Newfoundland and Labrador ICH goes to Korea

ICHCAP (www.ichcap.org) is a UNESCO Category 2 Centre based in Korea, whose main role "is to strengthen 'Information and Networking' in the framework of the 2003 UNESCO Convention."

It supports activities directed toward the safeguarding of intangible cultural heritage among the 48 Member States of the Asia-Pacific region with a primary function of disseminating information and building networks in the ICH field.

One of its tools to disseminate information is the ICH Courier newsletter, and in the most recent edition, Volume 17, the work of the Heritage Foundation of Newfoundland and Labrador is highlighted, along with reports from Nepal, Uzbekistan, the Republic of Korea, and Papua New Guinea.

You can read more about the newsletter, and download a PDF version directly from their website.

Stories and snacks for cool fall nights

In this issue of the Intangible Cultural Heritage update for October/November 2013, we draw to the end of our wells project, and share some thoughts and findings on wells, water, and community. We have news from Norris Arm, with stories about traditional games, and from the Bay Roberts area on a project to document traditional folk belief, including stories collected from students at Ascension Collegiate. And to finish off, we have more stories brought to life through the digitization of the Baccalieu Trail Heritage Corporation oral history files. And if all those stories get you hungry, don’t kvetch! Memorial University students in the Department of Folklore are partnering with us to organize a rugelach making workshop. Read on for details!

Contributors: Dale Jarvis, Lisa Wilson, Sarah Ingram, Joelle Carey, Nicole Penney

You can download the newsletter in pdf and other formats here.

Tuesday's Folklore Photo: Home Remedies

Unfortunately we're in the thick of cold and flu season. It's that wonderful time of year when everyone around you seems to be coming down with something gross and mucusy. The thought of even touching a public handrail or door knob feels tantamount to licking the floor of a public restroom. Riding a packed elevator or bus is just asking for trouble. 

While having a chat today with my grandmother, who is "stuffed up as anything", I asked her about old folk remedies for colds. She described a cough drop her mother made from molasses and a bit of kerosene. Her mother would boil molasses with a few drops of kerosene until the mix was very thick. She then let it cool and cut it into pieces. My grandmother loved having this lozenge, because as she said, "it was like candy, and we didn't get candy very much back then."

My co-worker, Lisa Wilson, is currently conducting a series of oral histories with community members from the Bay Roberts area. The topic of home remedies came up in an interview with Alice Mercer, age 95, of Clarke's Beach: 

I got a cold. I wasn't very old. I must have been a year old, and my grandmother, my dad’s mother was living with us at that time, and she said to my mother, 'Elsie, she’s going to die anyhow, she’s going to choke with that cold on her chest she’s got. So, can I try an old time remedy?' And she said, 'I don’t care what you try as long as you save her.' So she mixed up molasses and a little tiny drop of kerosene oil from the lamp, because in them days they used lamps to light the houses. Just a drop or two in the drop of molasses, and boiled it, and when it cooled, gave me a taste. And mom said I was no time getting better when that got down in my stomach. - Alice Mercer, Clarke's Beach 

There are several variations of this recipe for cough drops, another of which includes Minard’s Liniment and ginger.  One aspect always stays consistent though- anyone who used this home remedy absolutely swears by it! 

Newfoundland Folklorists in the Prairies

September was a busy month for at least some Newfoundland folklorists. Not only was I fully immersed in the amazing (and intensive) Qudi Vidi Fieldschool for incoming folklore graduate students, but I also traveled to Edmonton to help represent some of the HFNL's work at their annual Alberta Museums Association conference. The theme of this year's conference was Intangible Cultural Heritage and so who better to invite as keynote speaker than Dale Jarvis, ICH Development Officer for the province of Newfoundland and Labrador. In his talk, Dale offered the audience a look at the kinds of ICH work that we're doing here in Newfoundland. We also had two other Newfoundland folklorists in attendance: MA students Claire McDougall and Kristin Catherwood. It was very nice for us to sit back and reflect on everything we have achieved over the past year. It was also great to chat with people from across to country to learn about what kinds of programing is starting up in other provinces.

For my part in the conference, I facilitated a talk on digital storytelling and the different ways that oral historical information can be presented. In this session, I was able to share with participants a series of audio clips that I've collected about particular places, objects, buildings, traditions, and people. To help demonstrate how to begin an oral history interview, I invited Kristin Catherwood to sit and answer some questions about where she is from and why she decided to become a folklorist. Please feel free to listen to an excerpt of this interview where she discusses her love for the prairies and how it connects to her current studies. Given her passion, it's no wonder that she's now studying the vernacular architecture of Saskatchewan's historic farms for her MA thesis.

