Eugène, who became Paul Emile’s father, was the second oldest, and only eight at the time. There were four younger children as well. The 1911 census adds no new information except the birth of a daughter in 1901.19 Eugène purchased the farm that Paul Emile lived on when he was eighteen years old. Paul Emile was therefore the third generation of the Boulanger family to live in Papineau Township near Mattawa.

22

Family and Community Life in Northeastern Ontario

Diane (Bélanger) Lamothe believes that her grandparents all came from Papineauville in Quebec. Both the 1901 and the 1911 census list her grandfather, Wilfrid Bélanger, as born in Ontario. There is no trace of him in Ontario in the 1881 census; however, a fifteen-year-old son of a farmer named Wilfrid Belanger is listed in Ste Thérèse, Terrebonne, in the vicinity of Papineauville.20 In this case family memory may be more accurate than the census. The move to the Mattawa area must have occurred before 1891, as Diane’s father, Oscar, was born in 1891 in Ontario. In 1911 he was the oldest of eight children living at home on Bélanger Road, near the Boulanger family in Papineau Township. Their household included a female lodger.21 Lloyd Novack’s family is an interesting case. He was born on Papineau Road near Mattawa, and his grandparents had lived only a mile up the road. He did not know them, and had heard no stories about them. However, he did know that his grandfather was from Poland and his grandmother was Irish. The 1901 census tells us that his grandfather, Adam “Novac,” was an Anglican, born in 1848 in Germany, who came to Canada in 1884 with a son born in 1883. His wife, Mary, was fifteen years younger (born in 1863), Irish Canadian Catholic, and born in Ontario. The next child listed in the census was born in April of 1884. At least one of these dates must be wrong if Adam and Mary married after his arrival in Canada. In 1911 Adam was listed as born in “East Prussian” and as Prussian in both nationality and origin. He was also listed as a Lutheran, but his children were listed as Presbyterian, Prussian in origin, and Canadian in nationality. While the four oldest children listed in 1901 were by then gone, four more had been born between 1901 and 1908. Adam’s wife, Mary, was still listed as Roman Catholic, Irish, and born in Ontario, but was now listed as born in 1871 and 40 years of age.22 Lloyd’s father, Edward, married Violet Gilligan, who may also have been Irish. Lloyd himself married Laurence Blanchette who grew up on Papineau Road about six miles from where he did. Her grandparents Hilaire Blanchette and Anastasie Bourgeault had come from Aylmer, Quebec, and were among the first to settle in the Mattawa area. In 1901 Hilaire “Blanchaite” and his wife “Annastayi” were listed as born in Quebec as well as their two oldest children, born in 1884 and 1886. Their third child, born in 1895, was born in Ontario. This nine-year gap makes it hard to date their move precisely, but it was clearly after 1886.23 Jack Burrows knew that his grandparents had come from Pakenham in Lanark County in the Ottawa Valley, where they farmed. His

Population Origins and Growth

23

Table 1.2: Birth place of the population of the study area in 1901 Place of Birth England France Germany Ireland Ontario Quebec Scotland United States Missing/Other Total

Number

%

236 25 57 114 6,355 2,157 73 113 183 9,313

3 0 1 1 68 23 1 1 2 100

source: Census of Canada, 1901.

grandfather, John Burrows, married Jenny MacLeod, and Jack thought they were probably of Irish descent. They had relatives in North Bay, the MacLeods, and had come to North Bay for a while but then gone back to Packenham and returned when his father was in his teens. His father had been born in North Bay when they lived there the first time. They had a large property with the MacLeods and ran a dairy on Highland Road near Algonquin Avenue. His grandfather then built a large brick home on Algonquin at Vimy, and his aunts and uncles all grew up there. The census of 1901 indicates that John Burrows was born in Ontario and was an Irish Canadian Methodist. His wife was a Scottish Canadian Methodist. All their children were listed in the 1901 census as Irish Canadians. Ten years later, however, while Jenny was still listed as Scottish, John and all their children were listed as English and were also now all Presbyterian.24 The Scottish traditions of his grandmother may have been transmitted to some extent, but with time, that aspect of the family background was forgotten. These examples, taken from among the families who had come into the area before 1901, clearly show that neither individual or family memory nor the census can be counted on to be completely accurate when it comes to an individual’s place of birth and ethnicity. While the census focused on language, place of birth, and racial origin, it is difficult to reconstruct the story of how families came to be in northeastern Ontario without the help of oral history and even then, it is not always clear whether family memory is accurate. Nor does the census necessarily capture the complexity of ethnic identity,

24

Family and Community Life in Northeastern Ontario

One of the early pioneers of Ferris Township, Mr Birch. ccoh, flp, Leppan.

especially for families in which that identity changed over time or several identities were intermixed.25 Despite these reservations as to the accuracy of the census at the level of the individual, at the aggregate level the 1901 census is particularly useful with regard to ethnic origins of the population because it asked for “race” or ethnic origin rather than the birthplace of parents, as had the census of 1891 (Table 1.3). Of the 9,313 people in our study area in 1901, the largest single group were the French Canadians, who made up 45% of the population (4,225). The population of British

Population Origins and Growth

25

origin, taken all together, was slightly larger, making up 47% of the population. Individually, the Irish were most numerous with 22%; the English made up another 14%, and the Scots 11%. All other ethnic groups, including the First Nations, accounted for the remaining 7% (698) of the population. As Map 1.3 shows, however, these ethnic groups were not evenly distributed across the area. French Canadians were much more numerous in the rural areas than in North Bay and in Ferris, Papineau, and Bonfield they constituted more than half of the population. The Irish were present in all the rural areas but only in Calvin did they approach half the population. They made up from one-fifth to one-quarter of the population in North Bay, Chisholm, Widdifield, and Mattawa. The Scots were located primarily in North Bay but were also quite numerous in Widdifield and in Calvin. The English population ranged from 6% to 19% of the population in all the rural areas except Bonfield Village; in North Bay, however, they made up 24% of the population. In 1901 the population of the study area was overwhelmingly made up of these four groups. Residents from other backgrounds were distributed unevenly throughout the area and ranged from 3% of the population in Bonfield to 18% of the population in Mattawa. In North Bay, many different groups were found in this “other” category, but only the 79 Germans made up more than 1% of the population (3%). Given their later numbers, it is interesting to note that no Italians were listed in the census in North Bay at this time. Although one can say in general that the population was predominantly British in North Bay and predominantly French Canadian in the rest of the area, it is also true that throughout the area, a person might have had neighbours from a different background. These figures provide an important context for the emergence of community. While it can be argued that geographic isolation is not essential in order for an ethnic or religious community to establish and maintain itself, the concentration of a social group in an area will likely affect its ability to establish social boundaries and achieve “institutional completeness.” These in turn will increase the likelihood of an ethnic or religious community emerging and maintaining itself. For this to happen, however, the members of the group, or at least some of the leaders within it, must perceive themselves as a community and this perception is most likely when there is a difference from other groups in terms of language or religion, for example.26 While these social processes have frequently been examined in the context of immigrant

Map 1.3 Ethnic origin of the study area population, 1901

Population Origins and Growth

27

Table 1.3: Population of the study area by ethnicity and religion in 1901

Anglican Baptist Catholic Jewish Lutheran Methodist Missing/Unknown Other Presbyterian Salvation Army Total % of Total

English

French

Irish

Other

Scot

Total

%

439 85 115 0 1 378 15 36 199 6 1,274 13.68

31 1 4,105 0 0 38 11 5 34 0 4,225 45.37

318 27 913 0 0 414 35 26 322 0 2,055 22.07

54 13 359 20 34 107 36 12 62 1 698 7.49

75 60 129 0 0 121 25 8 640 3 1,061 11.39

917 186 5,621 20 35 1,058 122 87 1,257 10 9,313 100

9.9 2.0 60.4 0.2 0.4 11.4 1.3 0.9 13.5 0.1 100.0

source: Calculated from the Census of 1901.

groups, these findings would, I would argue, apply equally to an area of population migration such as this one, especially where more than one social group moves into the area. Religion, as well as ethnicity, was a significant characteristic of the population. Although both were clearly related, the association of one ethnic group with a particular religion was never complete (Table 1.3). For groups such as the Irish, religious affiliation, whether Protestant or Catholic, was an important social differentiation. Catholics far outnumbered the numbers of any of the other religious groups. French Canadians were the largest group among the Catholics (and were overwhelmingly Catholic), but a large number of Irish Catholics and smaller numbers of English, Scots and “Others” were Catholic as well. Presbyterians, Methodists, and Anglicans were the three largest Protestant groups and each of these was made up primarily of people of British origin. There were clearly large enclaves of French Catholics and of English Protestants, but almost everywhere, the population was mixed and the Catholics were not all French, and the English were not all Protestants. In 1901, however, the mainstream denominations were predominant and other religious groups such as Jews, Salvation Army, Lutherans, and Baptists represented only a very small percentage of the population. On the basis of numbers alone, it would appear that the French Catholics had the greatest potential for building communities in which they could retain their ethno-religious heritage in this area. The Irish Catholics and the British Anglicans, Methodists, and Presbyterians were also well placed to

28

Family and Community Life in Northeastern Ontario 60

50

% of Workers

40

Railway Other 30

20

10

0

S.

U.

On

e

Qu

d ld and rway and and ales lan l W gl cotl Ire Fin No En S

Nf

ly

Ita

y

an

rm Ge

ina

Ch

source: Census of Canada, 1911, North Bay Sample. Railway workers n = 88. Other workers n = 164.

Figure 1.1 Birthplace of railway and other workers as a percentage. North Bay, 1911. Immigrants from the United States, Germany, England, and Scotland made up a much greater proportion of the railway workforce than of the workforce in general.

do so. The challenge would be greater for all other groups because of their small numbers but for some groups such as the Jews, their concentration in North Bay would help to mitigate this. Between 1901 and 1911 North Bay enjoyed a tremendous population boom that reflected the building of the t&no railway and the discovery of silver in Cobalt. The influx of people into the town for railway jobs and others added to its diversity, and more of its population had now been born outside of Quebec and Ontario. Based on a 10% household sample of the 1911 census, the largest proportion of this foreign-born population came from England, Scotland, Italy, the United States, and Ireland (Table 1.4). A greater percentage of railway workers came from Great Britain, the United States, and Germany than from other places (Figure 1.1). The small numbers from other origins including China, Norway, Belgium, and Finland added to the diversity, but English remained the dominant language. In this sample, 79% of residents commonly spoke English and a further 12%

Population Origins and Growth

29

Table 1.4: Birth place of the population in North Bay, 1911 Place of Birth

No.

%

Ontario Quebec England Scotland Italy United states Ireland China Norway Germany Belgium Wales Newfoundland New Brunswick Finland Unknown Total

475 88 48 22 15 14 11 7 6 3 2 1 1 1 1 25 720

66 12 7 3 2 2 2 1 1 0 0 0 0 0 0 3 100

source: North Bay Sample, Census of 1911.

Table 1.5: Languages commonly spoken, North Bay, 1911 Languages Commonly Spoken

No.

%

English English and French French Italian English and Italian Norwegian English and Chinese Chinese German English and German Finnish Total

508 77 19 15 9 6 4 3 2 1 1 645

79 12 3 2 1 1 1 0 0 0 0 100

source: North Bay Sample, Census of 1911.

spoke English and French (Table 1.5). All but 5% of the population belonged to mainstream Christian denominations (Table 1.6). The boom of the early twentieth century was interrupted by war from 1914 to 1919; immigration came to an end and hundreds of young men left the area to join the war effort. After the war, North Bay continued to benefit from its position as the “gateway to the North.” The population continued to grow steadily until 1931, achieving 15,528 that year, after which it barely maintained itself for the next

30

Family and Community Life in Northeastern Ontario Table 1.6: Religion of the population, North Bay, 1911 Religion

No.

%

Roman Catholic Presbyterian Methodist Anglican Baptist Salvation Army No religion Lutheran Total

255 179 123 93 20 5 4 3 682

37 26 18 14 3 1 1 0 100

source: North Bay Sample, Census of 1911.

Table 1.7: Ethnicity of the population of North Bay, 1921–41 1921 Ethnicity Asian English French German Hewbrew/Jewish Irish Italian Other European Scots All Other* Total Population

1931

1941

Number

% of Total

Number

% of Total

Number

% of Total

82 3,591 2,087 146 66 2,225 548 181 1,662 104 10,692

0.8 33.6 19.5 1.4 0.6 20.8 5.1 1.7 15.5 1.0 100

69 3,878 3,554 340 154 3,401 740 837 2,390 165 15,528

0.4 25.0 22.9 2.2 1.0 21.9 4.8 5.4 15.4 1.1 100

60 4,149 3,939 317 125 3,191 828 517 2,308 165 15,599

0.4 26.6 25.3 2.0 0.8 20.5 5.3 3.3 14.8 1.1 100

* “Other British” is included here, as the census did not include the British population in with the European population at this time. source: Census of Canada, 1921–41.

decade. The ethnic composition of the population changed slightly from one census year to the next (Table 1.7). The French Canadian presence in the city gradually increased from 20% to 25% between 1921 and 1941. The English population decreased significantly from 34% in 1921 to only 25% in 1931, increasing again only slightly in 1941. The Italian population increased to 5% and remained at that level. The population of other European origins increased in 1931, only to decrease again in 1941. Of these groups, only the Germans achieved as much as 2% of the population; the Jewish residents reached 1% in 1931 but decreased slightly in 1941. In terms of religion, there was a slight increase in the Catholic population, and those who

Population Origins and Growth

31

Table 1.8: Religion of the population of North Bay, 1921–41 1921 Religion Adventist Anglican Baptist Brethren/United Brethren Catholic Christian Science Christian Church of Christ, Disciples Confucian and Buddhist/Eastern Religion Evangelical Association/ Evangelical Church Gospel People Greek Catholic Greek Orthodox Intern’l Bible Studies Ass’n. Jewish Lutheran Methodist/United Church Mormon Not Stated Other Sects Pentecostal Presbyterian Protestant Salvation Army Total Population:

1931

1941

Number

% of Total

Number

% of Total

Number

% of Total

1,870 333

17.5 3.1

5 2,676 487 16

0.0 17.2 3.1 0.1

9 2,667 465 10

0.1 17.1 3.0 0.1

4,390

41.1

6,553 7 1 7

42.2 0.1 0.0 0.1

6,933 23 5 6

44.4 0.1 0.0 0.0

12

0.1

6

0.0

6

0.0

14

0.1

30 6 81

0.2 0.0 0.5

125 153 3,787

0.8 1.0 24.3

170

1.1

1,046

6.7

63 15,599

0.4 100

5

37

0.3

52 9

0.0 0.1

66 24 1,542

0.6 0.2 14.4

151 292 3,660

1.0 1.9 23.6

31 23

0.3 0.2

2,312 3 56 10,692

21.6

2 39 47 14 1,401 10 78 15,528

0.0 0.3 0.3 0.1 9.0 0.1 0.5 100

0.5 100

source: Census of Canada, 1921–41

were members of mainstream churches27 increased from 6% to 8% of the population between 1921 and 1931 (Table 1.8). The much greater diversity of the Protestant population in 1931 and 1941, however, is noteworthy. In the 1920s and 1930s a growing diversity of population was felt in Mattawa and the rural areas as well, although not to the same extent as in North Bay, as can be seen from the figures for 1941 (Tables 1.9 and 1.10).

Table 1.9: Ethnicity of the population in the study area in 1941 Area

French

103 9 87 16 138 11 411 16 101 16 424 25

108 10 198 36 172 14 351 13 48 8 331 20

85 8 86 15 47 4 284 11 23 4 200 12

806 71 148 27 771 63 1,493 57 391 63 581 34

17 2 25 5 71 6 41 2 25 4 41 2

– – – – 14 1 5 0 – – 28 2

1 0 – – – – 2 0 – – – –

6 0 10 2 16 1 45 2 31 5 57 3

– – – – – – – – – – – –

2 0 – – – – – – 1 0 7 0

4 0 1 0 – – 2 0 1 0 22 1

1,132 100 555 100 1,229 100 2,636 100 621 100 1,691 100

All Townships %

1,265 16

1,209 15

725 9

4,193 53

220 3

47 1

3 0

167 3

– –

10 0

30 0

7,869 100

North Bay % Bonfield Village % Mattawa % All Urban % Total Study Area %

4,149 27 12 2 118 6 4,279 24 5,544 21

3,191 20 26 5 272 14 3,489 19 4,698 18

2,308 15 2 0 78 4 2,388 13 3,114 12

3,939 25 453 91 1,255 64 5,648 31 9,841 38

317 2 – – 24 1 341 2 561 2

828 5 – – 10 1 838 5 885 3

125 1 3 1 7 0 135 1 138 1

517 4 1 0 38 2 356 2 523 2

60 0 – – 16 1 76 0 76 0

25 0 – – 25 1 50 0 164 0

140 1 – – 128 6 268 1 194 1

15,599 100 497 100 1,971 100 18,069 100 25,938 100

source: Census of Canada, 1941

Jewish

Asian

Other/ Not Stated

Scot

*Includes Other British.

Italian

Indian and Eskimo

Irish

Bonfield % Calvin % Chisholm % Ferris % Papineau % Widdifield %

German

Other European*

English

Total

Table 1.10: Religion of the population in the study area in 1941 Area

Anglican

Baptist

Greek Orthodox

Jewish

Lutheran

Presbyterian

Roman Catholic

United Church

All Other

Total

Bonfield % Calvin % Chisholm % Ferris % Papineau % Widdifield %

107 9 61 11 70 6 268 10 56 9 230 14

7 1 5 1 1 0 34 1 5 1 90 5

– – – – 1 0 2 0 – – 1 0

1 0 – – – – 2 0 – – – –

8 1 10 2 – – 14 1 25 4 24 1

14 1 6 1 12 1 105 4 – – 108 6

840 74 166 30 863 70 1,639 62 449 72 794 47

150 13 295 53 20 2 559 21 42 7 410 24

5 0 12 2 262 21 13 0 44 7 34 2

1,132 100 555 100 1,229 100 2,636 100 621 100 1,691 100

All Townships %

792 10

142 2

4 0

3 0

81 1

245 3

4,754 60

1,477 19

371 5

7,869 100

2,667 17 – – 64 3 2,731 15 3,523 14

465 3 – – – – 465 3 607 2

81 1 – – 7 0 88 0 92 0

125 1 3 1 7 0 135 1 138 1

153 1 – – 3 0 156 1 237 1

1,046 7 – – 15 1 1,061 6 1,306 5

6,933 44 490 99 1,725 88 9,149 51 13,904 54

3,787 24 3 1 134 7 3,924 22 5,401 21

342 2 1 0 16 1 359 2 730 3

15,599 100 497 100 1,971 100 18,069 100 25,938 100

North Bay % Bonfield Village % Mattawa % All Urban % Total Study Area %

source: Census of Canada, 1941

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Family and Community Life in Northeastern Ontario

In summary, the population of this study area, while it grew from 998 in 1881 to 25,931 in 1941, remained predominantly Ontario-born, of British and French Canadian origin, and belonged to mainstream religious denominations. It was in this context that family and community life in the interwar years was played out.

Town mmunity andLife Country in Northeastern Ontario

2 Family Life and Household Economy in Town and Country

In the 1920s large numbers of workers were able to support their families on their own wages. Children generally went to school, at least until they were sixteen years old. When faced with hard times, families usually turned to the family economy, kin networks of support, and the assistance of fraternal brotherhoods and charity.1 During the Great Depression, however, unemployment reached such staggering proportions that these measures were not sufficient, and growing numbers of families had to accept relief.2 While trains continued to run and many railway workers continued to work, they were not immune to the economic downturn. Unemployment among the unionized railway workers reached a peak of 12 percent in 1934 before things improved and it declined to 10 percent in 1935.3 Individuals and families coped as best they could. Some turned to bootlegging as an acceptable – albeit illegal – source of income during Prohibition.4 Others turned to petty theft.5 Reports tell us that courts sometimes took extenuating circumstances into account: “A young man pleaded guilty to a theft charge, and His Worship, on learning that he had a job, was married and supporting his wife, was lenient, giving the man two months in which to make restitution. Sentence was deferred, and if the value of the goods stolen is not returned to the owner in the two-month period the young man is liable to a 60-day jail term.”6 A post office crime, on the other hand, was treated very seriously. George A. Cataford, a 32-yearold mail sorter, was sentenced to three years in the Kingston penitentiary for stealing a letter with money in it.7 Desperate family members might also turn to the courts for a resolution of their internal problems.8 Most frequently, women brought charges against their

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husbands for non-support, but in one case, a man brought charges against his son, accusing him of laziness: “Claiming he would not work and was a vagrant, a father had his son arraigned in court this morning, and Magistrate McCurry remanded the case one week, in which time he advised the youth to cut some wood, as his father desired him to do. ‘And if you don’t show any more life than you did in getting out of that chair, you won’t cut much wood, in my opinion,’ he said.”9 The Children’s Aid Society (cas) for the District of Nipissing had to deal with severe cases of child neglect. It had the authority to place at-risk children at the Children’s Shelter in North Bay until they could return to their family. Otherwise, they were placed in foster homes or adopted, as the case required. The shelter had room for twenty children, but at times it held even more.10 In 1925, 400 children were cared for over the course of the year, up from 349 the previous year.11 Families with single parents were undoubtedly more vulnerable. In one case, two boys had been forced to live alone much of the time because their father could not look after them as well as work. In another, the father of seven was charged with neglect because his children were found to be living in extreme poverty. A woman with four children living in “abject squalor” in an abandoned farmhouse outside Bonfield was sentenced to thirty days for vagrancy and her children were made wards of the cas.12 The situation became even more difficult during the Depression. In October of 1935, however, the cas superintendent reported that things had improved from 1934 and only seventeen children were available for adoption.13 In November of 1935, the cas had the supervision of 163 children, of whom 107 were in “free homes,” 27 at the Shelter, and 6 “boarding out.” It also reported: “Investigations are proceeding into 27 cases of child welfare in the district, while total cases of unmarried parents being investigated are 93. New cases discovered during the month totalled seven.”14 The cas held an “Adopt a Baby” week in July to increase the number of adoptions after having received a bad report in April.15 Only extreme cases were likely to come to the attention of the authorities, however, and many families who did not reach that level of crisis suffered deprivation and hardship as well. Hartley Trussler, owner of North Bay Garage, often noted in his daily diary, which he kept for many years, the poverty he saw in the countryside while calling on his customers. “The place we called at was a small frame house … I bet it is cold in those old frame houses

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37

these cold nights ... The house … was the most desolate unwholesome looking place I ever saw. There was an old sideboard and two chairs in what was I expect the parlor.” His attitude toward this poverty, however, remained grounded in middle-class views of self-help and individualism. “Very few need to be destitute if they would but save when they have more than they need. The whole trouble with that class is that if they make 10000 a month for awhile they spend $10100 and then soon they are only making 1500 and they are in debt 100 and their credit is nil. A wonderful thing is Thrift.”16 The Depression, of course, was a far greater problem than individual thrift could have solved. When asked about the Depression, interviewees generally indicated that their parents were aware of this at the time. Jack Labrèche, for example, felt that he developed a social conscience watching his father and other Knights of Columbus put together Christmas baskets and hearing stories about how dire the need was. He also tells the story of how he happened to be looking down out the window of his father’s office one day when he saw a young boy digging in the garbage bin below. When he told his father what he saw, his father gave him a dollar and told him to go down and give it to the boy. When Jack approached the young boy, he ran away. “It’s hard to believe you could feel guilty about stealing food that was being thrown out,” he added. What is significant here is that the father’s reaction was to help, not to lay blame. This is also evident in the many stories of helping out the “hobos” who got off the trains every day. People were not afraid of them, Lucille Regimbal recalled; they were just guys who did not have work. Her family always fed them. Elena Naughton’s father went further and actually had them sit at the dinner table with the family after washing up. When Elena, feeling uncomfortable with this, asked her father why they didn’t just pack them up a meal, her father replied that as long as he was home they could come in because “one of them could be one of your brothers” and that settled that. While vagrants were not encouraged to visit Margaret Richardson’s home because the family business was located there, friends were assisted, and as she remembers, people understood that those people needed help and couldn’t be without food. Mary Leppan’s family also fed the hobos. Her family did not suffer like other families, she felt, because her father had a job with the federal government and while his wages were cut by twenty-five percent, he was still working and their family was small. “It was a terrible time for North Bay,” she

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recalled, “because railways were the main employers at the time and they were laying off staff and many men went on relief.” Many of her friends’ fathers were not working and these men would do anything to earn a day’s pay. Times did not get better, she thought, until the war came along and young men began to join the military services. That families on relief were not an abstract category but neighbours and friends, helped to shape the perspective of many. Irene Pappas, who married in 1934, remembered that times were very hard and that you had to count every penny. As she put it, you had to be brave to marry and have two children during the Depression. The picture of family life examined is here based on the life stories of those who were among the more fortunate. Because their parents had shielded them from the financial difficulties the family faced during the Depression, their childhood memories now present a more positive image of that period than the adults of the time might have portrayed.17 Through stories heard at the time or later, they had an understanding that this was an era of hard times. The situation was not the same for everyone. Class differences were at play, and also differences between urban and rural life.

life in town Loretta Cundari’s father worked for the t&no as a section man. As a recent Italian immigrant, he didn’t speak English, but used sign language to get by. Many other Italians worked with the railway as well as Polish, Irish, and French people.18 Section work was an unskilled working class job that didn’t require an education and involved hard work, like clearing snow, which others did not want to do. The better jobs such as office work were not available to Italians. This fact affected the Cundari family in several ways. It meant that they lived in the “Y,” the largely Italian and French working-class neighbourhood close to the t&no railway shops in the east end of town beyond Fisher Street (Map 1.2). They had a large family and all twelve children were born at home with the help of neighbours or the Victorian Order of Nurses nurse who came to assist with the birth and “cut the cord.” The house had a big wood stove and a pot-bellied stove in the living room. To save money, Mr Cundari got railway ties to burn in the stove and the creosote would make the pipes really hot. The city had not yet extended water and sewage into this section of town, so they had no running water and not even a pump, sink, or bath tub.

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When younger, the children were all bathed in the same big tub (in the same water, presumably). They had an outhouse with a big pail that had to be emptied into the “honeywagon” that came around occasionally, and they used a catalogue for toilet paper. Although they had a two-storey brick house, there were only three bedrooms, one for the parents, one for the boys, and one for the girls. Six girls slept in one bed. Mr Cundari only worked days but he worked very hard and when he came home he had to get the cows and do other chores after work. There were barns at the back of the house where the family kept cows, pigs, and chickens as well as cats and a dog. The t&no also granted him two lots, one for hay, and one for potatoes and a garden. “We had a beautiful garden out there. There was potatoes and lettuce and you name it.”19 Loretta did not mention who did the work in the garden – perhaps the whole family helped. Loretta helped her father cut hay in the summer, and in the fall, he would also make wine from grapes. It is hard to imagine that a man working a full-time job had time for this extra work. As Loretta pointed out, “It was tough.” This lifestyle meant a lot of work for her mother as well. Every year they butchered a pig just before Christmas, and her mother used all of it to make head cheese, sausages, and prosciutto. They also made and cured large hams. From the cow they got lots of milk and also made ricotta cheese. Their food was often simple fare; in the morning they might have bread dipped into the cocoa her mother made, or they had porridge. Her mother also made preserves and even her own root beer. Overall, Loretta concluded: “We were well fed. We were all overweight.” All this work must have meant that there was little leisure time for the parents to spend with their children, who themselves were kept busy with chores such as dishes and housecleaning. Loretta remembers her father as a disciplinarian and that the children never talked back to him. He had a whistle and if they heard it they knew it was time to go home. Looking back, Loretta was not nostalgic for this period, but she reflected philosophically that the children were happier than the kids today: “You think back, and we were happy kids at those times. The kids today, they’re full of drugs and cocaine and everything else. They’re not happy kids. We should have been the ones that were really upset because we didn’t have too much.” Loretta was candid about this period and about how difficult it was for her family and for unskilled working-class Italians generally. As one of the older children in a family of immigrants, she remembered the family’s situation when they were still establishing themselves.

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Family and Community Life in Northeastern Ontario

The only luxury she mentioned was her dad’s radio, an item that was too precious for them to be allowed to listen to it. Their circumstances were partly a reflection of the low wages paid to unskilled labourers. Unlike Italian sojourners who came to North America in large numbers to work at low-paid navvy jobs just to make enough money to go back to Italy,20 the men who lived in the “Y” along with the Cundari family were family men who had already made the decision to stay. Their inability to speak English and the prejudice against them made it difficult to get more than working class jobs, at least when they first arrived. This prejudice was not limited to anglophones but was shared even by other Italians who lived in the better neighbourhood around St Rita’s Church. As Loretta so aptly put it. “They were the snobs and we were the peasants. We had big families; they were more selective.” This class prejudice cut across family and church ties. All the Italians went to St Rita’s Church, including Loretta’s half sister who lived near the church. They saw each other at church and they might talk, but they never visited back and forth or had very much to do with each other. The living conditions in the “Y” associated with the lack of running water and sewage in that part of the city were a reflection of the city’s priorities. Much of the “Y” was located between three sets of railway tracks and Chippewa Creek. This physical isolation from the rest of the city is reminiscent of the north end of Winnipeg where immigrants congregated and to which the city was slow to bring in amenities.21 It was only after the war that the city brought water and sewers to the “Y,” according to Loretta’s recollection. Although the t&no was responsible for the low wages they paid their workers, the free lots for gardens and hay do appear to have made it possible for their workers to provide the basics for their families throughout the Depression. As in larger urban centres, working-class families also depended on the work of their older children and when Loretta was eighteen she went out to work to help. Unlike many other interviewees who reflected back on the Depression years and recalled that the times had not been too difficult because they as children had been fed and had what they needed, Loretta was aware that she had been unable to do certain things because her family was so hard up. In childhood, they missed out on play. They had only one pair of shoes, and shoes were too expensive to wear out playing. For reasons she couldn’t recall, they were also not allowed to go barefoot in the summer. She also had to mend her school uniform when it was torn and needed replacing. At

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The Regimbal house on Second Avenue is typical of many houses in the downtown area except for those in the west end, which were much more elaborate. ccoh, flp, Regimbal.

her prom, she and ten other Italian girls “kept up the wall” because they couldn’t afford the right kind of dress. Her dad never let them go to a dance, perhaps because of the cost. She didn’t learn to drive. Although she loved music and wanted to take music lessons, the 25 cents they cost was beyond their means. She watched others tap dancing through a window and knew it was not something she could afford. As a result, she distanced herself from all these activities. Such is the social and cultural cost of poverty, a cost that cannot easily be measured. Loretta never married and worked at a variety of jobs all her life. Now retired, she still lived, with her sister, in the same home in which she was born and grew up.

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Family and Community Life in Northeastern Ontario

Rita Landriault belonged to a French Canadian family who lived on Fourth Avenue within walking distance of St Vincent de Paul, their parish church. Her father was a mechanic for the cpr and left for work every day at 8:00 a.m. On his return home around five, the children used to go and meet him as he walked up the street. This was obviously a precious moment for them. He always kept a treat from his lunch, an apple for example, to give as a reward to the first of his progeny to reach him. He even joked with his children, asking them if they came only for the apple. This is a good example of an individual family ritual. It was repeated daily and it followed a set pattern. Later in the evening the children did their homework. Rita’s mother had been a school teacher in Quebec before moving to North Bay and she supervised this activity closely. During the month of May they had to say the rosary after supper before they could go out to play. In their family this took place immediately after supper, but in a neighbouring family they did the dishes first and then the rosary. Her younger brother therefore ended up saying two rosaries every evening because when he went to visit his friend, his family was just starting theirs. In other months they had prayers after supper, but not the rosary, and in the morning, prayers were said individually. The recitation of the rosary and the family prayers were important rituals which denoted French Canadian identity22 as well as devotion. The neighbourhood in which Rita Landriault lived stretched from the railway at Third Avenue to Fifth Avenue between Wyld and Ferguson (Map 1.2). This was a mixed neighbourhood with about twenty families. The fact that some families were French and the majority were English made no difference and the children played together anyway. One of their games was “Run, Sheep, Run,” a version of Hide and Seek, which Rita referred to as “Ten sheep run,” admitting that at the time she had little idea of what it was or meant since it was usually repeated quickly and sounded like “Tshiprun.”23 There was a lamp post near her home that was the home base for the neighbourhood children, their point of gathering at night, and the starting point for their games. Her only exposure to sports was within the neighbourhood, playing ball in the yard and in the yard at school. Only her brothers, when they were older, participated in sports in the wider context of the city. Younger children were more likely to skate on a homemade rink in their own yard or very close to home. Rita’s father made such a rink every year in the same space as the garden. This also led to play times with their father. They could jump on his back from

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the kitchen porch and he would give them a “horsie” ride. Rita remembered joyfully that they were not afraid of their father. This negative way of remembering is interesting as it implies that some children were. Rita was born at home, as was usual in her neighbourhood. Her mother’s sister, a nurse, came to help and other midwives were available as well. Because her aunt lived in the United States and dressed more fashionably than her family did, she was seen as a grand lady. Rita’s parents belonged to parish organizations. Her father belonged to the sodality of the Sacred Heart and her mother was a Lady of Ste Anne. The sodality had perhaps one meeting a week and acted as an honour guard for parish events. This participation reflects the fact that her parents had a certain amount of leisure time and that her father could afford the uniform required to be in an honour guard. Rita did not remember being affected by the Depression because her father worked and kept his job. As a mechanic he would have received the wages of a skilled labourer. Another help to the family was the fact that her mother was a great seamstress. She could make clothes for the children, not just from new but by remaking other garments; for example, making a child’s coat out of their father’s coat. Rita suspected this saved them a lot of money. The other families around them were in a similar situation. She did remember, however, that those in the “Y” were harder hit and that some of them lost jobs. As the middle child in a family of seven, Rita benefited from the family life cycle that gave working class families larger incomes when some of their children were old enough to work.24 Although she did not mention whether her sister gave part of her wages to her parents, she did remember a direct benefit to herself – being able to go to the movies. This sister paid for her and therefore also decided that she could only go to the Shirley Temple movies and a few others, not all the time. Rita’s grandparents had retired from farming to the village of Plaisance, Quebec. Her father, because he worked for the cpr, could get a pass to travel by train and was therefore able to make at least an annual visit to see them. He would take one of the children, each in turn, with him. Her mother admonished them before they left, reminding them that while there, their grandparents were in charge and they had to listen and obey their rules. In the summer, her grandfather brought them to the river, where he took them out in a small boat. He also went hunting in the winter so he had furs. He showed

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them how he did things. When she wondered about the poor fox that had been killed for fun, he pointed out that it would serve as a very nice coat collar for some lady. In fact, the children had a coat with a fur collar every year as well. They also visited her maternal grandmother. What she remembered best about her was that every winter she would take an older needy person into her home for the winter. Rita’s family background clearly gave her many advantages, especially in terms of education. Even as a child, she had the opportunity to travel. She was exposed to women with professional careers as teachers and as nurses. She had a supervised work time to do her homework, which must have made it easier for her to excel in school. She was bilingual and could operate both in her own French language and in English from an early age. She was sent to St Joseph’s Academy for two years after her primary schooling, in order to perfect her English, and then she was sent to a boarding school in Ottawa, where another aunt belonged to the Grey Nuns (Soeurs Grises), to perfect her French. Afterward she attended the French Normal School in Ottawa. After teaching for a few years she opted for a life-long career in teaching within the order of the Sisters of the Assumption (sasv). Rather than limiting her opportunities, her family ties had served to expand them and gave her access to a world far larger than the neighbourhood in North Bay where she grew up. After a long career including many years of teaching in Japan, she had retired and was living in the sasv convent across from St Vincent de Paul Church from which she could see that neighbourhood and the house in which she was born. One of her proudest accomplishments was the convent in which she lived. She was asked to design it because of her training in domestic science. Clifford T. Alger was born in the Queen Victoria Memorial Hospital in North Bay in 1922. His mother, Ruby McGee, came from Fenelon Falls, Ontario, and his father, “Doc” Alger, came from Cambray, Ontario. He was Canadian and did not grow up with any sense of “ethnic” identity. His grandfather McGee, however, came from Northern Ireland and was an Orangeman. Clifford grew up in a house on McIntyre Street West, with his McGee grandparents next door, and later across the street. His father came to North Bay with a friend and fellow electrician, and at first worked for Burrows and Parmalee wiring houses. In 1912 he established his own business, Dingle and Alger, with a partner who was an accountant. His mother had worked as a ladies’ tailor in Parry Sound before she married but didn’t work once

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she married. Clifford lived only a few blocks from King Edward School on Harvey Street, and his friends lived in the same neighbourhood. He recalls that two school teachers lived nearby as well as the Lyons, the Books, Cyril Smith, whose father had the drug store downtown, and the Bourke family, who were involved in a lot of the large construction projects in town as part of the Angus and Taylor group. His brother was four years older and too old for him to play with so his playmates came from the neighbourhood. He did not specifically refer to playing on the street as many others did. He learned to ski at a very young age. The children used to make their own skis out of barrel staves, drilling them and fitting them with straps to put over their overshoes. The neighbourhood youngsters used to ski down Duril Street, which had no houses then. He was seven or eight before he got real skis for Christmas. He and a few other boys sometimes went skiing and for an overnight camping trip with Tom Cummings, the art teacher at King Edward School at the time. Saturday night was bath time. Cliff’s mother would heat the water and the three children would bathe in the same water. The oldest always got the clean water and the youngest was last. His mom and dad got clean water. They had an electric heater for heating water but it was too expensive to use if the stove was on. On Sunday morning, in their best clothes, they attended Trinity Church (Methodist/ United). Cliff was christened and attended Sunday School at Trinity, and his parents were very involved with church activities. As a child he particularly liked church suppers because, while his mother was busy helping in the kitchen the ladies would give him two or three pieces of pie instead of all the other food. His father was also an Odd Fellow and his mother was a Rebekah. “Their lives centred around both the church and the Oddfellows Lodge.” He was enrolled in Cubs at a young age and continued in Scouts until he was eighteen. This membership provided him with a variety of activities including overnight camping trips. Since Cliff’s grandparents lived next door, they were part of every family occasion and were also there to look after him if his parents were not home. One of his fond memories was coming home from school and having his grandma serve him fresh bread right out of the oven with fresh butter. She also broke up a fight once and dragged his brother down the street by the ear. Coming home one evening to find the house had been ransacked when his parents were out, he dashed across the street to get his grandpa to help. Grandpa came rushing

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Family and Community Life in Northeastern Ontario

over in his nightgown, brandishing a baseball bat, and made sure that all was safe. Family occasions included birthday parties for everyone. Cliff’s father came from a large family and his relatives came to visit often. Grandfather Alger also came, usually in the winter. Another important family tradition was that on Victoria Day, his father took them fishing. They had to do all the jobs around the house ahead of time so that they would be free to go. His parents had friends who had cottages on Lake Nipissing at what was then called Mosquito Creek and they would go there and get a boat and row out onto the lake and fish. It never took long to catch fish and you could fish almost anywhere and get some. “It was a big time because it was a family thing – it was the big celebration in the spring.” Christmas was their biggest celebration, and they also always had a family gettogether at Thanksgiving. As a small boy Cliff would often help his grandfather McGee with his horses. His grandfather ran the last horse-drawn dray business in North Bay, hauling goods from the railway to various businesses. When Cliff was older he spent one summer with his future brotherin-law helping to deliver produce from Wilbur Conklin’s farm to the cottages around Lake Nipissing. The road was barely a road then, but they would deliver orders and take orders for their next trip. He also had to help at home with jobs such as piling or splitting wood. His father was often paid in food and wood. The wood came in four-foot lengths and had to be piled in the yard with a cross pile at the end to hold up the pile. Then it had to be cut in three to make sixteen-inch lengths that would fit in the furnace. These had to be thrown into the basement and piled, and some of them had to be split for the kitchen range, which was used for heat, cooking, and boiling water. The boys split the wood and any spending money Cliff had was earned, usually at the rate of 25 cents a cord for splitting wood. Some of this money was spent on the movies. Cliff recalled that the earliest movie theatre he went to was the Crystal Palace on Main Street. His dad sometimes ran the movie projector there at night after work. He remembered silent movies with Charlie Chaplin and Rin Tin Tin. At the Capitol Theatre he saw the film in which Al Jolson sang “Sonny Boy” [The Singing Fool, 1928]. Sometimes the boys went to the movies even when they had no money. At the Royal one of the boys paid to get in and then went to open the window in the bathroom for his pals to climb in. It seems unlikely that the management was unaware of this – they probably simply looked the other way.

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The Depression was hard on his family, but it wasn’t readily noticed by the children. Cliff only found out that his parents were having a hard time when he went to the nearby store one day and was told that he couldn’t get bread and butter until his dad came to put money on the bill. His mother didn’t look forward to the mortgage collector who came by four times a year, because there was little money after that. “Doc” Alger owned a house that was rented out during the Depression but his tenant had lost his job and managed to stay only because of the half-rent rule, which said that if tenants could pay half their rent they could not be evicted. This made it difficult for Doc to pay his own mortgage. Cliff had to wear clothes handed down by his brother, and sometimes things didn’t fit very well. His mother also remade old clothes into new and was very good at it. She would get new patterns for things and even made suits and hats, so they had some nice clothes even if they were homemade. The children would sometimes go down to a spot on the shore of Lake Nipissing they called the “bum jungle.” There were big poles there left by the hydro company and transients camped there using the log piles for shelter. They had canned heat and made a little fire and heated things they had stolen or had been given. The children had no fear of the transients and did not get any lectures at home about visiting them. In fact, transients often came to the Algers for hand-outs, and no matter how little the Algers had, his mother would always give them something. They left behind a mark on the sidewalk as a note to the next person to say this was a good place to stop. For a while a lot of people would come and then his dad would clean the mark off and the visits would slow down. There was always some work transients could do, such as splitting wood or putting on storm windows. They came only in the spring and through the summer. Where they went in the winter no one knew. Cliff attended North Bay Collegiate and Vocational School (nbci&vs), which was the only high school in town when he first went. As a teenager, he had attended school dances and was one of the organizers of the Swing Club, which held dances in the Odd Fellows hall on Friday or Saturday night. They used to get Frank Chiricco and his orchestra to play but, if they could not, they had a jukebox as a backup. Only students with dates went to these dances but everyone could go to the dances at the high school. The girls had dance cards that they filled up with their dance partners’ names. At the time, there were many French and English Catholic students at the high school. When Scollard Hall and St Josephs’s Academy were

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Family and Community Life in Northeastern Ontario

built, some of the Catholic students decided to go there instead, but many stayed. Cliff did not see them as being different from him, except when they had less trouble in French than he did. He dated a Catholic girl for a while. Cliff signed up for the Second World War as a bomber pilot and was one of those lucky enough to return. He brought back a war bride, in spite of his mother’s admonishment not to do that when he left. At the time of his interview, Cliff and his wife lived in North Bay, only a few blocks from the house where he grew up.25 Life in the west end does not appear to have been very different from life in other parts of town. The houses were perhaps bigger and the families smaller, which meant less crowding. Running water and sewers extended as far as Bell Street. Many wealthy families lived in this west-end neighbourhood. The homes of both Senator Gordon and lumberman William Milne were located in this area. Cliff did not seem to have been very class conscious when he was growing up. He had to help with chores and went to the same schools as everyone else. The Alger family had to be careful through the Depression and was often short of cash, but Cliff was able to earn spending money and received expensive gifts like skis at Christmas. His clothes were hand-me-downs or made by his mother but, since she had been a tailor, they were well made. Shoes were not an issue. His family participated in church and lodge events and he was able to belong to Cubs and Scouts, one of the most active groups for children at the time. He had a large supportive family network and a church community. His father ran a successful business in town and spent several years on city council. As anglophone Protestants, the Algers were part of the culturally dominant mainstream of North Bay society. Although his grandfather was an Orangeman, Cliff seemed not to have had any overt prejudices against Catholics and, in high school, he associated with Catholics and Protestants interchangeably. Because he belonged to the mainstream, issues concerning ethnicity and religion simply did not arise. These three representative accounts of family life in North Bay in the 1920s and 1930s show that daily life could vary considerably according to class, ethnicity, and religion. Although some families were better off than others, they were seldom completely segregated on the basis of income. At the level of the neighbourhood, interaction with those who belonged to other social and cultural groups was common. Later chapters explore institutions such as schools,

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49

The Milne house at Copeland and Murray is an elaborate frame structure that was the home of William Milne, Mayor of North Bay in 1907–08. Milne was also a charter member of North Bay Masonic Lodge, No. 617. Apart from the large trees that now surround it, it looks much the same as it did in a photo taken prior to 1909.

churches, and voluntary organizations, which tended to separate people into communities and limit their social interaction with other groups. At the level of the neighbourhood, however, families were co-operative and helped one another regardless of their social status or cultural divisions.26 Although the examples given here were from North Bay, this would apply to Mattawa as well. North Bay was definitely a railway town, and railway schedules and imperatives dictated the amount of time that fathers had available to spend with their families.27 Those like Rita Landriault’s father and Loretta Cundari’s, who worked for the railway but were not in the rolling trades, appear to have spent many of their off-work hours in domestic pursuits and in being with their children. Suzanne Morton found that in Halifax working-class fathers could take on a wide variety of roles relating to their children, but that they were more likely to get involved in organized leisure with sons than with daughters.28 Shift work and frequent absences affected the family life of others. Dinty Elliott, for example, felt that he was raised by his mother. His father worked the night shift for the cpr and his family saw him for only short periods at breakfast and around supper time. Eleana (O’Hara) Naughton was more fortunate. Her father was a yard switchman and had the 3:30 to 11:30 shift so he saw his children every morning. Lois (Edwards) Douglas saw her father only on weekends.

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He was a civil engineer with the t&no and was away for work during the week. The families of conductors and other rolling trades would have been affected to an even greater degree by their frequent absences. Although North Bay had electricity service, few people owned electrical appliances. Some people had no refrigeration at all, while others still had ice boxes. Housework and other chores were therefore onerous and everyone had to do their share, including children. There was a clear division of labour by sex for most tasks. Cliff Alger’s very effective description of getting a winter’s supply of wood into the basement gives a clear indication of just how much work had to be done. Most boys would have had to help with some of this work depending on their age. They could also work for others for very small amounts of money.29 Girls had to help with almost every aspect of housework. Younger girls might only wash and dry dishes, but as they got older, they helped with the larger tasks of cleaning, baking, cooking, and sewing as well. Carmen (Therrien) Backer (Mattawa) liked to wash dishes, but she left the drying of them to her sisters. Between them they also had to do the dusting and every Saturday they changed the sheets and took turns making the beds. Keeping animals, cows, pigs, chickens, even ducks, helped families reduce their food costs, but also required extra work.30 Those with cows may have churned their own butter and made cheese.31 Gardens were a tremendous help to families, especially during the Depression, and many ate well only because of their big gardens. These were often put in by men, but wives and children usually had to help. Some earned a bit of extra cash by selling their garden surplus, while others gave it away to help others. One man planted potatoes on an empty lot on Duke Street and spaded it up for others as long as they watered it.32 Berry picking was also an important summer activity that helped feed the family. Although picking was gender-neutral, it was the women who made the preserves from strawberries, raspberries, and blueberries every year.33 Although hunting may not have been considered a chore, it also helped the family by bringing in meat. Every fall Jack Russell’s dad would go hunting and bring home a deer that would feed a lot of people because he would always share it. Household tasks in town were therefore still not much removed from those of the country.34 City children sometimes helped with a family business when they were quite young. Hermès Laroque, while still in elementary school,

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used to help his father at his grandfather’s store. He went there directly from school, and one of his jobs was to enter items into the accounts ledger. When he attended boarding school, he would help with deliveries, mostly turkeys, at Christmas. The orders were all organized in order on the back and front seat of the family car. Hermès would make the deliveries and come back to see if there were more. He also helped clean the turkeys, taking out the entrails. He ended up going to midnight mass with hands that smelled awful, he recalled. He started driving when he was sixteen. No one taught him; he just learned himself. In fact, to show how different things were back then, he told the story of how he got his license. In those days there was a Mr Gauthier who had a garage on Algonquin Avenue. He repaired automobiles but if someone came to get a license he would close the shop and take them out on a test drive. So one day, without having told anyone ahead of time, Hermès took the family car and went up there to get his license. Mr Gauthier took him out on a test drive and then gave him a license. In those days, Hermès laughed, things weren’t complicated. Jack Burrows’s father sold horses to the bush camps around Temagami and kept as many as forty horses in his stables. Jack remembered going with him into the Ottawa Valley on buying trips. When the horses arrived by train, they were unloaded at the stockyards and had to be brought over to the stable on Third Avenue. That was one job Jack could help with. But a box-car would come in, and we were just kids, and we’d walk those horses up probably Worthington Street up to the stable, and we’d have three or four halters in our hands and we were just little guys. So it was quite a thing to walk up the street. The only thing that saved us was in a lot of cases I think there was no traffic. There was no cars or trucks. So we could safely walk them up the street. If somebody yelled or called, sometimes these horses were pretty wild, and they would be jumping around. So it was quite an experience.35 As on farms, then, children were allowed to work with horses, despite the possible danger. Childhood was not as sheltered in that respect as it would later be. Cliff Alger clearly stated that women did not work outside the home in his day. This was the norm in Canada at the time. Most

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employers, including school boards, would not hire married women, and teachers were let go when they got married. As they did in Montreal and other large centres,36 women turned to alternative forms of work that could be done at home, such as taking in boarders. The boarding houses for normal school students, for example, were kept by widows or married women. Hermès Laroque’s mother decided to keep boarders when his father expressed his surprise that it had cost her ten dollars to equip him to go to school. Even as a storekeeper, this seemed like a large amount of money to him, and the household finances were rather tight during the Depression. In response, his mother decided that they would make the extra space in their house work for them. They built an addition on the back of the house for Hermès and his brother to sleep and a space for the laundry. The five rooms in the main house were then rented out. His mother not only made all the family’s meals but she also did the laundry and ironing for her boarders. A few years later, when the Dionne quintuplets were born, the number of tourists in town increased greatly, and with this extra revenue, the family was more at ease. His mother’s work made the difference. Of course this meant she had less time to orchestrate family rituals37 and, although she was a member of a parish group, she did not have time to be an active member. Family businesses could also provide an opportunity for women to work. Margaret Richardson remembers her mother as having been a “businesswoman.” From the time of her marriage, she worked as her husband’s bookkeeper. To offset the time she spent working, she hired a live-in maid. “She was there to cook; my mother made the menus for the week. She had to be a person who knew how to cook and clean. Sometimes we had a second woman come in too because there was six of us.”38 Given the low cost of servants at this time, it was probably much less expensive to hire a servant than a bookkeeper. Sunday was a day of rest. The large Protestant mainstream in North Bay would have shared the dominant Ontario view of sabbatarianism.39 As a result stores were closed and there was little recreation.40 Most Catholics regularly attended church on Sunday, but readily participated in recreational activities afterward when these were available. Workers who had only Sunday off may not have attended church for various reasons.41 Jack Russell’s father never went to church, and his mother was too busy to go more than once in a while. They sent Jack and his brother to Anglican Sunday school at times but

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he didn’t remember going often. When they did go, his older brother often took the pennies he was supposed to put in the collection and spent them on candy on the way home instead. They had to eat it right away so their mother wouldn’t know. For his father, Saturday night in winter was a special time. He listened to the hockey on the radio and their grandfather would come over to listen with him. In an interesting choice of words, Jack Russell concluded: “It was religion to us.” Hartley Trussler attended church when he was courting, but not after he married. He often went to the garage to work on Sunday morning, but rarely for more than a few hours. He spent the remainder of the day with his family, often going for a drive in the country.42 The Burrows family did not attend church very regularly either, but Sunday dinner (at noon) was an important family ritual. Jack’s family and his aunts and uncles all gathered at his grandfather’s house, and old Mr Morland who lived across the road would come over as well.43 Church attendance was evidently far from universal. For those who did go, wearing, as Cliff Alger did, their best clothes, church was usually followed by a special Sunday dinner, perhaps a roast or a chicken.44 In remembering their daily activities, interviewees often talked without prompting about their neighbourhood. For children this was more than a concept, it was an important part of their daily reality. Some, like Rita Landriault mentioned above, could remember the exact boundaries of this neighbourhood, the “safe” zone in which they were allowed to roam without special permission. It was where they played; it was where their friends lived. Neighbourhood was also where there were surrogate parents who looked out for you. For parents, neighbourhoods were all these things in reverse. It was an area where people helped each other and looked out for each other, and for each other’s children.45 As Irene Pappas described it, her neighbourhood was a “real neighbourhood” with wonderful neighbours who were very friendly and helpful. Everybody helped everybody and the adults disciplined all the kids, the others as well as their own. One childless couple was particularly nice to her. All were English-speaking. In an interesting display of neighbourliness, Sid Tompkins, who found that the neighbourhood kids were always getting in the way as he was building his new house on Hammond Street, decided that the best way to deal with this was to build them a rink on his extra lot. He charged them ten cents to get in to skate but if

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they helped him shovel the snow and worked on maintaining the rink they didn’t have to pay. His rink was a great success and few of the kids from the neighbourhood had to pay.46 As we have seen above, these neighbourhoods differed as to class and as to ethnicity. None were tightly segregated ethnic neighbourhoods, although two areas of North Bay contained more Italians than elsewhere: the “Y” near the t&no railway and around St Rita’s Church on Douglas, Ann, and High streets.47 A new neighbourhood was emerging on the edge of town around Hammond Street where the new Brookes Street School went up. There were also many downtown neighbourhoods and the more middle class and elite neighbourhoods to the west of Klock Avenue, but not so far as to be outside the area of city services. Language was not a barrier for the children in these neighbourhoods as they all quickly learned enough English to communicate if they didn’t speak it already. Their best friends often belonged to another ethnic group. On Hammond Street, for example: “The French boys went to separate school but in the neighbourhood they were a gang and played together.”48 Shirley (Nicholson) Brazeau had a friend of German descent whose mother was like a second mother. Parents socialized within their neighbourhood as well. One group played “500” with eight different people, taking turns from one house to the other. They sometimes pushed the furniture aside and square danced as well.49 Others played bridge. Playing, an important part of almost every childhood, took place largely on the street and in the neighbourhood. Those who were kept from playing, like Loretta Cundari, were certainly the exception. Some children joined organized activities,50 as Cliff Alger did, but younger children simply played outside in their own neighbourhood, after school or after supper and in the summer. Carmen Backer’s Mattawa neighbourhood had lots of children in it and they spent most of their time playing traditional childhood games with whatever was at hand. They had no purchased games, except perhaps “Snakes and Ladders.” A favourite game was “Home sheep home”; two captains each went in a different direction and one had all the kids. They went looking for the other and if they found him or her they would yell “Home sheep home” and all the “sheep” had to get to a safe place before the captain. This was obviously very similar to Rita Landriault’s “Ten sheep run.” “Duck on a Rock” consisted of setting up a big rock with a smaller rock on top of it and then throwing small rocks to try to knock the small rock off the big one. The children divided

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This 1939 photo shows that North Bay houses were still a good distance apart in many areas, leaving large informal spaces for children to play in. ccoh, flp, Leppan.

into teams and the team that succeeded the most often was the winner.51 They also played Hop Scotch with bits of broken glass as their pieces. Other games included Spin the Bottle, Hide and Seek, and “Rover, Red Rover.”52 They could play on the streets in North Bay, Shirley Brazeau explained, because there were so few cars – not more than three a day – in her neighbourhood. They played Run Sheep Run, Hide and Seek, and Jacks on the sidewalk. “North Bay was very nice at that time. It still is, but it was extremely easy to raise children in those days,” she concluded. Carmen Backer suggested that their games were not important, just a way to pass the time, but I am not sure that Loretta Cundari would agree. Because she was not allowed to play she missed out on the experience, evidently a very important one to these children, of belonging to a neighbourhood gang. For urban families, holidays were determined by employers not by the seasons. One or at most two weeks off in the summer was probably all most of them had.53 Some families were able to move to a cottage for the summer even though the father continued working. Dinty

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Boys playing in their neighbourhood using an old tire as part of their play. ccoh, Demarco Collection.

Elliott’s father rented because he always thought they would be moved. At some point he acquired a summer cottage in Ferris on Lake Nipissing and the family lived there every summer from the end of May. Margaret (Paterson) Richardson’s mother rented part of a farm on South Bay and took the family there for two months every year together with all the family pets. As she continued to work, she brought the maid and a second woman to help look after the children at the beach. They were never unsupervised. Jack Russell’s father had ten days of holidays every year, which he spent at the cottage where he liked to fish. When they later got their own cottage on Lake Nipissing, Jack recalled, they stayed there for two months every summer and he spent his days mostly in the water swimming. Before that he used to swim in Chippewa Creek near his home. They didn’t go down to the lake, he claimed, because there was nothing there. Shirley

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Brazeau’s grandparents had six daughters, and every summer was a big celebration in her family. The daughters took turns coming up to visit. Her grandfather put up a tent in the back yard and slept downstairs to keep an eye on things. The daughters each left their children there when they went back to work. Their Uncle Norm had a car and would take them to Miami Beach on Lake Nipissing every day when the weather was good. There were no cottages there at the time and the sandy beach was particularly attractive. The alternative was to play in the bush on the edge of town, where they made trees into cabins and played games. With as many as eight children there at one time, all close to the same age, it was wonderful for the children. Her grandfather would sometimes take all the children out of the house for the day so that her grandmother could get a rest and the aunts could clean the house. They would leave early in the morning and were only allowed to wear coveralls. They would walk to Trout Lake where they would swim and have sandwiches. Her grandfather would also make a little fire and cook using canned milk with water. After walking back home, they were allowed to have a treat. “We could walk to King Street with the oldest ones in charge, and get an ice cream cone for dessert.” Italian youth had different opportunities. With the exportation of fascism to North America in this era,54 particularly after 1929, members of fascist youth groups could spend the summer in Italy in fascist youth camps. They lived in tents, wore uniforms, and paraded daily. The highlight of their visit was a trip to Rome where they were blessed by the Pope, and a visit to the Olympic Stadium where they were greeted by Il Duce himself. After this, they were permitted to visit relatives. “For those who participated in this immersion, Fascist Italy became a real part of their lives.”55 These efforts reached into the smaller Italian communities as well as the larger ones, and in 1935, four North Bay youths who were members of Italian Youth Organizations Abroad in Canada spent part of their summer in Italy.56 They were accompanied to Ottawa, where they met up with the nineteen other Italian youths they would travel with. When Clara Ceresia, one of the four, returned, her mother gave a welcome-home party to give her the chance to talk about the trip and show pictures.57 The young people also gave a presentation of their experiences at a community event held at St Mary’s Hall.58 The use of camps to immerse youth in a particular culture was of course not limited to fascists, but their efforts stand out because they involved a trip to Italy.

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Other young people still had farm roots, and for them holidays and time off meant going back to the farm. Ken Unger’s parents enjoyed going to his grandfather’s farm in Alderdale, where they used to have square dances. Stan Montgomery, the mail carrier, had a panel truck, and every Saturday a gang of about twenty of them, mostly his aunts and uncles, would get in the panel truck, and go to the farm and have a grand old time. Bringing their own “lunch,” they would go there Saturday night and return Sunday morning. At other times they took the local train to Alderdale and spent the weekend at his grandfather’s. Hartley Trussler would take frequent drives “to the mill” just outside of town where he had relatives. Being extremely fond of cars and driving, he also took a touring holiday in 1935.59 Although this kind of trip was out of reach for the majority of workers, who might take such a trip only once – for their honeymoon – the children of working class families in North Bay were fortunate that a getaway to the beach in the summer could be a daily occurrence, not an impossible dream.

seasonal rhythms: life in the country It was difficult to make a living from farming in this area and not everyone who lived on a farm was successful. Multiple occupations were common. Many combined farming with lumbering, which took the men away from home for extended periods of time. When the tourist industry blossomed after the birth of the Dionne quintuplets in 1934, cottages on lake properties could easily be rented out for additional income.60 Sometimes the farming was secondary. Conrad Therrien’s father lived on a farm but worked for the Department of Highways running a grader in the summer and a snowplow in the winter. He was home only some of the time. When the men were away, women and children had to take on more of the farm chores and there was less family time. Conrad’s mother did the milking and fed the cows and horses when his dad was gone and the children were younger. Later, when the boys started using the horses to draw wood, they would also feed them. Stanley Anderson of Chisholm Township remembered farm work in this period: “[It was] interminable, year in and year out. Wood cut with cross-cut saws ready for the wood bees. Ice cut by hand and stored in sawdust, manure loaded by hand, hay handled loose with forks, stooking and forking of sheaves to wagons, to the mow, and

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then in to the thresher. Potatoes and turnips were largely handled by hand. Hay was forked off into stacks when the barns were full. Chores were still done by lantern light.”61 Nonetheless, there was a seasonal rhythm to farm work. In the early spring, sugaring off was a special time. In the Gauthier family, maple sugar was made in the oldfashioned way in a big cast-iron pan over an open fire, a method that supposedly produced the best syrup.62 Bernard Rochefort’s family made syrup mostly for their own family, but they sold a few gallons in North Bay as well, usually to people they knew. Most people with a maple bush had a special day when friends and neighbours came to visit, often a Sunday or holiday. They made taffy and also cut small pieces of cedar wood that, soaked in syrup, could be licked, a bit like a sucker. Sometimes they had a bit of dancing outside as well. Later in the spring the garden and the potatoes were planted. Then came berry season, first strawberries then raspberries. These were made into preserves. Children also picked hazelnuts, which were stored in large burlap bags. When the nuts were dried they were knocked on rocks to shell them. Housework continued year round but there was certainly more to do in the summer. Mrs Gauthier (Germaine Guillemette’s mother) did her baking in an outdoor oven where she made batches of about twenty loaves of bread at a time. When she took the bread out, she put beans in the oven and the next morning there would be baked beans for breakfast. Breakfast was usually eggs and bacon, sometimes crêpes. When the men worked in the field, they came in for both lunch and supper, but they also had a lunch in the afternoon and another at night around ten o’clock when they finished. Later in the summer, Mrs Gauthier would make a bean soup (“soupe aux gourganne”), a traditional Quebec dish. Large green beans had to be soaked overnight to make soup the next day. Come fall, the threshing had to be done. A farmer near Chiswick had a threshing machine and the men worked in gangs going from farm to farm to do the work. The women did the cooking, which always included a lot of pies. Fall was also apple harvest time and time for the partridge hunt. This was an important festive occasion when families, friends and relatives got together for stuffed partridge and also a broth (“bouillon”). “Ça c’était un gros festin ça.”63 In the fall and winter the amount of work would be reduced somewhat. In the Gauthier family, chores and homework were done after school, and after supper the whole family joined together to say the rosary. In the time left before bed, the family often enjoyed singing

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and music. Germaine’s father and one of her brothers played the violin, and several others played the guitar. Her father had a spittoon. She had a vivid memory of how he would play the violin and spit in his spittoon.64 Germaine also remembered that the women sometimes combined work and entertainment by getting together in a quilting bee. As they didn’t all work the same way, this would be a help to them and at the same time give them a chance to talk and visit. The bees took place in the afternoon so as to not disturb the usual family routine and because, in the evening after putting in a full day, they would have been too tired.65 As summers were so busy, these gatherings were likely in the winter. For those who kept animals, selling meat in the North Bay market was an option. Adjutor Rochefort of Astorville, Bernard’s father, had a contract to sell meat every Saturday from July to November. When he first started he made his way to North Bay with his horses and had to leave the house around two in the morning to get there on time.66 By the 1930s he had an automobile and market day was somewhat shorter. The family had about ten cows and kept the calves for about a year and a half before slaughtering them for market. They also kept sheep and pigs for the same purpose. Thursday was slaughtering day. The work was done by Adjutor with the help of his older sons and perhaps his wife.67 The Boulanger family began selling at the North Bay market when they got a car. Each week, in turn, one of the children would go with their father to help. They sold small live animals such as lambs, piglets, chickens, and ducks. This meant they didn’t have to do the slaughtering, a difficult job, at home. They also sold vegetables. In those days, there were no restrictions on hooking up a trailer to the vehicle to carry things, and even the small amount of cash brought in this way was welcome.68 Farm work was a family affair and everyone worked, including children. Most jobs were gender-specific. Girls helped with the housework, and boys helped with the firewood, for example.69 These considerations were put aside whenever necessary, however, because the priority was getting the work done. In the summer, children helped in the garden and with picking berries. Conrad Therrien remembered that the boys drove horses but he never had to milk cows because that was his mother’s job. Simone (Boulanger) Martin provides a possible explanation for this. In dairy work it was important to be very clean, and the boys sometimes tried to cut corners. Her father sold cream and, although she was completely unfamiliar with other types of farm

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Children watch while their parents slaughter a pig on the Guillemette farm. Although this photo dates from the 1950s, it reflects the earlier reality as well. ccoh, flp, Guillemette.

chores, she was taught to milk cows early on. When it came to housework, however, she had been taught all the tasks. She had to help with everything, as her mother had a heart condition and couldn’t climb stairs or do anything strenuous. The boys helped with the heavy job of hauling water, and gathered rain water, to cut down the work. Conrad Therrien also went hunting and fishing and had to cut wood with a swede saw. Hunting was not for entertainment, but served to provide a vital food source, fresh meat. He learned to hunt from his dad, and followed him hunting for six or seven years before he got a chance to use a gun. He got to practise-shoot before that, but he was sixteen before he had a gun to hunt with – a “25 Stevens,” slightly bigger than the 22 rifle. He shot deer with it in the annual November season. At that time of the year, he explained, you could usually leave the meat outside to freeze and if you kept it in the barn it wouldn’t thaw during the day. If it did warm up, then you had to cut it up and can it. You didn’t let it spoil, because it was the only fresh meat you had all year. He also went shooting for partridge when his mother asked him to, usually warning him: “Only two now!” As he explained, “You know there was no fridge or electricity or nothing at

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that time, so you couldn’t keep them that long. And we knew that if we wanted some the next day, we could get them again.” From his mother, then, he learned “not to kill for nothing.” In a large family, helping and chores could turn into a full-time occupation. In the large Rochefort family (sixteen children), four girls were sent to further their education at the convent in Sturgeon Falls, but Alice, who was sixteen when Bernard, the fourteenth child, was born, stayed home to help with her younger siblings. She never married, and continued to help out as an adult.70 Despite the hard work, life in the country was not all work and no play. Among French Canadians, the tradition of visiting or having a veillée continued as it had in Quebec and earlier settlements. This was one of the major forms of entertainment in the period studied. The Gauthier family came from Sainte-Irénée in picturesque Charlevoix County on the north shore of the St Lawrence. They visited a lot with the Girard family, who also came from there. Thus at night, the older members of the family could reminisce about the St Lawrence River and other aspects of life in Charlevoix. Most of these veillées were on a Saturday or a Sunday night. The Gauthiers also visited with the Guillemette family, who were musicians and singers. This is how Germaine met her future husband, Roland Guillemette, who played the accordion. They often had an evening of music. Her mother preferred to have them at home doing things than going out together elsewhere. In those days they were scrupulous, she suggests, and stricter.71 When she and Roland began seeing each other, her brother had to chaperone them on their outings. She was hardly ever allowed to see him alone. He would visit her in the summer using the old Ford and in the winter, a pony. Although most visiting was with neighbours, the Gauthier parents would sometimes travel to visits friends or relatives who lived further away, leaving their children in the care of Germaine’s grandfather. Germaine remembered this well because he used to tell them scary stories. Apart from visiting, skating was a favourite winter pastime for children.72 Dances were also popular, and young people were willing to walk a considerable distance to take one in.73 In the summer, weddings and church picnics attracted large numbers.74 Visiting intensified during the holiday season, which is examined in the next chapter. Going to church on Sunday also served as a social occasion.

Children posed for a photograph on the front step of their stone farmhouse in Chisholm Township, one of them holding a violin. The pet dog and two kittens are also included in the photo. ccoh, flp, Guillemette.

This posed family scene was probably taken on the occasion of a family visit. Théophile Gauthier, one of the early settlers of Chisholm Township, sits on the front porch of his log farm house with his wife, Marie. Their son Albert and daughter Claudia, sitting in the foreground, are clearly the focus of the photograph. ccoh, flp, Guillemette.

