Minutes from the Past

Mr. Alfred Archer had been the driving force and caretaker of the Reston Memorial Park since it was started in 1922. In 1966, he declared his intention to retire and a board was assembled to carry on his work. At his advice, a minute book was purchased and meetings were faithfully recorded in it for the next 19 years. I am so glad the Museum has kept it safe and loaned it to me to have a read through. Today's post is my interpretation of  a few highlights and events of note of Reston Memorial Park from 1966 - 1985.

 

The first board was chaired by Maurice Ludlam who stayed in this position until his death in 1984. Vice president in 1966 was Elmer Duncan and Jean Rainnie acted as secretary-treasurer. Other inaugural board members were Bert Pierce, Lou Traill, James Issac Bulloch, Wilbur Thompson, Gordon Hendon, Flora Scott and Laura Lockhart. (I must note that in the minutes, these ladies and gentlemen were formally named such as Mrs. T. Lockhart and I hope my research for their first names was correct!) Iris McMurchy later joined the board in after the death of her father, J.I. Bulloch. Dave Anderson and Lottie Harrison contributed their time as well.

John Pickett was hired as the caretaker in 1967, a job he continued in until 1978. In fact, in 1976 he was hired in a joint position to be caretaker of both the Park and the Museum with a helper hired to take over on weekends.  It seems to only be a one year experiment however.   Jean Moore was hired as the orderly for many years which I assume was to tend to the washrooms in the park.

Purchases over the years included lawn mowers, clippers and roto tillers.  Discussions were held about a possible invasive weed – Cypress Spurge and whether it had a place in the park. The trouble getting roses to overwinter was a common theme of the discussions and hardy roses were also tried.  The Minute Books records that in 1982, they decided to “forget them”. 

Money was collected for a Memorial Gate for Mr. Archer and it was purchased from Hamilton & Jones in Brandon and the dedication plaque was made by Rosewood Memorial Garden.  The feature totaled $550 and was dedicated posthumously to Alfred Archer in July of 1970.

Volunteers and other workers did their part to help the park stay a showplace.  In the 1970's, Terry Paul was hired at $2/hour but that included gas and oil for the mower.  In 1973, the student employment program, called STEP, saw Lloyd Benzie and Greg Birnie hired to help as well. Board members took on the task of fundraising over the years by selling cut flowers and perennials from the park, a tradition started by Mr. and Mrs. Archer.

Meetings were held at various locations in town in the cooler weather along with in the park when it was warmer. These meetings gave the board the opportunity to walk around to discuss changes that could to be made. Board members were sometimes hosts in their own homes and ended the discussions with a cup of tea and treats.  In 1970, it was reported that the old lawn bowling bolls had been located and talk about starting up the sport began but there was no further mention of it in the minutes. 

1975 was the 60^th anniversary of the Royal Canadian Legion and the Memorial Park celebrated by planting 200 Golden Tulips around the cenotaph.  The local Legion made yearly financial contributions to beautification in the park.  

In 1978, the board appears to have shrunk down to 3 men – John Rainnie, Bert Pierce and Maurice Ludlam.  Reston Horticultural Society volunteered to plant the annuals each year and this saved the caretaker many hours of labour. 

There was a guest book on a stand at the gate along with a box for donations for many years.  In the summer of 1983, 250 names were recorded in the book. I wonder where the guest book ended up?  Damage to the park Guest Book was mentioned along with Halloween pranks that would require repairs.  Deer wintered in the park sometimes but no major damage was recorded. Hail storms are remarked on over the years too.

Community support was often noted for projects like painting, mowing and clean up.  Bird houses, picnic tables and benches were made and painted by community members. The Lions Club donated playground equipment – swings, teeter totter, monkey bars. Reston 4H Calf Club, Linklater Ladies, and many more contributed to park beauty.   The wooden merry-go-round (my boys' favourite) took a lot of upkeep to keep it safe and attractive.

In 1979 Sam Redshaw was caretaker which ended rather disastrously in the fall when he mistakenly tilled the cenotaph bed and pulled up all the tulip bulbs. Frank Ludlam was engaged in 1980 and continued until 1984 when Alvin Birnie was caretaker with Frank Ludlam’s help. 

