Living Heritage Podcast Ep158 Remembering Dr. Anna Templeton

Anna Templeton is perhaps best known today for a craft centre named in her honour in downtown St. John’s. But our province's modern crafting scene would not exist as it does today without the woman herself. She was a pioneer of the province’s cottage craft industry. Through her work with the Jubilee Guilds and the Department of Education, Templeton made craftwork accessible and profitable for rural women. She empowered women to learn new skills, gain personal confidence and earn their own income. Anna defied societal expectations of women through her fieldwork and her leadership as she championed the wider recognition of traditional crafts and craftspeople.

On September 18th, 2019, Dr. Anna Templeton was recognized as an Exceptional Person from the Past as part of the Provincial Historic Commemorations program of Heritage NL. In the podcast we share her story, memories of her, and some words from a recording of Dr. Templeton herself.

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The Living Heritage Podcast 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.

Preserving in the Past - The use of red ochre and cutch as a preservative

from: http://collections.mun.ca/cdm/singleitem/collection/elrcdne/id/19106/rec/1

European settlers in Newfoundland and Labrador used red ochre as a combination of preservative and colour pigment. One use was for “barking” or “bark tanning” nets, sails, and fishing gear to preserve it. The exact mixture of materials used to tan sails varied over time and from community to community, and it could contain some magical combination of ingredients including red ochre, cod oil, urine, seawater, beeswax, and/or birchbark extracts. The combination of ochre and oil adds to the weight of the canvas, but, “sails dressed by this method are durable, supple, and waterproof so that they do not become stiff and heavy in wet weather” (Worth para. 8).

As another option, sailworkers could use what was known as “cutch” - a type of tree bark extract which was imported to Newfoundland and Labrador from the Victorian period onward. McAlpine's Newfoundland Directory for 1894 to 1897 (151) references St. John’s merchant John Steer as a dealer in “Pitch, Tar Oakum, Resin Cutch, Lime, and Ochre.” Merchant Colin Campbell of St. John’s advertised in the April edition of the Evening Telegram in 1908 that he was wholesaling “Fisher-Lad” brand cutch, available in both blocks and slabs, “pure and unadulterated” which had recently arrived via the steamship Carthaginian.

Where commercial cutch was not available, fishermen made do with what they had, and that usually meant oil and ochre. As Francis Reardon told me,

The other thing that ochre was also used for, it was mixed with seal’s oil and used to put on the sails. It gave the sails on the schooners this really bright red colouring as opposed to now of course the white sails. But years ago when they were using the canvas sails they were red. Red ochre was a preservative, and also seal’s oil gave the sail a bit of a glaze so there was less friction in the wind, and it kept the sail from holding water. The water beaded away from it. 

Doctor and a naturalist Charles Wendell Townsend spent May-June 1909 sailing along the Labrador coast. In his book A Labrador Spring he notes several examples of these ochre-stained sails. Upon visiting the community of Esquimaux Point (likely Havre-Saint-Pierre along the Lower North Shore of Quebec) he noted the local two-masted schooners, describing them as picturesque, “especially when the sails were dyed a light pink or terra cotta red to preserve them from the weather” (Townsend 72-73). Further along the coast, he remarks about the boat he sailed upon:

It was schooner-rigged with two masts, and, although the owners took great pride in the white sails, and said the boat could therefore sail the faster, I myself regretted that the sails were not stained a picturesque red, or pink, or brown, as were those of many other barges in this region. Some of these stains were wonderful bits of colour, shading like a water-colour wash from dark mahogany in one part of the sail, to a light pinkish hue in another part. Others were more uniform, but the effect was always pleasing and suggestive of the colouring of the sails in far less rugged and more smiling waters (Townsend 105). 

If you have a memory of cutch or red ochre being used as a preservative of some kind, send me an email: dale@heritagenl.ca


Works cited

McAlpine's Newfoundland directory, 1894 to 1897. Saint John (N.B.): McAlpine Publishing Co., 1894.

Townsend, Charles Wendell. A Labrador Spring. Boston: Dana Estes & Co, 1910.

Worth, Claude. “DRESSING SAILS from Yacht Cruising by Claude Worth submitted by Jamie Orr.” http://www.duckworksmagazine.com/03/r/vintage/dressing/sails.htm (web accessed 5 March 2019).



This article is an excerpt from:

Jarvis, Dale Gilbert; Barrett, Terra M. The Historical Use of Ochre Pigments in Newfoundland and Labrador. Heritage NL Fieldnotes Series, 003, March 2019. St. John's, NL: Heritage NL."