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Family life in the rural areas outside North Bay remained very traditional during the interwar years. The area had been settled in the 1880s and was no longer a pioneer area, but roads were poor and difficult to use in winter and during the Depression, very few people could afford vehicles. The Depression, hardly mentioned by interviewees, was probably not much harder than the usual conditions. Transportation by horse and wagon or sleigh, although feasible for short distances, limited the amount of travel that was possible for people. Rural schools had to be within walking distance for the school children. People went to the nearest village or town for shopping and church on Sunday, but did not make many extra trips. For those who grew up in the 1920s and 1930s, rural life offered minimal opportunities for entertainment apart from family visiting. Dances, which could be held in homes or in the local school if there was no community hall, were one of the few diversions. The family was clearly the focus of social life. It was not until the 1950s or even the 1960s, when the children of our interviewees were growing up, that electrification, school buses, and improved roads arrived and began to reshape the countryside. In contrast, North Bay had more amenities. There was electricity and the central parts of town had running water. However, many aspects of life in the city and the smaller towns of Mattawa and Bonfield were still not that different from life in the country. The outlying areas had no indoor plumbing. Children helped with chores, which still included looking after animals. Cars were put on blocks for the winter and travel became difficult. The experience of town children was different primarily in that they were able to associate with others their own age. Urban neighbourhoods were tremendously important, as the early associations and friendships formed there often lasted a lifetime. In urban places, work was more regimented and workers were allowed only ten to fourteen days of holidays. Work schedules also determined how often fathers could see their children – perhaps for a very short time each day, or only on weekends. While much visiting and entertainment took place in the home, townspeople had many more opportunities for recreation and associational life outside the family, as we will see in later chapters.

ations mmunity and Life Domestic in Northeastern Occasions Ontario

3 Family Celebrations and Domestic Occasions

In the period from 1820 to 1890 the rowdy and boisterous forms of holiday celebrations that had been inherited from Europe were subdued and transformed by the American middle classes into domestic celebrations supervised by women. In the United States, Thanksgiving became a major family domestic occasion, along with Christmas.1 The gift-giving component of holidays such as Christmas was emphasized and promoted by the merchant class, so that holidays became increasingly commercialized and secularized as well. By the early twentieth century religious holidays such as Easter were also affected, as well as to the more secular celebrations of Valentine’s Day and Mother’s Day.2 Birthdays were also increasingly celebrated as domestic occasions in the nineteenth century. “As a gift-giving event for a special child, the birthday party emerged at the nexus of an affectionate family and a consumer society.”3 Although the transformation of holidays in Canada did not follow exactly the same trajectory as in the United States,4 commercial influences, often emanating from the United States, were very similar in both countries. In Catholic Quebec this influence was first felt between 1895 and 1905, when the image of Santa Claus was introduced in newspaper advertisements for Christmas goods. In the early twentieth century the conservative bourgeoisie fought back against this Americanization and commercialization of the holiday with little success other than to replace the image of Santa Claus with le père Noël.5 Nor was this transformation limited to the city; with the advent of the catalogue, commercialization reached into the countryside as well. Holidays and family celebrations were also important to immigrant groups, who brought their own celebrations and traditions with them

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and tried, with varying degrees of success, to maintain them or to adapt them to their new situation. The food consumed at these family celebrations took on special meaning for its role in transmitting and celebrating that culture and creating community.6 For this study, interviewees were asked about the holidays and celebrations that their families observed. They invariably mentioned Christmas and Easter first, but only remembered Christmas in detail. While we examine other celebrations briefly, therefore, we focus in this chapter on Christmas and New Year’s celebrations, clearly the most important family celebrations in this area.

christmas and new year’s, or

LE TEMPS DES FÊTES

The Christmas celebrations that our interviewees could still remember were those of the Depression era. The consumer festival aspect of Christmas was therefore muted for most families by their lack of resources for store-bought gifts. There were important ethnic and rural-urban differences in the way Christmas was celebrated as well. For many families Christmas was a “domestic occasion” that put the emphasis on getting together. Others, particularly French Canadian families in the country, emphasized community more than the nuclear family in their Christmas celebrations. As well, there were minor ethnic variations, particularly with regard to food. Even Jewish families in North Bay celebrated Christmas so that their children would not be left out. The celebration of Christmas by urban anglophone families can best be described as a domestic occasion. The basic components of Christmas for these families were: attending church, putting up a tree, distributing gifts brought by Santa Claus, and sharing a family dinner. Although the turkey was not essential, it was clearly becoming the food of choice for these urban families at Christmas. The size and number of presents depended on a family’s economic circumstances, but families had clearly developed traditions or rituals around getting and decorating the tree, opening presents, and going to church. Family size and composition varied, with older members “coming home” to join in the festivities, but these were clearly family events, and neighbours and friends were not included. The urban context appears to have been an important factor in shaping this form of celebration. The Unger family had a Pennsylvania Dutch and Irish background. Their celebration of Christmas was much as described above when

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they stayed in North Bay. More often than not, however, they went to their maternal grandparents’ in Alderdale. Along with several other related families, they would stay over for two or three days. When there, they went to midnight mass in Chiswick and had Christmas dinner the next day. They received presents and had a Christmas tree. Friends and neighbours dropped in, and things seemed more relaxed in the country.7 This suggests that Christmas as a domestic occasion was a function of class and urban surroundings rather than of ethnicity per se. Each family, however, had its own variations on this overall pattern. In one Irish Anglican household, children who had left home came back for Christmas, and it was not unusual to have twenty-four people sitting down to dinner. They attended the Christmas Eve service at St John’s Anglican Church and had a tree; and the presents included large items like skis and toboggans.8 One Irish Catholic family had turkey at Christmas and a three-layer fruit cake. Both the recipe and the cake pans were still being used, the cake clearly having taken on the status of a family ritual. The children too young to go to midnight mass went to bed early. When the parents left for church they woke the children up, saying, as one interviewee recalled: “‘Oh Santa Claus came.’ And then they’d leave and we come down and Joe and I would open our gifts and get into our stockings. Which at that time was an orange and chocolates, and we’d still be up when they came home.”9 In a Canadian Methodist family, one Christmas ritual was getting the tree. “Dad and my brother and I would go out on a road nearby and cut down a tree and bring it in and decorate it. It was a big celebration at Christmas.” They attended a midnight service at Trinity Church and the children were allowed to open only one present when they came home from church. The rest were opened in the morning. The traditional Christmas dinner was turkey. “Mother and grandma would bake up a storm before Christmas. There were all kinds of cookies. Many, many – too many things – to eat. Mother made her own mincemeat.”10 A Scots Presbyterian family celebrated simply compared to today, with a tree and a family dinner.11 Another English Anglican family celebrated by going to church on Christmas Eve and having presents and dinner the next day. This family’s celebrations included music, as several family members played instruments. One year the children cut a record as a present for their parents.12 Jack Russell thought Christmas was “marvellous,” that is “until Santa died.” “Well you know, they have you believing it until a

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certain age, and when you find out it’s very disappointing.” Santa Claus was particularly important to young children. At the time, hundreds of letters to Santa Claus were published in the local paper each year. These letters came from children as old as thirteen but the majority were written by four- to nine-year-olds. Children associated Santa Claus with toys. An examination of letters from 1,017 children in 1933 shows that they asked for an average of three toys each. Many of them also had a well-developed idea of Santa Claus and Mrs Santa living together with all their reindeer and their elves. Many were also aware, however, that the Depression meant that some children might get very little, or nothing. The Depression was specifically mentioned in 11.5 percent of their letters.13 The following letter is an example: Dear Santa Claus – I do not want much this Christmas. I am 10 Years old and I always think that I am too old to write. I read all your letters in The Nugget each week, but I know that I do not want much as times are so hard. Well, Santa, I would like very much if you would bring me a skiing outfit in colors of blue or green, with a hat to match. I would also like a pair of twin dolls, one with white hair and one with black or brown. I hope this is not too much. Your loving friend, Barbara Brown, 150 First avenue east, North Bay. p.s. –Don’t forget the poor children whose fathers are on relief.14 Judging from the first toy children asked for, dolls (202) and skates (141) were the most requested, followed by trains (45), trucks (41), skis (41), and toboggans (39). According to ads in the paper at the same time, these items could cost anywhere from 49 cents to $9.50 for the best ccm skates.15 The fact that children believed their toys came from Santa made it much easier for them to ask for things their parents could not afford. The disparity between those who received large gifts at Christmas and those who received little or nothing could only be partly offset by the appeals to the wealthy to give generously to the Santa Fund and other similar campaigns to help the needy at this time of the year (see chapter 10). Italian families also celebrated Christmas in a family context. Although the Christmas tree was not part of their tradition, they had adopted it. In terms of food, however, they prepared their own special treats and ate their own traditional foods rather than turkey – or with it. Loretta Cundari’s account of her family celebration is particularly detailed and gives a good insight into a working class Italian family

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Christmas. Her family used to put up a little tree for Christmas and her mother made ornaments for it. There were a few things for a stocking, but they didn’t get gifts like today. Her mother used to buy the flour bags from Rota’s bake shop and use them to sew things. On Christmas Eve her mother served fish, and on Christmas Day they had lasagna or ravioli. There was plenty of food. Before the meal the children got in line to kiss their father’s hand and acknowledge him as their father. This ritual was clearly similar to the paternal benediction at New Year’s in French Canadian families. Loretta recalled that one year she didn’t want to. They had a big table and to her it seemed like the last supper. Some of the special food was dough bread, which was fried and then sprinkled with sugar. The cod fish came in big slabs and tasted good raw. It had to be soaked to remove the salt. They cooked it with onions and sauce and it was really delicious. Her mother did a lot of baking, especially fancy Italian pastries for Christmas, such as fried scalilli and filiata, “pregnant bread,” baked with honey on top, and turdilli, made with honey and dough. Some of these were very hard to make and the knowledge of how to make them is largely lost.16 Licia Falconi felt that Christmas was the most important family celebration of the year. Her family’s Christmas was much the same. They would decorate the house and put up a small tree. Her mother also did a lot of baking. They had the traditional dish of fish on Christmas Eve, and pasta and turkey and cookies and Italian baking on Christmas Day. Licia also tells an important story about a doll. It shows that parents were not able to shelter their children from the influences of consumerism and that Eaton’s advertising penetrated into childhood circles. Fads in toys were just as influential then as they are now, it seems, and purchased goods were valued more highly than homemade things as Christmas gifts. Licia wanted a doll for Christmas for several years but there was never enough money to buy her one. Instead she got a housecoat and slippers, and one year she got a fur muff. Her mother was a seamstress and could make these items. When Lee finally got a doll, it was her godmother who gave it to her. But it wasn’t the doll she wanted. In fact, she was so angry with it that she bashed its head in. The doll was coloured. What she had wanted was one of the Eaton’s beauty dolls or a Shirley Temple doll,17 but these were too expensive. Her family felt bad that they could not get her what she wanted, but there was no choice. “We were happy anyway,” she was quick to add.18

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Traditionally, French Canadians celebrated Christmas as a religious holiday with a midnight mass, followed by a meal with family and perhaps a few neighbours called the réveillon. Dishes such as the tourtière (meat pie), the ragoût (stew) and croquignoles (hard biscuits) were associated with this meal, which was savoured all the more because it followed four weeks of fasting during Advent. In the first half of the nineteenth century, the New Year was celebrated with the guignolée, an often rowdy begging for alms by young people on New Year’s Eve, a paternal benediction on New Year’s morning followed by the distribution of gifts left for well-behaved children by baby Jesus, and attendance at mass followed by a festive meal. While the women were in the kitchen preparing the meal, the men made the rounds and wished their friends and relatives a Happy New Year.19 In some circles calling on one’s entire family and social network was a must, with the men making the calls and the women staying at home to receive them.20 Although the Christmas preparations began weeks before with the butchering of a pig and perhaps chickens as well, and with the preparation of special foods, these activities took place within the domestic sphere and Christmas did not stand out from other events on the religious calendar. Jean-Philippe Warren, in describing the transformation of Christmas in the last few decades of the century in Quebec, points out that its transformation was twopronged: first, it became integrated into the world of the merchant and the middle class, and second, it emerged as the great holiday celebration of French Canadians.21 That transformation would take place in the period from 1885 to 1915. Many of the French Canadians who came to the study area, however, left rural areas of Quebec in the 1880s or even earlier, and would therefore have brought with them the simpler traditions of the earlier period. Although they retained some of these traditions, the manner in which Christmas and New Year’s were celebrated in the 1920s and 1930s suggests that these traditions were in the process of transformation here as well, influenced both by the practices of others and by the commercial influences that were also having an impact in Quebec. In looking at the celebration of Christmas in French Canadian families, therefore, it is important to examine Christmas and New Year’s practices together in order to see the extent to which traditional practices were followed or had given way to mainstream customs. More of these traditional practices appear to have been maintained in the country than in the city. By the 1920s, however, gift-giving at Christ-

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mas had largely replaced the earlier tradition, and Santa Claus and Christmas trees were being added to most families’ celebrations. The Laroque family lived in the city of North Bay and were parishioners at St Vincent de Paul church, as were most of the French Canadians in North Bay. Hermès Laroque recalled that when he was very young (he was born in 1924) Christmas was a family celebration. They had a Christmas tree in the living room. His mother decorated the tree on Christmas Eve, after the children were in bed, so they wouldn’t know what was happening. When she had finished, she put their presents under the tree. The adults went to midnight mass and when they returned, the children were awakened so that they could come and open their gifts. There was no question of going elsewhere, he emphasizes; this was a family event. When they were older, his mother also prepared a family supper on Christmas Eve after Midnight Mass: “le soir de Noël y avait toujours la rencontre de toute la famille” (on Christmas Eve there was always the get-together of the whole family). Even after the children got married, the whole family would get together for Christmas. The favourite meal was turkey, and they had access to it from the store his father kept. Although they received their gifts at Christmas, some of the older tradition of giving gifts at New Year’s remained, since they received their “Christmas stocking” at New Year’s. This stocking contained the only oranges they saw in a year, apples, and grapes – a real treat. The Christmas gifts must have been small items that they needed, but Hermès had no real recollection of them. Only one gift stands out in his memory. One year his father managed to find two used bicycles for five dollars each for the boys. Later, when Hermès was in college, he received money – two dollars back then was a lot. In the Laroque family, New Year’s was the only holiday or celebration when the whole extended family got together, at his grandfather’s. His grandfather had a big house and his three daughters living at home prepared the large meal required. There was no formal paternal benediction by his grandfather or his father, but his grandfather did bless the table, as his father did at nuclear family gatherings. There were also crackers and hats. A traditional New Year’s gift consisted of a box of candy. His grandfather made small boxes, three inches across and two inches high, and filled them with hard candy. All the children and grandchildren received one of these boxes, clearly a special family ritual. Lucille Regimbal’s family lived on Second Avenue and was well off compared to many other families. Christmas was definitely a “big

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event” in their family. At St Vincent de Paul Church there were three masses, at midnight, at dawn, and on Christmas Day. In Lucille’s family the older members of the family went to midnight mass and then came home and kept house while the others went to the next mass. This gave them time to put out the gifts. The living room was usually full, with a tree that their father had cut and many decorations that they kept from year to year. They received presents at both Christmas and New Year’s because their parents didn’t want them to be left out at Christmas but also held to the tradition of giving gifts at New Year’s. At Christmas they got a stocking and at New Year’s, things that were useful. Everybody got gifts, not just the children. These were never attributed to Santa Claus but to Jesus, who gave them through the fact that he gave their father work. After midnight mass they had a réveillon, which lasted until five in the morning. Their neighbours, the LeBlanc family, came to the réveillon and all the children could go out to play. This was a very special time. They ate tourtière and donuts. The Regimbal family always had a paternal benediction at New Year’s. At first, Lucille’s parents visited her grandparents but after they had four or five children, this became harder and they stayed home. Her father then gave the benediction. After he died the role passed to her mother, and later to the oldest member of the family. Today Lucille does the honours for many of her nieces and nephews, who call her for that purpose. They still use a formal ritualistic blessing. They also celebrated the Feast of the Epiphany (6 January) with a cake baked with a bean in it – the one who got it was king or queen for the rest of the day. In Carmen (Therrien) Backer’s family in Mattawa, Christmas had replaced New Year’s as the important holiday. On Christmas Eve, the celebration was a traditional community one, but Christmas morning was a family event. Her parents took turns attending midnight mass with the children old enough to go with them. The others went to the morning mass. Mass didn’t finish until two in morning and was followed by a round of visiting with friends and relatives, going to four or five different houses over the evening. There were tourtières and Christmas cake and the men had a drink and the women had a cup of tea. This was their version of the réveillon. This custom continued until after she married. Looking back, she believes it was mostly people in town who received people from out in the country. On Christmas morning, the children received their one gift, something useful like a

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piece of clothing, a school bag, a pencil box, or a pen and pencil set. The gifts were not wrapped: “There was no Christmas paper or ribbons or anything like that.” But her father always got a Christmas tree, a big one with just enough room to put the angel on top. They made most of their own decorations using popcorn and cranberries and other things like that, but they had a few bought ones as well. Her mother also showed them how to make snowflakes out of paper. They always hung their Christmas stocking as well, and in it they received “an apple, an orange, and a handful of nuts.” They were always taught that the real gift of Christmas was le petit Jésus. That was what came first, what Christmas was really about. Rita Landriault remembered that when she was younger, her family had no tradition of having a Christmas tree. They hung a Christmas stocking instead, the largest they could find, and they received small gifts such as candies and peanuts, and sometimes a surprise. It was only around 1925 that they began following the local practice of having a Christmas tree. While she gave no further detail about Christmas, she described the paternal benediction at New Year’s in detail. In her family, the paternal benediction was held after the dessert at noon. The whole family would get on its knees and her father would pronounce his benediction, using a special formulation that she believed he might have obtained from his meetings in the League of the Sacred Heart. It was the same in other families as well, she claimed: “C’était pas mal partout dans toutes les familles la même chose.” After the group benediction, each family member would rise and he would give them each a kiss on the cheek. This was fairly close to the traditional benediction described by folklorists and illustrated by Edmond-J. Massicotte.22 This benediction was at the time considered an obligation,23 and the Sacred Heart fraternity would have instilled in its members the importance of maintaining this tradition and starting the New Year under divine protection. From these urban examples, we can see that although not all families celebrated in the same way, Christmas was outpacing New Year’s as the important celebration of the holiday season. In the Laroque family, Christmas was celebrated as a family “domestic occasion.” While other North Bay families might entertain a few friends in their réveillon, their celebration was also relatively family-focused compared to the practice in Mattawa, which was still much more traditional and also reflected the inter-relationship between town and country. There was still some ambivalence over giving gifts at Christmas instead of at New Year’s,

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and Santa Claus, in these families, was still being kept in abeyance in favour of le petit Jésus. As Christmas became more festive, New Year’s became more solemn, with the paternal benediction taking on a greater significance in the day. French Canadians in the countryside saw Christmas as the opening of the social season known as le temps des fêtes, which stretched to the Epiphany or Les Rois (6 January) or even until le petit Noël (2 February).24 The men did not do very much work in January, and this period was devoted to socializing. Families took turns having others over and there were numerous veillées with traditional food, music, and the singing of traditional chansons à réponse.25 These festivities required extensive advance preparation. Pork and other animals had to be butchered. Sausages and as many as twenty tourtières for one family had to be made. Christmas baking, including the often mandatory fruit cake, was done in advance as well. The local bootlegger also had to be approached for a supply of liquor for the season so that men could have a shot of p’tit blanc.26 As all these preparations took place during Advent, when luxuries were prohibited, the feasting at Christmas was all the more enjoyed. Midnight mass was a very special occasion and everyone made a great effort to get there. They travelled by horse, and because the mass could go until three or four in the morning, it was important that the horses be put in a shed for protection against the cold. As a result, some families only went when the weather was mild.27 The music and singing at midnight mass were part of what made it so special. It was almost like a concert, Simone (Boulanger) Martin remembered: “Comme de raison, dans ce temps-là, c’était la messe en latin mais y avait les chants en français, pi les chants, ben, y en avaient beaucoup pi y’étaient très beau pi y’avait pas vraiment de radio puis toutes ces choses-là, y’en avait très peu, c’était presque pour eux un, un concert.”28 People put great stock in the singing at Christmas and although the school children could practise singing Christmas carols, they were only allowed to sing in church on Christmas Day. At midnight mass, it was the adults who sang and certain carols like “Minuit Chrétien” (O Holy Night) had quite literally become the property of a particular individual, and this was not something that could be challenged.29 When mass was over, it was so late that some of the country people returned home and did their chores before going to bed. Others took the time to stop in to visit and eat briefly before making the trip home.

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Simone (Boulanger) Martin, for example, didn’t think that her family had a réveillon. She explained that they lived quite close to the church in Bonfield, whereas most of their relatives were from Grand Désert, where there were no church services during the winter. The relatives came to Bonfield for midnight mass and would drop in for supper before mass. This meant her family had to start getting ready in the afternoon as they might have as many as twenty people for supper. After mass, the country folk were anxious to get home, so they didn’t stay for a réveillon, but they did come in for a bit of food before going back. They had tourtière, donuts, and hot beverages. In effect, then, they had the réveillon, but because of the distance they had to travel, it was an abridged version. Others put visiting off until Christmas Day.30 The difficulty of travel with horses in the winter clearly affected the ability to socialize. Those who lived near the church and had no horses to worry about would réveilloner after midnight mass. The réveillon typically lasted until five or six in the morning in the Rochefort family. Although guests were primarily family, neighbours might also drop in, sometimes after having had a few drinks.31 On Papineau Road near Mattawa where Laurence Blanchette grew up, things were much the same. Christmas trees were a normal part of Christmas for everyone. Little mention was made of when and how they were obtained, but in this area they would have been plentiful and easily available. Some families hardly decorated their trees; others made decorations such as popcorn strings. This was before electrification so of course there were no lights. Simone (Boulanger) Martin does remember, however, that they would decorate the tree with many small pieces of mica and hang a lantern in front of it so that the decorations caught the light as they turned and reflected all different colours. Thus the Christmas tree became magical for young children. Christmas was also the time when a few small gifts were given to the children. They received small treats like nuts and fruit, or practical gifts that they could wear or that they would need anyway, like skates or a sled and perhaps one toy.32 “We always had a tree in the corner. We had a railing around the stairs and we’d hang our stockings on that, for our apples, an orange, a chocolate bar, maybe a little doll. It’s not like today at all, it’s so commercialized. Back then it was the true Christmas, I guess. You didn’t get much because you couldn’t afford much, and you were satisfied with that.”33 To have a box of candy that was all your own was considered a treat.34 Although fruit might not

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seem like much of a gift today, in those days, Christmas was the only time the children ever saw such fruit.35 Santa Claus was not dominant, but he occasionally made an appearance, particularly in families of mixed backgrounds. Lloyd Novack remembers when he found out about Santa Claus: “I remember him [his father] coming down. He was downstairs, my mother was there, that’s just when I started school. He was putting an apple or something in the sock and we caught him. From then on I didn’t believe. (Laughing).” Millie (Sloan) Lamarre, whose background was French and Irish, remembered that on Christmas Eve the young ones who still believed in Santa Claus had to go to bed early while the others went from house to house visiting. It therefore seems that among many of these Catholic families, during the 1930s if not longer, the notion that Santa Claus brought gifts was kept at bay. Turkey for Christmas dinner was rare in the countryside. Farmers produced their own food and did not buy food for special occasions. Some might have goose or chicken as a special treat, but pork and beef were the norm for both special occasions and regular meals.36 The fact that Christmas was gaining in significance did not reduce the importance of New Year’s. For many families it had an even greater significance as a family event because of the paternal benediction. It was also a continuation of the social season for visiting. Philomene Deschenes, a student at the North Bay Collegiate Institute, wrote a short piece for the French section of the yearbook in which she sentimentalized New Year’s Day as a holiday in which all French Canadian families got together to seek the paternal benediction. In her story, she recalled such a day, happily spent with her parents at her grandparents’. The day began with mass, followed by the paternal benediction given by the grandfather, then lunch, after which the grandchildren all received their gifts. After dinner, they amused themselves making music or dancing. “Et tard le soir on ferme les yeux, le coeur rempli de bonheur.”37 Simone (Boulanger) Martin remembers that her grandparents usually arrived for breakfast on New Year’s Day. That way, her grandfather was there to give the benediction. But if he was absent, her father did the honours. (She and her daughter still continued this tradition.) After breakfast, they went to mass, and the rest of the day was pretty quiet. In her family, it was her uncles who liked to make the rounds of the various community families and wish them a Happy New Year, but her father preferred to stay home and receive the well-wishers, who sometimes arrived three

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or four at once. They would usually have a drink (un p’tit coup), having brought their own liquor with them, and then they would be on their way.38 Bernard Rochefort’s family also started New Year’s with the paternal benediction. Later in the day, there was much visiting. The fact that he had such a large number of relatives in the area clearly had an impact. For many of them, he noted, his father was their uncle, and it was important for them to come and wish him a Happy New Year. They might only stay an hour or so but they would have a drink and sing songs and it was a joyous time. Simone (Boulanger) Martin also remembered that for several years, on New Year’s Day, neighbours and friends would drop in to wish them a Happy New Year and that some also came around collecting for the guignolée. Being young, she did not pay much attention to this practice, but she explained that the people who had something for the poor prepared it in advance. They might donate a piece of pork or a quarter of beef. Or, they might have extra dishes and, knowing that someone else needed them, would give them away. If they had a preference as to who should benefit, they could even say so. The items were attached to the sleighs, and if it was dishes, they went noisily on their way. The guignolée is one of several traditional collections of alms (quêtes) present in French America. It distinguishes itself in that it was a collection never just of money, but of goods, food, clothing, gifts, and sweet treats for the poorest members of the community.39 Although an old tradition in the countryside, the first guignolée in Montreal was organized by the St Vincent de Paul Society in 1860. Another description of the tradition points out that as young people made the rounds of the countryside to collect for the poor, they received, along with the farm produce they collected, encouragement in the form of a small glass of rum to warm them up.40 Christmas and New Year’s traditions in the French Canadian communities in the countryside continued to evolve. Some older traditions, such as the guignolée, were transferred to the area from Quebec, but did not survive beyond the 1930s. The paternal benediction on New Year’s Day, however, remained an important family ritual. Customs from other ethnic traditions, especially the Christmas tree, were adopted, and commercialization had its effect here as elsewhere. But the focus on midnight mass, with its magical qualities, helped to elevate the status of Christmas as a holiday. The visiting between families, which took place both at Christmas and at New Year’s, however, was more traditional and community-oriented than the “domestic

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occasion” of the middle classes. Because of the seasonal cycle of farm work, this was the most available time of the year for families to get together and socialize, and the entire period from Christmas to early February was one long holiday season, le temps des fêtes, as it had been in the nineteenth century.

other family celebrations Whereas Thanksgiving had by now become an important family ritual in the United States, in this area Easter was most often mentioned as the next most important celebration after Christmas, and Thanksgiving was celebrated as an important family occasion in only a few families.41 The significance of Easter was primarily religious, and church attendance on Easter Sunday was certainly greater than at other times. After church, families got together for a special meal, according to their tradition. For Catholics, Easter followed a six-week period of fasting or abstinence called Lent which helped to emphasize the special meal at Easter. For the English and French Canadians the meal was usually ham, or perhaps a stuffed chicken,42 and for the Greeks, lamb.43 French Canadian and Italian families made Easter eggs.44 The Greeks painted eggs red and then had a competition to see whose eggs could break those of others when they were hit blunt ends together. Whoever had the strongest egg would have good luck. On one occasion someone substituted an egg-shaped rock for an egg, and of course, broke everyone else’s eggs!45 Although it was traditional in French Canadian communities to get up before dawn to gather Easter water from a running stream, this was mentioned by only one person.46 Easter was also associated with new spring clothes.47 One individual remembered that her family received a few candies at Easter but there was no special meal because they couldn’t afford it.48 It seems, therefore, that Easter was perceived as important largely because of its place in the religious calendar. The family meal that accompanied it was special, but did not come close to rivalling Christmas as a family ritual. Halloween was a mainstream secular celebration with British origins. Its religious roots were largely forgotten by the early twentieth century but according to Nicholas Rogers, “Halloween also drew its appeal from the fact that it continued to be a night of social inversion and youthful exuberance in an era when other holidays became increasingly home-centered, respectable, and institutionalized.”49 The

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Children in Halloween costumes, ca. 1930. ccoh, flp, Regimbal.

trend in the period after 1920 was for people to try to find alternatives to the more rowdy aspects of the holiday, such as costume parties or dances.50 In our study area Halloween was generally observed, in both the city and the countryside, with both forms of celebration, and the number of organized alternatives increased as time went on (see chapter 8). Pushing over outhouses was always a favourite with older boys,51 whereas one group of youngsters took advantage of their costumes to shoplift from the drugstores that were open late.52 Younger children went trick-or-treating only in their own neighbourhood.53 French Canadians in the city were divided in their observance of it. While some hadn’t celebrated it as children, their own children later did.54 Others had a party and dressed in costume for Halloween.55 The Greek children joined in the fun, including the tricks, even though it was not one of their traditions.56

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While tricks and trick-or-treating were a normal part of Halloween in North Bay as elsewhere, so was the attempt to provide alternatives such as this party, ca. 1930. ccoh, flp, Regimbal.

In the country Halloween was sometimes celebrated but it was not a French Canadian tradition and was not particularly important.57 Guillemette remembered that in her family they dressed in costumes and went to a few places. One time her father dressed up but brought his violin so that people knew who it was. This suggests that the occasion was understood as being similar to the mi-carême (Mid-Lent) celebrations by the older generation and not limited to children. Celebrated on the third Thursday of Lent, the mi-carême was a short break of two or three days from the rigours of Lent. In essence, people dressed up in costume and went to visit their neighbours, who had to try to guess who they were. According to Bernard Rochefort, it was the young people in their twenties who did this. His wife, Rollande, who grew up in neighbouring Bonfield, remembered only one occurence, when a phantom came to visit. Guillemette, who grew up in Astorville a few years before Bernard, also recalled this practice, but

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she placed it as part of Mardi Gras celebrations rather than at the mi-carême. It was a bit like Halloween, she said, except that the costumes were just for fun and to see if the neighbours could recognize you. In that way it was similar to mumming practices in Newfoundland. Sometimes the boys played tricks then too, doing things like unpiling someone’s wood and then hiding.58 This traditional celebration was already disappearing in the 1920s and 1930s. Families also participated in other religious, ethnic, and community celebrations, but few of these have lasted.59 On 25 November, many French Canadians in both town and country celebrated la Sainte Catherine, primarily in the schools. The original significance of this holiday was not particularly relevant. The emphasis was on making pull taffy. In rural communities several families each took their turn making the taffy. Others made it at home and brought it to school.60 Birthdays were celebrated by both French and English families. The Regimbal family liked to compose songs for birthdays, which were always special occasions.61 In one family they received small gifts of things they needed.62 Shirley Brazeau was allowed to have a few guests for her birthday. They played dress up, exchanged gifts, and had sandwiches and ice cream that came from the corner store. The gifts were just small items like a little plastic doll that cost ten cents or a pin or a piece of jewellery. The Italian tradition was to celebrate a person’s feast day rather than a birthday. Unlike today, they named their children after saints. They didn’t have a party but they gave the person a little present if they could afford it.63 The Greeks also celebrated name days and these were considered very important. It was expected that people would drop over on someone’s name day just for a visit. They might have treats like baklava or shortbread, and the men would have a drink of brandy. In North Bay, birthdays became just as important, and the custom of name days faded because there were few Greeks to come and visit.64 Of these various celebrations, therefore, only Easter and Thanksgiving appear to have been family domestic occasions for some groups. Most of the traditional French Canadian customs that survived for some time, particularly in rural areas, were the remnants of carnivalesque or “world upside down” festivities. The same is true of Halloween, which at that time appears to have been celebrated more by tricks than by treating, with only a few families transforming it into a party. Halloween would therefore emerge as the major carnival-

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esque celebration in Northeastern Ontario, and would, there as elsewhere, gradually be commercialized and tamed. When we look back at the celebrations of the interwar years, we are actually looking at holidays that were for the most part invented in the late nineteenth century. The transformation of holidays was underway in this area as elsewhere. Christmas in particular was undergoing a tremendous transformation at this time. The celebration of holidays during the interwar years in our study area can also be used as an indicator of the extent to which ethnic groups were able to retain and prioritize their own traditions over those of mainstream society. Smaller ethnic groups such as the Italians and Greeks were successful to a limited extent, particularly in terms of their food traditions. Other traditions, such as the celebration of name days, would gradually be replaced by mainstream cultural practices. It was only later that the Italians would begin to celebrate St Anthony’s Day as their own ethnic celebration. This evolution is similar to what Elizabeth Pleck found in the United States, where ethnic groups began to invent their own traditions in the 1960s and later.65 The revival of Italian culture in North Bay was influenced by the influx of immigrants from Italy after the war. French Canadians, at least in the countryside, were themselves the mainstream culture, and were thus able to retain their traditions to a large extent. They were not so isolated, however, as to be immune to the commercialization of Christmas or to the gradual appropriation from other groups. Such changes were less the result of ethnic assimilation than of modernization. This would also apply to the carnivalesque mi-carême and Mardi Gras celebrations, which were slowly abandoned. The rise of the domestic occasion, which Pleck has situated in the period from 1820 to 1890, was also evident in this area, but primarily among more affluent urban English families. In the countryside, celebrations were still largely traditional, in that neighbours and kin were included rather than just the nuclear family. Family rituals, as John Gillis has suggested, appear to replace something that is missing.66 In both town and country, visiting with aunts and uncles and grandparents was still very common. As long as this was the case, there would be little need to turn these occasions into ritualistic celebrations of the family in the form of a domestic occasion. The absence of strong “domestic occasion” celebrations suggests that the family was not under the same kind of stress in this rural and small city environment as it was in urban industrial areas.

emmunity Rituals Life in Northeastern Ontario

4 Rite-of-Passage Rituals

Moments of celebration or grief are key moments in the life cycle that bring families together. The extent to which these moments are shared with the community and extended kin has varied over time. These occasions are infused with ritual. While today the wedding has become the most important of these rituals, for the Victorians it was the funeral.1 Other important life cycle rituals include baptisms, confirmations, bar mitzvahs, graduations, and coming-of-age ceremonies. The celebration of these events provides an opportunity to consume lavishly and to display family status. While all such occasions can become important family rituals, they may also be celebrated primarily as religious or community events. In the mid-nineteenth century the elite, and in the early twentieth century, the masses, began to record life cycle events. The wedding photograph in particular has been given an iconic place in many homes and photographs of children at the time of their baptism, first communion, confirmation, and graduation are often found in family albums. To examine this question for our study area, both childhood memories and newspaper sources were used. Because our interviewees had only a limited memory of these many rituals, this chapter focuses more on weddings and funerals, for which the notices in the paper were often quite detailed.

christenings Long white baptismal gowns of delicate materials and elaborate lace or embroidery attest to the importance of the baptism ritual. These were often passed from generation to generation and were used for

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both boys and girls. They also appear in many christening photographs of infants, suggesting that parents saw baptism as a very special event. Baptism marked the entry of the child into the community of faithful and also involved the choice of fictive kin, the godparents. In pre-industrial society the value of extending one’s social network by selecting godparents added to the significance of this ritual. Although this was an important event for most Christians, during the interwar years it was not always celebrated as a family event. Both the Italian and the Greek communities in North Bay placed considerable emphasis on this event, more so, it seems than the anglophone and French Canadian communities. In Italian families, the godparents came over and everyone went to church, including the siblings who were old enough. It was the godmother who bought the outfit for the baby and after the baptism, there was a family party.2 Because the priest for the Greek community visited only occasionally, he might have several baptisms to perform every time he came, and children were christened when they were about three months old. The godfather or godmother supplied the outfit and the infant was fully immersed. A lot of emphasis was placed on this event because, once the child was christened, he or she was part of the community.3 A few anglophone Protestant interviewees agreed when asked that baptisms were important, and recalled that some families held a reception for baptisms.4 French Canadians in both the countryside and the city do not appear to have celebrated baptisms. Simone (Boulanger) Martin, who certainly would have been aware of these, does not remember any family celebration around baptism until very recently on a trip to Quebec. From this limited amount of information, it seems that the Italian and Greek communities put more emphasis on celebrating baptisms than did other groups.

first communion, confirmation, bar mitzvah First communion was an important moment in the life of both Anglicans and Catholics. It required a basic knowledge of the faith and was held at about the age of six. Confirmation and the Jewish equivalent, the bar mitzvah, were more important rituals, which marked the boundary between childhood innocence and adult responsibility for one’s actions. First communion and confirmation were rarely individual moments; they were usually shared with one’s age cohort in a parish. The bar mitzvah was held when appropriate and not as group

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Frank Scappatura in a baptismal cape trimmed with fur. ccoh, Demarco Collection.

event. At first communion, the tradition was for girls to wear a white dress with a veil held in place by a crown of flowers, white stockings, and white or black shoes, whereas boys wore blazer jackets, white shirts, and perhaps black or grey pants.5 Group photographs were often taken as well as individual pictures for the family album. The first communion photograph of the Dionne quintuplets, however, was for world consumption and made the cover of Life magazine. They are shown holding prayer books and rosaries.6 Only the Italian community seems to have followed these rituals with a family celebration as well. Memories of these events vary but tend to focus more on the costume than other details. Loretta Cundari recalled that in her family each girl got her own first communion dress because they were all different sizes and that was the one time that her mother made sure the clothes fit. The older siblings who were working helped out with the cost. The communicants wore a little white bracelet as well. In her family and in other Italian families, the event was celebrated with a family party.7 Margaret (Paterson) Richardson vividly remembered

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This studio portrait by J.A. Noel ca. 1930 shows Frances Scappatura looking serene in her first communion costume and holding a prayer book and rosary. The studio photo holder designed for first communion pictures suggests there was a regular demand for such portraits. ccoh, Demarco Collection.

that the archbishop who came to perform the ceremony at her Anglican church was from England and wore gaiters, which made him stand out. Confirmation ceremonies were always in the spring, and the family would attend. In the country, preparation for first communion meant three weeks of walking to town for catechism classes for Diane (Bélanger) Lamothe who lived near Mattawa. She wore the traditional white dress and veil. Her dress was made by either her mother or her grandmother. Diane especially remembered her mother being upset that she had cut herself and made a mark on her dress, which then had to be cleaned. Peggy Lessard in Mattawa remembered that they had a special breakfast for the first communion group at the school hall and that afterward they went to see their friends who gave them money or a small gift. That night the parents would have a special supper for them. She wore the white dress and veil for her first

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This group confirmation picture places the bishop and priests in the foreground. The girls are all wearing the prescribed white dresses also worn for first communion. They are placed in front of the boys, who are barely visible. ccoh, flp, Guillemette.

communion, but for her confirmation, the girls all simply wore a good dress and had a red cape draped over it. This was probably planned to save parents the cost of the white dress. Yvette Therrien’s memory of her confirmation is vivid because of the conflict that accompanied it. At the time, she was working for a restaurant making $14.50 a week, and her mother used to pick up her cheque. When the time for her confirmation came, her employer took her shopping for the right clothes, including new stockings, the first new stockings she had ever had, and a dress. The money was taken out of her salary and that week her mother was very angry to get a cheque for only $5.50 instead of the usual amount. The fact that another adult would directly intervene in a less than ideal family situation to ensure that this young girl would be dressed like the others for her confirmation is an indication of how strong those norms were. Even in the depths of the Depression, other mothers somehow managed to dress their daughters appropriately for first communion and confirmation even if it meant making the communion dress themselves, sometimes out of flour bags.8 In contrast, Herb Brown, a member of the Jewish community in North Bay, did not remember his bar mitzvah as being particularly

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important to him because none of his friends were Jewish and his family was not particularly religious. The fact that he had to attend Hebrew school for two or three years to learn Jewish history and the ability to read and write Hebrew in order to pass his bar mitzvah, however, suggests that this ritual was more important in the Jewish community than for him personally.

weddings Marriage was a significant turning point in the life of young adults. To get married and have a family of your own was the norm. Motherhood was seen as the crowning achievement of womanhood.9 The Catholic Church’s view was that: “Motherhood was more than a natural function, an assumed duty; it was the mission that legitimated the sexual union of the couple as well.”10 Motherhood had to take place within the bonds of marriage, however, to be well viewed by society.11 Marriage was also a marker of respectability and manhood for men. This status was often delayed during the Depression, as young men were placed in camps or had to travel the country looking for work. The wedding ritual marked the transition from the state of being single to that of being married. The actual legal requirements were few but in practice, the ceremony and the celebration were often much more elaborate. While weddings in white date back to the Victorian period, it was in the 1920s that the idea of the “perfect wedding” emerged as the bridal industry began to encourage more lavish consumption.12 By the 1960s, the majority of weddings had become extravagant affairs.13 Wedding announcements of the 1920s and 1930s indicate that many weddings paid homage to the emerging ideal. Great attention was paid to all the details of the ritual, and status was demonstrated through consumption. The outfits worn, the types of flowers, the music, the gifts, the reception, and the wedding trip all denoted the status of the families involved. Both oral testimony and wedding notices indicate that lavish weddings were limited to the urban environment. By comparison, weddings in the country responded to a different priority, that of being surrounded by family, friends, and community to celebrate. A white wedding gown was far less significant than the style of the wedding and the nature of the celebrations.14 Simone (Boulanger) Martin’s wedding in 1939 is a good example of a country wedding. She wore a white dress and veil. Her friend was a

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bridesmaid and her brother was the best man. They also had a flower girl. A wedding cake was served in small wrapped pieces to those who wanted it to bring home. As he had done for for her sister before her, her father built a platform outside for dancing. There were lots of people. When guests arrived they usually put down their gift with their name on it. They gave what they could, usually things like blankets, cushions, or dishes that were useful for couples going into housekeeping. In their case they were going to be living with her mother-in-law, so these items were not as important. The gift that stood out in Simone’s mind, not because it was unusual, but because it was so ordinary, was a tea pot. The man who gave it to them, however, worked very hard at making it seem extra-ordinary. He showed it on both sides and listed all the qualities of a teapot as though it was worth a thousand dollars. She and her friends thought this was very funny because they had many teapots and they were not expensive. Reflecting on weddings in the country generally, Simone recalled that they were almost always treated as celebrations, even during the Depression. The ceremony itself was at the church. In Bonfield weddings had to be on Monday or Tuesday, in Astorville mainly on Mondays, and sometimes on Fridays.15 Then people got together at the home of the bride, bringing a small gift. The party included dancing – it was pretty much all they could do as no one was rich, she recalled. The bride didn’t necessarily wear a white dress but women who had one because they belonged to the sodality Les Enfants de Marie would. At the wedding their friends in the sodality would wear a black dress with a blue ribbon and provide the singing for the ceremony.16 Couples who married in the country also faced the “problem” that there were no professional photographers nearby. The wedding party had to go to North Bay if they wanted pictures. Once they had cars, this became an option.17 Having a Monday wedding also meant that women had to get their hair done two days in advance and try keep it done up. Since the men didn’t work on Sunday, and sometimes not on Saturday either, they might start to celebrate early, in which case, they were no longer sober by the time Monday came around.18 With wedding ceremonies invariably at ten in the morning, both a lunch and a dinner had to be served. Wedding breakfasts were also not unusual. Since there were few public halls, these receptions were in the home. The parents of the groom might take on one of these meals if they both lived in the same area. Of five June weddings in the

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This 1929 photo of a wedding in the Hooey family includes an extended family group as well as the bride and groom and is taken on the porch of the house. Wedding receptions in the 1920s and 1930s were often held at home. Courtesy of Paul Trussler.

early 1930s announced in The Nugget,19 all had given one or more receptions, and two had included dancing. The announcements all emphasized the presence of many relatives and friends at these celebrations. Making it possible for extended family and friends to join in was the most salient feature of country weddings. Urban weddings were mostly celebrated in private homes after a ceremony at the church, usually between Monday and Friday. As a rule, the higher the status of the couple, the more detail was provided in the wedding announcement and the more closely the wedding followed the “white wedding” rules. The fact that the number of guests was usually quite limited and there was no dancing was partially offset by the pre-wedding celebrations, including numerous showers for the bride, usually hosted by her own friends or her mother’s friends. The elaborate pre-wedding showers and weddings of Margaret Bourke and Simone Marceau (daughter of the local mla) indicate that there were few differences between the rituals of the English Canadian and the French Canadian elite in North Bay. One of Margaret’s friends hosted her first shower on a Thursday afternoon at the summer home of her parents on Lake Nipissing. The guests enjoyed bridge and swimming, and presented the bride with “lovely gifts of kitchenware.” At a second shower, fifteen guests

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enjoyed tea and presented the bride with a basket of gifts. Four days before the wedding, a close friend of the bride hosted a kitchenware shower at the summer lakeshore home of her parents. Despite the informal setting, the decorations were elegant: “Assorted sweet peas of delicate hues interspersed with stock were attractively arranged in a crystal holder on a mirror plaque to center the luncheon table. Cunning novelty doll favors decorated the table, which was laid with a beautiful cloth of point de Venise.” Margaret Bourke was clearly the centre of upper middle class female rituals for weeks before the wedding. Her wedding was also a study in elegance, and carefully orchestrated, but it was not a wedding in white. The bride, given away by her father, “wore a lovely gown of shell pink lace with matching hat, and carried streamers of pink rosebuds.” The bridesmaid wore “blue organza.” After a reception at the home of the bride’s parents the newly-weds left for a trip to Muskoka.20 Prior to Simone Marceau’s wedding, Mrs Romeo Marceau, the bride’s sister-in-law, and a Mrs S. Tomkins hosted a “miscellaneous” shower for her at the home of the bride’s parents. Live music was provided by Roy Reynolds, Art Tiernay, Victor Virgili, and Joseph Duquette; following bridge and prizes, a supper was served at midnight. The wedding service, held in the morning at St Mary’s Cathedral, included music and singing. The bride wore “a becoming gown of blue chantilly lace” and carried lilies of the valley and sweetheart roses. Her father gave her away but she was otherwise unattended. After the ceremony, a wedding breakfast was served at the home of the bride’s parents. Later the bride and groom left for a bridal trip to Toronto, Buffalo, and Ottawa. The groom gave his attendant “a silver cigarette lighter and to the vocalist, a black leather purse.” Both of these weddings exhibited the taste and elegance typical of the many lavish weddings announced in the paper at this time.21 Some urban weddings did not follow these norms. When Cliff Alger’s sister was married, the ceremony was at Trinity Church, and about seventy couples attended the reception at Camp Friendship on Lakeshore Drive. The family’s connection to the Odd Fellows made this location available to them for the reception. As a reception, it was the “usual big party,” including a dance with a small orchestra, but no alcohol. The couple had been childhood sweethearts and many of their friends attended, some of them coming from some distance. Family and friends of the family on both sides naturally participated as well.22 This wedding had much in common with country

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weddings, with its emphasis on friends as well as family attending, and having a “big party.” Ethnic weddings had their own customs. When Eva Wardlaw’s uncle was ready to get married in the late 1930s, her mother suggested that a niece, still in Greece, might be suitable. The wedding was arranged and the niece, Marika, was sent over to marry Sam. They had a large wedding, which every Greek in North Bay, and a great many from Sudbury, attended. The Greek priest from Sudbury performed the ceremony at St John’s Anglican Church. The bride wore a long white gown and a crown, as the exchange of crowns between the bride and groom was customary at Greek weddings. These crowns were placed in a special case after the wedding because, as she explained, they were as important as rings are in traditional English weddings. The couple also walked around the altar three times as was traditional. The reception was at the church hall, and the Greek women all cooked a huge meal. They had a cake but the tradition was Greek desserts. Because no bands in the area could play Greek music, they danced to records. The couple stayed for the whole celebration. Out-of-town guests spent several days with their relatives in North Bay. This wedding is an interesting example of how smaller ethnic communities managed to retain many, if not all, of their traditions for this important ritual. The Ricci-Cappadocia wedding, described in the Nugget as a wedding of “much interest in North Bay’s Italian colony,” was also an exception. The marriage of Antonetta Cappadocia of North Bay and Michele Ricci of Capreol was celebrated on Monday morning at St Rita’s Church. At the reception held at the Masonic Lodge 200 guests were entertained by the music of the Lucenti’s Capitol Orchestra.23 This must have been the largest wedding in North Bay that year; guest numbers more commonly ranged from thirty-five to seventyfive. In this case, the bride wore “a lovely gown of white satin with veil in cap effect. She carried lilies and American Beauty roses.” The bride had four flower girls and the groom, four flower boys.24 In many ways this wedding was more like a wedding of the post-war period than of the 1930s. As Elizabeth Pleck points out, the weddings of affluent third-generation immigrants in the United States “often exceeded in number of guests and expense those of the white Protestant upper middle class.”25 Weddings were also sometimes less elaborate than the norm. When the only daughter of Harvey Heavener, a partner in the firm of the

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McGuinty and Heavener funeral parlour, was married to Vernon Murray of Timmins, this was seen as “a wedding of much interest” to the community. Mr Heavener had been in business with Maurice McGuinty Sr since 1919 and was well known in the community. One might therefore have expected a large wedding. Instead, the ceremony “was performed quietly in St Mary’s Cathedral at seven o’clock Monday morning.” The bride was “given in marriage by her father” and was dressed in navy blue. She was attended by a married friend, Mrs Patrick Quinn, whose husband was the groomsman. Both mothers were present. But there was no reception or wedding breakfast. “Immediately following the ceremony, Mr. and Mrs. Murray left by motor for southern Ontario points. On their return they will take up residence in Timmins.”26 Such a small wedding for the daughter of a prominent member of the community raises questions. According to family tradition, the bride’s parents were not particularly pleased with their daughter’s choice for husband. Mr Murray was a school teacher at the time and they thought teaching was a profession with too low a status for their daughter.27 They did not refuse to attend the wedding ceremony, but they avoided mixing socially with the groom’s parents and family by not having a reception. The fact that prior to the wedding, Mrs Quinn had hosted a “cup and saucer shower” in honour of Miss Heavener at which twelve guests played games for prizes, and that she had been presented with “a lovely bridge lamp” at a prior shower28 further confirms that the Heaveners usually socialized in the manner of the upper middle class. Patrick Quinn, who served as the groom’s attendant, was Grand Knight (president) of the Knights of Columbus that year.29 Since middle-class urban weddings tended to be small, prewedding celebrations were particularly important as an opportunity for friends and co-workers to recognize this transition in their friends’ lives. A party for two members of the St Andrew’s choir, for example, featured a “mock wedding ceremony” as well as the presentation of a silver plate as a gift. Unfortunately the Nugget gives no further details as to the nature of this ceremony. The only other wedding shower that was reported to have featured a mock wedding ceremony was attended by the bride and her female friends.30 Unlike the women at Penmans in Paris, Ontario, whose mock marriage ceremonies carried a real message about their work situation when they returned to work,31 these mock marriages were probably just for entertainment. As Suzanne Morton has pointed out for Halifax, a shower by work-

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mates constituted peer recognition of the event, and was especially significant since the bride would not return to work afterward. She also found that gifts from co-workers were substantial; a chest of silver flatware or a silver tea set, for example, were standard, both symbolizing respectability.32 Helen McArthur’s female co-workers at the Hydro office in North Bay recognized her departure with a miscellaneous shower, presenting their gifts in a baby carriage, symbolic of her new role.33 Showers were especially important when friends did not attend the actual wedding. The trousseau tea, another wedding tradition at this time, was an occasion for displaying the gifts received.34 When Mrs W.J. Stockdale held a trousseau tea for Miss Elizabeth Stockdale, gifts were displayed in an upstairs room and the tea table was “laid with a beautiful cut-work and lace cloth, centered with a hand-painted vase of yellow chrysanthemums and cream tapers in silver candlesticks.”35 The pre-wedding celebrations by women were mostly held in a very formal setting, as these notices in the social columns show. Whatever less formal celebrations may have been held by the male friends of the groom were not reported! While not all brides wore white, the wedding of Queen Victoria in 1840 had established the norms of the “white wedding” that “celebrated romantic love,” turned the bride into a “fairy princess,” and “made the transition to a married state glamorous, indeed the most significant event in a woman’s life.”36 As with other invented traditions, however, weddings became divided into two categories, those that essentially followed the new “rules” of the white wedding and those that continued the older traditions of celebrating with feasting, drinking, and dancing. The division between these two forms of celebration in our study area coincided closely with the urban and rural divide.

funerals Funeral rituals help families and communities to deal with death. Elizabeth Pleck has argued that in the nineteenth century, the middle class adhered to strict mourning rituals, and funerals were the most important family ritual in the Victorian era. By the early twentieth century, the norms around mourning had begun to relax and funerals, as sad occasions, began to lose ground to happy occasions, especially weddings. The average cost of weddings increased and of funerals

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decreased over the century. As funerals began to move out of homes and into funeral parlours, many traditional customs such as overnight wakes were replaced.37 The working class also had important funeral traditions. According to Bryan Palmer: “The funeral procession was one of many persistent continuities in the culture of the skilled workingman. It was a moment of appreciation of the accomplishments of ordinary men, as well as a chance to celebrate the ties that had meant so much over the course of a lifetime.”38 These practices of solidarity continued into the twentieth century. In Allendale, for example, the Grand Trunk closed operations so that railwaymen could attend the funerals of officials, and provided special coaches so that they could travel to funerals of their fellow railwaymen in other places. Railway brotherhoods, like the Masons and other fraternities, also held a special commemorative service at a local church each year, following a ritual similar to that of the fraternities.39 Funerals in Northeastern Ontario in the 1920s and 1930s do not appear to have followed the periodization established by Pleck in her study of family rituals. Victorian mourning traditions were certainly gone, but there is little evidence of a “postsentimental” attitude toward funerals or a movement towards simpler ceremonies. Funeral wreaths were still sent in abundance, and funeral processions were used for both working class and middle class funerals. Families placed a black wreath on the door of the house to alert neighbours of a death in the family. Undertakers were increasingly employed, but funeral parlours were not. The wake was still held in the home. Instead of invitations to a funeral being sent, an obituary in the local paper gave the time and location of the funeral services so that people could attend if they wished. Although the number of people who attended funerals varied according to the age and status of the individual who had died, most funerals were community events. Funeral rituals required that before the actual ceremony, friends and neighbours drop in to pay their respects to the family and the deceased. The body was placed in the coffin or casket, which was set in a place of honour in the living room. As family and kin gathered and neighbours came by, there was a continuous coming and going, not just during the day but throughout the night as well.40 For the duration, the public rooms of the house, especially the living room, became a semi-public community space. Several rosaries might be said,41 but wakes were not always solemn. Sometimes there was a lot of talk and laughing as well.42 Everyone interviewed who

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remembered funerals held when they were young noted that the body was exposed at the house. It was only much later that visitations consistently took place at funeral parlours.43 The few exceptions usually resulted from unusual family circumstances. In the case of Frederick Noiseau, whose funeral was “from the undertaking parlors of McGuinty and Heavener to St Vincent de Paul Church,” his wife had predeceased him and his daughters lived elsewhere.44 Others “borrowed” a house for a funeral if they could. When Olive Dale, the wife of Mr W.J. Ball died, the funeral was held from her sister’s house.45 This was likely out of consideration for her widowed husband, who also had to contend with his twelve-year-old daughter being in hospital with typhoid fever at the time. Ellena Naughton’s family offered their home for the funeral of a family friend, probably someone in a similar situation. These observations certainly suggest that those who had the choice preferred to have the funeral at home. The funeral ceremony itself was usually held at a church, and an interment ceremony at the cemetery followed. It seems that everyone attended funerals in this period. The whole family went and, as one interviewee noted, there was no question of not going.46 On the day of the funeral, the hearse picked up the body at the house and brought it to the church accompanied by a procession of people. Funeral notices in the paper specified the exact address of the home so that people would know where to gather. The notice for Charles Norton, for example, stated: “The funeral will leave the family residence, 342 Oak street east, Tuesday afternoon at four o’clock, for St John’s Anglican Church, where at 4:15 o’clock service will be conducted by Rev. H.A. Sims. Interment will be made in St John’s cemetery. The funeral will be under the auspices of the Canadian Legion, of which Mr. Norton was a member.”47 Members of the Greek community held a further ceremony forty days after the death. “And forty days after, which would signify the ascension into heaven, they would have a ceremony and the Greek ladies would make this wheat with sweetening in it and it’s just in the form of a great big cake. And everybody has a little bit of that in celebration of the person’s great new life.”48 The funeral notice in the paper informed fraternal societies, sodalities and other community voluntary associations that played a special role in funerals that one of their own had “passed” and that their attendance would be required. The prescription that all members attend a “brother’s” funeral was probably the strongest for the Masons, one of the largest fraternities in the study area. It was a duty

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of membership to attend the funeral of a brother, a duty that was taken seriously. Special rituals at the graveside were held for members in good standing. Masons attended a funeral in Masonic regalia only if they were alone in doing so and if they had “sole and absolute charge” of the proceedings. If that was not the case, they were to attend as individuals.49 The most prominent Masons in North Bay were also prominent members of the community, and their passing received more attention in the Nugget than just a formal obituary.50 Reports on the passing of Arthur Cecil Rorabeck are a good example.51 His funeral began at his home at 138 Worthington Street West at two o’clock: “The procession, with a large representation of members of the Masonic order, of which the deceased man had many connections, march[ed] ahead of the hearse.” His identity as a Mason was therefore given top priority in death. This is not surprising, given the extent of his participation in several branches of Masonry dating back to 1898. He was described as “one of the most prominent members of the Masonic order in Northern Ontario.” Most of his pallbearers were past-Masters of Nipissing Lodge No. 420.52 At St John’s Cemetery his “interment was made with Masonic honors.” Mr Rorabeck was also a well-known member of his profession, a past-president of the Retail Druggists’ Association of Ontario and a member of the council of the Ontario College of Pharmacy. His peers and their employees also paid him tribute. “The managers, proprietors and employees of all the drug stores in the city attended in a body to pay their last respects to the pioneer pharmacist of North Bay.”53 In recognition of his role as a public person who served his community in many different ways, the city suspended business from one to four o’clock on the Wednesday afternoon of his funeral. He had contributed to the community as an active member and past-president of the Rotary Club. As a respected member of St John’s Anglican Church, he had held almost every office possible, including eight years as warden. He was well known as an entertainer, having performed in amateur theatricals, minstrel shows, and as a “sleight-of-hand artist.” The large crowd that filled both the church and the Sunday school hall for his service at St John’s Anglican Church was a reflection of his popularity. Rorabeck was also a family man. He had married Rachel Hewitt, the daughter of North Bay’s first Presbyterian minister, in 1901. He was mourned by his widow, his children, and other relatives. Rorabeck’s funeral reflected the public role he had played in his community. The community participated fully in his funeral; it was much more than a family occasion.

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Other fraternities also had very strong traditions of attending funerals as a body and as representatives of their group. When Robert Frank Mason, a member of the Odd Fellows, died in 1935, for example, there were two services for him, a private one at the home and one “under the auspices of the ioof” at the Presbyterian Church. Lodge members usually acted as pallbearers as well. When Hector Gagnon died in 1935, his funeral notice stated that the pallbearers would be “three members of the Loyal Order of the Moose and three members of the Knights of Columbus, of which organizations he was an active member.” When Theodore Legault, the Member of the Legislative Assembly for Nipissing, died in 1935, his funeral was attended by over three thousand people. As an active member of the Knights of Columbus in life, he was favoured by an honour guard of fourth-degree Knights. His funeral procession was over a mile long. When Widdifield pioneer and Orange Lodge member Thomas H. Carmichael died, his pallbearers were all lodge members. Theodore Locke, the victim of an accident at the cpr yards, had as his pallbearers members of the Brotherhood of Railway Carmen, No. 192. The funeral of Richard Newman, although in Montreal, “was attended by several persons from North Bay, including representatives of the Brotherhood of Locomotive Engineers of which the deceased was a member.”54 In the 1920s and 1930s, women were still viewed by society as inhabiting primarily the domestic sphere and tended to be maleidentified in public. Even in the minutes of women’s groups, for example, it is rare to find women referred to by their given names. They were more likely to be identified by their husband’s name or initials. The same was often true in funeral notices: The funeral of Mrs. George W. Powles, 12 Judge avenue, was held Friday afternoon, at 3 o’clock to St. John’s Anglican church, North Bay, for service with Rev. E.J.G. Tucker officiating. A private service at 2 o’clock, was held at the home, Rev. Garland G. Lacey assisting. Members of Fidelis Chapter, No. 99, o.e.s., and Rebekah Lodge, No. 152, of which the deceased woman was a member, attended the church service. The many floral tributes testified to the high esteem of Mrs. Powles.”55 In life as in death, this woman was Mrs George W. Powles and only her family and friends would have known her by her first name or her maiden name.

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It was rare for papers to publish extensive biographies of women when they died. This honour was reserved for a few early pioneers, although that term was rarely applied to women. One of these pioneers was the widow of the late Judge William Doran, Isobella McRae, who had arrived in town on the “first trans-continental train of the cpr.”. When she died, her role in the community was recognized: “Until the past few years, Mrs. Doran was closely identified with church work and has always been a sympathetic and helping friend of those in need.”56 The recognition she received was in part due to the role her husband had played. “As a tribute to the keen interest shown by the late Judge and Mrs. Doran in community affairs representatives of the courts and town government were in attendance at the funeral.”57 Her funeral mass was “attended by hundreds of North Bay citizens from all walks of life who gathered to pay a last tribute to the deceased.” Some may have been there as a sign of respect for her husband, others to recognize her own acts of kindness and community work. Her status in the community was certainly recognized by the church. For her funeral a “solemn high mass was celebrated by the Rev. J.J. O’Leary, assisted by the Rev. E. Bunyan, of Callander and Rev. Father Flannery of Sturgeon Falls.”58 The presence of more than one priest to celebrate a mass was usually a sign of a special occasion. Because society considered women’s primary responsibility to be their home and family, their public role was usually portrayed as being an addition to their domestic role. For women who did work, usually before marriage, work relationships still did not take on the same significance as those of men. When Donalda Hill, a worker at the t&no railway office for eight years, passed away suddenly, there was no reference to her co-workers playing a role at her funeral. As pallbearers were traditionally male, women’s pallbearers were more likely to be members of their family than female members of their associations and clubs. Within the context of the family, however, the death of a matriarch was significant, and family members would come from a distance to pay their respects. At the funeral of Mrs Frank Calarco (Mary Zangia), some of the pallbearers came from Welland, Windsor, and Toronto. For many women, their progeny was their legacy. Although Mrs Bazinet had been in North Bay for forty-eight years when she died at the age of eight-nine, her obituary noted only the time and place of the funeral, the fact that she had been born and married in L’Orignal, Ontario, and the names of her children.59

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There are several reasons why the funerals of children might differ from those of adults. The sudden death of a young child might be more emotionally charged than the death of an older relative, and cause a family to choose a private funeral. Infants would have little individual identity, and children of pre-school age would have few associations outside the family. They would be recognized in death primarily as members of families. Older children, however, had classmates and friends who might play a role at their funeral. When four-year-old Louis Paul Bélanger died as result of blood poisoning following a broken arm, his funeral followed the same pattern as that of adults. The funeral was held from the family home, and a procession was held from there to St Vincent de Paul Church. He was then buried in St Mary’s Cemetery. Following a tragic car accident in which sixteen-year-old Anthony Zimbolatti, son of Mrs Stephano Zimbolatti of North Bay, was killed, the teenager received a funeral from the family home to St Rita’s Italian Church, which was attended by many family and friends. His pallbearers were fellow youth. The unfortunate accidental death of two-year-old Alvin Swanson, who fell into Chippewa Creek and was swept away by the current, was followed by an afternoon funeral at the funeral parlour, where the usual practices associated with adult funerals do not appear to have been followed. The funeral rituals for children were less fixed in form than those for adults, but did not preclude having a full funeral.60 Loretta Cundari remembered that her mother had a big funeral and that there were many flowers. Her mother was good-hearted and she always brought people things. Loretta clearly interpreted the number of flowers received as an important measure of respect for her mother. There is much evidence that this perception was generally shared. As a result, a family could literally be inundated with flowers upon the death of a relative. When Anthony Scappatura, the brother of Frank Scappatura and Antonia Demarco, died, the living room in the Scappatura house on Worthington Avenue was so full of wreaths you could hardly see the exposed body. Floral tributes were certainly the norm in this period and funeral notices often mentioned them. For Richard Newman’s funeral in Montreal, specific wreaths were mentioned, including those by the Brotherhood of Locomotive Fireman and Engineers No. 237, North Bay, and the Brotherhood of Locomotive Engineers No. 305, North Bay. In a similar way, Frank Amour’s funeral notice mentions flowers sent by Mrs Amour’s family in Scotland and from his mother’s sisters and brothers in England as well as those from family nearby. Other notices were more

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In the 1920s and 1930s, funerals were still held in the home and floral tributes were a sign of respect. In this photo the body of Anthony Scappatura almost disappears in the midst of the many floral tributes. ccoh, Demarco Collection.

general: “The floral tributes were many and beautiful.” In the case of Dr Dudley’s funeral it was noted: “The funeral was one of the largest in the history of the city. The many floral offerings gave mute evidence of the esteem in which Dr. Dudley was held.” As long as such attitudes prevailed, not to send flowers would have been regarded as a social slight.61 Another ritual that recognized the significance of a person’s death to a community was the custom of lowering the flag to half mast. When a long-standing member of the Public School Board died suddenly in 1935, the city considered it appropriate to honour James B. Lee in that way. When Dr Dudley died, the flag at nbci&vs was flown at half-mast.62 The rituals that surround death are for the consolation of the living. In the twentieth century, mortality rates were declining and families did not have to cope with infant or childhood death as frequently as

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Headstone for Duncan [Yung]. The stories of many small immigrant groups in the study area are largely lost. There are only occasional reminders of their former presence such as this headstone with its distinctive Chinese characters. In this case, the census of 1911 captures part of the story. Shaw Yung, who ran a laundry business, was one of the few Chinese men in North Bay to have his family with him. He and his wife came to Canada in 1897, probably to Quebec. The three youngest of his eight children were born in Ontario. The youngest, Duncan, was born in October 1910.

they had in earlier periods. In our study area, however, it was still the practice to deal with death in a personal and direct way. Funeral parlours existed, but their role was limited. Bodies were usually laid out at home, and it was in the family home that friends and relatives congregated to mourn or to tell stories, right up until leaving for the church and the funeral. In North Bay and the surrounding countryside, funeral traditions for all but a very small number of people were Christian ones, and variations were minimal. Community participation in funerals was important. The more prominent the deceased, the greater the community involvement. Brotherhood and other significant community relationships were recognized at this time. To honour the dead, families and communities spoke of the life of the individual. It seems that very few deaths went unmentioned in the local paper. Newspaper notices were impersonal and did not speak of the emotion or the personal loss the death caused. Most were intended primarily as public announcements so that interested

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persons could attend the funeral. Only prominent community members received longer obituaries; in death, as in life, they received more notice in the local paper than ordinary people. Rites of passage are used to signal the transition from one state in life to another. During the interwar years in our study area, few if any of these rituals were entirely secular. Many were particular to only one or two communities of faith, and ethnicity was a factor in the way they were celebrated. Weddings and funerals, on the other hand, touched all communities. Town weddings were substantially different from country weddings. The ideal of the perfect wedding was dominant in towns, but was slow to penetrate the countryside, where community celebrations continued. Funerals, on the other hand, were community events in both town and country and differed mostly according to the sex and age of the deceased. The Masons and some fraternities followed special rites, and work and fraternal associates provided honour guards, acted as pallbearers, or marched as a group in the funeral procession of men. There were no equivalent rituals for women, even when they had belonged to important community groups, but women pioneers were recognized for their efforts in the community. The funerals of children were those most likely to be private. Community recognition of life cycle events was an important aspect of community life in this study area, and the funeral appears to have remained the most important of the rite-of-passage rituals.

munities mmunityofLife Faith in Northeastern Ontario

5 Building Communities of Faith

The boom years from 1896 to 1914 had a tremendous impact on the nature of Canadian society, as immigrants from Central and Eastern Europe flowed into Canada in record numbers and brought with them languages and cultures foreign to the Canadian mainstream. They helped to settle the West and open “New Ontario,” and they joined the growing ranks of the urban working class.1 At the same time, Quebec nationalists and clerical leaders saw settlement in the West and in the clay belts of northern Ontario as alternatives to the large out-migration of French Canadians to the United States then taking place. English Canada, both Protestant and Catholic, on the other hand, saw this strategy as a challenge to their vision of Canada outside Quebec as an English country and responded by seeking to “Canadianize” the new arrivals2 and counteract the impact of the French Canadians. Across the prairies and in urban centres outreach to immigrants and the working classes often took the form of social welfare services as the churches espoused, to differing degrees, the social gospel or the message of the papal encyclical Rerum Novarum.3 After the First World War, having established that Canada outside Quebec would be an Anglo-Protestant country, this majority largely ignored any further struggles for linguistic rights as minor skirmishes of little significance.4 This conflict had a direct impact on our study area, however, and affected the religious landscape for years to come. Our study area fell within the zone of settlement both of the French Canadians moving up the Ottawa Valley into Ontario and of the English Canadians moving north from other parts of southern Ontario. The expansion of the Catholic Church into Mattawa and the surrounding countryside followed a well-established model. As quickly

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as possible after settlement, Catholic institutions, including churches, separate schools, convents, hospitals, and voluntary associations, were established. Catholics became a majority of the population in all but Calvin and Widdifield Townships. The bishops of the Diocese of Ottawa (later Pembroke) responsible for this area actively supported these largely French Canadian communities and were generally able to find French Canadian priests for them. Thus, these communities were able to thrive in this rural setting well into the 1950s and even later. Bonfield and Astorville, especially, were homogeneous communities with little outside influence. As we have seen, French Canadian traditions and customs were maintained throughout the first half of the twentieth century. The close intertwining of religion and ethnicity for the French Canadians of this area is evident from interviewees’ accounts of growing up there (see chapter 2). The history of the Catholic Church in North Bay, however, followed a different path. The Roman Catholic presence in the area began with visits from Jesuit missionaries in the nineteenth century to what was at the time the vicariate of Northern Canada. In 1882 the area became part of the larger Diocese of Peterborough. A parish, St Mary’s on the Lake, was organized in 1886, and a wooden church was built on Main Street the same year. A separate school was organized in 1887 and a new brick school was opened on the “priests’ hill” in 1888. In 1904 St Mary’s fell into the Diocese of Sault Ste Marie, which was detached from that of Peterborough and included the west part of the District of Nipissing and the Districts of Algoma and Thunder Bay. Its first bishop, David Joseph Scollard, had been the parish priest at North Bay since 1896. Scollard decided to make North Bay his base and in 1904 initiated the construction of the large stone church now known as Pro-Cathedral of the Assumption but which continued to be called St Mary’s for many years. Completed in 1905, it cost $65,000 and seated a thousand. Its basement was used as a parish hall for concerts and other events. An eight-classroom school, St Mary’s, opened in 1904 on First Avenue. The Sisters of St Joseph who would teach there arrived in 1906 and a convent for them, which cost $10,000, opened in 1908. The bishop’s palace, built next to the church in matching Longford Stone, cost $35,000, and was large enough to accommodate the clergy of the diocese for their annual retreat, which had formerly been held in Sudbury.5 Even before Scollard arrived, the parish had started to organize voluntary associations, and more followed: a Catholic Mutual Benefit

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Opened in 1905, St Mary’s of the Lake Church (now ProCathedral of the Assumption) was built of Longford stone from Orillia and cost $65,000 to build and furnish. Designed to seat 1,000, it was large for the congregation at the time. The architect was Angus of Angus and Thompson, and the builder was Taillefer & Sons, both of Sault Ste Marie. It was located at the base of Klock (now Algonquin) Avenue in downtown North Bay.

Association in 1887, the Catholic Order of Foresters in 1895, the League of the Sacred Heart in 1900, the Knights of Columbus (Council 1007) in 1905, the St Anthony’s Society to help the poor in 1909, the Union of St Joseph in 1910, the Children of Mary before 1915, and the

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A stained glass windows in St Mary’s of the Lake Church (now ProCathedral of the Assumption) which was donated by the Ladies’ Sodality. Church groups and parishioners donated many of the windows in this church at the time of its construction.