Follow Kristin's blog The Barn Hunter to find out all about her pursuit of folklore and barns all around the prairie province she calls home. Thanks Kristin, for sharing your story with us.

-Lisa

Tuesday's Folklore Photo: Pumpkins!

[799. Family] Boys Holding Pumpkin
circa 1920-1950
Courtesy of: United Church Archives - H.M. Dawe Photograph Collection

To celebrate the first day of October I focused on pumpkins for this Tuesday's folklore photo. At first I wanted to share an archival image of Newfoundlanders celebrating Halloween, but it seems these are few and far between. When I searched "pumpkins" on Memorial University's Digital Archive and came across these cute little guys, I couldn't resist sharing. These boys are absolutely beside themselves with excitement over this pumpkin!

Interestingly, it was once tradition in Newfoundland to carve turnips for Halloween rather than pumpkins. This is said to be a carry over from Celtic tradition. Pumpkins carved as jack-o-lanterns would not have been part of traditional Halloween festivals in Celtic Europe, since pumpkins are New World plants, but large turnips were hollowed out, carved with faces and placed in windows to ward off evil spirits.


If you happen to be growing your own pumpkins, you may find this advice from Ross Traverse helpful. This was originally published in Decks Awash, 1987.

Courtesy of:  Decks Awash, Vol. 16, no.01 (Jan-Feb 1897)

If you have an archival images of Newfoundlander's celebrating Halloween, please email Nicole at nicole@heritagefoundation.ca. We'd love to share them on the blog at the end of the month! :)

Tuesday's Folklore Photo: That's one dirty old...shut your mouth!

When I happen to have a boil up with folks from away I can't help but point at the kettle on the fire, lean in close and whisper mischievously, "Do you know what we call that in Newfoundland"?

They, of course, say "no" and I giggle like a child who just learned about beaver architecture, the actual name for a female dog and donkey synonyms all in one glorious afternoon.

I blurt out, "It's called a slut!", while thinking, "please ask me why it's called that, please ask me why it's called that."

The inevitable question follows and I practically explode.

"Because they're fast and dirty"!!

I sit back then, far more proud than I should be of this awful one-liner. Who do I think I am? Henny Youngman?

But I can't help myself so I giggle and ask, "Do you know what we call dandelions here"?

Tuesday's Folklore Photo: Berry Combs

Update: I was informed that the item below is not a berry comb but actually a dory bailer, used to scoop out water from a boat. The bailer is also known as a a piggin, peggin, spudgel, spudget, spudgin or spudgy.  It looks a lot like a berry comb, but that's what I love about this job, you learn something new all the time! :D  

Around this time every year I love to go berry picking. I pick mostly blueberries and find something very satisfying about gathering my own food, especially when it's free. Don't get me wrong, I love a good strawberry U-Pick, but around here you don't have to go far to find a barren or boggy area full of blueberries. Berry picking can be hard on the back, so to make the work faster people have used berry combs, like the one pictured below.

Dory Bailer: Located in the Woody Island Museum

That berry comb above is actually missing the comb part, so I borrowed a picture of a complete one, featured below.This one is similar to the one used in Newfoundland, but was used by a man who lived on the southern shore of Lake Washington in Seattle.

Here are a few terms used in Newfoundland and Labrador related to berry picking:

berry box: wooden box used by pickers to carry harvest of partridge- and blueberries.
T 1-631 We used to go berry picking and take berry boxes, forty or fifty, a couple of us together. We'd fill them.

berry duff: a boiled or steamed pudding with wild berries as an ingredient.
1966 HORWOOD 19 Blueberry pudding, loaded with luscious fruit, boiled in a cloth, and popped open, fresh from the pot and dripping with purple juice, on the kitchen table. 

berry crop: the harvest of wild berries: 1976 Daily News 14 July, p. 2 Berry crops are blooming early this year and the director of the soils and crops division with the department of forestry and agriculture, is expecting a good season. 'Blueberries, partridge berries and bakeapples are already in bloom,' he said.

 

Va 94-36.1; Berry Picking: Women and Children Berry Picking on a Hill [193-]
Courtesy of The Rooms Provincial Archives  

berry ocky: home-made drink of wild berries, esp partridge berries, or jam and water; cp OCKY. 

berry ground: elevated, unwooded stretch of land or 'barren' producing wild berries. See also GROUND.

berry note: buyer's receipt issued to picker for quantity of berries received.
1972 MURRAY 261 Those who sold berries were given a 'berry note' indicating the amount of berries 'shipped' and the price per gallon. The value of the note had to be 'taken up' in goods in the store where the berries were shipped.
 

