Category Archives: Archival Moments

The first time that the “Ode to Newfoundland” was sung

ARCHIVAL MOMENT

January 21, 1902

Photo Credit: The Rooms Provincial Archives MG 596 -110 sheet music, lyrics, and illustrated cover for patriotic composition, Newfoundland.

On January 22, 1902, the local St. John’s newspaper, The Daily News, reported that on the previous evening at the Casino Theatre in St. John’s that the “Newfoundland “ now known as ‘The Ode To Newfoundland’ was sung for the very first time. The new song was greeted enthusiastically.

The newspaper article reads: “Miss Frances Daisy Foster rendered with exquisite feeling a new song entitled “Newfoundland.” It proved a pleasant surprise and the general appreciation of it was marked by the audience joining spontaneously in the chorus.”

The “Ode to Newfoundland” was composed by Governor, Sir Cavendish Boyle, the music for the Governor’s poem was arranged by Professor E.R. Krippner.

The Daily News reporter knew that he had heard something very special, he observed “he has given us a poem which may be chosen as the Colony’s own anthem.”

The words have since become etched in Newfoundlanders’ collective memory.

When Sunrays crown thy pine clad hills,

And Summer spreads her hand,

When silvern voices tune thy rills,

We love thee smiling land,

We love thee, we love thee

We love thee, smiling land.

When spreads thy cloak of shimm’ring white,

At Winter’s stern command,

Thro’ shortened day and starlit night,

We love thee, frozen land,

We love thee, we love thee,

We love thee, frozen land.

When blinding storm gusts fret thy shore,

And wild waves lash thy strand,

thro’ sprindrift swirl and tempest roar,

we love thee, wind-swept land,

We love thee, we love thee,

We love thee, wind-swept land.

As loved our fathers, so we love,

Where once they stood we stand,

Their payer we raise to heav’n above,

God guard thee, Newfoundland,

God guard thee, God guard thee,

God guard thee, Newfoundland.

Recommended Archival Collection: At the Rooms Provincial Archives Division take some time to look at MG 956.110 this item consists of sheet music, lyrics, and illustrated cover for patriotic composition, Newfoundland.

Recommended (Academic) Reading: The Newfoundland Journal: Volume 22, Number 1 (2007) Imagining Nation: Music and Identity in Pre-Confederation Newfoundland: Glenn Colton: Lakehead University. http://journals.hil.unb.ca/index.php/nflds/article/view/10096/10349

Recommended (Children) Reading: Ode to Newfoundland – Geoff Butler an illustrated book celebrating the land, seascapes, people, and traditions of Newfoundland.

Recommended Activity: Sing your heart out – sing along. http://www.wtv-zone.com/phyrst/audio/nfld/01/anthem.htm

Luckless compounder of “sugar and spice…”

Archival Moment

January 18, 1886

Cooks have a reputation of being temperamental, they have been known to burst into fits of rage and walk out of the kitchen. Such, was the temperament of Henry Laneman, one of the pastry cooks at the Atlantic Hotel in St. John’s.

The Atlantic Hotel, located at 102 Water Street was the most prestigious hotel in the city at the time. It was opened in 1875 by J.W. Foran.

There was the practice in the larger kitchens of St. John’s in the 1880’s that allowed for “hotel cooks to be given a liberal allowance of pale brandy” it was “one of the perquisites of hotel cooks.”

In January 1886, Henry Laneman was angry, on this occasion the pastry cook got a sufficiency of liquor to make him saucy enough to ask for “more.” He felt that his employer John Foran, the proprietor of the Atlantic Hotel had “stinted” the supply of pale brandy, he was so angry that he assaulted the proprietor of that establishment.

The police were quickly on the scene and marched Mr. Laneman, described in the local newspapers as “the luckless compounder of sugar and spice and all that’s nice,” off to prison.

Mr. Foran did not press the charge of assault but because of the police interference the case went before the courts, Judge Daniel Prowse looked down compassionately at the prisoner.