Living Heritage Podcast Ep157 Pouch Cove SUF Memories

On Thursday, July 18th, 2019,  the Pouch Cove Heritage Society and Heritage NL co-hosted a storytelling and memory sharing session at the Anglican Church Hall, Pouch Cove. The topic was the old Society of United Fishermen (SUF) hall, which the Pouch Cove Heritage Society is in the early process of restoring. Folklorist Dale Jarvis moderated a two part discussion on the history of the SUF, the memories of former members, stories about dances, parades, and funerals, and the role the SUF played in the community. This podcast shares some of those stories, to give you a taste of what was shared that night.

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The Living Heritage Podcast 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.

Heritage interpretation in Atlantic Canada - Breakout session report

Back in September, a contingent of Newfoundland folklorists and cultural workers took part in the "Heritage interpretation in Atlantic Canada: Dialogues between theory and practice"intangible cultural heritage conference, at Cape Breton University in Sydney, NS. We did not get tattoos.

On the last day of the conference, there was a discussion on how best we might be able to promote Intangible Cultural Heritage (ICH) in Atlantic Canada.

Two sessions ran simultaneously: one on Academic Research moderated by Chris McDonald, who asked the group to consider the question “What should be the future priorities for researchers in ICH?”; and one on Heritage and the Public Sector moderated by Ronald Labelle who asked the group to consider the question “How can museums and heritage centres contribute to the advancement of ICH?” At the end of the sessions, Dale Jarvis moderated a joint presentation of results, and compiled a report and list of future actions.

That report is available here:
https://docs.google.com/document/d/18sU3qZS3uYcd0OU6Sm3749aaZdDDJxWTrxG2kjbnL_g/edit?usp=sharing

Get back to work, Jarvis!

Well, I'm officially back in the office. I had a whirlwind couple weeks in Jeonju, South Korea, where Heritage NL won the 2019 Jeonju International Award for safeguarding NL's living heritage. It was a blast! I'm sure I'll post more on that anon, but for now, I'm making a list of all the stuff I need to catch up on (Living Heritage podcasts, case studies, our Craft at Risk survey, etc). If you want a quick peek at what happened at the Awards, you can look at the program booklet here:

• 2019 Jeonju International Awards for Promoting Intangible Cultural Heritage 

Heritage NL receives prestigious international award for its work on living heritage

Heritage NL receives prestigious international award for its work on living heritage

Heritage NL’s Intangible Cultural Heritage office has been announced as a winner of the 2019 Jeonju International Awards for Promoting Intangible Cultural Heritage (ICH).

The award is funded by the City of Jeonju, Republic of Korea, to encourage safeguarding practices of Intangible Cultural Heritage in the global community. Heritage NL’s Intangible Cultural Heritage office was one of forty-eight applicants from 36 different countries to apply for the awards. Only three applicants (individuals and organizations) were selected as finalists.

“This prestigious international award recognizes the major commitment by the Province, communities, tradition bearers and our team at Heritage NL in safeguarding and building capacity to celebrate the rich and diverse cultural traditions which are the very heart of this great place,” says Dave Lough, Heritage NL board chair.

The prize, valued at $10,000 USD, will be presented at a special ceremony September 27th in Jeonju. Heritage NL will be represented by folklorist Dale Jarvis, who has been the foundation’s ICH Development Officer since 2008. Along with Jarvis, the other recipients will be Ananya Bhattacharya (Secretary, Contact Base, India), and Ahmed Skounti (Professor, National Institute of Archaeology and Heritage Sciences, Morocco). While there, Jarvis will also present on NL heritage programs at the 2019 World Forum for Intangible Cultural Heritage, at the National Intangible Heritage Center (NIHC) in Jeonju.

The mission of the Heritage NL’s Intangible Cultural Heritage Office is to safeguard and sustain the Intangible Cultural Heritage of Newfoundland and Labrador for present and future generations everywhere, as a vital part of the identities of Newfoundlanders and Labradorians, and as a valuable collection of unique knowledge and customs. This is achieved through initiatives that celebrate, record, disseminate, and promote our living heritage and help to build bridges between diverse cultural groups within and outside Newfoundland and Labrador.


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For more information on the 2019 Jeonju International Awards for Promoting Intangible Cultural Heritage see:  http://www.cics.center/jiapich_2019/

Historic Commemorations for Red Indian Lake and Dr. Anna Templeton

For Immediate Release
St. John’s, NL

Heritage NL - in partnership with The Rooms and NL Credit Union - will be announcing this year’s designations to the Provincial Historic Commemorations Program (PHCP) on Wednesday, September 18th, at 7:00 pm at The Rooms Theatre, 9 Bonaventure Ave., St. John’s, NL. The Hon. Bernard Davis, Minister of Tourism, Culture, Industry and Innovation - along with representatives of the heritage, craft and Indigenous community - will join Heritage NL at this year’s event.