The final entry in the minutes book book dated March 25, 1985:

We enjoyed a lovely pot of coffee brought down to Bert’s den by Mrs. Pierce for which we thanked her.  Signed John Rainnie

What a great ending to the record of community building and friendship by the board of the Reston Memorial Park. 

An Ace in Reston

Tennis has a strong history in Reston as a recreational pastime.  The picture above from the Attempting aces and looking for love has a long history in Reston.  Trails Along the Pipestone history book written in 1981 doesn't indicate a date for the game in the picture although I might guess it was the teens by the clothing.  This Reston Train Station was built in 1907 at the east end of town.  

Alexander Kippen Cates bought his home on Main Street just north of where the Memorial Theatre stands today.  Reston Recorder editor Russell Manning his wife Fletch and their family also lived there for many years.  Cates was a lawyer with an office at the far south end of Main Street. Kippen and his wife Elizabeth bought the home in 1910 and also owned the land across the street where the Petro Canada station is today.  It was here that Cates put in a tennis court for his family including three daughters and son who were born between 1911 and 1920.  The nets and court remained until after his death in 1946. 

Dr. Frank Clark lived and had his office in the big house on 134 Fifth Street just north of the tracks. It has been written that he and his family had tennis courts between theirs and the Dr. Chapman home to the north.  His wife Winnifred was a community supporter in many ways and they raised two sons and a daughter.  

Muriel Bulloch - Mc Kee Archives 

The clipping below from the 1922 Reston Recorder indicates the brand new Reston Memorial Park would have courts as well. the courts were levelled and seeded to grass by volunteers.  I just had to Google the term avoirdupois and found it was a gentle way to talk about someone's weight! The transposed letters in the word on the third last line remind me that each letter in the Recorder was handset and there was no spell checker or autocorrect to help them with spelling. 

In 1938, the courts in the park were improved with the installation of a clay surface instead or grass.  It is described in the history book that the clay came from the nearby dugout. I am just imagining the mess until it hardened!  A 6 foot high wire fence was installed around the court on 8 foot tall posts. J. McMurchy and A. D. Anderson were credited with taking on this project.  Enthusiasm waned and the courts were empty for many years.   

The Reston Lions Club spearheaded the revival of tennis in Reston Park in 1979 when they took on the project to hard surface the courts and install a new fence.  At that time, the club had 200 members and it saw a lot of use.  Interest has ebbed and flowed over the years and at the time of writing the history book in 1981, Rob Johnson was president over a Reston Tennis Club that included 40 members. 

As a neighbour to the Park, we hear the sound of a tennis game occasionally.  The courts have also been used for pickleball. This past summer saw the construction of a tennis practice wall (pictured to the right) by community member Brian Sytnyk with financial support from the Park Board.  Another ace with an amazing community history!

Chautauqua!

Photos from Trails Along the Pipestone 1981 Pages 431-432

Is this a word that’s new to you? It certainly wouldn’t have been if you lived in Reston or anywhere around during the first part of the last century. Thanks to an extensive write up in Trails Along the Pipestone (1981) and a Macleans article online here, let me tell you what  I have learned about them.

Chautauqua Lake in New York State was the summer retreat of the wealthy in the early 1900’s. Shows were held to entertain the elite and it was decided that they could take these shows to the masses with travelling tent shows. Several companies fanned out over the United States beginning in 1904 and they moved into Canada as well a decade or so later.

  
Reston may have made its connection in 1917 through a local girl, Muriel Bulloch (1901-1990). She was eldest daughter of Thomas and Ellen (Guthrie) Bulloch who worked as an advance agent for the show. She married Arthur Elsey in Calgary in 1926 so I assume this happened in her single days. Thanks for Verna and John Olenick for the photo of the 5 Bulloch sisters. Muriel would arrive a few days before the event and check with the local committee about how ticket sales were going. Local committees consisted of about 40 citizens who sponsored the Chautauqua to entertain and educate the people of the area. Local merchants were also eager for the extra shoppers they would bring to town. Matinee and evening performances were held over 6 days - no two were the same. Many families from outside town made a week holidays of it and stayed with friends or camped.  The ad in the Reston Recorder below from 1922 says the cost of all 11 shows was $3.00 for a family.  Professionals offered plays, music, and lectures after arriving and leaving Reston by either train or automobile. Muriel Bulloch was the Mistress of Ceremonies to introduce each performer.

