"A well proportioned and Church-like building" - Alexander Mortuary Chapel of All Souls, Bonavista

The Alexander Mortuary Chapel of All Souls was designated a Registered Heritage Structure by the Heritage Foundation of Newfoundland and Labrador in 1989 (the chapel and surrounding graveyard were designated by the Town of Bonavista in 2006). It is one of two surviving mortuary chapels in the province, the other being in nearby Trinity. I've written about the Chapel's lych gate before, and recently came across this note, printed in the Trinity section of the Evening Telegram 1922-07-22 (p9):

At the invitation of Canon Bayly who has gone as Chaplain to the Bishop during his Labrador visitation, I went to Bonavista on Wednesday (July 12th) to officiate at the marriage of two of his parishioners. Before the hour appointed for the wedding, however, I was called upon to bury a little child —Marjorie Templeman— This gave me an opportunity to spend an hour in the cemetery and the Mortuary Chapel. The cemetery is beautifully situated, uniformly laid off in lots, with fairly well kept paths all through it. The graves show indications of loving care, and the majority of them are marked by a well proportioned marble cross, thus giving the cemetery a distinctively Christian appearance. A beautiful Lych-gate of which there are so few in Newfoundland guards and admits to the cemetery. The Mortuary Chapel is a well proportioned and Church-like building. It is fitted with an Altar, a Lectern, and a few seats, and the roof and walls are neatly finished with wood in natural colours. This is one of the three Mortuary Chapels in the Diocese (St. John's, Bonavista and Trinity) and if it were fully fitted with seats, the windows filled with stained glass memorials, and the exterior given a fresh coat of paint, it would constitute an easy first of the three. Under the shadow of the east end of the bulging lie the bodies of the father and mother of Canon Bayly, whose names bring back a flood of happy, holy memories to those who were privileged to know them in the parish and in their home. Grant them Lord Eternal rest.

Portugal Cove-St. Philip's Photo Scanning Party, Dec 4th.

Photo Scanning Party
Town of PCSP Public Library
Tuesday, Dec 4th, 10am

Do you have an old photo album that might include images from Portugal Cove-St. Philip's? The Portugal Cove-St. Philip's Family History Club is hosting a scanning party, to help preserve and share old photos for all to see.

The society is looking for old photos of the community, from the 1880s to the 1980s, including anything showing old buildings, garden parties, family reunions, or cars decorated for weddings. The event will be hosted in partnership with the intangible cultural heritage office of Heritage NL.

“We want to see those snapshots Nan kept in the old biscuit tin in the closet,” says folklorist Dale Jarvis with Heritage NL. “Sometimes photos from the 1970s and ‘80s include buildings or structures that have been torn down, so even if they aren’t ancient photographs, they can still help us document changes to the community.”

Heritage NL staff will be on site to scan the photographs and ask questions about who or what is in the photo. If you bring your own USB flash drive, you can take home a digital copy as well as your original photographs.

The digital copies will be used by the town for a future old photos night during Heritage Week in February. Photos will also be shared on Facebook with the owner’s permission, and a copy will be uploaded to Memorial University’s Digital Archives Initiative, which is indexed and archived for history buffs everywhere.

So go ahead and dig out those old photos, and come out on Tuesday, Dec 4th, 10am, at the Town of Portugal Cove-St. Philip's Public Library, located at the back entrance to the town hall, 1119 Thorburn Road.

Free event, register online at:

https://www.eventbrite.ca/e/photo-scanning-party-portugal-cove-st-philips-tickets-52614362976

Photo courtesy Ruth Bugden, who was one of our
participants in the Portugal Cove Memory Mug Up. 

Want a scanning party in your community?
Email dale@heritagenl.ca

Memories of the Earnest Harmon American Air Force Base - Stephenville Theatre Festival wants to hear your stories

STEPHENVILLE THEATRE FESTIVAL: NEW PLAY DEVELOPMENT

We are interested in exploring how Stephenville and its surrounding areas on the west coast of Newfoundland were culturally affected by the establishment of the Earnest Harmon American Air Force Base. Historically, the infusion of American culture that occurred with the introduction of the base occurred at a time of cultural, political, and socio economic shift for the Dominion of Newfoundland. By 1949, the island would become a part of Canada, and in the years that followed, resettlement created an irreversible shift in identity and livelihood.

