#AdaptingHeritage Forum 2017 - Introducing Alex Howse

Alex Howse was born in Gaultois, Hermitage Bay, an out port community on Long Island, located on the South Coast of Newfoundland. Being on an island where his only means of travel was by water, a boat became a very important part of his life for many reasons. He had his first boat (a motor dory) when he was 12 years old. His second boat was a 24’fishing boat, converted to, what you would call today, a small cabin cruiser. The last boat was a small fibreglass cruiser which was birthed in Cupids where he has a summer place next to the ocean. After graduating Victoria High School in Gaultois, he taught elementary school for a year and later moved to St. John’s to study finance at the College of Trades and Technology (College of the North Atlantic)followed by studies with the Registered Industrial Accountants Assoc and The Purchasing Management Assoc. of Canada. The majority of his work life was in Finance, and Materials Management, all within the healthcare sector. While he's built a few boats through the years, now retired in Mount Pearl, his current passion is building large scale model boats, each with a story behind them and built in the traditional method of construction.

At the forum, Alex will be conducting a demonstration on how to cast a net. 

Forum on Adapting NL's Intangible Cultural Heritage will take place on October 25 and 26. The cost of registration is $75.00, and $18.75 for post-secondary students. For full program details click here. To register click here.

The 1845 Whitechapel bell at St. George's Anglican Church, Petty Harbour

C & G Mears Founders London bell at Petty Harbour - cast circa 1845

We paid a visit to St. George’s Anglican Church in Petty Harbour this morning, to have an initial meeting about compiling an architectural and oral history of the building. While there, we explored the belfry, and took a few photos of the building’s historic bell.

The church is the third Anglican church on the site. The first, St. David’s, was built in 1829. It was replaced by St. Andrew’s in 1845. Fire destroyed the second church in 1934. The new cornerstone was laid May 31, 1937, and the church opened for services in 1939.

The bell appears to be the original bell for the second church, St. Andrew’s. According to Sheila MacKenzie Brown’s 1981 Folklore MA thesis “The Church Bell Tradition in Newfoundland: A Reflection of Culture Change,” the St. George’s bell was cast (or purchased) in 1845.

The bell is cast with the foundry’s mark “C & G Mears Founders London.” The name C & G Mears was one of many names used by the company now operating as 'Whitechapel Bell Foundry Ltd.” The Whitechapel Bell Foundry is Britain's oldest manufacturing company, having been established in 1570 (during the reign of Queen Elizabeth I) and being in continuous business since that date. The Petty Harbour St. Andrew’s bell has some historic counterparts, as the foundry produced such notable bells as Big Ben and the Liberty Bell.

The bell is one of seven Newfoundland Whitechapel bells noted in Brown’s 1981 thesis. At that time, the remaining six identified were: a 1846 bell cast for an unnamed Anglican church in St. John’s; the 1852 bell for the Anglican church in Hermitage; the 1931 bell for the United Church in Twillingate; a 1932 bell for the Anglican Cathedral in St. John’s; the 1952 bell for the Anglican Church in Seldom-Come-By, Fogo; and the 1962 bell for the Anglican Church in Daniel’s Harbour.

View of the bell from underneath

Following the 1934 fire, the bell was re-used in the current church. The bell is still rung each Sunday to announce the start of service at St. George’s. Service starts at 11:15 (to allow time for the officiating priest to finish their service at St. Paul’s Anglican in the Goulds).

View of the wheel mechanism that aids in the ringing of the bell. 

View of St. George's Anglican Church from the hill behind the church, showing the belfry. The four-sided spire and corner finials are tin; note the original decorative railing between the finials, 3/4 of which is now missing.  The bell is housed in the tower behind the louvered opening.

Oral History Roadshow - Salmon Cove Memories

Dorothy Smith fonds Salmon Cove, Conception Bay Fonds MG 179, Item VA 22-53 [summer 1943]
Courtesy of The Rooms

Oral History Roadshow - Salmon Cove Memories

Did you grow up in Salmon Cove? Do you remember bucking barrels for bonfire night? Do you recall sliding in the winter or playing on the beach in the summer? Do you have old photos of Salmon Cove? The Heritage Foundation NL, in partnership with community members in Salmon Cove, wants to know!

We’ll be hosting a Salmon Cove Oral History Event at the Salmon Cove Community Centre (SCPC Fire Department) on Main Road on Wednesday, October 11th, 2017 at 10am.

“We are looking for anyone connected to Salmon Cove with stories of growing up in the community,” says Heritage Foundation folklorist Dale Jarvis. “If you have memories or photographs of the community of Salmon Cove, we would love to hear from you.”

The Salmon Cove Memories Oral History Event is part of the Foundation’s Oral History Roadshow. This project is an initiative of the Intangible Cultural Heritage Office of the HFNL made possible with assistance from the New Horizons for Seniors program. The Oral History Night Roadshow will see researchers travel from community to community, hosting a series of Oral History Nights, open-mic storytelling sessions led and inspired by seniors in that community.

Come for a cup of tea, a bite to eat, and share a memory or two about growing up in Salmon Cove. If you have old photos, bring them along!

