One thing you can count on during wintertime in Newfoundland is that everyone starts talking about the local snow plows. Whether you are happy with their work on your street, or have a dozen things to complain about, we all know that we are better off with them than without. I recently had a chat with Lloyd Smith of Heart's Content about how they used to deal with snow on the roads before the days of the plow. Our conversation was inspired by a photograph he showed me from 1959 of a bulldozer pushing snow off the roads. To see this photo and hear Lloyd's recollections of getting around during the winter when he was young, watch the video below. After that, hear him talk about how the town would use a horse and dray to deal with all the potholes that would appear once the snow had fully melted.
Fingers crossed that we don't get another huge snowfall anytime soon. In the meantime, let's all thank the local snow plowers who are doing a great deal of hard work this year.
-Lisa
Wednesday, February 13, 2013
Tuesday, February 12, 2013
Fabulous stop-motion documentary on Irish furniture
If you are going to watch one stop-motion documentary on vernacular Irish furniture, watch this one!
I hadn't heard of this lovely little 2012 film, directed by Tony Donoghue, but it was recommended to me (thank you!) by Joy Hecht. Apparently, it has won an award for animation at the Sundance Film Festival. If you have 9 minutes or so to spare, check it out on YouTube.
I hadn't heard of this lovely little 2012 film, directed by Tony Donoghue, but it was recommended to me (thank you!) by Joy Hecht. Apparently, it has won an award for animation at the Sundance Film Festival. If you have 9 minutes or so to spare, check it out on YouTube.
Tuesday's Folklore Photo: English Picnic Baskets
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| A woven basket owned by Neal Wells of Grand Falls-Windsor |
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| A woven basket owned by Patricia Mchuge of Grand Falls-Windsor |
If you happen to have any idea what these baskets are made of please get in touch with the Intangible Cultural Heritage Office, we'd love to hear from you! Contact Nicole at 1-888-739-1892 ex.6 or email at nicole@heritagefoundation.ca
Friday, February 8, 2013
Bay Roberts Heritage District Plans
Yesterday evening Dale Jarvis and I traveled to Bay Roberts to join the local Heritage Advisory Committee for one of their monthly meetings. On the agenda was a topic that I have a vested interest in: The Bay Roberts Heritage District plan. The planning for district has been in the works for quite some time and will ultimately involve the official designation of Cable Avenue in Bay Roberts as a heritage district. This street is lined with houses that were built around 1913 by the Western Union cable company as accommodations for their staff. You will also see several large chestnut trees that were planted in 1915, just after the buildings were completed.
Over the next few months I will be collecting oral histories with residents who have either lived on this street or have some personal connection to this unique architectural district. Ultimately, the fieldwork I am doing will be put towards a special exhibit for the 100th year anniversary of the cable station in Bay Roberts.
The above image was taken in 1913 and shows the construction of Cable Ave. It is from the online archival collection: The Cable Story--Bay Roberts Virtual Museum (provided by Bay Roberts Heritage Society Inc). Please contact me if you know anyone who has lived on Cable Avenue or has any stories to share about these buildings.
lisa@heritagefoundation.ca
709-739-1892 ext.3
-Lisa
Over the next few months I will be collecting oral histories with residents who have either lived on this street or have some personal connection to this unique architectural district. Ultimately, the fieldwork I am doing will be put towards a special exhibit for the 100th year anniversary of the cable station in Bay Roberts.
The above image was taken in 1913 and shows the construction of Cable Ave. It is from the online archival collection: The Cable Story--Bay Roberts Virtual Museum (provided by Bay Roberts Heritage Society Inc). Please contact me if you know anyone who has lived on Cable Avenue or has any stories to share about these buildings.
lisa@heritagefoundation.ca
709-739-1892 ext.3
-Lisa
Thursday, February 7, 2013
12 tips for a better oral history or folklore interview
Nervous about your first oral history or folklore interview? It's OK, I'm here to help! Here are some tips and tricks to get you ready. And if you want, you can download this as a one-page PDF for handy reference.
1. If you haven't done any oral history interviewing before, think first about a focus or theme for your project. Ask yourself, “Why am I doing this interview? What information do I want to get?”