The PHCP (administered by Heritage NL) commemorates provincially significant aspects of our history and culture. It is unique in that it also recognizes intangible aspects of our culture and heritage – the customs, cultural practices, traditional skills and knowledge that define our province and our people.

Since the Program's inception in 2010, 35 designations have been made, including the two designations being recognized on September 18th: Red Indian Lake as a Unique Place and Dr. Anna Templeton as an Exceptional Person from the Past.

Red Indian Lake has a place in the collective imagination of this province. It has been a place of refuge and a place of promise. The Beothuk spent the last years of their existence on the shores of Red Indian Lake. A century later, as the railway pushed into the interior of the island, Lewis Miller started a logging operation here. The town named after him would be settled by fishermen who traded skiffs and fishing premises for saws and logging camps. Two decades later a mine was established on the northern shore of Red Indian Lake and Buchans was quickly developed, along with a new “company town” way of life. The railway town of Buchans Junction developed as a branch line from the main railroad was constructed to facilitate the transportation of equipment and minerals to and from Buchans mine. At first glance, these four communities have little in common. But they all have a story to tell about how a hinterland became home.   

Anna Templeton is perhaps best known today for a craft centre named in her honour in downtown St. John’s. But our province's modern crafting scene would not exist as it does today without the woman herself. She was a pioneer of the province’s cottage craft industry. Through her work with the Jubilee Guilds and the Department of Education, Templeton made craftwork accessible and profitable for rural women. She empowered women to learn new skills, gain personal confidence and earn their own income. Anna defied societal expectations of women through her fieldwork and her leadership as she championed the wider recognition of traditional crafts and craftspeople. She contributed to the creation of the Craft Council of Newfoundland and Labrador and to the textile arts diploma at the College of the North Atlantic. The province’s vibrant craft industry owes its modern prominence in no small part to the foundations laid down by Anna Templeton.

For more information on the Commemorations program visit http://commemorations.ca/about/.

Heritage NL is a provincial crown agency with a mandate to stimulate an understanding of and an appreciation for the architectural heritage and intangible cultural heritage of the province. For more information visit www.heritagenl.ca.

                                                                         
For Further Information Contact:

Andrea O’Brien
andrea@heritagenl.ca
1-888-739-1892 ext 4

Newfoundland word of the day: Suent - possessing a smooth, pleasing curve

Jerome Canning at work, by Tobias Romaniuk

"Suent" is one of my favourite Newfoundland words, and one that I first heard used by master boatbuilder Jerome Canning. In an article in Downhome Magazine by Tobias Romaniuk, he is quoted as follows:

“And all the time you’re looking at it, because you’ve got to trust your eye [that] she was looking good,” Jerome says. “You draw it on paper; you make a model. The boat had to look good, that nothing sort of looked clumsy, that it had a nice, suent look.”

Folklorist David Taylor includes this definition in his MA thesis on boatbuilding in Winterton:

SUENT: a term used in Winterton to describe any surface which has the proper amount of smooth, unbroken curvature. For example, a hull consisting of smooth, "fair" curves would be called a "suent" hull, while a hull exhibiting many humps and hollows, or other signs of unevenness would not. 

And the Wooden Boat Museum of NL gives this:

Suent: A gradual and smooth curve over a surface area or length of plank or board.from 

Have you heard this word used? If so, comment below, or send me a note! dale@heritagenl.ca

Have you taken the Cod Liver Oil Challenge? You can, this Saturday!

This Saturday, as part of the free-to-the-public event Doors Open, the James J. O’Mara Pharmacy Museum (located in one of our Registered Heritage Structures) dares you to take their Cod Liver Oil Challenge!

"My favourite part about doing the challenge (besides watching the reactions) is hearing about people’s experiences with having to take cod liver oil," says Deanna Walter, Museum Manager. "Whether it was lining up for a spoonful every day at school (apparently they used the same spoon for everyone) or parents and grandparents having a barrel of it on hand for their family. People have very strong memories and opinions about the stuff."

Take the challenge, and get a certificate to prove you downed your dose!

Saturday, September 7th, 10am-4pm

For more on Cod Liver Oil, read Larry Dohey's Archival Moments blog post here.

