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HARTLEPOOL, ENGLAND

George was born in Hartlepool, England in 1837. On December 9th, 1859, he married Isabella and together they raised seven children.

In 1880 they arrived in Barrie, Ontario with the Hunt family. They stayed there for 6 years where they worked at a saw mill.

On April 1, 1886 the entire family moved to Manitoba. They considered stopping in the Red River Valley but worried about clearing all the trees and stopped for a short time in the Hernfield District before settling on this property.

This photograph! Its a total fluke. It was close to dark when we arrived, as you will see from the other photos I post. I had been struggling with camera settings all evening but got this. Cade would like me to blow up and frame this for the living room. Not really my thing, to have my own art on display but I do really like this photo. Cade tells me that its one of his favourites that I have done. I am pleased that this turned out because I actually got a good idea of what this beautiful house looked like. This is by no means close to where I live but I do plan on going back.

Anyways, back to the history. Upon arrival to this area, the family needed to set up a homestead. There were few trees in the area but lots of uncultivated prairie grass. The family set up tents and got to work building a sod house, sod barn and even a sod grainary. I do not know when this house was built. But when they built it, they built it well. There is no shelter belt around the home and stands out in the wide open prairie.

Farmers in this area were said to make a week long round-trip trek to Brandon to sell their grain. They welcomed the arrival of the train to nearby districts which shortened their trip to sell their crops.

The entire family homesteaded in this area. George passed away from cancer in 1894 and Isabella died on February, 1909.

My companion on this trip was adamant that we get to this house and another to capture the sunset. We stood here for awhile as the sun quickly faded below the horizon. The sky changed quickly from the time we left Prohibition Church, made a pit stop at another house and then made our way into this one. Even for the 10 or so minutes that we stood in front of this house, it changed a lot.

I have to admit, I did not enjoy my walk into this property. Lots of badger holes, grass up to my waist in some areas. My exploring buddy led the way, which I am grateful for.

This is near the start of our walk in. I thought I’d like to stay along with field but that didn’t work for us getting back out. God I hate tall grass. I hate when I cannot see where my feet are landing.

I do believe that this is one of the oldest histories that I have found. When I was able to connect a family to this property I was really excited. From the map I am convinced that the other side of this house is just a amazing as this side and I have every intention of making the trek back to see it.

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LOG HOUSE

JFA, born in Ontario in 1850 followed his father to Clearwater, Manitoba in 1881. The following year he came to this property with his wife. Here they raised a family of 8.

It is said that JFA was the first settler to build a home in this township and range. He built a home of logs for his large family.

The homestead remained in the family and eventually, JFA’s grandson took over the farm where he lived with his wife. BA lived here with his wife Mary but they never had a family of their own.

I wonder if this is the original structure, refinished or if this is a new build all together. There was a garage on this site not far from the house with an old Ford truck parked in front of it. Not far off the drive was an old combine up against some trees. The grass was very tall and think and I wasn’t going to chance it.

I think this is a pretty big house for its time. I would love to see the inside. I would love to see what it looked like in its glory.

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LOCAL MERCHANT?

This is another property I have driven by a million times and have never stopped at. I did two properties in one day and guess what? No history on this one either.

So here is a photo dump of this little property that kept on giving. I thought I was going for this house.

We passed by an old ice cream sign and some old bottles.

At this point Cade has already taken off to check out an old Mac truck.

It don’t think I’ve ever found one in such nice condition and it was even more shocking that the dog was still attached.

To my surprise I had stumbled upon a little old truck/tractor resting spot. Wahoo, old cars and bando houses. Why didn’t I stop here sooner.

Not sure what happened here but it made a good photo.

Then I found this. I am sure that this is some sort of old store. When I asked the current owners, they didn’t have a whole lot of information to provide.

And then I found this. This made my day. So enjoy this photo dump. If I ever find more info about this location and the little “store” I’ll be sure to update.

Have I ever mentioned before how much I hate hydro lines at a bando site?

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1910

I have driven by this house a hundred times and last Fall, Cade took me to this location to shoot it once and for all. We are asked to please shut the gate and watch for wasps.

The house is in remarkably good condition and wasn’t too bad to get to. We drove right up to it actually. I did get bit by something while getting a shot of the back of the house. Nothing serious. Stung for a bit and left a little mark. The round window above the kitchen on the wide of the house says 1910 which I am assuming is the year the home was built.

