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Sheila and I spent a week on the Island in mid-September and managed to see a lot of family members and gather information for use in coming newsletters. Some of the highlights:
We visited the Vere Beck house at its new location and got a chance to see some of the work that is underway to restore it. The new owner, Lorin Brehaut, Junior, is moving slowly and carefully to make sure that things are done properly. Lorin is an architect based in Bermuda at the moment. His father, Lorin, is doing the restoration work which will see the Beck house attached to the original Henry Brehaut house. Sandra Brehaut, wife of the owner, gave me a tour of the house and I was impressed with what has been done. I'll have a feature article about it in a future issue of this newsletter.
We visited the Cape Bear Lighthouse, which opened to the public for the first time this year. I have a special interest in the Light as my great, great, great uncle, Tom Munn, was the original light keeper. I discovered that there are a number of links to the Becks as well. For instance, the tour guide is Dawna MacNeil, a Beck family member, and some of the light keepers have been Beck descendants. Dawna is busily collecting material to add to her file on the Light and I was able to help her with some of the research I had done on the Munns. There will be a future story on the lighthouse in the newsletter.
Shady Rest Home in Lower Montague is a place I've visited often over the past 12 years. Dad spent 11 years there until his death just over a year ago. Aunt Sibyl (Munn) Beaton is still there so I still make my visits, although we don't get over to the Island as often. At 93 she is still in good health, but her eyesight is poor and the doctors can't help her. We took her to Montague to do some banking and then stopped at the coffee shop for a long chat. Her memory is excellent and she supplies much information which I try to preserve as accurately as posssible. She is my best source for information on relatives and events that took place in the Murray River area in the early years of this century. Despite a hectic schedule we managed to visit her again later in the week and had several chats by phone.
Windsor Beck, the last man to farm the Vere Beck homestead, is in Shady Rest too. He was sitting in the dining room when we went in. He doesn't see very well, but his hearing seemed good and he recognized me as soon as I got near, and he was glad to talk. He said he'd just been telling his niece, Shirley Hann, a few days earlier that, "he hadn't seen Ivan in a long time. I don't think he's been over this year." Which was correct and shows he's still got a good memory.
Russell Beck, (1.4.3A.2A.2) is in there too. He appears to be in good health but is confused. Sibyl says he has problems keeping relationships straight no matter how often she goes over them with him. Russell recognizes that she is a relative, and she tells him often that they are second cousins and explains the connection. He is also suffering flash backs to his war service and in his mind spends much time among the wounded and dying, leading to some loud shouts of anguish from time to time. Russell got involved with the Quakers and went to China in World War II where he worked as an ambulance driver.
We visited Albert and Shirley Hann twice at their place on the original Beck farm. They are both well and Albert spent two days at sea in late August on the naval supply vessel, Provider, with their son, Scott, who is chief cook on the ship. The navy arranged the cruise for family members of the crew. They spent two days off the mouth of Halifax harbour .. the weather was excellent, the food was terrific and Albert really enjoyed it. They invited us back for lunch on the last Saturday of our visit and offered us some frozen mackerel that Albert had caught earlier in the year. When we forgot to take them with us when we left, they brought them over to our cottage on Machon's Point that evening. They are returning to their home in Burgeo, Nfld., on Oct. 4, a few days earlier than usual. Albert and Shirley are now great grandparents. Details in the vital statistics section.
I spent a couple of hours with Gene Strickland, the very capable chairman of our last reunion. Gene announced at the time that he was stepping down and he hasn't changed his mind in the meantime. I think it would be safe to say that he will be available to share his experience with the new chair, but will not be taking an active part in developments. Gene is recovering from prostate surgery and the good news is that the cancer has not spread so he will not require further treatment. He is promoting the wisdom of regular checkups, a philosophy which I endorse and follow. I recorded Gene's memories of his grandparents and I will be carrying their biographies in future issues of the newsletter.