VA 15D-20.2. Man Berry-Picking, Portland Creek, NL [ca 1940-49]
Courtesy of The Rooms Provincial Archives. 

-Nicole

A day of water in Cupids, Newfoundland

Last week Dale, Claire, Nicole and myself travelled out to Cupids, Newfoundland to meet up with some friends and talk about water sources. We left Nicole for the morning at the Cupids Legacy Centre to teach her Pillow Top Workshop, and the rest of us met up with Peter Laracy, the General Manager of the Legacy Centre. He showed us around Cupids for the majority of the day, and we started our tour with his own well. His property has had a well on it since 1918, and the well went through several facelifts, first in 1965 and then in 1978. It is now expertly housed, and includes insulation and a pump for a year round water guarantee! Peter even invited me back at the end of the summer to help him clean his well - I can't wait!

We then went to meet Vernon 'Bucky' Whelan, and he had quite a few stories to share. Bucky first showed us an old spring that had been cemented in near his property. This spring has been around for as long as anyone in the community can remember, and in fact was once thought to have been a source of water for John Guy and a brewhouse in the seventeenth century. Bucky also showed us where a barrel well used to be on his property, and told us about a spring that filled near the back of his property and used to be used for horses. He also had some great memories to share, about how important water is, the cold and pure taste of springs, and carrying water with hoops in turns. It was a treat!

We next went to meet Christine Fowler, a relative of Peter, who had an amazing traditional, almost kitschy looking well house with some delicious well water hidden underneath. We've seen quite a few of these around Newfoundland as lawn art pieces, but this is the first well I've seen actually housed underneath one. I love the traditional, simple design to these wellhouses - these are what I think of when I think wells! We also went and saw her brother's well next door, which was one of the deepest I've seen so far (242 inches!) and more modern, with PVC lining and a metal pitched roof. Before leaving we got to pet his pony in the backyard - adorable.

We then went on a bit of a hike out into Greenland, where Peter knew of a long forgotten spring. Peter told us that there were once houses out in this area, but in the 1940's the last few households moved into where the modern town now is. This round well looks to be like a closed in spring, shallow and completely lined with rocks. It was great to see such a secluded spot for a well, and really made me think about how many more were hiding out in the Greenland woodlands.

On our way back to the Legacy Centre, Peter ran into his friend Ross Dawe, who had a great old car and three different water sources on his property, including two wells and one spring that he used in dry times. We also stopped and chatted with Lloyd Kane, who had an old well nestled behind a gorgeous honeysuckle tree that hadn't been used in decades. While the well was nothing spectacular, the tree hanging over it, nestled in a green backyard, really seemed almost magical.

Once back at the Legacy Centre, we said goodbye to Peter, grabbed Nicole, and went to the Cupids archaeological site to have a chat with William Gilbert, the lead archaeologist. He told us about an attempt at an archaeological dig near the spring we had been shown  earlier by Bucky, and that even though nothing was found, Bill still believes that the brewhouse that John Guy had in his colony was over there. He also showed us a well in the back of the Cupids plantation house that has yet to be excavated. There are busy up there on the dig in Cupids, so we were very thankful for the tour!

After a delicious lunch we headed out to see one final spring, out along the Bay Roberts heritage trail. This spring has been closed in with rocks, and is right off the trail path. While I probably wouldn't recommend drinking from it, it's a great spot for Fido to get a sip while out on the trails. As you can tell, it was a great spot with an incredible view.

We got to see a lot of wells, and talk to a lot of people - it really put a spring in my step!

I am still looking to hear from people about their wells, springs, and water memories: what does water mean to you, how have you sued it, and what do you remember about it? I would love to have a chat with you!

You can reach me at Sarah@heritagefoundation.ca, or call 1 (709) 739-1892 ext. 7

Wells and Springs along the Southern Shore

On Wednesday I spent the day with Andrea along the Southern shore, meeting some interesting people and visiting and recording some excellent wells and springs. We had a really busy day planned, and started out meeting with Jim Foley, a local man who took me down to the shore and showed me a natural spring he had been using for years to drink from. The spring comes right out of the rocks, and is used predominantly in the summer and fall, as during the winter it gets covered with rocks and ice. He said occasionally some sea water will get into the spring, but there is such a consistent water flow that it never effects the taste or clarity of the water. He said that fishermen used to stop and use it years ago to drink from.