2. Think about the type of interview you wish to do. Life History Interviews focus on the life history of a person and the changes they may have experienced; Topic Interviews collect information about a specific subject, workplace, skill or occupation.
3. Do an informal “pre-interview.” Be clear with your “informant” - the person you are interviewing - that the interview is being recorded, and what it will be used for. Have a discussion in advance about the type of information of interest to you.
4. In general, have a list of topics in mind you want to cover in the interview, rather than a set list of questions. You might have some written starting questions to begin with, but then shift to your topic list and be flexible.
5. Start off with some easy questions, such as short biographical questions about name, date of birth, parents and the like. This gives you good identifying information at the start of the interview, and helps relax your informant. You can ask more detailed or personal questions after you both settle into the conversation.
6. Ask questions one at a time. If your question has two or three parts, ask them separately.
7. Ask open-ended questions that require more than a "yes" or "no" answer. Questions that start with “how” or “why” get you more interesting answers.
8. Use plain, straightforward words and avoid leading questions. Rather than asking “I suppose life as a fisherman was hard?”, ask “Can you describe what life was like for a fisherman?”
9. Ask follow-up questions. Then ask some more! If something is unclear, ask for clarification.
10. Don’t be afraid to ask questions to which you think you already know the answers. You might get suprising answers!
11. Be a good listener, and refrain from talking too much yourself. Use body language, nodding, and smiling to encourage your informant. Let them know, visually, that you are interested.
12. Don't let periods of silence fluster you. Just wait and don’t rush the interview. Sometimes people need a moment to complete their thoughts. If you are silent, chances are your informant will fill the gap by saying something more about the question you asked last.
1. If you haven't done any oral history interviewing before, think first about a focus or theme for your project. Ask yourself, “Why am I doing this interview? What information do I want to get?”
2. Think about the type of interview you wish to do. Life History Interviews focus on the life history of a person and the changes they may have experienced; Topic Interviews collect information about a specific subject, workplace, skill or occupation.
3. Do an informal “pre-interview.” Be clear with your “informant” - the person you are interviewing - that the interview is being recorded, and what it will be used for. Have a discussion in advance about the type of information of interest to you.
4. In general, have a list of topics in mind you want to cover in the interview, rather than a set list of questions. You might have some written starting questions to begin with, but then shift to your topic list and be flexible.
5. Start off with some easy questions, such as short biographical questions about name, date of birth, parents and the like. This gives you good identifying information at the start of the interview, and helps relax your informant. You can ask more detailed or personal questions after you both settle into the conversation.
6. Ask questions one at a time. If your question has two or three parts, ask them separately.
7. Ask open-ended questions that require more than a "yes" or "no" answer. Questions that start with “how” or “why” get you more interesting answers.
8. Use plain, straightforward words and avoid leading questions. Rather than asking “I suppose life as a fisherman was hard?”, ask “Can you describe what life was like for a fisherman?”
9. Ask follow-up questions. Then ask some more! If something is unclear, ask for clarification.
10. Don’t be afraid to ask questions to which you think you already know the answers. You might get suprising answers!
11. Be a good listener, and refrain from talking too much yourself. Use body language, nodding, and smiling to encourage your informant. Let them know, visually, that you are interested.
12. Don't let periods of silence fluster you. Just wait and don’t rush the interview. Sometimes people need a moment to complete their thoughts. If you are silent, chances are your informant will fill the gap by saying something more about the question you asked last.
- Have questions about questions? Ask your friendly neighbourhood folklorist, Dale Jarvis, at ich@heritagefoundation.ca
Tuesday, February 5, 2013
Tuesday's Folklore Photo: Russian Gzhel Folkcraft Hand Crank Coffee Mill
Photo taken by Christina Robarts Jan. 28, 2013
As part of the interviews conducted for the "Newfiki" project I have been documenting objects that immigrants coming to Canada have brought with them from their home country. The above photo is a picture of a porcelain hand crank coffee grinder mounted on the cabinet in the kitchen of O.V, in St. John's, NL. The top portion is decorated in the Gzhel style which is recognizable by its characteristic blue-and-white colour scheme.