Preserves Making Workshop, Brigus, Sept 14th

Landfall Cottage in Brigus is running a preserves workshop! Space is limited if you want to participate!  Info below:

Living Heritage Podcast Ep156 Fairies, fetches, and blasts

Have you always wanted to know what a fairy blast is? Do you head to the woods with bread in your pockets? Listen to this podcast to learn more about fairy traditions in Newfoundland. Dale and Terra listen to audio clips of local fairy stories, and discuss the beliefs surrounding the fairies in Newfoundland. Tune in to hear about personal fairy accounts, stories of those who were fairy led, and learn how you can avoid fairies in the woods. If you have a fairy story let us know at livingheritagepodcast@gmail.com





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The Living Heritage Podcast 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.

Heritage Update Summer 2019 - Heritage colours, crafts, and candy!

In the Summer 2019 edition of Heritage Update: Executive Director Jerry Dick on the revision of Heritage NL's historic paint chart and the evolution of paint in the province; painting and decorating fishing buildings with Andrea O'Brien; intern Patrick Handrigan proposes some adaptive reuses for the Hant's Harbour Post Office Building; craft researcher Rachael Green on the craft-at-risk survey; Terra Barrett on the ladies of the Adler Chocolate Factory; and Terra and Dale Jarvis look at some of the earliest examples of red ochre paint in the province. 

Download the pdf

My Summer Work Term 2019!

I've had an exciting summer working for the Heritage Foundation and the Craft Council of NL! I have worked on 2 major projects- the 275 Duckworth Report and our Craft at Risk project. We held a 275 Duckworth Reunion at the building to meet past workers, and 2 Craft at Risk public sessions at the Anna Templeton Center and the Wooden Boat Museum in Winterton to chat about crafts in the province.

Along with this, I got the chance to attend events and outings including Sheep Shearing in Clarkes Beach, Heritage Craft Show-And-Tell in Spaniard's Bay, Tors Cove to visit Running the Goat print shop, Brigus to visit Kent Cottage at Landfall, and a Cemetery Transcription Workshop at St. Francis Assisi Cemetery in Outer Cove. I also got to visit communities such as Hearts Content and New Perlican!

Although I am sad that my work term is coming to an end, my time here has been amazing! I have met some great people and have learned so much. I appreciate all the great help and support from everyone along the way!

Next, I will be continuing my last year of studies at MUN. Im excited to see whats in store for the future!

Bye for now! -Rachael Green

Photographing and geo-locating tombstone data at St. Francis of Assisi Cemetery

Today, we were back at the St. Francis of Assisi Cemetery, continuing on our cemetery transcription project in partnership with the Logy Bay-Middle Cove-Outer Cove museum. For the past two summers, we've been working with the museum to run headstone transcription workshops in the cemetery. The information gathered to date has been entered into a publicly-accessible Google spreadsheet for anyone interested in the data.  If you are doing genealogical research involving that cemetery, you can view all those records here:

• St Francis of Assisi Roman Catholic Cemetery Headstone Records

This morning, a team of four (myself, LBMCOC museum manager Katie Crane, Terra Barrett, and Rachael Green) returned to test out the free Billiongraves.com app. The app, available for both Apple and Android systems, allows volunteers to photograph headstones, and then upload the photos of those memorials to the website. It is free to register and upload photos. You can transcribe photos on-site, or you can upload them without transcriptions, either for you to fill in later, or to be transcribed by website volunteers.

Each headstone creates a record, which we can then include as a link on the spreadsheet. In addition, the app geo-tags each photograph, creating a clickable map of the cemetery accessible both online and through the app itself.

As an example, here is the headstone of Seaman Thomas Kelly, which I photographed and uploaded earlier this summer:

That stone now has a record on the site:
https://billiongraves.com/grave/Thomas-Kelly/32290055

If you look at the spreadsheet data link above, check out Marker #3, and you can see we've now included a live link to his headstone photo.

Future researchers or family members can create a free account, and add additional photos, documents, memories, or link Thomas Kelly to other family members captured on the website. If you want to visit the cemetery in person, the app/website also shows you a pin on a satellite photo of the cemetery, to help you locate it amongst the other stones.

In about 30 minutes, the four of us were able to photograph over 400 memorials, and quickly upload them. The longer work of transcribing each stone and linking them to the spreadsheet will come later, but it was impressive to see how quickly a small group of researchers can photograph and create a digital record of the cemetery and the placement of the markers.

This is where you, dear reader, can help!

The cemetery photos are all located right here. Once you log in, you can click that link, then the "volunteer" tab, and then the yellow "transcribe images" button to the right of the volunteer tab. Then, you can help out by entering the Given Name, Family Name, and birth and death dates shown in the photograph!  Help us out!