I dropped in to visit Cliff and Norma Herring. They had just gotten back from a trip to Ontario to visit their son, James, and his family. They caught the bus in Charlottetown for the trip up, which took about 24 hours. James and Linda brought them back in their van and they made a leisurely trip of it, stopping to admire the tourist attractions along the way. James brought a computer for his sister, Susan, who was learning how to use it while he was home.
I exchange a lot of email with Sarah Jackson and that continued during our visit. Sarah keeps me advised of happenings on the Island so that I don't miss anything of importance for the Newsletter. She invited us for dinner on Thursday, and other guests included Shirley and Albert Hann and William and Ida MacKenzie, all Beck descendants. After dinner we looked over Sarah's large collection of family photos, and she gave me copies of the group photo of John Beck's (1.4) children, along with a photo of my great grandparents, Ben and Mary Beck, with Louis and Josie Herring and their young family, taken at the Beck home in White Sands about 1920.
We spent an evening with Ack and Phyllis Irving (1.11.2,1.3.) In addition to the Beck connection, Phyllis and I are first cousins on the Bowles side through our mothers. Ack is retired from farming now and they enjoy travelling in their motorhome. They were preparing for a trip to New England to attend an agricultural show and planned to visit some friends and relatives along the way.
I tried to get in to see Barry Beck but threatening weather from the remnants of Hurricane Floyd slowed us down. Floyd was not really a problem at all but the dire weather predictions kept us close to the cottage for a day or two. When we did drop in to Stewart and Beck in Montague on Friday, Barry was out on the road seeing customers as its the beginning of the heating season. I reached him by phone on Saturday and he said he has a computer now and will soon have an email address, so we'll all be able to email him.
A case before the courts in Dartmouth, Nova Scotia, has Crown and defence lawyers ducking and running for cover. It involves an assualt on William Barr, husband of Judge Fran Potts, (1.4.2.4.8,2,) of the Provincial Court. Seven people, five men and two women, are charged with an attack on Mr. Barr in a local bar on August 19. The victim suffered life threatening injuries in a savage beating.
A Fredericton, N.B., prosecutor, Paul Hawkins, is being used to prosecute the case due to the sensitive nature of the alleged crime, which has prompted some lawyers to remove themselves from the proceedings, citing potential conflict of interest. David MacNeil, speaking for the public prosecution service, said "the victim is the spouse of a judge our Crown attorneys are before on a daily basis." He added they went outside the province to find a prosecutor because senior Crown attorney, Susan Potts (1.4.2.4.8,1,)is Fran's sister and has to deal with many Crown attorneys in the province.
A number of defence lawyers also are trying to avoid the case, including some from the Legal Aid service, because they appear before Judge Potts regularly.
The two women have been released on $2,000. bail but are under strict house arrest. The five men were being held in custody. They were to appear in court on Oct.1 to set a date for trial.
Fond memories of summers spent at an historic home in Charlottetown led to a play that was produced at Province House in early September. Written and performed by Nancy Beck, ?, the play was entitled, "A Rowboat in the Attic," and concerned John Hamilton Gray, a Father of Confederation. "It's about a historic home, a Father of Confederation and a wacky Island family," Nancy told the Guardian.
Inkerman was the home of Colonel John Hamilton Gray, chairman of the 1864 Charlottetown Conference. When he died, the estate was purchased by William Boyle, Beck's great-great-grandfather. It remained in her family for almost a century, as did many of the stories that have not been told until now.
"The story was that Colonel Gray had expected the Island to be hit by a tidal wave, so he had a fully equipped rowboat in the attic ready to sail off at a moment's notice," she said.
In the early days, there was a turret up on top of the roof which had a sliding wall.
"The story was that he was going to sail out that when the time came."