Catholic Women’s League (cwl) in 1920.6 This English Catholic parish was therefore well established by 1920. Politically, Bishop Scollard shared the view of Bishop Fallon in the Diocese of London that Ontario should be English.7 The large numbers of Italians making their way into North America at this time were generally seen as a foreign population in need of assimilation, and as problematic Catholics.8 In 1913 Scollard was able to find a priest for this group in North Bay and they were offered mass and “instruction”

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in the basement of St Mary’s Church. The Italian community, about a hundred families at the time, was able to raise part of the funds for the construction of their own church. They may have paid for the church partly by providing work on the construction. Len Grassi remembered that his father, Domenico, helped to build St Rita’s Church. He knew how to blast rock and was on the building committee. They started by building the basement and held services there before eventually adding the extension.9 Emma Schiavo’s father-in-law also worked on the building of St Rita’s.10 The diocese helped finance the project and the cornerstone of St Rita’s Church was laid 19 June 1913.11 Although finding priests must have been difficult and the turnover was frequent in the early years, the parish was fortunate in always having its own priest and all of them appear to have been Italian until 1946, with one exception from 1926 to 1931.12 In North Bay the Italian community identified with St Rita’s as their parish, although some members were inevitably more involved than others.13 More reluctantly and under pressure, Scollard also agreed to the creation of a separate French Canadian parish, St Vincent de Paul. Hermès Laroque remembered that his grandfather, Onésime Laroque, played an important role in having St Vincent de Paul Church built. The way he remembers it, the English bishop didn’t want to build a separate French church but the French Canadians were stubborn and when they started to build anyway, Bishop Scollard came around and helped with money.14 In 1914 the basement of the French church was completed and a presbytery was built next to it.15 The basement was used as a church until the remainder of the building was completed in 1933. The Sisters of the Assumption who would teach in French in that parish arrived in 1920.16 The appointment of Father Chapleau to that parish in 1919 was a significant gain for French Canadians, as he would remain in place for more than thirty years, providing the parish with great stability and leadership. This was especially fortunate, as Scollard’s successor, Bishop Dignan (1935–1957), was less accommodating to the needs of French Canadians than Scollard had been. He saw his diocese as English and acted accordingly. French Canadians felt that he openly discriminated against them and that they had more difficulty obtaining new parishes than their English counterparts.17 The history of the establishment of Catholic communities of faith in these early years is particularly important, as it reflects the great difference between the support that existed for French Canadian communities in the area around Mattawa and under the control of the

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Diocese of Ottawa and Pembroke, and the support they received in the Diocese of Peterborough and Sault Ste Marie. It was the Ontario Irish church that dominated in North Bay and the Catholic institutions there – St Joseph’s Academy, Scollard Hall, and St Joseph’s Hospital – would be English. The French Canadians had their own parish, but their influence outside the parish was limited. While strong French Canadian parishes emerged in Mattawa and the surrounding rural areas, this area was peripheral to the seat of the diocese in Pembroke, and the only major Catholic institution that emerged was the hospital in Mattawa. While 60 percent of the population of the study area was Catholic in 1901 and, of these, 73 percent were French Canadian, these structural and cultural divisions reduced the impact of their presence considerably. After a brief pioneer period during which early missionaries travelled great distances and met the faithful in whatever spaces were available, mainstream Protestants also established congregations in these new settlements. Mattawa, as the earliest settlement of our study area, was the base from which institutional religion expanded into the surrounding area. The Anglican Church formally established its mission in Mattawa only in 1889 but built a log church at Rutherglen (St Margaret’s) in 1855 and St Alban’s Church in Mattawa in 1882. Rev. Forster Bliss, the first minister, was responsible for a large mission territory to the east and west of Mattawa, including the church at Chisholm, which was later served by the incumbent at Powassan.18 The church in Mattawa was also the “mother church” of St John the Divine in North Bay.19 As settlement progressed, new diocesan boundaries were established which placed Mattawa and the churches of the Ottawa Valley in the diocese of Ottawa, while North Bay fell in the Diocese of Algoma. As for the other Protestant denominations, Mattawa was first listed as a charge of the Home Missions of the Montreal Conference of the Methodist Church in 1881. In 1884 several other places, including Lake Talon and North Bay, had been added. The vast territory as far west as Schreiber was organized as the District of Nipissing in 1887 and was not divided until 1890 when the western part of this territory became the District of Sudbury.20 Silas Huntingdon, a pioneer missionary of great repute, preached throughout this entire area and founded the Methodist Church of North Bay, later Trinity United. One of his assistants described him as a man of “vision, devotion, good judgment and unselfishness [who] feared no hardship and ... loved all

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The Methodist church in Chisholm opened in 1913 to replace the first log church, destroyed by fire in 1908. The pews, which are now well over a hundred years old, are made of wide pine planks fitted into beautiful wrought-iron ends designed for that purpose. These were not crafted locally but were purchased in Belleville from a church that no longer needed them. In 1918 this church united with the Presbyterian Church in Chisholm and was assigned to the Presbyterian Church until the union of 1925 when it became a United Church. It is still in use today. (See Our Chisholm Story, 1880–1960, 133–5.)

men.”21 The Presbyterian Church sent its first missionary into the upper Ottawa in 1882. He too chose Mattawa as a base. Rev. D.L. McKenzie, who replaced him the same year, served the entire area around Mattawa until his death in 1885. He also supervised the congregation organized in North Bay in 1884 by a student minister named Hayes.22 These missionary efforts led to the construction of churches at Rutherglen, Calvin, Booth’s Depot, and Brûlé as well as Mattawa, all of them joining the United Church in 1925.23 In Chisholm Township both Methodist and Presbyterian log churches were built, but when the Methodists built a new larger church after a fire in 1908, the two congregations came together in a union church in 1918. A second Methodist church had also been built near Wasing.24 Other groups, such as the Baptists, were congregational in their approach and sent missionaries, often student ministers, to specific

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The interior of St Margaret’s Anglican Church in Rutherglen. Rural churches were much simpler and smaller than their city counterparts. The one stained glass window in this church, an image of St Margaret, is dedicated to the memory of Annie and Bertram Reynolds and was probably added much later than the original construction, as stained glass windows were usually too expensive for rural congregations. As in the past, the church is still heated with a wood stove (The Farmer’s Stove) from the rear of the church. This church replaced an earlier log church.

communities who asked for them. The founder of the Gospel Hall in North Bay did outreach for the Plymouth Brethren in the area around Redbridge in the 1920s and 1930s.25 The Protestant populations in the townships surrounding Mattawa were therefore served by several denominations and had some choice as to the church they could attend. Anglicans, Methodists, Presbyterians, Baptists, and the Salvation Army had also established themselves in North Bay prior to 1920. By 1920, therefore, the religious landscape in the study area had more in common with southern Ontario and Quebec than with other areas of northern Ontario where immigrant settlement prevailed. The population in 1921 remained solidly British and French (91%) and only 6.5 percent of the population was of European origin. Italians and Germans were the largest European groups.26 There was more

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St John the Divine Anglican Church in North Bay, like other main- stream urban churches, was a substantial brick building, and with some alterations, is still in use today. Souvenir Views of North Bay, Ontario – Canada. A Dominion Series View Book.

diversity in ethnicity and religion than there had been in 1901, but churches did not face the problem of assimilating a large foreign population as they did in many parts of Northern Ontario or the West. This chapter focuses on the role of communities of faith in community life at the local level in the interwar years. Their significant contribution to social and cultural life tends to support the view that churches were evolving rather than declining in this period.27 It is important to note that at the local level, this observation applies to

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the Catholic as well as the Protestant churches. The cultural role of religion was particularly evident in the case of ethnic groups whose identity was closely tied to their religious practices, such as the Greeks, Italians, Irish, and French Canadians.28 Because of the close link between ethnicity and religion, the congregation was the “community of faith” rather than the denomination. After examining the intertwining of parish and community life in rural Catholic parishes we will consider religious activities and concerns in the interwar years as observed from our Nugget database for 1925 and 1935. Since mainstream Protestant churches and the anglophone Catholics in North Bay received more coverage than other groups, there is a perceived bias in their favour. Nonetheless, they give us a glimpse of local responses to the major national trends of the period: the rise of fundamentalism, growing secularization, Church Union in 1925, the proliferation of young people’s work during the 1920s, and the financial restraints and call for social action resulting from the Great Depression.29 We end this chapter with a look at church voluntary groups, whose forms varied according to their denomination. Some were auxiliaries for missionary societies, and many combined a social welfare role with spiritual development. Catholic devotional societies emphasized ritualistic devotions,30 whereas Protestants envisaged spiritual renewal through bible study groups. Many reflected a growing concern to keep members, attract the working class, and provide suitable recreational options for members.31 Churches sponsored Scouts and Guides, Canadian Girls in Training, and other recreational and young people’s groups, with a particular interest in having young people marry within their own group.32 Only a few examples can be cited here, as the number of these groups was far too great to examine each individually. The recreational activities created by the fundraising efforts of voluntary groups considered in chapter 8, however, illustrate the large place of church groups in community life.

parish life in the country The parish of Saint-Thomas-d’Aquin in Astorville, located in Ferris and Chisholm townships, was under the direction of a repatriated Franco-American, Father Henri Grenier, throughout the interwar years (1921–49). Father Grenier strengthened parish life, and encouraged the spiritual development of his parishioners with every means

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at his disposal, including special devotions, each of which had its own place in the liturgical calendar: the month of Saint Joseph, month of May, month of the Sacred Heart, and month of the Rosary, for instance. He revived the League of the Sacred Heart and encouraged children to pray for a vocation to the priesthood or religious life.33 A full liturgical calendar with special events every month of the year was typical of Quebec parishes at this time, and many of the same devotions were used in the new parish of Ste Thérèse in Arvida in the 1930s.34 Religious life in Astorville was therefore similar to that in a Quebec parish at this time. Father Grenier was best remembered for an incident in which he appeared to have saved the settlement from fire. When the efforts of the firefighters had failed and there seemed to be no hope, Father Grenier was sent for. He came out with holy water and with a few choirboys, one of them holding a cross. They recited the rosary while he sprinkled the fire with holy water. The wind changed and the settlement was safe. We have no record of how parishioners interpreted this event, but the Jesuit historian of the parish prefaced his account with the statement that God had confirmed the great faith of this priest and his faithful.35 Saint-Thomas-d’Aquin was relatively homogeneous as its catchment area was made up primarily of French Canadians who had come from a few common places in Quebec. They developed a common culture, in which the church played a key role in their social life. Not only were birth, marriage, and death sanctified by religious rituals, but all great celebrations, family gatherings, wedding anniversaries, and others, began with a solemn mass. The parish picnic was an annual event of great importance. Family evenings of music, song, and dance were more secular, but since these celebrations were most concentrated during the holiday season (le temps des fêtes), they were punctuated by faithful attendance at mass on Sundays and at Christmas and New Year’s. The family was clearly honoured and celebrated as well as the parish.36 The integration of parish and family in community life, however, should not necessarily be interpreted to mean that the parishioners’ behaviour always adhered to the expectations of their priest with regard to social mores, especially drinking and dancing, which, as we have seen, were an important component of most weddings and holiday celebrations.37 Although we know less about the parish of Ste Philomène in Bonfield, its life was very similar. It had been established in 1886 to

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The parish of Ste Philomène in Bonfield was established in 1886. Construction on a new parish church began in 1906 but it was not completed until 1916. The church is still in use today. The annual parish picnic features “sea pie” cooked in traditional outdoor ovens located behind the church.

serve about two hundred families throughout the area, with missions at Grand Désert, Astorville, Corbeil, and Chiswick. Its present Romanesque-style brick church was built in 1908 but the interior of the church was completed only in 1926.38 It differed from Astorville primarily in that in 1926 five Sisters of the Sacred Heart arrived in Bonfield to take over the task of teaching.39 For the first sixteen years of their time there they stayed in what had been a store in front of the church. Parish activities included an annual picnic with “sea pie”40 for which Bonfield is still well known today. Corbeil became a separate parish in 1920. Its first priest, Father Daniel J. Breen, set to work building a presbytery and a parish school. In 1930 Father O’Dwyer, an Irish priest, was placed in charge of this parish for eight months, and wrote in praise of its parishioners:

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The small community of Catholics in Chiswick began building their own church in 1904 and completed it by 1912, but the parish of St Louis de France was not established until 1920. A steeple was added to the earlier structure in 1951. The church is no longer in use.

This kindly and God-fearing people did not blink an eye over my glaring mistakes in the rendition of their language, and responded with enthusiasm to the wishes of the priest, who although he had an Irish tongue was yet a priest. May God reward the Faith of these people, they turned out en masse to the “Bees,” the box socials, the First Fridays, the hours of confession and recollection – anything that the “remplaçant” – of the curé desired, for the practice and aid of religion.41 The parish of St Louis de France in Chiswick (Chisholm Township) served both French and English parishioners. It began as a mission of Bonfield, then Astorville, the first chapel being built in 1895. Church construction began in 1904 and continued until 1912. It was established as a parish in 1920 with Father Joseph Gravelle as the first parish priest.42 Father Gravelle also served missions at Brent and Fossmill. When these lumber depots were abandoned the mission was transferred to Kiosk. In 1930 a new brick school was built in Chiswick and in 1936 the Sisters of the Assumption from Nicolet,

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The banner for St Louis de France parish, once a proud symbol of the community, now discarded.

Quebec, were brought in to take charge of the school.43 The integration of parish and school can be seen from Father Gravelle’s description of the school, in which he notes that the recreation room in the basement for use on rainy days and for lunch “could be used as a dining room for parish picnics” and had “a stage for school concerts or parish conferences.”44 At Grand Désert, also known as “le rang des Boissonneault,” a chapel was built in 1898 and later moved. The settlers in this area came

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Saint Henri du Grand Désert Catholic Church was constructed in 1902. This photo shows the detail of the steeple, the handiwork of local builders Joseph and Louis Boissonneault, affectionately known as “Grand Jos” and “Grand Louis.”

from Charlevoix and had a distinct way of speaking still noticeable in 1952.45 The church was built by two legendary builders, “Grand Jos” and “Grand Louis” (Joseph and Louis Boissonneault), and the decorative woodwork on the steeple still shows the effort they put into their work. Grand Désert remained a mission of Bonfield. When Simone (Boulanger) Martin went there to live in 1939 they had a mass in

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Grand Désert only occasionally, but by four years later, the services had become more regular. Farmers in Papineau and other nearby townships had no rural parish but attended mass in Mattawa. Conrad Therrien recalled going to the Trans-Canada Hall where they would square dance all night long and then walk home seven and a half miles, only to be told by their mother that they had to walk back again to go to church.46 The more fortunate could go to church “en voiture.” The Boulanger family took an express buggy with two seats that was fancier than the wagon used for farm work. They also wore their Sunday clothes, which were better than the homemade clothes they wore during the week. Because the parish served both the town and the rural areas around it, its church was much larger than churches in the country. Built in 1884 of stone, it boasted twin towers and has been described as “one of the most beautiful monuments one would find from Ottawa to British Columbia.” Including a $2,000 Casavant organ, it had cost $50,000 to build. When it was consecrated, Archbishop Duhamel of Ottawa, Bishop Lorrain of Pembroke, and Bishop Decelles of St Hyacinthe preached in French, and Bishop O’Connor of Peterbourgh preached in English.47 In 1917 the missionary phase of this parish ended and the Oblate missionaries who had been in charge handed over the parish and its mission to the first parish priest, Father Joseph Nelson Duquette, and his assistant. The parish buildings on top of the hill in the section of Mattawa known as Rosemount consisted of the church, a presbytery, a hospital, and a school.48 The Protestant churches in the country were also important gathering points for their congregations. Although divided between several different denominations, the Protestant members of the population were equally enthusiastic about building their own churches and having resident clergymen. St John’s Anglican Church in Chisholm was opened in 1911, although services had been held in the area since the 1880s. The Women’s Auxiliary was established in 1925. The union church in Chisholm organized in 1918 established a Board of Stewards, a Ladies’ Aid, a Sunday school and a choir. Picnics, Christmas concerts, and garden parties were among their early activities.49 As long as the countryside remained isolated, there was little to challenge the hegemony of the parish or congregation in the religious and social life of the inhabitants. This was particularly true of the French Catholic parishes. In Chisholm Township there were some alternatives, particularly for Protestants and anglophones. The

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Orange Lodge was organized in 1893 and the Ladies Orange Benevolent Lodge in 1930. A Literary and Debating Society was active in Chisholm in the 1920s, and the Women’s Institute was organized in 1926.50 The isolation of the rural areas continued into the 1950s, with the advent of school bussing, hydro-electricity, and improved roads.

religious life in the city As North Bay celebrated its achievement of city status in August of 1925, its churches not only participated in the celebrations but they were themselves celebrated in the souvenir booklet issued for the occasion. The Anglican church had grown from a mission to a church with 525 members. The building had been enlarged by the addition of a chancel, and the congregation had since purchased a presbytery, built the basement of the parish hall to create a space that could hold four hundred, and established a mission on Cassells Street. The brand new Presbyterian church was holding its services in Colgan-Liddle Hall as a temporary measure but had already generated enough funds to call a pastor. The history of the Trinity United Church congregation lay in its Methodist roots and its founder, Silas Huntington. They had opened a large brick church on the corner of Ferguson and McIntyre in 1907, and had also built a parsonage. St Andrew’s United Church, originally Presbyterian, had built a second church in 1905, and at the end of 1924 it boasted 775 communicants and over six hundred young people enrolled in its Sunday school. The church was free of debt and hoped to build a Sunday school adequate to its needs. The Salvation Army was noted as having been in North Bay since it was a village, and was credited for its religious and benevolent work as a non-denominational institution: “Their ‘citadel’ has been a source of help to the needy, of support to the weak and of strength to the cause of humanity and of practical religion.” The brochure writer, however, was not familiar with the details of its history. The Baptists were not organized until 1892 and built their first church on Main Street in 1893. It had undergone a major renovation and the addition of a Sunday school hall in 1913, and those changes were finally paid for in 1925. It had a membership of 185. For publicity purposes at least, North Bay’s communities of faith were prospering.51 Reports in the local paper tend to confirm this view of congregational prosperity. Work on the new Jewish synagogue at the corner of McIntyre and Cassells had started, it was reported, and after several

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North Bay Protestant churches as displayed in the 1925 ohw souvenir book. The substantial structures of the three mainstream churches, St John’s, Trinity, and St Andrew’s are prominently displayed. The more modest structures of the Salvation Army Citadel and First Baptist Church are placed at the bottom. MacDougall et al., ‘Back to the Bay,’ 98.

upcoming ceremonies it would undergo a major renovation to accommodate its new functions, including a clubroom on the first floor. Angus and Angus were contracted for the work totalling $2,000.52 Bishop Scollard reported that in the Diocese of Sault Ste Marie the number of priests had increased from five to seventy-five, and the number of Jesuits from twenty to thirty-five.53 St John’s Anglican Church reported that the Women’s Parish Guild had helped to balance the budget on the positive side and that revenues that year

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totalled $10,222.37.54 The Methodist Church was able to clear its debt before the union. The congregation responded to an appeal to achieve this by placing $3,560 on the church collection plates during the first service of the month. Their annual meeting held in May showed that $10,719 had been given in Sunday offerings, $2,850 to missions, and $16,551 had been raised by church organizations. The Ladies’ Aid Society raised a record $3,000. Membership in the church had risen to 740. The official financial report still showed a debt of $490, but the board was confident that this amount would be raised on time for them to burn the mortgage papers in a ceremony to be held in the first week of August during ohw celebrations.55 The religious question of the day in 1925 was Church Union. The required legislation for the merger of the Presbyterian, Methodist, and Congregational Churches had been passed despite opposition from a significant number of Presbyterians who objected to the disappearance of their church into the union and to the restriction that would prevent them from using the name after the union. The legislation called for a final vote in each congregation on the issue between 10 December 1924 and 10 June 1925. The dissidents also had acquired a property commission that would oversee the division of the property belonging to the Presbyterian Church at both the national and the congregational levels.56 In North Bay, when the question was put to a vote at St Andrew’s, only 370 out of the 604 votes cast were in favour of the union. That there were so many non-concurring members of the congregation came as a surprise, as it was expected that the vote would pass with a large majority.57 A former pastor of the North Bay Presbyterian Church, Rev. R.S. Johnston, called for his former and current congregations to approve the union, seeing no future for the non-concurrents. He expressed his hope that the Church would be unified and would go forward with all its power. Throughout Northern Ontario congregations were nearly unanimous for church union, with sixty-two congregations voting in favour and only two against. As the voting continued, the North Bay Presbytery voted for union in a close vote of 66 to 50. In Ontario the United Church of Canada was to have nine churches to every one anti-unionist church. In the North Bay area, 109 out of 111 congregations decided overwhelmingly to join the Unionists; 4,750 voted for Union and only 435 opposed it. In Canada as a whole the continuing Presbyterians had 1,140 congregations in 1926, most of them in Ontario and Quebec, among which were several large Toronto churches. This represented a major split in

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the Presbyterian Church rather than the anticipated union.58 On 14 June the United Churches held their first services in North Bay. Rev. Crossley Hunter’s sermon in the Ferguson Street church described how he hoped the three uniting churches would each bring their unique contributions to Christianity together into the new union.59 The United church on Ferguson Street officially became Trinity United Church after its executive board approved the name. St Andrew’s became St Andrew’s United Church.60 It was not until 5 April 1939 that the controversy truly ended and an amendment to the United Church of Canada Act allowed the name, Presbyterian Church in Canada, to be used by the continuing Presbyterians.61 In North Bay the dissidents met in the town hall in April and appointed a temporary committee to arrange for a branch of the continuing Presbyterian Church in North Bay. The continuing Presbyterian Church was expected to have 235 members,62 but only sixty actually left St Andrew’s to form their own church.63 They began holding their own services almost immediately, using other facilities. In May they held a service at the Crystal Theatre with a morning service attendance of 200 and an evening attendance of 250.64 They then voted to continue as a Presbyterian Church after the 10 June Union and established a board of managers.65 As part of their reorganization it was decided to unite the North Bay and the Temiskaming presbyteries.66 In September the congregation officially inducted their new pastor, Rev. Sanderson, at a service at St John’s Parish Hall. The continuing Presbyterians were also inducted into the Presbyterian Church of Canada at the service. The service was held by Rev. J. McInnis of New Liskeard. The departing members of St Andrew’s congregation applied for compensation for the loss of their church to the church property commission in Sudbury. In return, St Andrew’s voted to offer them $3,000, to be paid in three $1,000 instalments.67 The church quickly attracted new members, and membership rose to almost 400 only a year later.68 The members undertook to build a new church almost immediately, but overestimated their ability to raise funds and had to settle for a more modest structure than originally planned. It was dedicated on 11 September 1927.69 There were many other changes in the religious landscape of North Bay between 1925 and 1935: a new Pentecostal Church opened on Worthington Street East;70 the renovations to the synagogue on McIntyre West were completed and the Sons of Jacob had their own Rabbi; St Vincent de Paul Church was built in time for a first mass on

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Christmas Day 1932; the basement of St John Parish House was finished; and the Lutherans built a church on McIntyre. As the city grew, new churches were opened to serve the expanding population outside the downtown core: Laurier Avenue United Church was organized in 1928, new United churches were opened in West Ferris and Trout Mills; and the Anglican mission of St Simon’s became independent as St Brice’s in 1928. An Italian Methodist Mission on Cassells Street and a Regular Baptist Mission on Main Street were short-lived.71 The growth of fundamentalism had an impact locally as well, as a new Evangelistic Tabernacle opened on McIntyre, and a Gospel Hall on Fisher. Although the population was more religiously diverse than ever before, the number of adherents to these smaller denominations remained small, except for the Lutherans, whose population had climbed to 292 in 1931. Other groups had fewer than twenty adherents each in 1931. (See Table 1.8). In 1935 the installation of the Right Reverend Ralph Hubert Dignan as the new Bishop of the Catholic Diocese of Sault Ste Marie to replace Bishop Scollard who died in 1934, was the biggest religious event of the year, and celebrations extended over a week. Separate school children were given a holiday for the occasion so that they could be among the crowd of 2,000 who met the new bishop upon his arrival at the cpr station and lined the route from the station to the bishop’s palace early in the morning on Tuesday, 2 April. The official ceremony began at 8:30 at St Mary’s Cathedral (Pro-Cathedral). Bishop Dignan was consecrated by the Most Reverend Andre Cassulo, the apostolic delegate in Canada and Newfoundland before a large congregation that included all the priests in the diocese who could be there. The following day, the new bishop celebrated his first Pontifical high mass, which was followed by a banquet at North Bay College. That evening, the city and the citizens of North Bay held a civic reception in his honour in the North Bay Collegiate auditorium, attended notably by Mayor Bullbrook, the city council, representatives from service clubs, and ministers of other denominations. No fewer than thirteen official welcoming addresses were given. Women’s groups held receptions for the mother of the new bishop, Mrs R.H. Dignan, the first of which was hosted by the mayor’s wife on Thursday evening. The cwl hosted a tea for her on Saturday, and on Sunday afternoon the Fédération des femmes canadiennes-françaises (ffcf) held a tea at which over a hundred ladies were presented to both Mrs Dignan and the new bishop. The following Tuesday, the bishop attended mass at

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North Bay College and heard addresses from the students in both English and French.72 These celebrations clearly indicate that the significant role of the bishop in the community and beyond was appreciated, not just by the Catholic community, but by civic officials and community leaders as well. The Silver Jubilee of the coronation of King George v and Queen Mary, which was marked by special sermons, music, and song in North Bay churches, was also a major special event that year.73 The year otherwise unfolded following the usual cycle of the religious calendar. The Nugget gave accounts of many religious events over the year but with a definite emphasis on the activities of the mainstream churches and some coverage of the activities of the Sons of Jacob congregation. The period that included Holy Week and Passover was undoubtedly the most significant time of the year for all the communities of faith.74 Christmas, celebrated in the middle of winter and associated with giving, was also important, but if one considered it without all the social activities it generated, it was clearly secondary to Easter. Thanksgiving was also marked by churches throughout the area.75 Rev. Omond, speaking at the Thanksgiving service shared by several Protestant denominations, pointed out: “The best system will fail unless it is managed by Christian men, and that the primary need is a return to religion, not reorganization but regeneration.”76 It is interesting to note that the major Protestant churches held special joint ceremonies at Thanksgiving and on Good Friday. Particular notice was taken of the Jewish celebrations of Purim in March, Yon Kippur in October, and Hanukah in December. Hanukah was celebrated in the home as well as at the synagogue, with the lighting of candles. The Jewish community expected a congregation of a hundred to celebrate Yon Kippur and brought in a Toronto rabbi for that event. Purim, on the other hand, was a more secular celebration. A party for about thirty children was held in the synagogue; they heard readings related to the celebration and left with bags of candy. The adults celebrated with a masquerade party at the home of Sol Waiser.77 The feast of Corpus Christi in late June was a significant celebration for Catholics. On this day, they professed their faith publicly, traditionally walking in procession around the boundaries of their parish. At St Mary’s Cathedral in North Bay, 3,000 faithful participated in a procession, which was largely symbolic as their route extended only

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to Murray Street and back. In Mattawa, the procession was less constrained and the “bells of the church chimed until the procession returned.”78 The celebrations at St Rita’s and St Vincent de Paul were not mentioned. Other special events included confirmation visits by both Catholic and Anglican bishops,79 and numerous anniversaries.80 Founders were also celebrated. Bishop Thornloe, for example, was remembered for his “unfailing courtesy, his kindliness, sympathy, and humor.”81 He had visited northern camps and taken winter trips to the outer reaches of the diocese. The Very Reverend J.A. Chapleau was honoured by French Canadian students for the fifteenth anniversary of his coming to North Bay. They put on a full program: dances; “Flowers and Bees”; the appearance of the Blessed Virgin to Bernadette Soubirous in France in eleven tableaux; vocal and orchestral pieces; a comedy called “An Indian Raid”; and, “O Canada.”82 The close links between separate schools and the Catholic parishes was evident in the many such celebrations in which students played key roles. In 1935, after five years of the Depression, religious leaders were concerned about the social conditions around them, and some openly expressed their fear of communism. The visiting moderator of the United Church of Canada (ucc) spoke of the threat of communism and the need to reach out to people before they became communists: “I see the hand writing on the wall for all countries, and I believe that the only alternative that lies before us, Canadians, is to create a Christian society in which every man will receive economic sufficiency and economic security.”83 Religious leaders sought to bring people to religion rather than other solutions as a key to solving these social problems. “At a special mass followed by Sunday morning breakfast at North Bay College for Catholic men, the Rt. Rev. R.H. Dignan, Bishop of Sault Ste Marie diocese, spoke to almost one hundred of the leading Catholic men in North Bay about the need for ‘Catholic Action.’”84 Rev. Packham of Trinity preached a series of sermons dealing with social issues, in which he spoke out against war: “War as a means of settling international disputes is incompatible with the teachings of our Lord Jesus Christ.”85 In another timely sermon, Rev. R.B. Cochrane, d.d., general secretary of the Board of Home Missions of the ucc, spoke on the topic of social justice. He suggested that Canada could not be Christian until the social scale was levelled: “The old idea of patriotism is gone ... We’re beginning to understand that no nation can prosper at the expense of another nation ... The worm has

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turned. The old idea of race superiority is going. The younger generation hasn’t the racial prejudices, thank Heaven, that the older generation had.”86

voluntary groups Voluntary associations were organized in rural areas as well as in the city. Interviewees who lived on farms remembered that their parents had no time for such activities.87 Mattawa, being larger and more urban, could support more voluntary groups. The first to be organized there were the Confraternity of the Holy Rosary and the League of Sacred Heart established in 1889. The first ladies’ group, the Congregation of Ladies of Saint Ann, was organized in 1894.88 This was a period of growth and optimism for this parish in the heart of a great lumbering district. A local branch of the cwl, an organization formed in the West to deal with social problems relating to immigration, was organized in 1922.89 Between that date and 1947 several other new voluntary groups were organized in this area, including the Dames françaises, the Children of Mary, the Knights of Columbus, the Saint Ann’s Society, the Saint-Jean-Baptiste Society, the Caisse Populaire, the Crusaders of the Blessed Sacrament, and the Senior and Junior praesidium of the Legion of Mary.90 Even in town, however, having the time to work in such a group was a luxury that many women, busy with large families, did not have. Carmen Backer believes that her mother belonged to the cwl and the Dames de Sainte Anne, but even if she paid her dues, she didn’t have the time to be active. In this bilingual parish, there were both French and English voluntary groups. While in larger centres, churches appealing to the working class offered a wider range of spiritual, social, cultural, and recreational activities to their members than the more middle class churches,91 in North Bay such activities were provided by all the churches, few of which could be characterized as working class as there was often only one church for each denomination. These services were made possible through the efforts of voluntary groups, regardless of denomination. While the availability of sources dictates a discussion here of groups associated with the Christian churches, the role of voluntary associations in the Jewish community was similar, and our conclusions would apply to that group as well. Summarizing the usual pattern of activity in smaller Ontario Jewish communities, Gerald Tulchinsky notes:

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Once acquired, a synagogue was usually the focal point of the small-town Jewish community. In the sanctuary religious rites and holidays were observed ... As well, cheder [classes for children] and meetings of the synagogue ladies’ auxiliary, or other separate associations of men, women, and young people took place. By far the most active and important of these groups were those formed by the women. From their kitchen, the ladies’ auxiliary took care of the vitally important culinary dimensions of communal life, providing shnaps, wine, herring, honey cake, and other delicacies for the men and boys who attended Sabbath services on Saturday mornings and banquets of broiled chicken, brisket, knishes, kashe, tsimmes, verenikes, holupzes for holidays, weddings, bar mitzvahs, circumcision celebrations, and other communal occasions. These women, through their auxiliary and through Hadassah, were among the community’s most important and influential members.92 Such groups were crucial to the well-being of their local community of faith.93 Participation in voluntary group activities varied with age and sex. Those who were not active members of a particular community of faith could benefit from the many services it provided, but they were less likely to be involved in the running of its voluntary associations themselves. Many of our interviewees recalled the involvement of their parents, and even their grandparents, in their church. Their own participation appears to have been closely linked to the extent of their family’s involvement. Men and women of all denominations and classes were active participants in church groups. Edna May Elliott, the wife of a cpr trainman, is one of many examples of working class leadership.94 According to her son Dinty, the Elliotts were strict, didn’t have friends who drank or smoked, and frowned upon dancing. Dinty also remembered that his parents were very involved in church activities and in the Scouts and Girl Guides. The history of the local Baptist Church indicates that his mother joined the Ladies’ Aid in July 1907, and was president in 1926–27, from 1928 to 1930, and again from 1936–39, a total of nine years, according to the records available. The success of their annual Halloween supper, the most heavily attended supper in the city, was attributed largely to her organization. Her husband, Deacon D.J. Elliott, held the record for the most tickets sold for many years. In 1940 pastor MacLachlan paid tribute to Mrs Elliott as

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she retired as president of the Ladies’ Aid, for her “faithful and worthy discharge of the duties of that office.”95 Biff Gigg’s parents were active members of St John’s Anglican Church. His mother belonged to the Mothers’ Union, which organized receptions at the church hall and his father helped fix things at the church to make up for not contributing much cash. The Scouts and Girl Guides were connected to the church and encouraged. Biff went through Scouts and became a Scout Master. Camp Tillicum was important at the time and he attended for a week during the summer.96 Ken Unger, raised Catholic, recalled that he was quite a churchgoer and that he sang in choir.97 Rita Landriault’s parents were both active at St Vincent de Paul. Her father belonged to the League of the Sacred Heart and her mother to the Ladies of St Ann. Her father had to attend about one league meeting a week. The league was also expected to provide an honour guard when needed for an event at the church.98 Jack Labrèche’s father belonged to the Knights of Columbus and was involved in charitable work. Jack remembered making Christmas baskets in the basement of St Mary’s during the Depression. Licia Falconi referred to St Rita’s as the Italian church and remembered a ladies’ society and a men’s society that held spaghetti suppers for the church. St Rita’s also sponsored a picnic two or three times over the summer, and they used Veltri’s trucks to get everyone out to the picnic grounds. They would bring accordions and their own lunches, and the children were allowed to run free.99 The Italians did not have a separate Knights of Columbus but joined North Bay Council 1007, founded in 1905. They got their own cwl only in 1959. In 1928, however, the St Rita’s Dramatic Club began putting on performances. From 1929 to 1973, the parish also had a special relationship with St Rita’s School.100 Some early memories of members of St Mary’s Catholic Church were gathered on the occasion of its hundredth anniversary in 1986. All these recollections attest to a similar participation in church groups. Mrs Mary Dupuis remembered when they held mass downstairs in the basement chapel to conserve heat. The cwl raised money by holding card parties with as many as seventy-five tables around a big wood stove. She and other girls who had mothers in the cwl were allotted a square of the wooden floor in the basement to scrub.101 Participation in voluntary associations served the community at several levels. Overtly it accomplished the mandated work of the group, such as looking after flowers for the church. Second, it

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provided a chance for social interaction among group members, thereby strengthening their membership in the community as well as giving leadership experience for the executive. Third, the group raised funds, often for causes above and beyond their mandate, thereby contributing to the financial strength of their community. In addition, most fundraising efforts took the form of a recreational activity in which a larger number of people, including some from outside the community of faith, participated. In this way voluntary groups provided entertainment and recreation for members of the community as well as outreach beyond their boundaries. St John the Divine Anglican Church (St John’s) is a good example, of the interrelationship of the many voluntary associations attached to a particular community or congregation. Members of the congregation who supported the church financially had the right to attend the annual vestry meetings, where important financial decisions affecting the congregation were made. While men tended to play a more active role in the vestry than women did, participation was not limited to men. The day-to-day running of the church was overseen by the wardens, two of whom were appointed by the congregation and two by the minister. Much of rest of the work for the church, with the exception of the specific work of the rector, was accomplished through voluntary groups, each of which had its own role to play. In 1939 seventeen different groups reported to the vestry for its annual meeting. Altogether they contributed $1,815.43 to the church coffers that year,102 a substantial contribution that represented about one-fifth of the annual budget of the church. That year the rector estimated that the church required $9,000 per year to operate: $5,000 for the church, $1,000 for apportionments and the hall, $2,000 for expenses, and $1,000 for the mortgage. While important, however, the financial support of these groups was just one element of their contribution. Several of these groups had been in place for many years. The Women’s Auxiliary to the Missionary Society of the Church of England in Canada (wa) and the Anglican Young People’s Association (aypa) were already organized in 1913.103 The wa’s role was to support the mission work of the church. Its Senior Branch also had a “responsibility for the work among women and children.” Although they played a financial role their “interest, prayer and devotion” were considered even more vital.104 The Evening branch of the wa and the Junior Auxiliary were also devoted to this cause. The Junior Auxiliary regrouped all the junior age girls in Sunday school for mid-week activities that com-

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bined instruction, handwork, and recreation with the goal of shaping them into “well-informed, active workers” in the Church of England.105 The aypa was primarily social in nature. It provided group activities for young people that would keep them from falling in with the wrong crowd or getting into the wrong kind of activities.106 Such groups, which existed in other denominations as well, played a significant role in maintaining community boundaries, especially as young people reached the age to choose marriage partners. As the church became more established and prosperous during the 1920s, new groups were organized. The Parish Guild, the Men’s Club, and the Boy Scouts and Cubs were organized in 1923; the Boys’ Bible Class, and a Bible Reader’s Guild, in 1928.107 The Chancel Guild was organized prior to 1928 but the exact year is not known. The Parish Guild was a women’s group whose primary role was to raise money for the Parish Hall. The hall was a great addition to the church and to the North Bay community at large. It was also expensive, with a sizeable mortgage to be paid off and ongoing heating and maintenance needs. The Chancel Guild was responsible for the altar, ornaments, linen, choir gowns, and other materials required for services, including candles, palms for Palm Sunday, and flowers.108 The flowers were often gifts from members’ gardens and were delivered to the sick after the services. This small group met in the homes of the members and raised money through their membership fees and a major semiannual rummage sale. During the Depression, however, the Chancel Guild took on extra fundraising activities to raise money for other church priorities. In 1933, having been asked to take on some of the costs for the rectory, they helped with the cleaning and paid for roof repairs, which cost around $65. In 1934 they contributed $194.88 for repairs to the rectory. Their greatest effort, however, came in 1935 when they paid the full amount of the $275 interest owing on the rectory mortgage. When asked to do so again the following year, they replied that they did not have the funds but they agreed to give $100 instead (6 April 1936) and, when they were pressed, to give more if they could after their rummage sale. As one of the smallest church groups at St John’s, the Chancel Guild seldom worked with other groups, but in 1934 they assisted the Women’s Auxiliary of the Civic Hospital with a fundraising tea (4 February 1934). The Men’s Club was involved in fundraising to meet the needs of the church. By sponsoring troops of Girl Guides and Scouts, including

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Rangers, Brownies, and Cubs, the church provided activities for very young members of the church and leadership training for the older members. In 1934 the five women’s associations at St John’s began to meet together quarterly at the request of the minister, Rev. Sims. This larger group became known as the Associated Women’s Society. The first initiative to come out of this was a bazaar organized with all of the groups working together. This co-operation would also allow the various groups to share responsibility for costs such as repairing the chairs at Thornloe Hall. By 1939 there was also a Mothers’ Union, a Boys’ Choir, a Servers’ group, and a badminton club. The Mother’s Union worked with young married women, and their main object was to “uphold the sanctity of the marriage vow and to preserve Christian Home Life.”109 It had emerged when divorce became more prevalent in the early twentieth century and the church wanted to counter that trend for its members. Bible Class was largely educational. Although purely recreational, the badminton club also supported the Parish Hall by paying for the use of its space. Regardless of its purpose, each of these groups was involved in fundraising. Every church effort required money and those who used the Parish Hall had to help pay for it. Sunday collections covered only part of the costs. These activities also involved lay people in the functioning of their church and turned it into their “community.” The many items donated to the church by individuals or church groups over the years continue to attest to their involvement. These contributions include many beautiful stained glass windows that memorialize individuals who played key roles in the church over the years. At the local level, members were essential contributors to their communities of faith. This was true not just of St John’s but also of both Catholic and Protestant churches and the synagogue.110 Participation reflected sex, age, and class, and there was a role for virtually everyone. Church rhetoric aimed at bringing men back into the religious fold should not make us lose sight of the fact that at the local level, churches were communities of faith supported by their members, including men, women, and children.111 There was an accepted division of labour. Men attended vestry or annual meetings, sat on church building committees, and led Scouts and Cubs. Women put on dinners and teas, saw to the rectory, decorated the church, and visited the sick. Men also joined the Men’s Club, the Knights of Columbus,

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and the League of the Sacred Heart, and they attended the plays, card parties, and dinners organized by the various groups.112 Parents brought their children to church activities and enrolled them in the groups for children. It was not the institutional national churches that kept churches open, repaired, and heated through the Depression; it was the community of faithful who, while they often preferred to donate through a card party than through the Sunday collection, supported “their” church. Of all the communities individuals belonged to, the congregation was probably the most important because of its role in shaping their identity, acting as the repository of family memory and linking past and future generations.113 Involvement in the voluntary groups of their congregation followed from this role and not the opposite. Communities of faith played a major role in family and community life in both town and country. In the countryside the Catholic parish was almost synonymous with the community, and family life was closely integrated into parish life. Voluntary groups played an important role in all communities of faith but more so in the urban environment. Religious denominations maintained the boundaries between themselves and others while at the same time recognizing that they had goals in common. Many of the Protestant denominations came together for special services at least twice a year. The whole town turned out to honour a church leader such as Bishop Scollard at his death regardless of their own denominational membership. Church groups for young people were designed to play a gate-keeping role, however, and their activities were intended to help them meet their future spouses within their denominational and cultural group. The decision by many Presbyterians to remain outside of Church Union in 1925 suggests that they valued their own sense of community over church policy. While voluntary groups attached to communities of faith played a major role in the civic community, they did so from within the boundaries of their particular ethno-religious community, not by transcending these boundaries.

y mmunity School Experience Life in Northeastern Ontario

6 The Elementary School Experience

The establishment of Ontario’s public school system in the nineteenth century under the guiding hand of Egerton Ryerson is a well-known chapter in Ontario history and need not be repeated here.1 The conflict at the turn of the century over bilingual schools and the imposition of Regulation 17 in 1912 to ban the use of French in Ontario schools has also received considerable attention, primarily in terms of the area most implicated, eastern Ontario.2 In contrast, little has been written on the extension of schooling into “New Ontario” and the spread of both public and separate schools, English, French, and bilingual, into these areas of new settlement.3 A first-hand account by John B. MacDougall, the inspector of public schools for New Ontario from 1904 to 1911 indicates how challenging this task was. Local historians have captured some of this history as well.4 The school system had been created to meet conditions in the counties of the south and not the poverty and isolation of much of the population in the districts of the north.5 The one-room school was the norm outside the urban centres. One of the greatest problems was finding qualified teachers. The addition of several new normal schools in the province, including one in North Bay in 1909, slowly began to improve the situation for English-speaking teachers.6 Qualified French-speaking teachers remained difficult to find. The French Canadian elite, concerned to improve the quality of education in the bilingual schools they favoured, obtained the creation of a French normal school in Ottawa in 1923. The government did not recognize it until 1927, however, when Ontario effectively abandoned its policy of assimilation.7

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Other struggles remained. Separate schools still received less funding than public schools as they did not get a share of education taxes from utilities or corporations, and public funding for separate schools was limited to the primary schools. The Catholic Taxpayers’ Association, formed in 1932, lobbied for change. The Liberal premier of Ontario, Mitch Hepburn, partially addressed this issue in 1936 through legislation that would force corporations to split their taxes between the separate and the public school systems. Unfortunately, this measure proved unworkable, and had negative political repercussions. After losing a by-election in December 1936, Hepburn himself supported repealing the bill. As Robert Stamp concludes: “Ontario’s Protestant majority was simply not prepared to accept what it considered unwarranted financial concessions to the Catholics.”8 More support for separate schools would be forthcoming, but only in the form of less visible provincial grants. Public funding for high schools in the separate system had to wait until 1984. Both public and separate school systems were established in the study area from the time of settlement. In Chisholm, for example, the first school board was organized in 1892, even before the township was officially organized, and in Bonfield and Astorville, setting up parish schools was part and parcel of establishing the parish. Some rural public schools had French teachers and functioned in French but the clergy’s preference was for separate schools if possible.9 Bright French students like Marie Rivet of North Bay were pushed toward a career in teaching to meet the need for French teachers. Religious teaching orders were brought in to staff some of the schools in the area. The late-nineteenth-century push to make Ontario into an English province and to use the schools as an instrument for the assimilation of French Canadians essentially failed. Other language groups, however, continued to be assimilated into the English system. In this chapter we examine the nature of primary schools in the study area and the ways in which they interacted with the communities they served. While the divide between public and separate schools loomed large in the eyes of the elites at the time, from the present perspective, the divide between rural and urban schools appears much more significant. Rural and urban schools are therefore examined separately in terms of the student experience of school, the teachers, and the schools. A discussion of the role of the school in the

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community follows. We begin, however, with the question of early school leaving a problem that was prevalent in the rural areas.

leaving school l l oy d : Well, I was, I wasn’t living at home then. I was living with other people up in Calvin Township. His name was Oscar Boutz. … And he was sick and he was away, so they asked, I guess my parents asked me, to go and live with [pause] it was her, and her daughter, eh. So I helped, I used to help do chores, and then I went to school out on the other line. It was roughly two and a half three miles walk then. And the girl that was there, her name was Doris. We had a pair of skis in the winter time and we used to go cross country, through the fields, you know, to go to, to go to school. And, when Oscar Boutz come back home, he was okay, and we start cutting stove-wood in the spring, with the horses, eh. And [pause], I didn’t want to go to school no more. So there was a truant officer in the township up there. He come and told Oscar Boutz: “That young lad don’t want to go to school no more he can’t stay in this township.” “Well,” I said, “that’s the way it is, I’m not going to school, that’s [fades off].” So my parents then were living in Mattawan township. It was a big farm, they were working for John Montreille. … And I walked from there [Calvin Township] one day. Mrs Boutz, she made me a lunch, and I walked, and went up there. And wages were $70 a month for a family at that time. So that was the end of my school days. I started, just as I was going into grade six, I think, and I quit.10 In Ontario, townships were responsible for education, and school trustees had to provide accommodation for all the resident children from five to sixteen, who had the right to at least four months of instruction each school year. Schooling was free, the costs being levied to all property holders in the township. Parents had to send their children to school until the age of sixteen (up from fourteen after 1921) and could be fined if they failed to do so. Urban municipalities had the same role as townships with regard to schools. While poverty during the Depression made it difficult for some to attend simply because they did not have enough warm clothes to go to school,11 the situation exemplified by Lloyd Novack above was a different

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problem. Once boys began doing the work of men, it was difficult to keep them in school.12 The choice to leave school could also be more complex. Conrad Therrien, who lived in Cameron Township (adjacent to Papineau to the east), also quit school before he was sixteen. In the spring after finishing his fourth grade, when he was about fourteen, instead of going to school he went to work at a sawmill belonging to John Holloway. The fact that work was available affected his decision. But the fact that school had not been a very positive experience for him was a factor as well. One of the teachers had beaten him: “At that time I don’t know why, it was something I did, I guess, but I don’t remember.” There had been a conflict of wills – she had “wanted to make me cry” and he wouldn’t, even when it meant that his hands swelled up from being hit. This incident left such a mark that even his classmates remembered it. As he was talking, he noted: “Somebody was asking me the other day. He said ‘he was so bull-headed he didn’t cry.’” I asked: “Did that happen just once?” He answered: “Once, ya. I was a bad boy.” Even though he could not remember what he did, Conrad still had internalized this incident as his fault. When asked if that was what made him want to quit, however, he responded: “Well, it was three and a half miles to walk from [home] the morning and at night. And in the winter time it was rough because plows didn’t pass there. We went by snow shoes or skis, a team of horses, or something like that.” The school was heated with wood. “We made [a] fire when we got there and then we froze ‘til noon. You froze all the way home. But it was the good old days just the same.” Although the opportunity for work at the sawmill was a factor in his leaving, it is also possible that if his experience had been more positive, as it was for many of the students discussed below, he would have stayed in school. In the Nipissing District, the percentage of population over five years of age who were illiterate was 8 percent higher in rural than in urban areas and 2 percent higher for males than for women. As shown in Table 6.1, in rural areas 18 percent of males could not read or write compared to only 10 percent in urban areas. These figures are for the entire population over five, and therefore reflect more than the immediate situation. Nonetheless they do suggest that rural males were the group most likely to end their schooling before they could read and write and before they had reached the age of being able to leave legally.

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Table 6.1: Population over 5 who cannot read and write in Nipissing District, 1931

Male Female

Rural (%)

Urban (%)

Total (%)

18 16

10 8

13 11

source: Census of Canada, 1931, Table 59, 824.

More commonly, students in rural areas remained in school for as long as they could, which in the one-room school meant grade eight. Most of our interviewees had more positive memories of that experience. Paul Emile Boulanger, who attended S.S. No. 2b, Papineau, completed his grade eight there. He remembered his experience as positive despite the high turnover in teachers. They were allowed to speak French in class all the time. They walked the half mile from the farm to the school, and usually went home for lunch in the hour and a half they were allowed. Having all the grades in one room didn’t seem to be a problem. He remembered that they were used to working alone and when the teacher gave them work to do, they did it. He didn’t recall any problems with discipline and thought that the classmates got along well. Once students finished grade eight, and here he spoke for the others as well as himself, there were no options. They were too far from a high school to consider attending. Most of the boys went to work on the farm at that point.13

country schools With the exception of a few schools in villages such as Astorville, rural schools were all one-room schools. They remained small and decentralized because they served only their immediate area. Children had to be able to walk to school, although in winter they might take a short-cut across the fields on skis.14 Each township had several rural schools (Table 6.2), and levels of attendance could range considerably. They were supported by public taxes based on the value of property or assessment. By the 1920s, most country public schools were wood frame structures; earlier log schools had almost all been replaced and only a few were of brick. The larger rural schools in the townships adjacent to North Bay were more suburban than rural. The rural public schools were more numerous and better funded than the separate schools. While there was little difference in the average value of the school building or the equipment, the fact that the assessment

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Rural School Children, ca. 1930. Most rural schools were one-room schools attended by students of all ages. Of the thirty-six children who attended this rural school near Astorville, however, very few are older, and they are mostly girls. ccoh, flp, Guillemette.

per student (using the average attendance reported) was only $681 for separate schools compared to $1,290 for rural public schools (Table 6.3) suggests that separate school supporters also had to pay more taxes. About 450 students attended these schools, an average of twenty-eight per school. The lack of amenities in these rural schools did not detract from interviewees’ positive memories. Laurence (Blanchette) Novack attended S.S. No. 3, Papineau, a few years after Lloyd Novack. Although the teachers changed often, she felt that the education in this school was more personal than it is today: “We all played together and we all got along. It was separated, the boys played on one side of the school; the girls played on the other side. And that way there wasn’t so much fighting and teasing, you know how it is.” She didn’t feel that they were neglected because there were so many grades together: “[The teachers] were very well organized, I’d say. They had a lot of patience. I don’t think the school was taught the

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Table 6.2: Schools in the Study Area, 1920, 1927, and 1935 1920

1927

1935

Public

Public

Separate

Public

Separate

rural schools Bonfield Calvin Chisholm Ferris Papineau Widdifield

2 3 5 2 2 6*

2 3 6 6** 2 9

5

5

3 3 3 2

2 4 6 5 2 10

4 3 3 1

urban schools Bonfield Mattawa North Bay

1 1 3

1 5

1 1 3

1 5

1 1 4

25

34

21

34

22

all schools

note: Only the public school data are given for 1920 because English-French schools were not included in Schools and Teachers through to 1926 and this meant that a large number of schools, most of which were in the separate system, were not listed. A few schools in the public system may also be missing as a result. In 1927 a total of 33 teachers held “English-French” certificates, a designation later dropped, an indication of the significance of French language instruction in this area. * There were seven schools in the township but one was closed. ** Two of these schools were in union school sections with adjoining North Himsworth Township located in the District of Parry Sound. source: ao, Schools and Teachers, 1920, 1927, and 1935

Table 6.3: Average values for primary schools in the study area in 1935

Type of School Rural Public Rural Separate Urban Public Urban Separate Total/Average Std Dev

Value Equipment Value of ($) Building No Schools Attendance Salary 29 16 6 6 57 11

25 28 271 317 641 156

709 705 1,222 708 836 257

253 271 872 1,755 788 706

2,573 1,797 93,833 51,417 37,405 44,203

Assessment

Ratio of Assessment/ Attendance

39,458 19,206 1,277,432 806,698 535,699 615,529

1,290 681 4,708 2,543 2,306 1,779

source: ao, Schools and Teachers, 1935

same as it is today. I think there is a big difference in their way of teaching today. And the courses are so much different that they teach. I see the grandchildren and their work and I wouldn’t understand it myself. It’s so different from what we had to learn back then.”15 Bernard Rochefort enjoyed his time at the Astorville School. The

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Table 6.4: Type of certificates held by teachers in the study area, 1935 I

Public Country Separate Country Separate Urban Public Urban Total

II

III

Other

All

No.

%

No.

%

No.

%

No.

%

No.

%

13 1 4 22 40

39 5 9 45 27

17 9 38 26 90

52 47 83 53 61

3 9 1 0 13

9 47 2 0 9

0 0 3 1 4

0 0 7 2 3

33 19 46 49 147

100 99 101 100 100

source: ao, Schools and Teachers, 1935

school was French, and they were taught religion. There were no holidays with non-academic activities that he remembers. Astorville was built on a hill and during recess they would often enjoy bobsleighing. In the spring they went to the creek at noon and caught three- or fourpound carp and suckers with their hands. They ate a few but mostly it was for the pleasure of catching them. The establishment of four new Normal Schools, including one at North Bay in 1908–09, was part of the Ontario government’s attempt to provide more teachers and reduce the number of unqualified teachers.16 Model schools and on-the-job training also continued. New teachers usually had to teach for at least one year in a rural school before they could get a job in a larger urban one. As a result, the turnover was high. Paul Emile Boulanger remembers that two years was the longest any one teacher, all of them women, stayed in his Papineau Township school. The impact of the North Bay Normal School on teacher training was felt in the public school system, which was English. In 1935, 39 percent of teachers in rural public schools had first-class certificates as compared to only 5 percent in rural separate schools, where teachers were far more likely to have second- or even third-class certificates (Table 6.4). Two public schools in Papineau Township near Mattawa are typical of the small rural schools of the area. One was built of log, the other frame. Both teachers had a second-class certificate in 1925 but by 1935 one had a first-class certificate. In 1925 teachers were paid $900 but because of the Depression, they received only $500 and $650 in 1935. Both schools had a similar assessment. The log school was valued at $400 and had $109 worth of equipment in 1935. Its attendance had increased from only six in 1925 to twenty-two in 1935. The frame school was valued at $1,500 in 1935 and it had $128 in equipment for seventeen students, up from the eight it had in 1925.17

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When Mildred (Sloan) Lamarre was hired for Papineau S.S. No. 3 around 1939, she had only completed Grade 12 at Mattawa. She, along with other students from Mattawa who had received 80 percent, was granted a Grade 13 certificate in return for going to pick strawberries in southern Ontario for thirteen weeks over the summer. She then took a factory job for the war effort, but it terrified her. In February that year, her grandfather died and she came home for the funeral. School principal Frank McElligott approached her at the funeral and asked her if she was interested in teaching. A school in Papineau Township was closed and needed a teacher; what’s more, Superintendent J.W. Trusler had already approved her for the position. She was afraid of taking this on as she had had no training but after talking to her parents, and with Trusler’s promise that the school board would take responsibility for anything she did, she agreed. She was to start immediately, and so her brother rented a horse and buggy to take her there. On arrival, they lit the furnace, which had not been used since the previous year. The students were advised, and thirtyeight turned up the following morning. The next day they learned names. One little girl piped up and said that, for the first time, they had not had a Christmas concert that year. Mildred asked if they wanted to have one and the students said yes. After much hard work, they had their concert in March.18 Mildred’s teaching career was launched and she would stay at that school for seven years. Although the difficulty getting teachers was probably even greater at the beginning of the war than it had been previously, this example indicates that school inspectors had considerable latitude to accept teachers who were not fully qualified. Mildred had received no special training and had really only completed Grade 12. From the school’s perspective, however, it was better to have a promising under-qualified teacher than a closed school. Mildred was handpicked by her former school principal for this job. He knew her personally and was likely aware that she could do the job in spite of her lack of training. She also had to undertake to go to school in the summer. First, she received a deferred interim second-class certificate; she then worked toward her first-class certificate by attending Toronto Normal School during the summer for eight years. Students who went to country schools were therefore far more likely to get teachers who had fewer qualifications and less experience than teachers in city schools. Whether this meant that the education they received was inferior, however, is open to debate. As noted

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earlier, many interviewees felt they had received a very good education and that going to a one-room school had not been a problem. In the American context, there has been a re-evaluation of the education received in country schools. As Andrew Gulliford comments: “Tangible qualities of a country school education included community support, active parental involvement, the opportunity for younger children to learn from older children, a thorough grounding in fundamentals, an introduction to what is now called ‘cultural literacy,’ and freedom to play.”19

urban schools Most urban schools were eight-room schools. In a smaller centre such as Bonfield, the separate school was initially built with only four classrooms, with two grades per class, but it soon was overcrowded and Simone (Boulanger) Martin, for example, didn’t go to school until the new eight-room school opened when she was eight and a half years old. The separate school in Mattawa, which served the majority of the children, also had only four classrooms, with two grades put together. In North Bay, the Queen Victoria (Worthington Street) Public School had been expanded from four to twelve rooms. King Edward (McIntyre Street) School was built as a four-room school and enlarged to eight but King George (Harvey Street), Dr Carruthers (McPhail Street), and Dr MacDougall (Brookes Street) schools were all built as eight-room schools. In 1925, when Dr MacDougall was under construction, the public schools were congested, with rooms allowing for 1,440 enrolled students, while the 1925 enrolment stood at 1,644 students. The new school would absorb the surplus students and allow for the added enrolment expected after the cnr moved its district headquarters to North Bay. The erection of the new school would bring the number of public schools in town to five, with a total of forty-four rooms.20 It was estimated that the new school would cost $80,000.21 St Mary’s Separate School was built in 1904 with eight rooms and later enlarged to twelve, but St Joseph’s Separate School at the east end of First Avenue and St Vincent de Paul School, located near the French Church, were both eight-room schools. In 1925 the Separate School Board had properties valued at $180,000 and the Separate School levy was equal to that of the Public board. North Bay was the only municipality in Ontario where this occurred.22 In 1929 a new separate school, St Rita’s, opened on Front Street.23

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This image of the schools in the study area used for practice teaching by Normal School students clearly shows the difference between the one-room rural school in Feronia, a slightly larger school in Ferris, and the eight-room schools in North Bay. nbns, Year Book, 1960, 11.

North Bay was proud of its schools and the 1925 souvenir book produced for ohw proudly proclaimed: “Schools are an unfailing index of the character and progress of a people. If this be true North Bay can claim an enviable position. For substantial buildings designed on modern architectural lines equipped in the most approved manner from a sanitary and hygienic point of view and set in spacious well kept lawns with large grounds for athletic uses the city has nothing to apologize for. They stand well in first rank of public buildings.”24 This was not just boosterism. W. Dunlop, director of university extension for the University of Toronto, who toured the schools when he visited the city during a teachers’ convention held in North Bay, agreed with this praise.25 By 1935 the situation was quite different; separate schools were overcrowded and assessments were down. The school inspector reported: “The smallest primary class at the opening of the current term consist[ed] of 52 pupils. The average class, the committee was informed, consisted of 46.5 pupils.”26 As the Catholic population had increased between 1921 and 1931, some Catholic parents may have opted for the public system, thereby causing this loss of assessments.

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Although neither system charged a school fee, public schools did not charge for books, a fact that may have motivated transfers. The assessment per average student attendance in the urban separate schools of the study area was only about half of that for all the public schools (Table 6.3). Teachers’ salaries had decreased in 1935 compared to 1925. The average salary in urban separate schools in 1935 was only $708 per year, the same as that in the country schools. In public schools, the average salary was $1,222. Teachers’ actual salaries varied considerably. At Queen Victoria Public School in North Bay, for example, the principal in 1935 had a first-class certificate and earned $2,250 per year. The eleven teachers earned from $990 to $1,710. Four teachers, of whom three were male, had a first-class certificate. The salary range in the other public schools was similar.27 In public elementary schools here as elsewhere, female teachers outnumbered male teachers, but principals were invariably male. The urban separate schools in the study area all benefited from having nuns on their staff. When the new school in Bonfield opened, its lay teachers were as transient as those in the country schools. Simone (Boulanger) Martin’s father was instrumental in changing this by bringing Sisters of the Sacred Heart into the parish. Five of them arrived in 1926.28 There were many advantages to having them, she said. They were cheaper, the school board didn’t have to look for teachers every year, and they looked after the church as well. They could sing and play music, and they could look after the choir boys. “It was fantastic!” Simone exclaimed. In Mattawa, the Sisters of Charity, often called the “Soeurs Grises,” taught at Ste Anne School. In North Bay, the Sisters of the Assumption taught in French and the Sisters of St Joseph taught in English. St Joseph School in 1935 had three English-speaking teaching sisters and two French-speaking ones. The salary of the teaching sisters, including the principal, was only $600 or $615 per annum. In contrast, the three lay teachers, all of whom had second-class certificates, were paid $810 per year. With eight teachers and both a French and an English section, the school probably had two grades per class. A brick school valued at $60,000 with $3,039 worth of equipment, St Joseph had an average attendance of 224; the average number of students per teacher was twenty-eight.29 Teacher qualifications in 1935 were still poor (Table 6.4). In urban public schools 45 percent of teachers held first-class certificates. In

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urban separate schools only 9 percent of the teachers held first class certificates; 83 percent held second-class certificates. While poor teacher qualifications remained a problem, the situation was far better in urban areas than in the country. Many urban separate schools faced the challenge of teaching in French as well as English within the same school. In Mattawa a distinction was made between those who were French and those who were English even though almost everyone was bilingual. The schoolyard was divided by sex, not language. French and English students were allowed to mix and to speak the language of their choice in the schoolyard, but in class, the French students had to speak French. Carmen (Therrien) Backer, who was of mixed origin, attended the French classes. She recalled that school started with prayers in the morning, then catechism, followed by French spelling and grammar, and math or arithmetic. The afternoon was devoted to English spelling and grammar, or to history and geography, on alternating days. English-speaking lay teachers came to teach English. The principal, Mr McElligott, would sometimes go into the English class for half an hour. The rest of their subjects were taken in French except for geography. In “histoire canadienne” they studied all the explorers.30 In Bonfield, where the English population was very small, French prevailed. The courses were all the regular academic subjects plus catechism and singing, according to Simone (Boulanger) Martin. Some students had English names but in Bonfield at that time the English learned French when they were very young. All the students were taught together and there was no special status for the English at that time. It was as though they were French.31At St Rita’s school in North Bay, French, English, and Italian students mixed, at least in the schoolyard. Shirley (Nicholson) Brazeau described it as follows: s [shirley]: It was a half English, half French. It was a pretty old school. I think it was built in 1929. I think I was there in 1932. We had four rooms for the English and four rooms for the French. We all got along. We had girls’ playground one side, boys’ on the other. There was a hockey rink on the boys’ side in the winter. And we were allowed to use it after school. I still have many friends from school. f [françoise]: Did the French and English mix in the schoolyard? s: Very much. f: Were there a fair number of Italian children?

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s: In one class I remember it was always half and half. It was half Irish and Italian. In the English. It was very close to where the most Italians lived. I remember going to their homes, and their mothers were very good cooks. And they always wanted you to come to be with their daughter. One of their names was Helen, and it was always like a second home. Even at recess it was that close. You know, get a cookie or something.32 St Mary’s was also mixed in terms of language, but at St Vincent de Paul all the students were French, so there was no mixing and they weren’t allowed to speak English. Only a few interviewees remembered a typical day in the classroom. Ellena (O’Hara) Naughton, who went to St Joseph Separate School started school at Easter when she was only five because she was alone at home. She describes a typical day: e [ellena]: Well, first of all being in the separate school we started with prayer. The first lesson was probably catechism. Then we went on to arithmetic and spelling and usually the recess. And of course when we were going to school it was geography and history we would have. Reading of course. That pretty well covered the topics in the elementary school at that time. f: Did you have a break at lunch? e: Oh yes. We used to have an hour and a half. From twelve to one-thirty, cause we always went home, which was just around the corner. I don’t think any of the other pupils took their lunch, now that I think back, because everyone lived around there. Other interviewees remembered special events more than the regular classes. The principal of King George Public School was Tom Cummings when Isabel (McDonald) Mauro attended. “He taught grade eight when I was there. He always tried to make things interesting when I was there, in the classroom. There were maps all well coloured on the boards. Coloured maps and of course you had the art class where you had a traveling art teacher that would come in, and it was mostly still life. He’d bring a bird or something like that, and that would be your art class.” She also remembers that they played out in the yard, and that “on rainy days you would have to play down in the basement.” Margaret (Paterson) Richardson, who went to King Edward Public School on McIntyre, remembered “making little

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flower baskets for the spring.” At King Edward, she had Edith Fulcher as a teacher: “[She] was one of my great teachers. She was the one that took me skiing, taught me skiing.” She took Margaret to the ski club and they skied together. She also remembers that Ms Thomas, “a beautiful redhead,” would invite her “to her home for hot chocolate on Friday nights. I was an honour student, believe it or not, in public school, this is probably why I got all this attention.” She remembers playing softball in the schoolyard full of dust. “We always had a softball team.” And in the winter, “I could always remember my brother carrying me to school on piggyback because of the snow on the streets. They weren’t ploughed like they are today.” Margaret “loved school.” The strap was still in use at this time, but only a few interviewees remembered its use. In Bonfield when Sister Ste Claude was the principal, if she looked at you and pointed with her long fingers, you behaved, Simone (Boulanger) Martin recalled. She didn’t actually hit the students but in the classrooms, the teachers used the threat of having to go see the principal to maintain discipline. While parents generally supported the teachers’ use of discipline, one significant exception stands out. Albert Costante, like the many other Italian children in the east end of town near the t&no railway shops, attended St Joseph. During Lent children were expected to walk all the way to the cathedral to go to church in the morning before school. The nuns knew who attended mass and the students who had not attended got the strap when they got to school. Quite a few parents found this unacceptable. They decided to leave that church and school and send their children to Brookes Street School instead. Albert was among them. While this appears to be a startling departure from the usual deference to the authority of teachers, Italian first-generation parents in Toronto were equally intolerant of “[a] child’s ‘maltreatment’ because of discrimination, ‘excessive’ punishment, or ‘unnecessary abuse’ in class.”33

serving the state, the community, and the family As well as serving students, schools served both the state and the community. Community divisions along both linguistic and religious lines were reflected in the classroom. Based on historical precedents established before Confederation, Catholics were allowed a publicly

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supported “separate” school system up to grade eight. Language differences were accommodated more informally, at the level of each school. As we have seen, several urban schools in our study area separated children out according to their language. The children themselves, however, did not always appreciate policies that divided them from their friends. In their neighbourhoods, friendships easily crossed the language divide and they did not have the commitment to the creation of identity and the maintenance of community boundaries that their parents did. Stacey Zembrzycki formed a similar impression when preparing a thesis on the development of the Ukrainian community in Sudbury in the same period.34 Celebrations and activities in the schools could be used to reinforce the cultural norms of the parents or to serve the state or the larger community by favouring assimilation. Although most interviewees did not remember that they had time away from academic work during the school year, newspaper sources indicate that a number of holidays were in fact celebrated at school. At Eau Claire a picnic was held for the children of S.S. No. 1 School on June 23 at Pottawa Hill.35 he circus was not a sanctioned school excursion, but it did prompt about half the students in North Bay to stay away from school in June 1925.36 As in the nursery rhyme, school children threatened to run away if not given a holiday for Queen Victoria’s birthday. Having won, they were given the day “unhampered by classroom duties,” to enjoy several baseball games that took place over the day and fireworks at night.37 At St Vincent de Paul School, the French Canadian children celebrated Dollard Day as an alternative to Victoria Day on 24 May, the Immaculate Conception on 8 December, and Easter.38 In some schools they were allowed to bring toffee from home or even to make it at school to celebrate la Sainte Catherine on 25 November. The only other holidays other than Christmas which received special attention in most schools were Halloween and Valentine’s Day. Halloween was not part of the traditional cultures of either French Canadians or European immigrants. Italian and Greek interviewees, however, recalled participating in both holidays. At St Vincent de Paul School, Halloween was minimized in favour of the more traditional All Saints Day (La Toussaint) and La Fête des Morts on and 2 November instead.39 Community groups in country schools sometimes organized costume parties and dances to provide an alternative to tricks.40 On Valentine’s Day, students were allowed to make and exchange Valentines. Schools clearly played an important role either in teaching

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the students their own traditions or in assimilating them into the cultural mainstream. That French Canadians used schools to help maintain their culture is particularly noticeable. Schools were also instruments of the state. Regulation of the curriculum and teacher qualification served state purposes. Schools were also one of the few avenues for the state to access large numbers of children and through them, their parents. This was particularly important for public health programs. Because schools brought together large numbers of children, care had to be taken to prevent the spread of contagious diseases among the students and from the children to the whole community. Public health officials had to close schools when outbreaks of certain diseases were serious enough, as for example during the outbreak of whooping cough in Eau Claire S.S. No. 4 in 1935. In the first half of the twentieth century, some of the more morbid childhood diseases were still prevalent, but vaccination programs helped bring many under control. Such programs required the cooperation of schools, and both the public and the separate system had vaccination programs in the area studied. Rural schools did not get the same level of attention as urban schools but Red Cross clinics visited these schools occasionally. The Red Cross Society of North Bay, for example, held a children’s clinic in the school house at Bonfield in 1925, the first of two free clinics in the district. Seventy- five patients were seen by doctors, 150 teeth were extracted, and ten treatments given. Proper nutrition was required for success at school and in North Bay, the public health nurse recommended that the Worthington Street School be used for a trial school program of milk supplement for undernourished children in 1925.41 In the early twentieth century the Ontario government promoted the study of agriculture in schools. The annual fall fair was an important aspect of this program. In 1925 this was still a major event in the region’s school year and the Nugget reported that 3,771 attended the Fall Fair in North Bay for Children’s Day on 18 September. Most schools in the district took a half-day holiday. The North Bay Motor League helped bring visitors from the country to the fair. Fair attendance for the corresponding day in 1924 was 5,057. Individual schools also held their own fall fairs. Eau Claire held its third annual school fair in 1925, at which the children presented exhibits of poultry, vegetables, and grain. S.S. Nos. 1, 2, and 4 participated and the fair was well attended. Ferris held one as well. The 1935 school fair at Mattawa had participants from S.S. No. 2, Papineau, S.S. No. 2a, Papineau, and

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S.S. No. 1, Cameron, as well as Mattawa schools. In a similar vein, the “Better Livestock Train” featured lectures for children in the area, highlighting the latest technology in agriculture and transportation, in an effort to educate children on the need for successful agriculture and its relationship to economics.42 In rural areas the school house, as the only publicly owned building in the community, often doubled as a community centre. Local news in the Nugget highlighted many activities held at the schools, from a euchre and box social in Grand Désert to a Halloween dance in Widdifield.43 In both rural and urban schools, the Christmas concert was a highlight of the year. These performances gave children a chance to display their talents, but the teacher undoubtedly had to work hard to involve all the students, not just the most gifted. Skits, pageants, plays, and recitals were all featured. Whatever form it took, this event was an important community celebration, and parents as well as the children saw it as their due. A teacher who had refused to organize such an event in a rural school would not have been rehired.44 Most took on the task with enthusiasm, to the great appreciation of the children and the parents. These events were announced in the local section of the paper and were well attended. Some performances were more ambitious than others. The children and teachers of the Mattawa Public School, for instance, presented a two-hour Christmas play entitled The Red Lamp in 1925. The separate schools worked together on a Christmas concert including a play, musical numbers, and recitations, to be presented at St Mary’s Hall in 1935. At St Vincent de Paul, the school children dressed as angels and shepherds gathering about the manger made an impressive display at the midnight services.45 Shirley (Nicholson) Brazeau especially remembered the year her school participated in a Christmas pageant nativity scene for the Christmas Eve service at the cathedral, perhaps partly because she had a photograph to aid her memory and to enhance the significance of this event.46 In 1935 at least, several of these concerts incorporated a visit from Santa Claus and presents for the children. In Ferris, for example, about sixty children presented songs and recitations and each of them received a present from Santa. The teacher also received a present from the students. At Eau Claire S.S. No. 4a, the Christmas program was held in the afternoon and every student got candy, popcorn, and apples. At the public school in Mattawa, the students gave the teacher

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School children in a nativity scene at St Mary’s Cathedral, ca. 1931. ccoh, flp, McIsaac.

two gifts and every student got a gift from Santa and a gift from another student. In another case: “The visit was a surprise and the children shrieked with delight when the old gentleman put in his appearance. When he revealed that he remembered their addresses and the number of brothers and sisters many had, their enthusiasm was unbounded.” Santa arrived by train in 1935 with plans to throw out a hundred pounds of candy to the children, but he changed his mind and decided to distribute it at the schools instead. Santa was not as welcome at the separate schools and does not seem to have appeared there.47 At St Vincent de Paul School, Father Chapleau’s birthday on the nineteenth of March was the occasion for a school concert that was even more important than the Christmas concert. According to Rita Landriault, the Christmas concert depended on the individual teacher, but there was always a “fête de Monsieur le Curé.” Recitations and plays were presented in the basement of the church where they had a stage, for an audience of parents. Rita remembered participating in a gymnastic drill display.48 Catholic school children were also featured at other parish events. The arrival of the new bishop in 1935, for example, was an occasion for celebration. The older students of St Joseph’s Academy were

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chosen to prepare a special program in his honour but there was also an address from the separate school students at St Mary’s Cathedral.49 In 1925 some thousand people attended the annual Corpus Christi procession in Mattawa on June 15. Homes along the route were decorated with flags and bunting. Young people from the continuation and separate schools, as well as First Communion students, joined the various sodalities and parish groups in the procession.50 The school children had their practices for the church choir at school.51 These activities helped initiate them into parish life and gave them a visible presence within the community. Active involvement while in school did not necessarily translate to involvement as adults, but it likely increased the chances of it. These close ties between church and school were further enhanced when a teaching religious order ran the school, as was the case in urban separate schools. Generally, interviewees did not remember participating in sports activities prior to high school but in fact the schools in the cities did have some sports activities organized for the elementary students. In 1935 the Nugget reported that over 250 kids were playing hockey, including forty from the separate schools. Annual field days were the rule. The separate school softball finals and field day was held at St Mary’s in 1935 with the Knights of Columbus and the cwl helping to organize the day. The students got a half-holiday to attend. A “Young Folks’ Day” with races and games for the children of both the public

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and separate schools, with no charge for admission, was put on by the Scollard Hall Guild and held at North Bay College. Prizes were awarded and pop, ice cream, candy, and doughnuts were sold. City leagues and activities such as these gave students an opportunity to mix with students from other schools and represent their school publicly.52 Going to school was an almost universal experience in Northeastern Ontario in the early twentieth century. Schools were founded and teachers recruited for even as few as five children. In rural areas poor roads and transportation required that schools be located no more than a few miles from the children they served. Whether public or separate, French or English, rural one-room schools had much in common, and provided a basic education with few resources. These students, however, simply had no opportunity to go on to high school. Most did not even aspire to it. Urban schools were larger and had more equipment, but they too faced difficult conditions during the Depression. Students attending school in North Bay and Mattawa had the best chance of going on to high school, and in 1925 the Nugget reported that some 345 students in North Bay and thirty in Mattawa were expected to write high school and collegiate institute entrance exams.53 The alternative was staying home, especially for girls, or entering the workforce, especially for boys. Jobs in lumbering and farming made it easy for boys to begin working at the school-leaving age or even earlier. Overtly or not, schools also played a crucial role in the area of culture. Catholic schools worked with parishes to give students a religious as well as a secular education; students were prepared for their first communion and confirmation at school. French Canadian Catholic schools integrated a cultural component as well. French Canadians’ concern to keep their language meant that they also tried to impose boundaries between children who associated freely in their neighbourhoods so that they would not mix at school. This was particularly true in North Bay and less so in Mattawa. Because most of them attended different schools, Catholics and Protestants did not mix very much at the primary school level. Immigrant families, often Catholics, were integrated into the English-language community with their full co-operation. The few non-Christians also accepted participation in the mainstream culture.54 For the large number of Canadians of British Protestant heritage who attended public schools,

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especially in North Bay, school life was culturally comfortable. As a result, interviewees remembered school primarily for its academic role. Primary schools therefore provided cultural support only for three major communities: English Catholics, French Catholics, and English Protestants.

mmunity onsibility”Life in Northeastern Ontario

7 “Delayed Responsibility”: High School and Normal School

access to high school Cynthia Comacchio, in her study of adolescence in Canada, emphasizes that in the 1920s more Canadian adolescents entered high school and stayed there longer than ever before.1 National figures for 1931, however, show that only 25 percent of rural young people 15 to 19 years old and 41 percent of urban children in the same age category were in school. This age group approximates the age of students in high school in Ontario, who would be from 14 to 18 years old in the equivalent of Grades 9 through 13. In Ontario, a slightly higher proportion of children of that age group were in school than in Canada as a whole (Table 7.1). Effective 1 January 1921, the age for compulsory school attendance had been raised from fourteen to sixteen years old, and fees for public secondary schools were also abolished that year. Along with other revisions to the high school program these factors helped to increase high school attendance starting in the 1920s.2 Going to school beyond the primary grades, then, was still far from a universal experience. Not everyone saw a high school education as a necessity, and even those who wanted to attend met with challenges. The first hurdle they faced was sitting for and passing the required entrance exam. For Ontario as a whole, in the first half of the 1920s, only 69 percent of the students in Grade 8 or equivalent took the exam. Of these, 79 percent passed the exam and 55 percent went on to the first year of high school. By the end of the decade that number had risen to 68 percent.3 It is important to note that the exam had to be written in English and that many students in this area would not have attained a level of English sufficient for passing the exam.