If you are involved with a cemetery documentation project, and want advice on how you could start a similar initiative in your community, give me a shout at dale@heritagenl.ca. All you need are some smartphones and volunteers! You don't need to worry about data charges either, as you can upload all the photos once you are back home, or somewhere with wifi.

- Dale Jarvis

Craft At Risk Public Session at the Wooden Boat Museum

The Craft At Risk Public session on Wednesday August 14th, has been moved to the Wooden Boat Museum in Winterton!

If you are an interested craftsperson please stop by and share your thoughts on Heritage Craft in NL.

The public sessions are as followed:

Monday, August 12th
7pm, Anna Templeton Centre, Duckworth St, St. John's

Wednesday, August 14th
7pm, Wooden Boat Museum, Winterton

You can register here:

https://www.eventbrite.ca/e/heritage-craft-at-risk-public-sessions-tickets-64797180110

Heritage Craft at Risk Public Sessions

Calling all people with heritage craft skills!

We want to talk to you about heritage crafts in the province. We welcome all interested makers and craft practitioners!

Heritage NL and the Craft Council of NL are worried about the loss of traditional know-how when it comes to making heritage crafts, and are working together to create a list of makers, craft producers, and skills in decline.

If you make (or used to make) something that you feel is traditional, or made in a traditional way, we would love to speak with you. Come share your thoughts about endangered crafts and skills in the province, and learn more about our Craft At Risk Survey!

Monday, August 12th
7pm Anna Templeton Centre, Duckworth Street, St. John's

Wednesday, August 14th
7pm Wooden Boat Museum, Winterton

Register for the public sessions online at:
www.hfnl.ca

Heart’s Content in Pictures - The Old Time Photo Show!

Heart’s Content in Pictures 
The Old Time Photo Show!

Heart's Content Regional Centre for the Arts
(the former Hayfield United Church)
251 Main Rd, Heart's Content, NL

August 13th, 7pm

Join us as we present historical photos showcasing the fascinating history of Heart’s Content.  Many of these are rare old photos that  have been recently digitized as part of an ongoing project to scan the photographic collection of the Town of Heart’s Content archives.   You’ll see some places you remember, and some long gone.  Celebrate the history of the town in photographic form!

Sponsored by Hearts Content Mizzen Heritage Society

Free Event
Coffee, tea and cookies to follow.

Facebook event listing here:
https://www.facebook.com/events/2605814859451616/

Placenames and Neighbourhoods of Carbonear Afternoon Tea - Aug 6th

Placenames and Neighbourhoods of Carbonear Afternoon Tea

Tuesday, August 6th
2pm
Princess Sheila Senior's Club Building
163 Water Street, Carbonear


Do you have a memory of Harbour Rock Hill? Did you grow up on Valley Road? Where does Irishtown begin and end? If you can answer any of these questions, Carbonear’s Green Team wants to meet you!

On August 6th, Heritage NL and the Town of Carbonear Summer 2019 Green Team are hosting an afternoon tea and conversation based around old Carbonear place names, neighbourhoods, trails, rocks, and coves. The groups want to collect and record old names and memories about local areas and landmarks.

Dale Jarvis is the provincial folklorist with Heritage NL, and says there is value in bringing back the use of these historic names as Carbonear continues to evolve.

“People had very different local knowledge based on which neighbourhoods they grew up in,” says Jarvis. “We want to collect this information, which could be the foundation for future town signage, trails, or even new street names.”

The celebration of local places is free open to the public, and will include refreshments. The organizers extend a special invitation to any seniors who grew up in Carbonear.

“We want to make sure their knowledge is passed on to the next generation,” says Jarvis.


Facebook event listing here:
https://www.facebook.com/events/491435738259509/

For more information, contact:

Kerri Abbott
Economic Development & Tourism Officer
Town of Carbonear
P.O. Box 999, 256 Water Street
Carbonear,  NL  A1Y 1C5
Tel: (709)596-3831 Ext. 235
Fax: (709)596-5021
Email: kerriabbott@nf.aibn.com

Tea with Hookers!

Placentia West Mat Makers hooker rug

On July 24, 2019, Dale and I drove to Boat Harbour on the Burin Peninsula to chat with four hookers about their experience with the Placentia West Mat Makers. This group was developed in 1979-1980 by Lois Saunders, who was working as a rural development officer at the time. She helped the local community women organize the Placentia West Mat Makers Association as a craft business. The goal was to earn wages through the traditional practice of rug hooking. Lois Saunders connected with Colleen Lynch who came to Baine Harbour to give workshops on rug hooking.