I loved the little window on the top of the house and the little “fence” at the top.

Of course, this is another house that I cannot find any history on and that is why it has taken me so long to post the photos. So, here they are. What I do know is that this land was claimed by its first homesteader in 1888. He is recorded as living here with his wife and 5 children. The land changed ownership in 1905 and maybe this particular house was built in 1910. If ever I come across something more concrete, I will definitely update.

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JAMES FRASER?

When I photographed this house, I never expected to find anything interesting about it. In fact, I wasn’t even going to look but I thought what the heck. Well, the first registered homesteader was James Fraser! Of course I instantly thought of Outlander. James Fraser was recorded in the history books as taking ownership in 1895. Of course, I could find nothing about him. The second owner, purchased in 1901 was from Ivernesshire, Scotland!!

Albert and Ada married in 1903 and this was their land. Together they had 5 children. History says that Albert came to Manitoba in 1889 and worked for the local implement dealer. He became quite successful and retired in 1892. Upon his retirement Albert and Ada bought a fruit farm in Victoria, B.C.

After a few years in B.C. Albert heard of the hard times on the prairies of Manitoba and decided to head back and and “get his farms on a paying basis”. Things were going well until the 30’s and many of their groups were deemed worthless. On top of that, Albert sustained an injury wherein he was gored by one of his bull from his large herd of Hereford cattle. Albert was very proud of his herd but the injury would lead to his death. Albert lived a couple months after his injury but his lungs were so badly crushed that he eventually developed pneumonia and passed away in April, 1932.

Three years later Albert’s land produced good crops from the rains the prairies were receiving. One of Albert’s sons went on to work at the elevator in Elva.

Upon our arrival at this property, we weren’t sure what we were going to see. It was a long walk up the drive and I kind of had a feeling there would not be much to see. There were a gazillion grasshoppers along our route and these were the only two photos I took. I’m happy we stopped and I’m happy that I took the time to find a little bit of history on this place.

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BOOTLEGGER’S CHURCH – COPLEY ANGLICAN CHURCH

This stone church, formerly known as St. George’s Anglican Church was fifty-six feet long, twenty wide and twenty tall is located approximately 5 miles from the Saskatchewan border and 2 miles from North Dakota. The organization and fundraising efforts to build this church were headed by Goddard Gale and construction of same began in 1890 by Mr. William Cornwallis. Two years later in September 4th, 1892 the church was consecrated by Bishop Robert Machray.

Goddard Gale was an artist from London and the son of a well-known barrister and a cricket player. Goddard is also rumored to be the first “white man” to set eyes on Lake Louise. Mr. Gale was a surveyor and engineer for the Canadian Pacific Railway and a staunch Anglican. When he took up residence is what was once known as Butterfield, he became a community leader and a council member for the RM of Arthur. Arthur is what this area of the province was before it was split into three smaller municipalities. In 2015 it was then reunified into one large RM known now as Two Borders.

When Mr. Gale started fundraising for the church on this 4.6 acres of land, stones were gathered as he wrote letters back home to his friends where he told them this would be the first Anglican church west of the Souris River.

As settlement started dwindling, church attendance also waned. In June, 1913 the church was deconsecrated. Some of the contents of the church were taken to a new building in Pierson but the organ and photos were taken to Eunola School.

Locals from the area told stories about Prohibition and how given the location close to the American border and the very isolated location of the now vacant church, it became an attractive hideout to bootleggers. I certainly didn’t get any Al Capone vibes while here.

Upon our arrival at the church, the sun was blaring, there were no clouds in the sky. I was a tad bit disappointed. Back at the start of Covid, Cade, Makenna and I drove out this way with the intention of visiting this location. We ended up heading North after a stop in Elva and I didn’t think I would ever make my way down here again. Yesterday a fellow bando hunter took me down here to do some touring. I’m glad he did. And I’m glad the sunset improved. Within fifteen or so minutes after our arrival, the infamous “golden hour” revealed itself.

After years of abandonment and vandalism, in 1932 the windows and doors of the church were boarded up in an effort to save the building. Inside the structure are obvious signs of a fire. I would have loved to have seen this place before Mother Nature and vandalism took hold.

In 1967 it was recorded that the building was still intact.

Driving around this area, there are very few cars and people. In the late 19th and 20th centuries, it is said that the government did all they could to entice people to this area. It is said that people from Britain and Northern Europe were heavily recruited. During the recruiting process no one took into consideration the climate these people would endure here on the wide open prairies nor did they consider if farming on this land would prove successful before they made their way to Canada from abroad.

