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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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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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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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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.

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BLUE ROOF

I seen a photo of this house a few years ago and wondered if one day I would spot it given its in my territory. I was thrilled when a fellow bando friend posted a photo of it and shared its location with me.

Even better, its on land owned by a friend. So Cade took me out to check it out. I would have walked in closer but the thistles were waist high and thick. This was close enough for me, although the other side and a peak inside would be cool. Maybe in the fall.

Downfall, no history. Can’t have everything, right?

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ROADSIDE TREASURES

On the way home from a shoot last August, I found this along the way.

Why its taken me so long to blog, I do not know.

At the end of the day,difference because I cannot find any good history about this big, old beauty.

I never really know what I will find when I photograph an old property. I go and shoot everyything that catches my eye and sometimes I am lucky enough to make a connection to what I read. That is really why I keep doing this.

And sometimes I’ll be working on a history and find a connection to a property that I blogged months before. Its exciting to go back and add those interesting tidbits. Maybe, as I start to explore this area more, I’ll find something.

Regardless, I really liked this old house and the surrounding out buildings and I’m happy I took a detour home that day.

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JOHN & LENA, CARL & RETA AND SO ON

John, from Beauharnois Country, Quebec and Lena from Emerson, Manitoba married in Killarney on December 29, 1899 and raised 10 children together on this land which John acquired in 1898. John earned an income to support his family by farming and running a hardware store in Neelin. He was also a carpenter. Lena was known to be a stern mother who instilled good values and principals. John passed away in 1937 and Lena in 1973.

In November of 1923, newly married Reta & Carl made their home on this land where they lived and raised their family. In 1966 the semi-retired to Killarney. The frugal couple raised two children on this homestead. Reta & Carl were the second family to own this homestead.

Carl & Reta, determined to make a living and “owe no man nothing”, worked from dusk till dawn to make a living and raise their children. It is said that Reta would do the work of a man and did things such as driving fence posts with a maul as heavy as herself. She broke horses, milked cows and raised chickens. She would support her family by trading milk, butter, chicken and eggs for food. If her grocery bill was more than she had in cash or trade, Reta would put the unneeded items away until next time. Reta & John would not hold a charge account. They prospered and made a good life for themselves and their children.

Upon Carl and Reta’s retirement, their son Glenn stayed on the farm and raised Aberdeen Angus cattle. He then raised four children on his own on this farm with his wife whom he married in June of 1955.

In 1982 Glenn and his wife purchased a family restaurant in Killarney while living on the home farm which he purchased from his parents in 1974.

This is a beautiful homestead. The house and outbuildings are very nicely treed in and its not far from your basic needs like food and gas. The homestead is no longer owned by one of the two original families.

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BEING STRONG DOESN’T MEAN YOU WILL NEVER FALL DOWN

Back in June, 2018 (yes, 2018) I went out to this house. It was one of the first I got permission to photograph and I have gone back a few times since.

Back to that 2018 thing. I cannot believe that I have been doing this since 2018. Wow!

Anyways, here it is back then. The floor was giving out, the roof was caving in and the stairway was a mess. I did not step inside the home but I could get up to the windows and doors and see inside.

Today I went back. Mother Nature has had her way with this place.

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PELICAN TOWN

I have driven by these vehicles hundreds of times. The kids at the colony have asked me to stop and take some photos. So finally I did.

Given that they are right out in the open and have some buildings beside them and behind them, I didn’t think I’d get any decent shots. Sometimes the best photos come from the opportunities you doubt most.

When I posted these photos on my Instagram account, Cade had no idea where I had found these as he is usually with me when I venture out now because I’m scared to go alone.

I am happy that the kids talked me in to it because I think they turned out pretty good.

When I texted them to one of the kids to see if they could identify them, they knew right away.

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ST. PAUL’S ANGLICAN CHURCH

I seen this little church online and thought I’d stop by on one of our roadtrips. There wasn’t a whole lot to see here and I couldn’t find any info on it. I do not know when it was built or when the last service was held here.