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Table 7.1: Students (%) in school by age group, Canada and Ontario, 1931

Canada: Rural Canada: Urban Ontario: Rural Ontario: Urban

5–24

5–9

10–14

15–19

20–24

49.98 53.60 51.62 56.28

66.27 71.08 69.87 76.77

90.76 95.99 93.80 98.08

25.39 41.17 28.35 45.50

1.38 3.73 2.38 4.39

source: Census of Canada, 1931, vol. 3, Table 37.

The second challenge was cost and opportunity to attend. These factors varied depending on where the student lived and the kind of high school their family expected them to attend. In our study area, only North Bay and Mattawa had high schools, and these were all English. Of the 439 students who attended the public high school in North Bay in 1931, boys outnumbered girls (60%) and fewer than 10 percent of the students came from outside the high school district (Table 7.2). St Joseph’s Academy opened in 1920 in the renovated Grand Union Hotel with thirty students. By 1938 it took in about two hundred day students and boarders. It provided both commercial and matriculation courses primarily to English Catholic girls from a wide area. North Bay College, or Scollard Hall, which opened in 1931, offered collegiate, commercial, and preparatory courses on a twentyacre campus “ideal for athletics” primarily to English Catholic boys, including boarders.4 Tuition at the time was $50, and room and board $250.5 For French-speaking Catholics who wanted to educate their children in a French Catholic environment, there were no local options. Some boys were sent to the Collège Sacré Coeur in Sudbury.6 Founded by Father Hormidas Caron, s.j. as a classical college on the Quebec model, it offered the equivalent of a high school and university education to boys. Girls could be sent to the Académie Ste Marie in Haileybury, which opened in 1928. Run by the Sisters of the Assumption (sasv), the school offered a bilingual education from a French base, comprising primary level courses, high school matriculation, and a commercial course. After completing the second year of middle school (equivalent to Grade 13), students could enter the French normal school in Ottawa to obtain a second-class teaching certificate. After completing upper school, they were eligible to attend any normal school for a first-class teaching certificate or go on to university. After completing the lower school course (equivalent to Grade 10), students could go on to commercial courses. The

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Table 7.2: Gender and origin of students attending North Bay Composite High School in 1930–31 Gender and Origin of Students Boys Girls High School District from County from other Counties All Students

Lower School

Middle School

Upper School

Total Students

147 103 234 11 5 250

85 56 130 4 7 141

32 16 37 5 6 48

264 175 401 20 18 439

source: ao, rg 2 – 105 vol. 102, High School Inspectors’ Annual Reports – hp (1930–31).

Académie’s program was designed to teach the subjects students required, but its more important aim was to form them in the practices of Christian virtue, the necessary foundation to all good education, according to their prospectus.7 Board and tuition cost $150 to $180 a year and a $3 entry fee and supplementary fees for music, art, stenography and typing courses ($2–$4) were also charged. If students were sent elsewhere, it was usually because of family connections. The cost of sending students to a Catholic high school was a barrier to attendance, especially when boarding had to be paid for as well. The separate school system, which was funded through taxation, did not extend to high schools. Continuation classes, the equivalent of Grades 9 and 10, however, were funded when offered by separate elementary schools. All attempts by Catholics to extend separate school privileges into the high school system met with adamant refusal. The guarantees provided by the British North America Act applied only to elementary schools, according to the opponents of the separate school system. A judicial challenge by Roman Catholics was defeated in 1928 with the Privy Council decision in the Tiny Township case.8 Catholics not only had to pay fees to send children to their own unfunded high schools, but they also had to pay taxes in support of their local public high school as well. Even for day students, whose fees were minimal, extra costs were involved, as books had to be paid for. Despite the fact that this funding formula limited high school attendance to those who could afford it, the Catholic clergy remained opposed to Catholics attending public high schools, which they saw as places of danger for them. In Hearst, for example, where the situation for French Canadians was similar, the clergy first opposed the opening of the high school and then did nothing to encourage attendance.9

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Students who made it to high school, still faced the challenge of staying in school. Throughout the 1920s only about a third of students in Ontario progressed from their first to their fourth year of high school. The retention was much greater in the first three years, with about two-thirds of students moving from one year to the next.10 In the 1930s, when few jobs were available for teenagers, high school attendance increased dramatically. By the end of the decade, 93 percent of students leaving elementary school sat for the entrance exam, and first-year high school then represented 72 percent of the Senior Fourth, or Grade 8 enrolment as it was called after 1937.11 The transition to high school was made easier in 1937 when Grade 9 was standardized for all students and streaming delayed to Grade 10. The new curriculum introduced that year eliminated Latin and introduced general shop and home economics courses. Retention rates were also higher than in the previous decade, climbing to around 70 percent in the first two years, 67 percent in the third, and 37 percent in the fourth year.12 Beyond high school, the only local opportunity for higher education was the North Bay Normal School, which had opened in 1909 with the specific mandate of training teachers in the North for the North. Its location gave a definite advantage to students from North Bay, since they did not have to board to attend. After the first few years the government agreed to pay one dollar a day for expenses as an incentive for students to become teachers for the North, with the proviso that they had to teach in the North for at least two years after finishing. From 1920 to 1925 attendance was on the rise, peaking at 330 in 1925 (Figure 7.1). In the remaining interwar years it fluctuated considerably, reaching its lowest level since 1914 in 1937. Most normal school students were from other places, and only a few were from North Bay each year. In the two decades from 1920 to 1939, 3,571 students attended the Normal School; of these 203 (5.7%) were from North Bay and thirty came from the surrounding countryside of our study area.13 For a university education, students had no choice but to go elsewhere. The number of students from North Bay each year who went to university is not known, but it must have been considerable since, in 1935 alone, thirty-one students were listed in the personal column of the local paper as coming home for the summer or for Christmas vacations. These included the daughters of Mr and Mrs Harry W. Angus and Mr and Mrs George W. Lee, both prominent English

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450 400

Normal School Model School

350 300 250 200 150 100 50 0 1910

1920

1930

1940

1950

* From 1909 to 1918 a Model School was attached to the Normal School. Attendance figures are given separately. source: nbns, 1960, 14.

Figure 7.1 Attendance at North Bay Normal School, 1909–59.

families in North Bay. Most of those listed attended Queen’s and the University of Toronto and were of British background, but Frank Demarco from the Italian community, who was attending the University of Detroit for Engineering, and Leo Boyer, probably from the French Canadian community, who was attending the University of Ottawa, were also mentioned.14

students’ high school experiences We know little about the students’ experience of high school from their own perspective.15 Oral histories provide an important perspective on this question as they illustrate the variety of experiences, in contrast to school year books, which tend to show the mainstream experience. Herb Brown graduated from nbc&vs in 1935. He had followed the commercial course but took pretty well the same subjects as the matriculation students. He also took bookkeeping, rapid calculation, business law, and economics, and graduated at the top of the

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class. Like most former students interviewed, he enjoyed high school and didn’t have a lot to say about the experience. Lois Douglas took the academic program and was involved in everything: school plays, oratorical contests, the Literary Society as president, and basketball. She loved high school, and when she finished Grade 12 in North Bay, she went to Toronto to take a business course. When Ruth (Coombes) Taylor went to high school from Ferris it meant that she met a lot of new girls. She started chumming with them, and because they all skied, she started skiing as well. They would also go to the movies together. The family of one of her friends had a cottage on Lakeshore Drive where they all had fun swimming. They also went to dances at the school, for which the music was likely from records. She spent six years in high school, finishing the academic program and then the commercial, after which she started working. Her account of her high school experience, like that of others, focused more on the social than on the academic aspects. This is not surprising since, in many ways, “going to high school” was a complete cultural and social experience, not just an academic one. For the Italian students, at least in the early days, the experience of going to the local high school was somewhat more daunting. They were not automatically accepted, as interviewee Josephine Priolo explained: They were trying to accept, but it wasn’t easy. It wasn’t something like, they just took you in. You had to work on it, eh. You had to prove yourself and so on. They weren’t used to seeing so many Italians around. They just figured we didn’t meet up to their standards. It was difficult. Like I said, at high school it was better than at public school, cause there were more Italians. The high schools, they were bigger. They came from all over the city, but you always found a few who didn’t like you. Even now [laugh].16 Although extra-curricular activities might have helped Italian students fit in and get to know more students, their parents were not used to that and did not agree to their getting involved. “You went to school and you went home and that’s it.”17 Albert Costante didn’t participate in sports or other activities either. “I didn’t have a bicycle to go home. I had to walk home. I got out at four o’clock, and sometimes I had a detention, your mother and father would be wondering, ‘Where the heck is he?’ You wouldn’t get home until five o’clock.”18

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St Joseph’s Academy and later St Joseph’s College19 had both day students and boarders; the day students were from North Bay and primarily of Irish Catholic descent. A few Italian and French girls attended as well. The resident students came from points further west and north along the cpr or the t&no railway. Only one or two were from North Bay.20 Mary (Underwood) Leppan was only ten when she started. She was smaller than the other children but it was not particularly unusual for someone her age to be in high school. In the fall of 1939, she did a special commercial course for one year. Ellena (O’Hara) Naughton attended as a matter of course – it was the Catholic high school. Her brothers went to North Bay College except for the oldest, who went to St Michael’s College in Toronto before North Bay College was built. With their Irish Canadian background Mary and Ellena fit in with no difficulty. Perhaps this is why neither one of them remembered the school in much detail. It was not quite so easy for Loretta Cundari when she attended. She took Grade 9 and junior and senior commercial courses there. She liked the school but the fee was $5 a month and her working-class Italian parents had trouble paying this, so she helped out at the school for her fee instead. Although wearing a uniform meant that she didn’t have to worry about dressing differently from other girls, when one of the nuns told her she should replace hers because her elbow was going through, she had to mend it rather than buy a new one. She was also self-conscious about eating in front of the other girls. My mother used to bake the bread, and sometimes we didn’t have a nice sharp knife so we could cut the bread thin, so it was a little thick. So us Italian girls – there was about ten of us – we used to sit under the grotto and eat our lunch there so the English people wouldn’t see what we were eating. Because, you know, some of the girls had some greens in there, you know dandelions or something, and you take a bite and the whole thing fell and they’d go “What do you guys eat?” you know. We knew what we were ... we kind of stuck together.21 Marie Rivet started high school at St Joseph’s Academy and continued there for a year, but halfway into her second year the Sisters of Assumption wanted her to go to Haileybury to the Académie Ste Marie instead. At the time, there was a need for teachers with French as a language of instruction, and because of the need, the Ontario

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government paid the fees. So she went. The teachers, some of whom were nuns from Quebec, others from Massachusetts, were excellent, she recalled, but she didn’t like the regimented life of a convent school. They started their day at 5:30 in the morning and were occupied the whole day. She finished half of her Grade 13 there, attended the French program at the normal school in Ottawa, and then finished her Grade 13 in the summer. She went on to teach for about seven years before going to work for Simpson’s in Toronto and later Montreal, where she had a highly successful career. Although she didn’t resent having been made to attend the Académie Sainte Marie, it is clear that the decision to attend had not been her own. Her personal wishes were sacrificed to the greater good of French education in Ontario. The advice of the parish priest or the nuns in a French Canadian parish like St Vincent de Paul was not easily cast aside. The nuns, being familiar with the aptitudes of their students from when they taught them in elementary school, would have pushed certain students in this direction. The positive outcome of this situation is that Marie’s perfect bilingualism was a great asset once she took a different career path.22 Students reacted differently to this kind of education. For Lucille Regimbal, the four years at the Académie were particularly important because that is where she met and established a friendship with Dr Séguin (Sister Jeanne d’Arc), her teacher in Grade 10. Although extremely demanding, Dr Séguin had a life-long influence on Lucille and became a close friend. She thrived on the high expectations and went on to be an influential teacher and educator herself. The strict routine and close supervision of boarding school made it difficult for the girls to engage in unsanctioned activities. The girls at St Joseph’s Academy, for example, had very little free time. They rose at 6 a.m. and attended chapel before going for breakfast in silence. They returned to their rooms to clean up and went for a walk before classes. After being in class until 4 p.m. they were allowed to take another walk, but they didn’t have enough time to reach downtown before heading back for supper. They had study hall after supper until it was time to go to bed. The only free time was Saturday afternoon. They could go to town and if they had money they usually went to a restaurant, but they had to be back by 4 p.m. so they didn’t have much time for anything else. Attending different parishes in town for Sunday mass also gave them a bit of an outing. They particularly enjoyed going to Demarco’s, a popular confectionery located across

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from St Mary’s and the public high school.23 According to Enid (Riopelle) Ducharme, some of the French girls were not there willingly, but had been sent by their parents to learn English. Because they disliked being there, they were difficult to get along with and one even ran away. It is also possible that some girls were sent because their parents had trouble controlling them. The notion of female delinquency that emerged in the early twentieth century was not based so much on the actual actions of girls as on the fact that they did not conform to their parents’ expectations for them.24 Because there were no French high schools for boys in North Bay, some parents sent their boys to Sudbury. Hermès Laroque attended Sacré Coeur for a full nine years, from the age of 14 to 22. He obtained his baccalaureat from Laval University, as was the practice at the time. When asked how this affected his ties to his family and his social ties in North Bay, he admitted: The fact that I was gone like that, ten months of the year, it distanced me from my family a little. I was not able to get to know my brothers and sisters as much as if I had stayed home during all those years. We did not succeed in getting to appreciate each other better as a result. As we grew older, as we organized family gettogethers, we got to know each other a little. Now, as we are all retired, we make it a point to get together at least once a year, either in Ottawa or here, to talk, gossip and enjoy ourselves.25 When he and other boarders came home at Christmas, he remembered, they used to get involved in sports, and a number of them played hockey together. During the summer vacation, they had to find jobs and they worked. He did develop a circle of friends while at college, but those he remembered best were not from North Bay. He still visited with one who lived in Quebec and saw one who lives in North Bay quite often. The husbands of the women in the Dames de Ste Anne, for example, would get to know each other a bit, as a result of going to numerous events together, but “not more than that.”26 The impact on French Canadian families in the North of sending their children away to boarding school for long periods of time has not been studied. They were being sent to these schools to maintain and reinforce their culture, not to destroy it, as was the case for Aboriginal children in residential schools. Nonetheless, they were being removed from their familiar environment, their neighbour-

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hood, and their family setting to the regimented environment of the boarding school. Although some did thrive, making friends and establishing a broader social network, others were alienated from their families and their home community and may never have been able to regain the place in it that they might have had if they had stayed and gone to high school with their neighbours and friends. This subject is one that deserves more study. The students at the North Bay Normal School who came from out of town lived in boarding houses near the school. These residences had strict rules. The yearbooks and the local paper give us a good idea of the activities they participated in but first-person accounts for the period before 1939 are rare. The reminiscences of Gladys (Callings) Went, class of 1919–20, are therefore of particular interest. That year there were 104 girls to only seventeen boys, some of them freshly discharged from the military. One of her most vivid memories was of “The Garment” they all had to make according to the same pattern, regardless of their own size, for the domestic science class, and of the principal roaring that the “Casserole” (instead of “Camisole”) had to be in by Tuesday morning. Agriculture was taught that year and the class successfully incubated numerous chickens. She also remembered – not so fondly – the long climb up the stairs to the auditorium on the third floor. The landladies of the time would report infringements of the “rules” to the office. The students only taught “one lesson a week and one half-day continuously” near the end of term at the time, and she wondered how they ever stepped into a class of forty or even fifty students. After writing exams in June, Gladys had to wait until August to hear if she had successfully obtained her second-class certificate. When she arrived at her first school, she was told she couldn’t possibly be a teacher, because she looked only fourteen. “But for better or worse, I was launched.”27

extra-curricular activities The modern high school was as much about the extra-curriculum as about classroom hours. These were meant to instill middle-class values and ideals as well as provide supervised recreational activities. Looking at the high school experience in a Canadian context, Comacchio concludes: “The development of the modern high school signified a historic modification of the very structures and meanings of adolescence.”28 Both high school and normal school students had

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many opportunities for extra-curricular activities. Sports were a big feature but students could also join literary societies, orchestras, drama groups, debating competitions, and the yearbook staff. Each school had its own sequence of annual events such as Christmas formals, commencement exercises, and annual plays that shaped school culture and gave a sense of continuity from year to year. The student yearbooks reported on these important annual events. At nbc&vs the commencement exercises were a highlight of the year. The students always prepared a full evening of activities to honour the previous year’s graduates, who returned to receive their diplomas. In some years, however, they felt that attendance was lower than hoped. Nevertheless, parents turned out in good numbers to enjoy their presentations.29 The commencement held on 16 December 1932 included speeches, the presentation of prizes and awards, the granting of diplomas and medals to seventy-four graduates of the collegiate and commercial departments, an address by the school valedictorian, programs by dancers and the gym team, and music by the school orchestra, after which dancing and refreshments were enjoyed by the senior students and graduates. Another important school tradition was the annual Halloween dance referred to as the “Hullabaloo.” In 1932 it was held on 5 November, a date that led students to prepare a gunpowder skit – which went off with a “bang.” The music was supplied by Bert Lehman’s Orchestra. Teachers and students attended in costume. The meal was an “epicurean delight” and the evening an unqualified success. The Christmas Dance that year also featured Bert Lehman’s Orchestra. The vocational gymnasium was decorated with holly and coloured paper, and novelty dances continued until the wee hours of the morning. “Lunch” was served by the senior girls on the third floor of the Vocational Department. The annual school play, Admirable Crichton, had not been performed yet when the yearbook went to press but the expectation was that it would be up to the usual standards. Another highlight of the year was Pollyanna, performed by the Junior and Senior Literary Societies on 25 November 1932.30 As for extra-curricular sports, one yearbook reporter indicated that the rugby season extended from September to early November, the great hockey season from December to March, and Cadet training from May to June. “Girls’ Sport” consisted only of basketball. In 1933 inter-school sports included basketball and badminton. Students also participated in a provincial athletic meet and enjoyed a boxing show.

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The annual field day, usually held in the fall, was cancelled.31 Despite the bias in favour of boy’s sports evident in the reporting, girls as well as boys attending high school had many opportunities to get involved in sports (see also chapter 9). The Northern Star for 1937 records the special events that took place at the girls’ high school, St Joseph’s Academy. Many of their events were based on the religious calendar of feast days rather than the secular calendar, but the celebrations and activities were similar except for those that related directly to the fact that this was a boarding school. The Feast of the “Little Flower,” celebrated early in October, gave boarders a chance to put aside their uniforms and wear “frilly frocks in pretty colours.” On 31 October the boarding students held a masquerade dance in the recreation hall, and in early November they held an annual retreat at the Academy. In November a “Sodality Reception” was held for the thirty-three new members who had joined the Sodality of Mary. The Christmas banquet was held on 18 December before the students left for home. In March they debated Scollard Hall and won the Silver Cup. St Joseph’s Day, celebrated on 19 March, was clearly one of the biggest events of the year. Classes ended early and boarders were allowed to get out of uniform. They played bridge for an hour and awarded prizes before going down to the Music Assembly Room, which was splendidly decorated with ferns and spring flowers. As the Northern Echo reported: The Tea-table was dainty in Italian cut-work and tall yellow candles in silver holders, while a centre-piece of daffodils repeated the tone of Spring and harmonized pleasingly with the sparkling silver services. In the glow of the soft lights daintily-frocked Seniors formed a pretty picture as they graciously fulfilled the duties of hostess. A musical programme of Piano, Voice and String selections was provided during the tea-hour by student artists.32 The guest of honour was Father Brunck of North Bay College. Mary’s Day on 8 May was very important for the three hundred girls who belonged to the sodality, and a special mass was held for them. On Graduation Day, 20 May, the school was “gay with Graduation Greetings, scrolls and streamers, while the special Mass for them and the special Benediction at two-thirty were meaningful preludes to the evening function on the classic stage of the Capitol Theatre.” June brought a host of alumnae functions.33 In addition, students also celebrated the

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The graduating class of St Joseph’s Academy, 1939, onstage at the hall at St Mary’s Cathedral. With their full-length white dresses and bouquets they look more like our modern image of the bride than many of the actual brides in this period. They are (L to R) Betty Scanlon, Mary Underwood, Elena O’Hara, Francis O’Grady, Virginia Dwyer, Pat Hogan, and Rita Laviolette. ccoh, flp, Leppan.

Silver Jubilee, heard visiting speakers, and enjoyed film outings to the Capitol Theatre. In all, the year was filled with activities designed to teach students social skills, develop their spirituality, and shape them into active Christian adults. While many of these celebrations and events were steeped in ritual, the commencement exercises clearly were even more so. The graduates, in their long white gowns and carrying flowers, looked a lot like brides. In a period when not all brides could or did wear white, this dress code added to the significance of the event. The graduation ceremonies were clearly a rite-of-passage ritual with the stature of a debutante ball, a social function that did not exist in North Bay at the time. Indeed, the ceremonies were followed by an evening dance.34 North Bay College, being new, took some time to establish its traditions and the pattern of its activities. A fraternity club was founded

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for boarding students only in 1931, but in 1932 it was opened to day students and divided into a Senior and a Junior organization. Seen as a supplement to the English classes, the fraternity gave the students an opportunity to make prepared and impromptu speeches, to act in plays, and to provide other short entertainments. In 1934 they performed several short plays, as well as a three-act play for the public at the Vocational School auditorium.35 An annual Hot Dog Picnic emerged as the finish to the academic year. In 1934 the students put out their first yearbook, starting a tradition that still continues. A choral society, a French club,36 and oratorical contests also gave students the opportunity to develop their talents. The finalists from an intramural oratory contest competed in a public forum.37 A debate competition with St Joseph’s Academy was added in 1937.38 Sports soon emerged as the dominant activity, however, and as teams became more successful, less time was available for other activities. Rugby was played in the fall, followed by hockey – junior, juvenile, and bantam – and track and field in the spring. A strong rivalry with the Collegiate soon developed. Those who did not make the school teams could join the intramural activities. At both the senior and the junior level, two teams competed in hockey, softball, baseball, horseshoes, and ping-pong.39 Intramural teams had the use of the facilities when the other teams were not using them. Yearbook photos indicate that students enjoyed skiing as well, even though it was not a school activity.40 Awards were presented at the year-end commencement banquet. In 1935 the only entertainment was community singing and musical numbers.41 While the yearbooks do not refer to any annual dances as part of the North Bay College tradition, in 1935 the Scollard Hall Guild, an association of North Bay College parents, held a Halloween masquerade dance at the Knights of Columbus Hall, and the cwl held its fifth annual “At Home” dance at North Bay College just before Christmas. These dances seem to have been fundraisers primarily for the parents, but the boys may have attended as well.42 Students at the normal school, dubbed the Normalites, not only participated in extra-curricular activities but also actively reflected on their place in education. In 1920 principal A.C. Casselman asserted that they developed “individuality and initiative.”43 A certain H.E.R. also expanded on the value of athletics supervised by a teacher. They were “undoubtedly the best form of exercise,” better than calisthenics and other forms because they were more interesting and varied. Even

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more important was their moral value: “The teacher has no finer opportunity for education in those moral attributes – honesty, fair play, respect for the rights of others, co-operation.” They also trained students in “making quick decisions,” the opposite of what happened in the classroom, but an ability valued by businessmen. Finally, H.E.R. continued, school athletics instilled loyalty and patriotism, values of significance in a country still reeling from the losses of the Great War.44 The Normalites learned the value of athletics primarily through practice. The girls’ basketball season began with a challenge from the Collegiate. They fielded two teams for the town league, the “Abnormals” and the “Wee” x–l’s, and competed for the Interscholastic Shield for Northern Ontario. The girls also played tennis, volleyball, and baseball. The baseball team issued a challenge but was unable to get a competitive game. To end the season on a high note, they went instead to Noel’s and had their picture taken! With such practical training, one yearbook writer concluded, “every graduate of the North Bay Normal should prove well fitted to handle this phase of school work which is being stressed more each year.”45 There were only seventeen young men at the school in 1920, of whom eight were veterans. They nonetheless formed an athletic society and organized teams for shooting, hockey, and baseball. The rink they played on was one that they flooded themselves in the garden next to the school. Their baseball diamond was in the city park on First and Ferguson. When it was taken over by the circus, they turned to tennis. They played hockey and baseball in the town league, with many games against their prime rivals, the Collegiate.46 Debating was also considered a useful skill for students especially for teachers in training. As in sports, debating competitions had more flavour if they could be used to defend a school’s honour against another school. “Every year there is so much competition between the Normal and the Collegiate for first place as each institution claims to be superior to the other. This year between the two schools debates were arranged into which the students entered heartily.” Two heated debates were held, one in February and one in March. There was not enough time for a third, so they reportedly had to be content with one win each.47 Other events included a very successful Halloween party that opened with the whole school singing the popular sentimental song “In the Gloaming” and highlighted the Boy’s Jazz Band. They had

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recitations, musical numbers, games, a lunch with pumpkin pie, and dancing. The evening ended at 12:30 a.m. with the singing of the National Anthem. On 30 January the Dramatic Club entertained with two short plays, and St Patrick’s day was marked by a special program followed by dancing.48 Despite the annual turnover of students, school traditions were clearly firmly established and well maintained. The various schools in North Bay, then, not only had similar events but went out of their way to compete with each other. The Normal School, although it specialized in teacher education, was teaching students the same age as the senior high school students. The high schools were therefore their natural competitors whether it came to sports or debating. Their competition between the schools meant that there was some contact between the students from the different schools and backgrounds. This mixing sometimes led to romance across community boundaries. Irene Pappas, working in a restaurant, saw many couples who were in love but never married; they would later marry someone from their own religion.

schools, teachers, and courses As the number of Ontario high schools grew in the 1920s, vocational programs were added to the curriculum so that students not intending to go on to university could stay in school and receive technical or commercial training. By 1928 this transformation had been so effective that one-quarter of Ontario high school students were enrolled in vocational programs.49 In smaller centres these vocational courses were integrated into existing high schools so that students could take core classes together and separate out for electives only.50 The majority of students continued to follow the matriculation stream, however, even though only a small percentage of them would in fact continue on to normal school or university. The academic curriculum remained very conservative, with an emphasis on mathematics and science, languages, English, and history.51 In our study area, North Bay Collegiate was the only high school in the public system in 1925. By then it had grown from the small sixroomed building built on the Klock Avenue and Jane Street site in 1902 into a large composite high school boasting “fifteen class rooms, principal’s office, teachers’ rest rooms, Assembly Hall with a seating capacity of 450, a gymnasium, and a Library and Board room combined.”52 Fifteen teachers, each with their own subject area, worked

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The North Bay Collegiate Institute ca. 1915. For many years this was the only high school in North Bay and was therefore attended by students from all backgrounds. ccoh, Farmer Collection.

under the direction of the principal, Frank Wallace (Table 7.3). Because each teacher had a specialty, the students moved from teacher to teacher. This rotation system, which required students to have their own lockers to keep extra books and personal effects in, was first introduced in 1928.53 At the time some commercial courses were offered, but the emphasis was on the academic subjects and university entrance qualifications. In 1930 and 1931, more commercial courses and a wide range of vocational subjects were added, and the high school was renamed North Bay Collegiate Institute and Vocational School (nbc&vs). Seven hundred and fifty students now attended. The staff consisted of a principal and vice-principal, twenty-six teachers, and two secretaries. Two teachers with a commercial specialty were added in 1930. More vocational subjects were brought on board in 1931 with the addition of six new teachers, four of them exclusively for the vocational side. Between 1932 and 1935 other vocational specialists were added (Table 7.4). In 1935 the vocational section had a total of eighteen teachers, only four of whom also taught in the collegiate section. The collegiate now had thirteen teachers, three of whom also taught in the vocational school.54

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Table 7.3: Teachers at North Bay Collegiate, 1925 Name of Teacher Wallace, Frank D. Scott, Jessie M. Whyte, Marion I. Gordon, Mary M. Campbell, Minnie M. Gilham, Estelle M. Hamer, Lottie E.

Degrees

Haviland, Hugh J. McNamara, Elizabeth

BA Toronto

1923 1923

Troy, M. Leo Currie, John E. Frise, Hubert A.

BA Toronto MA Toronto BA McMaster BA Queen’s BA Queen’s BA Queen’s BA Toronto

1923 1924 1924 1924 1925 1925 1925

Mathematics, Physical Culture Latin and French Assistant in Commercial Physical Culture, (Int) Science

BA Queen’s BA Toronto

1913 1920 1920 1922 1923 1923 1923

Specialization Mathematics Science Moderns & History Physical Culture Art, Commercial Art Moderns & History, Physical Culture Classics Physical Culture, Assistant in Commercial Physical Culture Mathematics English

Helmkay, Dora L. Coyle, Helena M. Ferguson, Evalena Summerhays, Robert

MA Queen’s BA Queen’s BA Toronto

Year Appointed

source: ao, Schools and Teachers; MacDougall, ‘Back to the Bay,’ 77.

None of the other high schools in the study area was as large or offered as broad a range of courses. Mattawa’s public high school, for example, had only two teachers in 1935.55 St Joseph’s Academy, which offered the commercial as well as the academic program, was especially known for its music courses and was affiliated with the Toronto Conservatory of Music.56 North Bay College offered preparatory, commercial, and collegiate courses. In 1935 its faculty consisted of seven priests from the Congregation of the Resurrection and two lay teachers. All were highly qualified, one having a doctorate, two holding Master’s degrees and the remainder, Bachelor’s degrees. Their specialties were Religion and Italian, English Literature and History, Mathematics and Commercial, Latin and Modern Languages, Commercial, Music and Latin, English Literature and Mathematics, Music, and Athletics.57 Although teaching at the high school level was viewed as a respectable career and more male teachers taught at the high school level than at primary schools, the wartime salaries of teachers had not kept pace with increases in the cost of living. In 1920 the salary of a high school teacher represented only 80 percent of the purchasing power it

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Table 7.4: Vocational school teachers at nbc&vs, 1935 Name of Teacher

Degree

Wallace, Frank D. Anderson, Donald Anderson, Stewart

MA Queen’s

*Ash, Frances Clelland, James L.

BA McGill

BA Toronto

Forbes, Gordon A. Foster, Thos. R. Franklin, Richard E. Gardner, Pearl E. Little, Janet E.M.

*Walton, Marjorie B. Williams, Hubert W.

1913 1931 1933 1931 1931 1932

B Com Queen’s BA McGill BA Queen’s BA Queen’s

McDonald, Mary D. McNamara, Elizabeth Schoenau, Rayburn E. Sibley, Mary M. Temple, Herbert W. *Troy, M. Leo *Walker, Alexina C.

Year Appointed

1930 1930 1927 1934 1934 1929

BA Toronto BA Toronto

BA Toronto

1931 1935 1933 1923 1931 1927 1931

Specialization Math Carpentry English & History, Elementary P.C. P.C., H.S. Assistant Motor Mechanics, Machine Shop Practice Electrical Construction & Installation Commerce Commerce, H.S., Elementary P.C. P.C., H.S. Assistant English & History, Elementary Art Sewing, Dressmaking P.C., H.S. Assistant, Elementary Art, Commerce Motor Mechanics H.S., P.C. Machine Shop Practice H.S. Assistant, P.C. H.S. Assistant, Art, Elementary P.C. H.S. Assistant, P.C. Draughting

* Also taught in the Collegiate. H.S. = Household Science; P.C. = Physical Culture source: ao, Schools and Teachers, 1935

had ten years earlier.58 Nonetheless, these salaries could be as much as five times higher than those of primary school teachers. At the pinnacle of this hierarchical organization was the principal, always a male in the public system or a member of a religious order in the case of the Catholic high schools. At the North Bay Collegiate, Frank Wallace, with over fifteen years of experience and a Master’s degree from Queen’s University, was paid $3,600 in 1925. The teachers, all with a ba degree, male and female, were paid from $1,900 to $3,000 per annum. There was no great discrepancy between male and female salaries. The new specialists on the vocational side were paid slightly more than the collegiate teachers were, but the greatest overall change was that, in 1935, teachers earned less than they had earned in 1925.

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3000 Salaries 1925 2500

1935

2000

1500

1000

500

0

le

ma

Fe

le

Ma

e

iat

eg

ll Co

al

on

i cat Vo

l

Al

source: ao, Schools and Teachers, 1925, 1935.

Figure 7.2 Average Salaries at North Bay Collegiate/nbc&vi, 1925, 1935. Salaries dropped for everyone from 1925 to 1935. Males earned more than females in both years.

North Bay, like cities across the country, was faced with lower revenues and higher expenses during the Depression, and had to cut salaries. Although high school teachers still made much more than primary teachers and many other workers, they had to accept a reduction in their salaries in the 1930s (Fig. 7.2). It is no longer possible to obtain detailed information about the personalities of the teachers who taught in the interwar years. A few of our interviewees remembered Frank Wallace, the principal of the high school, sometimes more by reputation than in person. He was known for running “a tight ship.” Students and faculty were very respectful and careful around him, and everyone said he was an excellent teacher. During the change of class, he stood in the hallway, watching. He was still in charge after the war. One former student remembered him then as a strict but good principal who maintained school rules with a firm but fair hand. If you were caught smoking you were expelled.59 Among the teachers in 1925 was Leo M. Troy, a young man with a ba from Toronto, appointed in 1923, and on his first

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teaching assignment.60 Troy would leave his mark as the founder of the cadets in North Bay, as a coach, and as a Second World War veteran. He went back to coaching and teaching at the high school after the war. It is in his honour that the high school teams called themselves the “Trojans.”61 At North Bay College most of the teachers belonged to a religious male order known as the Resurrectionists. Len Grassi remembered them as particularly strict. He had a few detentions like everyone else for small things like talking in class but he didn’t recall any students getting into serious trouble.62 At St Joseph’s Academy, the Sisters of St Joseph, a teaching and nursing order from Peterborough, were in charge, with the help of a few lay teachers. When Sister Blanche, the principal of the commercial school and mistress of the boarders, died in 1937, the students responded with a tribute that indicated their high regard for her; they felt that she had taught through the way she lived.63 At the normal school, Principal Casselman helped to shape the institution by hiring teachers with the education and teaching experience necessary for those who would train new teachers (Table 7.5). H.G. Lockett, hired as the English Master in 1920, for example, was a graduate of Queen’s University and held specialist certificates in Classics, English, and History.64 F.S. Rivers, hired in 1932, was a graduate of Victoria College at the University of Toronto (ba) and held a degree in pedagogy (B.Paed.). He was also the recipient of the Prince of Wales Medal for General Proficiency and had won a scholarship to study in Edinburgh for a year. He had been a principal in Owen Sound.65 “With its diverse curriculum, physical facilities, extra-curricular activities, and opportunities for peer-group contact, the high school also offered an exciting interlude between the carefree days of childhood and the responsibilities of adulthood. ‘It often means an entrance into a new world, cultural and social,’ wrote one principal in 1923, ‘in fact a complete revolution in the life of the student, transferring him from one plane of life to another vastly different.”66 This assessment by Robert Stamp aptly captures the experience of high school for interwar students in North Bay as well as throughout the province. Although fewer than half of all students continued on to high school, the experience was an important one for those who did. The large public high school in North Bay drew students from many different backgrounds, and generally, this diversity does not appear

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Table 7.5: Staff at the Normal School, 1920 Name

Degree

A.C. Casselman

Title Principal

J.C. Norris

MA, BPaed.

Master

H.E. Ricker

MA

Master

H.G. Lockett C. Ramsay J.E. Chambers H. Wildgust Miss Mayme Kay Miss E.K. Ballard

MA

Master Instructor Instructor Instructor Instructor Secretary and Librarian

LLCM

Areas of Specialization History, Geography, Reading, Spelling Mathematics, School Management, Science of Education Science, Agriculture, Hygiene, Nature Study, Physical Culture English Art Manual Training, Writing Music Household Science

source: nbns, Year Book, 1920, 4.

to have caused any problems. As one former student recalled: “There were many Catholic students at the nbci&vs. And both French and English. The French people got along really well. I didn’t notice a difference between us, except they had an easy time taking French and I didn’t.”67 Students from the Italian community who attended in the 1930s, however, remember it as having been difficult. Parents of some did not allow them to participate in extra-curricular activities, making it difficult for them to make friends and be accepted. When the new North Bay College opened, many Italian boys went there instead. Most Catholic girls attended St Joseph’s Academy. Their education was steeped in Catholic practice and they were integrated into the life of the Cathedral parish. Catholic schools reinforced their students’ sense of belonging to the Catholic community at a critical stage in their life. Some French Canadians in the area had little choice but to send their children to these schools in English, but others sent their teenagers to boarding schools that taught in French. While absence from home ensured a good education in French, it also had the potential of isolating students from their families and earlier friends. On the other hand, it broadened their horizons, put them in contact with the French Canadian elite in Ontario, and helped shape their worldview in conformity to the French Canadian nationalism of the day. As the French Canadian families in North Bay were also fluently bilingual, the excellent command of French they gained while in Haileybury or Sudbury opened up opportunities for them as well.

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For the even smaller number of students from the local area who attended normal school in North Bay, the experience had many parallels with high school. They were involved in many of the same extracurricular activities as high school students, with the major difference that most of their classmates came from elsewhere. High school and normal school in the 1920s and 1930s in Northeastern Ontario were not just places; they were the stage in young people’s lives upon which the period we know as adolescence was played out. And they were not just schools. They gave young people opportunities to learn new skills, participate in new sports like skiing, and make new friends. This was the period when teenagers began going to dances and paying attention to the opposite sex. Many married someone they met at that time. It is difficult to do justice to the variety of experiences students enjoyed, but it is clear that there was more mixing and a far greater range of activities for students to engage in than in primary school. Extra-curricular activities were a very important part of the education process, not just an add-on. Those who attended high school and normal school were able to defer adult responsibilities and full-time work for a few years longer than others were. They joined in a youth culture that was increasingly becoming the norm.

ecreation mmunityand LifeLeisure in Northeastern Ontario

8 Community Recreation and Leisure

In 1925 Hartley Trussler was engaged to be married and, as expected, spent most of his free time with his fiancée. Like most other young people, they enjoyed going to the movies and dancing. The recreational activities he most often participated in were going for a drive, going to church, and, going to the movies. He attended plays, card games, church socials, sporting events and the circus.1 He enjoyed dancing as well, and went to six dances in the course of the year. The sporting activities he enjoyed most were canoeing, skiing, skating, and snowshoeing. Ten years later, according to Hartley’s faithfully kept diary, he was married with two children and was a partner in North Bay Garage. As one would expect, his recreational activities had changed, but not as much as one might think. Going for a drive, now with his children in most cases, was still his foremost recreational activity. He still went to almost as many movies as when he was younger but they now represented a smaller proportion of his recreational activities and he went dancing only one fewer time than earlier. The two biggest changes were that he no longer attended church and now attended spectator sports to a much greater extent than before. This probably reflected the fact that, as the sponsor of the North Bay Garage hockey team, he had become more inclined to go to games. Hartley participated in sports to about the same extent as he previously did but now his major activity was volleyball, which he played at the Parish Hall of the Anglican church. An entirely new option was listening to the radio. While this form of recreation did take place in the home, it is important to note as it represents the consumption of recreation through the mass media. As

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before, he also went to community events such as bazaars, lectures, plays, socials, church suppers, and political meetings.2 While Hartley’s experience may not have been typical, looking at his recreational activities in this way reminds us that newspaper accounts can provide us only with information about the public or semi-public recreational activities available, not the extent to which individuals took part in them. Activities like taking a drive or getting together with friends for a barn dance, or even going to some of the large number of parties that appear in the social pages and which were not included in our consideration, may well have played a more important role in any one person’s recreational life than the activities we examine. In Halifax, for example, Suzanne Morton noted that with the rise of domesticity among the working class in the 1920s, couples became more likely to enjoy social activities such as card parties, dances, and church socials, but that the most prevalent leisure activity that couples engaged in was the house party.3 We should also not underestimate the importance of movie-going for adults. The popularity of the radio as a form of entertainment, a point also made by many interviewees, should also be noted. Over 425 radio licenses were issued locally by February of 1925, up from 100 the previous year at the same time,4 and the number must have increased considerably once North Bay got its own station in 1931. Participation in leisure also required time off work and domestic chores as well as the money to pay for these activities and can therefore be expected to have varied by class, sex, age, and marital status. Waged labourers who worked sixty hours a week certainly had little time for leisure. The standard workload for railway workers was eight hours a day, six days a week, but they often worked longer.5 Many stores and businesses were open late, making for long days for merchants as well. Despite the fact that newspaper sources do not give information on private forms of recreation, studies of organized leisure and recreation are nonetheless important, as they reflect the priorities of a community. Whether through their fundraising activities or because their purpose was recreational, voluntary associations provided most of the respectable social forms of recreation and entertainment available in the study area in the interwar years. Unlike the small towns studied by Lynn Marks in the late nineteenth century, in which public leisure activities were largely dominated by men, and where “there were few opportunities for mixed-gender recreation,”6 the latter were numerous in the interwar years. Perhaps this

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was because North Bay was larger (the towns Marks studied had populations in the 1,500 to 5,000 range), but the more likely cause was that the increase in the number of voluntary associations in the early twentieth century altered the nature of leisure activity available. Although fraternities were still the most numerous voluntary associations present, they faced increasing competition from church groups and service clubs. They themselves increasingly provided mixedgender forms of recreation as well as the more traditional male-only lodge activities. Prohibition may have played a role in this transition. Ontario was “dry” from 1916 to 1927, at which point the sale of alcoholic beverages in government-controlled stores was authorized; but it was 1934 before public drinking was allowed once again. The new drinking establishments, which were rigidly controlled, bore little resemblance to the saloons of the pre-war era which had been male-only preserves. As demonstrated by Craig Heron in his study, Booze, Prohibition did not stop the consumption of alcohol so much as alter when and how it was consumed. Prohibition transformed drinking from an activity openly carried out in public as part of male privilege to one carried out in private or on the margins of respectability in “blind pigs” or from flasks under the table. North Bay was no exception to Heron’s general findings. Fines for infringement of the Ontario Temperance Act (ota) netted the police department $13,022 in 1923 and $10,430 in 1924.7 Much as Heron describes for the country generally, bootleggers were active in the city; some of them were convicted repeatedly and others were harder to convict. Public drunkenness was also a frequent dismeanour. In 1934 offenses against the ota were replaced by offenses against the Liquor Control Act. While most of North Bay’s city council felt that excessive numbers of licenses were granted, some even suggesting that North Bay had become a “Sodom and Gomorrah,”8 police court reports for 1935 suggest that the transition to government control and licensed premises did not immediately end bootlegging activities.9 Having liquor in a public place might result in the choice of a $100 fine or 3 months in jail.10 Such charges were laid for selling liquor in a building next to both the Maple Beach dance pavilion and a dance hall in Ferris.11 Charges related to public drinking also continued. Ten days in jail was a fairly common sentence for simply being drunk,12 but repeat offenders and those who caused a disturbance got longer sentences.13 The redefinition of public drinking as being outside the

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margins of respectable behaviour may have helped increase the attraction of the church dinners, card parties, dances, and other social activities that proliferated during this period. Lack of income to spend on alternative forms of recreation, including drinking, may also have contributed to the popularity of these inexpensive events, particularly for married men.14 Pool halls nonetheless remained popular and served as a space for working class males to meet, once Prohibition had closed the saloons.15 During the period studied, municipal governments played a minimal role in providing the public spaces required for community recreation and sports. In the company town of Arvida, studied by José Igartua, community entertainment was polarized around two focal points, the Catholic church and the company.16 Igartua found that workers there did not organize their own activities. In contrast, in North Bay, facilities and semi-public spaces for such activities were largely provided by voluntary associations, including workers’ recreational associations. Based on Vernon’s Directory the number of voluntary associations in North Bay, including churches, climbed from thirty-nine in 1920 to fifty-seven in 1935 (Table 8.1). This number underestimates their actual number as church-based groups of the Protestant churches such as the Ladies’ Aid, the Ladies’ Auxiliaries, Missionary Societies and youth groups are not listed. Within the fifteen-year period, a number of new groups were added and others disappeared. The greatest change was from 1925 to 1930 when fifteen new groups appeared and only four disappeared from the list. Fraternities accounted for the largest number of groups throughout the period, although their growth was limited. Starting in 1925, service clubs, both denominational and secular, provided an alternative to fraternal societies. In 1920 there was only one recreational club, the Ezylyfe Canoe club, but by 1935 the Laurentian Ski Club, the North Bay Athletic Club, and the North Bay Badminton Association had also been formed. The large number of fraternal organizations in North Bay in 1920 reflects a wider trend. Voluntary associations, and especially fraternal organizations, underwent a period of rapid growth and proliferation in the United States in the period from 1890 to 1920. In a recent study, Gerald Gamm and Robert Putnam have shown that voluntary associations grew more and remained more prevalent in small towns and in the West than in the larger urban centres and the Northeast.17 The greatest number of new fraternal organizations in the United

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Table 8.1: Types of voluntary associations in North Bay, 1920–1935

Type Agricultural Benevolent Business Churches Fraternity Labour Political Recreational Denominational service Service Sodality Sports Unknown Veterans Total: No. new groups No. groups gone

1920 1 1 9 19 2 1

2 1 2 1 39

1925

1930

1935

1 1 1 9 19 2

1 1 15 22 3

1 2 17 21 2

1 1 2 1 2 1 41 4 2

1 2 2 2 1 1 1 52 15 4

3 2 2 4 1 2 57 6 11

source: Tabulated from Vernon’s Directory. Classifications by Françoise Noël.

States appeared between 1865 and 1899, when 235 such groups were founded.18 One estimate suggests that every fifth man in the United States at the turn of century belonged to a fraternal organization.19 The older lodges focused on rituals and offered men the opportunity to climb in rank by degrees. As society faced the turmoil of immigration, urbanization, and industrialization, fraternities offered “communal solidarity and a sense of belonging,”20 as well as social connections for immigrants who had no kinship ties. Mark Carnes has suggested that they provided a haven from the domestic sphere dominated by women.21 Whatever the reason, men joined in large numbers and continued to do so right through the twentieth century; overall, however, the rise of fraternities peaked around 1920. The pattern of growth of fraternal organizations in Canada was likely similar. As fraternities reached their peak, a new type of social organization appealing primarily to businessmen and professionals appeared – the service club. The largest of these, Rotary, Lions, and Kiwanis clubs, were founded in 1905, 1917, and 1915, respectively.22 These groups replaced the rituals and brotherhood of the lodge and temple with the weekly business luncheon in a public place. Evenings thus remained free for social activities shared with their wives. By forming associations, small businessmen felt less vulnerable. Rotary Clubs originally

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allowed only one member from each profession or business, and members were expected to do business with one another. They espoused co-operation over the uncontrolled capitalism of the previous era. Within a short time, with their rapid spread, the clubs found this too restrictive a guideline and they adopted an ideology of service instead. For middle-class men influenced by Christian ideals and the social gospel, “organizing around service was one way of reasserting middle-class influence in an age of labor unrest and corporate power.”23 Service clubs, like many fraternities before them, were often founded in the United States and spread north into Canada. In North Bay only the Rotary and the Lions Club were organized before 1935, and they played important roles both in terms of their community boosting and community service. Almost all the non-commercial entertainment and recreational activities available for young and old alike in the study area were made available through the activities of these voluntary associations. Some had recreation as their mandate but in most cases these activities were the by-product of their need to fundraise for other causes. Regardless of the motivation, their efforts provided their communities with inexpensive respectable amusements such as plays, dances, card games, musical performances, and dinners. Together with movies, shows, and commercial dances, these were the major forms of recreation available in North Bay. The smaller communities in the study area had fewer but similar activities.

dinners and banquets Dinners were not just about food, but as celebrations were a “performance” of community.24 Some had a specific purpose such as a farewell, an anniversary, or the distribution of awards. A dinner sponsored by city teachers in 1925 to honour Dr McDougall, who had played an important role in education in North Bay, is one example. Fundraising dinners, on the other hand, were open to everyone for an admission price and were primarily sponsored by church groups. Women’s groups also catered the majority of other dinners as well (Table 8.2). In order to cater a dinner or put one on as a fundraiser, a women’s group needed its own hall. In 1925 there were still only a few large halls in North Bay. St John’s Parish Hall clearly attracted more business than any of the other halls. Of the three Catholic churches, only

Table 8.2: Community dinners held in North Bay, 1925 Hosting Group

Location

Baptist Ladies’ Aid Boy Scouts

Nugget Date 24 Sept.

Methodist Church bmt

31 March

Catholic Women’s League Catholic Women’s League City of North Bay

St Mary’s Hall

3 March

St John’s Parish Hall

21 July

City Teachers

St John’s Parish Hall

3 Nov.

cnr Staff

St John’s Parish Hall

2 Oct.

Confederation Life

Pacific or Queen’s Hotel Blue Room

16 Jan.

cpr employees

146

20 March

22 Dec.

Lions Club

5 June

Pacific Hotel

Methodist Church

350

75

17 Nov.

Daughters and Maids ILP Hall of England Ezylyfe Canoe Club Pacific Hotel

Methodist Ladies’ Aid Metropolitan Life Insurance North Bay Board of Trade Odd Fellows

No.

14 April 100

24 March

Methodist Church Pacific Hotel

20 March 31 July

600

St John’s Parish Hall

21 Aug.

200

Nickel Lodge

13 Feb.

Presbyterian Church Rotary Club Rotary Club

Blue Room St John’s Parish Hall St John’s Parish Hall

1 Dec. 24 Feb. 4 Aug.

tno Boys Club

Orange Hall

13 Nov.

Veterans

St John’s Parish Hall

28 July

St John’s Parish Hall

20 Nov. 9 Oct.

600 500

23 Jan.

80

VON Women’s Auxiliary, St John’s Young Women’s Missionary Auxilliary

source: Compiled from the Nugget, 1925.

500 150

Reason Annual Halloween supper Father and Son banquet Thanks to players in play Initiation of 75 new KofC Honour public servants Farewell to Dr McDougall Introduce new staff to city Banquet of the convention Award prizes to baseball teams and First Aid awards Christmas supper Farewell to P. Huntington Formal presentation of charter Honour guest missionary after slide presentation St Patrick’s Day supper For employees Hosting Ontario teachers on tour Monthly meeting and banquet Annual supper Ladies’ Night Old Home Week banquet for former mayors Annual banquet and organizational meeting Old Home Week banquet Benefit supper Harvest Thanksgiving dinner Banquet to attract more members

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St Mary’s (Pro-Cathedral) had a hall at that time. The Methodists had their basement and the Baptist Ladies had their hall. Their kitchen, however, was in the basement and not very convenient. Nonetheless, they managed to put on the largest annual dinner in North Bay for years, at Halloween. The Orange Hall was also used for functions. In all, dinners for as many as six hundred people could be held in North Bay. The Ladies’ Aid Society of the Methodist Church in North Bay, which had 137 members in 1924,25 put on such dinners regularly. A large dinner to celebrate St Patrick’s Day required four committees (Table, Refreshment, Meat, and Tea & Coffee), each with its own convenor and as many as seven women to help. For their efforts, they charged 50 cents per plate for adults and 25 cents for children under twelve, and on one occasion in 1924 raised $238.07 after expenses.26 The work of the ladies, of course, was donated. By working together as a team, the women of the Methodist Ladies’ Aid, like women in other voluntary groups, affirmed their membership in their particular community each time they participated in such an effort. In 1935 about 140 dinners, banquets, and suppers were held in North Bay, Mattawa, and Trout Mills. Several new commercial venues such as the Crystal Ballroom, the Lakeview Hotel, the Maple Beach Pavilion, and the Roma Spaghetti House in Trout Mills, although used infrequently, were now options. The new and very elegant Empire Hotel was used for at least seven events. The number of groups that had their own hall had increased tremendously as well. These were the ioof Hall, the Knights of Columbus Hall, the Legion Club Room, the Masonic Lodge, the Presbyterian Church Hall, the St Vincent de Paul Hall, the Salvation Army Hall, St Brice’s, Trinity Church Hall, and the St Andrew’s Church basement. Some events were also held at St Joseph’s Academy, North Bay College, and the Children’s Shelter. St John’s Parish Hall was still a popular venue (nine events) but it had clearly lost its monopoly over large events. The increase in the number of voluntary associations with halls was paralleled by an increase in the number of large fundraising dinners (Table 8.3). The Baptist Ladies’ Aid Halloween supper was still very large, with 400 guests, but the bean suppers by the cwl and the Catholic Recreation Club accommodated even greater numbers, and the turkey dinner by “Circle a” of St Andrew’s Women’s Association was equally popular. Two of the largest catered events were held during ohw. One was the gathering of the Brotherhood of Locomotive Fire-

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Table 8.3: Community dinners for over 100 people held in North Bay in 1935 Hosting Group 159th Regimental Battalion Baptist Ladies’ Aid Boy Scouts First and Third Troops Catholic Recreation Club Catholic Women’s League cgit served by Young People’s Society Circle “A” of St Andrew’s Women’s Association cpr Officials Knights of Columbus

Location

Nugget Date

No.

Reason

Masonic Lodge

7 Aug.

400

Reunion banquet

Baptist Church Hall Trinity Church Hall

30 Oct. 17 April

400 250

Halloween supper Annual: 12th

Knights of Columbus 13 Feb. Hall St Mary’s Parish Hall 20 Nov.

400

Bean supper

450

Bean supper

17 May

100

7 Oct.

400

Mother-Daughter banquet Turkey dinner

12 June 22 Feb.

100 100

Farewell banquet Annual Ladies’ Night

6 March

200

Father & Son banquet

9 Aug.

500

ohw supper

10 April

400

Vimy Banquet

13 Nov. 13 Nov.

250 150

Turkey dinner Remembrance Day

25 Oct.

100

Banquet

5 April

100

End of season

1 May 7 Oct.

200 200

Annual: 10th Fall fowl supper

25 Sept.

200

Harvest supper

9 Aug.

300

Anniversary: 50th

16 Oct.

300

Anniversary: 10th

11 Oct.

150

Harvest supper

St Andrew’s Church bsmt St Andrew’s Church bsmt

St John’s Parish House Knights of Columbus Hall Knights of Columbus Knights of Columbus Hall SVP Parish Hall La Fédération des Femmes Can Françaises Masonic Lodge Ladies’ Auxiliary to the Canadian Legion Lady Mary Lodge Orange Hall Nipissing Lodge No. Masonic Lodge 420 af & am North Bay Boy Scout St John’s Parish House Association North Bay Curling Masonic Lodge Club North Bay Lions Club Empire Hotel Trinity Church Hall Northwest Circle of Trinity Women’s Association St Brice’s Mothers’ Union St John’s Parish House The Brotherhood of Locomotive Firemen and Enginemen Lodge 234 Women’s Association Presbyterian Church of the Presbyterian Hall Church Women’s Missionary St John’s Parish House Auxiliary of St John’s Anglican Church source: Compiled from the Nugget, 1935.

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men and Enginemen Lodge 234 to celebrate their fiftieth anniversary. The other was the dinner held at St Vincent de Paul for French Canadian Day (see Chapter 10 for more detail). Some dinners had a more serious message. At “Vimy Night” sponsored by the Legion, Richard Myers of the Canadian Amputation Society and secretary of the Canadian Institute for the Blind spoke of other service groups like the Red Cross and the Daughters of the Empire that helped tremendously during war.27 No doubt in response to the growing pressures of the Depression, North Bay’s Masonic Lodge (No. 617 af and am.) with guests from “sister lodges” held a banquet at which Judge C.S. McGaughey of the Juvenile Court spoke on the child welfare work going on in Nipissing District. He was particularly concerned about the spread of venereal disease and the number of children born “out of wedlock.” McGaughey praised the work of the Red Cross, Lions, Rotarians, and other service clubs and suggested that Masons could do more.28 It is interesting to note that although we found no evidence of Mother’s Day being celebrated in the family context, several community dinners promoted mother-daughter or father-son relationships. A mother-daughter banquet sponsored by the Junior Branch of the cwl for Mother’s Day saw over forty-five daughters host their mothers. The banquet was held at the Knights of Columbus Hall and was preceded by a benediction at St Joseph’s Academy. The annual banquet of the cgit of St Andrew’s United Church was also held for Mother’s Day. A hundred guests dined, served by younger girls and members of the Young People’s Society. In both cases the table setting and decorations were particularly noted and the dinners seem to have been a training exercise for the girls.29 At an equivalent celebration for fathers, the first annual father and son banquet held at Knights of Columbus Hall with over two hundred Knights and their sons present, the meal was provided by “the ladies.” Rev. E.E. Bunyan, the guest speaker, spoke on the many reasons boys had to be thankful. Music and a “comic movie film” provided the entertainment.30

cards Card playing was a popular form of entertainment that was also an excellent fundraiser. Notices about such events were frequent in the local paper, not just for North Bay but for surrounding communities as well. Euchre was the game of choice in the 1920s. The St Vincent de

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Paul Parish Hall, for example, hosted a euchre party involving over sixty tables, which raised $300 for the building fund of the church.31 Prizes were awarded for outstanding players. An even larger tournament was held by the Ste Anne Society of the same parish in April when a “large euchre and dance party” raised $1,045 to add to the church’s funds.32 It seems that parishioners, who were going to support the church anyway, preferred to amuse themselves while doing so.33 Smaller events were also held. The Women’s Auxiliary of the Great War Veterans’ Association, for example, held a euchre tournament that raised only $13.00 for their general club fund. The school at Grand Désert hosted a euchre party and box social, the proceeds of which went to the church. The Sons of England and their female counterparts, the Daughters and Maids of England, were unique in holding whist drives instead. Bridge was rarely used as a fundraiser.34 Cards combined with dancing made for a full evening of pleasure. A typical example was the True Blue Lodge’s euchre and dance night at the McIntyre Street lodge room, where about a hundred couples danced after cards to a musical program provided by Cangiano’s orchestra.35 The new Married People’s Social Club held their first social evening, consisting of a card and dance evening in Ferris Hall.36 Cards, billiards, and music were seen as the appropriate way to greet new railroaders moving into town at an event hosted by the Elks Club.37 By 1935 the card-playing scene had shifted slightly. Although euchre was still popular, bridge, whist, and “500” were being played much more often.38 Games were available almost every night of the week, and groups planned their card parties to avoid competing with one another.39 The St Joseph’s Auxiliary held a series of seven preChristmas games with twenty-two tables playing bridge and “500” at St Mary’s Hall. They offered prizes for women and men each week and a grand prize at the end.40 First prize for attendance at the final game of the series was “an upholstered occasional chair”; second prize, “a rose satin cushion”; and third prize, a table lamp.41 In the spring, there was a regular Saturday evening card night of whist at the Legion, with ten to fifteen tables. The Gateway City Lodge No. 32, of juvenile Orange boys, hosted a whist party to raise money to send the boys to Camp Tillicum. Groups associated with Keatha Lodge No. 279 held four whist and dance parties at the Crystal Ballroom through the year. By now whist parties, often followed by dancing, were more popular, and were held at the Orange Hall on Cassells Street several

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nights a week, each sponsored by a different associated group. Admission, when noted, was 25 cents. The North Range Cowboys often played there and even sponsored their own game with the help of Lodge No. 876 women in May. The Ladies’ Auxiliary to the Canadian Legion presided over a regular series of whist parties on Tuesday evenings except during the summer. Regular Saturday night games for men only were held at the Legion clubrooms, and the St John’s Men’s Club held a series of six bridge and whist drives on Friday evenings before Christmas at Oliver Hall of their Parish House.42 The Men’s Club teamed up with one of the women’s groups such as the Mothers’ Union to provide a lunch buffet. Prizes were awarded. Several groups seem to have held whist drives only occasionally. Among them were the Loyal Order of the Moose, another organization with charitable works as its mandate, and the Parish Guild of St Brice’s Anglican Church. The ccf Ladies’ Club sometimes held games instead of their regular meetings. Special event games were not unusual. In October the cwl put on a Monday evening card party at St Mary’s Hall with “500,” auction bridge, and contract bridge, where all the prizes were chickens destined for the Thanksgiving oven. At an Armistice party put on at the Masonic Hall by the Ladies’ Auxiliary to the Canadian Legion, twenty-one tables of whist were filled, and dancing to Andy Cangiano’s Orchestra followed. A draw for a hope chest was the main prize. When the Amalgamated Civil Servants of Canada post office staff held their annual banquet at St John’s parish house, catered by the St John’s Parish Guild, the thirty attendees played bridge and “500,” and danced as well. When the Scollard Hall Guild held a book shower at North Bay College, they played contract bridge and “500.” The Princess Beatrice Lodge, No. 6, Daughters of England, planned one large whist drive and turkey draw for December.43 At first glance, with so many card games happening throughout the community, it would seem that everyone played cards. Looking more closely, however, one discovers that groups associated with the Salvation Army, the Presbyterian Church, the Baptist Church, Trinity and St Andrew’s United Church, and the Lutheran Church did not sponsor games. The Ladies’ Auxiliary to the Sons of Jacob, however, did report holding a bridge party. What appears to have been a fairly universal form of entertainment turns out to have been considerably restricted, at least officially, by religious affiliation.

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dances On Labour Day in 1925 Hartley Trussler wrote in his diary: “Came back home and had supper. Made arrangements for a corn roast and a regular square dance. Went down and got Hazel Smith and the other girls and Mr & Mrs White. Got out to the mill about 8:30 and started in to have a good time. Square danced and hopped around until about 11:30 then we had a good feed of corn and sandwiches & cake. Had a few more dances and then came home. I believe everybody had a real good time. I know I did.”44 Dancing was a popular amusement and, as this diary entry indicates, did not require a formal setting to be fun. In both town and country, dancing was often enjoyed in an informal setting with little previous planning. One fiddler was all that was required for country dances, and a juke box or a gramophone and records could substitute for live music if necessary. In larger centres, young people were more likely to attend dance halls despite the warnings of some clergymen and parents that these were dangerous places and even against the dictates of the Catholic Church.45 The era of dance bands in Canada and the United States extended from 1900 to 1950. Throughout Canada, local bands emerged which, while they did not have a national presence like Guy Lombardo and his Royal Canadians, frequently performed for local audiences at dance functions as well as on local radio stations.46 North Bay had many such bands over the years and, as one of the first towns in the north to have its own radio station, attracted many musicians. Eddie Sarlo, for example, left Sault Ste Marie for North Bay after high school because he had heard that there was a radio station there. He began playing in a dance band almost immediately and was still playing regularly when interviewed in 2004. There were no dedicated dance halls in North Bay in the 1920s but dances were held at the Colgan-Liddle Hall, the Roseroom, and at fraternal halls. Both the Empire Hotel and the new Masonic Lodge built in the late twenties provided large and luxurious settings for dances. Lucenti’s Capitol Orchestra and Andy Cangiano’s Orchestra were most frequently cited as the bands providing the music for special occasion dances. As tourism in the area increased in the mid-1930s, new summer pavilions for dancing, such as the Top Hat and the Maple Beach Pavilion on Lakeshore Drive, opened as commercial dance halls that brought big name bands into town. With locations

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The Ezylyfe Canoe Club, ca. 1924. The Ezylyfe Canoe Club facilities on Lake Nipissing were used during the summer. Although an athletic club, it also sponsored a large number of dances. This photo suggests that the membership was primarily if not exclusively male. Courtesy of Kevin Reeves.

just outside town, these halls catered primarily to tourists. The nearby Highway Lodge offered dinner, and liquor could also be obtained there, even during Prohibition.47 Sunday restrictions were avoided by holding a midnight dance that started at 12:01 on Sunday night. With a popular local band playing (Cangiano’s Orchestra) admission was 75 cents.48 This was more than a Thanksgiving dance at the airconditioned Masonic Hall, which cost 65 cents per couple49 but considerably less than an informal dance at the Golf and Country Club, which cost $1.25.50 The big band dance movement continued into the 1940s and the 1950s, and many of the older generation in North Bay remembered fondly dancing to the live bands that played throughout that period. Many dances were organized by community groups as fundraisers or as anniversary celebrations. The Order of the Moose hosted a dance at the Maple Beach Pavilion to raise money for “the charitable undertakings of the organization.” In 1935 the Laurentian Ski Club celebrated its tenth anniversary with a large birthday dance at the Crystal Ballroom. They had dance competitions and prizes, speeches, and birthday cake. Again, the décor was remarked upon: “With pictures of skiers, taken at the Club, and flags from the slalom course adorning

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the walls, the feature of the decorations was a table display showing an infant doll on skis in an outing costume, with the year 1925 marked on its headband. Behind it was the figure of a larger child in ski togs, marked 1935.” The 159th Regimental Battalion held several dances at the Masonic Hall to raise funds for a reunion of the Battalion during ohw in August 1935. A dinner dance sponsored by the Rorab Shrine Club raised money for the Crippled Children’s Hospital. The Salvation Army celebrated its twenty-ninth anniversary with a number of events, including a concert and dance, to which over four hundred tickets were sold. Robbie Burns Day was marked by an annual concert and dance sponsored by Camp Kintail 21 of the Sons of Scotland. The program consisted of several Burns biographies and recitals as well as modern and classic Scottish dancing. The Bonfield Hockey Club held a successful fundraiser dance at the local public school. In 1925 the Mattawa Triple C Club held two dances, one in honour of a visiting hockey team, and one to celebrate Halloween. There were many more.51 The Ezylyfe Canoe Club dances were particularly popular. They sponsored an annual dance at New Year’s and Valentine’s Day in addition to others throughout the year. In the summer their dances were held at their clubhouse on Lakeshore; in winter, at available halls. For each event three women were named as patronesses, and their presence may have helped reassure parents that these events were safe and suitable for young people to attend.52 The Ezylyfe Club sponsored three of the thirteen dances that Hartley Trussler attended in 1925. He seems to have enjoyed them all. At the New Year’s dance of 1925 he wore a new shirt from his Christmas presents and freshly pressed trousers. He and his fiancée, Margaret, stayed until 1 a.m. After the Valentine Day Dance, he wrote enthusiastically, “It was a dandy good dance and we had a fine time.” At the April dance he noted that it had been “awfully hot and took the starch out of everybody.”53 When the club turned twenty-five in 1935 it held a “Silver Jubilee Ball” at the Masonic Hall: “Gaily colored pendants were distributed as favors. In a feature surprise box dance, bouquets of flowers were given the winners ... In a novelty quintuplet doll dance, dolls were given the winning ladies.”54 Hartley and his by-then wife Margaret were among the 125 couples who attended. “It was a program Dance and it was rather a novelty but I can’t say I am fussy about it,” he wrote. “I got our programs all filled up before many minutes and then when other people came in later we didn’t have any openings.

