Living Heritage Podcast Ep205 The Devon Rural Skills Trust, with Chris Baker

Stone walling training course, south Devon.

Many of the traditional features of the English countryside such as dry stone walls and hedge banks were originally created and maintained by rural craftsmen, using the skills that were passed from father to son. In recent years, these skills have been at risk of being forgotten. The Devon Rural Skills Trust was established in 1980 with a view to safeguarding the future of those traditional skills while the men and women who practiced them were still able to pass on their knowledge. 

Laying hazel with a billhook on a south Devon farm from one of the DRST training courses.

DRST’s 2019 hedge laying competition, showing bank with small trees/shrubs laid on top.

During this time the Trust has trained thousands of people, providing them with the skills and knowledge to practice traditional rural skills. One of those people is Chris Baker, the Trust’s Publicity Officer. We chat about the work of the Trust, hedges, stone walls, Devon’s link to Newfoundland, and cabbages. 

Credit: All photos courtesy Chris Baker, used with his permission. 

Finished product of a wattle hurdle course

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Living Heritage is about people who are engaged in the heritage and culture sector, from museum
professionals and archivists, to tradition bearers and craftspeople - all those who keep history alive at the
community level. The show is a partnership between HeritageNL and CHMR Radio.
Theme music is Rythme Gitan by Latché Swing.

Living Heritage Podcast Ep204 Dry stone wall building and its place in Newfoundland's heritage

For over 40 years, Dan Snow has been building dry stone constructions in his native Windham County, Vermont and beyond. From the practical to the fantastical, his works in stone fuse vanguard vision with old world techniques and traditions. His work has been the subject of articles in numerous journals, including “This Old House”, "Vermont Magazine" and “Vermont Life” magazines, and the “New York Times" and the "Boston Globe.” 

Way back on 18 August 2010, Dan and provincial folklorist Dale Jarvis sat down for a chat at the Two Whales Coffee Shop in Port Rexton about the tradition and the art of stonework, the place that dry stone wall building holds in the heritage of Newfoundland, and Dan's dry stone courses taught in partnership with the English Harbour Arts Centre. 

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Living Heritage is about people who are engaged in the heritage and culture sector, from museum
professionals and archivists, to tradition bearers and craftspeople - all those who keep history alive at the
community level. The show is a partnership between HeritageNL and CHMR Radio.
Theme music is Rythme Gitan by Latché Swing.

Living Heritage Podcast Ep203 The Furniture Art of Henry William Winter

During the late 19th and early 20th century, Henry William Winter, an ambitious self-taught furniture maker in Clarke's Beach, Conception Bay, mass-produced furniture using simple hand tools and a few primitive machines. These included a foot-powered jig saw, a foot-operated lathe and a larger lathe designed to be driven manually or powered by a dog. His home stands today, beautifully restored by his family, as a Registered Heritage Structure. Recorded on October 4th, 2008, folklorist and storyteller Dale Gilbert Jarvis had a conversation with the grandson of this legendary furniture maker, William (Bill) Winter, and Newfoundland furniture expert Walter Peddle, about Henry William Winter's life and legacy.

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Living Heritage is about people who are engaged in the heritage and culture sector, from museum
professionals and archivists, to tradition bearers and craftspeople - all those who keep history alive at the
community level. The show is a partnership between HeritageNL and CHMR Radio.
Theme music is Rythme Gitan by Latché Swing.

Living Heritage Podcast Ep202 Black Cat Cemetery Preservation

Black Cat Cemetery Preservation specializes in historic gravestone and monument conservation and restoration in Canada. Husband and wife team Robyn Lacy and Ian Petty, have a combined 20 years of experience in the heritage sector as archaeologists, gravestone conservators, and cultural heritage technicians. They have worked across Canada and the United States, as well as on the Isle of Man, recording gravestones and cemeteries, conducting archaeological surveys, mapping sites, and evaluating heritage structures and landscapes.

What's that strange image on the stone? Listen in to find out!

