#CollectiveMemories Monday - Spaniard's Bay Folk Cures with Jeanette Russell

Spaniard's Bay. 30-E. Rev. Edwin Hunt photographs. Geography Collection of historical photographs of Newfoundland and Labrador. Courtesy of Memorial University's Digital Archives Initiative.

On August 8th, 2017, as part of the Collective Memories project and our work with the Spaniard's Bay Heritage Society, I interviewed Jeanette Russell about growing up in Spaniard’s Bay and her recollections of folk cures and home remedies including memories of midwives and the health benefits of May snow.

Jeanette grew up with four siblings in the 1950s and 1960s on Bishop’s Cove Shore in Spaniard’s Bay. She described children’s games like tiddley and red rover and how she would would play and create a cobbyhouses [copyhouses or cubbies]. Jeannette also discusses the folk cures from her childhood and remedies she learned from her in-laws. She even describes having the warts charmed off her hands and explains how to make bread poultices.

If you would like to listen to the full interview on Memorial University's Digital Archives Initiative click here or you can check out the pdf of our folk cures booklet here.

~Terra Barrett

How to Sew Up a Horse with Buttons

On August 8, I interviewed Dave Dunn about growing up in St. John's. We talked about his early years in Georgestown (which, as Dave said, was "a bustling community, lively as heck"), his dealings with "longshoreman gangs" on the waterfront (who were always nabbing transistor radios, "the iPhones of the day"), and his later life in Makinsons, where he gardens, picks berries, hunts and forages for most of his food. Towards the end of our interview, Dave brought up the matter of tending to injured animals. "If a horse is in trouble," he said, "if they need to get a pill in them, you've got to get a pill in them. You've got to figure out ways to make things work." With that, he launched into the tale of the time he sewed up a horse with buttons.

Diagram drawn by Dave Dunn, showing how he stitched up an injured horse with buttons and a shoelace. The diagram shows the position of the cut, the shape of the open wound, and his method of repair.

When Dave's horse, Prancer, first received the injury, Dave initially called up the local doctor. However, the doctor didn't want to be known as a "horse doctor," and thus refused his services. Dave then took matters into his own hands, and attempted to sew up his horse with sutures, but the stitches wouldn't hold. After giving the operation a couple of tries, he recalled a story of the time that a Clarke's Beach cow had a wound sewn up with buttons. And so, a woman named Myrtle brought out her button collection, and Dave decided to give it a shot. He explained:

“I think it was about seven buttons—four on the bottom, and three on the top. One in the centre on the top, a couple of flanks, and then the ones on the bottom to match it. … The buttons held. And then afterwards, when the buttons were held, then I used a shoelace. Pulled it together with a shoelace, and tied it up with a little bow.”

Dave used orajel to ease the horse's pain, but as he said, "The repercussion of it was that it was a hot day, and while I was in there trying to do it, I was rubbing sweat off my head—and next thing I knew, my forehead went dead, and my nose went dead, and my mouth went dead, and my fingers went numb—oh, it was so funny trying to do it. That was the funny part. It just made it into such a lark."

Dave had called up a nearby vet to inspect his operation. After sizing up the job, the vet told Dave, "I couldn't have done any better." Dave cut off the buttons once Prancer had healed (after a week or so), and that was that. The cut was set at the very point where Prancer's black and white hair met, so nobody ever saw the scar.

Prancer the horse. Photo courtesy of Dave Dunn.

#CollectiveMemories - Folk Cures and Practical Magic - Oral History Night

Participants describing types of poultices to Dale Jarvis.

On Wednesday July 26th, Dale, Andrea (McGuire), and I went out to Spaniard's Bay for the Folk Cures and Practical Magic Oral History night. The event took place at the Wesley Gosse United Church in Spaniard's Bay where 22 people came out to share stories of cures, charms, and recipes for ailments such as warts, arthritis, cuts, colds, freckles, etc.

The Cures and Practical Magic Night is part of the foundation’s Oral History Roadshow. This project is an initiative of the Intangible Cultural Heritage Office of the HFNL made possible with assistance from the New Horizons for Seniors program. The Oral History Night Roadshow will see researchers travel from community to community, hosting a series of Oral History Nights, open-mic storytelling sessions led and inspired by seniors in that community.