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Didn’t have their lunch until the 14th Dance and I was terribly hungry and tired. It was a peach of a dance and we had a good time. There were over twenty dances and we didn’t get home until after two thirty. Brought little Paul home with us from Annies.”55 The Ezylyfe opened the summer season with a Friday night dance at the club where “Chinese lanterns decorated the rooms” and 150 guests, many all the way from Sudbury, danced to music by Lucenti’s Capitol Orchestra. Prizes were awarded for “novelty dances.”56 The club celebrated its twenty-fifth anniversary again during ohw by hosting an evening party at their club house. One hundred couples spent the evening dancing to the strains of the Lucenti orchestra.57 Some dances were staff functions. One of the largest was the New Year’s dance at the Masonic Lodge, sponsored by the t&no Recreation Union. Approximately four hundred people attended this annual event: “Shortly before midnight gay noise-makers, paper hats, horns, whistles and streamers were distributed in the crowd, which joined in the fun-making. At midnight, the orchestra played Auld Lang Syne, while whistles blew and horns tooted. Refreshments were served shortly afterwards in the downstairs hall and dancing continued.” The t&no also had a masquerade dance for Halloween. The Canadian Longyear Plant held a large dance at the Crystal Ballroom in February 1935. The workers at Bell Telephone organized an annual Blue Bell Club dance in the 1920s. In 1925 they had 250 people attend, dancing to the music of Bert Lehman’s orchestra at the Roseroom. Some dances, like the annual Bon Entente Ball sponsored by the t&no and the cpr railway in the 1920s, had more social cachet than others. In 1925 over 150 couples danced to the music of the Bert Lehman Orchestra at Colgan-Liddle Hall on April 24th.58 This was Hartley Trussler’s first real ball: “The hall was packed and you couldn’t dance very much but there was a good crowd and the music was excellent. They served lunch down in the Imperial Cafe and it was certainly nicely arranged. It was certainly the Event of the Season. Didn’t get home until 2:30 and was tired and sleepy.”59 The elaborate dances held during the Depression signal that the hardships of that period were not felt equally. In 1935 two in particular stand out. The first was the Christmas dance at the Masonic hall held by the Dr Herbert A. Bruce chapter of the iode. The decorations were “in the Empire colors, red, white and blue, attractively arranged.” Three committees coordinated the plans: tickets and decoration, refreshments, and serving. For those who preferred cards to

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dancing, bridge was available upstairs, while Lucenti’s Orchestra led the dancing downstairs. A special treat of the evening was the “first public appearance of little Miss Catherine Louch,” a playmate of Shirley Temple. The dance students of Miss Edna Gillars and Miss Margaret Angus also gave a performance. Prizes, donated by North Bay businesses, included “a permanent wave, donated by Brown’s Beauty Parlor,” a rose corsage, a box of chocolates, and men’s leather slippers. The dances that night included “balloon and serpentine dances, besides other novelties.”60 Hartley Trussler reflected afterward: “It was quite a high toned affair. All the society upper 400 were there and it was a nice looking crowd. My knee was tired and aching and I really didn’t enjoy it very much. We had a mighty good supper and I certainly enjoyed it and the rest. Got home about 2:30.”61 The Lions Club’s tenth anniversary celebration was also an elaborate affair. It was held in the main dining room of the Empire Hotel: “The banquet hall was a panorama of Lions colors, royal purple and gold. Lions heads, soft light streamers, broad bands of bright hues and flags of various shades blended together.” Hartley and Margaret Trussler attended with their friends Martha and Rod Macleod. Dinner was served at 8 p.m. There were also speeches and a speaker, the Reverend Packham, whom Hartley thought was exceptionally good. The dance was only “good” but the orchestra was “exceptionally good.” After dancing until 2 a.m. the couples adjourned to Taylor’s for conversation and a cup of tea.62 The number of dances advertised or reported in the local paper confirms the enthusiasm for dances referred to by many of our interviewees. The Depression did not lessen their appeal, and dances were available for all budgets. The more expensive commercial halls that emerged after the birth of the Dionne quintuplets were designed primarily for tourists but elaborate dances were available to locals as well. While dancing, like cards, was proscribed by some religious groups, others tried to make dances “safe” through supervision rather than ban them. Young and old enjoyed dancing.

plays One of the earliest plays produced in North Bay was by a Methodist group in the 1880s. With the exception of a few professional productions brought in by the Royal Theatre,63 the stage plays in North Bay were amateur productions. In 1925 the Methodist Ladies’ Aid put on

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Church groups and others put on numerous plays in North Bay in the 1920s and 1930s. In 1933 the Trinity Young Peoples’ Society, shown here, put on Mary Made Some Marmalade. Photo by Railton Studio. Courtesy of Trinity United Church.

a farce called “Strictly Business” in the church basement and the iode raised funds for the education of children who had lost parents in the war by putting on the play All Aboard.64 Performed at the Royal Theatre with choruses including over a hundred of North Bay’s young people, this farcical comedy directed by Ms Bartlett was expected to be a better-than-average amateur effort. When the North Bay Musical and Dramatic Society was organized in April, at least a hundred people were expected to join.65 In 1935 the Little Theatre Guild at St John’s Anglican Church mounted about five plays a year. Their season ran from September to March so the first two plays of the year, Such a Girl, held at the end of January at Oliver Hall, and the musical revue, Black and White, announced for late February, would have been the last plays of the 1934 season. In March the guild reorganized and planned a religious play for the end of Lent. By modernizing the language and costuming, and by adding a musical arrangement, they presented a modern version of the play The Summoning of Everyman: “Everyman is, of course, man in general and the play presents him in the actual school of life, learning the hard lessons which none escape.” It played to “near capacity” audiences. The guild then took a break before meeting again in September to choose officers and make plans. They performed their first play of the season, Broken English, to an audience of

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two hundred people at their parish hall. This romantic story about a young lawyer in love with his secretary addressed the question of differences in social standing when it came to marriage. They would perform The Scarecrow Creeps, along with the North Bay Pipe Band, at the Vocational School Auditorium in December. Oliver Hall in Parish House was evidently suitable for most of their productions, but the new gymnasium at the Vocational School allowed for larger productions as well.66 A theatre group for young people, the Gateway Guild, brought together youth from Laurier Avenue and Ferris United churches. In 1935 they participated in a theatrical competition sponsored by the church in which every group had to perform their own version of Light in the Window. In North Bay they successfully competed against St Andrew’s Young People and were given a certificate of merit from the Toronto Conference of the United Church of Canada. They then competed against Orillia and Bolton. Robert McQuattie of North Bay won best actor but Orillia won the competition.67 Many other church groups put on an annual or an occasional play. The cwl, for example, made plans in January for a play for St Patrick’s Day and booked the collegiate auditorium for that purpose. St Mary’s Sodality, St Andrew’s Young People’s Society, the Trinity Choir, the Presbyterian Young People’s Society, and the Dramatic Club of the Women’s Association of Ferris United Church all put on full plays in 1935.68 Church social groups clearly played a major role in creating theatrical entertainment for North Bay audiences. Tickets ranged from 25 cents to 40 cents. There were also groups who put on small humorous skits as part of a larger program. When the cgit celebrated their twentieth anniversary, for example, they performed a skit to recount their history.69 The Men’s Club of St John’s Anglican Church put on a show in March comprised of The Merry Minstrels and Speaking to Father: “Under capable direction, both the minstrel show and the one-act comedy provided laughter, songs, novelty skits, music and tap dances for an audience of more than 200 people.”70 The Baptist Men’s Club hosted a similar event for “their ladies” in February.71 Those who lived in the smaller communities in the area, however, had far fewer opportunities to attend plays, so much so that when several young people from Eau Claire attended a play in Mattawa, the gossip column of the local paper thought it worthy of mention.72 While the separate school in Mattawa also put on a three-act comedy as part of a concert in 1935, productions there were

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North Bay’s prize-winning Premier Band, led by E. Virgili, ca. 1926. This photograph of the band has evidently been through a lot but it had been carefully put back together again with tape as a precious memento of North Bay’s early music history. ccoh, flp, Burton.

far fewer than those in North Bay.73 Plays, with their ability to deliver a moral message, particularly appealed to church groups that eschewed dancing and card playing.

bands, concerts, choirs, and musical performances North Bay has been fortunate in its musical talent. The organization of musical groups there dates back to at least 1907, when F.A. York organized the North Bay Choral Union, which he headed until 1927. In 1931 it performed The Mikado under the direction of H. Shorse. E. Virgili, a prize-winning bandleader, organized the Columbus Band in 1913. His North Bay Premier Band won first prize at the Canadian Exhibition in Toronto in 1924 and placed fourth in 1925.74 The Temiskaming and Northern Ontario Railway Band, founded in 1925, it was still active in 1935 when the city of North Bay recognized the contribution that it and other musical groups made to the community and offered to build a bandstand in Lee Park in lieu of providing them a grant: “The efforts of local musical organizations to cater to the people were cited by Alderman Seth Bush, sponsor of the resolution, in speaking in its support, and the heavy expense which they are put to, and which is born[e] privately was also cited.”75 They played at

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events ranging from the Canadian Legion’s Jubilee Service to the opening of the North Bay Horticultural Society’s flower show at the curling rink.76 They also had a major role during the many parades of ohw (see chapter 10). The North Bay Community Orchestra and the Veteran-Citizens Band under Bandmaster Keeler were in place by 1925.77 The Dominion Association commemorated its eighth anniversary with a concert program at the Town Hall. About a hundred citizens joined 200 members of the gwva to listen to the Veterans-Citizens Band under Keeler’s direction, as well as some vocal solos. The Community Orchestra supported a large group of schoolchildren (500–600) for a massive concert during ohw. Their third public recital held at the Collegiate Institute in May had an audience of about 250 people.78 In November they were rehearsing Flotow’s “Stradella Overture” for their annual concert.79 The Italian Boys Band, or Nick Cangiano’s Boys’ Band, was organized prior to 1935 and played at various functions in town. In April they sought community support to purchase new uniforms for their participation in ohw functions. In mid-summer former t&no bandmaster, Wilson, and George Griffiths Jr began organizing a new boys’ band, the North Bay Citizens’ Boys’ Band. The band acquired its own Ladies’ Auxiliary, made up primarily of the boys’ mothers and sisters. Extensive fundraising was needed for buying instruments. These fundraisers were often organized by the Ladies’ Auxiliary but the boys contributed by providing entertainment. Griffiths also requested that the boys’ parents contribute $1 a month to help with running of band. At a banquet for supporters Rev. G.G. Lacey spoke of the importance of such musical training in character development. The boys practised twice weekly, and while they waited for instruments they learned music theory. In a clear sign of interest, over fifty boys signed up.80 It was also around this time that Tom Burton organized his Associated Canadian Travellers (act) Band.81 His son Ralph, one of our interviewees and also a musician, recalled that band practices were sometimes held in their home. Outside performers were also brought in. The Golden Gate Concert Company played Hawaiian music in a Lyceum Concert Series hosted by St John’s Parish Hall. One of the largest concerts of 1925 was performed by the Headquarters’ Staff Quartet of the Salvation Army. Held at St John’s Parish Hall in March, this concert marked the 29th anniversary of the founding of the local corps and raised $400 for the

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Tom Burton formed the Associated Canadian Travellers Boys Band around 1935. Despite the name, there were two girls in the band at the time the photo was taken. ccoh, flp, Burton.

Salvation Army.82 Although professional performers appeared less often during the 1930s, the Lions Club was able to bring in “Sensational Spanish Dancers” with tickets at 50 cents and one dollar in 1935;83 and Trinity United Church brought in guests musicians Lawrence Dafoe and George Lambert for their annual Easter play The Darkest Hour.84 Musical programs were also offered at other functions. The Knights of Columbus, for example, opened their fall activities with a musical program presented by several members.85 Music teachers organized recitals to showcase the talents of their students,86 and women’s groups often included a short musical program at their meetings.87 The Evangelistic Association in Eau Claire, for example, held social evenings at which various musical performances and community singing were enjoyed. In Ferris a meeting of the Seth Parker group usually involved singing hymns, and on one occasion they also listened to the Dreany sisters singing “The Old Rugged Cross.”88 At a meeting of St Brice’s Young People’s Association (ypa), a concert with dancing and singing followed the business meeting.89 The

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North Range Cowboys played at a corn roast sponsored by the Ladies’ Aid of Carmichael’s Corners Church.90 The First Baptist Church honoured the memory of Schubert on the 107th anniversary of his death by making his “Unfinished Symphony” “central in organ themes for the evening.”91 Choirs were also popular. The Baptist Church choir gave a series of performances in 1925.92 The choir of the Methodist Church performed with a leading Toronto soprano, Mrs G. Jones-Morgan.93 On a smaller scale, the ypa of St Andrew’s hosted a concert by the male chorus, the Mannakea Troupe, and the Nickle Quartet in the church auditorium;94 and in 1935 the Ferris United Church choir held a concert to raise money for more hymnals. This form of entertainment was not expensive; the First Baptist Church Choir choral concert charged 25 cents for their concerts. A large number of other groups raised money in this way in 1935 as well.95 Community service could also involve musical performances. When the Junior branch of cwl wanted to entertain residents of the Home of the Aged, they organized a musical evening with tap dancing, musical numbers by Art Tiernay and Vic Virgili, and a few solo numbers, followed by singing and socializing.96 The annual Children’s Frolic sponsored by the Ladies’ Auxiliary of St Joseph’s General Hospital entertained five hundred children with tap dancing, the Polar Bear Cowboy Orchestra, harmonica and piano duets, and an impromptu talent competition.97 The Depression interrupted the trend toward more commercial musical performances that had begun in the 1920s. Fortunately, there was local talent, and music continued to be an important form of entertainment, in many forms, not just in North Bay, but in the surrounding area as well.

movies and live shows The Royal Theatre, or Opera House, was built in 1908. When Anson Gard, the American author of an early history of North Bay, visited the city shortly thereafter, he reported that both it and the “Vaudivite” ran continuously, were crowded nightly, and gave a good program.98 Gard described the Royal as a beautiful building that had cost $50,000 to build. In the early twentieth century, as movies increased in popularity, vaudeville entertainment began to decline. In April of 1925, when the Royal sustained $25,000 worth of fire damage to its interior,

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the owner, John Blanchet, had it rebuilt and reopened it primarily as a movie theatre.99 By August it was back in business and announcements in the North Bay Nugget for 1925 indicate that it offered both films and live shows, usually touring productions. In 1925 films such as Cecil B. DeMille’s grand production of The Ten Commandments were shown as well as the comedies of W.C. Fields and Charlie Chaplin. The New Year’s matinee was 15 cents for children and 50 cents for adults. Live productions included: Flashes of the Great White Way, a production similar to the Ziegfeld Follies; the musical production Thumbs Up by The Originals, featuring soprano Gene Pearson, comedian Bob Anderson, and Jimmie Goode, Canada’s most famous blackface comedian; the play The Dover Road by Cameron Matthews; and The Butterfly Kiddies, a live musical comedy variety show.100 The Capitol Theatre was built in 1929. Although designed primarily as a movie theatre, it had a large stage for live entertainment as well and was conceived as a top class venue for the prosperous 1920s. In 1935 the Capitol featured a number of live events. In September it was Henry Santrey and his Broadway Varieties with “Riotous Stage Revues with 30 People!” – “Syncopators ... Singers ... Dancers ... Crack Bandsmen [and] Glorious Girls.” This show cost 35 or 50 cents for adults and 10 or 20 cents for children for matinee and evening performances. In November the Capitol began advertising a four-day show of Broadway songs with Jack Benny, Eleanor Powell, and Robert Taylor. Working in conjunction with the radio station, whose studio was on an upper floor of the theatre, the Capitol also held amateur talent shows that were broadcast over the radio. The first was a great success, and 1,250 people attended. More followed. The second adult amateur contest brought in an audience of 1,500 people. It also brought in contestants from quite a distance, as the winner was David Kilgour from Capreol and second place went to Charles Boudreau of Sturgeon Falls. In December child talent was displayed, and the winner was a four-year-old Ross Otto. Charles Boudreau from Sturgeon Falls was a guest artist and Lucenti’s Capitol Orchestra also played. Movies, however, remained their chief attraction. As of 1 June 1935 the Capitol advertised its prices as 30 cents for adults and 12 cents for children for the matinee and 38 cents for adults and 17 cents for children for the evening.101 Most interviewees who grew up in this period remembered going to the movies, usually on Saturday afternoon. The entrance price allowed them to stay as long as they wanted, for the continuous show,

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and many took advantage of that possibility. At the Royal, as one of our interviewees recounted, boys avoided paying altogether by having a friend open the bathroom window and sneaking in that way.102 Given the reality that some families could not afford a movie ticket during the Depression, the ability to attend movies was surely the dividing line between rich and poor from the perspective of a child. Rita Landriault was among the haves but only because her older sister worked and could give her the 10 cents to go. This was only after she complained that the same sister was treating her brother every week because he was her godson. Her sister made strict guidelines, however; she could only go to Shirley Temple movies and other shows for children.103 Hermès Laroque was among the have-nots. At the age of eighty, he still remembered how difficult it was for him as a child not to be able to go to the Superman series at the Capitol. Even though it only cost 10 cents, it was more than the family could afford.104 Shirley Brazeau (Nicholson) remembers going every other Saturday but she didn’t like the cowboy movies; she went to comedies and Donald Duck, usually at the Capitol. She also went to the Royal, but not until she was older because its shows were mostly at night. She thought it looked very nice, with its pillars and wide entrance. They had 5 cents extra to get popcorn.105 Lucille Regimbal, who remained a long-time Shirley Temple fan, remembered going to the movies very vividly. She went with the Second Street “gang,” as she called them. They would go on a Saturday and spend the day. If their parents became concerned that they were late getting home, they called the theatre and had them announce on the intercom, “Would the Second Street Gang please go home now.”106 Margaret Richardson was allowed to go to evening shows at the Royal on Friday nights, but only with a chaperone. She would go with a girlfriend and the chaperone was usually her girlfriend’s mother. She and her brother were also allowed to go to the matinees after school. They saw many vaudeville stage shows at the Royal, which was beautiful and elegant, with balconies. They sometimes went to the Capitol as well, which was more modern. The Royal had a lot of live theatre, whereas the Capitol had more movies.107 When Loretta Cundari was about eighteen, she worked as a matron at the Royal Theatre. On Saturday afternoons she took tickets, sometimes ushering as well. Her memories confirm those of the children who attended. On Saturday the place was hopping because it was the only theatre that played cowboy movies. The shows started at 1 p.m.

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and went to 6 p.m. A ticket was 12 cents, but since the theatre was not emptied between shows, the children could stay all day. Sometimes Loretta would let someone in free or pay only 10 cents if that was all they had. When Bambi was on, she recalled, the children lined up as far as the gas station. Sometimes they were rambunctious and started playing cowboys in the theatre and then she would have to stop them. Paying 12 cents was not that bad, she added, since children could sell bottles to get the money, and a loaf of bread cost only 5 cents then. At night, tickets were 20 cents. Given the fondness for movies that the various interviewees expressed, it is difficult to see how any church group or club could have effectively competed with this form of entertainment for children. Saturday afternoon was for going to the movies. Even the Quints were regular attendees at the Capitol, but when they came, the whole balcony had to be blocked off for them.108 Thanks to the Saturday matrons, the chaperone system, and the kinds of movies that were shown at that time, most parents seem to have condoned movies as an acceptable form of entertainment for their children, although some did place restrictions on the type of movie they were allowed to see. The evening shows were geared more toward adults and, as Hartley Trussler’s diary indicates, these shows played a substantial role in the entertainment of adults. Adolescents were also hooked on movies despite fears of their negative influence.109 The Ontario government had already taken considerable responsibility for rating and censoring movies.110 With the exception of mass media entertainment, radio, and movies, the respectable recreational activities available in the interwar years consisted primarily of community events organized by clubs, church groups, fraternities, and other voluntary associations. Dances, card parties, dinners, plays, and musical performances, alone or in combination, made up the bulk of their repertoire. Most locally produced forms of entertainment were not expensive. The majority of those who attended were probably members of the community (church, fraternity, or club) that sponsored the event. Only the elite attended a few exceptional events each year. The very large role of voluntary associations in providing reasonably inexpensive respectable forms of entertainment for adults in a mixed-gender setting is evident. Through their participation in church, lodge, and club functions, people also contributed to the well-being of their community, as these

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events raised funds used to build and repair churches, support hospitals, send children to camp, and many other good causes. Those who worked together to organize these activities solidified their ties to their particular community. Some people questioned the morality of card playing, dancing, and movies, but the majority clearly found them to be acceptable forms of entertainment. Playing pool, drinking, and gambling, on the other hand, were not acceptable, and were therefore marginalized. In the exercise of power that entertainment represented, middle-class views prevailed.

uilding mmunity through Life inSports Northeastern Ontario

9 Community Building through Sports

In the second half of the nineteenth century team sports and a sports culture were advanced, as sport historian Colin Howell puts it, “by middle-class urbanites with the intention of providing healthful recreation, counteracting the sedentary character of modern city life, and promoting ‘manly’ character and patriotic sentiment.”1 The working class, who favoured sports such as baseball that did not have the same reputation of respectability as other sports, resisted this agenda. Baseball and hockey soon became popular enough that spectators were willing to pay to watch them, and they gradually became professionalized. There remained a view, however, that pros who played for money could also be paid to fix games, and supporters of the amateur ideal in the late nineteenth and early twentieth century were preoccupied with guarding the amateur status of sports such as lacrosse, baseball, and hockey.2 Working class players, who could not afford to take time off to play without compensation, found this problematic. As a result, a number of pseudo-amateurs emerged. The expansion of sports in the 1920s was followed by the rise of sport as a business in the 1930s. Sports were entertainment and they were also an opportunity to gamble; both brought an increase in spectatorship. As Ron Lappage writes: “By the end of the thirties the promotion of any sport, if it would attract crowds to a paying contest – whether this was football, baseball, ice-hockey, marathon swimming, or six-day bicycle races – became the epitome of sport in Canada.”3 Over time, professional status became associated more with a high level of skill and the attitude toward them was less derogatory. The control of amateur sports did not diminish, but was consolidated in the hands of the Canadian Amateur Athletic Union (caau), which

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controlled almost every sport. To maintain amateur standing, players had to avoid playing professionally or with professionals,4 and amateur associations in every sport guarded this ideal. As these associations gained a monopoly over regional, provincial, and national championships, local teams who wanted to advance in competition to higher levels had to maintain their status with these associations to compete. Class is therefore a critical factor to consider when looking at the history of sports. The question of gender is equally important, as sports have traditionally been associated with males rather than females, and women have had to break into the world of sport whereas men had always been dominant in it.5 As cities grew and as sports became more organized, the question of space and facilities became more crucial. Public space in early twentieth-century cities and towns tended to be limited to the streets and a few public buildings. North Bay, the largest urban centre in our study area, was still a “walking city” when it achieved city status in 1925. In towns and small cities such as this one, with empty lots, lakefront, and wooded areas nearby, the need for passive recreational space was not immediately apparent. Sports, however, required more specialized facilities. Playing ball on empty lots and hockey on the lake or on a backyard rink was fine for children, but as leagues and associations were formed, players wanted indoor rinks and proper ball fields. Taxpayers, however, did not accept that parks were their responsibility. Some clubs built or rented their own facilities; private capitalists built others. Churches and service clubs, influenced by the social gospel and the ideals of muscular Christianity, and wanting to provide healthy athletic activities for their members, provided others.6 The kind of facilities available and their location, however, could determine the nature of the sports and recreational activities provided, as well as the people who could participate in them.7 Sports were a vital part of community life in North Bay from the start. Before the First World War, curling and lacrosse were the most popular sports, as they were in other parts of Ontario.8 After the war, lacrosse gave way to baseball, but curling remained important. Hockey, however, quickly became the most popular sport. It is not possible here to examine the full range or history of sports played in the interwar years in the study area. We can only focus on a few key sports and the community efforts made to provide facilities and to organize teams and competitions in this setting. Getting good facilities, good players, and good competition was a challenge for all

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sports in northern Ontario because of the low population base that supported sports and the distances players had to travel for competitions. Despite this, the area produced many great players and winning teams.

elite and middle-class sports The elite have always enjoyed the sports that are too expensive for the working class or even the middle class to participate in. In North Bay only the elite had the funds to engage in horseracing. Many more could enjoy the races as spectators, as the race track was located, until 1929, just on the edge of town west of High Street and could have been reached on foot. The fact that it was a commercialized sport, however, limited attendance to those who could afford the admission. Horse races with a purse of $1,900 were among the top crowd pleasers during the ohw celebrations in August 1925. The racetrack was improved with the addition of a new judges’ stand and safety cables to protect onlookers from the horses for these events.9 The first race was well attended; high-profile attendees included Hon. J. Lyon, G. Nicholson, Dr Harcourt, mla, Mayor McDonald, and John Ferguson.10 When North Bay College opened in 1931 on the land where the race track had been located, the track did not reopen elsewhere. Golf was also an elite sport in most cities. A golf course required a large expanse of land, was costly to set up, and entailed expensive club and green fees. These costs, along with the time required to play eighteen holes of golf, ensured that in its early development, “golf was played almost exclusively by members of the upper class.”11 Although some cities established municipal courses, allowing for wider participation in the game, this was not the case in North Bay. Local reference to horseshoe pitching as “barnyard golf” confirms in the negative that golf was seen as an exclusive game, whereas horseshoes were readily accessible and most backyards could accommodate a pitch.12 The North Bay Golf Club was located well outside the city and could only be reached by those with cars. The North Bay club had 159 members and was in good financial standing in 1925. It elected Senator George Gordon as its president, W. Armstrong as vice-president, and L.S. Clarke as secretary-treasurer.13 The highest-rated course in Northern Ontario, the North Bay Golf Club hosted an annual championship tournament for the McLaren Cup in September,14 and the club was prominently featured on a

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The Golf Club, North Bay, Ontario. This was one of a set of fifteen views of North Bay produced for the tourism industry in the late 1930s. Souvenir Views of North Bay, Ontario – Canada. A Dominion Series View Book.

tourist map published in The Key to the North15 in 1931. It was also included in a set of views of North Bay produced for sale to tourists. The fact that in 1935 the club held its annual meeting in the grillroom of the Empire Hotel gives a clear indication of the elite status of its members.16 By 1935 a number of different competitions were held at the club. Their season opened with an annual “president versus vice-president competition” held on Jubilee Day.17 Members competed for the Laurent Cup against the Idylwylde Club of Sudbury in June, the Loblaw Cup in July, the Club Championship in the fall, and for the J.J. O’Connor Trophy.18 The C.J. Sanders Cup brought golfers from Haileybury to North Bay to compete, and a return match was held in Haileybury.19 Top golfing honours in that period went to Bob Lee, the son of George W. Lee (chairman of the t&no Railway), who won the Northern Ontario Golf Association championship in 1927, 1931, 1933, and 1935.20 The golf story from the North Bay Golf Course that got the widest press coverage, however, was Maurice Regimbal’s hole-in-one in 1929. Maurice was a caddy at the course and was only

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nine years old at the time. His father worked for the Nugget and the story was sent over the wire to Canadian Press. It was picked up by a number of papers including the New York Times.21 Tennis was more accessible than golf. In 1935 there were four tennis clubs in North Bay, one for each railway company and one at the public high school. The courts opened in early May and a championship series was planned for the end of the season.22 A special exhibition tournament of seven tennis matches was held as part of the LionsRotary Community Service Day (1 July) celebrations, and a team from Temiskaming was brought in for the event.23 In July six teams competed in a men’s doubles tournament at the t&no club, which Ab Hansman and Jimmy Richardson won.24 A women’s tournament soon followed. Other competitions included a mixed double, a women’s single, and a men’s single event in which a father-son match between local businessman John Richardson and his son George was highly anticipated. Altogether the three railway clubs had about 150 members.25 Membership in these clubs was probably affordable to most middle-class workers. Curling kept its popularity after the war and the opening of an inter-city match between Sudbury and North Bay for the annual Traders’ Bank Cup was front-page news in 1925.26 The North Bay Curling Club belonged to the Northern Curling Association (nca). Facilities for curling had existed since 1907 when the North Bay Rink Company opened at the corner of Main and Murray. When the nca held its bonspiel in North Bay in 1925 the six events occupied eighteen rinks in town.27 Rivalry between teams in the area was keen and trophies such as the Thompson-Cockburn Cup much disputed.28 The donation of the new George W. Lee trophy, offered to the best rink along the t&no lines, added to the competition. The first winner was the W. Snyder’s rink of the North Bay Curling Club after it defeated the Haileybury curlers 14–13 in the finals.29 There was also the Gordon Cup, won in 1925 by Rev. J. Pritchard’s rink.30 Despite hard times, enthusiasm did not wane during the Depression, and in 1935 the club was doing very well. Eight rinks within the club made up a separate cpr Curling League, which competed for the Hambley Cup.31 North Bay sent a rink to the fifth annual bonspiel of the t&no Curling Association, held in Noranda, Quebec, in 1935, with sixty-four participating rinks.32 North Bay teams also competed against each other for the Board of Trade, Gordon, Wetmore, McCool, and Milne cups.33 In February the club held an invitational bonspiel

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and received rinks from Capreol, Sudbury, Sturgeon Falls, New Liskeard, and Kirkland Lake. Six rinks from North Bay participated, for a total of fourteen.34 Curling was relatively expensive because it required good indoor ice. After the 1928 fire that destroyed the Arena Rink, the club built its own facility. The North Bay Curling & Athletic Company Limited was incorporated and capitalized at $40,000. It built a rink with four sheets of ice and a clubroom on Worthington Street West.35 Although we have no membership information for the club, in 1925 it chose William Milne, a well-known lumber merchant, as its representative to travel with the Canadian Curlers when they visited the Royal Caledonia Club in Scotland.36 Club membership fees in 1935 were set at $10 for beginners, $12 for second-year players, $15 for third-year players, and at $10 for clergy, travelling businessmen and others who could not play in a scheduled fashion.37 When the club made its plans for the new season in 1935, it hoped to have about 130 members and soon found that it would have 150, about thirty of whom were part of a group from the cpr who hoped to play Wednesdays and Saturdays. Those who could afford to curl, therefore, were probably office workers at the railways, businesspeople, and professionals. While curlers were not a large group, they were enthusiastic and very competitive, thereby contributing to community spirit. The Laurentian Ski Club was organized in 1925 by a group of enthusiasts – primarily office workers at the t&no Railway – and it existed for some time before settling on the Laurentian Heights site.38 The small group who formed the club used informal recruitment techniques to bring more of their co-workers into the sport. Skiing can be a solitary recreational sport, but the construction of a clubhouse helped make it a more social activity and the organization of races made it more competitive. A number of races were held in 1935 for both junior and senior skiers, male and female,39 and cross-country “hikes” were also planned. The sport was just beginning to organize in 1935. That year the club president attended a meeting in Huntsville held to find ways to make the sport more popular: “To standardize and develop skiing in all its branches and to put the sport on a provincial wide foundation, is the purpose of this meeting, which will be the first of its kind ever held in Ontario. Twenty clubs, representing all sections of the province have already promised to send delegates, and in all likelihood this number will be increased. It is hoped that the outcome of the sessions will be the formation of an Ontario organization to

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control the sport which is rapidly gaining in popularity.”40 That winter, a number of articles appeared in the Nugget whose goal was to promote skiing among those who had never tried it.41 Although skiing did require special equipment and the Laurentian Club hill was some distance away, it was possible to ski to the hill from town if necessary. Ruth Taylor often skied to the hill from as far away as her home in West Ferris. She started skiing when she got to high school and the girls she chummed with were skiers. And those girls all skied, so I started skiing. This is in high school. I guess I was in about second or third form when I – some of them were in my classes – I started chumming around with them and we’d go ski up to Laurentian. My dad still didn’t have a car, and you couldn’t take your skis on the bus, so I would ski from my place on Whitney Avenue and over to Second Avenue and pick up the girls ... We’d ski cross country out to the club and ski all the way back, and then do the same thing, maybe go up Friday night. Sometimes I stayed at my grandmother’s – she let me stay there – and then I’d go skiing the next day. That was lots of fun. Then we’d get together at ... a restaurant on Main Street [for] a coffee or a coke or something. Dinty Elliott was an avid skier who started when he was about eight years old, only a few years after the club had been organized. He remembered the social aspects of it as well: We skied – that was our winter – we skied up there, and [on the] trails all across the ridge up there. Skiing was a big thing for us when we were kids. It was a big attraction for us. We used to have a little orchestra, the ski club. We used to go and ski at night, using lamps to light up the hill. I got a can full of oil with a wick in it, and we’d put it on different places on the hill so we could see. And after we skied we’d come into the chalet and had a little makeshift orchestra. We had a great time. Once they were at the hill, they had to walk back up after every ski down as well. As Lois Douglas recalled: “In those days we had to walk up with our lunch, carrying our skis over our back. You had to walk up the hill to get back down. It was great, though. It was worth

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it, every bit of it. I’d be about 11 or 12.” By the thirties some skiers, including Dinty Elliott, were learning to jump. We had a little jump where the Laurentian clubhouse is down at the bottom. There was a jump hill there. And over further there was a regular big jump with a tower and all this and we used to jump. I used to jump, and my friends who I went to school with. We had a trainer from Timiskaming, Quebec, who came down and used to teach us how to jump. I guess the longest jump would have been about a hundred and forty feet. The only problem was it would come right out onto the road, and when you hit the landing hill you’re almost on the road. It was a dangerous thing that way, but we jumped there. We had a lot of fun, we did that for a lot of years. It would be about [nineteen] thirty-five, thirty-six. Sports such as these emerged and continued in North Bay thanks to local enthusiasts who supported the clubs and facilities that made them possible. The cost of developing facilities was borne by the clubs themselves. Office and railway workers and the business elite who supported these sports used their leisure time to support and promote their favourite sports. Because of the climate, most individuals probably had a winter sport as well as a summer one. Involvement with a sport such as skiing or golf might begin during high school or at an even younger age and while it involved competition for some, could continue as recreational activity for many years.

women and sports Sports historians have noted that the 1920s were the heyday of women in sports. The bicycle had helped to revolutionize women’s clothing for sports and their participation in active sports had become much easier. During the First World War and the 1920s and 1930s, women’s softball became particularly popular.42 Joan Sangster has shown the significance of women’s softball at Westclox in Peterborough, not just to the company but also to the women themselves.43 Women in North Bay benefited from the greater openness to women’s participation in sport at this time and participated widely. No women’s team achieved the same level of skill or celebrity, however, as the Rinkey Dinks, the softball team that played through the late

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1920s and early 1930s, winning the provincial championship in 1929. To have played with the Rinkey Dinks was a lifetime accomplishment. This is evident in the obituary of Sybil Margaret Carr, whose status as “pitcher on the Ontario Championship Rinkey Dinks baseball team” is recognized alongside other achievements such as becoming an Associate of the Toronto Conservatory of Music.44 Although the Rinkey Dinks were famous locally in the 1920s, they won the provincial championships only in 1929 and they have not received much recognition outside the local area. Sudbury’s virtual museum acknowledges their supremacy: “In 1931, Sudbury’s baseball team, sponsored by the Sudbury Canoe Club, challenged the Rinkey Dinks of North Bay to a match for the coveted Ferguson Cup, the championship cup of the Northern Ontario Ladies’ Softball Association. Unfortunately, they were defeated.”45 In 1929, when they became Northern Ontario champions and went on to beat the Owen Sound Wawanekas (Wawas) to become provincial intermediate champions, their final game and victory received coverage in Toronto’s Globe, as did their defeat by Toronto the following year.46 It was in the Nugget that they received the most press attention, but even there, articles that treated them as seriously as men’s teams were the exception rather than the rule. As Don Morrow and Kevin Wamsley write: “Newspaper accounts of sport competitions judged women first by beauty, then by character and deportment, and last by performance.”47 The Rinkey Dinks existed as a city league team as early as 1925;48 however, the Northern Ontario Women’s Softball Association (nowsa) was not formed until 1929. This Association brought together existing leagues as far west as Sault Ste Marie, as far east as Chalk River, and as far north as Cochrane. G.H. Ferguson donated an annual trophy for the association. He was also elected honorary president. North Bay was also well represented on the executive by Mrs W. Larden of North Bay as president, Mrs I. Kelly as second vicepresident, Mrs A.M. Fellman as secretary, and Miss Greta Finlay as assistant secretary. The organization of the nowsa increased the level of competition, as League winners in each area could then have playoffs for the Ferguson Cup, the winner of which would challenge the southern champions for a provincial title.49 In 1929 the Rinkey Dinks played in the North Bay City League against teams such as the cpr Women and the Zipps.50 In July the team remained undefeated. On one occasion they defeated the cpr Women 10–1 in a game that lasted only forty minutes.51 Other teams

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were not as organized, and the opposing Zipps once had to play with volunteers from the bleachers.52 At the end of the season, with seventy-four players in the league, the Rinkey Dinks had the best leage batting averages by a large margin, and six of the top ten batters came from the Rinkey Dinks. Frances Larden and Dot Gore topped the list.53 By September they had won the City League and had started playing in the nowsa championship series. Their game against Chalk River at Wallace Park in front of a “fair sized” gallery was strangely received in the press in spite of their 27–9 victory. The banner headline of the sports section read: “Rinkey Dinks Eliminate Chalk River in Weird Exhibition of Softball.” The article headline continued: “Both Teams Were Woefully Weak at Bat and in Field.” Vada Lee played well, hitting the only home run of the game, but injured her ankle. Sybil Carr, who pitched for the Rinkey Dinks, was reported as “the only shining light on the winning side.”54 While their playing clearly received mixed reviews, the Rinkey Dinks went on to win the Northern Championship. In the playoffs for the provincial intermediate championship the Rinkey Dinks faced the Owen Sound Wawas for a best of three games. The Wawas won their first home game with a 14–4 victory but at Wallace Park in front of a crowd of 2,500 the Rinkey Dinks rallied and defeated them by a score of 9–1. Key players were Gore, who hit two home runs, Finlay, who fielded well, and Fellman, who pitched and fielded well despite a knee injury.55 In the return game at Orillia, the Rinkey Dinks took a large lead in the fourth inning and held it throughout the game. Gore’s home run in the second inning put her in the limelight, and her team defeated the Wawas 16–6 to win the Ontario Intermediate championships.56 Not only was this their first championship win but it was also the first time a North Bay team in any sport had won a provincial championship. The remarkable achievement of the Rinkey Dinks did not pass unnoticed in North Bay. On Saturday 26 October 1929, the team was treated to an elaborate victory parade and civic tribute that was “second only to the displays of Old Home Week in colour and magnitude.”57 The parade gathered near Pro-Cathedral and marched down Main Street to Sherbrooke Street before continuing to Wallace Park. Three bands played. A city fire truck and decorated cars carrying the mayor, city council members, city officials, and the executives of softball organizations, civic and service clubs, and “others prominent in

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civic activities” led the parade. The Rinkey Dinks and other softball teams were on decorated floats wearing their uniforms. Other floats, including a very elaborate one by the Board of Trade, and a long stream of decorated cars extended the parade to more than a mile. With an eye to future publicity, the city had the parade and the entire event filmed, using two cameras by Associated Screen News on behalf of the Capitol Theatre, which would show the films only a week later. This was not just about the Rinkey Dinks; it was also about the city. Mayor E.L. Banner’s address to the large crowd emphasized the honour the team had brought to the city. He also brought up the defeat of the Trappers hockey team to Owen Sound in 1924 and suggested that this present victory had helped compensate for that loss. Although on the surface this seems like a positive statement, interposing this reference onto the celebration of women’s softball suggests that the mayor might have been more gratified by the victory of a men’s hockey team than by that of a women’s softball team. He finished by assuring his listeners that “the citizens are behind clean sport in all its branches.” To suggest that some sports were “clean” implies that others were not. At the very least, this statement reflects the prevalent middle-class attitude that amateur sports were somehow more pure than professional sports. The response to the mayor was not given by a member of the team but by their manager, Dan Saya. On behalf of the team he thanked the city for the wonderful reception and all compliments. He pointed out that the championship had not been won without hardship and sacrifices, and recognized that many in the crowd had helped along the way. He acknowledged the positive role played by the owsa in giving the team a “bye” to compete in the finals the previous year and by giving Northern Ontario “permission” to form the nowsa. Saya also thanked the Nugget for its generous coverage of the Ladies’ Softball City League over the past season. He went on to assure the crowd that the Rinkey Dinks had been worthy representatives of North Bay, conducting themselves as “real sportsmen,” and adding that when on the diamond, they had “always played the game[,] and off the diamond they [had] been perfect ladies.” The need to reassure the crowd in this manner again reflects the persisting need to view women athletes as women first and athletes second. The intermediate trophy was presented by Mrs W. Larden, president of the nowsa, and accepted by team captain, Frances Larden,

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who spoke a few words and thanked the people for their support. Medals were presented by the nowsa to Rinkey Dinks members, their coaches were introduced, and congratulations were conveyed by Senator Gideon Robertson, Harry Morel, mla, and J.H. McDonald, president of the North Bay Board of Trade. This was the most celebrated moment in North Bay sports history in this period. For the first time a provincial championship had been brought back to North Bay despite several previous attempts. The fact that it was for women’s softball rather than hockey was perhaps a little surprising, as hockey had been organized much longer. The organization of the nowsa in 1929 was clearly an important gain for northern teams as it forced a playoff between the northern and southern teams every year, thereby increasing the chances of a northern win. The strong presence of women from North Bay on the executive of the nowsa may also have been a factor in their success. The coaching they received must also have been excellent.58 While much of the credit must be given to the women themselves, who were outstanding players and put a lot of time and energy into the sport, this win represented the efforts of more than the players themselves. As their manager pointed out, it had not just been sunshine and roses, but this victory was certainly one of the rosy moments. The Rinkey Dinks were able to maintain their team until 1931 but as the Depression continued it became harder to field women’s softball teams. In May 1935 the Nugget announced that Macdonald’s Beverages was the only women’s softball team in North Bay and that if another team did not sign up before 8 July they would go to the northern softball playoffs without contest.59 Women at the cpr rallied and put forward a team, the Ceepees, as did the Orioles, coached by Dom Cangiano.60 The Ceepees practised hard and had a number of exhibition games during the ohw celebrations in August.61 They did not make it to the northern playoffs but did play a number of games against out-of-town teams over the summer.62 Other towns must have faced similar difficulties, and in 1937 the nowsa folded as well. With the exception of two years after the war, women’s softball then disappeared from the scene until 1960.63 The 1920s were truly a golden age for women’s softball in North Bay. Among the sports that opened up for women in the 1920s was women’s hockey. In the winter of 1925 a women’s hockey league was organized in the area, and North Bay women participated in several games against Mattawa. The fact that women had trouble getting ice

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time, however, limited the number of games they could play. As we have already seen, many women skied in the winter and others were active in curling. A number of indoor sports were also available during the winter, including disking, badminton, and basketball. Disking was particularly popular in 1935 when it was introduced to the Normal School girls, and they competed against other city teams. Basketball was also very competitive, with both city and school teams being organized. By the 1920s the days of keeping women out of sports because it was considered an unsuitable activity for them were left behind. Sports were still largely viewed as an opportunity to develop and show off the virtues of masculinity, however, and they remained a more comfortable place for men than women. North Bay women benefited from the national surge in interest in women’s sports, especially softball, in the 1920s, but this level of participation was more difficult to maintain during the Great Depression.

popular team sports: hockey and baseball While hockey was a late arrival on the Candian sports scene, it quickly became considered Canada’s national game. In the interwar years, as today, the game was played throughout the country every winter by players of all ages – boys and girls, men and women. The level of play varied from very informal shinny games to the professional games of the National Hockey League. The Northern Ontario Hockey Association (noha) was founded in 1919 and was affiliated as a league to the Ontario Hockey League (oha). In North Bay, the Gordon Cup, donated by Senator George Gordon in 1913 as a “Challenge Cup,” was reassigned to the Intermediate Series for Championship League competition or the winners of the “a” series.64 The initial terms of the affiliation with the oha recognized the top northern teams as being at the intermediate level only. A junior series was also established. Players in noha teams had to maintain their amateur status and meet residency requirements, which was not without causing difficulties for many teams.65 North Bay’s noha team in the junior series was the Trappers. In 1923 a Bantam League for boys fifteen and under was added.66 North Bay and other larger centres in the north would have liked to have a team in the senior series as well, which would have allowed them to play for the coveted Allan Cup. In the 1920s, as the number of National Hockey League (nhl) teams grew

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and took the best players from the nohl, this possibility became increasingly unrealistic.67 Hockey became a spectator sport supported by enthusiastic fans as well as participants. In 1923–24, after the Trappers won the Copeland Cup for the junior series in a spectacular season, they went on to play in the Ontario finals against the Owen Sound Greys in a suddendeath play-off game. Hundreds of fans went with the team to Toronto, and thousands gathered at the town hall and at local theatres and hotels where the scores, relayed by telegraph, were posted.68 Unfortunately, they were defeated 4–2. In 1924–25, the Town Junior League was organized to take in players up to twenty years of age who did not make it into the Trappers. The enthusiasm for the sport was such that six teams were organized: cpr, t&no, St Pats, St Mary’s, Palangio’s, Greyhounds, and Collegiate. The Nugget donated a new trophy for this league’s champions called the Nugget Shield,69 and the newly formed North Bay Lions Club provided a cup for the most valuable player in the junior division.70 In 1925 the town league competition opened in January to about three hundred excited fans. Mayor McDonald, addressing this crowd, expressed hopes that the town league would be a wonderful recreational attraction.71 Not only did this league survive but it also reorganized in the 1930–31 season as the North Bay Junior Hockey League with three age categories: junior (16–20), juvenile (14–16) and midget (under 14). The juvenile teams would compete for the new Richardson Cup.72 In 1932 the league changed its name to the North Bay Hockey League (nbhl) and included a bantam category as well. Although two of the original junior teams had disbanded, four junior teams remained.73 During the 1934–35 season, 320 boys played hockey under the association.74 All the public schools had outdoor rinks built with the help of relief workers that winter.75 This expansion in the organization of the game indicates continued support for players at all levels and made hockey the only sport in the area in which players could begin young and move up the ranks of the game. Unfortunately for North Bay, trouble emerged at the highest organizational level. The destruction of the Arena Rink by fire on 14 May 1928 meant that the Trappers had lost their home ice, and noha play required a covered rink. The franchise remained dormant for a few years, and in 1933–34 the nbhl offered to form a junior all-star team to play in the noha playoffs.76 In 1935, however, the noha brought in rules against such packing of teams for the playoffs.77 Luckily for the

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Trappers, North Bay’s new covered arena opened the following year and they were able to make a comeback, although they did not make a good showing that first year.78 They climbed back to the top to take the noha title in 1938–39, but then the team was dissolved the following year.79 The struggle for a covered arena was clearly one of biggest challenges hockey enthusiasts faced in North Bay. When the Arena Rink burned down, everyone assumed that it would be replaced quickly. The first attempt by a rink syndicate to raise funds fell through. A new drive for funds to build a stadium with artificial ice was underway when the stock market crashed in May 1929, taking with it the hopes for the new arena.80 Almost every year for eight years new plans surfaced but it would be 1936 before North Bay would have a covered arena again. In the meantime, a “sheltered” rink dubbed the “Ideal” arena was built at Wallace Park in 1933.81 An even larger rink opened in 1935, a 215-foot structure with covered runways on both sides and at one end for fans to stand. It also boasted a separate waiting room (77 feet by 12 feet) with two stoves where fans could warm up between periods. The ice surface itself was 185 feet by 85 feet. The use of relief workers to build it82 kept the expected cost to under $500.83 The second Ideal Rink in Wallace Park may well have had to serve for some time had it not been for the opening of the Powassan Community Skating Rink in 1935. Because of the advantages of playing under cover, an increasing number of games that would normally have been held in North Bay were played in Powassan. To make matters worse, some were referring to North Bay’s noha team, the Trappers, as the “Powassan Trappers.” This refuelled the enthusiasm for an arena in North Bay. In 1936, as the economy began to recover with the help of the tourism industry and film production stimulated by the Dionne quintuplets, the North Bay Rink and Auditorium Company came up with a plan for a 2,000-seat arena, and the city gave its permission for it to be built at Wallace Park. It opened 5 December 1936 to a packed house of 2,500, who watched a game between the Sudbury Frood Mine Tigers and the Falconbridge Falcons, the team that local hockey star Ab DeMarco played with at the time. The construction of the new North Bay Arena (later called Memorial Gardens, and King Street Arena when the new Memorial Gardens was built) cost about $20,000. Its innovative feature was the “Hipel” framework, which allowed it to be built without posts, which otherwise would obstruct the view.84 Despite the enthusiasm for hockey, a municipally funded arena had

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been out of the question when unemployment relief took up all available resources. League games may have provided the best hockey, but they were far from the only game in town. Many ordinary hockey players also wanted a chance to play. Informal games organized by various businesses had served that purpose for years. In 1933–34 an official Industrial League was organized to meet that need. City Senior League players were not allowed to play, and only two players per team could be exempted from the requirement of working for the sponsor. The original six teams were: Post Office 1, Post Office 2, Bankers, Hydro, Plumbers, and North Bay Garage.85 In 1934–35 the previous year’s winners of the Seiberling Cup, North Bay Garage, joined the Senior League, and their place in the Industrial League was taken by the cnr. Post Office, Bankers, Plumbers, Hydro, and GambleRobinsons made up the remaining teams. Industrial League games were played at the Vocational School rink, and could bring in as many as 150 fans.86 The Senior City League also had six teams: North Bay Garage, Polar Bears, t&no, LaSalles, Normal School, and Benard’s Taxi. At the Junior City level, the Collegiate, t&no, North Bay College, and Callander teams competed.87 The new rink at Wallace Park had forty-two scheduled games, or five games a week.88 In 1935, thanks to the rinks built with relief labour, all the public schools also had teams. Five junior and five senior teams signed up for the league, age and weight being the determining factors: “Juniors must be under 12 years and under 90 pounds on the night of the opening game. For the seniors, there will be no limit.”89 The separate schools soon followed suit. Unlike the public school league, only one team was allowed per school (St Rita’s, St Joseph’s, St Mary’s, St Vincent de Paul), but the rules regarding division of teams between junior and senior were similarly based on age and weight. All players had to pass their classes and behave well in order to remain on their hockey teams.90 This brought the number of youth hockey teams in the city to twenty-five, with over 250 kids playing hockey.91 Local churches also organized teams.92 Exhibition games, especially those with well-known teams, were also very popular. In 1935 the Sudbury Cub Wolves, thought to be heading to the Memorial Cup playoffs, played an exhibition game against t&no and Collegiate club players to a large audience. Such games also helped increase the gate proceeds, which helped to pay for the rink.93 Over 2,500 fans attended some of the more popular games.

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The North Bay Garage Hockey Team, 1935. Hockey was the most popular winter sport in North Bay. The organization of an Industrial League in 1933–34 gave more working men a chance to play. Hartley Trussler’s North Bay Garage team was one of the founding teams of the Industrial League. Photo by Noel Studio. Courtesy of Paul Trussler.

Challenges, although more common in the days before leagues were established, could still be issued. Sturgeon Falls Separate School, for example, issued a challenge to the best separate school team in North Bay: “Rev. Father G. L. Smith, of Sturgeon Falls, issued the challenge on behalf of the team, and requested The Nugget to print the defy in the sport section. The Sturgeon Falls boys wish to meet North Bay’s most formidable Separate School squad in home-and-home games.”94 The Separate School League was happy to pick up the challenge.95 After their victory, Sturgeon Falls decided to up the ante and challenged the winners of the public school championship to a game: “Father Smith also wishes to make it known that he has juvenile, bantam, and midget squads in Sturgeon Falls which, he claims, will give any sextet from the Gateway City a stiff battle.”96 Although Sturgeon Falls was not close enough to be part of the regular competitions in North Bay, these challenges gave their players a chance to play other teams. Another Sturgeon Falls challenge came from the Willys, who

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beat the North Bay LaSalles in an exhibition game.97 Fun games like the one in Callander, where the married men defeated the single men in two straight games and followed their victory with a banquet and dance in honour of the victors,98 were perhaps more common when the game was less organized. Such games did continue, but were not as likely to get press coverage. When the Nugget office played shinny hockey, Front Office vs Back Shop, in March of 1935, with the Front Office winning 97–14, however, it was reported in the paper along with the fact that the game had to played without skates because there was no ice on Tompkins rink.99 A game held on Saturday afternoon at Ideal Arena between North Bay Travellers’ Club and Nugget staff also seems to have been just for fun, and not part of any league play.100 As well as encouraging local games, North Bay cheered on the careers of their local “lads” who went on to play elsewhere. Ab Demarco, for example, after playing for the t&no junior team, played for the Barrie Colts in the Ontario Hockey League. “Demarco is one of the cleverest stickhandlers developed here in many years, and it will not come as a surprise to North Bay fans to know that his services were in demand by outside teams,” wrote the Nugget.101 There were many others including Pete Palangio, “Pep” Kelly, Bob Gracie, Stan Brown and Duke Keats,102 and these players continued to support North Bay teams whenever they could. The annual Lions Club Hockey Banquet, at which the Lions Club Sportsmanship Trophy and others were awarded, marked the end of the hockey season in North Bay. The tenth such annual event in 1935 was held in the Grillroom of Empire Hotel with about two hundred players, coaches, and managers in attendance. As a special treat for the young players, local sports figures Regis “Pep” Kelly and Pete Palangio were also present.103 At the Midget level, Mrs J.C. Nicholson, the wife of the manager hosted a party for the players of the Black Hawks, the midget hockey champions of North Bay. They were served dinner and treated to games and boxing matches.104 Canada’s national game was definitely played with enthusiasm in North Bay and area. As in the rest of the country, maintaining amateur associations in the face of the growing professionalization of the game was not easy. Places like North Bay lost their best players to the Ontario Hockey League or the nhl, and North Bay was particularly disadvantaged by its years without a covered arena. Municipal funds were not available for such a venture in the interwar years; however, fans and players continued to show up throughout this period to play

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on outdoor rinks regardless of their dependence on the weather for good ice and pleasant playing conditions. Leagues were not limited to those belonging to the official nbhl but emerged at schools, churches, and clubs as well. As elsewhere, hockey was essentially a male sport. Women did play hockey in the 1920s, and in 1938–39 a women’s hockey club was organized at St Joseph’s Academy, the North Bay Orioles.105 These games however, were “women’s hockey” and general references to “hockey” were indisputably to the male game. The popularity of hockey was such that summer sports paled in comparison. Lacrosse was never revived after the First World War, except for exhibition games at special occasions such as ohw. Baseball became the major summer team sport for men instead. While it was played on holidays and for events such as ohw (chapter 10), some considered it mainly as an activity to keep hockey players in shape through the summer. Representatives of the t&no Boys’ Club, the Greyhounds and the Senators, for example, organized a junior league for boys 16 to 20 chiefly to provide a summer sport for the hockey players of the Town Junior Hockey League. This league would use both Amelia and Wallace parks as venues.106 In April 1925, a town league was organized, a misplaced trophy was found, and the town league again competed for the Councillors’ Cup. The three teams in the town league represented the three major employers, the railways. Shortly thereafter, the league expanded and Sturgeon Falls and Callander were approached to provide teams. Callander was the first to sign on, and Trout Creek and Sturgeon Falls were expected to do likewise. Although the town league had started playing in April, the official opening of the baseball season was held on the Victoria Day holiday at the end of May. After opening ceremonies, Wallace Park was the scene of a double bill that pitted the t&no team against the cnr, and the cpr against Callander.107 By June, however, the league was facing problems as the result of a controversial decision by the executive of the Inter-Town league. Even though this was resolved by late August, interest in the league had waned despite a brief spike of interest over ohw.108 Ten years later there were still difficulties in organizing a baseball league for the summer. Players from several teams had left the city. The association elected J.J. McDonald as its president and received applications from four teams to participate: The Pirates, t&no, cpr, and LaSalles. The beginning of the season was delayed, however,

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because the Pirates were not sure they wanted to reorganize. In the end both the Pirates and the cpr team withdrew and that left the association looking for more entries. To further complicate matters, Penetang demanded that the Pirates pay off the $100 fine that they had neglected to pay the previous year. The Ontario Baseball Amateur Association (obaa) threatened suspension if the money was not paid.109 The obaa also discussed the possibility of establishing a junior baseball league, but although there was enough interest to form a three-team league, businesses willing to outfit a club were not numerous enough to go forward. Only the cpr had expressed its willingness to do so.110 By May the baseball season finally got underway. Three games played at Amelia Park for the Victoria Day celebrations raised enough funds to pay off the debt to Penetang.111 These games were a huge success: “Though financial returns were not extremely high, the officials were highly pleased with the affair. Approximately 2000 persons were at Amelia Park for the ball games in the afternoon, and though only a small percentage of the crowd contributed to the coffer, the officials were satisfied with everything in general.”112 League and exhibition games were played through the summer.113 In July the Nugget reported: “With only four more games to go before the end of the regular schedule is reached, the fans are now starting to come out in somewhat larger numbers.”114 League teams participated in several games in the context of ohw in early August. At the end of the regular season, the two best teams, t&no and cpr, competed in the city baseball championships: “The railway clubs will fight it out in a best three-out-of-five game affair. The survivors will be eligible to represent this city in the Ontario Baseball Amateur Association intermediate ‘B’ playdowns.”115 The final game, in which t&no beat cpr 10–0 to become “City Baseball Champions,” was described in detail in the paper.116 Their next challenge was to defeat the winners of the Nickel Belt championship, Coniston. Although they did not emerge as the winners, the t&no played their final game in Sudbury before 1,000 fans.117 The railway clubs clearly played a key role in baseball as they had in other sports, but during the Depression, it was difficult to keep such activities going. George Thompson, while not a baseball player, is recognized in the North Bay Sports Hall of Fame for having helped keep baseball alive in North Bay during the “tough times” of the twenties, thirties, and forties. He was secretary-treasurer of the cpr

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Junior and Senior Pirates and of the North Bay and District Baseball Association in the 1930s. He helped find jobs for local and out-oftown players, managed league funds, found umpires, laid out diamonds, collected the silver collection, looked after the oba cards, and handled administrative duties.118 North Bay had its share of good baseball players over the years. Charles Louvain “Smokey” Guenette played baseball for twenty years and reached the Northern and Provincial finals, playing third base for teams like the t&no and the cpr. He was involved in many other sports as well.119 Another excellent player was Harry Preston, “one of the city’s finest baseball pitchers back in the heyday of the sport in the thirties.” Starting at the age of fourteen, he went on to play in the North Bay and District League, pitching both the t&no and the Pirates to City titles. Twice, he went on to All Ontario finals. In 1934 North Bay lost out to Penetang in the deciding game in front of 3,000 fans at Amelia Park, by a score of 1–0 in twelve innings. Preston declined an offer to join the Maple Leafs in Toronto to stay in North Bay, where he worked for Canadian Longyear.120 Jack Russell, who remembered going to baseball games with his father, the manager of the t&no team, singled out Preston as a “great player” from this period. In the period from 1920 to 1940, there were, according to William Kennedy, two outstanding highlights to baseball in North Bay. The first was the 1932 win of the cpr Pirates at the city level, which allowed the team to compete in the obaa finals against Southhampton in Orillia.121 The second occasion that fans would never forget was the 1934 pitching competition at Amelia Park between Preston of the cpr Pirates and Phil Marchildon of Penetang.122 Four years later, when it was thought that Marchildon would be considered by the Maple Leafs, the Globe reporter still highlighted this game: “Marchildon first entered fame with his home town of Penetang. He was the big gun with the Penetangers when they met the North Bay Pirates in the O.B.A. playoffs four years ago. It was Marchildon’s brilliant arm that almost alone carried Penetang to victory over the Pirates in a thrilling season.”123 It is interesting to note that George Richardson of North Bay was also considered good enough to try out with the Maple Leafs at this time as well. The people of North Bay and other nearby centres participated in a wide variety of sports in the 1920s and 1930s. Organized sports that

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were competitive and had spectator appeal received the most attention in the local press. While hockey was clearly the most popular sport, curling, baseball, softball, soccer, rugby football, basketball, and volleyball were all played as organized team sports. Golf and skiing were individual sports; golf was well established, whereas skiing was just beginning to organize in the 1930s. Boxing, lacrosse, and competitive swimming received a fair amount of exposure in 1935 during ohw celebrations but their status at other times is not known. Bowling, badminton, and disking, were primarily recreational activities. Bicycle races and marksmanship competitions received only passing mention. Horseracing, still popular in 1925, had disappeared by 1935. While the task of following each sport in detail is beyond the scope of this work, it is clear that in the study area, especially North Bay, sports followed national trends. Participants were competitive, and top-level teams and players wanted to compete regionally and provincially, not just in local leagues. Railway transportation facilitated travel for inter-city competitions and many regional trophies were eagerly contested each year. Many sports moved away from the informal system of challenges and exhibition games of the early days to more organized championship series. The creation of northern associations allowed for regular championship series to be played and their winners were then able to challenge for all-Ontario titles. In 1935 alone, three northern titles came to North Bay – in rugby, softball and golf.124 These successes gave the best teams an opportunity to play against other strong teams and made possible many challenges to the status of individual players as opposing teams tried to improve their odds of winning. Individual teams went through periods of rise and fall, and most leagues had to reorganize on an annual basis. Although North Bay teams participated in many northern championships, only a few made it to the all-Ontario championships and fewer still brought that distinction home. The Rinkey Dinks women’s softball team was the first to do so. In most sports, teams did not play together very long, as the players grew up and moved away for jobs elsewhere. Women married and no longer played. The very best players moved into professional sports and could no longer play in amateur leagues. To excel in a sport over the long term and not just when a highly talented team or individual emerged, a level of support and organization that was generally unavailable at this time would have

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been required. Hockey was the only sport in North Bay that had midget and bantam leagues as well as junior and senior level play by the 1930s. Sports in the 1920s and 1930s received very little public support, and clubs and sports facilities had to pay their own way. The support of voluntary organizations and corporate sponsors was also critical. The first rinks and arenas were privately owned, but the first community gymnasium was built by a church. The high school gymnasium was the first publicly funded facility available for indoor sports. The new arena built in 1936 was constructed on city land but was privately funded. Industrial teams had the support of their sponsors. School teachers donated their own time to coach and referee school games. While sports in the 1920s and 1930s showed an increasing tendency to be commercialized as spectator sports, they were still largely community events with local players, local fans, and local supporters. In spite of this, or perhaps because of it, wide varieties of sports were available to participants and spectators alike in North Bay. The number of teams and individual players who achieved a high level of success was remarkable, given the context in which they played.

elebrations mmunity Life in Northeastern Ontario

10 Community Celebrations

Community celebrations, while they may appear to their participants as simply time off from work for play and fun, have long been seen by scholars as moments in community life which, when observed, can shed light on the values and social structure of that community. Celebrations, according to Frank Manning, include four defining elements: they are a performance, “a dramatic presentation of cultural symbols”; they provide entertainment; they are public with no social exclusion; and they are participatory.1 According to Emile Durkheim, holidays and rituals play an integrative role in society. Amitai Etzioni has recently suggested, however, that Durkheim’s assumption that all holidays play such a role cannot be maintained. While some holidays may do so, others will integrate one group and not others, or may even help to create boundaries between groups. Holidays can also be used to change the relationship between social groups, or between a social group and the larger society. Etzioni also differentiates between holidays that reaffirm shared beliefs, which he calls “recommitment holidays,” and those that do so only indirectly through a release of tension (“tension management holidays”). Holidays are therefore of interest both in their own right, and as sources of information on the society or community that celebrates them.2 In a similar manner, a community festival, “a special moment in civic life when a community reflects upon, celebrates, and ultimately presents an image of itself” to both the local and the visiting public,3 can provide significant insights into a community and its social structure. Historical studies of commemorative community celebrations have proliferated in recent years. In Canada, Viv Nelles’s close examination of the pageant performed for the tercentenary celebrations held in

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Quebec City in 1908 led the way and has been followed by numerous studies of commemorative and other community celebrations.4 The celebration of specific holidays such as the Queen’s Birthday, Labour Day, and Halloween have also been studied,5 but there is no current equivalent to Jack Santino’s All Around the Year for Canadian holidays. The public celebration of holidays in Canada in the Victorian era largely took the form of parades, speeches, and respectable entertainment such as team sports. Only a few national holidays emerged in this period. The Queen’s Birthday, celebrated on 24 May, was proclaimed as the Victoria Day national holiday in 1901.6 The 1 July celebration of Dominion Day was observed as a public holiday in many communities, but St Jean-Baptiste Day was considered the national holiday in Quebec. Labour Day was celebrated on the first Monday of September by organized labour for a number of years before it was granted as a national public holiday in 1894.7 The August Civic Holiday was proclaimed locally rather than nationally. The fall fair was another important community celebration in small towns associated with agriculture.8 Many communities held Old Boy reunions in the early twentieth century, some of which were transformed into the ohw celebrations that were very popular throughout Ontario in the 1920s and early 1930s.9 This chapter begins with an examination of calendar holidays and other local community events, including the fall fair, before turning to the salient community festivals of the period, North Bay’s first two ohw celebrations of 1925 and 1935.

the seasonal cycle of holidays In Canada holidays are associated with the summer months and outdoor activities. It is therefore fitting that we begin our examination of the seasonal cycle with Victoria Day, the first major civic holiday of the season, when hockey sticks give way to baseball bats and track and field events. In 1925 the Lions Club of North Bay opened their new playground at the west end of town on 23 May, and the mayor congratulated the Lions recreation committee, headed by Percy Doyle, for the work done. Several hundred children attended the ceremonies and enjoyed a full sports program, which featured the Collegiate Girls playing the Tumblers in an exhibition softball game. A luncheon was served by the Lions. In 1935 the Victoria Day holiday fell on a Friday and school children were given a day off in order to enjoy the ball games. Fireworks were also planned. The North Bay Baseball Association

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hosted a sports program at Amelia Park in the afternoon to mark the beginning of the 1935 season. Before the games, fans met with the players of the teams. Mayor Bullbrook and Harry Marceau, mla, were there for the opening ceremonies, attended by more than 2,000 fans. Three soccer games were held in the morning. St Brice’s Junior Chancel Guild celebrated the holiday with a hike to Lions Park and a campfire. Other groups may also have celebrated in a similar fashion. Overall it appears to have been a quiet celebration with a minimum of speeches and a maximum of sports. Many sports clubs held their first events of the season to coincide with this holiday.10 There were also private sporting traditions for Victoria Day. While in high school, Eva Wardlaw cycled to Sturgeon Falls with six of her friends, a distance of 37 kilometres, every Victoria Day. Her aunt, who owned a restaurant there, treated them to a meal, after which they returned home on the evening train. Cliff Alger’s father always took the family fishing on Victoria Day. Dominion Day had fewer traditions associated with it but grew in importance in response to events sponsored by local service clubs each year. In 1925 the Rotary and the Lions sponsored two baseball games at Wallace Park, softball, and children’s games. The Lions Club held a picnic at their new park. Locals may also have visited Sturgeon Falls for the horseracing events, or, they may have visited Callander to attend the picnic and baseball game held there.11 In 1935 the Rotary and the Lions billed their Dominion Day celebrations as their (second) annual Community Service Day, with proceeds going to help handicapped and poor children. Large crowds at Amelia Park and on Main Street watched the parade and, later in the day, a midway and street dancing entertained the crowds. A midnight show at the Capitol with dancing, singing, and comedy skits drew 1,100 people.12 A special train from Temiskaming for the day, as well as lower rates on other rail lines, encouraged visitors. At midnight, draws were held for a 1935 model Ford, a Beatty De Lux washing machine and a De Forrest Crosley radio.13 A full day of sporting events included “sea flea races, foot races, baseball, bicycle races, lacrosse, tennis and a tug-of-war.” North Bay, Temiskaming, and Falconbridge competed in a baseball tournament; North Bay and Sundridge competed in lacrosse. Visitors from Temiskaming entered the tennis matches.14 It is evident that by 1935 the organizational activities of the service clubs in North Bay had transformed 1 July into a much more substantial celebration than it had been in the past. Local baseball teams also participated in a

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tournament in Callander held as part of the annual picnic sponsored by St Alphonsus Church. Tourists as well as locals attended.15 Holidays were not just local events, therefore, but opportunities for sport teams to match up against other teams in the area and for visitors to come to town. The August civic holiday was usually celebrated in much the same way. In 1925 and 1935, however, this celebration was part of ohw, and it is considered in more detail below. Summer was also the time for company picnics and other outdoor events. The cpr brought its employees together at various locations within the region for a picnic each summer in the 1920s. In 1925 it was held in Sudbury on 18 July. In all, 3,000 cpr employees boarded the two special trains that took them from North Bay to participate in the event. The picnic featured a sports program, baseball and softball, and music provided by the North Bay Veterans’ Band. Employees, especially in the running trades, whose work-mates were not all located in the same place, had a chance to get together and socialize at this event. Their families also got a chance to see some of the territory they covered.16 A program for the 1928 picnic in Mattawa indicates that this picnic involved much organization. The “Officers” included an honorary president, eight honorary vice-presidents, a chairman, vice-chairman, secretary, and treasurer. Six committees were struck: transportation, finance, programme, sports, grounds, and refreshments. Meals would be served on the grounds: lunch by the Ladies of St Andrew’s Church and supper by the Ladies’ Aid of St Simon’s Church, at a cost of 50 cents for adults and 35 cents for juveniles. Tea was 10 cents a pot and hot water was free. Taxi service between the station and the grounds cost 25 cents for adults and 15 cents for children. Although music would be provided during the day by the Premier Band, the North Bay Kilty Band, and the Parisien Orchestra, sporting events were the main attraction. The most important of these was the Interdepartment Softball tournament for the cp Picnic Committee’s Shield: “This promises to be the outstanding feature of the Picnic. Car Shop have won the shield two years in succession.” Ladies Softball was also an important attraction. The Cartier Ladies would face off against the North Bay cpc Ladies. As an extra attraction, the Chalk River Ladies would meet the North Bay Senators. A wide variety of races was planned in the morning for boys and girls divided by age categories. Three-legged races, a wheelbarrow race, and a blindfold race added some humour to the competitions. Older boys would

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also have a pillow fight and a barrel-boxing competition. Adults had the opportunity, too, to race in many categories determined by gender, age, and work status – and for humour, a Fat Men’s race. There would also be field events and a Putting Shot competition. Finally, the oldest employee would get a box of cigars, and the mother with the largest family on the grounds would get $5.00.17 It was a full day. North Bay families boarded the train for Mattawa at 8:20 a.m. and left Mattawa at 8:00 p.m. Interviewee Jack Russell, whose father was a cpr shopkeeper, recalled going to these picnics as a child. He told us that this was a big event that everyone looked forward to in the summer, and that while the children were busy with their races and picnic lunch, the adults drank on the sly. The men all got away that day – those who could. It was exciting and something to look forward to. The picnic was still being held in 1935,18 but when interviewee Ken Unger started with the cpr in 1943 it was a thing of the past. The Italian War Veterans’ Association annual picnic was ethnic in nature and brought together Italian families for a day of entertainment. In 1935 nearly five hundred North Bay Italians attended the event held at Maple Beach and the Highway Lodge. “Outdoor sports, games and contests were enjoyed besides exhibitions of boxing, shooting and racing. The children participated in swimming and played on the beach.” Trucks transported the families to the beach. Dr J.R. Hurtubise, mp, and J. Harry Marceau, mla for Nipissing, attended the noon banquet at Highway Lodge. In the evening, Cangiano’s Orchestra played dance music.19 Summer would not be complete without the circus.20 It did not necessarily come at a specific time or for a specific holiday, but if school was still on, the children made it into a holiday by skipping classes to attend. In 1925, when the Sparks Circus set up on the racetrack in June, over three thousand people attended the matinée performance and four thousand in the evening.21 In 1935 the “Barnes Wild Animal Circus and Fiesta of the Rio Grande” came to Amelia Park on 9 July. It advertised International Arenic Stars, three great herds of elephants, superb horses, sixty clowns, and a giant double zoo.22 The editor of the Nugget was enthralled by the event: “From the moment a circus arrives at the unloading ramps in any city it is a thing of glamor, an attraction which drags staid citizens from their beds in the grey hours of the dawn – as it did years ago when they ‘carried water to the elephants’ – to watch with the same wide-eyed interest the magic growth of a community complete in itself [with] clowns, acrobats, painted

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ladies, peanut-munching elephants, lions ‘n tigers, and the rest of it – not forgetting the pink lemonade and popcorn, with their aftereffects. Everybody held their breath for a moment at some time in the show, as some particularly death-defying feat unfolded in the rings, but everybody – old, young and middle-aged – got a huge kick out of the circus, just as always.”23 Reports from among the spectators allowed that the lion and tiger shows were “perhaps the most thrilling” events. Trapeze artists, elephants, juggling, “foot slides down the rope from the dome of the big top,” sea lions, clowns, and thoroughbred English jumpers were all part of the show.24 Ken Unger had reason to remember the circus coming to town particularly well. At the time, the circus staff rode the elephants through town up to the circus site near the racetracks. One year he saw a horse coming up the road toward the elephants and threw a ball at it to try to keep it away. Instead, the horse ran right through the elephants. The fifteen elephants went “crazy” and started digging up a nearby house. He recalled his heavy feeling of guilt. The circus parade was not always that exciting but it helped set the stage for the circus and provided effective advertising for the event. September, the end of summer and time for children to return to school, was marked by Labour Day. In the interwar years, this workers’ celebration was no longer an occasion for major parades and displays – a “craftsmen spectacle,” as it had been in the period before the war. Increasingly, workers simply used the day for their private amusements.25 In 1925, for example, there was a celebration in Mattawa and in nearby Sturgeon Falls, but none in North Bay. In Mattawa, the Mattawa Citizens’ Club planned a picnic26 that combined sports and politics. The sports program opened with a canoe race followed by a baseball game between the Eau Claire Eagles and Mattawa, and a softball game between the Rutherglen and Brûlé girls’ teams. The feature of the program was a three-heat horse race won by Blue Ribbon Bell, owned by Turcotte. The last events were the boys bicycle races.27 Both Liberal and Conservative politicians used the occasion to address the crowds: E. Lapierre, mp for Nipissing, Harry Morel, mla, G. Harris, Dr Maloney, and North Bay founder John Ferguson. Ferguson noted the number of Mattawa men who had participated in federal politics, remarking that Mattawa had produced nine members of parliament.28 In 1935 North Bay celebrated Labour Day with a sports program at Amelia Park. The North Bay cpr girls’ team played a team from Chapleau but the much-anticipated second

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game was cancelled because of water on the field. In soccer, the Rosedale Thistles played the t&no team in the Charity Cup final.29 An annual parish picnic at St Thomas Aquinas church in Astorville drew over five hundred people. They were entertained with games, contests and draws, and a baseball game.30 There was little in these celebrations to distinguish Labour Day from other holidays or, in fact, to celebrate workers. The fall fair, while not a holiday per se, was the major community celebration of the fall season in the 1920s.31 The provincial government supported and encouraged such fairs through Agricultural Societies, and in 1925 very few towns or small cities in Ontario did not have one.32 The dates were set so that nearby towns did not compete for attendees, and the full list was published in the Globe. In North Bay in 1925, organizers of the fall fair worried that the number of carnival attractions in North Bay over the months preceding the fair would detract from fair attendance. Although the city council agreed not to bring in any more attractions, by late August when this protest was registered, the damage may already have been done.33 It is interesting to note, however, that organizers depended on the midway and other carnival attractions to bring in the crowds. The editor of the North Bay Nugget worried that the town’s citizenry and business community lacked enthusiasm for this particular event, even while noting its contribution to the general progress of the town.34 When September rolled around, the usual dignitaries and town fathers spoke of the fair in a positive way. Mayor McDonald opened the fair, and the president of Guelph’s Ontario Agricultural College, a representative of the Department of Agriculture, and W. Dreany, president of the Agricultural Association, were present. Mayor McDonald spoke, stating that agriculture – and the fair itself – were pivotal to the development of North Bay and the North. He suggested that the fair site be moved to grounds between Chippewa Creek and Judge Avenue, as the grounds at Wallace Park were insufficient. John Ferguson stated that North Bay should work toward making the fall fair the premier fair in Northern Ontario.35 Although weather for the week was ideal, the 9,050 attendees represented a substantial decrease from 1924, when admissions had numbered 12,759. Gate receipts for the 1925 fair totalled $2,053.80, a decrease of $571.02 from 1924.36 The fair took place over a five-day period in September, and it featured midway attractions, a livestock fair, flower and culinary exhibitions, a fashion show, a sports program, and horseback riding.