We want to speak to as many people as possible who have stories to share about those who left as young women and later returned, as well as those who remember life in the base’s heyday, Anyone who can share their own experiences or the experiences of the family and friends is encouraged to reach out to us, so that we may accurately illuminate the stories of these women, their families and of Stephenville itself.

In 2018/2019 the Stephenville Theatre Festival (STF), will embark upon this exciting new project with the support of ACOA and The Canada Council for the Arts. We have a strong desire to create a work of theatre that will represent this region and it’s unique cultural heritage. We understand that our audience of local residents have a strong desire to feel their voices and experiences reflected in the theatre that they attend.

STF’s Artistic Director, Heather Braaten and award winning NL playwright, Meghan Greeley will be conducting research and holding interviews with anyone who is interested in sharing their stories about this time in our history. Specifically, many local young women who lived in the area during the operational years of the base, met and married American soldiers who were stationed at the base. When the base closed in 1966, many of these women left Stephenville, moving to the United States with their husbands and young children. We are interested in exploring the story of Stephenville’s Americanization and the outmigration of these war brides in parallel context with resettlement, as well as its struggle to reinvent itself under Canadian jurisdiction.

APPOINTMENTS WILL BE SCHEDULED BETWEEN DECEMBER 2nd and DECEMBER 11

(Daytime, evening and weekend appointments will be available as to suit every participants schedule.)

PLEASE CONTACT US TO EXPRESS INTEREST AND SCHEDULE AN INTERVIEW EMAIL: stfgeneralmanager@gmail.com

Living Heritage Podcast Ep136 Nancy Brace of the Green's Harbour Heritage Society on the Importance of Our Heritage Buildings

Nancy Brace is the president of the Green’s Harbour Heritage Society in Green’s Harbour, Newfoundland. The Society formed in 2009 and its original mission was to preserve one the few heritage buildings in the community, the former Orange Lodge (now the ARCH Center). In this episode, Nancy talks about the Society's current project, preserving the St. Matthew’s Anglican Church, which was built in 1880 and deconsecrated in 2016, and her personal connection to the heritage buildings in her community.

Download MP3

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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 HFNL and CHMR Radio. Past episodes are hosted on Libsyn, and you can subscribe via iTunes, or Stitcher. Theme music is Rythme Gitan by Latché Swing.

Digital Storytelling: My Grandparents' House with Ruth Bugden

Digital storytelling is a short form of digital media production that allows everyday people to share aspects of their own family and community history. Many people have stories about family members and local places that often go untold. Digital storytelling helps interpret and make community history accessible.

Ruth Bugden tells the story of her grandparents' house.

Or click here to watch the video on YouTube.

Photos and audio courtesy of Ruth Bugden. Photos collected as part of the Digital Storytelling workshop held Tuesday, October 16th, 2018 in Portugal Cove-St. Philip’s. If this video elicits memories for you, or if you'd like to arrange a digital storytelling workshop for your community, contact Dale Jarvis at dale@heritagenl.ca

All aboard! Newfoundland Railway, 1950s. #FolklorePhoto

This photo shows men posing on the Newfoundland Railway boxcar number 1228, close to the old Spaniard's Bay railway station off New Harbour Road in the1950s. What looks like a speeder car can be seen in the distance off to the right.


Photo courtesy Daphne Robinson. Photo collected as part of the "Lassy Days Photo Scanning Pary" held Wednesday, August 8th, 2018 at the Wesley Gosse Heritage Museum. If this photo elicits memories for you, or if you'd like to arrange a photo scanning party for your community, contact Dale Jarvis at dale@heritagenl.ca

Living Heritage Economy Case Study: Exploring Folklore Through Craft with Janet Peter

Heritage NL is pleased to present the first of its Living Heritage Economy Case Studies, which focuses on fibre artist Janet Peter, and how she uses elements of local folklore such as mummers, Old Hags, and other supernatural creatures in her craft business.