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Living Heritage is about people who are engaged in the heritage and culture sector, from museum
professionals and archivists, to tradition bearers and craftspeople - all those who keep history alive at the
community level. The show is a partnership between HeritageNL and CHMR Radio.
Theme music is Rythme Gitan by Latché Swing.

Living Heritage Podcast Ep201 Shetland History and Folklore with Dr Andrew Jennings

Lerwick, Scotland. Image via swifant/wikimedia.

Dr Andrew Jennings is based in Lerwick, Shetland's capital. He enjoys everything about life in this beautiful archipelago, from rowing in the local yoal team and taking part in the Fire Festival, to walking the dog and experiencing the wild Shetland weather. Living in Scotland's most northerly islands, with their Nordic cultural inheritance, inspires his research and his teaching. He is the programme leader on the MLitt Viking Studies, Island Studies, Orkney and Shetland Studies and Highlands and Islands Literature.

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Living Heritage is about people who are engaged in the heritage and culture sector, from museum
professionals and archivists, to tradition bearers and craftspeople - all those who keep history alive at the
community level. The show is a partnership between HeritageNL and CHMR Radio.
Theme music is Rythme Gitan by Latché Swing.

Living Heritage Podcast Ep200 - Doughboys and Molasses, Oh!

We chat with folklorist Dr. Anna Kearney Guigné about the new CD - Doughboys and Molasses, Oh!, which offers listeners a fresh perspective on the musical heritage of the Gros Morne region on Newfoundland’s west coast. Available on disc and digital download, the album features 22 carefully restored tracks originally recorded from local singers by folk song researchers in the mid-20th century. 

Also included are four new performances specially commissioned for the compilation from musicians Anita Best, Matthew Byrne, Daniel Payne and Jim Payne. The accompanying booklet explores the stories of the songs, the singers and the collectors, as well as the role of singing in family and community life.

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Living Heritage is about people who are engaged in the heritage and culture sector, from museum
professionals and archivists, to tradition bearers and craftspeople - all those who keep history alive at the
community level. The show is a partnership between HeritageNL and CHMR Radio.
Theme music is Rythme Gitan by Latché Swing.

Living Heritage Podcast Ep199 Growing up as a Lebanese Newfoundlander

Folklorist Wyatt H. Shibley interviews retired local politician Lorraine Michael about what it was like growing up with Lebanese roots in downtown St. John’s.

https://anchor.fm/living-heritage/episodes/Ep199-Growing-up-as-a-Lebanese-Newfoundlander-epl2lu

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Living Heritage is about people who are engaged in the heritage and culture sector, from museum
professionals and archivists, to tradition bearers and craftspeople - all those who keep history alive at the
community level. The show is a partnership between HeritageNL and CHMR Radio.
Theme music is Rythme Gitan by Latché Swing.

Living Heritage on the Baccalieu Trail

It may have been "Stay Home Year" here in Newfoundland and Labrador, but that didn't stop the Living Heritage Podcast from exploring! In "Hidden Gems of the Baccalieu Trail," host Natalie Dignam takes you on an audio tour of the Baccalieu Trail region on the island of Newfoundland. Explore all the episodes in the series by clicking the pinpoints on the map.

Listen to Living Heritage Episode 198: Make Your Own Podcast. Natalie walks your through creating your first podcast!

Living Heritage Podcast Ep197 The Bowring Park Footbridge and Blanche Lemco Van Ginkel

In 2020, Heritage NL designated a concrete footbridge in Bowring Park as a Registered Heritage Structure, one of the first modernist structures in NL to be recognized as such. The bridge was designed in part by influential architect Blanche Lemco Van Ginkel, and it has been an object of fascination and study for Newfoundland architecture student Sarah Reid. Folklorist Dale Jarvis chats with Sarah about her interest in the footbridge, and shares some of the audio she recorded in conversation with Blanche Van Ginkel herself.

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Living Heritage is about people who are engaged in the heritage and culture sector, from museum
professionals and archivists, to tradition bearers and craftspeople - all those who keep history alive at the
community level. The show is a partnership between HeritageNL and CHMR Radio.
Theme music is Rythme Gitan by Latché Swing.

