Do you still write letters? Have you ever had a penpal? #Folklorephoto

Recently I was working on some material from the Town of Portugal Cove-St. Philip's, which includes these stacks of letters written during WWII between two penpals who would eventually become husband and wife. With today's social media and email communication, the personal handwritten letters are a really beautiful sight! Do you still write letters? Have you ever had a penpal?

#CollectiveMemories Monday - May Day

International Grenfell Association photograph collection.
Labrador and Northern Newfoundland.
May Day: Labrador Public School.
Series VA 94, Item VA 94-35.5.
Courtesy of The Rooms Archives.

Last week I had an interview with Peggy Snow who attended our initial Mount Pearl Memory Mug Up. Peggy grew up in Kilbride and spent a lot of time swimming in the river and playing in the secret hideouts of Bowring Park. During our interview she described her childhood in Kilbride including children's games, local businesses, and the importance of the school and church.

Peggy attended St. Augustine's school which was part of St. Bride's College also known as Littledale. One of the memories she shared of her time in school was her memories of the May walk which she describes in the audio clip below. During the walk the children would wear blue ribbons and crown a Mary in celebration of the Virgin Mary.

Similar traditions or celebrations involving a May Queen and maypoles occur around the world during the month of May. In England May Queens are crowned and maypoles or may bushes are often erected. The tradition of maypoles are also seen in parts of Newfoundland and you can read this may bush blog post to learn more.

Another part of the province which practised the tradition of crowning  a May Queen was Labrador. Although I don't know much of the practice I came across the above photo during a work term with Them Days in Labrador and it immediately came to mind as Peggy described her memories of crowning one of the children with blue ribbons during their May Walk. I reached out to Them Days Archives and was told the practice was thought to have been brought by English settlers and was concentrated in the communities of Cartwright and North West River.

Were you ever crowned a May Queens?
Do you remember May Walks, maypoles, or may bushes?
Let us know and share your memories and photographs!

~Terra Barrett

Launch of "Railway Memories - Stories of the Newfoundland Railway"

In the summer of 2016, I started chatting with Stephen Bonnell and the folks at the Clarenville Heritage Society. The Society, based out of the old Clarenville railway station, was interested in getting involved with the Collective Memories program and safeguarding some of the stories associated with the railway and with the history of Clarenville itself. So off I went, and I helped to interview two local gentlemen, Lindo Palmer and Baxter Tuck. Both of them had fabulous stories of their time with the railway, and I felt that we needed to showcase their memories in some way.

At the same time, I knew there were other oral histories mentioning the Newfoundland Railway which we had worked to place on Memorial University’s Digital Archives Initiative (DAI). And so, with the help of our staff at the ICH office, notably Heather Elliott, Terra Barrett, and Kelly Drover, we put together the next in our ongoing "Collective Memories" series.

Today, we are pleased to launch this, our fifth in the series, designed by Jessie Meyer.

"Railway Memories - Stories of the Newfoundland Railway" is available as a freely downloadable pdf, and contains stories from: Beverley Ann Butler, Patrick Collins, Joseph Cormier, Henry Hutchings, Colin Pike, Lindo Palmer, Clayton Tipple, Baxter Tuck, and Ron White.

Download the pdf here.

Top photo: A break in the line, 1917. Courtesy of the Maritime History Archives, photo #PF-329.042. The Collective Memories Project is an initiative of the Intangible Cultural Heritage Office of the Heritage Foundation of Newfoundland and Labrador, with funding provided by the Department of Children, Seniors and Social Development.

Living Heritage Podcast Ep075 What is an Art Hive?

Dr. Leah Lewis is an assistant professor, counseling psychologist, creative arts therapist and project lead of the Open Art Studio or Art Hive. Art Hives are forms of community based practice, grounded is social justice and art therapy frameworks. Also known as open studios, art hives create publicly accessible spaces for people to gather, exchange, and make art.

• Open studio, open heart
• 'Art hive' project fosters sense of belonging for immigrant, refugee teens

The art hive project at Holy Heart highschool is working with newcomer youth attending the ESL programming there, all of whom are immigrants and / or refugees. In this episode Leah explains Art Hives, the history behind them, and describes an great example found in Montreal. We also discuss the importance of arts in building community, and explore how to use the Art Hive as a place to learn leadership skills as well as practice creativity.