And then there is this old truck. I will admit, at first I was a bit more excited about this old truck than I was the old church. What role this old truck plays to this historical site is beyond anyone’s knowledge. I googled it, but not to thoroughly, so I’m just going to pretend that a bootlegger parked his truck here to hide out in the church and then had to escape by foot and never came back for it. Its perfect right where it is and has been subject to many photographs in its time, as this old field stone church as its backdrop.

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FAIRMONT BANFF

While the boy was away, he’s been to the Fairmont in Banff a handful of times. Each of the times he’s given me a bit of a tour. Of course the historic hotel was what I really wanted to see, not Banff itself. I wasn’t really interested in the shops as most of it is junky souvenirs. Although the shops in the hotel had beautiful jewelry and art.

So after the boy got the Yukon parked in tiny lot and we paid for parking, off we went. They are currently filming a movie at the hotel and in the area so there was some congestion around the front of the hotel but nothing serious and it was still pretty easy to navigate the area.

I cut off the bottom of the hotel because of the barricades and people. Within a few minutes we were inside and I was ready to explore. I absolutely love how they have modernized all of the original fixtures. The detail in these items is amazing. And the furniture they have is something else.

It was hard to get a clear shot of the staircase as there were many people passing by this area. This is not the staircase that the “Ghost Bride” died on. There are numerous stories as to how she died so you’ll have to google her story to read more.

I didn’t realize until we got “home” that we were able to enter all floors of the hotel to look around. I’m a little perturbed by my whole Banff experience and wish the kids and I would have done this trip on our own as my own kids understand how much I love this stuff and were willing to entertain me going up useless staircases and taking pictures of old stuff.

If I were a guest at this hotel, I’d park myself in front of one of these windows and enjoy a good book and a drink. What a view.

Another part of the hotel I enjoyed was a section on the second floor which displayed photographs from when the hotel was built, some of the first guests and a special menu that was created for when the Royal Family came to visit. I did not photograph any of those things as many of the items were behind glass and I wasn’t sure if I was allowed.

Then we headed outside. I believe this is the Bowness River. As we were on a time limit, we didn’t take in any of the hiking or activities offered. There are numerous hiking trails and places where you can rent bicycles.

Then we headed to the “strip”. The boy ditched us to hang out with his friend who declared that I was behaving like a “typical tourist Mother” so Makenna and I did the tourist thing and looked at all the trinkets in the stores including the Christmas store which was very cool. Then we shared a Beaver Tail while we watched the people stroll by.

Next time I go to Alberta I want to get to Emerald Lake. While Banff was nice, this spot was very touristy and busy. I would like to go further into the mountains next time.

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Eaton’s House

The T. Eaton Co. Ltd.

The Eaton’s catalogue was the shopping mall for farm families in the early 1900s, the settlement period of the Canadian prairies. Coveralls for dad, a new dress for mom, and a special Christmas present for the kids, all came from Eaton’s in Winnipeg. The catalogue also supplied almost everything for the house, and, from 1910 to 1932, the house itself.

The house portion of Eaton’s merchandise was a Western Canadian phenomenon only. Houses were advertised only in the Winnipeg catalogue and in special plan books. The advertisements showed Douglas Fir trees, seven feet in diameter and 200 feet to the first limb. The lumber was without knots and came from trees that would not be cut today.

The mail-order house business worked like this: A few houses were listed in the catalogue as a teaser. The catalogue advertised free plan books that gave complete details about the houses: an artist’s sketch, floor plan, and information on lumber, doors, windows, flooring, and hardware. Few of the plan books exist today because they were distributed free of charge. 

Once the customer selected a house, the blueprints were purchased from the plan book for $2.50, although when competition appeared, the cost dropped to $1.00. When a house was ordered, the cost of the blueprints was subtracted from the invoice.

And order they did. Hundreds of Eaton homes dot the landscape in Western Canada, many serving the fourth or fifth generation of the same family, on the same quarter section of land. The lumber came by boxcar from British Columbia and the millwork came from Winnipeg. Freight was paid to the nearest railway station and the lumber was hauled to the farm by team and wagon.

Eaton’s sold at least 40 different house plans. While the large two-and-a-half-storey square house is most often referred to as an Eaton’s house, all shapes and sizes were available. The most common type was the one-and-a-half storey, sometimes referred to as the semi-bungalow. 