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

Tales from Afar: The Legend of St Nicolas. #FolkloreThursday

"Tales from Afar: Old Stories from New Residents" is a project to share traditional stories which have come from away, created by the St. John’s Local Immigration Partnership and the Heritage Foundation of Newfoundland and Labrador. This is one of the tales we’ve collected so far. You can learn more about the project at our Adapting Heritage Forum Oct 25th.

The Legend of St Nicolas

As told by Celine Schneider

They were three little children
Who were going to glean the fields

Arrived one night at a butcher’s,
Butcher, will give us shelter?
Come in, come in, little children
For sure you can have lodgings

They were three little children
Who were going to glean the fields

No sooner did they enter
They were slaughtered by the butcher
Who cut them up in small pieces,
Threw them in a salting tub, just as pork pieces.


They were three little children
Who were going to glean the fields

Seven long years had passed,
When St Nicolas visited here
Arrived at the butcher,
Butcher, will you give me supper?

They were three little children
Who were going to glean the fields

Some salt meat would be nice,
The one you prepared 7 years past.
When the butcher heard St Nicolas
By the door he flew to run afar

They were three little children
Who were going to glean the fields

By the side of the salting tub,
St Nicolas went to sit
Places three fingers above it
The three wee ones raised up

They were three little children
Who were going to glean the fields

The first said : I slept well
The second said: So did I
The third one concluded:
I thought I was in Paradise

They were three little children
Who were going to glean the fields

A story-song from Lorraine, a region in the northeast of France, as told by Celine Schneider, who learned it when she was three years old! Image: Saint Nicolas Heures d'Anne de Bretagne, Wikimedia.

How can I share a story?
Stories can be submitted in written form, or participants can sit down with a collector and record a spoken version of their story. To share a story, you can:

• Email ich@heritagefoundation.ca
• Call Dale Jarvis at 1-888-739-1892 extension 2, or 
• Fill in the online form here: https://goo.gl/forms/QWmJY9haiyItAeop2

#AdaptingHeritage Forum 2017 - Introducing Laurier Turgeon

A holder of a Canada Research Chair in Heritage, Laurier Turgeon is a full professor in the Department of History at Université Laval. From 1994 to 2000, he was director of CELAT (Interuniversity Center for Studies on Letters, Arts and Traditions).  Turgeon has gained international recognition through international publications on intangible cultural heritage, and has participated in numerous international symposia.  He strives to highlight the dynamic character of cultural heritage, tangible and intangible, and the challenges of ethnological research in the current context of globalization.

At the forum, Laurier will be participating in a panel discussion called Safeguarding Living Heritage Across Canada where he will share his experiences working in Quebec.

Forum on Adapting NL's Intangible Cultural Heritage will take place on October 25 and 26. The cost of registration is $75.00, and $18.75 for post-secondary students. For full program details click here. To register click here.

The Old Shops of Port Blandford Booklet Launch

Please join The Heritage Foundation of Newfoundland and Labrador in partnership with the Port Blandford Heritage Society for the launch of Everything Was Wrapped in Brown Paper: The Old Shops of Port Blandford. 

When: Thursday, October 12th at 1:30pm

Where: Anglican Church Basement, Port Blandford

We hope to see you there!

#AdaptingHeritage Forum 2017 - Introducing Gabriel Newman

Gabriel Newman is a storyteller, actor, and educator based in Vernon, British Columbia. For the past fourteen years he has led the historic and paranormal walking tour, Ghost Tours of Vernon. He also created a community based storytelling food project called Social Potluck, which had him trading food for stories in order to create intimate mini community performance projects. His day job is as the Educational Coordinator at the Greater Vernon Museum and Archives where he creates and presents educational programming for students and adults.

At the forum, Gabriel will be introducing Session Four - Safeguarding Living Heritage Across Canada and he will also discuss his work in living heritage.

Forum on Adapting NL's Intangible Cultural Heritage will take place on October 25 and 26. The cost of registration is $75.00, and $18.75 for post-secondary students. For full program details click here. To register click here.

Water Street, St. John's, 1962 #Folklorephoto

Photograph of Water Street in downtown St. John's in 1962. Shows the Bank of Montreal, VOCM, Ayres, Royal Bank of Canada, and a St. John's Transportation System bus. This image is part of the Allen and Pearl Squires Fonds at the Portugal Cove-St. Philip's Archives.  

#AdaptingHeritage Forum 2017 - Introducing Beth Hanna

Beth Hanna is Chief Executive Officer of the Ontario Heritage Trust.  She has a wealth of experience in the design and delivery of inclusive, multi-faceted public programs and the creation of integrated approaches to the conservation and stewardship of heritage – cultural and natural, tangible and intangible. Beth works in collaboration with government ministries and agencies, First Nations and Métis communities, conservation organizations and community groups, educators, funders and donors.  Beth is passionate about conserving the province’s heritage and giving voice to the diversity of experiences, traditions, and histories of its peoples and communities.

At the forum, Beth will be participating in a panel discussion called Safeguarding Living Heritage Across Canada where she will share her experiences working with the Ontario Heritage Trust.

Forum on Adapting NL's Intangible Cultural Heritage will take place on October 25 and 26. The cost of registration is $75.00, and $18.75 for post-secondary students. For full program details click here. To register click here.