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The North Bay Premier and Veterans’ Bands provided the fair music.37 Forty-nine contestants competed in the baby contest for the silver cups awarded in several categories up to eighteen months and the new cup for the baby sweepstake.38 Children’s Day (18 September) was also a half-holiday from school throughout most of the area. The North Bay Motor League helped bring visitors from the country into town for the fair, but even with this, attendance was down to 3,771 from 5,057 in 1924.39 The students of the Collegiate Institute displayed their art and cartographical work.40 The livestock competition included cattle and sheep as well as smaller animals, and featured both men’s and women’s riding events. The winners of the livestock classes held a grand parade.41 What would a fall fair be without pies, breads, and other fine displays of women’s work? The North Bay fair was no exception and the women’s exhibition displayed handcrafted aprons, housedresses, children’s clothing, old-fashioned crazywork, cushion covers, embroidery, luncheon sets, bed linen, and underclothing, as well as exhibits of cooking, baking, preserving, and pickling.42 With so many people in attendance, this was an opportune time to sell these delicacies, and the Women’s Auxiliary to the gwva later reported that their concession booth at the fall fair had raised $250, while the Presbyterian Ladies’ Aid raised $115.43 The same group also noted that their refreshment booth at the fair raised $200.44 Fairs evidently represented significant fundraising opportunities for these groups. The ever-popular midway and included a penny arcade, sideshows such as glass blowers, concessions, a Ferris wheel, and a merry-goround. In between rides, ice cream, hot dogs, and corn tempted the crowds. The program featured a motion picture of ohw presented by the cnr at the Royal Theatre. An outdoor dance platform attracted the younger set as well as many older participants. The fireworks display on two evenings awed everyone.45 Although the fall fair had been an important event in the early days of North Bay and was still a going concern in 1925, it did not continue into the 1930s. The Depression was clearly a factor. The list of fall fairs in 1934 was less than half the size it had been ten years earlier, and none of the fairs in the area remained.46 In North Bay the fair died off, and the Wallace Park fair grounds were sold to the city. In Canada, Thanksgiving was celebrated primarily in churches, church halls, and homes, with little in the way of public celebration. It was not a major domestic occasion as it had already become in the

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nineteenth century in the United States.47 In 1935 the North Bay bicycle club held a special fifty-mile race that day and a number of rugby matches took place in the afternoon. Police reported there was not even one arrest for public drunkenness on the Thursday holiday.48 Christmas as a family and religious celebration has already been considered. Christmas had also become a feast of consumption in the late nineteenth and early twentieth centuries.49 Local stores placed ads up to a full page in size in the Nugget beginning in late November. Atwater Kent Radios, ranging from $14 to $150, pianos, Kodak Brownie cameras and film, records, clothing, toys, Christmas calendars, and special Christmas groceries including shortbread, Christmas cake, and nuts were all advertised in 1925.50 Much of this consumption was in the form of gifts to children, with the result that Christmas came to be seen as a children’s festival.51 While most gifts were given by parents and family members, the community also took responsibility for making sure that all children received something special at Christmas. Many community events in 1925 focused on giving small gifts, usually a stocking full of candy, to children. The Knights of Columbus organized the largest of these for five hundred children.52 The St John’s Girl Guides handed out trees, toys, and food to needy families on 24 December.53 The challenge of providing for needy families at Christmas became much greater during the Depression, as the number of families on relief was considerable. Individual efforts by the Knights of Columbus54 and the Salvation Army,55 who had a tradition of giving out baskets at Christmas, as well as the small gifts from the verandah Santa at 185 Worthington Street East56 and from community groups continued, but a more organized effort was required to meet this greater need. It was recognized that relief vouchers simply did not allow families to get anything extra with which to celebrate Christmas. North Bay’s relief officer in 1935, B.J. Gosse, spearheaded the Santa Fund campaign, also known as the Christmas Cheer fund. Santa Claus was recruited for the effort and a telegram printed in the paper announced his arrival.57 North Bay, as a railway town, brought Santa to town on a special cpr train. He was met at the station by thousands of children, various city leaders, and representatives from volunteer organizations. His route to city hall was lined with spectators. In 1935 candy, which on previous occasions had been distributed along the route, was this time handed out later in local schools instead.58 A committee of twenty business and professional men solicited for the fund from

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businesses, voluntary associations, and individuals. Many groups held fundraising events from which some or all of the proceeds went to the Christmas Cheer fund. The Associated Canadian Travellers, for example, held a stag at the Masonic hall with games, refreshments, and two exhibition boxing fights, which raised $200 for the Christmas Cheer program.59 Some, like the Lions Club, made an in-kind donation of 100 pounds of nuts, 200 pounds of candy and 5 crates of oranges to the Santa Fund.60 For the second year in a row, two charity broadcasts were held to raise money, one at the Masonic Hall and the other at the Knights of Columbus Hall, an interesting forerunner to the televized Santa Fund drive still held every year in North Bay.61 Appeals were made to the emotions in order to ensure that enough donations came in: “Crying children have no place in the Christmas scene for Christmas is primarily, the child’s holiday. Children have no enthusiasm over the necessities of life if the little luxuries and toys are forgotten at Yuletide. It is the one time of the year that even the poorest hopes for joy. Don’t withhold what is in your power to bestow!”62 Even so, on 23 December, with 450 baskets prepared, another $200 was required.63 In the end, the Christmas Cheer campaign provided 700 baskets for needy families. “The typical hamper contained: potatoes, apples, oranges, candy, nuts, canned fruits and vegetables, preserves, canned milk, and toys. It was the aim of the packers to provide just a little bit extra of some of the things obtainable on a relief voucher, and a little bit of the things not obtainable in that method. Any deficiencies in the baskets will be purchasable on the recipient’s voucher, as meat, tea, sugar, etc.”64 Despite this effort, relief officer Gosse felt that voluntary groups needed to be better organized, since donations had dropped off over the previous two years and some families received a lot and others very little or nothing.65 While need was not limited to the city, it was probably easier to organize assistance in urban centres than in rural areas. The transients staying at the Old Jail received Christmas dinner with “turkey and all the trimmings.” About two hundred were served in 1935 compared to 260 the previous year.66 The needy in the outlying areas around Mattawa were not forgotten thanks to the efforts of the Reverend John Blaney, an evangelistic minister stationed at Eau Claire. He issued an appeal for donations of cash or articles for the 250 children of families in Eau Claire, Brûlé and Rutherglen who were in need.67 The United Church of Canada, Home Missions in Northern Ontario, also provided “Christmas cheer” to almost eight hundred families in North-

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ern Ontario.68 While North Bay did not have a Christmas parade like that in Toronto and other large cities in this period, the Christmas holiday was celebrated as a children’s festival and very much as a community as well as a family event. Both traditional and present-day “Carnaval” celebrations at MardiGras, can be seen as “tension management” celebration intended to break up the winter with a little fun and entertainment prior to Lent. There is no link beween present-day and earlier celebrations, however. The large winter carnivals of the late-nineteenth century in Quebec City were short-lived. Designed to encourage American tourism, they could not fill that role for the local population, as few could afford the types of entertainment provided.69 In this area, there were no carnival celebrations at Mardi Gras, and the term was used more generally. The Rotary Club sponsored an annual hockey match and carnival in 1925.70 In 1935 the Knights of Columbus organized their first figure skating carnival. The chief attraction was North Bay’s own star figure skaters, Norah and Therese McCarthy. The younger of the two, Norah, was only eleven years old and was already in demand in the figure skating circuit. She had performed very well at the Canadian championships held in Ottawa that year.71 After the 24 February event, the Nugget reported, “Little Norah was the spectators’ favorite, and impressed the critics with her extraordinary ability. She skated with the poise and confidence of the most experienced competitor, and a sensational future is predicted for her.”72 About 1,400 people attended the Friday night event.73 Other amusements included a race between Mayor Bullbrook and Fire Chief G.M. Brady, skating races for children, broom hockey games, regular games, and costume competitions.74 The latter activities retained some elements of inversion and raucous behaviour associated with carnival. This particular carnival continued until at least 1940.75 Easter does not have a fixed date and was therefore harder to commercialize. Americans borrowed the Easter hare from German immigrants and transformed it into an Easter Bunny who brought colourful eggs and chocolate confectioneries. New Yorkers invented the Easter Parade, a female-oriented fashion event, and Easter cards became popular. Still, Easter never achieved the same community status as Christmas,76 but remained a religious and family celebration in our study area. Holiday celebrations, like many other community activities, depended largely on community groups to organize them. None of

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the three national holidays had as enthusiastic a following as the circus. The combination of speeches, parades, and sports that had developed as the traditional way to celebrate these holidays had only a limited appeal when the weather was good and outdoor activities were readily available. Hartley Trussler, for example, made no mention of Victoria Day, 1 July, or Labour Day in his 1925 diary. In 1935 he set off firecrackers and rockets for the children on Victoria Day and on 1 July he took them to see the parade and watch some of the games and bicycle races. He also took them for a hike up to Duchesnay Falls. Like him, many members of the population simply used their time off work to celebrate in their own fashion.

community festivals: old home week Monday, 3 August 1925 was declared a civic holiday in North Bay and the whole town and district was invited to celebrate North Bay’s new status as a city. This was the kick-off to a week of civic celebration, historic pageantry, commemoration, sporting activities, carnival, musical entertainment, and dancing known as Old Home Week. It is considered, along with a second ohw celebration held in 1935, as a community festival rather than a calendric holiday. David Proctor has defined a community festival as “a vivid aesthetic event that depicts, interprets, informs, and celebrates social truths.”77 A comparison of ohw events in the years studied allows one to contrast the public image presented in 1925 with that presented ten years later, as well as noting differences in organization and focus. Tourism Promotion Both ohw celebrations were designed to encourage tourism. The focus of the first was to draw “old-timers,” people who had contributed to the establishment of North Bay and its early growth, back to view the city that had since emerged. This focus reflected the civic pride of the organizers and their booster attitude, and led to an emphasis on the history of the place and its past growth, as well as the potential for future growth. An extremely positive and optimistic future for North Bay was projected by the 1925 celebration both in its souvenir book and in a special Grand Pageant Parade.78 The 1935 ohw celebrations, on the other hand, were ostensibly held to mark the tenth anniversary of the city. The new city council, faced with the

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This rare souvenir button from Old Home Week in 1925 uses Champlain as a symbol, as did the front cover of the souvenir book. Courtesy of Bill Ingwerson.

incredibly high cost of providing relief during the Depression, however, decided against spending public money on this event.79 As organizers had already sent out over 125,000 envelopes advertising the event to “all corners of the continent,”80 they felt it was too late to cancel the event. As they looked for alternative sources of funding, the editor of the Nugget wondered whether North Bay residents simply didn’t care whether ohw was a success or not. He reminded them of the advertising that had already gone out and that the Dionne quintuplets would be ready to be seen by the public by then.81 He thus brought into the open the fact that this celebration had more to do with wanting to promote tourism and benefit from the already growing attraction of the quintuplets, than with celebrating the tenth anniversary of the city. This motivation, while sound from an economic perspective, did not offer organizers the same clarity of focus as in 1925. Rather than a city poised to advance to greater heights, one now found a city located 19 kilometres away from what was already becoming the major tourist attraction Ontario had to offer.82 Festival Time Festival time exists outside of ordinary time.83 In both 1925 and 1935 each day of the festival had a name and a theme. In 1925 Monday was

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Old Home Week 1935, Invitation Envelope. Both the envelope and the stationery sold for Old Home Week in 1935 featured the Dionne quintuplets as “five reasons you should come to north bay.” The letter with this envelope indicates that it was carried around for a few days so as to permit mailing from Callander, more desirable as a postmark than nearby places. It was also carefully cut open by the recipient so as not to damage the image. The reverse side of the envelope featured a stylized map of North Bay as the “Gateway to the North.” From the Dionne Quints Museum Collection, with expressed permission of A. and C. Dionne.

“Civic Day” and the ringing of bells and whistles in the morning started the grand parade to Memorial Park where the official ceremony for the granting of the city’s charter would take place. Tuesday was “Soldiers’ Day,” Wednesday “New Ontario Day,” Thursday “Children’s Day” with children’s sports tournaments, Friday “Pioneer Day,” involving sports and horse racing for the old-timers, and Saturday “Railroad Day,” with an open house for people to see everything in the rail yards.84 In 1935, on the other hand, the days of ohw

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were named after their sponsors. Sunday and Monday were 159th Battalion Reunion Days, Tuesday was Motor Club Day, Wednesday was French Canadian Day, sponsored by the Cercle Canadien Français and the North Bay branch of the ffcf, Thursday was Knights of Columbus Day with a children’s day focus, Friday was Shriners Day, and Saturday was Associated Canadian Travellers Day.85 While many of the activities of these days were similar, with parades, sports, dancing, fireworks, and other entertainment, festival time in 1925 had a more coherent symbolic flow than in 1935. Organization and “Civic Communion” Community festivals have been described as a “civic communion.” They bring a community together to reflect upon itself and to present itself to the public. Civic communion occurs both through the process of coming together to organize the event, and through participation in the event itself.86 The way in which events are organized affects the extent to which they can build community spirit. The 1925 ohw event had public funding and was organized by groups created for that purpose – many large committees and a small executive. In 1935 existing community groups came forward in turn to support a day of the event. An ohw Central Committee coordinated the activities common to the entire event, but the organization of each group’s individual day arose from within the group itself. The first form of organization provided more opportunity for “civic communion” than did the latter. In 1925 the committees were temporary, created for the sole purpose of organizing the festival. Many committee members were part of North Bay’s civic elite, including nine former or future mayors. The task required the co-operation of a large number of people across some if not all of the usual community boundaries. Very few names of those involved appear to be from the French Canadian or other ethnic communities, for example.87 In 1935, by contrast, only one or two individuals from each existing voluntary association sat on the central committee, and others worked largely within their existing groups. There was therefore less mixing across usual community boundaries. The presence of French Canadian organizations within the group of organizers, however, was a marked departure from the situation in 1925. Gender boundaries were not challenged in either year. In 1925 all the committees were exclusively male except for three: Billeting, the Old Timers Ladies’ Committee, and the Pioneers’ Reception

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Committee. In 1935 women of the ffcf were not represented on the central committee, allowing the men from the Cercle to represent them instead. This division of labour by gender was not unusual in this period. Public Performance and Public Image The ohw celebrations did provide their organizers with an opportunity to invent a public image for their community. The organizers prepared a public performance that would emphasize certain aspects of their history over others, honour certain individuals over others, and create or entrench symbols that represented the community. Their activities constituted an exercise in creating public history. The conscious attempt to do so was particularly evident in the staging of the Grand Pageant Parade in 1925, and to a much lesser extent in the grand parade of 1935.88 With its focus on pioneers and the “Old Timers” who had built the city into what it was, the 1925 ohw celebration also helped to solidify John Ferguson’s place in public memory as the “founder” of North Bay. During ohw the deed for the 285 acres of property north of the Chippewa Creek (land on which most of early North Bay was built), dated 1 April 1882 and issued to John Ferguson in return for $285.00, was framed and displayed at the Registration Bureau office.89 He was president of the ohw executive and his office was the main headquarters for the ohw executive during the week itself. He received a prominent place in all the official ceremonies, including the granting of the charter.90 His role as the “founder” of North Bay was acknowledged in the souvenir book and in these many gestures of public recognition. Since the ohw souvenir book remains one of the few sources of information on the early days of North Bay, its version of his contribution has been repeated and accepted by the public.91 Railways were given pride of place both in the organization of the ohw celebrations of 1925 and in the public history of North Bay presented in the souvenir book. The railways were at the table in the initial discussions for the celebrations, as an interested party. Tourist events such as this helped to increase rail travel. Special fares could affect the number of visitors, most of whom would arrive by rail. A special Railroad Transportation Committee negotiated reduced fares on the basis of a “Certificate Plan” with the Canadian Passenger Association.92 Many of the Old Timers who would return to North Bay for

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By the 1920s Main Street had replaced Oak Street as the major east-west street of downtown North Bay. It was lined with three-storey “blocks” that housed businesses on the main level and offices, halls, or apartments on the upper levels. In this streetscape one can see the post office on the left and the Queen’s Hotel opposite. Souvenir Views of North Bay, Ontario – Canada. A Dominion Series View Book.

ohw had been railroaders. Thomas Sindel, for example, was believed to have been the second or third settler of North Bay, having originally settled in North Bay during the Klondike period. An employee of the cpr for thirty years and the Grand Trunk for ten, he now lived in Toronto and was 84 years old.93 Railway officials were invited to the special civic banquet sponsored by the Rotary Club for former mayors and civic officials of North Bay.94 The president of the cpr, E.W. Beatty, was among the dignitaries present on the platform when the city received its charter on Civic Day.95 All three railways, the cpr, the t&no, and the cn, entered very elaborate floats in the Grand Pageant Parade on Civic Day.96 Not only did the history of North Bay in the souvenir book indicate that North Bay was a railway centre, but a separate history of all three railways was included as well.97 Canadian National projected their promotional Canadian scenic productions such as Diary of a Rocky Mountain Badger and Great Lakes Romance as well as comedies and cartoons on the Fraser Street side of their local

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office.98 On “Railroad Day,” events were all free and sponsored by the employees of the three railroad companies. The activities included baseball, softball, women’s softball, and track events for young and old. The baseball tournament between the three railway groups – won by the cpr team – was probably the most competitive event.99 In 1935, despite the decrease in the number of railway jobs during the Depression, the railways were still major players in North Bay. Their visibility in the public displays of ohw was somewhat reduced from 1925; there were no floats to represent them in the opening parade and they did not sponsor a day, as they had in 1925. Rail travel was less important than it had been ten years earlier, but the Shriners arrived by special train from Toronto.100 The history of the railways was again presented in the souvenir book. In contrast to 1925, the railways were present at these celebrations more through their employees, and less through their officials. One of the major events of the 1935 ohw, for example, was a banquet organized to celebrate the fiftieth anniversary of Lodge No. 234 of the Brotherhood of Locomotive Firemen and Enginemen, who held a reunion during ohw. These were the “men who drove and fired locomotives in and out of North Bay half a century ago when the city was a collection of shanties surrounded by thick swamp ... men who contributed in no small way to the birth and growth of the Gateway City.” St John’s Parish House was decorated with flags and pennants and “over the banqueters was a locomotive headlight, with the number 234 proudly displayed. A model locomotive was placed on the head table. Around the walls, pictures of early lodge members were arranged.” Several North Bay charter members of the lodge were present, and Harry Glover, president, spoke about its history. After the speeches, the evening was devoted to music by A. Parisien’s orchestra, vocal solos, a humorous reading, and community singing.101 This anniversary dinner was a time for celebration and congratulations, and the difficulties that had existed between labour and management over the years were glossed over for the occasion. The importance of railways to North Bay’s growth, although perhaps not as strong as it used to be, was also emphasized. Stories about old times and the railroaders as pioneers were also a key part of the evening, but unfortunately few of these were recorded. Railway employees were significant participants in the celebrations in other ways as well. Employees of the cpr were given a week-long holiday (for which they would later have to compensate),102 and the t&no band played a prominent role in the parades. One of the high-

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lights of the week was a game between Old Time baseball players, including “Boxcar McDonald,” “Gutty” Lockhart, and “Cap” Weegar, in a challenge game against the cpr Ceepees: “The fixture promises to be one of the real tidbits of the Old Home Week sports program. It will mark the first time in some years that many of these former stars have appeared before North Bay fans, and the game is expected to attract a bumper crowd,” a Nugget reporter had promised.103 The Old Timers had not lost their touch and defeated the cpr team 4–3.104 The t&no baseball team also played, suffering an “ignominious 12–0 whitewashing” by a visiting Pembroke team,105 and the cpr girls’ softball team played an exhibition game at Amelia Park against a visiting Burks Falls team, defeating them 19-2.106 In both celebrations, local veterans of the Great War had a place of honour. “Soldiers’ Day” in 1925 honoured the soldiers of the 159th and the 228th battalions. Their history was published to remind the town of their service.107 Created in December of 1915, the 159th Battalion was the first battalion raised in Northern Ontario.108 “Soldiers’ Day” began with a “Parade of Returned Soldiers” and decoration services. In the evening a “Returned Men’s Banquet” open to all returned men was held at St John’s Parish Hall.109 A nursing sister and several officers, including Brig. Gen J. Gunn, who had endorsed the formation of the Legion, spoke at the event.110 Veterans also played a major role in the opening ceremonies of the 1935 celebrations, the first two days of which were sponsored by the 159th Battalion Reunion. On Sunday, they held a Drum Head service at Lee Park. Veterans who were Odd Fellows participated in a Memorial Service at Union Cemetery. The 159th Battalion band, the 159th Battalion veterans, then all other veterans headed the Grand Opening Day Parade on Monday. At Amelia Park there was a march-past of all veteran organizations in front of Lt. Col. E.F. Armstrong before the opening ceremonies. The veterans also prepared a major float for the grand parade, recreating a dugout with sandbags and a battle scene. On Monday evening members of the 159th Battalion gathered for a banquet at the Masonic Temple, where more than four hundred of them had a chance to “sing, laugh, drink toasts, hear speeches, and talk of days gone by.”111 Ethnic Communities In developing a theory of holidays, Etzioni has pointed out that holidays might be integrative for one group but not others and not

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necessarily for society as a whole.112 The celebration of ohw in North Bay in 1925 certainly played an integrative role for the English-speaking population but not necessarily for other ethnic or racial communities. The float that represented Aboriginal people, for example, was created by the Lions Club and presented a highly stereotypical image of a tepee. The only Aboriginal present in the parade was Frank Commanda, who represented himself as a guide in the section of the t&no float depicting sport life. French Canadians were symbolically present in three floats re-enacting the arrival of Champlain at Lake Nipissing, the fur trade era, and early missionaries. Their design, however, was controlled by the organizing committee.113 Contemporary French Canadians in North Bay were largely absent from the public image presented, although Father Chapleau of St Vincent de Paul parish performed a blessing of the city as part of the presentation of the charter ceremony on Civic Day, and some of the politicians present were French Canadians. The many smaller ethnic and religious groups, such as Italians, Jews, Greeks, and Chinese, were absent from the public face of North Bay presented in these celebrations. In 1935 the members of the First Nations, Italians, and French Canadians all had a greater role to play. Italian merchants, for example, had entered a float in the grand parade and local First Nations groups marched in several of the parades. There were also Native players on North Bay’s lacrosse team and Liza Commanda was a star swimmer in the swimming competitions.114 The greatest change, however, was the participation of French Canadians as the sponsors of a day. French Canadian Day in the 1935 celebrations was an ethnic festival that highlighted French Canadian communities throughout the area.115 They participated in the events and competed for the best floats of a patriotic nature. The highlight of that day, and arguably of the week, was the unveiling and dedication of a monument to Jacques Cartier to mark the 400th anniversary of his arrival in Canada in 1534.116 French Canadian Day ended with five hundred people gathered at St Vincent de Paul parish hall for the final banquet. Prizes were presented for the best floats, and formal toasts were made and responded to. The work of women in the development of the north country was particularly noted.117 I have argued elsewhere that this was a “commemoration of assertion” and that the role of French Canadians in the 1935 celebration reflected the growing political involvement of French Canadians in the 1930s.118

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Selected ethnic communities, particularly the French Canadians, clearly had a greater visibility in the public image of North Bay put forward in the 1935 ohw celebrations than in 1925. Whether this was an integrative experience for French Canadians, however, is an open question. French Canadian Day was part of the week, but it also stood on its own. Many participants came for only that day, not for the whole week, and did not participate in the opening parade. They also produced their own souvenir book in French, which had a very different emphasis than the English one.119 In both 1925 and 1935 the ohw organizers were unable to present a public image of North Bay that was completely inclusive of its ethnic communities. Sports and Special Events The large crowds anticipated for these events made it possible to bring in special attractions that would not otherwise be available. In 1925 high-wire walker and stuntman James Hardy, billed as “the only living ‘Hero of Niagara Falls,’” the “Marvel of Genesee Gorge,” the “Wonder of Montmorency Falls,” and “The World’s Famous Aerial Artist,” was one of the top attractions of ohw.120 The most highprofile athlete and attraction for the ohw celebrations of 1935 was marathon swimmer Marvin Nelson. According to the advance publicity for the event, Nelson had been world champion swimmer five times over.121 He first won the unofficial world champion title in 1930 at the Canadian National Exhibition Marathon Swim, in Toronto, for which he received $10,000, his largest payment of prize money.122 Another great crowd pleaser during the 1935 ohw celebrations was the softball match that pitted fourteen nhl professional hockey players against the North Bay Travellers and gave spectators a chance to meet and greet the hockey players. This event drew a crowd of 4,000 to Amelia Park on Saturday afternoon.123 The sports available were generally the same in 1925 and 1935. Both saw a revival of lacrosse for the purposes of the celebrations. Horse racing was a major event in 1925 only. In 1935 one of the “star” events was the boxing match between Dom Scappatura and visiting Kirkland Lake boxer Herbie Dymond held at Wallace Park. Having grown up in North Bay, Scappatura had many loyal supporters, and some 450 of “his hometown fans were out at Wallace Park to cheer him on.”124 Swimming events and other water sports were on both

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programs. Track and field events were particularly important, as they allowed participation by children of all ages, and softball and baseball were major features in both years. The program of events provides a good overview of the main activities.125 Carnival and Rowdiness The police anticipated large crowds for the ohw celebrations in 1925 and arranged to bring in seven special officers to help them deal with potential difficulties. They also arranged to have the assistance of the Yellek Fire Brigade if necessary.126 A problem with increased traffic was also foreseen and the town’s engineering department planned to demarcate pedestrian safety zones on all paved intersections and parking areas on Fraser, Ferguson, and Wyld streets for residents with homes and businesses. They would paint the word “Stop” at all intersections requiring vehicles to do so. The town also asked all drivers to exercise caution during ohw.127 Although there were few problems, one serious accident in which fourteen-year-old Calvin Rose was kicked by a horse on Main Street and so severely injured that he was expected to remain in hospital for three weeks suggests that precautions had indeed been necessary.128 Rowdiness was an expected part of ohw. Hartley Trussler reflected in his diary on the Monday evening: “Worked until after eleven thirty and at that hour the fun had just seemed to begun. The men were just beginning to feel the effects of their liquid stimulants and were awake for the night.”129 While police were undoubtedly tolerant, they could not ignore some incidents. One individual received a $500 fine and costs for illegally discharging a firearm; and in connection with the same incident, three individuals from Montreal were fined $25 for prostitution.130 Another individual went to hospital after an “altercation” during the celebrations.131 For illegally selling liquor during ohw, T. Mussolino was fined $1,000 or six months in jail, and two others were fined $200 or three months in jail.132 The situation in 1935 was somewhat different in that liquor could now be purchased legally. By mid-week the police reported a minimum of problems: a “crown and anchor game and a three-card game and a dice game” had been broken up; a fight was stopped on Wednesday night; and up to twenty drunks were allowed to sober up in police cells without having to pay a penalty. Chief Clark stated: “All beverage rooms are closing promptly at twelve o’clock. Strict

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watch is being kept to see that the beer parlors continue to comply with the law.”133 The police dealt with petty crimes and minor accidents for the remainder of the week: “More than 100 complaints had been investigated during the week [whereas] sometimes a month’s total is not above 60.”134 The most serious charges were brought against three men for assaulting James Ferguson on the Thursday night.135 A juvenile gang was later charged with theft after breaking into a booth the day after the festivities ended and taking about $21 worth of goods.136 High spirits and other less serious forms of rowdiness were tolerated and even expected, as the celebrations ended with a form of carnivalesque inversion, the Shirt Tail Parade. Financial Success From a financial perspective, both celebrations were a success. An estimated 10,000 visitors attended the ohw celebrations of 1925. After balancing its books, the ohw committee announced to the inaugural city council that it would be returning its $1,000 grant from the city and donating to the city the bleachers erected at Wallace Park valued at $750. They estimated their profit at $500. In September the final tally was: receipts total $18,475.13; expenditures total $17,610.97; disposition of balance totals $2,062.00.137 The cash surplus was donated to various charities.138 The city was also pleased with the results and at its 10 August meeting voted a motion of thanks to the organizers.139 The 1935 ohw organizers had banked on the fact that visitors to the Dionne quintuplets would also visit the city during the celebrations. And indeed, by August over 3,271 tourists had signed the Information Bureau’s registry since 18 June compared to 2,311 tourists for the same period in 1934. The Information Bureau indicated that “The Dionne quintuplets, the Temagami Forest Reserve and the French River district” competed with the city for tourists but that there had been “a large increase” in the number passing through the city. The opening day of ohw, 5 August, was the Bureau’s busiest day, with 146 persons signing their registry.140 The success of the ohw celebrations of 1935 was largely due to the increased tourism generated by the Dionne quintuplets. In the end, when the finances were tallied, the ohw account was only $87 short. Each voluntary group involved had to contribute only $14.50 for the account to be closed.141 This represented a very favourable outcome for celebrations that took place in the middle of the Great Depression. Both Dan Barker, chairman of the

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ohw Central Committee, and Mayor Bullbrook agreed that the week had been pretty much perfect.142 Attendance at community holiday events in North Bay and Mattawa suggests that many more people enjoyed holidays with their own personal or family traditions than by going to listen to the political speeches or watching the scheduled sports events. The circus, company picnics, and the fall fair were the most popular events. The major role of voluntary associations in the organization of holiday celebrations is evident. North Bay’s ohw celebrations of 1925 and 1935 were both successful events that drew many tourists as well as local participants. The 1925 celebration, with its emphasis on Old Timers, was more successful at creating community spirit than the 1935 event was, but there was little participation beyond the anglophone population. The 1935 festival, organized by existing community groups, was more inclusive but did not generate “civic communion.” The integrative role of holidays and of the ohw celebrations in North Bay appears to have been limited.

mmunity Life in Northeastern Ontario

Conclusion

This study has examined family and community life in a small segment of Northeastern Ontario during the interwar years. While the transition to sentimental family occasions, particularly the transformation of Christmas, was clearly underway in this area as elsewhere, that transformation was not as extensive as Elizabeth Pleck found it to be during the corresponding period in the United States. In our study area Christmas had been transformed into a domestic occasion by many urban families, but Thanksgiving was celebrated in this way by only a few. While some of the more carnivalesque traditions of French Canada were disappearing even in the countryside where the French Canadian population was in the majority, holiday celebrations in the country retained their community focus. Funerals were still community events and had not yet moved out of the home into the funeral parlour. This was most evident in the funerals of established community members. Weddings, on the other hand, were celebrated quite differently in urban centres and in the country. In the city, many weddings were small family events, although showers and parties permitted the couple’s work community and friends to play a role. In the country, weddings were more community-oriented events, and arrangements were made to allow for a large crowd and dancing even when celebrations took place in the home. While many aspects of family and community life were similar in both town and country, we noted important differences. One was the absence of neighbourhood in the country. Children in the city were able to form friendships and participate in after-school activities with other children their own age and often across the community boundaries of language and religion. Another very significant difference

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was in the area of schooling. Whether public or separate, one-room rural schools tended to have inexperienced teachers who changed almost every year. Few, if any, students from rural areas had the opportunity to continue on to high school. While urban schools were sometimes overcrowded, they had more highly qualified teachers and more equipment and facilities. Children in urban schools had a much better chance of attending high school largely because high schools were located in urban centres, although French Catholic high schools were not available locally. Adolescents who attended high school were exposed to a more diverse population and, through extracurricular activities, to a wide range of experiences. On the other hand, rural boys could still find work in the countryside even before they were sixteen, while few such opportunities were available in cities. However, recreational and associational opportunities were also much more available in the city than in the country. During the interwar years, North Bay was a walking city of about 15,000 that included several ethno-religious communities. The forces of modernization were evidently much greater there than in the surrounding country, but even in the city, the Depression slowed social and cultural change, particularly the advance of commercial leisure and the commercialization of holidays. Movies were the major form of commercial entertainment. Other forms of respectable leisure and recreation consisted largely of activities organized by people themselves through voluntary associations. The majority of these were fraternal organizations such as the Orange Order and the Masonic Lodge, and church groups affiliated with local congregations. This made it possible for people to enjoy many recreational activities within the boundaries of their own community. While only anglophones enjoyed a full range of civic, religious, and social institutions, several other groups, while necessarily bilingual, were able to maintain their ethnic traditions and community boundaries during this period. Although the smallest groups found it more difficult to do so and became increasingly integrated into the anglophone community, both the Italian and the French Canadian communities continued to maintain their separate identity. Anglophone Catholics also existed as a separate community for most purposes. Only rarely, as in the ohw celebrations of 1925 and 1935, did the larger civic community come together to celebrate itself in a community festival. Even then, particularly in 1935, it did so through community groups rather than by transcending their boundaries.

Conclusion

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While the maintenance of strong community boundaries, particularly those between ethno-religious groups, in a period when difference was not readily tolerated, might have led to social conflict, in fact a relatively high degree of social harmony prevailed. The hegemony of the anglophone elite in North Bay in the realm of municipal government and organizations such as the Board of Trade was rarely challenged, perhaps because these bodies were largely irrelevant to much of community social life. The interviewees for this study came of age just as the Second World War was imminent. They joined the war effort in one way or another, through war work at home, by joining the forces, or by filling the jobs others had left. Whether they went overseas or stayed behind, the war changed their lives. While their memories of their childhood years were affected by the experience of war and the social change that followed, their stories nonetheless make an important contribution to our understanding of the interwar years outside the large urban centres that have most often been the focus of our historical attention. Although these area residents invariably felt they had little to offer, it is precisely because they were ordinary people living ordinary lives that would otherwise have been forgotten that their recollections are so important. Their memories help us to understand the nature of family and community life during the interwar years. This contextual knowledge in turn helps us to understand the magnitude of the coming post-war changes.

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Notes

abbreviations used in notes act aypa caau cas ccf ccoh cpr cwl ffcf gwva iode ioof lac nbci&vs nbhl nbns nbshf nca nhl noha nowsa obaa ohw ota sasv

Associated Canadian Travellers Anglican Young People’s Association Canadian Amateur Athletic Union Children’s Aid Society Co-operative Commonwealth Federation Centre for Community and Oral History Canadian Pacific Railway Catholic Women’s League Fédération des femmes canadiennes-françaises Great War Veteran’s Association Independent Order of the Daughters of the Empire International Order of Odd Fellows Library and Archives Canada North Bay Collegiate Institute & Vocational School North Bay Hockey League North Bay Normal School North Bay Sports Hall of Fame Northern Curling Association National Hockey League Northern Ontario Hockey Association Northern Ontario Women’s Softball Association Ontario Baseball Amateur Association Old Home Week Ontario Temperance Act Soeurs de l’Assomption de la Sainte Vierge

258

sjaa t&no ucc wa

Notes to pages 4–5

St John’s Anglican Church Archives Temiskaming and Northern Ontario United Church of Canada Women’s Auxiliary

introduction 1 Cartwright, “Ecclesiastical Territorial Organization,” provides a balanced examination of this question from a geographical point of view and includes useful maps. Choquette, “The Archdiocese of Toronto and Its Metropolitan Influence in Ontario,” discusses the issue primarily as a war waged by Bishop Lynch and his successors against French Canada. He argues that the churches placed cultural values over religious ones in the period from 1860 to 1960. He points out that Archbishop Neil McNeil (1912–34) was more conciliatory than the others, however, and that during his administration “the campaign to assert AngloCeltic Catholic control was terminated” (303). He suggests, however, that other bishops such as Fallon of London and Scollard of Sault Ste Marie might have continued their crusade if he had not imposed his will on them. Perin, Rome in Canada, 11–38, places this struggle in the larger context of the growth of the Canadian church. Choquette, “English-French Relations in the Canadian Catholic Community,” places the relationship between the two groups in a longer timeframe. Miller, “Anti-Catholicism in Canada,” provides an overview of antiCatholicism. Moir, “Toronto’s Protestants and Their Perceptions of Their Roman Catholic Neighbours,” 324, points out however, that the Protestant press seldom paid much attention to Catholics and that their concern was more with papal interference in Canada than with Catholics themselves. In fact, at the day-to-day level, there were those “among the silent majorities who were willing to play together, live beside, work with and even marry the supposed enemy.” 2 In looking at the early development of Northestern Ontario in the District of Nipissing, which originally included Sudbury, Watson refers to the area around Lake Nipissing as the Nipissing Lowlands, and divides them into an east and west section. Watson, “Frontier Movement and Economic Development.” 3 Chambers and Montigny, eds., Family Matters; Bradbury, ed., Canadian Family History; Comacchio, “‘The History of Us’”; Bradbury, “Feminist Historians and Family History” in Comacchio, “‘A Postscript for Father.’”

Notes to pages 5–8

259

4 Welch, “The Dionne Quintuplets: More Than an Ontario Showpiece”; Gervais, Les Jumelles Dionne et l’Ontario français. 5 Strong-Boag, “Intruders in the Nursery”; Valverde, “Families, Private Property, and the State”; Arnup, “Raising the Dionne Quintuplets”; and Dehli, “Fictions of the Scientific Imagination.” 6 The story of the Dionne quintuplets has been told many times and in different ways but Berton’s The Dionne Years is still a good place to start for those unfamiliar with the story. 7 Pleck, “The Making of the Domestic Occasion”; Nissenbaum, The Battle for Christmas; Waits, The Modern Christmas in America; Restad, Christmas in America; and, Gillis, A World of Their Own Making. 8 Ferretti, “Mariage et cadre de vie familiale dans une paroisse ouvrière Montréalaise.” 9 Pleck, Celebrating the Family, 10. 10 Ibid., 252, n17. 11 Gans, “Symbolic Ethnicity.” 12 In Toronto, for example, Italian priests were concerned because Irish culture was celebrated, while Italian feast days were ignored. Pennacchio, “The Torrid Trinity,” 237. 13 Pleck, Celebrating the Family, 1–2. 14 Sutherland, “When You Listen to the Winds of Childhood.” 15 While the final number of interviews conducted with people from the rural areas of the study area was satisfactory, these interviews were particularly difficult to get and many who people were contacted simply refused to be interviewed. This may be in part because I was seeking interviews with the older segment of the population, but there appeared to be a certain distrust of outsiders at work as well. My ability to conduct interviews in French was crucial to the success of some of these interviews. My contacts resulted in only a few interviews with North Bay Italians but I was able to get more by using a research assistant from that community, Christine Orlando. 16 While I did interview one Aboriginal person in the early stages of the process, this was before I confirmed the boundaries of the study area and limited this study to the interwar years. This interview did not fit within the new parameters of the study and could not be used here. The size of the Aboriginal population in the final study area was small. While this was likely an under-enumeration, the 1941 census indicates that it consisted of only sixty people. 17 J.R. Hunt, “A Brief History” [cited 11 April 2008]. Available from http://nugget.ca/ArticleDisplayGenContent.aspx?e=3616.

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18 Practical considerations then limited the sampling to two years only as this was a very time-consuming process. The 1925 database contains 1,925 items distributed as follows: articles, 1,375; local news for North Bay, 191; local news for other places in the study area, 123; local news outside study area, 145; advertisements, 75; and theater/shows, 16. The 1935 database consists of 7,740 items distributed as follows: articles, 3,265; personals, 2,735; advertisements, 48; club notes, 1,518; theatre/ shows, 173; and photos, 1. Of the 1935 articles, 2,532 (77.5%) were classified as relating to North Bay in the subject category. 19 Kennedy, North Bay. This is probably the most useful book on the history of North Bay, as it is a compilation of information about early institutions, clubs, businesses, and personalities, and also includes a brief summary of each year at town/city council. 20 Artibise, Winnipeg; Igartua, Arvida; and Voisey, Vulcan, fall in this category. 21 See for example, Patrias, Patriots and Proletarians; Lindstrom-Best, “Tailor-Maid”; Petroff, “Sojourner and Settler”; Ramirez, On the Move; Zucchi, Italians in Toronto; and Zembrzcki, “Memory, Identity, and the Challenge of Community among Ukrainians.” 22 Loewen, Family, Church, and Market; Pocius, A Place to Belong. In the American context see also Pederson, Between Memory and Reality. 23 Cohen, The Symbolic Construction of Community, 15. 24 Walsh and High, “Rethinking the Concept of Community.” 25 Marshall, Secularizing the Faith, has suggested that mainstream Protestant churches were in decline because of secularization in this period, whereas Christie and Gauvreau, A Full-Orbed Christianity, suggest that Protestant churches played an important role in setting social welfare policy. The role of the Catholic Church remained strong through this period. 26 This annual publication, examined for the local area in 1920, 1925, 1927, and 1935, provides information on schools: their value, value of equipment, type of construction, assessment, and average attendance; and, on teachers: their name, address, type of certificate, and salary. Unfortunately, information from “English-French bilingual schools” was not included in the early 1920s. 27 Comacchio, Dominion of Youth, 99. She examines high schools in a national context in chapter 4 of her study. 28 Baillargeon, Making Do, 48. 29 Peiss, Cheap Amusements.

Notes to pages 12–18

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30 The American literature on celebration is extensive. See for example Browne and Marsden, eds., The Cultures of Celebrations. 31 Walden, Becoming Modern in Toronto, 248. See also Bailey, Leisure and Class in Victorian England. 32 Magnusson, “The Singularization of History,” 723.

chapter one 1 Other settlers and lumbermen arrived from the south and pushed north to Lake Nipissing along colonization roads at much the same time. These settlements from Callander to Nipissing along the southeast shores of the lake and south toward Restoule and Commanda are located in the Parry Sound District and are not included in the area studied here. 2 For a discussion of the early development of this region, see Watson, “Frontier Movement.” 3 Paroisse Saint-Thomas-d’Aquin, 14–16. 4 Watson, “Frontier Movement,” 99. 5 Paroisse Saint-Thomas-d’Aquin, 13. The parish priest was Astor. 6 In 1901 the population of the village of Bonfield was removed from the township population, accounting for a decrease of about 400 to 450 in the population thereafter. The decrease in population in 1901 was much greater than this, however, reflecting also the loss of population when lumbering moved out of the area. 7 Widdifield would almost double in size from 1941 to 1951. West Ferris and Widdifield were annexed by North Bay in 1968. For the history of North Bay as a municipality, see Brozowski, “Development of Municipal Government in North Bay.” 8 MacDougall et al., “Back to the Bay.” 9 “Plan of the Village of North Bay being part of the Lot No. 20 in Concession D of the Township of Widdifield, the property of John Ferguson, Esq. surveyed August 1884. Pembroke, August 26, 1884. Scale two chains to an inch,” District of Nipissing Registry Office, 30 Oct. 1884. 10 These and the following figures on occupation are calculated from an electronic copy of the index to the 1891 census for the District of Nipissing, made available to me by the Nipissing Branch of the Ontario Genealogical Society. 11 “County Town, Second Election,” Presbyterian Messenger, 3 June 1911. With a few exceptions, the voting was largely geographical.

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Notes to pages 18–22

12 “Birth of Gateway City Initiated Development of Great Importance,” Nugget, 5 Aug. 1935. 13 Ibid. For the history of the t&no Railway, see Surtees, The Northland Connection. 14 Census of Canada, 1931, Table 10, 22. 15 “December Relief Bill Shows $10,375 Decline,” Nugget, 11 Jan. 1935; “Add Eighty Families to City Relief List,” Nugget, 4 Jan. 1935; and “Relief Lists Drop Slightly in Month,” Nugget, 10 June 1935. 16 The remainder was for Old Age Pensions and Mother’s Allowances. “$250,000 in Relief Disbursed This Year,” Nugget, 20 Dec. 1935. 17 These figures are based on the six-month period before 30 June 1935. The city planned to close the Old Jail in July that year because it feared that a new ruling by Ontario premier, Mitch Hepburn, not to provide relief to single men would force the city to absorb the total cost. “Transients’ Refuge Closes Saturday,” Nugget, 31 July 1935, Front Page. In October, however, it was noted that the jail was receiving transients again, but now offering only one meal and a night’s stay. “Stew Pots Again Simmer in City’s Transient Hostel,” ibid., 18 Oct. 1935, Front Page. Local citizens were asked to donate what food they could. 18 Martin. While both the 1901 and 1911 censuses indicate only that her grandfather Fréderic was born in Quebec, the automated genealogy site links him to Escoumains, Chicoutimi and Saguenay in 1881. He was nineteen, living at home with his parents, and listed as a farmer at the time. http://automatedgenealogy.com/uidlinks/Links.jsp?uid= 150535961 consulted 23 April 2008. 19 Census of Canada, 1901, and http://automatedgenealogy.com/ census11/SplitView.jsp?id=86794 consulted 23 April 2008. 20 Family search, http://www.familysearch.org/Eng/Search/frameset_ search.asp?page=census/ search_census.asp consulted 23 April 2008. 21 http://automatedgenealogy.com/census11/SplitView.jsp?id=86790 consulted 23 April 2008. 22 http://automatedgenealogy.com/census11/SplitView.jsp?id=86792 The later birth date for Mary is not possible, as that would have made her only twelve when their oldest child was born. 23 http://automatedgenealogy.com/census/ViewFrame.jsp?id=95132& size=large&highlight=35 consulted 23 April 2008. http://www.familysearch.org/Eng/Search/frameset_search.asp? page=census/ search_census.asp shows an “Hilare Blanchette” born in 1857, in Eardly, Ottawa County, Quebec, in 1881.

Notes to pages 23–35

263

24 http://automatedgenealogy.com/census11/SplitView.jsp?id=87261 consulted 23 April 2008. 25 For an interesting discussion of this issue and the debate around the language question added in the 1901 census, see Gaffield, “Language, Ancestry, and the Competing Constructions of Identity.” 26 Loewen, Family, Church, and Market, 79–81, suggests that for the Mennonites who settled in Manitoba, social boundary maintenance was more important to the successful transplantation of the community than physical isolation or spatial organization, as was once commonly argued. Breton, “Institutional Completeness of Ethnic Communities,” examines the impact on institutional completeness on the direction of the integration of immigrants, toward their own community or toward the pre-existing community or another one. While he is examining the arrival of new immigrants in an established society, the ability of early migrants to establish institutional completeness would have a similar effect on the maintenance of an ethnic or religious community in this context. Chapter 5 throws more light on this issue. 27 Although the Baptist Church is sometimes considered to be a mainstream church as well, I have not included it here in that definition because in the local context it represented only 3 percent of the population and did not receive the same coverage as the other denominations in the local paper.

chapter two 1 The literature on family economy in the nineteenth century is extensive and includes Bradbury’s several articles as well as Working Families. Copp, Anatomy of Poverty, considers the situation of the working class in Montreal in the early twentieth century, including the work of children. Baillargeon, Making Do, sheds light on stretching family wages in Montreal during the Depression. Less is known about how families in rural areas and small cities like North Bay coped. Informal adoptions and other reliance on kin would probably escape the notice of both authorities at the time and historians later. In describing a family picture, for example, Simone (Boulanger) Martin pointed out that the Foisy in the picture was adopted by her father. He was a nephew of her grandfather whom her father took in because he was too young to look after himself. It is unlikely that this was a formal legal adoption.

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Notes to page 35

2 In 1933, the worst year of the Depression, North Bay had 602 families on relief but the number declined thereafter. In January of 1935 the number was only 408, a decrease from the previous year. “Add Eighty Families to City Relief List,” Nugget, 4 Jan. 1935. 3 Rountree, The Railway Worker, 133. 4 Carlson Cumbo, “‘As the Twig Is Bent,’” 46–7, suggests that many Italian families in Toronto engaged in these activities quite openly with no sense of guilt. Several Italian names appear among police court reports in North Bay as well. After ohw, for example, T. Mussilino, J. Luesby, taxi driver, and S. Ferro were charged with illegally selling liquor during ohw. “Claim Three Sold Liquor on August 6,” Nugget, 21 Aug. 1925, Front Page. 5 “Boys Confess to Entering Bakery Sunday Afternoon,” Nugget, 20 March 1925, Front Page. In this case three boys under fifteen were charged with theft after they had confessed to taking boxes of chocolates from the Campbell Drug Co., stealing money from the Salvation Army bake shop, and taking goods from a private home. These kinds of charges do not appear often in 1925; in 1935 they were more numerous. See for example, “Boys Pilfer Goods from Freight Cars,” ibid., 12 April 1935, Front Page. In this case three boys were caught stealing 2,000 cigarettes and boxes of chocolates. The theft of items such as food, clothing, and fuel seem most likely to be related to Depression conditions. The penalties sometimes seem quite hefty. Three North Bay men caught stealing chickens, for example, each paid a fine of $40.67. In the same session, a young man caught stealing wood from St Mary’s School for a friend whose family was on relief received a suspended sentence: “Chicken Stew Costs $40.67 Per Service,” ibid., 11 Dec. 1935, Magistrate’s Court. In another chicken theft case a man from Astorville was given a one-year suspended sentence, while his accessory, charged with break and enter, was given three months in jail: “Given Three Months for Chicken Theft,” ibid., 16 Sept. 1935. Gordon McQuestion, a North Bay labourer, was charged with stealing hay: “Drunk Lone Offender in Three-Day Period,” ibid., 18 Jan. 1935, Police Court. The theft of a pair of skates and some pants was attributed to transients, who got away: “Hot Police Pursuit Late Sunday Night,” ibid., 21 Oct. 1935. After a series of clothing thefts, homeowners were warned: “Thieves find it comparatively easy to open the front doors of homes while the family is at dinner or otherwise occupied, without noise. Generally, coats etc., are hung within easy reach of the doorway, and the burglar, usually a transient, makes a quick getaway”: “Keep Portals

Notes to pages 35–8

6 7 8

9 10

11 12

13 14 15

16 17

18

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Securely Locked Lest Clothing Burglars Call,” ibid., 30 Jan. 1935. “Church vestibules and cloakrooms have been visited frequently, and purses taken from apparently safe places. St. John’s Anglican church, St. Andrew’s, Trinity, and the Baptist churches have been the principal ones to suffer from this sneak-thievery”: “Police Watch Prowlers Responsible for Thefts,” ibid., 1 March 1935. A transient who took a fountain pen from a home when begging door to door was given thirty days in jail: “Magistrate Lenient When Job Assured,” ibid., 6 Sept. 1935, Police Court. “Muddled Testimony Baffling to Court,” ibid., 22 Feb. 1935, Police Court. “Sentenced to Prison for Stealing Letter,” ibid., 18 April 1935. Sangster, Girl Trouble, 80–2, found that it was often parents who brought their children, especially girls, to court when they clashed over their responsibilities to the family or could no longer control them. “Father Vs. Son,” Nugget, 7 Jan. 1935, Police Court. Kennedy, North Bay, 96, indicates that the society was reorganized in 1907 and that the Children’s Shelter was in place for many years, closing in 1943. “Reach Capacity of Children’s Shelter,” Nugget, 17 March 1925, Front Page. At the time, the shelter held twenty-eight children. “Fine Reports Handed in for Children’s Aid,” Nugget, 13 Nov. 1925. “P[?] Two Homes Is Investigated: Children’s Aid is Very Active,” ibid., 10 Feb. 1925; “Dupuis Babes Taken by the Children’s Aid,” ibid., 18 Aug. 1925, Front Page. [Title of article is obscured.] “Says Child Welfare Better In District,” ibid., 16 Oct. 1935, Front Page. “Laud Children’s Aid For Work Performed,” ibid., 4 Dec. 1935. “Open Central Office For Children’s Aid,” ibid., 22 July 1935; “Children’s Aid Board Stunned by Proposals of Welfare Officials,” ibid., 5 April 1935. Hartley Trussler Diary, 6 Feb., 9 Sept., and 24 Dec. 1935. In Making Do, Denyse Baillargeon interviewed women who were already married by 1930. These interviews were conducted in 1986–87, however; in 2004–06, when my interviews were conducted, it was no longer possible to find people who had been adults during the Depression to interview. Baillargeon’s examination of working class life in Montreal during the Depression therefore provides a very useful comparison to the findings here. Cundari refers to these groups as follows: “There was a lot of English people up there. There was a lot of immigrants up at the onr, like ya know, there was Polish and Irish and French. But a lot were Italians.”

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31 32 33 34

Notes to pages 39–50

This is an interesting reflection on how the various ethnic groups were viewed. It seems that the English were not viewed as immigrants although many of them were. The lot for the garden and the land for hay seem to be two different places. On sojourners see articles by Robert Harney, especially “Boarding and Belonging,” and “The Padrone System and Sojourners in the Canadian North.” Artibise, Winnipeg. “La Prière en famille” by Joseph-Edmond Massicotte, registered in 1924, is in the same style as his twelve other scenes depicting traditional French Canadian scenes which were released in 1923. Karel, Edmond-Joseph Massicotte, 144–8. For a description of this and other children’s games, see Wilder and Hansen, “A Glossary of Outdoor Games.” On the work of children as it relates to life cycles in the nineteenth century see Bradbury, Working Families. Cliff Alger passed away on 1 Aug. 2008 at the age of eighty-six. His funeral service was held at Trinity Church. Carlson Cumbo, “‘As the Twig Is Bent,’” 95–158 makes a similar point regarding neighbourhood in Toronto. He refers to it as “Streetland” and focuses primarily on the interaction of the children in this “separate world” from that of the adults. Rosenfeld, “‘It Was a Hard Life,’” looks at the question of family life in Barrie. Morton, Ideal Surroundings, 72–3. Jack Russell worked for a neighbour piling up firewood for 20 cents a cord. It had to be done just right and one cord took him all week to pile. Gigg. His family kept chickens and ducks as well as a large garden. Bradbury, “Pigs, Cows, and Boarders,” has demonstrated how this was an important alternative for working class families in Montreal before urban regulations made it impossible to keep pigs. Cows were allowed for longer. North Bay and Mattawa had no restrictions at this time. Jack Russell lived next door to a family who kept a cow on Hammond Street. Backer. Backer, Brazeau, and Gigg. Brazeau. Morton, Ideal Surroundings, 127–30, indicates that hunting and fishing were popular among working class men in Halifax. These activities,

Notes to pages 51–5

35 36 37 38 39 40 41

42 43 44 45

46 47 48

49 50

51 52

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like gardening, contributed to the household economy, but were usually referred to as hobbies. Burrows. See especially Bradbury, “Surviving as a Widow”; “Pigs, Cows, and Boarders”; and “The Family Economy and Work.” With reference to celebration of “La Sainte Catherine” he remarked that she did not have the time to make toffee. Richardson. Laverdure, Sunday in Canada. Burrows. On the relationship between the working class and religion, see Turkstra, “Christianity and the Working Class.” The clergy’s attacks on the social and recreational life of the working class was one factor that may have driven them away from the organized church (228). While most Protestant ministers in Hamilton, Ontario, preached about the dignity of labour, their message was that workers should be content with their position in life (243). Men, particularly single men, were more likely to stay away from church than women (252–4). As Turkstra points out, however, even those who did not attend church often sent their children to Sunday School. The question is therefore complex. Trussler Diary. See also chapter 8. Burrows. Richardson. When he was younger, Hermès Laroque played with the neigbhours’ children. It was their older girl, Irma Higgins, who took his hand and brought him to school the first day. Russell. Brozowski, Rees, and Topps, Environmental Economic Atlas of North Bay and Area, 17. Russell. Ellena (O’Hara) Naughton also remembered that there was a French family across the street and that her brother was really good friends with the boy there. Naughton. Margaret (Paterson) Richardson belonged to the Junior Auxiliary at St John’s Church. Records of these auxiliaries show that many young people, especially women, joined such groups. Their version seems a bit simpler than that described in Wilder and Hansen, “A Glossary,” 231. Wardlaw.

268

Notes to pages 55–62

53 In the 1911 census most railway workers worked forty-nine weeks of the year. 54 Zucchi, Italians in Toronto, 166–92. 55 Pennacchio, “Exporting Fascism to Canada,” 64. 56 “Italian Young Folk Sail for Motherland,” Nugget, 8 July 1935. The Italian organization was Organizzazioni Giovoinili Italiane all’ Estero. Claudia Baldoli, Exporting Fascism, 22. 57 “Back from Vacation Occasion for Party,” ibid., 2 Oct. 1935. 58 “Vacation Described at Gathering Sunday,” ibid., 30 Sept. 1935. That summer the elite in the Italian community also entertained the Italian Consul-General of Canada, Cavalier G. Belcredi, when he visited North Bay in June. They were making plans to establish a school in which students would take classes in both English and Italian. Miss Richiere of Ottawa spoke to Knights of Columbus on the advantages of knowing both Italian and English. “English-Italian School In North Bay Endeavor,” ibid., 10 June 1935, Front Page. Any advances made towards such nationalistic goals would have been thwarted by the outbreak of the Second World War, during which Italian-Canadians born in Italy became enemy aliens and many of them were interned. The arrival of Italian immigrants after the war, however, changed the nature of the community. 59 Trussler Diary, 1935. 60 Bernard Rochefort. 61 Our Chisholm Story, 1880–1974, 65. His diary-assisted reminiscences and numerous illustrations provided an excellent overview of farming in this area from pioneer days onward. Ibid., 57–72. 62 Guillemette. 63 “That, that was a big feast.” Ibid. These memories were from the female perspective. Several aspects of farm work such as seeding and haying are not mentioned. 64 Ibid. 65 Ibid. 66 Such sales could represent a significant proportion of farm income. For an example in the context of Manitoba see Loewen, Family, Church, and Market, 127. 67 Bernard Rochefort. 68 Martin. She remembered that if they brought home $15 a week that would have been considered good. 69 Guillemette. 70 Bernard Rochefort.

Notes to pages 62–9

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Guillemette. Bernard Rochefort. Conrad Therrien. Paroisse Saint-Thomas-d’Aquin.

chapter three 1 Pleck, “The Making of the Domestic Occasion.” The literature on the sociology of Christmas is extensive. See, for example, Bella, The Christmas Imperative; Nissenbaum, The Battle for Christmas; Waits, The Modern Christmas; and Restad, Christmas in America. 2 Schmidt, Consumer Rites. 3 Pleck, Celebrating the Family, 141. 4 I found that in Quebec and Ontario before 1870 Thanksgiving remained largely a religious celebration and that birthdays were only beginning to be celebrated. Noël, Family Life and Sociability, 193–207. 5 Warren, Hourra Pour Santa Claus!, 233–4. 6 On the symbolic significance of food at celebrations, see Humphrey and Humphrey, eds., “We Gather Together.” 7 Unger. 8 Douglas. 9 Naughton. 10 Alger. 11 Mauro. 12 Burton. 13 Priest, “Dear Santa.” The letters were all printed in the Nugget but they were not all from children in North Bay. 14 “Why, You’re Not Too Old,” Nugget, 8 Dec. 1933, Santa Claus Letter Box. 15 Priest, “Dear Santa.” 16 Cundari. 17 Brazeau mentions that she received a Shirley Temple doll and Lucille Regimbal was a great Shirley Temple fan at the time (and still was). The Shirley Temple doll was made with a bisque head and limbs and had moving eyes. The 16-inch doll sold for $6.00 in 1938–39. Nerlich Catalogue. http://www.collectionscanada.ca/cmc/009002-119.01-e. php?&page_ecopy= nlc004032.146&&phpsessid=2etjnho2i84pb76min 95lhm795 consulted 16 Aug. 2007. An Eaton’s Beauty doll in 1934–35 was 19 inches high and had moving eyes and curls a lot like Shirley Temple. She cost only $1.39. A 9-inch coloured baby doll on the same

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29 30

31 32 33 34 35 36 37 38 39

Notes to pages 69–77

page cost 79 cents and a composition doll cost 10 cents. http://www. collectionscanada.ca/cmc/009002-119.01-e.php?&page_ecopy= nlc003954.258&&phpsessid=8tokq6h1s0l5mnu7ftfsee8bo4 consulted 16 Aug. 2007. Falconi. Warren, Hourra Pour Santa Claus!, 41–2. Noël, Family Life and Sociability, 211–15. Warren, Hourra Pour Santa Claus!, 43. Karel, Edmond-Joseph Massicotte Illustrateur, 120. Le Réseau de Diffusion des Archives du Québec, “Coutumes et Culture”: “Clin d’oeil sur nos traditions, Jour de l’An,” http://www.rdaq. qc.ca/, consulted 13 Oct. 2006. Guillemette, Bernard Rochefort. Bernard Rochefort, Guillemette. These are songs such as “Alouette,” which have a question that the group as a whole answers or a chorus that is repeated. Bernard Rochefort. In his family a forty-ounce bottle for the season was usually enough. Laurence (Blanchette) Novack. “Of course, at that time, the mass was in Latin but the carols were in French, and the carols, well there were a lot of them and they were beautiful, and there was really no radio, all those things, there were very few, it was almost for them a, a concert.” Rollande (Gagné) Rochefort. Conrad Therrien. His family visited on Christmas Day and on New Year’s Day with his two uncles, who lived nearby. They had both a lunch and a supper and alternated between homes to hold it. Bernard Rochefort. Martin; Bernard Rochefort. Laurence Novack. Rollande (Gagné) Rochefort. Conrad Therrien. Lloyd Novack. “And late at night, we close our eyes, our heart filled with happiness.” “Le Jour de L’An,” Northern Echo, 1929, 37. Martin. Le Réseau de Diffusion des Archives du Québec, “Coutumes et Culture: La Saint-Sylvestre, de coutume en culture,” http://www.rdaq.qc.ca/ consulted 3 Oct. 2006.

Notes to pages 77–82

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40 “Jour de l’An à l’ancienne.” Archives de Radio-Canada. Société RadioCanada. Latest update: 6 April 2005. consulted 3 Oct. 2006. 41 Alger saw it as important, but provided no detail. 42 Laroque, Laurence (Blanchette) Novack, and Brazeau. 43 Pappas. 44 Landriault, Falconi. 45 Wardlaw. 46 Rollande (Gagné) Rochefort. A family from Sudbury, heard at Easter on Radio-Canada in 2007, indicated that for this family the ritual was still very important and had been handed down to the present generation. They always found a running stream of water to get their water from and they kept enough for the whole year. 47 Rollande (Gagné) Rochefort. 48 Yvette (Lamothe) Therrien. 49 Rogers, Halloween, 70. 50 Ibid., 78–102. 51 Alger. 52 Douglas. 53 Brazeau. 54 Larocque. 55 Regimbal. 56 Pappas. 57 Bernard and Rollande (Gagné) Rochefort. 58 Guillemette. 59 The Greek community tried to celebrate Greek Independence Day for a few years, for example, but they were not numerous enough to establish this celebration on a regular basis. Wardlaw. Saint Jean Baptiste Day celebrations appear to have emerged only later. The Fête-Dieu or Corpus Christi processions were very important in this period and involved parading some distance from and back to the parish churches. 60 Interviews with Regimbal, Backer, Rollande (Gagné) Rochefort, and Guillemette. 61 Regimbal. 62 Unger. 63 Cundari. 64 Pappas and Wardlaw. 65 Pleck, Celebrating the Family, 13. 66 Gillis, “Making Time for Family, 8–18.

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Notes to pages 83–90

chapter four 1 2 3 4 5

6 7 8 9

10

11 12 13 14

15 16 17 18 19

Pleck, Celebrating the Family, 9 Cundari. Pappas. Burrows and Douglas. An image showing a Sister of St Joseph accompanying a group of young first communicants as they move toward St Mary’s Cathedral shows them wearing full-length white dresses and veils. The young boy is wearing a jacket and short pants. Celebrating Parish Community, 75. Cundari, Brazeau, and Richardson refer to similar dress codes. Life Magazine, 2 Sept. 1940. Cundari and Falconi. Lamarre and Falconi. The literature on motherhood is extensive. On French Canada, see Baillargeon, Making Do, 67–89 and Lévesque, Making and Breaking the Rules; on English Canada, see Strong-Boag, The New Day Recalled, 145–77, and Arnup, et al., Delivering Motherhood. Lévesque, Making and Breaking the Rules, 27. In spite of the Church’s strong views against contraception, Baillargeon found that it was used by over half of the couples, the female partner of which she interviewed. Baillargeon, Making Do, 75. This finding suggests that conformity to church regulations was not as extensive as previously believed. On female sexual delinquency, see Lévesque, Making and Breaking the Rules; Myers, Caught, and Sangster, Girl Trouble. Otnes and Pleck, Cinderella Dreams, 18. This study focuses on the lavish weddings that emerged after 1945. Pleck, Celebrating the Family, 216–18. Of the thirty working-class women in Montreal who married in this period and whom Baillargeon interviewed, only three were married in white. The remainder chose the more pragmatic course of choosing a dress they could wear again. Making Do, 58. Bernard Rochefort. Martin. Rollande (Gagné) Rochefort. Bernard Rochefort. Database prepared by Amy Toms for “A Pretty Little Wedding in June.”

Notes to pages 91–6

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20 For coverage of these events in the Nugget of 1935 see: “Delightful Shower Honors Miss Bourke,” 5 Aug. 1935, Social; “Lovely Shower, Tea Honors Bride Elect,” 9 Aug. 1935; “Miss Bourke Honoree at Shower Function,” 16 Aug. 1935; “Spencer-Bourke,” 21 Aug. 1935, Weddings. 21 “Miss Marceau Guest at Charming Shower,” Nugget, 28 Aug. 1935; “Picherack- Marceau,” ibid., 30 Aug. 1935, Weddings. 22 Alger. 23 “Weddings: Ricci-Cappadocia,” Nugget, 4 Sept. 1935. 24 Ibid. 25 Pleck, Celebrating the Family, 227. 26 “Murray-Heavener,” Nugget, 22 April 1935. 27 Private communication with with Mr Murray, a descendant. 28 “Bride-elect Honoree at Charming Events,” Nugget, 22 April 1935. 29 “Elect 1935 Officers for K. Of C. Council,” ibid., 26 June 1935. 30 “Fete Miss Laderoute At Gay Shower Party,” ibid., 28 June 1935. 31 Parr, The Gender of Breadwinners, 30–2. 32 Morton, Ideal Surroundings, 146–9. 33 “Girls of Hydro Staff Honor Miss McArthur,” Nugget, 20 Nov. 1935. 34 A trousseau tea in the 1950s was a tea at which gifts were displayed, held about a week before the wedding. These were usually put on by friends of the mother. It would have been in poor taste for someone in the family to hold one. The gifts were smaller or people got together to give one big gift. These conventions certainly appear to hold true for the earlier period as well. Interview No. nb13, 3 Aug. 2004. 35 “Hold Trousseau Tea for Miss Stockdale,” Nugget, 7 Oct. 1935. 36 Pleck, Celebrating the Family, 208. 37 Ibid., 184–206. 38 Palmer, A Culture in Conflict, 36. 39 Rosenfeld, “‘She Was a Hard Life,’” 38, 126. 40 Guillemette and Martin. 41 Martin. 42 Naughton. 43 Landriault, Laroque, and others. 44 “Frederick Noiseau,” Nugget, 11 Sept. 1935, Obituary. 45 Ibid., “Mrs. W J Ball,” 23 Sept. 1925, Obituary. 46 Laroque. 47 “Charles Norton,” Nugget, 8 April 1935, Obituary.