Some of talent mentioned over the years includes:

-Dr Shiera - Chinese lecturer
-Judge Landis of Chicago
-Mrs Beyea - survivor of the 1905 Mount Pele eruption
-Vilhjalmur Steffanson the  Arctic explorer
-Private Peet of WW1

-Ralph Martin Erwin who went on to start Salisbury House Restaurant Chain and their famous nips

-An opera - Mikato

-Swiss Bell Ringers

-Don Cassock Russian Choir

-Al Viera Hawaiian Orchestra

-Junior Performance Choirs like the one pictured below that I found online

 

Junior Chautauqua in Reston from Glenbow Archives - July 23, 1927

  Picture from Glenbow Archives -Identified as Herbert Lennecke, Morgan Skinner, Jerry Creasy, Mr. Brayford, Mr Miner, Dr. Julian B Arnold (Order unknown) July 25, 1927 at Chautauqua in Reston

The location for Chautauqua in Reston was at first near the school, about where the rink is now.  Others recalled a spot on the northeast corner of town and still others remember the tents set up at the Memorial Park. Shows began in 1917 but by 1930, several factors saw the shows discontinued. Lack of discretionary money, availability of radios in homes and improved automobiles and roads allowing wider travel was the end of the Chautauqua in rural Manitoba.

Now you know what I do about this special time and events in Reston history.  I would be glad to hear what you know! ssimms@escape.ca

The Biggest Little Fair in Manitoba

Besides recreation, Agricultural Societies were first formed to educate rural residents on farming and domestic techniques and ideas. The first Reston Fair was planned for the fall of 1907 but a severe hail storm saw it cancelled and the society instead began to fight for compulsory hail insurance and increased grants for rural ways of life. The clipping from the August 9, 1907 Manitoba Morning Free press confirms. It also says only 10% of those hailed out were insured. It indicates this was the first major hail storm in the area. The policy from 1909 shows the Boulton Brothers (Thomas, Anthony and Herb) insured 380 acres to a value of $1900 for $76 for the next 5 crop seasons and would have no doubt considered it money well spent.

 

  

Thanks to Verna and John Olenick for sharing this photo and the one at the top

 

But back to the fair.  The first Reston Fair was held on August 4, 1908. Thirty - four and a half acres on SE 17-7-24 was then and is still the Fair Grounds, just north of #2 Highway. A racetrack and grandstand had been built that summer and with not a tree in sight on a ploughed field, a windy day meant a dusty one indeed. 

An article in the Manitoba Morning Free Press dated July 29, 1909 says fair day saw splendid weather and 2000 people passed through the gates.  Domestic, dairy (butter) and fancy work entries had plenty of competition. Horse and pony races were held as well as cattle and horse  shows.  Unspecified athletic events were won by S. Thorndike, A. Craig and J. Donald. Reston won the handsome baseball trophy donated by W.H. McDougall, over Pipestone.
 In 1924, 1200 trees were planted by Ag Society volunteers. In 1931 - 1938, no fair was held due to severe conditions and lack of interest.  In 1946, 107 German prisoners of war were housed on the fair grounds and sent out to help with harvest.