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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.

“It was better times, it was" - An interview with Diane Morris

Portugal Cove-St. Philip's Memory Mug Up

Diane Morris, interviewed by Cassandra Colman

It was a windy day in Portugal Cove-St. Philip’s when Terra Barrett and I interviewed Diane Morris at the local community center. Diane was born in Twillingate, Newfoundland in 1948, and has been a resident of Portugal Cove since 1986. Diane moved to Portugal Cove in order to pursue a career with Newfoundland Hydro, from which she retired in 2002. Diane and her husband still live in the same house they moved into when they first settled in Portugal Cove-St. Philip’s just over thirty years ago. When asked what drew her to Portugal Cove, Diane stated:

“We were planning on buying a house anyway, so we came down, went down to the gas bar down at the service station – I saw a picture of the house in the paper. So then we had a look. I wasn’t planning on buying it at the time, but we did… it was the first one we looked at, it was a good buy. It’s nice down here… it’s very quiet. You are close to everything, the scenery is nice. You have a perfect view of Bell Island… And the neighbours… it is nice here.”

In addition to the tight-knit community, quiet atmosphere, and beautiful scenery, Diane enjoys the opportunities that Portugal Cove-St. Philip’s has for her to fulfill her more athletic inclinations. She is an avid hiker, and enjoys taking to the local trails around Portugal Cove-St. Philip’s with her hiking group. Diane’s favourite trails are located around an area known as Rainbow Gully, where she hikes and snowshoes fairly regularly:

“There’s a lovely hike out in Bay Roberts, but I like them all actually, because we do different ones. We do a bunch around here… we did some of the East Coast Trail as well, right? But the one over behind here [Rainbow Gully], that’s a really nice trail. It’s not one I would do on my own because I think I would get lost, because of the different, you know, little, different off-shoots from that.”

“They come from everywhere, but the two people that set [the hiking group] up were from St. Philip’s. I got involved because they had a meeting over here regarding it. I guess it has been going on for five or six years or more now, but as time went by people came from everywhere – you know, St. John’s, some from the cove, some from CBS – wherever… everybody’s welcome. It’s a great time. We started off with five or six people there every Saturday, and now you might get twenty five or thirty… And then sometimes we go to somebody’s house for a bit of coffee and a little snack after – not every one, but we do that sometimes, which is kind of nice.”

Diane also spent several years rowing in Regatta boating competitions – a style of fixed-seat rowing in which a coxswain steers a boat and a team of rowers on an established racing course. Though she primarily participated in Regatta rowing in St. John’s, Diane also talked a little bit about the Regatta competition held annually in Portugal Cove.

“They have like a mini-Regatta [in Portugal Cove], because I mean they have all these little wheel-spins, and darts, and everything like that, and food, and stuff like that. It’s usually about a whole day, you know, down by the ferry, down that area, right? It’s like, I guess, like a mini-Regatta as compared to St. John’s, which is much bigger, but it’s like a mini-Regatta, which is kind of nice.”

Diane also had a great deal to tell us about her childhood in Twillingate. She grew up in Twillingate with her younger sister, her two younger brothers, and her parents. Diane’s mother was an operating room nurse at the local hospital, and her father was in the merchant navy, and later worked in the Department of Veteran’s Affairs and as a stationary engineer in Twillingate’s local hospital. Her father was born in Northern Bay but grew up in Twillingate, and her mother was from Salmon Bay. Of her childhood in Twillingate, Diane had this to say:

“It was better times, it was – I think it was, when I was growing up. It was not as hectic, you know? And stuff like that. It was good.”

“[We would play] Cowboys and Indians, we used to play that. We used to play baseball and softball. We’d swim and we’d skate. We’d have a dance party at the school, something like that, we’d go to that. And we’d meet our friends at a little restaurant, something like that. When the weather was good, we were always outdoors… we used to slide in the winter time. It was enjoyable.”

“We would play hopscotch, and jumping rope… We were always busy. We were never bored, I can say that.”