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Notes to pages 96–9

48 Wardlaw. 49 Herrington and Foley, The First One Hundred Years: A History of the Grand Lodge A.F. & A.M. Of Canada, 144–5. 50 Nugget coverage of the funerals of prominent masons and rotarians included: “North Bay Mourns Late A.C. Rorabeck. Masonic Funeral Service Held in St. John’s Church This Afternoon,” 23 March 1932, 1–2; “Dr. R.L. Dudley Dies Suddenly on Sunday,” 13 May 1935; “Rotarians Saddened By Member’s Death,” 13 May 1935; “Pay Last Respects To Esteemed Citizen,” 15 May 1935, Front Page. 51 The following is based on “North Bay Mourns Late A.C. Rorabeck. Masonic Funeral Service Held in St. John’s Church This Afternoon,” Nugget, 23 March 1932, 1–2. 52 The regular pallbearers were Dr R.L. Dudley, G.B. Alford, N.J. McCubbin, C. Hammond, and D.H. Morison. The honorary pallbearers were Judge H.D. Leask, G.W. Lee, S.B. McConnell, S. Weegar, R.R. Lounsbury, and J.H. Black. The following were Masters of A.F. & A.M. Nipissing Lodge No. 420 at North Bay: Dudley, 1909; Alford, 1920; McCubbin, 1907; Leask, 1900; Lee, 1905; and Weegar, 1903. George W. Lee was also chairman of the t&no Railway. Kennedy, North Bay, 220–1; 10. 53 Another example of work-related involvement in a funeral is that of Lawrence Murphy, a worker for the Canadian National Railway. When he died after twenty years in its service, his pallbearers were co-workers from the office staff. “Lawrence Murphy,” Nugget, 25 March 1935, Obituary. 54 Coverage in the Nugget illustrating community group support at funerals appears in the following: “Robert Frank Mason,” 4 Feb. 1935, Obituary; “Hector Gagnon Dies in Ottawa Monday,” 2 Jan. 1935; “Thousands Pay Tribute Theo. Legault’s Funeral,” 21 Jan. 1935; “Thomas H. Carmichael,” 25 March 1935, Obituary; “Theodore Locke,” 9 Sept. 1935, Obituary; “Frank Amour’s Funeral,” 28 April 1925, Obituary; “Richard Newman,” 4 Sept. 1925, Obituary. 55 “Mrs. George W. Powles,” ibid., 29 July 1935, Obituary. 56 “Mrs. William Doran,” ibid., 14 July 1925, Obituary. 57 “Mrs. Doran’s Funeral,” ibid., 17 July 1925, Obituary. 58 Ibid. 59 For Nugget obituaries relating to the deaths of local women in 1935, see:“Donalda Hill,” 8 April 1935, Obituary; “Mrs. Frank Calarco,” 17 June 1935, Obituary; “Mrs. J.B. Bazinet,” 3 June 1935, Obituary.

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60 For Nugget coverage of these children’s funerals, see: “Obituary,” 8 July 1935; “North Bay Youth Loses Life When Hurled From Auto,” 30 Aug. 1935; “Baby Boy Tumbles to Death in Chippewa Creek Tuesday,” 28 June 1935. See also, Nugget, 21 July 1925, and 24 June and 16 Sept. 1935. 61 For funeral notices and obituaries referring to floral tributes in the Nugget, see: “Newman,” 4 Sept. 1925, Obituary; “Amour,” 21 July 1925; “William Dobson,” 11 March 1935, Obituary; “Pay Last Respects To Esteemed Citizen,” 15 May 1935, Front Page. 62 See the following Nugget coverage: “James B. Lee Dies at School Meeting,” 20 March 1935, Front Page; “Pay Last Respects To Esteemed Citizen,” Nugget, 15 May 1935, Front Page.

chapter five 1 See Brown and Cook, Canada: 1896–1921, for an overview of this period. 2 While schools were seen as the best weapon in this effort, churches played a role as well. The archdiocese of Toronto has been seen as a leader of the English Catholic church in this regard. See McGowan, “Toronto’s English-Speaking Catholics.” Turkstra, “Christianity and the Working Class,” examines both Protestant and Catholic responses to the working class in the context of Hamilton. Emery, The Methodist Church on the Prairies, 1896–1914, examines the efforts of the Methodist church on the prairies in this period and particularly their missions to the Ukrainians. 3 Grant, The Church in the Canadian Era, 91–112. On the social gospel, see also, Allen, The Social Passion. The Catholic Women’s League in Canada was founded largely to do work among immigrant women. See Ross, “‘For God and Canada’: The Early Years of the Catholic Women’s League in Alberta.” Although issued in 1891, the call for social action in Rerum Novarum was often not acted upon until the Depression. See Beck, “Contrasting Approaches to Catholic Social Action.” 4 Murphy and Perin, A Concise History of Christianity, 245–6. 5 “Souvenir of a Thanksgiving Day, February 24, 1915,” [North Bay, Pro-Cathedral of the Assumption, 1915], 28–30. Author’s Collection. 6 Ibid., 35; Celebrating Parish Community. 7 For a discussion of Scollard’s position on these questions see Saunders, “Bishop Scollard and Northern Ontario.” 8 Carlson Cumbo, “‘As the Twig Is Bent,’” 381. In Toronto the first national parish for Italians opened in 1908 partly in response to

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14 15 16 17

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Notes to pages 108–10

Protestant missionary activity among new immigrants. See also Zucchi, Italians in Toronto, 118–40, for an overview of the problems in the Italian parishes there. Grassi. Schiavo. Celentano, St. Rita’s Parish, 8–9. Ibid., 16. Priolo, for example, says they were not involved with the church very much. As we have seen, one group left the church completely in reaction to corporal punishment at St Joseph’s School. Falconi and Cundari both noted that those from the east end or the “Y” attended as well as those who lived near the church, but Cundari noted that there were class differences between them. There is no evidence of the intense rivalry between paese groups as there was in Toronto and Hamilton, as described by Carlson Cumbo, or of hostility between the clergy and the Italians. This could be because the group in North Bay was much smaller and, since immigration was largely based on chain migration, they would have come largely from the same areas. It is also possible, however, that interviewees minimized conflict within the group or that, as children, they would not have been aware of any. On Toronto and Hamilton, see Carlson Cumbo, “Salvation in Indifference.” Laroque. MacDougall, et al., ‘Back to the Bay,’ 97–101. Celebrating Parish Community; Cholette, “La Paroisse Saint-Vincent-dePaul,” 17–24. “En réalité, nous assistions à un traitement différent pour les mêmes besoins des âmes, selon qu’il s’agissait de fidèles de différentes origines. D’une part, zèle à multiplier facilement, promptement et généreusement les paroisses anglophones; et d’autre part, apathie, objections, refus, subterfuges de toutes sortes.” Courteau, Le Docteur J.-Raoul Hurtubise, 58. Jefferson and Johnson, Faith of Our Fathers, 140–1. Morel, Mattawa, 141. Cochrane, Trails and Tales, 42, 51. The Nipissing District was transferred to the Toronto Conference in 1899. Rev. J.D. Ellis, dd, cited in Cochrane, Trails and Tales, 46. Cochrane, Trails and Tales, 48–9. Morel, Mattawa, 145. Our Chisholm Story, 1880–1960, 131–8.

Notes to pages 111–13

277

25 Carney, When Your Children Ask, 28–9. He refers to several other itinerant preachers who worked in this area at the time. 26 There were 284 Germans and 576 Italians in the study area at the time. The next largest group was the Aboriginal population, making up 1 percent of the total population, and located primarily in Mattawa. Census of Canada, 1921, Vol. I, Table 27. 27 Gauvreau and Christie, A Full-Orbed Christianity, have argued that Protestant churches played a major role in the introduction of social welfare measures in Canada and that Canadian culture retained its Protestant character in the period to 1940, countering the arguments that secularization reduced their role. While at the local level it certainly appears that churches continued to play an important role in this period, the potential of Protestant culture to dominate was seriously restricted by the large number of Catholics. In the cultural realm, the large Anglican population also appears to have been much closer to the Catholics than to the more evangelical Protestants, who maintained their opposition to card playing, dancing, and recreation on Sundays. 28 An examination of the link between religion and culture in Quebec suggests that by 1880 conformity to the outward expression of religious faith was required and the social disapproval for deviance were so great that almost total compliance was achieved. Everyone attended Sunday mass and made their Easter communion. Piety was evaluated on the basis of repetition and an accumulation of gestures, such as the devotions encouraged by the confraternities. This religion d’habitude had entered the culture to the point where it had become a defining trait of the “nation.” Hardy, Contrôle sociale, 226–7. 29 Grant, The Church in the Canadian Era, 113–48. 30 Brian Clarke, “The Parish and the Hearth,” 190, provides a useful explanation of these devotional societies and their role in promoting a piety that was characterized by repeated ritualistic actions such as saying the rosary. Devotions tried to induce a personal relationship with a particular saint. By performing these devotions the faithful would receive the graces they requested. The saints were intermediaries between the faithful and God. The saints were an important part of Mediterranean Catholics’ daily life and practices as well. Carlson Cumbo, “‘Impediments to the Harvest,’” 166–7. The confraternities and sodalities that encouraged such forms of piety date back to New France in Quebec but, as the work of Brigitte Caulier has shown, their numbers declined in the early nineteenth century and surged up again in the late

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32

33 34

35

36 37

Notes to pages 113–14

nineteenth century. See Caulier, “Les confrèries de dévotion traditionnelles.” According to Hardy, Contrôle social, 148, parishes in Quebec in the late nineteenth century would typically have from five to ten (7.5 on average) of these devotional and social welfare associations. Lucia Ferretti, in her examination of an urban parish on the Island of Montreal, found that these parish associations remained very active in the period from 1870–1914 but declined somewhat afterward. Before the war much of the social life of parishioners revolved around the leisure provided by these groups, including the newly fashionable euchre parties. The round of activities they provided is very similar to those found in this area in the 1920s and 1930s. See Ferretti, Entre Voisins, 152–78. Turkstra, “Christianity and the Working Class,” explores many of these issues in the context of Hamilton, Ontario. Rosenfeld, “‘She Was a Hard Life,’” 125–9, found a similar outreach by churches in Allendale, Ontario. Figures for this period are not available but, looking at the earlier period, Heather Barkey-Laing found that among the three largest Protestant churches in North Bay, 60 percent of marriages between 1902 and 1911 were between couples of the same denomination. In the same period only 10 percent of marriages in these churches were between a Protestant and a Catholic. This suggests a strong denominational commitment as well as a desire for Protestant-Protestant marriage. Barkey-Laing, “Patterns of Denominational Adherence,” 74–80. Paroisse Saint-Thomas-d’Aquin, 31–2; O’Dwyer, Highways of Destiny, 72. Igartua, Arvida, 45. Igartua lists all the special events, including processions, novenas, and other special devotions, and finds at least one major event for every month of the year. Paroisse Saint-Thomas-d’Aquin, 31–2. Jean Archambault’s account in 1952 prefaces this event with the statement: “Le Seigneur a semblé un jour confirmer ce grand esprit de foi du pasteur et de ses ouailles.” Archambault, “Astorville,” 37. These comments are inspired by an examination of the photo essay provided in the parish history. Paroisse Saint-Thomas-d’Aquin, 91–182. In Arvida, where the parish played a similar role in community life, priests frequently preached against movies, drinking, dances, and indecency. As Igartua points out, the repetition of such injunctions reflected the limits of the control of the priest over the behaviour of his parishioners. Igartua, Arvida, 48. While we have not had access to similar records for this area, this comparison should warn us against interpreting the image of harmony portrayed in the parish histories as an indication of priests’ social control.

Notes to pages 115–23

279

38 Chamberland, “Bonfield,” 14. The church is described as follows: ”L’église est de brique et de style roman; une belle voûte à caissons s’étend sur la nef centrale. Les transepts comportent un plafond plat. Le maître-autel est surmonté d’un magnifique calvaire à personnages de grandeur naturelle; il est couronné d’un baldaquin de style roman, où est placée la statue de la patronne, Sainte-Philomène, martyre.” 39 Chamberland, “Bonfield,” 15. 40 The Bonfield sea pie contains a mixture of meats in a thick pie crust. Sea pie, also, “sipaille, sipâlle, cipaille, six-pailles, six-pâtes, cipâtes, [or] cipare,” according to Lionel Meney, Dictionnaire Québécois-Français (Montreal and Toronto: Guérin, 2003), 1551, is an unfortunate similarity of pronunciation, as there is no sea food in it. 41 O’Dwyer, Highways of Destiny, 73. 42 Our Chisholm Story, 1880–1960, 138. 43 O’Dwyer, Highways of Destiny, 75. 44 Our Chisholm Story, 1880–1960, 147. 45 Chamberland, “Bonfield,” 12. 46 Conrad Therrien. Carmen (Therrien) Backer tells much the same story about her father, who lived in Papineau Township. 47 Eglise Sainte Anne, Mattawa, 17–19. 48 O’Dwyer, Highways of Destiny, 63–5. 49 Our Chisholm Story, 1880–1960, 129–38. 50 Our Chisholm Story, 1880–1974, 164–5; Our Chisholm Story, 1880–1960, 5. The history of other townships is not as well known. 51 MacDougall et al. ‘Back to the Bay,’ 97–102. 52 “Work Will Start Soon on the New Hebrew Synagogue,” Nugget, 11 Sept. 1925. 53 “Honor Bishop on His Return from Vatican,” Nugget, 11 Aug. 1925. 54 “Annual Report of St John’s is Very Pleasing,” Nugget, 17 April 1925. 55 “Methodist to go Into Union Free of Debt,” 5 May 1925; “Show Finances of Methodists to be Record,” 8 May 1925. 56 Clifford, The Resistance to Church Union, 142–64. 57 For further articles in the Nugget on the church union controversy in North Bay, see: “Presbyterians of Bay Vote Church Union,” 9 Jan. 1925; “Former Local Pastor Strong for the Union,” 6 Feb. 1925; “North Almost Solid for Church Union,” 27 Feb. 1925; “Church Union Movement is Given a Boost,” 13 March 1925; “Union Church is to Be Strong in North,” 24 March 1925. 58 Clifford, The Resistance to Church Union, 180–4. Clifford suggests that “a rural-urban split, the rift between theological liberals and conserva-

280

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62 63 64 65

66 67

68 69

70

71 72

Notes to pages 123–5

tives, and the overlapping of other community conflicts,” offer an understanding of the disruption. “Union Sunday is Observed in Bay Churches,” Nugget, 16 June 1925. “Trinity United New Name of Local Church,” ibid., 19 June 1925. Clifford, The Resistance to Church Union, 234. An Act to Incorporate the Board of Trustees of the Presbyterian Church in Canada was passed at the same time. “Union Opponents Form Organization,” Nugget, 1 May 1925, Front Page. Dunn, Calvin Presbyterian, 1. “Divine Services of Non-Concurrents,” 12 May 1925. Messrs R. Thompson, J. Silliman, J. Small, W. Buchan, J. McIlvenna, G. Newton, A. Gartshore, and J. Jeffrey were appointed. “Non-Unionists to Keep on as Presbyterians,” Nugget, 19 May 1925. “North Presbyteries Will Be Combined,” Nugget, 16 June 925. “Application of Bay Presbyterians for Church Coming Up,” ibid., 18 Dec. 1925, Front Page; “St Andrew’s Church Has Offered $3,000 to Help Continuing Presbyterians,” ibid., 22 Dec. 1925. Dunn, Calvin Presbyterian, 6. Ibid., 9–10. Because so little of their mortgage was paid off when the Depression hit, they were particularly affected by it. Their situation was aggravated, however, by unpopular ministers and falling memberships. Membership dropped sharply and remained in the range of 200 to 235 from the mid-1930s to the 1950s. See also, Appendix vii, 2. This was the church Albert Costante went to when his family left the Catholic church. As he describes it, these families – a few people – got a minister and made a church at the bottom of the hill on Worthington. It had a Sunday school and the minister used to play the guitar. These were listed in the city directory in 1930. Articles from the Nugget related to Bishop Dignan’s arrival include: “Install New Bishop Here Tuesday, April 2,” 4 March 1935; “North Bay Celebrates Consecration Bishop,” 20 March 1935; “Reception for Bishop Dignan,” 27 March 1935; “Citizens to Extend Welcome to Bishop,” 3 April 1935; “Crowd Awaiting Bishop’s Arrival,” 3 April 1935; “Ladies Meet Mother New Bishop Diocese,” 3 April 1935; “Bishop Dignan is Welcomed by Representative Citizens,” 5 April 1935; “Mrs. Dignan Honoree Reception at College,” 5 April 1935; “School Pupils Pay Respects to Newly-Installed Bishop,” 5 April 1935; “Charming Tea Event Honors Mrs. Dignan,” 8 April 1935; “North Bay College Entertains Bishop,” 10 April 1935.

Notes to pages 125–6

281

73 “Churches to Mark Jubilee on Sunday,” Nugget, 2 May 1935. 74 “North Bay Churches Mark Easter Period,” ibid., 18 April 1935, 12. 75 “Mattawa: Mattawa Churches Mark Thanksgiving,” ibid., 25 Oct. 1935; “Ferris,” ibid., 23 Oct. 1935; “Mark Thanksgiving at Special Service,” ibid., 21 Oct. 1935. 76 “Congregations Unite in Thanks Service,” ibid., 25 Oct. 1935. 77 “Festival of Lights Observed by Jewish,” ibid., 18 Dec. 1935; “Observe Yom Kippur at Synagogue Monday,” ibid., 4 Oct. 1935; “Purim Masquerade Function Held at Home of Mrs. Waiser,” ibid., 22 March 1935; “Mark Purim Feast as Entertainment,” ibid., 20 March 1935. 78 “Lengthy Procession Marks Church Feast,” ibid., 24 June 1935; “Mattawa: Service, Decoration by Masonic Lodge,” ibid., 24 June 1935. In Mattawa large numbers also watched the procession. 79 “Confirmation Scene Impressive, Solemn,” Nugget, 17 May 1935; “Confirmation Class Receives Sacrament,” 21 June 1935; “Hold Confirmation North Bay Churches,” ibid., 17 June 1935; “Children Confirmed St. Vincent De Paul,” ibid., 19 June 1935; “Confirmation Class Receives Communion,” ibid., 4 Nov. 1935. 80 Readers interested in Nugget reports on church anniversaries in 1935 could consult: “Laurier Avenue Church Marks Seventh Anniversary,” Feb. 1935; “St. Andrew’s Church Marks 51st Anniversary on Sunday,” 10 May 1935; “Eminent Cleric Takes as Topic Social Trends,” 13 May 1935, Front Page; “Observe Birthday of Trinity Church,” 17 May 1935, Front Page; “Mark Anniversary of Trinity Church,” 20 May 1935; “Origin Union Church Marked with Service,” 31 May 1935; “Marks Anniversary of Bishop’s Death,”, 6 Sept. 1935; “Presbyterian Board Names Service Date,” 16 Sept. 1935; [Photo]”Church Marks 10th Anniversary,” 14 Oct. 1935; “Presbyterian Church Marks Anniversary with Services,” 14 Oct. 1935; “Anniversary Supper Successful Function,” 16 Oct. 1935; “Anniversary of Church Union Marked at Birthday Function,” 25 Oct. 1935; “Rev. G. Leichliter Speaks at Service,” 1 Nov. 1935; “Large Congregation Attends Baptist Anniversary Service,” 4 Nov. 1935. 81 “Archbishop Thornloe Revered in Sunday Service, Sermon,” Nugget, 4 Nov. 1935. 82 “French Pupils Honor Dean J.A. Chapleau,” ibid., 25 March 1935. 83 “Sees Communism Universal Threat,” ibid., 6 Feb. 1935. 84 “Communion Breakfast Enjoyed at College,” ibid., 4 Nov. 1935. Fay, A History of Canadian Catholics, 198–220, provides a brief overview of Catholic action during the Depression, which ranged from the

282

85 86 87 88 89

90 91 92

93

94

95 96 97 98 99

Notes to pages 126–9

Antigonish Movement in Nova Scotia to support for the ccf in the West. The works of Henry Somerville and Catherine de Hueck in Toronto are examined in Beck, “Contrasting Approaches to Catholic Social Action During the Depression.” There is also an extensive literature on Catholic Action in Quebec, especially among youth. See especially Bienvenue, Quand la jeunesse entre en scène. “Seven Reasons Are Offered in Condemnation of War,” Nugget, 11 Feb. 1935. “Eminent Cleric Takes as Topic Social Trends,” ibid., 13 May 1935, Front Page. Paul Emile Boulanger and Laurence Novack. Eglise Sainte Anne, Mattawa, 13, 18. These were traditional organizations such as one would expect to find in Quebec parishes. The first cwl in Canada was founded in Edmonton in 1912 based on the cwl in London, England. It was organized nationally only in June 1920. Its motto was “For God and Canada,” and its goal was to promote “Catholic Social Action, Catholic Education, and Racial Harmony within the Catholic Church in Canada,” Fay, History of Canadian Catholics, 260–7. Eglise Sainte Anne, Mattawa, 35. Turkstra, “Christianity and the Working Class,” 274–87. Tulchinsky, “The Jewish Experience in Ontario to 1960,” 307. Based on figures in his Table 4, North Bay was the third largest Jewish community in Northern Ontario in 1931. We know from club notes that there was a Jewish Ladies’ Auxiliary. Rosenfeld, “‘She was a hard life,’” 186–225, discusses the participation of the women of railway families in voluntary associations in Allendale in the early twentieth century. The women who participated in church groups there were considered “the backbone of the Church” (193). This tends to counter Morton’s suggestion that in the 1920s workingclass women were less likely to play leadership roles in their church than men. Morton, Ideal Surroundings, 120. On the other hand, fewer of the elite were members of the Baptist Church congregations than of mainstream churches. Beaumont, “History of the Ladies’ Aid,” 58, 70–1, 78. Gigg. Unger. Landriault. Falconi.

Notes to pages 129–32

283

100 Celentano, St. Rita’s Parish. 101 Mrs Mary Dupuis, interviwed by Rose Moher in Celebrating Parish Community, 94. 102 sjaa, Vestry, 29 Jan. 1940. 103 sjaa, “Our Parish Leaflet,” vol. 1, No. 10, North Bay, Mid-June 1913, 3. 104 sjaa, cited from an unknown source in the 1942 Financial Statement. 105 sjaa, Financial Statement for 1942. 106 Turkstra, “Christianity and the Working Class,” 280, makes the same point with regard to the Men’s League at Calvin Presbyterian Church in Hamilton. The goal was to draw members of the working class away from “the more rough leisure life paraded on street corners, in taverns, pool halls, and theatres.” 107 sjaa, Vestry, 24 April 1924; 13 Jan. 1928. 108 The minutes of the Chancel Guild, 1931–36, have been examined in detail and show guild members’ growing involvement during the depression because of the pressing needs of the church. 109 sjaa, Financial Statement for 1942. 110 The minutes of the Methodist Ladies’ Aid (Trinity United Church Archives) from 1921 to 1924 were also examined in detail. As well as undertaking fundraising activities in support of the church, which helped reduce the debt by $500 each year, they also provided aid to specific families and interacted with outside groups such as the Children’s Aid Society and the gwva to a greater extent than the Chancel Guild. The annual reports from St Andrews’ and the published histories of the Baptist Church and of St Mary’s Church all tell much the same story. Newspaper accounts of activities of the Ladies’ Auxiliary for the synagogue, while not extensive, suggest they played a similar role as their counterpart church groups. 111 Dirks, “Reinventing Christian Masculinity and Fatherhood,” examines this question in the context of early twentieth-century Protestant churches. For Brantford in the Victorian era, Van Die shows that females constituted from 53 percent to 69 percent of church membership. (Van Die, “Revisiting ‘Separate Spheres,’” 239.) These figures are probably higher than for the liturgical churches, which had no requirement for adult conversion and exercised limited discipline against drinking and card playing. From the point of view of community, official membership was less important than church attendance, family participation in church activities, and the extent to which boundaries were maintained, especially at the time of marriage. While seculariza-

284

Notes to pages 133–4

tion and decreasing memberships were a real concern, and still are today, churches as communities have continued to survive. In the end, however, smaller and aging congregations may have difficulty supporting the cost of maintaining old buildings, forcing their eventual closure. 112 On the participation of railway men in church activities, Rosenfeld, “‘She Was a Hard Life,’” 124, found that while these men had a tendency to see church involvement as their wife’s responsibility, they nonetheless “had an noticeable presence in the various committees of local churches.” 113 Without minimizing the spiritual mission of churches, I am suggesting that individuals must have found value in attending and worshipping in a building or “church” which – and this is a hypothetical scenario – one’s grandfather helped to build, where one’s parents were married, where one was baptized, where the light enters through a stained glass window erected in memory of one’s grandparents, where one’s father’s name is engraved on a memorial plaque erected to commemorate Second World War veterans, and where one is surrounded by people of various ages one has known all one’s life, because they share beliefs and have been witnesses to many of these occasions. The physical church building is a symbol of this community and contains many artifacts, which together create the public memory of this community. Memorials are particularly noticeable at St John’s Anglican Church. The 125th anniversary celebrations of Trinity United Church in 2007 also provided a glimpse into the interrelationship between family and community and public memory. Bazaars and teas, which are still held every year in much the same way as they were in the past, are also useful sources for understanding the community nature of such events.

chapter six 1 See, for example, Houston and Prentice, Schooling and Scholars in Nineteenth Century Ontario. As well as the establishment of the school system, commonly addressed themes have included school attendance, the feminization of teaching, teachers and teaching conditions, separate schools, and the curriculum. 2 The literature on Regulation 17 has tended to focus on eastern Ontario in the Stormont and Russell area, the role of Bishop Fallon, and related political issues. Its impact on Northeastern Ontario is not as well known. See for example, Gaffield, Language, Schooling, and Cultural

Notes to pages 134–7

3

4 5

6

7

8 9

10 11 12

285

Conflict; McEvoy, ““Naturally I Am Passionate, Ill-Tempered, and Arrogant”; Pennefather, “The Orange Order and the United Farmers of Ontario”; Michaud, “Les Ecoles d’Ontario”; Cecillon, “Turbulent Times in the Diocese of London”; and Prang, “Clerics, Politicians, and the Bilingual Schools Issue in Ontario.” Coulombe, Coloniser et Enseigner, is one of the few exceptions. Stamp, The Schools of Ontario, provides an overview of the overall system for this period. Clement, The Bell and the Book, and Lee, The Lunch Bucket Chronicles. Coulombe, Coloniser et Enseigner, 125–6 points out that this system, in which 70 percent of school financing came from the school commission’s revenues, was designed for stable agricultural communities and not the kind of communities that emerged where mining and forestry dominated. Some concessions were eventually made in the face of the difficulty of applying that system uniformly. On the early years of the Normal School and its impact see MacDougall, Building the North, 211–19 and Dalziel, “Training Teachers for the North.” Coulombe, Coloniser et Enseigner, 59–66, examines this question in some detail. The creation of the Association canadienne-française d’éducation d’Ontario (acfeo) was an important result of the Regulation 17 crisis. This group worked on putting bilingual schools in place even before they had government approval. An important change, approved in 1928, was that high school entrance exams could be written partly in French. Stamp, The Schools of Ontario, 151–4. Bishop Duhamel of Ottawa (1874–1909) had been adamant that French Canadians support separate schools, but his successors had been more lenient. The French Canadian elite became more militant after 1926, spearheaded by L’Ordre de Jacques Cartier, a secret society with nationalistic goals and supported by the clergy. The society was active in the area around North Bay and may have influenced this transformation. On the Order, see Choquette, La Foi gardienne de la langue en Ontario, 1900–1950. Lloyd Novack. “Children’s Program Not Greatly Eased,” Nugget, 25 Nov. 1935, 9. Gaffield, “Schooling, the Economy, and Rural Society,” has shown the link between school enrolment and opportunity for employment in a similar lumbering and farming economy in eastern Ontario in the late nineteenth century.

286

Notes to pages 138–49

13 Paul Emile Boulanger. Bernard Rochefort from Astorville was able to get his grade nine because he was sent to live with a sister in Noelville where the school went up to grade ten. This was a few years later, but others may also have had similar opportunities. 14 Bernard Rochefort. 15 Laurence Novack. 16 Dalziel, “Training Teachers for the North.” 17 Schools and Teachers, ao 1925 and 1935. 18 Lamarre. 19 Gulliford, “Fox and Geese in the School Yard,” 188. 20 “Propose a Public School Building on John Street,” Nugget, 23 Jan. 1925, 3. 21 “Decide School on John St. to Be Erected,” ibid., 17 Feb. 1925, Front Page, 1. 22 “Old Members Were Elected to the Board,” ibid., 31 Dec. 1925, 2. 23 “Sep. School Board Makes Appointments,” ibid., 30 Jan. 1925, Front Page, 1. 24 MacDougall, et al., ‘Back to the Bay,’ 71. 25 “University Extension Director Impressed by Schools of North Bay,” Nugget, 8 Dec. 1925, 3. 26 “Assessment Losses Alarm School Board,” ibid., 22 July 1935, 12. 27 Schools and Teachers, ao, 1925, 1935. 28 Chamberland, “Bonfield,” 15. 29 Schools and Teachers, ao, 1935. 30 Backer. 31 Martin. 32 Brazeau. 33 Carlson Cumbo, ‘As the Twig Is Bent,’ 189. The sense of outrage that these parents felt at such unfair punishment may also have reflected a value system in which it was accepted that religious observance was more the responsibility of women than men. Carlson Cumbo found this to be the case among adults in Toronto and that the attitude was passed on to Italian boys, who were also often truant in terms of attendance at Sunday mass (58, 199). 34 Zembrzycki, “Memory, Identity, and the Challenge of Community among Ukrainians in the Sudbury Region, 1901–1939,” 269. While the divisions the Ukrainians were maintaining were primarily political, barriers imposed on the building of community were similar. 35 “Eau Claire,” Nugget, 19 June 1925, 8. 36 “Circus Makes Attendance at School Small,” ibid., 19 June 1925, 12.

Notes to pages 149–52

287

37 “Arrange Sports Card for Victoria Day,” ibid., 22 May 1935, Front Page, 1–2. 38 Rivet. 39 Landriault. 40 Nugget coverage of Halloween in the sample years included: “North Bay,” 10 Nov. 1925, 10; “Callander,” 14 Oct. 1935, 13; “Widdifield Station: Masquerade Dance Held at Widdifield,” 13 Nov. 1935, 18. 41 For Nugget articles related to public health in study area schools, please see: “Eau Claire,” 28 Oct. 1935, 10; “School Vaccination,” 17 March 1925; “Start Inoculation of School Children,” 10 May 1935, 1; “Rural Pupils Given Benefit of Real Clinic,” 3 July 1925; “Name L. Skuce as Principal at New School,” 20 Oct. 1925, 12. 42 For coverage of school and community fairs in the Nugget of 1925 and 1935, see: “Children’s Day at the Fair Was Big Time for Kiddies,” 22 Sept. 1925, 6; “Eau Claire,” 29 Sept. 1925, 8; “Ferris: Annual School Fair at Nipissing Junction,” 23 Sept. 1935, 11; “Ferris School Fair Highly Successful,” 25 Sept. 1935, 15, an article listing all the categories of children’s exhibits; “Excellent Exhibits by School Students,” 20 Sept. 1935, 15; “Invitations to Children for Touring Train,” 31 March 1925. 43 For Nugget articles related to school community events, see: “Bonfield,” 26 June 1925, 8; “Widdifield Station,” 25 Oct. 1935, 13; “Trout Mills: Christmas Tree Fund Augmented by Dance,” 28 Oct. 1935, 10; “Eau Claire,” 4 Nov. 1935, 11. 44 Mary Leppan’s first school as a teacher was in Stevenson Township south of Huntsville in the 1940s. She had 8 grades in a rural school. The Christmas concert was still very important and that is certainly the impression her comments give. 45 For Nugget announcements and coverage of school Christmas concerts in the study area, see: “Widdifield Station,” 16 Dec. 1935, 12; “Mattawa,” 22 Dec. 1925, 10; “Christmas Concert Planned by Pupils,” 6 Dec. 1935, 9; “Pupils Hold Concert in St. Mary’s Hall,” 20 Dec. 1935, 8; “Midnight Services Open Christmas Day,” 27 Dec. 1935, 3. 46 Based on the photograph, the location actually appears to be the basement of Pro-Cathedral rather than the church itself, and her memory of this event may not have been exact. 47 For Nugget coverage of Christmas community events in the study area in 1935, see: “Santa Claus Present at Christmas Affair,” 20 Dec. 1935, 8; “Eau Claire,” 23 Dec. 1935, 12; “Mattawa: Delightful Concert Closes School Term,” 23 Dec. 1935, 12; “Scholars Surprised by Santa Claus

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48 49 50

51 52

53 54

Notes to pages 152–9

Call,” 29 Nov. 1935, 10; “Royal Welcome of Children Greets Santa Claus Arrival,” 29 Nov. 1935, 10. Rivet and Regimbal give similar accounts. “School Pupils Pay Respects to Newly-Installed Bishop,” Nugget, 5 April 1935, 9. “Mattawa,” ibid., 16 June 1925, 9. The Corpus Christi procession was still taking place annually in 1935. “Mattawa: Service, Decoration by Masonic Lodge,” ibid., 24 June 1935, 11. Backer. For coverage of school sports in the Nugget of 1935, see: “City Separate Schools Form Hockey Association,” 14 Jan. 1935, Sports, 6; “Separate School Kids to Stage Big Field Day,” 12 June 1935, Sports, 6; “Children’s Festival Ready for Saturday,” 7 June 1935, 9. “Many Students for Entrance to Try Exams,” Nugget, 19 June 1925, 7. Brown.

chapter seven 1 2 3 4 5 6

7 8

9 10 11 12

Comacchio, Dominion of Youth, 100. Stamp, Ontario Secondary School Program Innovations, 2. Ibid., 8. Prospectus, Nugget, 24 July 1935. Celebrating Parish Community, 70. In 1935 fourteen boys from eleven different families were listed in the personal column of the paper as going to Collège Sacré Coeur in Sudbury. They included one of the Laroque boys and two Regimbal boys, the brothers of Lucille Regimbal, who was sent to Haileybury. Two of the boys had to have appendectomies that year (Nugget, 1935). Hermès Laroque remembers that his uncle Jeremy died from appendicitis when he was attending the college. When his grandfather was called by the hospital, he asked them to wait until he got there before operating, and as a result infection set in and he died. “Prospectus, 1928,” reproduced in Tremblay, Marcheuses à l’étoile, 601–2. Stamp, The Schools of Ontario, 152. In 1924 seventeen separate schools engaged in fifth book or continuation classes at the middle-school level but were funded because they were part of the elementary system. Coulombe, Coloniser et Enseigner, 154–6. Stamp, Ontario Secondary School Program Innovations, 17. Ibid., 26. Ibid., 28–31.

Notes to pages 159–67

289

13 These data have been collated from a file created using optical recognition software on the lists of students given in the annual yearbooks and used for indexing purposes. As these are not official records, they may not be exact, but the pattern is clear. Students from the country areas came from Mattawa (20), Eau Claire (7), Feronia (2), and Widdifield (1). 14 Nugget, 1935. 15 Anstead and Goodson, “Structure and Mediation,” examines a large high school in London and is one of few studies based on oral histories. 16 Priolo. 17 Priolo. First-generation Italians in Toronto felt that sports were a waste of time. Carlson Cumbo, “‘As the Twig Is Bent,’” 187. 18 Cosante. 19 The academy remained downtown until 1939 when St Joseph’s College opened on the property to the west of North Bay which had been the Lions’ Club park. The confusion between the two names led the sisters to rename the downtown school St Mary’s Academy. It extended its registration to the elementary level, but in 1953 the Senior Commercial classes were relocated there. (See Celebrating Parish Community, 76.) Some of our interviewees attended the downtown school, others the College. 20 Of the names in the 1936–37 yearbook, Norma Virgili, Eva Greco, and Laura Rossi were probably Italian, whereas Rita Laviolette, Eveline Paquette, Béatrice Lafrance, Yvette Montcalm, and Anita Labrèche were almost certainly French. St Joseph’s Academy, Northern Star, 1937, 84–8. 21 Cundari. 22 She was sent to Montreal in the 1970s to translate the English Simpson’s store into French. 23 Enid (Riopelle) Ducharme. Although she attended during the war, it is unlikely the routine would have changed very much. 24 Sangster, Girl Trouble, has written effectively on this subject. 25 Laroque, translated by the author. 26 “Mais pas plus que ça.” Laroque. 27 Year Book, nbns, 1960, 17. 28 Dominion of Youth, 102. 29 Northern Echo, 1929, 21. That year only about half the graduates attended. 30 Ibid., 1933, 48–9. 31 Ibid., 1933, 49. 32 This description is very similar to those that appear in the Nugget describing showers and other social events. The girls at the convent were learning their role as future hostesses.

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33 34 35 36 37

38 39 40 41 42 43 44 45 46

47 48 49

50 51 52 53 54 55 56

Notes to pages 167–73

St Joseph’s Academy, Northern Star, 1937, 50–71. Leppan. “Scollard Hall Fraternity,” Green and Gold, 1934, 23–5. “Choral Society,” and “Le Cercle Saint-Jean De Brébeuf,” Green and Gold, 1935, 29, 32–3. “Oratorial Contest,” Green and Gold, 1935, 54–5; “N. McDonald Winner Senior Oratory Contest,” Nugget, April 15, 1935. The yearbook also published the top two presentations at the senior and junior level in 1935. Green and Gold, 1936, 1937. “Atlethics,” ibid., 1935, 35–43, 74. T. Smith, “Shots and Angles,” ibid., 1935, 73. “Academic, Atheletic Awards Presented at Commencement,” Nugget, 14 June 1935. “Hallowe’en Affair Planned at Meeting,” ibid., 14 Oct. 1935; “Seasonal Streamers Flutter Over Annual At Home Party,” ibid., 30 Dec. 1935. Year Book, nbns, 1920, 5. h.e.r., “The Value of School Athletics,” Year Book, nbns, 1920, 14–15. “Our Girls in Action,” Year Book, nbns, 1920, 15–20. John Heterington, “Boys’ Athletics,” Year Book, nbns, 1920, 56–8. The first competitions of the season are referred to as storming the Fortress on Klock with field guns vintage 1873. It is not clear exactly what he is referring to. Josephine C. King, “Our Debating Record,” Year Book, nbns, 1920, 38. Year Book, nbns, 1920, 39, 45–8, 59. Stamp, The Schools of Ontario, 113. For an examination of daily life in a large technical and commercial high school in this period, see Anstead and Goodson, “Structure and Mediation.” Stamp, The Schools of Ontario, 115. Ibid., 118. MacDougall et al., ‘Back to the Bay,’ 73–5. Northern Echo, 1928, 20. See also Jean Banks’ humorous take on this in Northern Echo, 1933, 67. Schools and Teachers, ao, 1935. Ibid., 1935. MacDougall et al., ‘Back to the Bay,’ 17. See Smyth, “Educating Girls and Young Women in a Nineteenth-Century Convent School” for an examination of the transformation of the curriculum at the Toronto Academy in the late nineteenth century from a focus on accomplishments to more academic programs. In North Bay as in Toronto, the nuns accepted non-Catholic students.

Notes to pages 173–81

57 58 59 60 61 62 63 64 65 66 67

291

“Faculty,” Green and Gold, 1935, 13. Stamp, The Schools of Ontario, 101. Loukidelis. Schools and Teachers, ao, 1925. Burrows. Grassi. St Joseph’s Academy, Northern Star, 1937, 5. Year Book, nbns, 1920, 54. Year Book, nbns, 1932, 15. Stamp, The Schools of Ontario, 111. Alger.

chapter eight 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11

12 13

Hartley Trussler, Diary, 1925. Ibid., 1935. Morton, Ideal Surroundings, 84–5. “Large Number of Licenses for Radio Issued,” Nugget, 13 Feb. 1925, Front Page. Rosenfeld, “‘She Was a Hard Life,’” 24–5. This standard came into being in 1918 and continued to 1951. Marks, Revivals and Roller Rinks, 138. “ota Produces Large Revenue for North Bay,” Nugget, 6 March 1925, Front page. “Council Opposes Further Beer Permits: Resolution Urges Club Investigation,” ibid., 4 Sept. 1935, 3 and 11. Ibid., 30 Sept. 1935, Police Court. Ibid., 11 Dec., 1935, Magistrate’s Court; “Choose Jail Terms For l.c.a. Infraction,” ibid., 17 June 1935. “Heavy Fine Imposed For L.C.A. Infraction,” ibid., 26 Aug. 1935, Police Court; “Impose Heavy Fine for Second Breach,” ibid., 1 Feb. 1935, Police Court. “Brothers Repentant after Stealing Auto,” ibid., 11 Nov. 1935, Police Court. John Thompson, a 21-year-old from Mattawa, was sentenced to twenty days in jail for causing a disturbance when he tried to hit the owner and hit the glass door instead. He was charged with being drunk and for damaging property. “Boisterous Inebriate Given Dual Sentence,” Nugget, 13 March 1935, Police Court; Albert Lavoie, for example, received five months for his eleventh charge of being drunk; ibid., 11

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14

15

16 17 18 19 20 21 22 23 24 25 26 27

28 29 30 31 32 33

Notes to pages 182–9

Dec. 1935, Magistrate’s Court. For a third offense, one woman received three months in jail. ibid., 7 Jan. 1935, Police Court. Heron makes the important point that alcohol consumption went down during economic hard times, suggesting that working class men voluntarily reduced their consumption. The economic cycle of the 1920s and 1930s may therefore have had as much impact on consumption as Prohibition. Heron, Booze, 265. Heron, Booze, 246–54; Carlson Cumbo, “‘As the Twig Is Bent,’” 109. According to the fire insurance map of the city, there were six such establishments (pool hall, billiards, and billiard and bowling) in North Bay in 1915, all located in the downtown core. “North Bay, Ontario Nov. 1905. Reprinted and revised to Dec. 1915.” lac, nmc 009792. Igartua, Arvida, 43–52. Gamm and Putnam, “The Growth of Voluntary Associations in America, 511–57. Putney, “Service Over Secrecy,” 179. Ibid., 180. Estimate is by W.S. Harwood, based on 5,400,000 members in 1896. Ibid., 182. Carnes, Secret Ritual and Manhood in Victorian America. Putney, “Service Over Secrecy,” 185. Charles, Service Clubs in American Society, 11. On the role of food in celebrations see Humphrey et al., “Introduction: Food and Festivity in American Life.” Trinity United Church Archives, Minutes of the Ladies’ Aid Society, 1924. 8 Feb. 1922, 15 March 1922, and 9 April 1924. “Vimy Night Banquet in Masonic Temple,” Nugget, 8 April 1935, 3; “Legionaires Commemorate Capture of Vimy Ridge,” ibid., 10 April 1935, 12. “Child Welfare Work Subject of Address,” ibid., 15 April 1935. “Mother’s Day Celebrated When Daughters Entertain,” ibid., 13 May 1935, 8; “Delightful Banquet Entertains Mothers,” ibid., 17 May 1935. “Father, Son Repast Draws Large Number,” ibid., 6 March 1935. “North Bay Women, News of Their Organizations,” ibid., 27 Feb. 1925, 6. Ibid., 21 April 1925, 6. Igartua found much the same in the parish of Ste Thérèse in Arvida, where three euchre parties in 1933 were able to raise $1,000, but special collections brought in only $100 to $250 each. Igartua, Arvida, 46.

Notes to pages 189–92

293

34 Nugget coverage of local card tournament fundraisers included: “North Bay Women, News of Their Organizations,” 17 April 1925, 12; “Bonfield,” 26 June 1925, 8; “North Bay,” 13 Nov. 1925, 16: the Sons of England held a Whist Drive at the ilp Hall; “North Bay Women, News of Their Organizations,” 6 Nov. 1925. 35 “North Bay Women, News of Their Organizations,” ibid., 9 April 1925, 6. 36 “New Club Entertains,” Nugget, 5 June 1925, 16. 37 “Tender cnr Staff Hearty Welcome Here,” ibid., 25 Sept. 1925, 5. The Elks Lodge No. 25, founded in 1914, had a club house on Worthington Street between Ferguson and Wylde in the 1920s and until at least 1935. Conversation with Mark Montgomery, North Bay, 28 Nov. 2006. The Nugget articles establish that it was still there in 1935 but Montgomery pinpoints the location on the basis of the oral account by the daughter of the custodians of the building. He believes the club folded in 1934. Valin’s funeral in 1935 was attended by Elks. 38 In the notes from clubs, some of which refer to actual games and others to the planning for these events, there were 142 references to bridge, 124 to whist, and 69 to ‘500,’ but only 13 to euchre. 39 “La Fédération Opens New Season Thursday,” Nugget, 13 Sept. 1935, 8. 40 “Hold Series Party in St. Mary’s Hall,” ibid., 4 Oct. 1935, 10. 41 “Finish Tournament in Seventh Affair,” ibid., 1 Nov. 1935, 9. 42 Club notes and “Play Bridge, Whist at Weekly Function,” ibid., 30 Sept. 1935, 9. 43 For Nugget coverage of these special event card parties in 1935, see: “Thanksgiving Party Enjoyable Function,” 23 Oct. 1935, 9; “Auxiliary of Legion Has Armistice Party,” 13 Nov. 1935, 9; “Post Office Staff at Annual Banquet,” 27 Nov. 1935, 3; “Sponsor Book Shower at North Bay College,” 2 Oct. 1935, 9. 44 Trussler Diary, 7 Sept. 1925. 45 Baillargeon, Making Do, 48; Peiss, Cheap Amusements, 88–114. 46 Helen McNamara, “Dance Bands,” Encyclopedia of Music in Canada (online). http://www.canadianencyclopedia.ca consulted 4 Dec. 2006. 47 In August Bert Weller was fined $100 for having liquor in a public place when he was caught selling liquor in a building next to the Maple Beach dance pavillion. “Heavy Fine Imposed For l.c.a. Infraction,” Nugget, 26 Aug. 1935, Police Court, 2. 48 Ibid., 18 April 1935. 49 “Thanksgiving Dance, Tomorrow Afternoon,” ibid., 23 Oct 1935. 50 Ibid., 12 Aug. 1935.

294

Notes to pages 193–6

51 For Nugget coverage of these dances sponsored by community groups, see: “Order of Moose Entertains Delightful Holiday Affair,” 27 May 1935; “Ski Club Birthday Marked with Party,” 4 March 1935; “Sponsor Third Dance to Finance Reunion,” 15 Feb. 1935; “Battalion Sponsors Enjoyable Function, “ 20 March 1935; “Rorab Shrine Club Plans Dinner Dance, “17 May 1935; “Mayor to Preside at Reception,” 13 March 1925; “Natal Day of Poet Burns is Duly Honored,” 27 Jan. 1925; “Bonfield,” 30 Jan. 1925; “Mattawa,” 27 Jan. 1925; “Mattawa,” 6 Nov. 1925. 52 The women mentioned in that role include: Mrs T. Atkinson, Mrs M. McDevitt, Mrs M. Gillies, Jr, Mrs S. Moffat, Mrs R. Campbell, Mrs F. Pidgeon, Mrs H. Reynolds, and Mrs J. Milligan. See Peiss, Cheap Amusements, for a comparative perspective. 53 Trussler Diary, 1 Jan., 16 Feb., and 14 April 1925. 54 “Ezylife Function Delightful Affair,” Nugget, 4 Feb. 1935. This vignette shows how quickly the marketing of quintuplet favours took off. 55 Trussler Diary, 1 Feb. 1935. 56 “Ezylyfe Canoe Club Sponsors Initial Function of Summer,” Nugget, 24 June 1924. 57 “Ezylyfe Canoe Club Entertains at Dance,” ibid., 9 Aug. 1935. 58 For Nugget coverage of these company dances in the sample years, see: “Celebrate New Year Dance Monday Night,” Jan. 1935; “t.&n.o. Union Plans Annual Dance,” 30 Oct. 1935; “Jolly Crowd Dances at Hallowe’en Event,” 1 Nov. 1935; “Longyear Function Delightful Success,” 18 Feb. 1935; “Novel Features at Blue Bell Dance,” 6 Feb. 1925; “Bon Entente Ball of Railroads Is Wonderful Success,” 28 April 1925. 59 Trussler Diary, 24 April 1925. 60 “i.o.d.e. Ladies Plan Outstanding Function,” Nugget, 15 Nov. 1935; “Final Dance Plans Subject of Meeting,” ibid., 20 Nov. 1935; “Empire Colors Flutter Gaily at Season’s Premier Function,” ibid., 2 Dec. 1935. 61 Trussler Diary, 29 Nov. 1935. 61 “Lions Entertain Lavishly When Ladies Are Guests,” Nugget, 20 Feb. 1935. 62 Trussler Diary, 18 Feb. 1935. 63 “Blossom Time Will Be Seen in City Soon,” Nugget, 9 Oct. 1925; “The Mikado Is Coming to the Royal Theatre,” ibid., 17 Nov. 1925. 64 “Local Talent Will Produce Music Comedy,” ibid., 27 Jan. 1925. 65 “Music Lovers Will Organize in North Bay,” ibid., 17 April 1925; “Member Campaign of Musical Club is Now Under Way,” ibid., 1 May 1925. The organizers were T. Hall, J. Smith, S. Weegar, Mrs E. Young and Mrs J. Jessup.

Notes to pages 197–9

295

66 For coverage in the Nugget of Little Theatre Guild events in 1935, see: “Little Theatre Guild Presents Initial Production of Season,” 1 Feb. 1935; “Reorganize Guild Prepare New Play,” 22 March 1935; “Players to Present Lenten Production,” 12 April 1935; “Play of Early Days to be Staged Soon,” 15 April 1935; “Drama Artists Play Religious Concert,” 22 April 1935; “St. John’s Little Theatre Guild Holds Season’s First Meeting,” 27 Sept. 1935; “Present First Play of Season Thursday,” 8 Nov. 1935; “Cast Being Selected for Scarecrow Creeps,” 15 Nov. 1935. 67 “Name of Gateway Guild Winner of Unusual Dramatic Contest,” Nugget, 24 April 1935; “Orillia Entry Wins First Drama Contest,” ibid., 5 June 1935. 68 The plays were: The Impostors, A Run for Her Money, Mary’s Ankle, A Nautical Knot, The Black Terror, and Clubbing a Husband. “Members of Sodality Produce Clever Play”; “St. Andrew’s Group Plays Fine Comedy,” Nugget, 6 March 1935; “Trinity Choir Plays ‘A Nautical Knot,’” ibid., 22 March 1935; “Audience Thrilled by ‘Black Terror,’” ibid., 12 April 1935; “Ferris: Play Is Rehearsed by Dramatic Club,” ibid., 24 April 1935; “Ferris Presentation Highly Successful,” ibid., 17 May 1935. 69 “Canadian Girls in Training to Hold Anniversary Rally,” ibid., 1 Feb. 1935. 70 “Men’s Club Sponsors Gala Minstrel Show,” ibid., 6 March 1935. 71 “Baptist Men’s Club Entertains Ladies,” Nugget, 27 Feb. 1935. 72 “Eau Claire,” ibid., 17 June 1935. 73 “Mattawa: Concert Presented by Dramatic Club,” ibid., 26 April 1935. 74 Doris Stanley and Philip M. Wults, “North Bay, Ont.,” Encyclopedia of Music in Canada, online, at http://www.thecanadianencyclopedia. com/index.cfm?PgNm=tce&Params= u1artu0002592 consulted 14 Dec. 2007; “Premier Band Given Fourth At Exhibition,” Nugget, 4 Sept. 1925. 75 “Bandstand at Lee Park Substitute for Grant,” ibid., 20 March 1935. 76 “Floral Exhibition Will Open Tonight,” ibid., 21 Aug. 1935; Nugget, 1 May 1935. 77 “Orchestra Has Good Audience at Collegiate,” ibid., 8 May 1925; “Veterans Give Fine Concert For Birthday,” ibid., 17 April 1925. 78 “Orchestra Has Good Audience at Collegiate,” ibid., 8 May 1925. 79 “Bay Orchestra Making Rapid Advancement,” ibid., 20 Nov. 1925. 80 For Nugget articles in 1935 related to these bands, see: “Boys’ Band Appeals for Public Support,” 10 April 1935; “Confirmation Class Receives Sacrament,” 21 June 1935; “English-Italian School in North Bay Endeavor,” 10 June 1935, Front Page; “Dominion Day Celebration

296

81 82 83 84 85 86 87 88

89 90 91 92 93 94 95

96

Notes to pages 199–201

Proves Highly Successful,” 3 July 1935; “Festive Week Is Formally Opened. Colorful Function Climaxes Parade to Amelia Park,” 5 Aug. 1935, Front Page; “Motor Club Day Proves Pleasing,” 7 Aug. 1935; “Plans Are Intiated to Form Boys’ Band,” 14 Aug. 1935; “Hold First Practice of New Boys’ Band,” 21 Aug. 1935, Sports; “Secure Instruments for New Boys’ Band,” 28 Aug. 1935; “[Photo] Newly-Formed Musical Aggregation,” 30 Aug. 1935; “Instruments Received for New Boys’ Band,” 6 Sept. 1935; “Boys’ Band Sponsors Hosts at Banquet,” 16 Sept. 1935; “Boys’ Band Receives Sum from Auxiliary,” 27 Nov. 1935; “Tag Day, Work Sale Assist Boys’ Band,” 16 Dec. 1935; and 4 Oct., 11 and 13 Nov., and 13 Dec. 1935. Burton. “Fine Concerts Given Here by Staff Quartet,” Nugget, 17 March 1925. Ibid., 6 Nov. 1935. Ibid., 18 April 1935. “K of C Held Fine Musical Evening,” ibid., 16 Oct. 1925, 2. “Music Pupils in Pleasing Recital,” ibid., 15 May 1925; “Music Students of Miss Deschenes in the Annual Recital,” ibid., 26 May 1925. “North Bay Woman, News of Their Organizations,” ibid., 26 May 1925; 20 Feb. 1925; and 22 Dec. 1925. “Ferris: Seth Parker Meeting Enjoyed at Junction,” Nugget, 22 March 1935. This group was associated with the United Church. Seth Parker was the radio character created by Philip H. Lord in 1929, a popular show at the time. He combined humour and stories with hymn singing. See consulted 11 Dec. 2008. Nugget, 4 Feb. 1935. “Music Adds Gaiety [to] Corn Roast Monday,” ibid., 25 Sept. 1935. “First Baptist Church,” ibid., 25 Jan. 1935, Churches. “North Bay,” ibid., 28 April 1925. “Pleasing Concert [at] Methodist Church Largely Attended,” ibid., 17 April 1925. “ypa Concert,” ibid., 17 March 1925, Front Page. The St Andrew’s Young People’s Club, the Ladies’ Aid of the United Church at Trout Mills, the Mothers’ Union of St John’s Anglican Church, the Junior Auxiliary, and the Marion Nattress group of the Women’s Auxiliary of St John’s Anglican Church, the Junior Branch of St John’s Women’s Association, and St Brice’s Anglican Church Hall all organized at least one concert in 1935. Nugget, 1935. “Entertain Old Folk With Fine Program,” ibid., 7 Jan. 1935.

Notes to pages 201–7

297

97 “Annual Children’s Frolic Successful Event of Week,” ibid., 8 Nov. 1935. 98 Gard, North Bay: The Gateway to Silverland, 28. 99 “Royal Theatre Interior Goes Up in Flames,” Nugget, 7 April 1925. 100 Nugget, 1925. 101 For Nugget coverage of events at the Capitol Theatre in 1935, see: 16 Sept. 1935, Section Theatre Capitol; 4 Nov. 1935, Section Theatre Capitol; 6 Nov. 1935, 8; 29 Nov. 1935, 8; 20 Dec. 1935, 9; 29 May 1935. 102 Alger. 103 Landriault. 104 Laroque. 105 Brazeau. 106 Regimbal. 107 Richardson. 108 Wardlaw. 109 Comacchio, Dominion of Youth, 167. In a Halifax survey in 1936, 96 percent attended regularly, which meant more than twice a month. 110 James Tallon, “Problem of the Cinema,” Green and Gold, 1935, 54–5, discusses the concern that 80 percent of movies were now considered “filth.” The League of Decency founded in 1931 brought together Catholics, Protestants and Jews to rate movies and have certain ones banned. This was a prize-winning speech in the annual oratory contest at the junior level and appears to reflect the more conservative Catholic rhetoric on the subject.

chapter nine 1 Howell, Blood, Sweat and Cheers, 31, is a useful introduction to the history of sport in Canada. 2 See Morrow and Wamsley, Sport in Canada, 70–87 for an overview of this conflict. 3 Lappage, “Sport Between the Wars,” 108. 4 Morrow and Wamsley, Sport in Canada, 70–87. 5 Lenskyj, Out of Bounds, discusses many of the issues related to women and sports. 6 The larger corporations such as the cpr and the cnr might also contribute to these facilities. In Allendale, Rosenfeld found that the cnr contributed equipment, labour, and facilities for the cnr Recreation Association, founded in 1923 with branches throughout the country. Rosenfeld, “‘She Was a Hard Life,’” 129.

298

Notes to pages 207–10

7 Riess, City Games, addresses the question of sports and space in the city very effectively in an American context. 8 For more detail on early sports in the study area see “Athletics Have Always Played an Important Part in North Bay’s History,” Nugget, 4 Aug. 1925. 9 “50 Entries Expected in Race Meet,” ibid., 31 July 1925, 2; “Strong Card at Sturgeon on Wednesday,” ibid., 31 July 1925, 2. 10 “Racing Card up to Every Expectation,” ibid., 7 Aug. 1925. 11 Mary Keyes, “Sport and Technological Change,” 269. 12 “Barnyard Golf Comes to Fore,” ibid., 8 May 1935. 13 “Golf Club Elects New Officers for the Coming Season,” ibid., 12 May 1925. 14 “Half Dozen McLaren Cup Challengers,” ibid., 28 July 1925. 15 McEwen, The Key to the North. 16 “Sport Static – New Sport Season Around the Corner,” Nugget, 18 April 1935, Sports. 17 “Golfers Swing into Action at Opening Day Tourney,” ibid., 8 May 1935. 18 For Nugget coverage of these tournaments, see “Laurent Cup Games on Deck for Today,” 19 June 1935, Sports; “Loblaw Cup Series Now in Final Stage,” 3 July 1935, Sports; “Qualifying Round at North Bay Club,” 28 Aug. 1935, Sports; “Sudbury Club Defeated by North Bay Golfers,” 16 Sept. 1935, Sports. 19 “Haileybury Club to Send Golfers,” Nugget, 26 July 1935, Sports; “North Bay Golfers Take Lead in Sanders Cup Play,” ibid., 29 July 1935, Sports. 20 “Lee Cops Golf Title,” ibid., 12 Aug. 1935, Sports. 21 Regimbal. 22 “North Bay Tennis Boosters Look Forward to Big Season,” Nugget, 18 April 1935; “Tennis Season Opens on T.&N.O. Courts,” ibid., 8 May 1935. 23 “Timiskaming Sends Tennis Squad Here,” ibid., 24 June 1935; “North Bay Players Win Tennis Tourney,” ibid., 3 July 1935, Sports. 24 “Hansman, Richardson Win Tennis Doubles,” ibid., 12 July 1935, Sports. 25 For Nugget coverage of these tennis tournaments, see: “T.&N.O. Club Plans Tennis Tournament,” 19 July 1935, Sports; “Tennis Club Stages Mixed Doubles Meet,” 22 July 1935, Sports; “Richardson, Gatenby Win Doubles’ Title,” 9 Aug. 1935, Sports; “Miss Corbett Wins Singles Title,” 18 Sept. 1935, Sports; “Father, Son to Meet in Tennis Semi-Final,” 2 Oct.

Notes to pages 210–14

26 27 28 29

30 31 32 33 34 35 36 37

38 39

40 41 42 43 44 45 46

299

1935, Sports; “Many Members Enrolled in City Tennis Clubs,” 29 May 1935, Sports. “Curlers Starting Inter-City Match,” Nugget, 20 Jan. 1925, Front Page. “Curlers Bring Fine Bonspiel to Conclusion,” ibid., 10 Feb. 1925. Ibid.; “Curlers Have Possession of Bay This Week,” ibid., 3 Feb. 1925; “Curling Trophy Comes Back to Bay,” ibid., 20 Feb. 1925. “Present Curling Trophy to Clubs Along the tno,” ibid., 13 Feb. 1925. “Snyder’s Rink Is First Holder of New Lee Trophy,” ibid., 3 March 1925. “North Bay,” ibid., 10 March 1925. “cpr Curling League Play for Hambley Cup,” ibid., 18 Dec. 1935, Sports. “Sixty-Four Rinks at Noranda Bonspiel: North Bay Team Scores First Round Initial Event,” ibid., 4 Feb. 1935. “North Bay Curlers Vie for Trade Cup,” ibid., 9 Jan. 1935; “Curling Club Title Decided This Week,” ibid., 13 Feb. 1935. “Many Entrants Bonspiel Here,” ibid., 20 Feb. 1935, Sports; “Invitation Bonspiel Opens in North Bay,” ibid., 22 Feb. 1935. Kennedy, North Bay. “Nominate One Curler to Go Scottish Trip,” Nugget, 21 April 1925. “North Bay Curling Club Makes Plans for Season,” ibid., 20 Sept. 1935, Sports; “cpr Curlers to Meet Tonight,” ibid., 18 Oct. 1935, Sports; “Curlers Make Plans for Big Winter of Sport Here,” ibid., 6 Nov. 1935, Sports; “Bumper Curling Season in Store for North Bay,” ibid., 22 Nov. 1935, Sports. Kooistra, A History of the North Bay Ski Hill. “Cross Country Race for Junior Skiers,” Nugget, 8 Feb. 1935, Sports; “Jim Wyatt Winner of Boys’ Ski Race,” ibid., 11 Jan. 1935, Sports; “Cross Country Race for Junior Skiers,” ibid., 8 Feb. 1935, Sports. “Ontario Skiers to Organise at Huntsville Meeting,” ibid., 29 April 1935. “Learn to Ski,” ibid., 27 Nov. 1935, Sports. Morrow and Wamsley, Sport in Canada, 118. Sangster, “The Softball Solution,” 189–93. http://www.martynfh.com/odn/SearchNotices.asp consulted 14 Nov. 2006. http://www.sudburymuseums.ca/index.cfm?app=w_vmuseum& lang=en&currid=1624&parid=1610 consulted 14 Nov. 2006. Globe, 19 Oct. 1929; “North Bay Citizens Honor Rinkey Dinks,” ibid., 28 Oct. 1929; “Rinkey Dinks Beaten by Canadian Ladies,” ibid., 5 Aug. 1930.

300

Notes to pages 214–17

47 Morrow and Wamsley, Sport in Canada, 167. 48 “Local Ladies Took Another Off Sturgeon,” Nugget, 6 Oct. 1925. That year team the members included V. Lee, N. Purvis, J. Wilson, F. Larden, F. Dixon, V. Wilson, K. Donaldson, M. Montgomery, and M. Fellman. 49 “Girl’s Softball Placed on Firm Foundation in North Ontario. Many Teams and Leagues Evince Desire to Affiliate; Sault and Sudbury Women on the Executive,” Nugget, 14 May 1929, 12. 50 “Rinkey Dinks Defeat cpr in First Clash. Large Crowd Sees Two Fast Teams in Action,” ibid., 21 June 1929, 16, Sports. 51 “Rinkeys Trim cpr Ladies. Fellman Pitches Superbly,” ibid., 9 July 1929, 12, Sports. 52 “Rinkeys Win Listless Tilt,” ibid., 2 Aug. 1929, 16, Sports. 53 “Frances Larden, Dot Gore and Gwen Edwards Led Ladies League Hitters,” ibid., 8 Oct. 1929, 13, Sports. 54 “Rinkey Dinks Eliminate Chalk River,” ibid., 13 Sept. 1929, 16, Sports. 55 “Rinkey Dinks Outclassed Southern Ontario Champs Here on Saturday. Will Play Deciding Game at Orillia on Saturday. Wawas Threatened Only Once: ‘Dot’ Gore Hit Two Homers; Greta Finlay Made Several Spectacular Catches,” ibid., 18 Oct. 1929, 16, Sports. The article contains an inning-by-inning summary and dominates the first page of the Sports section. Unlike previous articles, the tone of the article is quite serious, very similar to comparable men’s sports articles. Parts of the article are illegible. 56 “North Bay’s First Provincial Title Brought to City by the Rinkey Dinks. Large Delegation From Here Saw Rinkeys Defeat Wawas. ‘Dot’ Gore Again Starts Parade with Homerun: Defeated Team Outclassed in Every Department by New Champions,” Nugget, 22 Oct. 1929, 12. This article dominates the first page of the Sports section and gives inningby-inning details. Their lineup for this winning game was: Vada Lee, 3b; Frances Larden, ss; Eleanor Johnston, lf; Mary McKee, c; Dot Gore, 1b; Zita McManus, 2b; Margaret Fellman, p; Gwen Edwards, rf; Greta Finlay, cf. Other team members also received medals: Vera Wilson, Sybil Carr, Sadie Buckley, and Flo Johnston. The coaches were Wib Harris, Mort Fellman, and Fred Ball. 57 “Citizens Pay Tribute to Newly Crowned Ontario Softball Champions. Thousands Witness Parade in Honor of Ontario Champs. Event Recalls Stirring Scenes of Old Home Week; Moving Pictures Were Taken of Entire Demonstration,” Nugget, 29 Oct. 1929, 12. 58 “Carl Mortimer ‘Mort’ Fellman,” nbshf site consulted 26 June 2007. Fellman was the assistant coach and only eighteen at the time. I have

Notes to pages 217–21

59 60 61 62

63 64 65 66 67 68 69 70 71 72 73 74 75 76 77 78 79 80 81 82 83 84 85

301

not been able to find information on the other two coaches, Harris and Ball. “Ladies’ Softball Meet Attracts Only One Club,” Nugget, 17 May 1935, Sports. “Orioles Clout Hard to Defeat Sturgeon,” ibid., 7 Aug. 1935. “cpr Lassies Hard At Work,” ibid., 24 July 1935. For Nugget coverage of these games, see: “cpr Girls’ Nine Swamp Burks Falls,” 7 Aug. 1935; “Sturgeonites Rally But Fall Four Short,” 9 Aug. 1935; “cpr Lassies Get Revenge by Nosing Out Sudbury Club,” 30 Aug. 1935, Sports; “Slugging Ceepees Trim Chapleau Girls’ Team,” 4 Sept. 1935, Sports; “Kirkland Female Softballers Blank North Bay cpr Nine,” 18 Sept. 1935, Sports. Zufelt, “Women’s Softball at its Best,” 91. http://www.noha-hockey.com/constitution/Regulations/constitu_ regulation16.htm consulted 16 Nov. 2006. Craig, Blades on the Bay, 48–54. Ibid. Ibid., 55. Ibid., 55–7. Ibid., 61. “Lions Donate Cup for City Hockey Player,” Nugget, 20 Nov. 1925. “Real Hockey Dished Out for Town League Opener,” ibid., 16 Jan. 1925. Craig, Blades on the Bay, 95. Ibid., 103. “North Bay Hockey Body Plans Annual Meeting,” Nugget, 6 Sept. 1935, Sports. “City to Build Outdoor Rinks For Public Schools,” ibid., 19 Dec. 1934, Sports. Craig, Blades on the Bay, 107. “All-Star Team Plan Apparently Doomed,” Nugget, 2 Jan. 1935, Sports. Craig, Blades on the Bay, 124. Ibid., 134, 140. Ibid., 84–8. Ibid. “Surprise in Store for Fans on First Visit to New Rink,” Nugget, 11 Jan. 1935, Sports. “Open Air Rink to Be Constructed at Wallace Park,” Nugget, 14 Dec. 1934, Sports. Craig, Blades on the Bay, 125. Ibid., 109.

302

Notes to pages 221–4

86 “Garagemen Register Fourth City League Victory,” Nugget, 1 Feb. 1935, Sports. 87 “City Hockey Standings,” ibid., 28 Jan. 1935, Sports. 88 “Puck Season Start Dependent on Rink,” ibid., 4 Jan. 1935, Sports. 89 “Ten Teams Join Public School Hockey Association,” ibid., 7 Jan. 1935, Sports. 90 “Regulations Formed for School Players,” ibid., 21 Jan. 1935. 91 “City Separate Schools Form Hockey Association,” ibid., 14 Jan. 1935, Sports. 92 “Ferris: January Standing Primary Scholars,” ibid., 30 Jan. 1935. 93 “Bay Hockey Followers to See Famous Wolves in Action,” ibid., 16 Jan. 1935, Sports. 94 “Sturgeon School Challenges Bay,” ibid., 8 Feb. 1935, Sports. 95 “Sturgeon’s Defy Soon Acted Upon,” ibid., 11 Feb. 1935. 96 “North Bay Sextets Defied by Sturgeon,” ibid., 1 March 1935, Sports. 97 “Sturgeon Willys Defeat Lasalles,” ibid., 11 Feb. 1935, Sports. 98 “Callander,” ibid., 10 Feb. 1925. 99 “Hockey Without Skates Sets Scoring Record,” ibid., 1 March 1935, Sports. 100 “Travelling Salesmen Win Over the Nugget,” ibid., 11 March 1935, Sports. 101 “t.n.o. Puckist Moves to Barrie,” Nugget, 14 Oct. 1935, Sports. 102 For details on each of their careers, see Craig, Blades on the Bay, 178–244. 103 “City Hockey Trophies Presented at Lions Banquet,” Nugget, 1 May 1935, Sports. 104 “Midget Loop Champs Celebrate Saturday,” ibid., 18 March 1935, Sports. 105 Craig, Blades on the Bay, 134. 106 “Form Baseball Group for the Junior Teams,” Nugget, 9 June 1925. 107 The Nugget covered the 1925 baseball season very closely: “Town League Will Again Operate in Bay,” 3 April 1925; “cpr Baseball Officers Elected,” 7 April 1925; “Baseball Cup Available for Town Circuit,” 14 April 1925; “O’Brien St Boys Defeat First Ave,” 17 April 1925; “Baseball Fans Meet Tonight to Get Going,” 28 April 1925; “Ceremonies to Mark Official Baseball Opening on Monday Afternoon,”, 22 May 1925; “Single Group for Baseball Decided Upon,” 1 May 1925; “Fans of Trout Creek Hanker for Franchise,” 12 May 1925; “Basball Season Opens Here with Double Bill,” 26 May 1925. 108 These difficulties were reported by the Nugget in the following articles: “cnr Drops Out of the Inter-Town League,” 19 June 1925; “cnr Club

Notes to pages 225–6

109

110 111

112 113

114 115 116 117

118 119 120 121

122 123

303

Comes Back to Inter-Town Baseball,” 26 June 1925; “Inter-City League Losing Friends by Rows During Year,” 21 Aug. 1925. For details on these events, as reported in the Nugget, see: “Baseballers Meet Here on April 4,” 15 March 1935, Sports; “North Bay Clubs Lose Many Star Performers,” 22 March 1935; “Baseball Body Elects J.J. McDonald President,” 5 April 1935, Sports; “Sport Static – Pirates Not Out Says “Hec” Kilroy,” 29 April 1935; “Sports Static – Baseball Fans Becoming Impatient,” 8 May 1935; “Pirates, cpr Withdraw From Baseball League,” 17 May 1935, Sports. “Sport Static – Junior Baseball Necessary Here,” Nugget, 29 May 1935. For coverage of these Victoria Day games, see the following Nugget articles: “Baseball Season Starts This Week,” 20 May 1935; “Three Clubs to Compete for Baseball Honors Here,” 20 May 1935; “Three City Ball Clubs Play Friday Afternoon,” 22 May 1935, Sports; “Sport Events Billed at North Bay May 24,” 20 May 1935. “T.& N.O., LaSalles Victors in Victoria Day Ball Games,” Nugget, 27 May 1935. Nugget coverage of these exhibition games includes: “Copper Cliff Club Give Dashing Display,” 24 June 1935, Sports; “Reinhardts Victors Over Powassan Nine,” 28 June 1935, Sports; “T.& N.O. Baseballers Win Two Exhibition Games,” 28 June 1935, Sports. “Ball Game Fails to Affect Race,” Nugget, 24 July 1935, Sports. “City Ball Finals Start Saturday,” ibid., 14 Aug. 1935. “T.& N.O. Crowned 1935 City Baseball Champions,” Nugget, 4 Sept. 1935, Sports. For reports on these championship games in the Nugget, see: “Mighty Coniston Buzzers Down T.& N.O. in Play-Off,” 9 Sept. 1935, Sports; “T.& N.O. Make Fade-Out in O.B.A.A. Playdowns,” 23 Sept. 1935, Sports. “George Emery Thompson,” nbshf, consulted 21 June 2007. “Charles Louvain ‘Smokey’ Guenette,” nbshf, consulted 21 June 2007. “Harold William ‘Harry’ Preston,” nbshf, consulted 21 June 2007. Kennedy, North Bay, 250. For details on this game, see “Goldsmith Hurls Sensationally to Win Title for Southhampton. North Bay Beaten in Twelfth Inning. Goldsmith Strikes Out 25 – Score Is 6–0,” Globe, 17 Oct. 1932, Sports, 13. Kennedy, North Bay, 250. “Creighton Mound Ace Is Slated for Trial with Leafs Next Year. Report Babe Marchildon Made Big Hit with Toronto Officials – George Richardson, Too,” Globe, 30 Aug. 1938, Sports, 15.