The local St. John’s newspaper, The Evening Telegram reported:

“Judge Prowse was inwardly imagining, no doubt, what the pastry cooks feelings would have been on suddenly finding himself transferred from a luxurious discussion of “soups, roasts and ragouts” (at the restaurant hotel) to the stern realities of “hard tack and cold water”. (of the prison)

Judge Prowse decided that, in view of the pangs already suffered by the pastry cook, imprisonment would not be the proper course to serve, but he “insisted that the cook pay a fine of three dollars to appease the angry wraith of justice.”

Recommended Archival Collection: At the Rooms Provincial Archives take some time to read GN 1/16 this collection includes Daily Programs, Government House Dinners, seating, plans, menus etc. 1913-1922. Take a look at how the upper crust of St. John’s lived and dined.

Recommended Exhibit: Truth or Myth: Feast and Famine: Truth or Myth? draws on the permanent collection to explore the changing relationship between cultural identity and food in Newfoundland and Labrador, as portrayed by artists such as Grant Boland, Ross Flowers, Jamie Lewis, Mary Pratt, and Helen Parsons Shepherd. See more at: https://www.therooms.ca/exhibits/now/truth-or-myth-feast-and-famine#sthash.2FE40iQz.dpuf

“Open air skating” in Bannerman Park

Archival Moment

January 5, 1885

Photo Credit: The Rooms Provincial Archives: 1.27.015; Racing on Quidi Vidi Lake

There has since the official opening of “The Loop” in Bannerman Park on December 24 , 2013 been much excitement about “open air skating” in the city. It is the talk of the town, there has in fact not been so much enthusiasm about ‘open air skating” since January 1885.

In January 1885 “three enterprising young men” recognized that “open air skating” might be an attractive proposition to offer to the citizens of St. John’s. They suggested that the good citizens of St. John’s would much prefer “open air skating to the tame monotonous round of Rink skating.”

The three men arranged to have “a wide avenue down and across Quidi Vidi Lake kept clear” that would be reserved for their skaters. They also proposed erecting “a shed containing a stove” near the skating surface “where warm tea and coffee will be served.”

On January 5, 1885 the St. John’s newspaper, The Evening Telegram reported:

“We note that three enterprising young men are making arrangements to enclose with boughs and to keep swept clean during the winter a suitably spacious area of Ice in Quidi Vidi Lake, for skating purposes. Undoubtedly, this idea fills a universally felt want. Those who prefer open air skating to the tame monotonous round of Rink skating are reckoned by the hundreds, and as a wide avenue down and across the lake will be kept clear, we fully believe that the enterprise will receive large public patronage. A shed containing a stove will be erected near where warm tea and coffee will be served.”

One hundred and thirty two years later (132) in St. John’s skaters have once again forsaken “the tame monotonous round of Rink skating” and are now heading to Bannerman Park.

The new ice trail, loops through the centre of Bannerman Park and offers a unique skating experience in the heart of the city. It is designed for leisurely skating and is family friendly. Lighting also allows it to be used in the evenings.

Recommended Archival Collection: https://www.therooms.ca/collections-research/our-collectionsin the search bar type Bannerman Park

Recommended Site: Loop Schedule:http://www.stjohns.ca/public-advisory/bannerman-park-loop-scheduled-maintenance

“The first Newfoundlander, to die as a soldier in the service of this country…”

Archival Moment

January 2, 1915

Photo Credit: The Rooms Provincial Archives: C 5-97; John Fielding Chaplin

A dark pall of sadness hovered over St. John’s on January 2, 1915 with news that “the first name was recorded in the Immortal Honor Roll of the Newfoundland Regiment.” The name of the first Newfoundlander, to die as a soldier in the service of this country, one of the First 500 was Private 584, John Fielding Chaplin.

The Governor of Newfoundland, Walter Davidson wrote in his diary on January 2, 1915:

“I learn by telegraph that Private 584, John Fielding Chaplin, of St. John’s, died at Fort George (Scotland) on December 31st.”

Chaplin had arrived at Fort George, Scotland with the Newfoundland Regiment on December 8, 1914.

On January 2, 1915, that Governor Davidson spoke “with his father and mother and succeeded in checking a proposal for the transport home of the lad’s remains.”