Living Heritage Podcast Ep196 - Roger Tinney, furniture maker

 

Roger Tinney is a furniture maker based in Vancouver Island, British Columbia. Originally from Prince Edward Island, Roger inherited some of his skill as a carpenter from his father and grandfather, and then expanded his knowledge of furniture-making after moving to British Columbia. We chat about family origins, working with wood, finishes, and the importance of whimsey!

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Living Heritage is about people who are engaged in the heritage and culture sector, from museum
professionals and archivists, to tradition bearers and craftspeople - all those who keep history alive at the
community level. The show is a partnership between HeritageNL and CHMR Radio.
Theme music is Rythme Gitan by Latché Swing.

Living Heritage Podcast Ep195 Making Spruce Root Baskets

The weaving of traditional baskets using spruce roots is an Indigenous artform with a long and complex history. Renowned Mik'maq basket maker Anthony White, together with his son Danny, have been credited with reviving the tradition of Mi'kmaq spruce root basket weaving in Newfoundland. We look back at a 1981 recording of the Whites making baskets, and then features interviews with educator Eileen Murphy about the legacy of Mr. White, and with Jane Daly and her memories of her step-father, the west-coast basket maker Edward Young. 

Photo: A  round spruce root basket with diamond wrapped ears made by Anthony White of Bay St. George. Constructed c1960. Photo by Nicole Penney, 2012. 

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Living Heritage is about people who are engaged in the heritage and culture sector, from museum
professionals and archivists, to tradition bearers and craftspeople - all those who keep history alive at the
community level. The show is a partnership between HeritageNL and CHMR Radio.
Theme music is Rythme Gitan by Latché Swing.

Living Heritage Podcast Ep194 Lighthouses and Lighthouse Keepers

We're all about lighthouses and lighthouse keepers this week on Living Heritage. Grab a cup of tea, and listen to tales told by Barry Porter, as well as by archival audio from Jack Roberts and Theresa Colbourne, who were both born at lighthouse stations. Plus, an archival recording of Cyril Myrick and a mystery involving the Cape Race lighthouse, plus news of a very strange phenomenon said to happen at the Long Point Light in Twillingate. 

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Living Heritage is about people who are engaged in the heritage and culture sector, from museum
professionals and archivists, to tradition bearers and craftspeople - all those who keep history alive at the
community level. The show is a partnership between HeritageNL and CHMR Radio.
Theme music is Rythme Gitan by Latché Swing.

Living Heritage Podcast Ep193 Making Snowshoes with Edwin Bishop

Host Dale Jarvis travels to Heart’s Delight-Islington for a chat with boatbuilder and snowshoe maker Edwin Bishop. Listen in and learn about the process of making traditional wooden snowshoes, steaming and bending the wood by hand, the types of styles and wood Edwin uses, and which snowshoe really is the best kind to wear while checking your rabbit slips. 

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Living Heritage is about people who are engaged in the heritage and culture sector, from museum
professionals and archivists, to tradition bearers and craftspeople - all those who keep history alive at the
community level. The show is a partnership between HeritageNL and CHMR Radio.
Theme music is Rythme Gitan by Latché Swing.

Living Heritage Podcast Ep191: Newfoundland Ponies with Libby Carew

 

Libby Carew (center) with volunteers at the Newfoundland Pony Heritage Pasture in Cupids, NL.

Libby Carew is a board member of the Newfoundland Pony Society. Libby first encountered Newfoundland ponies as a child while visiting her grandmother on the Southern Shore. In this episode, we talk about the history of the Newfoundland pony, why they are an important part of the province’s heritage, and the Newfoundland Pony Society’s hope to build a pasture where residents and tourists can visit these beautiful animals.

Volunteer Nima pets a Newfoundland pony in the pasture.

 

This episode is part of a special series about the Baccalieu Trail region of Newfoundland and Labrador. Join us as we explore the hidden gems of the Baccalieu Trail- from stories of phantom ship sightings to local art and history.