Former Placentia West Mat Makers

The four women discussed their own experience with rug hooking. Some had hooked before the Mat Making Association while others learned to hook as part of the rug hooking workshops. Traditional mats made by their mothers, and grandmothers included designs of geometric patterns, or flowers while the Placentia West Mat Makers hooked rugs with outport scenery including harbours, kitchens, and bedrooms. Traditionally mats were made for the floor, however, the mats these women created often ended up on the walls and in galleries. The women discussed some of the shows which displayed the Placentia West mats and described how several members had traveled to England, and Germany to accompany the mats to their shows.

Traditional pattern style with geometric designs, and flower in centre

Unfortunately due to a number of factors including low wages the Placentia West Mat Making Association disbanded in 2015. Thankfully, the Placentia West Heritage Committee, which has been around since 1983, has established the Livyers' Lot Économusée in Boat Harbour. The Économusée includes a reception, workshop, reading room, boutique, museum, restaurant, and interpretation of traditional and contemporary skills. This space allows the communities to keep rug hooking, and other traditions from the region alive and ensure they are passed on through workshops and events like this hooker tea.

Poked mat for sale at Livyers' Lot.
Poked mats were traditional to the area but not part of the Placentia West Mat Makers Association's business.

If you would like to learn more about the Livyers' Lot Économusée read our Living Heritage Economy Case Study or visit their Facebook page. If you would like to learn more about the development of hooked rugs in the province during the 1970s-2000s check out this article by Paula Flynn. 

Haul B'ys Haul - A Traditional Boat Launch this Saturday!

Haul B'ys Haul - A Traditional Boat Launch
Heart's Delight- Islington.

On Saturday, July 27th, join the folks of Heart's Delight-Islington for the traditional boat launch of local heritage boatbuilder Edwin Bishop's new wooden motorboat. We'll sing the Johnny Poker, and help Edwin in launching his boat the way they did back in the day. Also, if you have a boat that was built by Edwin Bishop, we'd like you to bring it out, and have it in the harbour for the launch on that day.

The launch will take place at 2pm on the South West Side  of Heart's Delight, between George Reid's wharf and Richard Hebbes wharf. Cross your fingers for good weather!

Facebook event listing (with more pictures):
https://www.facebook.com/events/760980131389731/

275 Duckworth Reunion

Did you or one of your relatives work at 275 Duckworth Street, St. John’s? If so, you are invited to a party! To celebrate the history of their new home at 275 Duckworth Street, the Craft Council of NL is hosting a building reunion in partnership with Heritage NL.

If you remember any of these workplaces, we'd love to meet you! Come along for a chat, some cake and a cup of tea, and meet others who shared experiences at 275 Duckworth. If you have photos or memorabilia, we'd love to see it!

If you have questions or a memory of the building you want to share, contact Rachael Green craft@heritagenl.ca or call toll-free 1-888-739-1892 ext 6.

Thursday, August 1st

4pm-6pm Cocktail reception

The Salt House

171 Water Street, St. John’s

7pm Reunion

Craft Council of NL Gallery

275 Duckworth Street, St. John's

To register, get your ticket at:

https://www.eventbrite.ca/e/275-duckworth-reunion-tickets-63656748047

Facebook listing

https://www.facebook.com/events/454785308620627/

Heritage Craft Show-And-Tell!

On Wednesday July 17th, Dale Jarvis, Terra Barrett, and I headed out to Spaniard's Bay for our Heritage Craft Show-And-Tell at the Wesley Goose Heritage Museum. We asked the public to bring any hand made craft objects to show us. We had a nice turnout, with many interesting heritage stories told!

Dianne Carr of the Spaniard's Bay Heritage Society brought knitted gloves made by her mother, along with Calligraphy by her father.

A Spaniard's Bay local, brought a cross he made all constructed from a church pew. He learned to make these from a relative. He also presented a christening dress that was his Grandfathers from circa 1898, making it over 120 years old. The gentlemen donated the dress to the Wesley Goose Heritage Museum for their display.

While chatting with the locals we learned of some craftspeople in the community, which will be a great help to our ongoing Craft at Risk Project! Interested makers and craft producers can take the survey online at www.heritagecraft.ca or by calling the Heritage Craft at Risk toll-free-hotline at 1-888-739-1892.

You are invited to have Tea with Hookers! Wed, July 24th

Bring your favourite hooked mat for a show-and-tell, and have tea and a conversation with some of Placentia West's traditional rug and mat makers. All welcome!

The event will be held at the Tea Rose Eatery & Livyers’ Lot Économusée, a full-service combination museum, craft store, skills workshop, and tea room. 