Governor Davison wrote that “He (John Chaplin) was quite young, only 18, and the Doctors hesitated to let him go because of his youth: but his father supported the lad’s entreaties. He was a bright smart young soldier and universally liked.”

John Fielding Chaplin was from Circular Road, St. John’s the son of Mark Chaplin a leading tailor, who operated a successful business from 175 A Water Street. Chaplin “did not die at the firing line” his Regimental Record reads that he died at St. George, Scotland of “abdominal disease.”

The Governor having made the promise to the parents that their son could be transported back to Newfoundland for burial was disappointed to have to return to them to inform them that “it would not be feasible to send home the body of Private Jack Chaplin for internment, the funeral takes place at Fort George.”

The Evening Telegram reported:

“His is the first name to be recorded in the Immortal Honor Roll of the Newfoundland Regiment and on this account Newfoundlanders, while expressing deep sympathy to the grief stricken parents, will remember with pride the young volunteer, who though not at the firing line, died as a soldier in the service of this country.”

On January 5, 1915 Private 584, John Fielding Chaplin was buried in Ardersier Parish Churchyard. The Telegram reported:

“Newfoundland’s young soldier will be resting among the heroes who have trod the immortal path of duty and devotion to this country. Thought separated from those that he loved in life; the memory of his immortal sacrifice will console them until they are united forever with him in the land of peace.”

Note: John Chaplin’s official Regimental Record states that he died on January 1, 1915. Governor Davision writes December 31, 1914.

Recommended Archival Collection: The Rooms Provincial Archives. Governor Davidson’s Private Diary, MG 136.5

Recommended Exhibit: Recommended Exhibit: The First World War had a profound impact on Newfoundland and Labrador. It involved thousands of our people in world-changing events overseas and dramatically altered life at home. Our “Great War” happened in the trenches and on the ocean, in the legislature and in the shops, by firesides and bedsides. This exhibition shares the thoughts, hopes, fears, and sacrifices of Newfoundlanders and Labradorians who experienced those tumultuous years – through their treasured mementoes, their writings and their memories. – – See more at: https://www.therooms.ca/exhibits/always/beaumont-hamel-and-the-trail-of-the-caribou#sthash.HNEnynnP.dpuf

Recommended Reading: Christopher Morry’s : When the Great Red Dawn is Shining: Howard Morry’s Memoirs of Life in the Newfoundland Regiment — 11 Platoon, C Company, RNR. Breakwater Books, St. John’s, 2014.

“Calling the tree…”

Archival Moment

Christmas 1889

Christmas Tree Tags

A Christmas tradition that has long passed in Newfoundland and Labrador is the fundraiser known as ‘Calling the Tree.’ In communities throughout the country (now province) on St. Stephen’s Day church groups would host a fundraising event where the focus was the Christmas tree. In Scilly Cove (now Winterton, Trinity Bay) “the Tree” was one of the major fundraisers of the year.

A resident of Scilly Cove writing in January 1890 describing ‘The Tree’ wrote:

“St. Stephen’s Day in Scilly Cove has, for several years past, been a high day, that is, a joyous and lively time. The young people, especially, have then made up their minds to obtain all the fun they possibly can. To aid the young folks to better enjoy a pleasant day and evening, we have been permitted, by the aid of kind friends both here and in St. John’s, to get off a Christmas tree. On Thursday last we were up to the mark as usual, and by 2 o’clock the tree was in full swing, fairly bending beneath its load of prizes.”

The “tree ” was held in the school-room, and refreshments were served in the Fishermen’s Lodge, both apartments being most carefully decorated ; evergreens, interspersed with rose-buds and colored tissue paper, gave the rooms a lively appearance. Some exquisite Chinese lanterns presented a magnificent illumination.

While some visitors were making their purchases from the goods and toy tables down stairs, others were regaling themselves upon the luxuries and delicacies plentifully furnished by the refreshment tables in the lodge room. Choice soups, tea, coffee, cocoa and beverages of various kinds were bountifully supplied. Mr. Fred. Kelland and Miss Sarah Parrott disposed of an immense quantity of small articles by means of grab bags and wheels of fortune. Mr. and Mrs. Haddon, although not of the committee, assisted materially by donations and personal help.