 

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Living Heritage is about people who are engaged in the heritage and culture sector, from museum
professionals and archivists, to tradition bearers and craftspeople - all those who keep history alive at the
community level. The show is a partnership between HeritageNL and CHMR Radio.
Theme music is Rythme Gitan by Latché Swing.

Living Heritage Podcast Ep190 - Nurse, you have got to come!

 

Gwenllian (Gwen) Decil LeGrow was born in South Wales on December 10, 1912. She served as a radio operator during World War II, and became a nurse in London England. Gwen loved adventure and in 1949 went to Newfoundland to serve as a nurse in the outports. It was there she met and married the local RCMP officer and love of her life Reg to whom she was married for fifty-three years. In the 1980s, Gwen LeGrow was interviewed by Marilyn Marsh on nursing practices in Newfoundland. In this remarkable bit of archival audio, she talks about her experiences as a nurse in outport Newfoundland, London during the blitz, and her early work as a midwife. Gwen Legrow passed away in Calgary in 2009 at the age of 96 years.

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Living Heritage is about people who are engaged in the heritage and culture sector, from museum professionals and archivists, to tradition bearers and craftspeople - all those who keep history alive at the
community level. The show is a partnership between HeritageNL and CHMR Radio.
Theme music is Rythme Gitan by Latché Swing.

Living Heritage Podcast Ep187 The Great War Spy Panic

 

This week, we are handing over the podcast to Admiralty House Museum, in cooperation with Memorial University Folk6740 Public Folklore students Katie Crane, Micaela Muldoon, and Mariana Esquivel.

This episode of the Pigeon Post podcast centres on (purported) German spies in Newfoundland during World War I. The hosts discuss various stories about people of German ancestry, or people who were perceived to have German ties, who fell under suspicion and the consequences of this. The hosts also discuss rumour theory, the social and political climates that breed rumours, and the dangers of believing and spreading them blindly — in World War I and at all times. 

Download the mp3 here

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Living Heritage is about people who are engaged in the heritage and culture sector, from museum
professionals and archivists, to tradition bearers and craftspeople - all those who keep history alive at the
community level. The show is a partnership between HeritageNL and CHMR Radio.
Theme music is Rythme Gitan by Latché Swing.

Living Heritage Podcast Ep186 Carding and Weaving in Millville, Codroy Valley

Today, we are taking a trip to the community of Millville, in the Codroy Valley on Newfoundland’s west coast.  We’re going to have a chat with Edwin “Hockey” Gale, whose family started the carding mill that gave the town its name.  Joining him is Megan Samms, who is a weaver and textile artist living and working in Millville near the house she grew up in, and where she learned to spin yarns and knit them together. 

You can visit Megan's website and see some of her gorgeous work here:
https://livetextiles.online/

You can also follow her on Instagram here:
https://www.instagram.com/livetextiles/

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Living Heritage is about people who are engaged in the heritage and culture sector, from museum
professionals and archivists, to tradition bearers and craftspeople - all those who keep history alive at the
community level. The show is a partnership between HeritageNL and CHMR Radio.
Theme music is Rythme Gitan by Latché Swing.

Living Heritage Podcast Ep185 Using the BillionGraves app to document local cemeteries

Cemetery sleuths Dale Jarvis and Katie Crane introduce you to the BillionGraves app for your mobile phone.  BillionGraves is the world's largest GPS-linked cemetery data resource. As you take photos with the BillionGraves app, each gravestone is automatically marked with a GPS location. The data is then made readily available at BillionGraves.com for free for millions of families around the globe for generations to come. Dale and Katie talk about the intro workshops they've been running with communities, and give you some tips on how you can get started using your phone to document and map local cemeteries and grave markers.

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Living Heritage is about people who are engaged in the heritage and culture sector, from museum
professionals and archivists, to tradition bearers and craftspeople - all those who keep history alive at the
community level. The show is a partnership between HeritageNL and CHMR Radio.
Theme music is Rythme Gitan by Latché Swing.