Very few single-storey houses remain, but the Art Dunlap house near Harris, Saskatchewan, shows how durable the houses were. The Dunlap house was built in 1916 and has been empty since 1956, but it still stands straight and proud.

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HUMMINGBIRDS

We don’t typically feed the birds at our place because of the cats. I have also put out a hummingbird feeder in the front though as the cats don’t really hang out there and well, I highly doubt they’d catch one.

As a kid my first encounter with hummingbirds came when my grandparents bought their cottage at Lester Beach. My Grandfather hung a feeder outside the kitchen window and for the longest time everyone would gather around to watch them. In no time he added more feeders to keep up with them. I remember my Grandmother making syrup every Friday when we arrived.

In the past we’ve had some fancy feeders for the birds but I find that they are hard to clean and you have to do it often to get rid of that black mold that grows on the inside so this year I just bought a feeder from the dollar store. I typically chuck them out at the end of the summer. Anyways, we’ve had a lot of action at the feeder between the hummingbirds and the orioles.

This was earlier in the Spring as the birds started to arrive. This bird spent a lot of time resting in the tree between drinks. He also had to wait his turn as the oriole tried to find a way to drink out of the feeder as well. There was also the odd oriole fight over oranges.

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CRAFT SALE

Remember my Cricut? Well I’ve been making crafts and I attended my first craft sale the other day. My daughter organized my table, was an excellent seller and even took my custom orders.

Here is the video she made for tik tok.

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ORIOLES

Every year we have hummingbirds. One of the first years we were here we had orioles but they didn’t stay for long as I couldn’t find an oriole friendly feeder and I didn’t take the time to research what else they could eat. Somewhere I have a photo of the oriole hanging upside down off the feeder.

Well this year they are back! Lots of them. Instead of the grape jelly we went with oranges. Well they can eat one a day!

This photo was taken through our living room window.

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UNFORGETTABLE

I typically don’t go back to a house once I’ve had the chance to photograph it unless something has changed structurally.

I do go back and check on this one at least every year. I am so happy that I got to see if when I did when we were still able to enter it and I could get a better shot of the outside.

The mosquitos were awful outside so it was a quick visit.

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CRICUT

I did a thing! I bought a Cricut.

It’s way too cold to go outside and I don’t have Colton to drive around to hockey so, I thought why not.

Here is some of the stuff that I have made. And it’s all for sale!

These are $10.

Milestone circles. 4 inch acrylic. Can make them whatever color you want. $35 for the set.

Memorial Blocks. Includes the light. The backside of this one has a wedding photo of my Grandparents on it. $40

Lots of onsies.

This adorable shirt for a special one year old! I can make more if you’re interested.

And bibs! Lots of bibs.

So until the weather warms up, I’ll be at the kitchen table, crafting. Then I’ll be back out shooting.

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CONCEALED

Here is another house I photographed back in the late summer of 2020. It is another one that I cannot find any concrete history on so, I’m just going to leave it here and if that ever changes, I’ll re-write my post and share its story.

This home is well hidden. It was rented out for a time but once the last tenants moved it was quickly taken over by Mother Nature. I did not get close as the vegetation was quite high and I was alone. Better to be safe than sorry. I know that Cade’s aunt worries about me alone on these excurisons and the possibility of there being a well, so I err on the side of caution.

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A PLACE FOR HORSES

This place is right outside my door. Well, not really but its a stone’s throw.

Its been on my to-do list for a very long time and I just sorta took advantage of it being there and something I could get to at any time. So last spring I wandered over there and the current owners were there and said come any time. The only stipulation was that I close the gate and don’t let the horses out.

If you know me you know that I am afraid of dogs. And to me, horses are big dogs. So when I went I decided I would not go inside the gate if I didn’t have to.

It was windy as heck out but the clouds were amazing. To me the sky looks painted. Believe me when I say that there is not filter on this photograph, this is straight out of the camera. The sky is almost too good to be true.

I have tried to get more information on this property and cannot. And given that its been some time since I’ve been out and posted, I’ve given up on the idea that I will be able to solidify any further information so, I’m posting.

I can tell you that the property has been rumored to be owned by a couple of different families whose ancestors still live in the area. I can also tell you that the house was last occupied in 1920.