The cement enclosure around the spring was an addition added in recent years by Al Roche, who Jim was kind enough to introduce us to. Al told us that he tried to make it safer to get down there by adding rock steps as well, however the last couple years has seen some deterioration along the shore, and the steps have since let go. There used to be a “spring” sign to show visitors where they could get a cool drink, but has been taken down for safety reasons.

We then met up with Tony Dunn, who had a lot to both tell and show us. He first took us to his own well, which shares space with several other large wellhouses. He told us that at one time there were over 13 houses being served by these wells, which equaled up to 50 people! His well was one of the shallower ones we've seen so far, and he said that he's never seen it run low. There was over three feet of water on Wednesday, and it was also incredibly cold and fresh. He then took us to his brothers well, which was rock lined and protected by heavy plastic siding. Tony also has a hidden talent - he can find underground water with wire! He showed us how it worked, and let us try it ourselves. We both had success, and below you can see Andrea finding some water with wires!

Finally we went and spoke to Andrea's family, Andrew and Dot O'Brien. Over tea and banana bread they shared some great water and well memories with me, including carrying water to the house with hoops, a barrel well in their front yard, cleaning wells, and communal tin mugs left at a community water source for everyone to enjoy. Andrew then took me up to his well, which was by far the biggest one yet, and is shared between several homes in the neighbourhood. It was a great day out in the field!

We are still looking to hear any memories people have about wells, springs, water dowsing, and I would love to hear from you! You can contact me at 1 (709) 739-1892 ext 7, or email Sarah@heritagefoundation.ca. 

Tuesday's Folklore Photo: Carrying Water

I recently visited the Logger's Life Provincial Museum in Grand Falls-Windsor to work with their staff to develop public programming around pillow tops. While there I spotted this piece of folk art on display in the bunkhouse. This little, wooden, hand carved figure depicts a logger using a square shaped hoop to carry two pails of water. The hoop was used to balance the pails of water and keep them from hitting your legs and spilling. The hoops were made of wood, sometimes alder branches, and were either square or round. They were an invaluable tool for those who had to walk great distances for water.

This water carrier ties in well with another project being worked on here at the ICH Office, which is a study of traditional water supplies in St. John's and surrounding areas.  For the next few months, archaeologist Sarah Ingram will be talking to people about wells and springs to learn where the traditional water supplies where in the area and how they were used and maintained. Sarah will also be collecting stories about why particular water sources were valued over others. Finally, all these materials will be made available on Memorial University of Newfoundland's Digital Archive Initiative. Stay tuned for updates on that project and many others!

-Nicole

Tuesday's Folklore Photo: Riding the Rails

This is a picture of my great grandmother, Ethel Peddle (nee Ivany), taken circa 1927-1933. Her father was a roadmaster with the Newfoundland Railway and she would ride the rails with him from time to time. Originally from Bloomfield, Bonavista Bay, Ethel loved the opportunity to go clothes shopping in Clarenville or St. John's on these trips. This snap was taken in Clarenville when my great grandmother was in her late teens to early twenties.

-Nicole

Weaving Pillow Tops in Cupids

Yesterday I was invited out to Cupids to instruct a pillow top workshop. Dale came along and we had a great time at The Cupids Legacy Centre teaching a lovely group how to weave this interesting textile. 

Pillow tops are square-shaped textiles woven from wool using a wooden frame, made by Newfoundland women and men. Women would make these in various sizes and used them around the house as pillow covers, table toppers, and backs for chairs. Pillow tops were also made by men working in the lumber camps. Cutting and collecting lumber was arduous work and the only day the men in the camps had off was Sunday. To pass the time some men would make pillow tops to give to girlfriends, wives and mothers.

For more information on pillow tops check out the Intangible Cultural Heritage Pillow Top Collection on Memorial University's Digital Archives Initiative. 

And here's some of the finished pillow tops. One thing I love about these is they all look different, I've yet to see two pillow tops that look the same. 

For more information on the tradition of Newfoundland lumber camp workers weaving pillow tops, check out this issue of the ICH newsletter. 

If you're interested in making your own pillow top frame, check out this blog entry which includes instructions and lots of pictures.

And if you'd like to have us out to your community to teach a pillow top workshop, you can reach Nicole Penney at 1-888-739-1892 ex.6 or via email at nicole@heritagefoundation.ca. 

Happy Weaving! 

Identify this Telegraph Artifact

At the ICH Office we are putting together an exhibit with the Road to Yesterday Museum in Bay Roberts to celebrate the 100th year anniversary of the cable station. As part of this exhibit, we are working on identifying some of the telegraph artifacts that are currently mysteries to us and the museum. 