Andrea taking notes on the cures and charms.

We discussed recipes for bread poultices used to draw out splinters, and to cool burns and mustard poultices which would be spread over the chest for a cold. Several people remembered Aunt Eminy Barrett who would charm warts but wouldn't accept thanks for the work. Shelly Bowring went to see Aunt Eminy as a child and hasn't had a wart since. Shelly also shared her own knowledge of using a wedding band to make the sign of a cross to remove a sty, or using a needle and thread to divine whether or not someone would have children and the amount and sex of the children.

Shelly Bowring and her daughter Courtney Bowring.

Midwives and midwifery were discussed and there were stories of babies being thrown in the snow or dunked in hot and cold water until they were able to catch their breath. Two woman at the event were delivered by midwives and there was a discussion of Anne Marie Sheppard from Trinity Bay who was said to have delivered over 1200 babies!

Sharing stories!

If one was nauseous during pregnancy a mixture of 2 tbsp cider vinegar, and 2 tbsp of honey mixed with water would settle the stomach. Cures for seasickness included a ginger drink or a cloth bag of salt worn around the neck. The bag of salt could also be used for car sickness.

When the crowd was asked about uses for vinegar they repeated the second verse of Jack and Jill. We were told brown paper and vinegar could cure headaches and bruises! Jack and Jill is a traditional English nursery rhyme dates back to the 18th century and there are several variations. The version repeated last night is as follows:

Jack and Jill went up the hill
To fetch a pail of water
Jack fell down and broke his crown,
And Jill came tumbling after

Up Jack got and home did trot,
As fast as he could caper;
And went to bed and bound his head
With vinegar and brown paper.

If you want to learn more about vinegar and it's uses check out this blog post on the Folklore of Vinegar!

We finished off the evening with a cup of tea and some blueberry cake. This is a just a small sample of the stories we heard in Spaniard's Bay. We will be doing some follow up interviews and are hoping to produce a booklet of practical magic.  If you would like to learn more keep your eye on the blog, our Facebook, and Twitter! If you know any cures or charms reach out by phone to Terra at 1-888-739-1892 ex. 5 or terra@heritagefoundation.ca or Andrea ex. 7, mcguire@heritagefoundation.ca

Cup of tea!

~Terra Barrett

Folk Cures and Practical Magic Oral History Night - Spaniard’s Bay, Conception Bay North

Photo from: http://archivalmoments.ca/2016/09/newfoundland-and-cod-liver-oil/

Have you ever made a bread poultice? Do you remember stories about a seventh son or daughter? Do you know the perfect mix for wallpaper paste? Have you had a wart charmed? The Heritage Foundation NL, in partnership with the Spaniard’s Bay Heritage Society, wants to know!

The Foundation will be hosting a Cures and Practical Magic Oral History Night at the Wesley Gosse United Church, Spaniard’s Bay on Wednesday, July 26th, 2017 at 7:00pm.

“We are looking for anyone with memories of cures, charms, or practical recipes such as soap or wallpaper paste, as well as midwives, and healers with memories of practicing medicine in the area,” says the foundation’s folklorist Dale Jarvis.  “If you have memories of cures and recipes, we would love to hear from you."

The Cures and Practical Magic Night is part of the foundation’s Oral History Roadshow. This project is an initiative of the Intangible Cultural Heritage Office of the HFNL made possible with assistance from the New Horizons for Seniors program. The Oral History Night Roadshow will see researchers travel from community to community, hosting a series of Oral History Nights, open-mic storytelling sessions led and inspired by seniors in that community.

Come for a cup of tea, share a memory or two about a cure, and bring some home recipes. The information gathered will be used alongside oral history interviews and archival research to create a booklet about folk cures and practical traditions in Spaniard’s Bay. If you have photos or old written recipes, bring them along.

For more information please contact Terra Barrett with the Heritage Foundation toll free at 1-888-739-1892 ext. 5 or email terra@heritagefoundation.ca.