Nancy combined this story with other stories and songs connected with the home and staged the 50 minute play as part of the Festival of the Fathers, marking the Island's place in the talks leading to Confederation. For Nancy - an actor, director and playwright known for her performances in Harvest Moon Rising, White Weddings, Jewel and the Strike at Putney Church and for her collaborations with composer/performer Pamela Campbell - it was a chance to tell her family's story.
Terry Allen of the Capital Commission said the organizing committee was thrilled to have the show as part of the lineup of this year's Festival.
"We think it's tremendous. The show fit well with the theme by exposing history that isn't commonly known about the Fathers of Confederation."
(I wasn't able to pick this Nancy Beck from those listed in the Descendants Book. Perhaps someone would be good enough to drop a note to let me know more about her and I'll include it in next month's letter. Ivan)
Last month we reported on the Centennial of the Church of Christ at Murray Harbour. Another church with close family connections is St. Mark's Anglican Church in Moose River, N.S. It's probably a little older than the church at the Harbour. J. H. Cutten, in his history of the community, says that in 1890 Simon Gibbons was the minister in Moose River and he conducted services in the school house.
He urged the community to build a church and three Beck family members, Benjamin and James Roberts and John Smith, donated land for that purpose. There were only about a dozen families in the community at that time, but all the men pitched in to build the church. The married men donated 25 days labour and the single men gave 15. They soon had the outside work done and the finish work on the interior was completed by James and Benjamin Roberts.
Mr. Gibbons was part Eskimo and was found as an infant abandoned on the Arctic ice. He was brought up by the Anglican Mission there and became a clergyman and moved to Nova Scotia. He built two other churches in Nova Scotia like the one in Moose River. The design is described as "Umbrella Tower" but I haven't found anything to explain that.
St. Mark's Anglican Church is a dollhouse of a structure. It seats about 60 people at most with the pews on the right hand side extending right to the back wall. On the left-hand side, there are fewer pews as room is left for people to go in and out.
It was probably never more crowded than it was for the Roberts reunion in July. At the Friday evening genealogy session, every seat was full and people were standing in the back while others listened outside. There was another large crowd for the Sunday afternoon service as the reunion ended. However, it was just so hot that some people stayed home, and the service was shortened because of the unbearable heat.
Vital Statistics. BIRTHS GREEN, Mason and Justin, twin sons of Randy Green and Judy Harnum. They were born Aug. 27 in Nfld. Randy is the son of Archibald Green and Roma Diane Hann,(1.10b.7.6.1,1,)
DEATH ARSENAULT, Beatrice Olive (1.4.9,6,1,)- 79, Halifax, died Sept.2, 1999, in Aberdeen Hospital, New Glasgow. Born in a log cabin in Demmitt, Alta., she was a daughter of the late Ewart and Florence (Jorden) Keeping. With her family, she moved to Prince Edward Island where she lived for many years at the Cape Bear lighthouse. She received her RN from the Prince Edward Island Hospital in Charlottetown, and began her nursing career at Camp Hill Hospital in 1945. For many years she did private duty nursing in Halifax. She was a member of the Bayers Road Baptist Church and Friendship Card Club, as well as being a number one Blue Jays baseball fan. Surviving are a daughter, Linda Arsenault, New Glasgow; son, Theodore and wife Vicky (Bennett), Vancouver; grandchildren Bennett, Jorden and Luke; sisters, Eileen Nicholson, Montague, P.E.I.; Vivian Parker, Carp, Ont.; Inez Slaughter, Belleville, Ont.; special friend Lynn MacLean, New Glasgow; several nieces and nephews and other close relatives. She was predeceased by her husband, Gus Arsenault; sisters Bessie, and Ruth; and brother Billy. The funeral service was held in the Bayers Road Baptist Church, with burial in Fairview Cemetery, Halifax.
One of the biggest yard sales you'll find anywhere was held in Southeastern Prince Edward Island in late September. It was the second annual 70-Mile Coastal Yard Sale which runs from Orwell along the Trans Canada Highway to Wood Islands and Beach Point, and then loops back through to Murray River, Caledonia and Kinross.