304

Notes to pages 227–31

124 “Three Northern Titles Came to North Bay in 1935,” Nugget, 30 Dec. 1935, Sports.

chapter ten 1 2 3 4

5 6

7 8 9

10

11 12 13 14

Manning, “Cosmos and Chaos,” 4. Etzioni, “Holidays and Rituals,” 3–40. Procter, “Victorian Days,” 132. Nelles, The Art of Nation-Building; Rudin, Founding Fathers: The Celebration of Champlain and Laval in the Streets of Quebec; Cupido, “‘Sixty Years of Canadian Progress’”; Cupido, “Appropriating the Past: Pageants, Politics, and the Diamond Jubilee of Confederation”; McRae, “The Romance of Canada.” On American pageant celebrations see Glassberg, American Historical Pageantry. Bouchier, “‘The 24th of May Is the Queen’s Birthday’”; Heron and Penfold, The Workers’ Festival; and Rogers, Halloween. Bouchier, “‘The 24th of May Is the Queen’s Birthday,’” examines the changing nature of the sports activities used to celebrate that holiday prior to 1900. For a good introduction to Labour Day and other holiday celebrations see Heron and Penfold, The Workers’ Festival, 3–38. Scott, Country Fairs in Canada. Burr, Canada’s Victorian Oil Town, examines the ohw Celebrations in Petrolia as part of her study of that city. Farber, “High, Healthy and Happy,” is an examination of the Mount Forest Old Home Week of 1977, a celebration that has been held every ten years. See also Noël, “Old Home Week Celebrations as Tourism Promotion and Commemoration.” For Nugget coverage of these Victoria Day community events, see: “Playground Opening Is Big Feature of Holiday,” 26 May 1925; “Arrange Sports Card for Victoria Day,” 22 May 1935, Front Page, 1–2; “Sport Events Billed at North Bay May 24,” 20 May 1935, 6; “T.&N.O., LaSalles Victors in Victoria Day Ball Games,” 27 May 1935, 7; “Three City Ball Clubs Play Friday Afternoon,” 22 May 1935, Sports, 6; “Chancel Guild Hikes for Outing on May 24,” 27 May 1935, 9. “Holiday Cards for the North Are Numerous,” Nugget, 30 June 1925. “Dominion Day Celebration Proves Highly Successful,” ibid., 3 July 1935. “Attractive Program for Dominion Day,” ibid., 12 June 1935, 8. “Plenty of Sport on Dominion Day,” ibid., June 28, 1935, Sports; “North Bay Players Win Tennis Tourney,” ibid., 3 July 1935, Sports.

Notes to pages 232–6

305

15 “Sports at Callander on Deck for July 1st,” ibid., 28 June 1935, Sports, 7. 16 “cpr Picnic Was Success of the Year,” ibid., 21 July 1925. 17 “Souvenir Program, Canadian Pacific Railway North Bay Employees, 5th Annual Picnic Held at Mattawa, Saturday, July 21, 1928.” Author’s collection. 18 “Competition Is Keen cpr Picnic Races,” Nugget, 29 July 1935, Sports. 19 “North Bay Italians Hold Annual Picnic,” ibid., 22 July 935, 8. 20 As Doug Mishler points out, the circus appealed to everyone across class and race and its performances were held in small towns as well as large cities. Its appeal had to do with novelty, with escape from reality, and with nostalgia for childhood. It was “an extraordinary event.” Mishler, “‘It was everything else we knew wasn’t,’” 127–44. Several studies have explored the history of the circus. See Culhane, The American Circus; Hammarstrom, Behind the Big Top; Speaight, A History of the Circus; Assael, The Circus and Victorian Society. 21 “Circus Makes Attendance at School Small,” Nugget, 19 June 1925. 22 Ibid., 8 July 1935. 23 “Glamorous Day,” ibid., 10 July 1935, Editorial, 4. 24 “Thrilling, Gorgeous Is Al. Barnes’ Circus,” Nugget, 10 July 1935, 13. 25 Heron and Penfold, The Workers’ Festival, 143–4. 26 “Have Invited Party Chiefs on Labor Day,” Nugget, 21 Aug. 1925, 2; “Traffic Was Light Over the Holiday,” ibid., 8 Sept. 1925, Front Page, 1. 27 “Big Program of Sports at Mattawa Park,” ibid., 8 Sept. 1925, 8. 28 “Mattawa Had Both Parties Speak Monday,” ibid., 8 Sept. 1925, 2. 29 “Sport Card Arranged for Labor Day Here,” ibid., 30 Aug. 1935, Sports. 30 “Astorville Outing Draws Large Crowd,” ibid., 4 Sept. 1935, 16. 31 For more information on fairs see Scott, Country Fairs. 32 Globe, 15 Sept. 1925, 16 (online). 33 “Say Council Broke Faith with the Fair,” Nugget, 28 Aug. 1925, Front Page, 1. 34 “North Bay’s Fall Fair,” ibid., 9 Jan. 1925. 35 “Predict That North Bay Annual Fair Will Soon Be Feature North Show,” ibid., 18 Sept. 1925. 36 “Big Decrease in Fair Attendance for Present Year,” ibid., 22 Sept. 1925. 37 “Annual Fair Will Be the Finest Ever,” ibid., 21 Aug. 1925. 38 “Childerhose Babe Won the Sweepstakes,” Nugget, 22 Sept. 1925. The silver cups for each category were donated by L. Welsh, J. Thomas, E. Ross, and R. Thompson. J.O. McKerro, on behalf of the Abitibi Power and Paper Co., also donated a silver cup for the winner of the baby

306

39 40 41 42 43 44 45 46

47 48

49 50 51

52

53

Notes to pages 236–7

sweepstakes. “Silver Cups Will Be Given to the Baby Show Winner,” ibid., 15 Sept. 1925. “Children’s Day at the Fair Was Big Time for Kiddies,” ibid., 22 Sept. 1925. “Work of Children Is a Big Feature of Fair Exhibits,” ibid., 18 Sept. 1925. “Competition Was Keen for Prize Ribbons,” ibid., 18 Sept. 1925. “Exhibits of Women’s Work Were Popular,” ibid., 18 Sept. 1925. “North Bay,” ibid., 22 Sept. 1925, 10. “North Bay Women, News of Their Organizations,” ibid., 9 Oct. 1925, 6. “Fair Program, Midway, Keeps Crowds Happy,” ibid., 18 Sept. 1925. Globe (online), 15 Sept. 1925, 16; 20 Aug. 1931, 7; 20 Sept. 1933, 15; 3 Oct. 1934, 19. The period from 1925 to 1935 was searched online for the list of dates but these were the only lists that were located. Pleck, “The Making of the Domestic Occasion.” For Nugget reports on Thanksgiving, 1935, see: “Bicyclists to Race on Thanksgiving Day,” 23 Oct. 1935, Sports; “Travellers, Students to Clash on Gridiron,” 23 Oct. 1935, Sports; “Junior Rugbyists Whitewash Ferris,” 25 Oct. 1935, Sports; “Thanksgiving Day Quiet with Police,” 25 Oct. 1935, Police Court. Bella, The Christmas Imperative. Nugget, 24 Nov. 1925 to 18 Dec. 1925. Pleck, Celebrating the Family, 47, sees it emerging as such in the midnineteenth century for middle-class families. Queen Elizabeth II’s first Christmas message in 1952 refers to it as such, not just for the gifts but in honour of the family in Bethlehem. http://www.royal.gov.uk/ files/pdf/Christmas%20broadcast%201952.pdf consulted 19 June 2008. The Loyal True Blue Lodge held a Christmas tree celebration for sixty children on 23 December. “North Bay Women, News of Their Organizations,” Nugget, 24 Dec. 1925; The Neshobe Lodge held its first annual Christmas tree celebration. The seventy-five children who attended received a stocking of candies. “North Bay Women, News of Their Organizations,” ibid., 29 Dec. 1925; The Knights of Columbus held a Christmas event the evening of 23 December, at which 500 children received a small stocking. “Santa Clause Visited the City Kiddies,” ibid., 24 Dec. 1925; The Queen Victoria Memorial Hospital Christmas event included a concert and dance. A tree was set up for young patients, and members of the Hospital Board and Hospital Auxiliary gave out small gifts. “Santa Visited with the Sick Gifts for All,” ibid., 24 Dec. 1925. “North Bay,” ibid., 29 Dec. 1925.

Notes to pages 237–9

54 55 56 57 58 59

60 61

62 63 64 65 66 67 68 69 70 71 72 73 74 75

307

“Mayor-Dowdall Scrap at k.c. Charity Stag,” ibid., 13 Dec. 1935, Sports. “Salvation Army Band Out for Serenading,” ibid., 11 Dec. 1935. “Santa Claus At Home to Many Youngsters,” ibid., 30 Dec. 1935. “Santa Claus Comes to Launch Appeal,” ibid., 27 Nov. 1935; “Santa Claus Is Coming to Town,” ibid., 25 Nov. 1935. “Royal Welcome of Children Greets Santa Claus Arrival,” ibid., 29 Nov. 1935, 10. “a.c.t. Stag Brings Aid to Cheer Fund,” ibid., 25 Nov. 1935. Another example is the Dr Herbert A. Bruce Chapter of the iode. “Chapter Gives Money for Christmas Cheer,” ibid., 16 Dec. 1935. “Lions Provide Funds for Welfare Work,” ibid., 18 Dec. 1935. “Cash, Foodstuffs Obtained Through Charity Broadcast,” ibid., 11 Dec. 1935. Held at the Masonic Hall, this event collected enough for seventy-five children to have Christmas presents. A particularly large donation was made by 20th Century Fox, who were filming their Dionne movie at the time. The Knights of Columbus had about fifty artists present to entertain listeners. “Charity Broadcast for Christmas Work,” ibid., 18 Dec. 1935. “Will Christmas Dawn Sad for Any Children?” ibid., 4 Dec. 1935. “Desperate Need For $200 to Care for City’s Needy,” ibid., 23 Dec. 1935, Front Page. “Nine Trucks Used Delivering Goods to Needy Families,” ibid., 24 Dec. 1935, Front Page. “Christmas Cheer Merger Is Endorsed by Rotarians,” ibid., 30 Dec. 1935, Front Page. “Plan Christmas Feast to Serve Transients,” ibid., 23 Dec. 1935. “Rev. J. Blaney Asks Christmas Cheer Aid,” ibid., 29 Nov. 1935. “Happy Christmas Is Assured Settlers in North Regions,” ibid., 18 Dec. 1935. Abbott, “Cold Cash and Ice Palaces.” “North Bay,” Nugget, 10 March 1925. “Carnival Here to Show Famed McCarthy Girls,” ibid., 6 Feb. 1935, Sports. “North Bay Skater Favorite at Meet,” Nugget, 28 Jan. 1935, Front Page. “McCarthy Sisters Thrill Large Crowd at Carnival,” ibid., 25 Feb. 1935, Sports. “Many Novel Events Knights’ Carnival,” ibid., 18 Feb. 1935, Sports. “Knights of Columbus 6th Annual Figure Skating Carnival, Friday February 2nd, 1940, North Bay Arena, Souvenir Program.” Author’s Collection. Norah McCarthy, who had won the Junior Champion of

308

76 77 78

79

80 81 82

83 84 85 86 87 88 89 90 91 92

93 94 95 96

Notes to pages 239–45

Canada title in 1938 and the Senior Champion of Canada title in 1940, was again featured. Pleck, Celebrating the Family, 73–94. Proctor, “Victorian Days,” 132. Noël, “Old Home Week Celebrations as Tourism Promotion and Commemoration.” For a copy of the souvenir book see Noël, “North Bay’s Old Home Week, 1925 and 1935,” “Souvenir Books.” The previous year, about five hundred families had been on relief and the city’s share was around $30,000, the provincial government paying the bulk of the costs (85%). “City Relief Bill $193,683 for Year,” Nugget, 11 Jan. 1935, Front Page, 1; City of North Bay, Minutes of Special Meeting, Motion, 20 Feb. 1935. “Delay Is Costly,” ibid., 7 Jan. 1935, Editorial. “Why the Hesitancy?” ibid., 25 March 1935, Editorial. The tourism promotion aspect of Old Home Week in both 1925 and 1935 is examined in more detail in Noël, “Old Home Week Celebrations as Tourism Promotion and Commemoration.” Procter, “Victorian Days,” 132–5. “Full Week of the Best Entertainment, Plan for Old Home Week Reunion,” Nugget, 29 May 1925, 2. Lottridge, Souvenir of North Bay Old Home Week, 43–53; Je Me Souviens. Procter, “Victorian Days,” 132–5. All the members of these committees are listed in the souvenir book. For a copy see Noël, “North Bay’s Old Home Week, 1925 and 1935.” Noël, “Old Home Week Celebrations as Tourism Promotion and Commemoration.” “Original Deed of City Site Framed and on Exhibition,” Nugget, 7 Aug. 1925, 2. “A Notable Event,” Nugget, 7 Aug. 1925, 1. MacDougall et al., ‘Back to the Bay.’ See also Noël, “North Bay’s Old Home Week, 1925 and 1935.” The plan was explained in the “Come Back – Old Pal!” brochure and the “Official Programme.” Noël, “North Bay’s Old Home Week, 1925 and 1935.” “Real Old Timer of North Bay Come to Reunion,” Nugget, 1 May 1925. “All Former Town Fathers Invited to Civic Banquet,” ibid., 21 July 1925, Front Page; “Rotary Club Banquet to Old Timers,” ibid., 4 Aug. 1925. Globe, Toronto, 3 Aug. 1925, 3. See Noël, “North Bay’s Old Home Week, 1925 and 1935,” “Parades” for images and newspaper accounts of these floats.

Notes to pages 245–8

309

97 MacDougall, et al., ‘Back to the Bay.’ 98 “Outdoor Screening Canadian Scenes a Nightly Feature,” Nugget, 4 Aug. 1925. 99 “Railroad Day Winds Up Big Week Events,” ibid., 11 Aug. 1925; “cpr Winners in Railroad Ball Tourney,” ibid., 11 Aug. 1925. 100 “Climax Festive Week in Superlative Days,” ibid., 9 Aug. 1935. 101 “Members of Railroaders’ Lodge Re-United for 50th Anniversary,” 9 Aug. 1935, Front Page. 102 “cpr Shop Workers to Enjoy Home Week,” Nugget, 29 July 1935. 103 “Old Time Baseballers To Clash with Ceepees,” ibid., 7 Aug. 1935, Sports. 104 “Boxcar McDonald Pitches Old Timers to Deserved Win,” ibid., 9 Aug. 1935, 6. 105 “Big “t” Suffer Whitewashing at Hands of Pembroke Outfit,” ibid., 7 Aug. 1935. 106 “cpr Girls’ Nine Swamp Burks Falls,” ibid., 7 Aug. 1935. 107 “228th Battalion Was Model Fighting Unit,” ibid., 4 Aug. 1925. 108 “159th ... Firs[t] Unit Recruited S[oldiers?] from ... Northern [O]ntario,” ibid., 4 Aug. 1925. 109 Ibid., 28 July 1925, 1. 110 “Northern Ontario Veterans Favor One Organization of the Returned Men in Canada, “ Nugget, 7 Aug. 1925. 111 “Members of 159th Battalion Climax Re-Union by Banquet,” ibid., 7 Aug. 1935, 12. 112 Etzioni, “Holidays and Rituals,” 10. 113 Noël, “Old Home Week Celebrations as Tourism Promotion and Commemoration.” 114 Ibid. 115 The Nugget noted the participation of Mattawa, Bonfield, Astorville, Corbeil, Sturgeon Falls, Warren, Verner, Field, River Valley, Noelville, St Charles, Coniston, Sudbury, Chelmsford, Cobalt, Kirkland Lake, Hanmer, Elk Lake, and Blezard Valley. This list is more extensive than the number of parishes featured in the French souvenir book. “Motor Club Day Proves Pleasing,” Nugget, 7 Aug. 1935, Front Page. 116 “Memorial Is Dedicated in Home Week Function,” ibid., 7 Aug. 1935; “French-Canadian Heroes Honored at North Bay,” Globe, Toronto, 8 Aug. 1935, First Page. The only other ohw event the Globe reported on was the softball game played by National Hockey League stars against the Travellers. “Pro Hockeyists Triumph in Softball Exhibition,” Globe, 12 Aug. 1935, 5.

310

Notes to pages 248–52

117 “Gathering at Banquet Table Closes French Canadian Day,” Nugget, 9 Aug. 1935, 9. 118 Noël, “Old Home Week Celebrations As Tourism Promotion and Commemoration.” 119 See http://www.nipissingu.ca/faculty/frann/ohw%20Exhibit/ Souvenir%20Books.htm 120 Nugget, 28 July 1925, 10. 121 “Nelson’s Record Shows Victories in Five Swims,” ibid., 31 July 1935, Sports. 122 David Westphal, “Marathon Swimmer Nelson Joins Register Hall of Fame,” [http://www.desmoinesregister.com/apps/pbcs.dll/ article?AID=/19820411/sports11/50705011]. 11 April 1982. 123 “Hockey Stars Stage Show,” Nugget, 12 Aug. 1935, Sports. 124 “Home Town Fans Witness Amateur Star in Action,” Nugget, 7 Aug. 1935, 6. 125 See Noël, “North Bay’s Old Home Week, 1925 and 1935,” for more detail. For a list of all the Nugget articles on ohw see the “Sources” page. 126 “North Bay,” Nugget, 1925; “Yellek Brigade to Cause Yells From Spectators,” ibid. 127 “Traffic Rules to Apply to Pedestrians As Well,” ibid., 31 July 1925, 2. 128 “North Bay,” ibid., 14 Aug. 1925. 129 Trussler Diary, 3 Aug. 1925. 130 “Fines Follow Gun Play at Cottage on Lake Shore,” Nugget, 7 Aug. 1925. 131 “North Bay,” ibid., 14 Aug. 1925. 132 “Claim Three Sold Liquor on August 6,” ibid., 21 Aug. 1925, Front Page; “Bootleggers Sent to Jail by the Court,” ibid., 18 Sept. 1925, Front Page. 133 “City Well Behaved in Festive Period,” ibid., 9 Aug. 1935. 134 “Police Thankful Festival Is Over,” ibid., 12 Aug. 1935, Front Page. 135 “Busy Police Court Festival Aftermath,” ibid., 12 Aug. 1935. 136 “Suspended Sentence For Juvenile Gang,” ibid., 11 Sept. 1935. 137 “Home Week an Epoch in Bay History,” ibid., 11 Aug. 1925, Front Page; “Old Home Week Will Cost the City Nothing Says ohw Committee,” ibid., 11 Aug. 1925; “Old Home Week Committee,” ibid., 18 Sept. 1925. 138 “Good Surplus Remains From Old Home Week,” ibid., 18 Sept. 1925. 139 City of North Bay, Minutes, 10 Aug. 1925. 140 “Tourist Registration Shows Big Increase,” Nugget, 16 Aug. 1935. 141 “Old Home Week Committee Winds Up Festival Affairs,” ibid., 9 Sept. 1935. 142 “Committee Heads Say Week Perfect,” ibid., 12 Aug. 1935, Front Page.

Bibliography

public and private collections archives of ontario ao, rg 2 – 105 vol. 102, High School Inspectors’ Annual Reports – hp (1930–31). ao, Schools and Teachers in the Province of Ontario, 1920, 1925, 1927, and 1935. hartley trussler collection (private) Diary of Hartley Trussler, 1925 and 1935. Photograph Albums of Hartley Trussler. centre for community and oral history (ccoh), nipissing university Demarco Collection. Family Life Project (flp). This collection includes all the family photographs and printed material collected for this project. These were borrowed and digitized and the originals returned. The 1935 Northern Star is part of this collection. Farmer Collection. North Bay Normal School (nbns), Year Book, 1925, 1935, 1960. North Bay Collegiate/nbci&vs, The Northern Echo, 1928, 1929, 1933, 1936, 1939. library and archives canada Census of Canada, 1901, 1911. Fire insurance map: nmc 009792, “North Bay, Ontario Nov. 1905. Reprinted and revised to Dec. 1915.”

312

Bibliography

newspapers The Nugget (on microfilm). January to December, 1925. All news articles on North Bay and area were consulted, as well as selected articles on sports, obituaries, weddings. January to December, 1935. All news articles, news of local organizations, personals, as well as most weddings, sports, and obituaries. Selected articles, 1920–39. The Globe, online. Selected articles, 1920–39. st joseph–scollard hall, formerly north bay college The Green and Gold, 1934–1939. north bay public library Vernon’s North Bay City Directory, 1920, 1925, 1930, 1935. north bay sports hall of fame (nbshf) http://www.northbaysportshalloffame.ca/ st andrew’s united church Annual Reports. st john the divine anglican church archives (sjaa) Vestry Records. Minutes of the Chancel Guild, 1931–36. town and city of north bay Minutes of Council, June–December 1925 [January to May purported to be destroyed]; August and November 1934; January to December 1935. trinity united church Minutes of the Methodist Ladies’ Aid Society, 1921–24.

oral history interviews Note: When two people are interviewed together, biographical information is for the first mentioned person. These interviews were conducted for this project. With the exception of the “Anonymous” interview, all of these interviews will be deposited with the

Bibliography

313

Centre for Community and Oral History at Nipissing University and will be available for consultation by other researchers. Alger, Clifford T., dvd, 30 June 2004, at North Bay, by Françoise Noël. Language of Interview: English; Born: 1922 in North Bay; Religion: United Church; Ethnicity: Canadian; Occupation: businessman. Anonymous, No. nb13, Audio cd, 3 August 2004, at North Bay, by Françoise Noël. Language of Interview: English; Born: 1925 [in North Bay]; Religion: Presbyterian; Ethnicity: Father Irish; Occupation: worked at Hydro. Backer, Carmen (Therrien), dvd, 12 October 2004, at Mattawa, Ontario, by Françoise Noël. Language of Interview: English; Born: 1924 in Mattawa; Religion: Catholic; Ethnicity: French Canadian and Norwegian; Occupation: housewife and cashier. Boulanger, Paul Emile and Jeanne (Bouffard), Audio cd, 26 October 2004, at Mattawa, by Françoise Noël. Language of Interview: French; Born: 1919 in Papineau Township; Religion: Catholic; Ethnicity: French Canadian; Occupation: farmer, bus driver, machine operator, retired. Brazeau, Shirley (Nicholson), dvd, 11 July 2005, at North Bay, by Françoise Noël. Language of Interview: English; Born: 1926 in North Bay; Religion: Catholic; Ethnicity: mixed; Occupation: Bell Telephone worker. Brown, Herb, dvd, 28 July 2005, at North Bay, by Françoise Noël. Language of Interview: English; Born: ca. 1922 in North Bay; Religion: Jewish; Ethnicity: [Canadian]; Occupation: businessman. Burrows, John “Jack”, dvd, 18 July 2005, at North Bay, by Françoise Noël. Language of Interview: English; Born: 1931 in North Bay; Religion: United Church; Ethnicity: Canadian (anglophone); Occupation: businessman. Burton, Ralph, dvd, 22 July 2004, at North Bay, by Françoise Noël. Language of Interview: English; Born: 1931 in North Bay; Religion: Anglican; Ethnicity: English; Occupation: plumber, retired. Costante, Albert, dvd, North Bay, by Christine Orlando. Language of Interview: English; Born: 1923 in North Bay; Religion: Pentecostal/ Roman Catholic; Ethnicity: Italian; Occupation: cpr worker. Craig, Ken, dvd, 19 July 2005, at North Bay, by Françoise Noël. Language of Interview: English; Born: 1926 in North Bay; Religion: not known; Ethnicity: [English Canadian]; Occupation: cpr fireman and engineer. Cundari, Loretta, dvd, 19 January 2005, at North Bay, by Françoise Noël. Language of Interview: English; Born: 1926 in North Bay; Religion: Catholic; Ethnicity: Italian Canadian; Occupation: tailor.

314

Bibliography

Douglas, Lois (Edwards), dvd, 21 July 2005, at North Bay, by Françoise Noël. Language of Interview: English; Born: 1920 in North Bay; Religion: Anglican; Ethnicity: Irish Canadian; Occupation: navy service in Second World War, housewife. Ducharme, Enid (Riopelle) and John Ducharme, dvd, 27 January 2005, at Astorville, by Françoise Noël. Language of Interview: French; Born: 1926 in Mattawan Township; Religion: Catholic; Ethnicity: French Canadian; Occupation: housewife. Elliott, Johnston Clayton “Dinty”, dvd, 28 April 2004, at North Bay, by Françoise Noël. Language of Interview: English; Born: 1920; Religion: Baptist; Ethnicity: Canadian (Irish descent); Occupation: postmaster. Falconi, Licia “Lee” (Stroppa), Audio cd, 4 June 2004, at North Bay, by Christine Orlando. Language of Interview: English; Born: March 1932 in North Bay; Religion: Roman Catholic; Ethnicity: Italian; Occupation: librarian. Gigg, Wilfred “Biff”, dvd, 2 September 2004, at North Bay, by Françoise Noël. Language of Interview: English; Born: 1920 in North Bay; Religion: Anglican; Ethnicity: English Canadian; Occupation: administrator. Grassi, Len, dvd, 8 August 2005 at North Bay, by Christine Orlando. Language of Interview: English; Born: 1930 in North Bay; Religion: Italian; Occupation: bell hop, insurance and real estate businessman. Guillemette, Germaine (Gauthier), dvd, 28 July 2004, at North Bay, by Françoise Noël. Language of Interview: French; Born: 1917 in Chisholm Township; Religion: Roman Catholic; Ethnicity: French Canadian; Occupation: housewife. Labrèche, John Thomas, dvd, 28 June 2004, at Nipissing University, by Françoise Noël. Language of Interview: English; Born: 1928 in North Bay; Religion: Roman Catholic; Ethnicity: French Canadian; Occupation: Hydro worker. Lamarre, Millie (Sloan), dvd, 16 November 2004, at Mattawa, by Françoise Noël. Language of Interview: English; Born: 1924 in Mattawa; Religion: Roman Catholic; Ethnicity: Irish primarily; Occupation: teacher. Lamothe, Diane (Bélanger), cd, 16 November 2004, at Mattawa, by Françoise Noël. Language of Interview: French; Born: 1922 in Papineau Township; Religion: Catholic; Ethnicity: French Canadian; Occupation: hospital worker and housewife. Landriault, Sister Rita, dvd, 20 July 2005, at North Bay, by Françoise Noël. Language of Interview: French; Born: 1920 in North Bay; Religion: Roman Catholic; Ethnicity: French Canadian; Occupation: teacher. Laroque, Hermès, Audio cd, 30 August 2004, at North Bay, by Françoise Noël. Language of Interview: French; Born: 1924 in North Bay; Religion:

Bibliography

315

Roman Catholic; Ethnicity: French Canadian; Occupation: salesman, deputy sheriff, hotel keeper. Leppan, Mary (Underwood), dvd, 23 June 2004, at North Bay, by Françoise Noël. Language of Interview: English; Born: 1924 in North Bay; Religion: Roman Catholic; Ethnicity: Canadian; Occupation: teacher, librarian. Lessard, Lucille (Parent), dvd, 12 October 1994, at Mattawa, Ontario, by Françoise Noël. Language of Interview: English; Born: 1926; Religion: Roman Catholic; Ethnicity: French/Irish; Occupation: cashier/mill worker. Loukidelis. See Pappas. Martin, Simone (Boulanger), dvd, 12 January 2005, at Grand-Désert, by Françoise Noël. Language of Interview: French; Born: 1918 in Grand-Désert; Religion: Catholic; Ethnicity: French Canadian; Occupation: farm wife. Mauro, Isabel May (McDonald), Audio cd, 20 July 2004, at North Bay, by Françoise Noël. Language of Interview: English; Born: 1922 in North Bay; Religion: Presbyterian or Methodist then United; Ethnicity: Scottish; Occupation: teacher, war worker, office worker. Naughton, Ellena (O’Hara), dvd, 24 August 2004, at North Bay, by Françoise Noël. Language of Interview: English; Born: 1922 in North Bay; Religion: Roman Catholic; Ethnicity: Irish Canadian; Occupation: teacher. Novack, Lloyd and Laurence (Blanchette), dvd, 2 November 2004, at Mattawa, by Françoise Noël. Language of Interview: English; Born: 1928 in Papineau Township; Religion: Catholic; Ethnicity: mixed; Occupation: lumbering and machine operator. Pappas, Irene (Solidas) and Ernie Loukidelis, dvd, 27 July 2005, at North Bay, by Françoise Noël. Language of Interview: English; Born: 1915 in North Bay; Religion: Greek Orthodox; Ethnicity: Greek Canadian; Occupation: office worker for family businesses. The two are old acquaintances and the interview with Pappas was conducted jointly with Loukidelis at her request. Priolo, Josephine (Zimballatti) and Ralph, Audio cd, North Bay, by Christine Orlando. Language of Interview: English; Born: 1921; Religion: Roman Catholic; Ethnicity: Italian; Occupation: teacher. Regimbal, Lucille, dvd, 9 June 2004, at North Bay, by Françoise Noël. Language of Interview: English; Born: 1927 in North Bay; Religion: Roman Catholic; Ethnicity: French Canadian; Occupation: educator. Richardson, Margaret (Paterson), dvd, 31 January 2006, at North Bay, by Françoise Noël. Language of Interview: English; Born: North Bay, Ontario; Religion: Anglican; Ethnicity: Scottish Canadian; Occupation: hairdresser, secretary.

316

Bibliography

Rivet, Marie, Audio cd, 16 June 2004, at North Bay, by Françoise Noël. Language of Interview: English; Born: 1918 in North Bay; Religion: Roman Catholic; Ethnicity: French Canadian; Occupation: teacher, administrative assistant, translator. Rochefort, Bernard and Rollande (Gagné), dvd, 18 January 2005, at Astorville, by Françoise Noël. Language of Interview: French; Born: ca. 1930 in Astorville; Religion: Catholic; Ethnicity: French Canadian; Occupation: telegrapher, electrician, plumber. Russell, Daniel John “Jack”, dvd, 5 August 2004, at North Bay, by Françoise Noël. Language of Interview: English; Born: 1920 in North Bay; Religion: Anglican; Ethnicity: ; Occupation: hockey player; zamboni driver. Sarlo, Edward Anthony, dvd, 24 April 2004, at North Bay, by Françoise Noël. Language of Interview: English; Born: ca. 1916 in Sault Ste Marie, moved to North Bay ca. 1933; Religion: several; Ethnicity: Italian Canadian; Occupation: retired compositor. Schiavo, Emma (Cicci), Audio cd, 9 August 2005, at North Bay, by Christine Orlando. Language of Interview: English; Born: 1924; Religion: Roman Catholic; Ethnicity: Italian-Canadian; Occupation: cook, Davedi Club. Taylor, Ruth Eva (Coombes), dvd, 3 May 2004, at North Bay, Ontario, by Françoise Noël. Language of Interview: English; Born: 1924 in West Ferris; Religion: Anglican; Ethnicity: Canadian; Occupation: teacher. Therrien, Conrad and Yvette (Lamothe) Therrien, Audio dvd, 20 October 2004, at Mattawa, by Françoise Noël. Language of Interview: English; Born: 1926 in Cameron Township; Religion: Catholic; Ethnicity: French Canadian; Occupation: cpr worker. Unger, Kenneth Joseph, dvd, 21 July 2005, at North Bay, by Françoise Noël. Language of Interview: English; Born: 1923 in North Bay; Religion: Roman Catholic; Ethnicity: Canadian; Occupation: cpr conductor. Wardlaw, Eva (Mihelakos/Mitchell), dvd, 5 October 2004, at North Bay, by Françoise Noël. Language of Interview: English; Born: 1928 in Pakia, Greece. Came to North Bay in 1931; Religion: Greek Orthodox; Ethnicity: Greek Canadian; Occupation: teacher.

other sources Abbott, Frank. “Cold Cash and Ice Palaces: The Quebec Winter Carnival of 1894.” Canadian Historical Review 69, no. 2 (1988): 167–202. Abel, Kerry M. Changing Places. History, Community, and Identity in Northeastern Ontario. Montreal and Kingston: McGill-Queen’s University Press, 2006.

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Index

159th Regimental Battalion, 193; reunion at ohw 1935, 247 Académie Sainte Marie (Haileybury), 157, 162–3 adolescence, 178 Alger, Clifford T., 231; on family life, 44–8 All Saints Day, 149 Amalgamated Civil Servants of Canada, 190 amateur ideal. See sports Amour, Frank, 100 Ancient, Free and Accepted Masons (af & am): Nipissing Lodge No. 420, 97, 187; North Bay Lodge No. 617, 188 Anderson, Donald, 174 Anderson, Stanley, 58 Anderson, Stewart, 174 Anglican(s): early history in study area, 109; population, 27, 30, 31, 33. See also St John the Divine Angus, Margaret, 195 Arena Rink. See North Bay Arena Rink

Armstrong, Lt. Col. E.F., 247 Armstrong, W., 208 Ash, Frances, 174 Associated Canadian Travellers: Christmas fund, 238; Band, 199 Associated Women’s Society, 132 Astorville: naming of, 16; parish picnic, 235 August Civic Holiday. See Old Home Week baby contest, 236 Backer, Carmen (Therrien), 50, 54; on Christmas, 72–3; on school, 146 badminton, 166; club, 132 Baillargeon, Denyse, 11 Ballard, E.K., 177 bands, 198–9 Banner, Mayor E.L., 216 banquets. See dinners baptism. See christenings Baptist(s), 110, population in study area, 27, 30, 31, 33. See also First Baptist Church. bar mitzvah, 84, 87–8 Barker, Dan, 251

334

baseball: 1935 season, 225; holiday games, 230–2; local greats, 226; ohw, 247; organization, 224–5 basketball, 161, 166, 170, 218, 227 Bazinet, Mrs, 99 Beatty, E.W., 245 Belanger, Louis Paul, 100 Bélanger, Wilfrid, 22 Bell Telephone. See Blue Bell Club “Better Livestock Train,” 151 Bible Reader’s Guild, 131 birthdays, 81 blackface comedy, 202 Blanchet, John, 202 Blanchette: Hilaire, 22; Laurence, 22 Blaney, Rev. John, 238 Bliss, Rev. Foster, 109 Blue Bell Club, 194 Board of Trade Cup (curling), 210 boarders, taking in, 52 Bon Entente Ball, 194 Bonfield hockey club, 193 Bonfield Township, population of, 16–17, 32, 33 Bonfield Village, 18, population of, 17, 32, 33 Booth, J.R., 16 Booth’s Depot, 110 Boulanger, Paul Emile: on church, 119, on grandparents, 21; on school, 138 Bourgeault, Anastasie, 22 Bourke, Margaret (wedding), 90–1 boxing, 249 Boy Scouts. See Scouts and Guides Boyer, Leo, 160 Boys’ Choir, 132 Boys’ Bible Class, 131 Brady, Fire Chief G.M., 239

Index

Brazeau, Shirley (Nicholson): on birthdays, 81; on Christmas pageant, 151; on holidays, 57; on movies, 203; on school, 146 Breen, Father Daniel J., 115 Brookes Street School. See Dr MacDougall Brotherhood of Locomotive Engineers No. 305, 100 Brotherhood of Locomotive Firemen and Engineers No. 237, 100 Brotherhood of Locomotive Firemen and Enginemen, North Bay Lodge No. 234: 50th anniversary banquet, 246 Brotherhood of Railway Carmen, No. 192, 98 Brown, Herb, 160–1 Brûlé, Ontario, 110, 238 Bullbrook, Mayor W.G., 231, 239, 252 Bunyan, Rev. E.E., 99 Burrows and Parmalee, 44 Burrows, Jack, 51, 53; on grandparents, 22–3 Burton, Tom, 199 ccf Ladies’ Club, 190 C.J. Sanders Cup (golf), 209 Calarco, Mrs Frank (Mary Zangia), 99 Calvin Township, 16–17; population, 17, 32–3 Camp Tillicum, 129 Campbell, Minnie M., 173 Canadian Amateur Athletic Union, 206–7 Canadian Girls in Training (cgit): anniversary skit, 197; dinner, 187; mother-daughter banquet, 188

Index

Canadian Legion: Auxiliary, 190; cards, 189; Club Room, 186; dinner, 187; funeral, 96; Jubilee Service, 199; “Vimy Night,” 188 Canadian Longyear plant, 194 Canadian National Railway: and ohw, 245; Staff (dinner), 185 Canadian Pacific Railway, 3, 16–17; baseball, 246–7; Bon Entente Ball, 194; Civic Day, 245; Curling League, 210–11; employees’ (dinner), 185; hockey, 219; officials’ (dinner), 187; and ohw, 245–6; picnic, 232–3; Pirates (baseball), 224–6; softball, 214, 217, 234 Canadian Passenger Association, 244 Cangiano, Dom, 217 Cangiano’s Orchestra, Andy, 191, 233 Capitol Theatre, 202 Cappadocia, Antonetta, 92 card playing, 188–90 Carmichael, Thomas H., 98 “Carnaval,” 239 Carnes, Mark, 183 carnival: Rotary Club, 239; Knights of Columbus, 239 Carr, Sybil (Rinkey Dinks), 214 Cartier, Jacques: monument, 248 Casselman, A.C., 176 Catholic Recreation Club, 186, 187 Catholic Women’s League: activities of, 124, 129, 153, 169, 185–8, 190, 197, 201; in Mattawa, 127; in North Bay, 107, 129 Catholic(s): divisions among, 109, 276n17; in Mattawa, 104–5; in North Bay, 105–9; Ontario-Quebec jurisdictional conflict, 4, 258n1;

335

population in study area, 27, 30–1, 33; social control of priests, 114, 278n37; support for separate schools, 134, 285n9 celebrations. See holiday(s), Old Home Week, and sports census: and ethnic identity, 23–4 Cercle Canadien Français, 243 Ceresia, Clara, 57 Chambers, J.E., 177 Champlain, Samuel de: and ohw, 248 Chancel Guild, 131 Chapleau, Father J.A., 108, 126, 152, 248 Charity Cup (soccer), 235 childhood: memories, 7; attendance at movies, 43, 46; play, 42–3, 54–5; tasks, 46, 50–2, 59, 60, 62 Children’s Aid Society, 36 Children’s Day (fall fair), 236 Children’s Frolic, 201 Children’s Shelter, 36, 186 Chisholm Township: population of, 16–17, 32, 33 Chiswick, Ontario, 67, 115, 116 choirs, 201 christenings, 83–4 Christmas Cheer Fund. See Santa Fund Christmas: commercialization of, 69; as community celebration, 237–9; concerts, 142, 151; in country, 74–8; as a domestic occasion, 66–7; as family celebration, 66–78; food traditions at, 67, 69–72, 74–6; French Canadian traditions, 70–6; Italian traditions, 68–9; needy at, 238–9; toys, 68. See also Santa Claus

336

Index

churches: cultural role, 113, 277n27; response to immigrants, 104, 107, 275n2. See also congregation and individual denominations church groups: and creation of community, 132, 283n110. See also voluntary associations Church Union, 122–3 circus, 233–4 City Baseball Champions, 225 City Teachers, 184–5 civic communion, 243 Clarke, L.S., 208 Clelland, James L., 174 Club Championship (golf), 209 Cobalt, Ontario, 3, 8 Cochrane, Rev. R.B., 126–7 Cohen, Anthony P., 9 Colgan-Liddle Hall, 191, 194 Collège Sacré Coeur (Sudbury), 157, 164 Comacchio, Cynthia, 156 Commanda, Frank, 248 Commanda, Liza, 248 commencement. See graduation community festival, 229, 240. See also Old Home Week Community Service Day, 231 community: boundaries, 25, 255, 263n26; celebrations, 229–30; definition, 9; studies of, 9 concerts, 199–200 Confederation Life, 185 confirmation, 84–7 Congregation of the Resurrection, 173, 176 congregation, 10; as community of faith, 113; identity with, 133, 284n113; men’s participation in, 132–3, 267n41, 283n111

Copeland Cup (hockey), 219 Corbeil, Ontario: parish established, 115 Corpus Christi, feast of, 125; in Mattawa, 153 Costante, Albert, 148; on high school, 161 Councillors’ Cup (baseball), 224 courtship, 62 Coyle, Helena M., 173 Crystal Ballroom, 186, 189, 192, 194 Cummings, Tom, 45, 147 Cundari, Loretta: childhood reflections, 39–41: on Christmas, 68–9; on family life, 38–40; on first communion, 85; on high school, 162; as matron at the Royal, 203; on mother’s funeral, 100 curling, 210–11 Currie, John E., 173 Dale, Olive, 96 dance(s), 191–5; as anniversary celebrations, 192–3; bands, 191; impact of Depression on, 194–5; as fundraisers, 192–3; halls, 191–2; Hartley Trussler, 193–4; school, 47; as staff functions, 194 Daughters and Maids of England, 185, 189–90 Demarco, Ab, 223 Depression. See Great Depression Deschenes, Philomene, 76 devotional practices, 42, 59, 114, 277–8n30 Dignan, Bishop Ralph Hubert, 108; installation of, 124–5 dinners: civic banquet at ohw, 245; father-and-son, 188; French Canadian Day banquet, 248; as

Index

fundraisers, 186; halls available for, 184–7; Mothers’ Day, 188; organization and cost, 186; as performance of community, 184 Diocese of Sault Ste Marie, 105, 121 Dionne family, 5 Dionne quintuplets: first communion, 85; attendance at movies, 204; as tourist attraction, 241 disking (sport), 218, 227 Dollard Day, 149 domestic occasions, 5–6, 65, 78 Dominion Association, 199 Dominion Day, 231 Douglas, Lois: high school, 161; railway family, 49; skiing, 212 Doyle, Percy, 230 Dr Carruthers School (McPhail Street), 143 Dr MacDougall School (Brookes Street), 143 Dreany, W., 235 Drum Head service, 247 Ducharme, Enid (Riopelle), 164 Dudley, Dr, 101 Dupuis, Mary, 129 Duquette, Father Joseph Nelson, 119 Duquette, Joseph, 91 Durkheim, Emile, 229 Dymond, Herbie, 249 Easter, as family celebration, 78; as religious celebration, 125; as holiday, 239 Eau Claire, Ontario: Christmas concert, 151; Evangelistic Association, 200; needy families, 238; school fair, 150; school picnic, 149; settlement, 16; whooping cough, 150 Elliott, D.J., 128

337

Elliott, Dinty, 49, 56; skiing, 212, 213 Elliott, Edna May, 128 Empire Hotel, 186–7, 191, 195, 209, 223 English: family life, 44–8; population in study area, 27, 30, 32 English Canada: desire to “Canadianize” immigrants, 104, 275n2 ethnicity, 6, 23, 111–13; in neighbourboods, 54; population by, 27, 30, 32. See also names of ethnic groups Etzioni, Amitai, 229, 247 Evangelical Association, 31 Evangelistic Association (Eau Claire), 200 Ezylyfe Canoe Club, 182, 185, 193–4 Falconi, Licia (Stroppa), 69 fall fair, 235–6 Fallon, Bishop, 107 family: economy, 263n1; entertainment, 59–60, 62; history, 5; rituals, 5–6; rural, 58–64; urban, 38–58 farm work, 58–62 fascism, 57 Feast of the Immaculate Conception, 149 Fédération des femmes canadiennesfrançaises, 124; dinner, 187; at ohw, 244; sponsor of French Canadian Day, 243; tea for Mrs Dignan, 124 Fellman, Margaret (Rinkey Dinks), 215 Fellman, Mrs A.M., 214 Ferguson Cup (women’s softball), 214 Ferguson, Evalena, 173

338

Index

Ferguson, G.H., 214 Ferguson, James, 251 Ferguson, John, 234, 235; as founder of North Bay, 17, 208, 244 Ferris Township: population, 16–17, 32–3 Ferris United Church, 201 festival time, 241 “fête de Monsieur le Curé,” 152 Fête des Morts, 149 figure skating, 239 Finlay, Greta (Rinkey Dinks), 214, 215 First Baptist Church, 120–1; choir, 201; Ladies’ Aid, 128–9, 185–7; Men’s Club, 197; Schubert anniversary, 201 first communion, 84–7 First Nations, 397–8 food traditions, 39, 59, 66, 82; at Christmas, 67, 69–72, 74–6; at Easter, 78 Forbes, Gordon A., 23 Fossmill, Ontario, 116 Foster, Thos. R., 174 Franklin, Richard E., 174 fraternal societies. See voluntary associations French Canadian Day, 248–9 French Canadian: Easter traditions, 78; family life, 42–4; at ohw, 248–9; population in study area, 27, 30. See also Christmas, New Year’s Frise, Hubert A., 173 Fulcher, Edith, 148 funeral rituals and practices, 94–103; for children, 100; flowers at, 100–1; among fraternal societies, 96–8; in Greek community, 96;

lowering flag, 101; notices, 96; of women, 98–9 Gagnon, Hector, 98 Gamm, Gerald, 182 Gans, Herbert, 6 Gard, Anson, 201 Gardner, Pearl E., 174 Gateway City Lodge No. 32, 189 Gateway Guild, 197 Gauthier family, 62 gender divisions: in church groups, 132–3; in funeral practices, 98–9; in household tasks, 50, 60–1; in ohw organization, 243–4; and recreation, 180–1; in the schoolyard, 146; in sports, 207 George W. Lee trophy (curling), 210 German: population in study area, 30, 32 Gigg, Biff, 129 Gilham, Estelle M., 173 Gillars, Edna, 195 Gillis, John, 82 Girl Guides. See Scouts and Guides. Glover, Harry, 246 Golden Gate Concert Company, 199 golf, 208–10 Gordon Cup (curling), 210, 218 Gordon, Mary M., 173 Gordon, Senator George, 208, 218 Gore, Dot (Rinkey Dinks), 215 Gospel Hall, 111 Gosse, B.J., 237 graduation: North Bay College, 169; North Bay Collegiate & Vocational School, 166; St Joseph’s Academy; 167; as rite of passage, 168 Grand Désert, 22; chapel, 117–19

Index

Grand Pageant Parade, 240, 244–5 Grand Trunk Railway, 19 grandparents, 45–6, 62; visiting, 43–4 Grassi, Len, 108 Gravelle, Father Joseph, 116 Great Depression: Alger family during, 47; church leaders’ response to, 126; decline of fall fair during, 236; impact in study area, 35–8; Landriault family during, 43; making do during, 87; and movie going, 203; and needy at Christmas, 237–9; and ohw, 241; and schools, 136; effect of on sports teams, 225. See also relief and transients Great War Veterans’ Association: Women’s Auxiliary, 189, 236 Greek Orthodox: population in study area, 31, 33 Greek: christenings, 84; Easter traditions, 78; Independence Day, 271n59; name day celebration, 81; weddings, 92 Grenier, Father Henri, 113–14 Griffiths Jr, George, 199 Guenette, Charles Louvain “Smokey”, 226 guignolée, 70, 77 Guillemette, Germaine (Gauthier), 62, 80 Gunn, Brig. Gen. J., 247 Halloween, 78; in country, 80; dances, 194, 299; as family celebration, 79; high school party, 170–1; in schools, 149; supper, 128, 186 Hambley Cup (curling), 210

339

Hamer, Lottie E., 173 Hansman, Ab, 210 Harcourt, Dr (mla), 208 Hardy, James (aerial artist), 249 Harris, G., 234 Haviland, Hugh J., 173 Heavener, Harvey, 92 Helmkay, Dora L., 173 Hepburn, Premier Mitch, 135 Heron, Craig, 181 Hewitt, Rachel, 97 high school, 11, 47–8; access to, 157; attendance at, 156; boarding school routine, 163; entrance exams, 156; ethnic diversity in, 176–7; extra-curricular activities, 165–71; funding of private separate, 158; programs, 171–3; retention rates, 159; sports, 166–7, 169; student experiences, 160–5; teacher salaries, 174–5; teachers, 173–6. See also graduation Highway Lodge, 192 Hill, Donalda, 99 hobos. See transients hockey: banquet, 223; challenge games, 222; exhibition games, 221; facilities, 219–21; fan support, 219; for fun, 223; industrial league, 221; local greats, 223; midget, 223; organization of, 218–19; in schools, 219, 221; women’s, 217–18 holiday(s): celebrations, 239–40; early forms of celebration, 230; family traditions, 46; family, 43–4, 55–8; integrative role of, 229; “recommitment holidays,” 229; from school, 6, 149; seasonal cycle of, 230–40; “tension management

340

Index

holidays,” 229; transformation of, 82. See also specific holidays Home Missions in Northern Ontario (ucc), 238 horseracing, 208, 234, 249 Howell, Colin, 206 “Hullabaloo” (Halloween dance), 166 hunting, 43, 50, 61–2 Huntingdon, Silas, 109 Hurtubise, J.R., 233 Ideal Rink, Wallace Park, 220 Igartua, José, 182 illegal activities: during Depression, 35–6; at ohw, 250–1 illiteracy, 137–8 International Bible Studies Association: population of, 31 International Order of Odd Fellows: Camp Friendship, 91; dinner, 185; funeral, 98; hall, 186; veterans at ohw, 247 iode: Samuel de Champlain Chapter, 196; Dr Herbert A. Bruce Chapter Christmas dance, 194 Irish: population in study area, 27, 30, 32 Italian War Veterans’ Association: annual picnic, 233 Italian(s): Boys Band, 199; christenings, 84; church groups, 129; family life, 38–41; in high school, 161–2, 177; language school, 268n58; parish involvement, 108, 276n13; population in study area, 30; youth groups, 57. See also St Rita’s parish J.J. O’Connor Trophy (golf), 209

Jewish: religious celebrations, 125; population in study area, 27, 30, 31; synagogue, 120–1 Kay, Mayme, 177 Keatha Lodge, No. 279, 189 Kelly, Mrs I., 214 Key to the North, 209 King Edward Public School (McIntyre Street), 143 King George Public School (Harvey Street), 143 King Street Arena. See North Bay Arena Kiosk, Ontario, 116 Knights of Columbus: charity broadcast, 238; at Christmas, 37, 129, 237; father-and-son banquet, 188; figure skating carnival, 383; funeral, 98; hall, 169, 186–8; musical program, 200; at ohw, 243; in Mattawa, 127; North Bay Council 1007, 129; at St Mary’s, 106, 153 Labour Day, 234–5 Labrèche, Jack, 37 Lacey, Rev. G.G., 199 lacrosse, 207, 224 Ladies’ Aid Society (Methodist): Carmichael’s Corners, 201; North Bay, 186 Ladies of Saint Ann, 127 Lady Mary Lodge, 187 Lakeview Hotel, 186 Lamarre, Millie (Sloan), 76, 142 Lamothe, Diane (Bélanger), 86; grandparents, 22 Landriault, Sister Rita: on Christmas, 73; on family life, 42–4; on movies, 203; on New Year’s, 73

Index

Lapierre, E., mp, 234 Lappage, Ron, 206 Larden, Frances (Rinkey Dinks), 215–16 Larden, Mrs W., 214, 216 Laroque, Hermès, 50–1; on Christmas, 71; on movies, 203 Laroque, Onésime, 108 Laurent Cup (golf), 209 Laurentian Ski Club, 192, 211 Laurier Avenue United Church, 124 League of the Sacred Heart, 127 Lee, Bob, 209 Legault, Theodore, 98 Lehman Orchestra, Bert, 166, 194 leisure activities: card playing, 188–90; dances, 191–5; dinners, 184–8; Hartley Trussler on, 179; marginalized, 204; as municipal responsibility, 182; musical performances, 198–201; plays, 195–8; and Prohibition, 181–2; role of voluntary associations in, 180, 184, 204–5. See also movies and radio Leppan, Mary (Underwood), 37, 162 Lévesque, J.A., 16 life stories, 6 Lions Club of North Bay: at Christmas, 238; dance group, 200; dinners, 184, 185; Dominion Day picnic, 231; hockey banquet, 223; playground, 230; and ohw, 248; Sportsmanship Trophy, 352; tenth anniversary of, 187, 195; on Victoria Day, 230 Liquor Control Act, 181 Little Theatre Guild, 196 Little, Janet E.M., 174 Loblaw Cup (golf), 209

341

Locke, Theodore, 98 Lockett, H.G., 176 Lockhart, “Gutty,” 247 Louch, Catherine, 195 Loyal Order of the Moose, 190 Lucenti’s Capitol Orchestra, 92, 191, 194, 195, 202 lumbering, 14–16 Lutheran, 124; population in study area, 27, 30, 31, 33 Lynch, Archbishop, 4 Lyon, Hon. J., 208 McArthur, Helen, 94 McCarthy, Norah and Therese, 239 McDonald, “Boxcar,” 247 McDonald, J.J., 224 McDonald, John H., 208, 217, 219, 235 McDonald, Mary D., 174 MacDougall, John B., 134 McElligott, Frank, 142, 146 McGaughey, Judge C.S., 188 McIntyre, Duncan, 17 McKenzie, Rev. D.L., 110 McLaren Cup (golf), 208 MacLeod, Jenny, 23 MacLeod, Rod and Martha, 195 McNamara, Elizabeth, 173, 174 McQuattie, Robert, 197 McRae, Isobella (Doran), 99 Magnusson, Sigurdur Gylfi, 12 Maloney, Dr, 234 Manning, Frank, 229 Maple Beach Pavilion, 181, 186, 191–2, 233 Marceau, Harry, mla, 231, 233 Marceau, Simone, 91 Marchildon, Phil, 226 Marks, Lynn, 180

342

Index

marriage, 88 Married People’s Social Club, 189 Martin, Simone (Boulanger), on Christmas, 74–5; on dairying, 60–1; on school, 143, 146, 148; wedding of, 88–9 Mason, Robert Frank, 98 Masonic Lodge (hall), 92, 186, 187, 188, 191, 194 Masons. See Ancient, Free and Accepted Masons Massicotte, Edmond-J., 73 Mattawa: Catholic parish of, 119; Citizens’ Club, 234; competition for District capital, 18; Corpus Christi parade in, 126, 153; cpr picnic in, 232–3; dinners, 186; high school exams, 154; high school, 157, 173; types of jobs in 1891, 18; Labour Day in, 234; as a mission base, 109–11; plays in, 197–8; population in study area, 17, 19, 25, 32, 33; Public School, 151–2; school fair, 150; schools, 140; separate school, 143, 145–6; settlement, 16, 109; voluntary associations, 127; women’s hockey, 217 Mauro, Isabel May (McDonald), 147 Memorial Gardens. See North Bay Arena Men’s clubs: Baptist, 197; St. John’s, 131–2, 190, 197 Methodist Church (North Bay): in 1925, 122; choir, 201; hall, 185, 186; Ladies’ Aid, 195. See also Trinity United Church Methodist: population, early history of, 109; population in study area, 27, 30, 31 Metropolitan Life Insurance, 185

mi-carême, 80 microhistory, 12 Milne, William, 211 Morel, Harry, mla, 217, 234 Mormon: population in study area, 31 Morrow, Don, 214 Morton, Suzanne, 49, 180 Mother’s Day, 188 Mothers’ Union, 132 movies: adolescents, 204; childhood entertainment, 202–3; and the Depression, 203; Hartley Trussler on, 179; prices, 202; the Quints’ attendance at, 204; at the Royal, 203 Murray, Vernon, 93 musical programs, 200–1 Mussolino, T., 250 Myers, Richard, 188 National Hockey League, 218, 223; players at ohw, 249 Naughton, Ellena (O’Hara), 49, 96; on the Depression, 37; on high school, 162 neighbourhood, 42–3, 45, 53–4 Nelles, H.V., 229 Nelson, Marvin, 249 New Year’s: as family celebration, 70–8; paternal benediction at, 70, 72–3, 76–7 Newman, Richard, 98, 100 Nicholson, G., 208 Nicholson, Mrs J.C., 223 Noiseau, Frederick, 96 normal school: attendance at, 160; extra-curricular activities at, 169; student experiences at, 165; sports, 170; teachers, 176–7

Index

Norris, J.C., 177 North Bay Arena (first Memorial Gardens and also King Street Arena), 220–1 North Bay Arena Rink, 210; fire at, 219; replacement of, 220–1 North Bay Athletic Club, 182 North Bay Badminton Association, 182 North Bay Baseball Association, 230 North Bay Bicycle Club, 237 North Bay Board of Trade, 185, 216, 255 North Bay Boy Scout Association, 187 North Bay Choral Union, 198 North Bay Citizens’ Boys’ Band, 199 North Bay City League (softball), 214 North Bay College, extra-curricular activities, 168–9; program, 157; sports, 169; teachers, 173, 176; tuition, 157. See also high school North Bay Collegiate Institute and Vocational School, 171; extracurricular activities, 166–7, fall fair displays, 236; sports, 166; student experiences, 160–1; teachers, 172–3. See also high school North Bay Collegiate. See North Bay Collegiate Institute and Vocational School North Bay Community Orchestra, 199 North Bay Curling & Athletic Company Limited, 211 North Bay Curling Club, 187 North Bay Garage, 179 North Bay Golf Club, 208–9 North Bay Hockey League, 219

343

North Bay Junior Hockey League, 219 North Bay Kilty Band, 232 North Bay Motor League, 236 North Bay Musical and Dramatic Society, 196 North Bay Normal School, 11, 159. See also normal school North Bay Premier Band, 198, 232, 236 North Bay Rink and Auditorium Company, 220 North Bay Veterans’ Band, 232, 236 North Bay: churches in 1925, 120; as district capital, 18; founding of, 17; as “Gateway to the North,” 3–4; market, 60; population in study period, 18–19, 28–30; public drinking in, 181; railway workers, 28; railways, 18–19; relief payments, 19–21; schools, 143–5 North Range Cowboys, 190 Northern Curling Association, 210 Northern Ontario Golf Association Championship, 209 Northern Ontario Hockey Association, 218 Northern Ontario Women’s Softball Association, 214 Northwest Circle of Trinity Women’s Association, 187 Norton, Charles, 96 Novack, Laurence (Blanchette), 139 Novack, Lloyd: on Christmas, 76; on grandparents, 22; on school leaving, 136 Nugget Shield (hockey), 219 Nugget (North Bay), 8–9 O’Dwyer, Father William C., 115–16

344

Index

Odd Fellows. See International Order of Odd Fellows. Old Boy Reunions, 230 Old Home Week, 12; as community festival, 240; festival time, 241–3; film of, 236; finances, 251; and First Nations, 248; and French Canadians, 248; illegal activities during, 250–1; organization of, 243–7; public image presented by, 244–7; railways’ role in, 244–7; rowdiness during, 250–1; safety during, 250; special events, 249; sports, 249–50; tourism promotion, 240–1 “Old Timers,” 240. See also Old Home Week Ontario Baseball Amateur Association, 225 Ontario Hockey League, 218 Ontario Temperance Act, 181 oral history, 6–8 Orange Hall, 185–7, 189 Packham, Rev. G. Stanley, 126, 195 Palangio, Pete, 223 Palmer, Bryan, 95 Papineau Township, 16–17; population, 17, 32–3 Pappas, Irene, 37, 53 parades: circus, 234; Dominion Day, 231; fall fair livestock, 236; Old Home Week, 240, 242, 244–8; Parade of Returned Soldiers, 247; Rinkey Dinks’ victory, 215–16; Shirt Tail, 251. See also Grand Pageant Parade Parish Guild, 131, 190 Parisien’s Orchestra (A.), 232, 246 Passover, 125

Peiss, Kathy, 11 Pentecostal: North Bay Church, 123; population in study area, 31 picnics: church, 114, 232, 235; cpr picnic, 232–3, Hot Dog Picnic, 169; Italian War Veterans’ Association, 233; Labour Day, 234; Lions Club, 231 pioneer(s): in Chisholm, 63; in Ferris, 24; Silas Huntingdon as, 109; at ohw, 244; railroaders as, 246; women as, 99, 103; in Widdifield, 98 plays: community performances, 195–8; high school, 166; in schools, 151 Pleck, Elizabeth, 5, 6, 82, 92, 94–5 Plymouth Brethren, 111 Polar Bear Cowboy Orchestra, 201 population in study area: ethnicity of, 24–5; foreign-born, 28–9; growth, 16–21; languages spoken by, 29; origin of, 21; religion of, 27–8 Powles, Mrs George W., 98 Premier Band. See North Bay Premier Band Presbyterian: early history, 110; population in study area, 27, 30–1, 33. See also Calvin Presbyterian Church, St Andrew’s Presbyterian Church, and Church Union. Preston, Harry, 226 Princess Beatrice Lodge, No. 6 (Daughters of England), 190 Priolo, Josephine, 161 Pro-Cathedral of the Assumption. See St Mary’s parish Proctor, David, 240 Prohibition, 181–2

Index

Putnam, Robert, 182 Queen Victoria Public School, 143, 145 quilting bee, 60 Quinn, Mrs Patrick, 93 Quinn, Patrick, 93 Quintland, 5 Quints. See Dionne quintuplets quintuplet dolls, 193 radio: Christmas charity broadcast on, 238; as entertainment, 53, 179–80; licenses, 180; as luxury, 40; talent shows, 202 railways: and ohw, 244–7; special fares, 244; work and family time, 39, 43, 49–50 Ramsay, C., 177 recreation. See leisure Red Cross Society of North Bay, 150 Regimbal, Lucille: on birthdays, 81; on Christmas and New Year’s, 71–2; on the Depression, 37; on high school, 163; on movies, 203 Regimbal, Maurice, 209–10 regulation 17, 10 relief, 19–21, 35, 38, 68; work, 219, 220, 237, 241. See also Great Depression. religion: and culture in Quebec, 277n28; linked with ethnicity, 113; of population in study area, 27–8, 30–1, 33. See also denominational groups réveillon, 70, 72, 75 Ricci, Michele, 92 Richardson Cup (hockey), 219 Richardson, George, 226

345

Richardson, Margaret (Paterson), 37, 52, 56; confirmation of, 85–6; on movies, 203; on school, 147–8 Ricker, H.E., 177 Rinkey Dinks, 213–17; team members, 300n56 rite-of-passage rituals. See bar mitzvah, christenings, confirmation, first communion, funeral rituals and practices, and weddings rituals, 5–6, 9, 82; See also specific holidays and rites of passage Rivers, F.S., 176 Rivet, Marie, 135, on high school, 162–3 Robbie Burns Day, 193 Robertson, Senator Gideon, 217 Rochefort, Bernard: on going to market, 60; on school, 140–1; on sugaring off, 59 Roma Spaghetti House, 186 Rorab Shrine Club, 193 Rorabeck, Arthur Cecil, 97 Rose, Calvin, 250 Roseroom, 191, 194 Rotary Club of North Bay, 231; carnival, 239; civic banquet, 245 rowdiness: at ohw, 250–1 Royal Theatre, 201–2 Russell, Jack, 50, 52, 56; cpr picnic, 233, Santa, 67–8 Rutherglen, Ontario, 16, churches in, 109–11; needy families in, 238 St Andrew’s Presbyterian Church (North Bay): and Church Union, 122; Ladies’ Aid, 236 St Andrew’s Women’s Association, Circle “A,” 187 St Ann’s Parish (Mattawa), 119

346

Index

St Brice’s Anglican Church (North Bay), 124; hall, 186; Junior Chancel Guild, 231; Mothers’ Union, 187; Parish Guild, 190; ypa, 200 St John the Divine Anglican Church, also St John’s (North Bay), 121–2; aypa, 130; church groups, 130–2; Girl Guides, 237; Parish Hall, 184–5, 187 St John’s Anglican Church (Chisholm Township), 119 St Joseph Separate School (North Bay), 145 St Joseph’s Academy, 157; boarding students, 163–4; extra-curricular activities, 167–8; hockey team, 224; music program, 173; student experiences, 162 St Joseph’s General Hospital: Ladies’ Auxiliary, 189, 201 St Louis de France parish (Chiswick), 116–17 St Mary’s Parish, also Pro-Cathedral of the Assumption (North Bay), 105–7, 124–5, 127; hall, 151–2, 185–7, 189; Sodality play, 197 St Mary’s Separate School (North Bay), 105, 143, 147, 153; hockey at, 221 St Patrick’s Day, 171, 197, 185–6 St Rita’s Parish (North Bay), 108; Dramatic Club, 129 St Simon’s Anglican Mission, 124 St Vincent de Paul Parish (North Bay), 108, 123–4; Christmas at, 72; “fête de Monsieur le Curé,” 152; hall, 186–9 Ste Anne School (Mattawa), 145 la Sainte Catherine, 81, 149

Ste Philomène Parish (Bonfield), 114–15, 279n38 Saint-Thomas-d’Aquin Parish (Astorville), 113–14; picnic, 235 Salvation Army, 120–1; anniversary of, 193; Christmas baskets, 237; hall, 186; Headquarters’ Staff Quartet, 199; population in study area, 27, 30, 31 Sanderson, Rev., 123 Sangster, Joan, 213 Santa Claus, 67; belief in, 67–8, 76; in schools, 151–2; at 185 Worthington Street East, 237; arriving by train, 237 Santa Fund campaign, 237 Santino, Jack, 230 Sarlo, Edward Anthony (Eddie), 191 Saya, Dan (Rinkey Dinks manager), 216 Scappatura, Anthony, 100 Scappatura, Dom, 249 Schiavo, Emma (Cicci), 108 Schoenau, Rayburn E., 174 school(s): buildings, 143; celebrations in, 142, 149–53; civic pride in, 144; corporal punishment in, 137, 148; as cultural support, 154–5; early leaving from, 136–8; expansion into New Ontario, 134; fall fair program, 150–1; French language in, 138, 146; funding levels, 138–9; memories of, 136–7, 139–40, 146–8; Papineau Township, 141; primary, 10–11; public health, 150; rural, 138–43; separate school funding, 135; sports, 153–4; urban, 143–8. See also teachers Schools and Teachers, 11 Scollard Hall Guild, 154, 169, 190

Index

Scollard Hall. See North Bay College Scollard, Bishop David, 105, 107–8 Scot(s): population in study area, 27, 30, 32 Scott, Jessie M., 173 Scouts and Guides: Christmas work, 237; dinners, 185, 187; memories of, 45, 129; at St John’s, 131–2 sea pie, 115, 279n40 Seiberling Cup (hockey), 221 service clubs, 183 Seth Parker group, 200 Shirt Tail Parade, 251 Shorse, H., 198 showers. See wedding rituals Sibley, Mary M., 174 Silver Jubilee celebrations, 125, 168 Sindel, Thomas, 245 Sister Blanche, 176 Sisters of Charity, 145 Sisters of St Joseph, 105, 145 Sisters of the Assumption, 108, 116, 145 Sisters of the Sacred Heart, 115, 145 skiing, 211–13; jumping, 213 soccer, 235 softball: at cpr picnic, 232; on Labour Day, 234; at ohw, 247, 249; Rinkey Dinks, 213–17, on Victoria Day, 230 Sons of England, 189 Sons of Jacob, 123; Ladies’ Auxiliary, 190 Sons of Scotland Camp Kintail 21, 193 sports: amateur ideal, 206; celebration, 215–17; commercialization, 206; elite and middle class, 208–13; facilities, 207; gender and, 207; history, 207; late nineteenth-

347

century, 206; team sports, 218–26; women’s, 213–18. See also individual sports study area: defined, 3–4; early settlement of, 14–18; population of, 16–34 Sturgeon Falls: hockey challenges, 222 sugaring off, 59 Summerhays, Robert, 173 Sunday: family activities on, 52–3 Sutherland, Neil, 7 Swanson, Alvin, 100 swimming, 206, 233; at ohw, 227, 248, 249–50 Taylor, Ruth Eva (Coombes), 161, 212 teachers (primary school): French language, 134; qualifications, 141–3, 145–6; religious as, 145; salaries of, 145 Temiskaming and Northern Ontario Railway, 3, 19; Band, 198, 246; baseball, 224–6; Boys’ Club, 224; Curling Association, 210; garden plots, 39; hockey, 219, 221; and Laurentian Ski Club, 211; and ohw, 245, 247; Recreation Union, 194; soccer, 235; tennis club, 210 Temiskaming, Quebec, 231 Temple, Herbert W., 174 tennis, 210, 231 Thanksgiving: in churches, 125; as community celebration, 2, 36–7; as domestic occasion, 5, 65, 78 Therrien, Conrad: on church attendance, 119; on family life, 58; on hunting, 61–2; on school, 137 Therrien, Yvette (Lamothe), 87

348

Index

Thompson, George, 225 Thompson-Cockburn Cup (curling), 210 Tiernay, Art, 91 Tompkins, Sid, 53 Top Hat Dance Pavilion, 191 tourism, 240, 251 track and field events, 169, 250, 153, 167 Traders’ Bank Cup (curling), 210 transients, 37, 47; at Christmas, 238 Trappers Hockey team, 218–20 Trinity United Church (North Bay), 120–1, 123, 190, 196; Choir play, 197; Easter play, 200; hall, 186, 187. Women’s Association Northwest Circle, 187. See also Methodist Church of North Bay Triple C Club (Mattawa), 193 trousseau tea, 94, 273n34 Troy, Leo M., 173–6 True Blue Lodge, 189 Trusler, Superintendent J.W., 142 Trussler, Hartley: on dances, 193–5; on going to church, 53; on holidays, 58, 240; on leisure activities, 179–80; at ohw, 250; on local poverty, 36–7 Tulchinsky, Gerald, 127 Unger, Ken, 58, on circus, 234; on family Christmas, 66–7 university: going to, 159 vacation. See holiday(s) Valentine’s Day, 149 veillée, 62 Veteran-Citizens Band, 199 veterans, 247 Victoria Day, 225, 230–31

Victorian Order of Nurses, 185 Virgili, E., 198 voluntary associations: in Chisholm Township, 119–20; church groups, 119, 127–33; Catholic, 105–07; providing entertainment, 180–81; fraternities; 96–8, 181–3; Jewish, 127–8; in North Bay, 182–3; service clubs, 124, 182–4, 188, 207, 215, 231. See also specific groups Walden, Keith, 12 Walker, Alexina C., 174 Wallace, Frank D., 174–5 Walton, Marjorie B., 174 Wardlaw, Eva (Mihelakos/ Mitchell), 231 Warren, Jean-Philippe, 70 Wawanekas, also Wawas (Owen Sound), 214–15 wedding(s): country, 89–90; ethnic, 92; mock, 93; rituals, 88, 94; showers, 90–1, 93; urban, 90–2 Weegar, “Cap,” 247 Went, Gladys (Callings), 165 Whyte, Marion I., 173 Widdifield Township, 16–17; population of, 17, 32, 33 Wildgust, H., 177 Williams, Hubert W., 174 women: in church leadership, 128, 282n94; and fall fair, 236; in family role, 62; and household tasks, 59, 60; motherhood, 88; pioneers, 99, 103; sports, 213–18; work, 52 Women’s Auxiliary to the Missionary Society of the Church of England in Canada, 130 Women’s Missionary Auxiliary: St John’s, 185, 187

Index

“Y,” 40, 43, 54 York, F.A., 198 Young People’s Association: St Brice’s, 200; St Andrew’s, 201

youth camps, 57 Zembrzycki, Stacey Raeanna, 149 Zimbolatti, Anthony, 100

349