The Christmas tree was the focus of the evening with each branch holding a numbered ticket. Everyone attending the event (for the small price of 20 cents) would purchase a ticket at the door and was then entitled to a prize from the Tree, bearing a corresponding number. A resident of Scilly Cove wrote:

“The Tree” contained a large number of useful articles of children’s clothing, being the outcome of the labors of The Ladies Sewing Circle during the past summer.”

Any monies realized from the Christmas tree were used to make purchases for the Church. In 1889 “we were able to purchase a first-class organ for our church, and also to pay a debt of “dues” to one late rector of twenty dollars.” In 1892 “a sufficient sum ($30 dollars) was realized to pay off our indebtedness for the carpet upon the floor of our new church.”

‘The Tree’ was a reason to gather during the Christmas Season, another tradition no longer celebrated.

In many communities the evening was referred to as ‘calling the tree’ the act of calling out the number that was purchased at the door that corresponded to the number on the Christmas tree.

Note: In 1912, Scilly Cove was named Winterton for Sir James Spearman Winter, former Prime Minister of Newfoundland.

An invitation: The tradition of the New Year’s Levee

Archival Moment

JANUARY 1, 1915

On January 1, 1915 Governor Walter Edward Davidson of Newfoundland made reference in his private diary to the tradition of the New Year’s Day Levee in St. John’s. He wrote

“We received from 3:00 – 6:00 o’clock. It has been an ancient custom for men to call on their lady friends on New Year’s Day. It is dying out but 236 called here. It is usual for them to call also on the Roman Catholic Archbishop and the Anglican Bishop. The former (Archbishop Howley) is in Heaven but Monsignor Roche received a large number of visitors. The Anglican Bishop is away, spending every second winter in his other Diocese in Bermuda.”

The “ancient custom for men to call on their lady friends on New Year’s Day” that Davidson referred to in his diary has disappeared in Newfoundland but the tradition of the levee has survived.

This levee was a reception that was held early in the afternoon of New Years Day, typically at the residence of the host. Attending these levees was an annual ritual in the town.

At the 1915 Levée Governor Davidson stood in the reception line with Captain G.H.F. Abraham and Captain H. Goodridge, Officers of the Newfoundland Regiment reminding guests of their solidarity with the many Newfoundland soldiers who had departed Newfoundland just three months earlier to fight for King and Empire.

The first recorded Levée in Canada was held on January 1st, 1646 in the Château St. Louis by Charles Huault de Montmagny, Governor of New France (later Québec). In addition to shaking hands and wishing a Happy New Year to citizens presenting themselves at the Château, the Governor informed guests of significant events in the Mother Country, as well as the state of affairs within the colony. This tradition is carried on today within The Commonwealth in the form of The Queen’s New Year’s Message.

The Levée tradition was continued by British Colonial Governors in Canada, and subsequently by Governors General and Lieutenant Governors, and continues to the present day.

Archival Collection: At the Rooms Provincial Archives take some time to read Governor Walter Davidson’s Private Diary. MG 136.5

The stove destroyed a Newfoundland Christmas Tradition

ARCHIVAL MOMENT

Christmas Tradition

Lewis Amadeus Anspach the author of History of the island of Newfoundland, (London, 1819) the first general history of Newfoundland, observed in his book, a Christmas tradition that he found quite fascinating. The ancient British custom of the Yule or Christmas log or block that he states “is universally observed by the inhabitants of Newfoundland.”

Anspach observed:

“On Christmas-eve, at sun-set, an immense block …(junk of birch wood) is laid across on the back of the fireplace, to be left there till it is entirely consumed: the ceremony of lighting it is announced by the firing of muskets or seal guns before the door of each dwelling house. This, among them, is the prelude to a season of joy and merriment.”

In her 1934 diary account of the tradition Mrs. E. J. Froude of Random Sound reflecting on the tradition of the Yule Log as it was practiced in 1870 wrote:

“The Yule, commonly called the birch junk, was selected to last for the twelve days [of Christmas]. It was after a long search found in the woods where the biggest firs and birches grew and hauled home in such a spirit of triumph. It was then cut in three feet or thereabouts to fit the space on the hearth at the base of the chimney,…”

The tradition continued in many communities – in some places – with variations on the original custom. In some communities a brand of the back-junk or birch junk or Yule log was taken from the fire on Christmas night, taken outdoors and thrown over the saddle of the roof to ensure safety of the home from fire in the coming year.