In wrapping up our interview, Terra asked Diane if there was anything someone who had never visited Portugal Cove-St. Philip’s should know. Diane reiterated all her favourite parts of living in Portugal Cove, and concluded her statement with this:

“I have no plans on moving anytime soon – my age will probably force me later on, but I like it here. My husband likes it here too… It’s just a nice community, you know? It’s very nice, it’s very quiet. I think if anybody, you know, who didn’t live here and came here to live, I think they would enjoy it. It’s nice. I didn’t know where we would have bought a house when we bought it, we just happened to see it down here. It’s close to everything… it’s a nice place.”

This interview was conducted as part of a Collective Memories Mug Up project conducted by Memorial University students enrolled in FOLK 6740: Public Folklore, Winter 2017.

Do you remember the Mount Pearl Curl? - Tuesday's #FolklorePhoto

You may remember Kerri Rodden-Kemp from Kilbride who appeared
on The Ellen Degeneres show with her big hair from 1989.
Photo courtesy of CBC Newfoundland and Labrador.

This week I did some follow up interviews from our Mount Pearl Memory Mug Up events which took place at the local library. Debbie O'Rielly who grew up in Mount Pearl in the 1970s and early 1980s described her memories of playing games, going to school, and visiting the local shops. She also explained the system of trails she would play on as a child and later as a teenager used as a hangout spot. Debbie also mentioned some of the major changes and the growth she has seen in the community over the years.

Aside from childhood memories there was one particular thing I had to ask Debbie about and that was the origin of the Mount Pearl Curl. Debbie explained that the phenomenon started a couple of years after she graduated high school but she explained the process of creating the famous Mount Pearl Curl. In the clip below you can learn how to recreate the style with the help of a lot of hairspray and a textbook.



Do you remember the Mount Pearl Curl?
Do you know how this hair trend started or how it spread?
Better yet, do you have photographs?
Let us know in the comments or email terra@heritagefoundation.ca!

~Terra Barrett

#CollectiveMemories Monday - Preparing Turrs with Sarah Hiscock

Sarah Hiscock of Champney's West.

On July 7, 2016, as part of the Collective Memories project, I interviewed Sarah Hiscock of Champney’s West. In this short interview Sarah describes growing up in Champney’s West, shares her memories of the wreck of the Hazel Pearl, and explains how to prepare turr to eat. I’ve included a short audio clip below about cleaning and eating turr.

Listen to Sarah’s full interview here on the Memorial University’s Digital Archives.


~Terra Barrett

Riddle Me This! Riddle Night at The Crow's Nest Photos

Terra Barrett and Dale Jarvis hosting Riddle Me This!
Photo by Kelly Drover.

Riddle:
We hurt without moving, we poison without touching. 

We bare the truth and the lies. 

We are not to be judged by our size. 

What are we?

(Answer below)

This week our office hosted Riddle Me This an open mic night of traditional riddles at the Crow's Nest. Dale and I came prepped with a selection of riddles from online sources, friends and family, and Memorial University's Folklore and Language Archives. Several audience members also brought riddles to puzzle the audience. It was a great evening of brain work outs and we had requests for a repeat session. We even had one audience member who came decked out in a riddler inspired outfit.

We recorded the riddling session and are working on a list of the traditional and contemporary riddles rhymed off  on Tuesday night. Stay tuned to the blog updates where we will post the completed list and let us know if you would like to see this event again!

~Terra Barrett

Sara Anne Johnson, in her riddler dress, and Dale Jarvis at Riddle Me This!
Photo by Terra Barrett.

Answer: Words

From Pliny to Placentia Bay: The Folklore of Vinegar. #folklorethursday

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

Up Jack got, and home did trot
Fast as he could caper,
He went to bed to mend his head,
With vinegar and brown paper.

The traditional “Jack and Jill” rhyme we learned as children dates back at least to the 1700s, and exists with a number of different verses and variations. What we are focussing on today is that second verse, with the reference to the vinegar plaster. An earlier version, noted in The Oxford Dictionary of Nursery Rhymes, goes:

Up Jack got, and home did trot
As fast as he could caper;
To old Dame Dob, who patched his nob
With vinegar and brown paper.