From the August 1, 1961 Brandon Sun
The annual Reston Fair, sponsored by the Pipestone-Albert Agricultural Society, played to a capacity crowd Thursday with events and displays, larger than in past years.
The heavy horse class drew the heaviest entries with Brown Brothers of Arrow River, C. W. Paddock, of Reston and Clarence Lennon of Reston sharing top honors.
In the Pony Class, winning honors were given to L.M. Murray of Lyleton, Wilf Francis of Elkhorn, Stewart Lennon of Butler, Mrs. Alvin Lowe of Bradwardine and Blaine Fowler of Virden.
Saddle horse winners were: Mrs. Alvin Lowe, Brown Brothers, Jim Brown of Gainsborough, Allan English of Oakner, Mrs. E. C. Scharff of Hartney, H. Dunham of Maryfield, Arthur Wilkins of Reston and Donald Zarn of Ewart.
Shorthorn prize went to Mclver Brothers of Ebor while Alcide Levesque of Fairlight won both the Jersey class and the dairy herd special.
Bert Bennett and the Bennett Brothers of Deloraine won all the prizes in the registered sheep event.
Keith Lazenbv, Campbell and Son, Ed Wilson, Darwin Lazen- by, Gordon Schmelz and Mrs. Jack Guthrie copped the honors in the grain, oats and barley classes.
Mrs. Albert Perreaux of Redvers, Sask. collected the most points on garden vegetables.
Baking class honours belonged to: Mrs. Everett Williams, Mrs. Andre Delmaire, Mrs. Allan Kendrick, Miss Mary Mclver, Miss Frances Thompson, W. A. Reid, and Mrs. C. J. Lawrence.
Miss Mary Mclver was given the most points for home products while Mrs. Ken Duncan collected the most points for plants and flowers.
The clothing entries, besides being larger than usual this year featured a class for ladies 70 and over. Mrs. H. Shillington’s talents won her first in this class while other prizes went to Mrs. Buck Johnson of Maryfield, Mrs. John Adair, Mrs. Jack Scholey, Mrs. G. Andrews.
The Noxious Weed special was won by Ian Milliken of Reston.
Mrs. Buck Johnson picked up the most points in the arts and crafts competitions while the school section named Donna Shelvey, Ian Milliken and Craig Milliken as its winners.
Fonda Forsyth of Reston, Donna McKenzie of Pipestone and Carol McLean of Reston were the prize winners in the 4-H displays.
Other features of the day event included demonstrations by the Reston and Pipestone 4-H Clubs, the Reston Junior Band and the Stranger shows on the midway.

A newspaper report from the 1971 fair  says 3000 people attended and a judge indicated the quantity and quality of exhibits was remarkable. 

From the Brandon Sun - May 17, 1973 - The Pipestone-Albert Agricultural Society met this week to discuss plans for the annual Reston fair, to be held on July 26. The prize lists for this popular fair are now available. Dubbed "the biggest little fair in Manitoba," the fair each year draws a large crowd and many entries in all classes, from horses and cattle to home produce. Gordon Forsyth is the president. The directors decided to build a new cattle shed this year. A bee will be held at a later date to repair the buildings and fix up the grounds.  

A resolution was passed to ask the council of the RM of Pipestone to pass a bylaw that anyone causing willful damage to the buildings or grounds belonging to the society will be prosecuted. The resolution was prompted by the damage already done to the race tracks by persons racing around in cars and cutting it up. The track is also used in winter for the snowmobile races

A pet show will again be held at the fair, Rev. E. Schurman in charge. The, tractor driving contest will also be held with a trophy to be presented to the winner. Judging will be on the point system. The collegiate student council will be responsible for procuring an orchestra for the dance the society sponsors on fair day. The student council had approached the society for permission to improve the dug-out on the grounds for swimming purposes, providing it can procure a grant under the government's youth program and the society agreed. Arthur Wilkins, Doug Naughton and Jim Walker will look after entertainment on fair days.

A two day Reston Fair was held for many years on Wednesday and Thursday until 1986 when it was changed to Friday and Saturday. Pig Scrambles, Junior King/Queen Farmer, Lions Cook Off, Human Rodeo, Treasure Hunts, Airplane Rides, Machinery Displays, and Gymkana horse events were all offered over the years to entice families to visit.   Pre-Fair activities on Main Street, the parade, Fair Queen, pancake breakfast, beer gardens and dances at the fairground will hold special memories for many.   A 100th birthday celebration was held in July of 2009 to coincide with the RM's 125th anniversary. 

Uncountable community members volunteered their time to take positions on the executive of the Pipestone Albert Agricultural Society, work at various tasks to prepare and on fair day.  The work of cooking and selling meals and treats like pie on site cannot be forgotten either.  I'd be pleased to hear your memories of the Biggest Little Fair in Manitoba either in the comments below or to ssimms@escape.ca.