What happened to the tradition? At another point in her diary Mrs. Froude cites the technological innovation which caused the decline of this custom. She wrote:

“ sixty-four years ago [1870] the first stove began to come into use in the outport. Before this it was all open fireplaces and grates. These times much wood was required for the open fireplaces. The stove was at first regarded with disfavour… The Victory and the Waterloo looked nice when polished but they did not show the fire.”

The new tradition that was born from the dying of the Yule Log tradition was the birth of the Yule log cake, the dessert is usually in the form of a large rectangular yellow cake spread with frosting and rolled up into a cylinder – one end is then lopped off and stood on end to indicate the rings of the “log.”

So when you’re enjoying your Yule Log cake over Christmas holidays think of the old tradition that was lost by the introduction of the stove.

Recommended Archival Collection: Random Sound Daybook, Maritime History Archive, Memorial University of Newfoundland,St. John’s, MF0046

Lost Word: “Back Junk”: A short log to fit a wood-burning stove or fire-place, often with back, fore or middle as qualifying word . The wood was sometimes quite green, and hence making a fire was quite an art, and required back-junks, fore-junks, middle-junks, triggers, splits, and brands; and the fishermen would sometimes say whoever can build a good fire with green fir can build a boat. 1893 Christmas Greeting. (Dictionary of Newfoundland English)

Newfoundland has a Christmas turkey tradition

Archival Moment

December 23, 1879

In Newfoundland, the ‘turkey’ has long been associated with the Christmas season. One of the earliest references to the bird was made by Lewis Amadeus Anspach in his history “A History of the Island of Newfoundland” published in 1819. Anspach wrote:

“Men and women exchange clothes with each other, and go from house to house singing and dancing, on which occasion Christmas-boxes are expected, and generally granted previous to the performance. [The Christmas boxes are] presents, not in coin. . . but in eatables, from a turkey or a quarter of veal or mutton, or a piece of beef just killed for the occasion, down to a nicely smoked salmon.”

Anspach was referring to the Christmas tradition of ‘mummering’; as part of the tradition food was given to the mummers for their performance.

A document written in 1584 lists supplies to be furnished to future colonies in the New World; “turkies, male and female” were included on the supply list. It is possible then that turkeys may have been part of the supplies furnished to the early settlers in Newfoundland at Cupids (1610) and in Ferryland (1621).

For some, they were determined to have the turkey on their Christmas table, by any means! The local St. John’s newspaper The Evening Telegram reported under the headline “The Unfortunate Turkey” on December 23, 1879:

“Martin Phelan, Seaman, 37 Boggans’ Lane (St. John’s) got into trouble yesterday and it was all about a turkey. Martin, being something of an epicure, felt an irresistible desire to adorn his table on Christmas Day with a fat turkey belonging of Captain McIssac and he so far succeeded into getting the biped into his procession, but Martin committed a larceny, the result of which was that he had to appear before his worship (Judge Prowse) who remanded him for a week. It is now more than probably that he will have to take Christmas Dinner in the Penitentiary.”

Recommended Song: The Man That Slits The Turkey’s Throat At Christmas by Robin Laing http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=j2nFE_kuyeA

Old Word: “biped” an animal that uses two legs for walking.

Christmas, dinners and dances, forbidden

Archival Moment

December 22, 1914

“Dinners and dances, forbidden”

Photo Credit: World War I poster. During World War I, Allied Nations relied for propaganda on images and accounts of German atrocities to motivate their citizens to participate in the war effort. In this scene, the silhouetted German soldier with his thick Kaiser mustache drags a young girl away while the ruins of the city burn in the background.

On December 22, 1914 Margaret (Lady) Davidson the wife of the Governor of Newfoundland declared that there would be no “dinners or dances “in Government House on Military Road, St. John’s, during the Christmas Season. Lady Davidson thought that it would be inappropriate to have extravagant affairs while the war raged in Europe.