The idea of patching your nob with a vinegar plaster goes back a long way. Greek physician and botanist Pedanius Dioscorides (c. 40 – 90 AD) included vinegar in a cure for headaches in his five-volume De Materia Medica. Dioscorides was employed as a medic in the Roman army, so I suspect he knew a thing or two about bumps on the head (and hangovers, for that matter). The idea was supported by Pliny the Elder, who encouraged the use of a vinegar plaster as a cure for snakebite and scorpion stings. Vinegar as a headache cure persisted for a couple thousand years, ending up in children’s rhymes. Well into the modern era it was a common practice in areas without sophisticated medical care, and still survives as a home remedy today. In a 1946 article in Decks Awash, Victor Butler writes,

Many years ago when people lived in the harbours and coves of Placentia Bay, they were without medical assistance in time of sickness and accident. This was one of the prices liveyers had to pay for living in isolation. However, in all the communities first settled, there resided from one to three middle aged mothers who were skilled in administering to the needs of the sick and suffering. Some were more skilled than others in using the limited amount of available remedies to cope with the different ailments. In later years I have given much thought to how those very intelligent, although illiterate women, acquired the skill to use the different roots, leaves, barks and buds of trees and plants in a suitable manner to ease the pain and discomfort of people suffering from so many different ailments. The majority of settlers in the Bays and Harbours migrated to Newfoundland from England, Ireland, Scotland and the Channel Islands. They must have been aware of the different remedies mentioned and then passed the information along to their descendants.

Butler then goes on to list various traditional healing concoctions. Two of those involve vinegar:

7. White liniment —- Equal parts of spirits turpentine and white vinegar were combined with the whites and the shells of two eggs. 

8. Brown paper and vinegar — Brown paper saturated with cold vinegar was placed on foreheads for headaches.

Dame-Dob-of-the-nursery-rhyme was, apparently, of the same school of traditional medicine as Butler’s three middle-aged Placentia Bay mothers.

Today, we are more likely to use vinegar on our fish and chips. Even that custom has its own traditions and folklore.

According to a 1980 article by Susan Coen, the 1953 Avalon Telephone Company phone book had one listing under "Chip Service" for St. John’s -- Ron's Snack Bar, Lime Street. In an interview with Ron Martin, son of the original owner, Martin noted this about vinegar:

The vinegar, fast foods don't even think about vinegar. But vinegar is a very important thing to fish 'n chips. It's got to be brown and it's got to be mixed vinegar. Little packages of that white vinegar, we just don't even use on fish 'n chips. It sounds foolish, but it's a fact. Brown vinegar. I drink it. I actually drink it. Yeah. Every hour I usually have a handful of brown vinegar.

Today in St. John’s, a new generation of vinegar-makers is emerging. Janet Harron is the proprietress of Wild Mother Provisions, a food company specializing in artisanal vinegar and the traditional baked goods of Britain and Ireland. Harron currently sells at the St. John’s Farmer’s Market and her beer-based vinegar (technically alegar) is also available at Rocket Bakery and other retailers in downtown St. John’s.



“We are looking for stories about the use of vinegar in Newfoundland and Labrador,” Harron says. “For example, do you remember a vinegar plant in your house when you were growing up, a home-fermented vinegar made from toasted bread, molasses, yeast and water? What was it used for? Do you remember eating vinegar pie? Or a vinegar drink sweetened with molasses?”

Harron notes that this vinegar drink dates from the 18th century and is called “switchel” or "Haymakers’ Punch" in United States, not to be confused with Newfoundland and Labrador switchel, which refers to tea left boiling on the stove all day.

What are your vinegar memories, or pieces of vinegar folklore from your community? Did you have a vinegar plant? Let us know! Comment below or email ich@heritagefoundation.ca


Works Cited:

Butler, Victor. Angels of Mercy. Decks Awash, vol. 05, no. 05 (October 1976): 14.

Cohen, Susan. “Fish ‘n Chips” in St. John’s. Culture & Tradition, vol. 05 (1980): 43-54.

The Oxford Dictionary of Nursery Rhymes (Oxford: Oxford University Press, 1997).