The new resident pigeons didn’t seem to mind me taking some photos.

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TRANS-CANADA TRUCKS

Its been awhile. Now that school is out for summer, I hope to find more time and motiviation to get out and do what I love. I can tell you I certainly enjoyed being off last Spring for covid because I was able to explore without all the tall grass. I’ve missed that window now.

Anyways, back in April, Colton came home for a long weekend. It was good timing as there was an outbreak at the college and more specifically, his dorm. He came home Tuesday and by Thursday that college called and told us not to bring him back on Monday. For weeks we waited to see if the college would go remote for the remainder of the year. They did at the beginning of March. So on May 15th, the college made arrangments for us to come to the school (the outbreak was finally over) and pick up Colton’s belongings. It turned out approximately 35 students and one staff member ended up with Covid, one being Colton’s roommate and his buddy across the hall. We left for Wilcox at 5:00 a.m. to arrive at our scheduled pick up time. I have to say that this was the first time I seen the inside of Colton’s dorm and his dressing room. We loaded the Jeep from the front seats to the back window with his stuff and headed home.

Along the way home I knew of this spot and because I was getting sleepy, I stopped to walk around and get some photos.

This was a busy little place. There were a handful of people walking around, there was a couple with a couple kids loading up a neat old truck that I’m assuming they had just purchased.

When I pulled in a lady with a BIG dog (cue in the reluctance to get out of my vehicle here) came to the Jeep and was more than willing to let me stretch my legs and take a couple of photos.

There were so many vehicles I wasn’t sure where to start. So I wandered around for about 10 minutes and just shot away.

One of my goals this Summer is to familiarize myself with Photoshop and Lightroom and start to play around with the final product of my photo. When I started this journey to blog and photograph more, I was adamant that what came out of my camera would be my final product. I don’t feel that way anymore because what I see isn’t always what my camera captures.

While shooting I was also thinking about what I could add to my display in Killarney in August. So that there was a little bit of something for everyone that might come across my exhibit.

A lot of these vehicles were parked fairly close together or had other vehicles parked behind them. This forced me to try some different angles. It was good.

So that is it. That is my gallery of Trans-Canada Trucks along the No. 1 highway. When we pulled out and headed back towards Manitoba, I realized that there was a whole other side full of vehicles but I know I’ll be back this way and I’ll do it next time.

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HERON

Last weekend I went exploring and came across a group of herons at the lower basin of Pelican Lake, in a run off ditch which is typically full of water. While they were a bit spooked, they kept coming back so I was able to stop and take some photos.

I figured this was a good time to pull out that long lens that I don’t much like. And I suppose the truth is that I don’t know how to use it properly and need to commit some time to it. Regardless, these are two of what I thought were the best shots from that little trip. I am not completely happy with them as I feel I need to work on making them sharper. A trip to Whitewater Lake is definitely in my future.

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HARRISON MILL AND GRAIN ELEVATOR

Many years ago I wrote about my afternoon in Holmfield wherein we wandered around this old mill and its outbuildings. Yesterday I went back to look for some old trucks and get a photograph of the old truck parked at the mill.

The Harrison brothers arrived in Manitoba in 1878. They built a mill in another location which was by-passed by the railway so they sold their mill and moved to this location.

The brothers were very successful operating a flour mill, a workshop and ran a lumber business at this location. The lumber business was phased out in 1972. The mill was first run by steam, then diesel engines in the 30’s and finally electrical current in 1947. The facility is believed to be the oldest mill in Western Canada.

The operation closed in the 1990’s and is still owned by the family.

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BANK OF TORONTO VAULT

In 1919 the Bank of Toronto built a wood frame building. Inside the building was a solid brick structure with a heavy iron door. This structure served as the bank’s vault. Three years later the bank closed so the building was repurposed and used post office and then a residence. In 1991 the building was demolished except the vault, which is now a historic site in this small town. Inside the vault is a small desk and chair and a guest book for visitors. On top of the vault is the bell from the town’s school.