Her gesture, to the men in uniform and their families, was much appreciated but her husband Governor Walter E. Davidson felt that there must be some form of “relaxation” so he invited 64 guests to the house for a game of Belgian Bridge.

Lady Davidson gave her nod to the card game because the event would be used to support the Belgian’s who had been displaced in August 1914 by the German Invaders. In 1914 tens of thousands of Belgian refugees were homeless. They were seen by the world as desperate people in need of emergency assistance, but also victims of German aggression. Throughout the world including Newfoundland committees were being struck to provide charitable relief to Belgian refugees.

Governor Davidson wrote in his personal diary on December 22, 1914:

“In the evening we had a gathering called Belgian Bridge. There were 16 tables and we played from 8:00 – 10:30 p.m. and then supped. Each of the 64 contributes 50 cents, and if any play for stakes, the winnings go to the Belgian Fund. We netted $90.00 dollars which included extra droppings in the plate and donations from others who come not come.”

Belgian Bridge games were being held in all of the finer houses in the town. Governor Davidson reported:

“There have been similar evenings at the Marmaduke Winter’s and Mrs. Will Job’s and others”

The Governor was quite pleased that his wife approved of the card games he wrote:

Governor Davidson wrote in his diary that he was very pleased that “this form has received her approval.”

Archival Collection: A the Rooms Provincial Archives take some time to read the Diary of Governor Walter Edward Davisson. (MG 136.5). He played a significant role in the life of Newfoundland and Labrador especially during the First World War. His insights into the social, political and economic life of NL are interesting.

Lived for his work after death of wife and child

ARCHIVAL MOMENT

December 16, 1852

Photo Credit: Front facade, O’Dwyer Block, Water Street, St. John’s.

On December 16, 1852 the prominent Waterford, Ireland born merchant Richard O’Dwyer who had established himself as one of the more wealthy businessmen in St. John’s was in mourning over the loss of his infant daughter Mary Wilhelmina. The infant child was baptized immediately after birth with Reverend Kyran Walsh serving as both godfather and priest at the baptism.

The loss of his daughter was compounded five days later on December 21 by the death of his young wife Mary Frances McKenna O’Dwyer.

It is believed that the young mother (Mary Frances, age 26) and infant child (Mary Wilhelmina) are both buried in the Roman Catholic Cathedral (now Basilica) that was still under construction at the time of their deaths.

There were in the 1850’s few public memorials in St. John’s but being a wealthy citizen of the town Richard O’Dwyer had the financial resources to commission a memorial to celebrate the life of his wife and child. On the west wall in the Basilica Cathedral is a memorial that O’Dwyer commissioned that depicts an angel carrying a young mother and child to heaven.

O’Dwyer Legacy

With the death of his wife and child all of Richard O’Dwyer’s energy was directed to his business interests. He is also responsible for at least three significant architectural contributions to the town (now city) of St. John’s.

He was responsible for the construction of the O’Dwyer Block of Buildings at (295-301 Water Street, St. John’s. Built in the mid-nineteenth century, the stone and mortar O’Dwyer Block was one of St. John’s earliest major merchant buildings, not made of wood. The structure is a classical commercial block constructed after the St. John’s fire of 1846. Richard O’Dwyer built the block of buildings for his offices and retail stores with sufficient space to accommodate other merchants.

O’Dwyer also built the nearby Murray Premises as a warehouse storage area.

He is also credited for building The Thompson Building at (303-305 Water Street) For decades, the Thompson family owned the building and ran their family jewellery store business there until it closed in the mid-1990s. A store specializing in Newfoundland merchandise and the offices of the popular Newfoundland magazine The Downhomer, now operates in the building.

Recommended Archives: Search the online database for descriptions of our archival records and to view thousands of digital photographs. – See more at: https://www.therooms.ca/collections-research/our-collections

Recommended Reading: Robert Mellin: A City of Towns: Alternatives for the Planning and Design of Housing in St. John’s, Newfoundland (CMHC Canadian Housing Information Centre, 1995: Ca1 MH 95C37), Residential Heritage Conservation in St. John’s (Heritage Foundation of Newfoundland and Labrador, 2005.