Livyers’ Lot Économusée

Route 210

Burin Peninsula Highway

Wed, July 24th, 1pm

Facebook event here

Photos courtesy Livyers’ Lot Économusée.

How to make an inexpensive lightbox for photographing artefacts!

We are heading out to Spaniard's Bay tomorrow for our Heritage Craft Show-and-Tell (July 17th, 2019) and we've asked people to bring a hand-made craft object to show us. So, today, Rachael Green and I made a cheap lightbox so we'll have something to use to photograph people's treasures.

We bought an inexpensive transparent plastic tote, some white posterboard, two sided tape, parchment paper, and two cheap LED lamps. Total cost: about $32.  Terra Barrett found this DIY instructable here (we used a plastic tote instead of a cardboard box so it less likely to get banged up as we travel around).

Before:

And after:

Some sample "treasures" we photographed, using my iPhone, as a test:

Thoughts? Suggestions? Possible tweaks? Comment below, or email dale@heritagenl.ca

Living Heritage Podcast Ep155 Adler’s Chocolate Factory, Bay Roberts

Scan courtesy of QEII Library, Archives & Special Collections Dept.
Collection: 3.08.064 - A. Adler of Canada Ltd. 

Have you ever had a nut king? Do you know what a silver mint is? Did you know chocolate and candy were produced in Bay Roberts in the 1950s? Listen to this podcast to learn about Adler’s Chocolate Factory in Bay Roberts. Terra discusses the research she has completed at the Archives & Special Collections Dept in the Centre for Newfoundland Studies, and the interviews with two women who worked at the factory, Irene Mercer, and Margaret Sparkes. Tune in to hear about the work the women did, the uniforms they wore, and the friends the made. If you know about stories about the chocolate factory let us know at livingheritagepodcast@gmail.com.

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The Living Heritage Podcast 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.

Heritage Craft Show-and-Tell July 17th

How many people do you know who can run a birch broom, weave a basket, or turn a wooden rolling pin? At one point, makers of these types of objects were commonplace in Newfoundland and Labrador. Today, it seems that fewer people have the knowledge of how to make the tools, objects, and crafts of yesteryear.

Heritage NL and Spaniard's Bay Heritage Society are celebrating heritage crafts, and want to see what family treasures you might have in your cupboard. On Wednesday July 17th, at 7pm, bring something you or your ancestors made to the Heritage Craft Show-And-Tell at the Wesley Gosse Heritage Museum. Folklorist Dale Jarvis with Heritage NL will be on site to chat with you about your object, and Craft Council of Newfoundland and Labrador researcher Rachael Green will answer your questions about the Craft-at-Risk project.

Nothing breakable or bigger than a breadbox please.
A free event, with mug up to follow.

Heritage Craft Show-And-Tell 
Wednesday July 17th
7pm
Wesley Gosse Heritage Museum
6 Church Hill, Spaniard's Bay

Facebook event listing:

https://www.facebook.com/events/321708925447391/

Can't attend, but have an object you want to show off? Send us a photo!

photo: Model of 17th century British battleship, 

carved out of ivory by Harvey Taylor, resident of Raleigh, Great Northern Peninsula. 

Harvey Taylor was listed as being 45 years old and the father of 6 children in the Census of 1935. 

source: The Rooms,  International Grenfell Association fonds,  Ottawa Business Office, 

St. Anthony office, File MG 63.2192, Item A 58-70, 1932.

Southside Memories with Helen Fogwill Porter

Helen Fogwill Porter. Photo courtesy of CBC NL: https://bit.ly/2XGNTtK.

Do you have memories of growing up in St. John's? Have you heard stories of the longshoremen of the southside?

Join us this Sunday, July 14, at the community room in the St. John's Farmer's Market for a discussion with Helen Fogwill Porter. Folklorist, Dale Jarvis, will led the discussion with Porter, a local writer, and activist on growing up on the Southside Road in St. Johns, Newfoundland, during the 1930s and 1940s.

This Memory Mug Up is a partnership between Heritage NL, the St. John’s Farmer’s Market, and the St. John’s Storytelling Festival. The event will take place on Sunday July 14th from 2-3 p.m. at the St. John’s Farmer’s Market, 245 Freshwater Road.

Southside Memories is a free and informal story sharing session, where people gather, have a cup of tea, and share memories. Bring a memory from growing up, or come out to listen to Helen's stories of the Southside of St. John's.

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

Helen Fogwill Porter. Photo courtesy of CBC NL: https://bit.ly/2LL6O42.