One item I've become slightly enamored with is this little brass oddity. My guess is that it's some sort of manual ticker tape winder or an attachment to a teleprinter. The engraving on the top reads "Honore Patent / Creed and Co. Ltd / Makers / London. 

I did a bit of research and learned Creed and Co. was a British telecommunications company that was an important pioneer in the field of teleprinter machines. Founded by Frederick George Creed and Harald Bille, it was first incorporated in 1912 as "Creed, Bille & Company Limited". After Bille's death in a railway accident in 1916, his name was dropped from the company's title and it became Creed & Company. Then in 1928 the company merged into the International Telephone and Telegraph Corporation. It then stands to reason this item was most likely manufactured between 1916 and 1928.

If you have any idea as to what this artifact is, or if you have memories of the cable station in Bay Roberts, we'd love to hear from you. 

Nicole can be reached at 1-888-739-1892 ex.6 or at via email at nicole@heritagefoundation.ca 

Tuesday's Folklore Photo: Woodcarvings by Kevin Coates

Kevin Coates is a talented local artist who draws inspiration from traditional Newfoundland industries for the subject matter of his work. Coates, who is self-taught, picked up caricature carving about 15 years ago after reading about it in a magazine. He had been looking for a new hobby and this style of wood carving peaked his interest. Much like caricature drawings, these carvings exaggerate the peculiar features of a person or object. Coates, who grew up and still resides in Winterton, is inspired by the fishery and the majority of his carvings reflect this.

When you first see a Kevin Coates carving your eye is immediately drawn to the face, which he works on for about a third of the time it takes to complete the rest of the carving. When asked where he gets inspiration for the faces, Coates replied, “it’s something about someone I remember, especially from back when I was a kid. We spent a lot of time down by the wharf, at this and that, with the fishermen and the old fellows.”

Coates mostly uses pine or fir along with several different tools to carve his pieces. Interestingly though, Coates' favorite tool is a modified right-handed filleting knife, or splitting knife, that he cut down to about five or six inches. As Coates describes, "where I'm left-handed and it's a right-handed splitting knife the turn is perfect for me."

For more information on Kevin Coates and his carvings, check out the Craft Council of Newfoundland and Labrador.

Researched and written by: Nicole Penney

Works Cited:

Penney, Nicole. Interview with Kevin Coates on the Subject of Wood Carving. Recorded April 26, 2013

Tuesday's Folklore Photo

This detailed little scene is a Heritage Fairs project created by Mr. Noel Strapp's Newfoundland Studies class at Roncalli Central High School in Avondale. This adorable diorama is an example of a traditional outport community in Newfoundland and Labrador.

For more information on the Heritage Fairs, check out the Historic Sites Association of Newfoundland and Labrador. 

Photo courtesy of: Sarah Wade, Museum Association of Newfoundland and Labrador

How to Make a Pillow Top Frame

A few days ago in the ICH Office we tried our hands at making a small pillow top frame. The plan is to use the smaller frames in workshops, particularly with younger kids. It currently takes about 4 hours to complete a pillow top on the large frame. Using the small frame, the pillow top can be completed in about 2.5 hours, making this activity much more accessible. 

Our small frame turned out well and the end result is a cute little pillow top, with very fluffy pom poms, that can be used as a trivet or table topper. Several of these mini pillow tops could be sewn together to make a blanket.  

After receiving a few requests, I decided to put together this step-by-step guide for making your very own pillow top frame.

Materials:

• 8 pieces of wood measuring 8" long, 1-1/4" wide and 3/4" thick
• wood glue
• clamps
• 24 x 2" nails 
• 12 x 1-1/4" wood screws 
• power drill
• hammer
• ruler
• pencil

Step One: 

Take four pieces of wood and arrange to form a square. Add a layer of  wood glue and  place the other four pieces on top.

Step Two: 

Using the drill, insert screws into the end of each piece of wood, as seen in the picture below. Before this step you may need to clamp the pieces together and put aside while the glue sets. 

Front

Back

Step Three:

Using a ruler and pencil, draw a line down the middle of each side of the frame, lengthwise. Then along this line, mark off, in even spaces, where you will hammer in your nails. Space the nails about 1 inch apart. 

Step Four: 

Drill holes in each of these markers to make it easier to hammer in the nails. Hammer 6 nails into each side. Make sure they are even. Leave about half the nail sticking out of the frame. 

Once all the nails are all hammered in you can start weaving!

Here's the finished product! : )

If you have any questions about how to make your frame or are interested in having us put off a pillow top workshop in your community, feel free to get in touch with Nicole at (709) 739-1892 ex. 6 or via email at nicole@heritagefoundation.ca.