"People have called from Missouri just to time their visit here to coincide with the yard sale,'' said Marcia Mayne of Belle River, the coordinator of the event. "We didn't know what to expect last year but were advised that people would come,'' said Mayne. "And boy, did they ever. It went far beyond our expectations."
When the dust settled last September, thousands of bargain hunters had travelled the loop and carted off an estimated $50,000 worth of junk and treasures.
"Last year we had the busiest day we'd ever had," said Paula MacLean at Brehaut's Restaurant in Murray Harbour. She said it's wonderful to have an event like this so late in the season and this year planned to have more staff and be ready for the rush.
The final report on this year's event is not in yet, but Sarah Jackson took part and supplied some details. "There were people from Nova Scotia, Ohio, Connecticutt, Ontario, British Columbia and many other places. We were blessed with good weather, and it was a bit cool on Sunday, but the rain held off."
Sarah had planned to have some recipe books ready for the sale, but that didn't work out. She was putting together the book with some of her mother's and grandmother's favourite recipes when she broke her wrist. That delayed things and they won't be back from the printers until about mid-October.
The two-day event was held Sept. 25 and 26.
The annual story telling contest is becoming a popular feature on the Island. Story tellers come from various parts of the world to demonstrate their skills and captivate audiences. They perform in various communities around the province. Boyde Beck, (1.4.3A.3.6.4)
took part in at least one of the performances and the Eastern Graphic has a picture of him at the hall in Souris. Boyde also gets another mention in the Graphic. He is listed among those receiving special thanks for their assistance to the author of the book, Harbours and Marinas of Prince Edward Island.
A huge family reunion is in the works for PEI in 2003. The Institute of Island Studies and the Belfast Historical Society are reaching out to organizations in the Isle of Skye in honour of the bicentennial of the arrival of the Skye pioneers in the Belfast area. The occasion is the arrival of 800 emigrants from Skye in 1803. In addition to a twinning of the two islands, museum personel on Skye and P.E.I. are considering a joint exhibit that would explore the historical connection between the two islands and would tour on both during bicentennial celebration in 2003.
"The 1803 emigration is really the starting point for emigration from Skye," says Ed MacDonald, director of research with the institute. There were particularly large emigrations from the Isle of Skye to the Island at the end of the 1820s and early in the 1840s; the last large-scale one was 300 settlers in 1858. There are a number of family links between the Becks and the Scottish settlers, and its interesting that the next Beck family reunion also takes place in 2003.
A farm spokesman says the Island government must give priority to restoring the vitality of the rural farm population if agriculture is to remain an attractive way of life. Danny Hen- dricksen of the National Farmers Union says the health of family farms, rural communities and the entire ecology of P.E.I. demands a systematic change in the way farming is done. The Mount Stewart farmer told a Population Strategy hearing that the province's rural landscape is being drained of a once-thriving population base because government has no clear vision for agriculture. Islanders farmed 90 per cent of the land base (1.4 million acres) a century ago.
Today's farmers use just 47 per cent of that acreage. Farmers who once represented 100 per cent of the Island's rural population have been whittled down to ten per cent of the community in less than 70 years.
"A new vision must acknowledge that P.E.I. took a wrong turn with the reckless elimination of smaller family farms and the whole-scale adoption of monoculture farming," Mr. Hendricksen said. The decline, he said, has been caused by waterfrontage being turned into cottage properties and land being converted to tourist attractions, golf courses, and ribbon development.
He said former productive land has become inferior due to intensive monoculture.
"One obvious objective for a population strategy for P.E.I. is to help more people become farmers. Unless we find a way to encourage more people to begin farming . . . our food production will soon be controlled by a handful of corporate farms."
I'm afraid a lot of this is old news to Island readers. However, I'm catering to the many others who are far removed now from Guernsey Cove and are keenly interested in what's happening back "home." That's it for this month. Pass it along!