Monday, February 4, 2013
Hunting Hogboons and Detecting Trows: Kids search out the supernatural
I had two meetings today about future folklore projects in Conception Bay, one in Bay Roberts and the other in Cupids. Perhaps unsurprisingly, talk of the fairies came up in both. Conception Bay is rich in fairy lore, and there seems to be a growing interest in communities in the area in documenting and celebrating these traditions.
While in Cupids, I mentioned two fairylore projects from across the pond, one from Shetland and the other from Orkney. I first heard about the Shetland project from storyteller Davy Cooper when he visited Newfoundland a few years back. The Shetland Museum and Archives had created a Trowie Knowe, the house of a "trow" - a type of small, ugly supernatural creature like a troll. They had also created a "Trow Detector" - a steampunkish looking device for alerting museum goers to nearly trows.
The Orkney project allowed kids to search out evidence of a similar type of creature, a hogboon, a mound-dwelling creature tied to particular families. The hogboon hunt was part of a one day workshop where participants used newly learnt archaeological skills like surveying, map making, photography, and collecting and documenting artefacts. You can check out the video of the kids on their hunt on Vimeo. The story in the piece is told by Orkadian storyteller Tom Muir.
Rousay Summer Club Survey from Mark Jenkins on Vimeo.
While in Cupids, I mentioned two fairylore projects from across the pond, one from Shetland and the other from Orkney. I first heard about the Shetland project from storyteller Davy Cooper when he visited Newfoundland a few years back. The Shetland Museum and Archives had created a Trowie Knowe, the house of a "trow" - a type of small, ugly supernatural creature like a troll. They had also created a "Trow Detector" - a steampunkish looking device for alerting museum goers to nearly trows.
The Orkney project allowed kids to search out evidence of a similar type of creature, a hogboon, a mound-dwelling creature tied to particular families. The hogboon hunt was part of a one day workshop where participants used newly learnt archaeological skills like surveying, map making, photography, and collecting and documenting artefacts. You can check out the video of the kids on their hunt on Vimeo. The story in the piece is told by Orkadian storyteller Tom Muir.
Rousay Summer Club Survey from Mark Jenkins on Vimeo.
Friday, February 1, 2013
The Paranormal in Heart's Content
As a folklorist, it isn't every day that you get to hear a good ghost or fairy story, but then on some days, people will tell you two or three. Doing fieldwork for the Heart's Content heritage district this past Wednesday, a few residents shared some of what they know about the paranormal in Heart's Content.
Art Cumby had a wonderful fairy story to share, along with a photograph of himself hanging out with the other boys he knew as a child. You'll find him standing up, wearing a striped shirt. He and his friend Art Button (also wearing a striped shirt) were just 11 years old when this happened to them:
Gina Balsom, on the other hand, has been working as an interpreter at the Cable Station historic site for several years. She explained that while she has never had any strange experiences or feelings in the old building, a few visitors certainly have. Here is what Gina had to say about working in a supposedly haunted space:
Thanks to Art and Gina for sharing their stories. In fact, I'm always looking for a good ghost or fairy story. If you know of any from the Heart's Content or Bay Roberts (my next heritage district destination), please drop me a line at lisa@heritagefoundation.ca.
-Lisa
Gina Balsom, on the other hand, has been working as an interpreter at the Cable Station historic site for several years. She explained that while she has never had any strange experiences or feelings in the old building, a few visitors certainly have. Here is what Gina had to say about working in a supposedly haunted space:
Thanks to Art and Gina for sharing their stories. In fact, I'm always looking for a good ghost or fairy story. If you know of any from the Heart's Content or Bay Roberts (my next heritage district destination), please drop me a line at lisa@heritagefoundation.ca.
-Lisa
Help us, universe, we need this type of headset. Ideas?
Hi all,
We have an antiquated (heritage?) phone system in our office, and we need to find a headset we can use with it.
The phones do NOT have a standard mini headset jack, they have an old fashioned phone jack port like this:
We have an antiquated (heritage?) phone system in our office, and we need to find a headset we can use with it.
The phones do NOT have a standard mini headset jack, they have an old fashioned phone jack port like this:
None of the usual places you'd buy phone/computer equipment in town sell headsets that fit these anymore. I'm looking for something that might look like this, with a headphone plug instead of a mini jack:
Anyone seen one of these lying around somewhere, or for sale in St. John's? If you have, email me at ich@heritagefoundation.ca
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