More on Helen Fogwill Porter:
Helen Fogwill Porter was born in 1930, on the Southside of St. John's, Newfoundland. Porter began writing in the 1960s, starting with articles, short stories, and poetry. Her memoir Below the Bridge, published in 1980, is based on her youth growing up on the south side of St. John's. She still resides in St. John's, Newfoundland, today.

Her first novel January, February, June or July won the Young Adult Canadian Book Award from the Canadian Library Association in 1989. She was given the Newfoundland and Labrador Arts Council's lifetime achievement award in 1993. Memorial University of Newfoundland granted her an Honorary Doctorate of Letters in 1997. She was awarded the Order of Canada in December 2015, and the same year a footbridge spanning the Waterford River was dedicated to her.

Porter is a member of the Writers' Union of Canada, and served on the boards of PEN Canada and the Writers Alliance of Newfoundland and Labrador. Porter was also a founding member of the Newfoundland Writer's Guild. Porter taught creative writing with Memorial University Extension Arts and worked with the Visiting Artists' Program of the Newfoundland Teachers' Association. Porter was heavily involved in the women's movement in the early 1970s. She was also a founding member of the Newfoundland Status of Women Council and ran for election to the Canadian Parliament as a New Democratic Party representative four times. In 2003 The Helen Porter Fund was established to help women NDP candidates.

Remembering the Pouch Cove SUF hall

SUF Parade, Pouch Cove, 1955

Do you remember the concerts and times at the old Society of United Fishermen's hall in Pouch Cove? Did you dance there, or have a reception there? Do you know someone who was a member, or remember parades? Come celebrate the history of the SUF, meet former members, have a cup of tea, and maybe even sample some traditional sweets!

Bring any old photos, member's certificates, or SUF memorabilia, and the Pouch Cove Heritage Society will take photos or scan it, to help record the important place of the SUF in Pouch Cove history.

Thursday, July 18th - Remembering the old SUF hall
7:30pm, Anglican Church Hall, Pouch Cove

Organized by the Pouch Cove Heritage Society and Heritage NL.
Free event

Facebook Event Listing
https://www.facebook.com/events/370007783714726/

Take the NL Heritage Craft at Risk Survey!

How many people do you know who can run a birch broom, weave a basket, or make a tea doll? At one point, makers of these types of objects were commonplace in Newfoundland and Labrador. Today, the practitioners of these heritage crafts seem to fewer in number, with fewer people having the knowledge of how to make the tools, objects, and crafts of yesteryear.

Heritage NL and the Craft Council of NL are concerned about this loss of traditional know-how, and are working together to compile a list of makers, craft producers, and skills in decline.

The Heritage Craft at Risk survey is a joint project of the two organizations, which aims to assess the current viability of traditional heritage crafts in NL, and to identify those crafts which are most at risk of disappearing. The project also aims to create a list of heritage crafts in NL, accompanied by information about each craft and whom may practice it.

"Living in the middle of the Atlantic Ocean our craft producers have spent years using their heritage of English, Irish, French, and Indigenous ancestors to grow their creativity and developed a true sense of place that is one of a kind,” says Rowena House, Executive Director of the Craft Council of NL.

“Newfoundland and Labrador has such a unique and diverse range of craft skills that supports some of the best craftspeople in the world,” she adds. “These skills will only survive if they continue to be taught through each generation. They provide a tangible link to our roots, and they are part of our shared heritage.”

With the survey, organizers are asking craft producers, makers, and builders to provide feedback on the current state of the heritage craft form they are most familiar with in Newfoundland and Labrador. The survey covers topics such as the number of makers currently practising specific skills, and issues limiting the health of craft in NL.

Organizers hope that the future Heritage Craft at Risk List will help safeguard, document, and stimulate production of contemporary, traditional, and Indigenous craft. They are looking for feedback from anyone at any level of practise, from professional or amateur craft producers, and from traditional makers of objects ranging from snowshoes to dry stone walls.

“When people think of craft, they often think of things like knitting or rug-making,” says Heritage NL folklorist Dale Jarvis. “We certainly want information on the health of those traditions, but we are just as concerned with things like tinsmithing, fly tying, or making komatiks and slides.”

Interested makers and craft producers can take the survey online at www.heritagecraft.ca, at one of the public sessions to be held over the summer, or by calling Rachael at the Heritage Craft At Risk toll-free hotline at 1-888-739-1892 ext 6.


Public Sessions
Monday, August 12th
7pm Anna Templeton Centre, Duckworth Street, St. John’s

Wednesday, August 14th
7pm SUF Hall, Winterton

Register for the public sessions online at:
https://www.eventbrite.ca/e/heritage-craft-at-risk-public-sessions-tickets-64797180110