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OLD WOODEN WINDMILL

I was given permission to photograph this property this past summer. I made my way out in the fall. What a beautiful old farm yard this is.

The yard is beautifully kept and there were all sorts of interesting little buildings on the edge of the property, some tucked away in the trees and one overtaken by Mother Nature.

It is clear that the family of this old farmstead cares for this farm, which I am sure holds many memories for them, their children and grandchildren.

We found what I believe must have been the original home on the property.

This family immigrated to Canada in 1891 from England where they were wool cloth merchants. They arrived in Canada with five children.

Their son William married and had two boys of their own. He moved away from the original homestead of his parents and bought this farm. His son then farmed this land.

The home, small and quaint showed some signs of a time when it was still occupied. There was an old toaster on the counter along with an old plate.

And this old fridge

The one thing that really caught my attention on the farmstead was this old wooden windmill. I have come across many windmills in my travels but this one is something else.

It was in pretty good shape considering its age. I googled to see when these were used but was not able to find any further information on this. Can you imagine the wooden blades in a windstorm?

I am actually nervous about writing about this history because I don’t want to mess anything up.

It was definitely worth the trip. I very much enjoyed my walk around this old homestead and appreciate the welcome to photograph same from its current owner who loves this old farm dearly. He is also a photographer himself so there was that pressure as well, lol. He and his wife have so many beautiful memories to share about their childhood, their life on the farm and their life in general. I wouldn’t want to mess any of those memories up.

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MOOSE

This past Monday we headed to work like I have been for the last 8 years and Stacey, 18. We started out and spotted a large herd of deer as we were just heading out of Killarney. A few miles later we spotted a buck chasing 3 does through a field.

Carrying on we spotted two moose to the west and then a little further and we saw a bull moose just off a mile road. He typically stands right in the middle of the section where we can see him but can’t. So we made quick detour to have a closer look.

Please ignore my awful iPhone photography, lol.

He wasn’t very photogetic but he did pass right in front of the vehicle so I was able to get a photo of him from closer up.

I don’t travel to work with my camera although I often comment that I should. I was just saying how nice it would be to get a photo of a moose on one of these small hills with the sun rising in the background and here, on this morning, we spotted more wildlife than we ever had. Anyways, we travelled down the mile road with the intention of just crossing back up to the highway. Instead we came upon a large drift and ended up turning around. When we got back to where we found the bull, we found his entire family. 5 of them off in the trees trying to get away from the crazy women chasing them.

On the way home we spotted all the moose again but not the deer.

So the next morning I came prepared. And guess what, not one animal that morning, not even a deer. That afternoon we took a detour home and spotted one deer.

So the following morning I tried again and, we spotted the family. Same location. Momma and her two yearlings, one boy, one girl. The girl is braver than her brother. There was no sun rise or hill for them to pose on but there was fog and frost and a good vantage point off their mile road.

The young bull took off and got himself situated into the willows until his Mom caught up to him.

All you can see are his legs and his little rack.

I do plan on heading back on a weekend where I can situate myself and wait them out. Hopefully I can get them on a clear day and I can catch the little bull moving around and away from his Mom. I’d also like to see the other two in this group because I think one is likely a large bull or maybe another cow with her yearling.

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MEET THE SMOKE’S

This family will always be near and dear to my heart. Smokey was Cade’s unofficial partner for many years and the two of them had each other’s backs on many occasions. When Mrs Smoke was looking for someone to capture this beautiful bunch, I knew I wanted to try.

These two have 3 beautiful children, two of which are now all grown up. Their youngest shares his middle name with Cade. I still remember getting the middle of the night phone call to tell us that the newest little Smoke had arrived safe and sound.

I had a great afternoon with this bunch and I’m hopeful that I was able to capture them the way Mrs Smoke envisioned.

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1958 GMC

When Cade & Makenna found this truck I didn’t know that a visit to photograph it was going to lead to the stories we heard.

Purchased new and picked up in Ontario, this old truck was later passed down to the original farmer’s daughter and her new husband for their farm. It was used for many, many years and then parked.

Hoping to preserve as much of she could off the old truck she was once photographed in front of as a young girl, she took all the identifying markers off the truck as a keepsake.

Imagine her surprise when it showed up at her now permanent residence, a surprise from her husband. I envision their large, beautiful family all on the truck bed for what would be a glorious keepsake photo.

Thank you for letting me photographn this beauty and for sharing your stories with me. I always enjoy our visits.