Visual artist, maker, and arts educator Janet Peter has been making marks on paper since she was old enough to hold a pencil. After high school, Janet briefly studied animation, but it was after graduating with a Visual Arts diploma that she began a line of papier-mâché mummer figurines. She possesses a great interest in local traditions and lore, and these themes recur in much of her work.

One of the recommendations that came out of the Forum on Adapting NL’s Intangible Cultural Heritage held last October was that the ICH Office engage in further work to support “Living Traditions in Sustainable Communities.” The ICH Committee met and decided to move forward with a series of “Living Heritage Economy Case Studies” looking at building cultural businesses based on aspects of our intangible cultural heritage. ICH-based businesses might focus on food products, publications, experiential tourism, or learning vacations.

The document was prepared by Dale Jarvis, Intangible Cultural Heritage Development Officer for Heritage NL, as part of a series of case studies examining the links between living heritage, traditionality, entrepreneurism, and community economic development in Newfoundland and Labrador.

Download the case study as a pdf here.

The second case study, now in production, will look at how Christine Legrow of Spindrift Handknits is producing knitting patterns based on traditional designs.

If you would like to suggest a tradition-inspired local business for a possible future case study, or for information on documenting and safeguarding local traditions, contact Dale Jarvis at dale@heritagenl.ca. For more information on the Craft Council of NL, mentioned in the case study, visit https://craftcouncil.nl.ca/

Invite to Harbour Grace Heritage Opportunities & Priorities Session Nov 28

Invite to Harbour Grace Heritage Follow-up Session

Wednesday, November 28, 2018
1:30 p.m.
Firemen's Social Building,
Bannerman Street, Harbour Grace

A “People, Places & Culture “Workshop was facilitated by Heritage NL in Harbour Grace 10 November 2018. The workshop comprised two parts: I) a cultural mapping activity that considered the community’s tangible and intangible cultural assets; and II) a session to explore opportunities for protecting, safeguarding and developing these assets. The latter activity involved identifying themes and clusters of cultural assets that emerged from the mapping session. This meeting involved local heritage enthusiasts, residents, town staff, and representatives from the Town of Harbour Grace, Conception Bay Museum, and the Heritage and Redevelopment Committee.

15 themes emerged from the discussion, written notes, and mapping exercise. The next step will be to prioritize these and set some actionable items with some recommendations from Heritage NL.

You can view the preliminary report and the list of themes and sub topics here.


The follow-up session is set for Wednesday, November 28, 2018, at 1:30 p.m. in the Firemen's Social Building, Bannerman Street, Harbour Grace, and is open to everyone. If you're interested in heritage and development, come along! We'll be going over the preliminary report, and setting some priorities for future heritage work in Harbour Grace.

You can register for the workshop online.


For more information contact:
Matthew Gerard McCarthy
Economic Development Officer
Town of Harbour Grace

T: (709) 596-3042
C: (709) 222-9320
F: (709) 596-1991

P.O. Box 310
112 Water Street
Harbour Grace, NL
A0A 2M0

www.hrgrace.ca
matthewmccarthy@hrgrace.ca

Living Heritage Podcast Ep135 When Folklore Meets Pop Culture

What do Superman, Santa Claus, and Krampus all have in common? They're some of the research interests of Dr. Daniel Peretti, a new faculty member with Memorial University’s Folklore Department. Dr. Peretti grew up in Algonac, Michigan and studied film at Grand Valley State University in Michigan. He went to Indiana University to study Folklore and began studying holiday celebrations and history. He moved onto researching mythology and and narrative, and focused his dissertation on Greek mythology in the United States, which included a lot of popular culture. In this episode, Dr. Peretti talks about his book, Superman in Myth and Folklore, and his newest project on the history and folklore of Santa Claus.

Download MP3

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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 HFNL and CHMR Radio. Past episodes are hosted on Libsyn, and you can subscribe via iTunes, or Stitcher. Theme music is Rythme Gitan by Latché Swing.