The following is a re-print of a past column by former Advertiser columnist Stephen Thorning, who passed away on Feb. 23, 2015.
Some text has been updated to reflect changes since the original publication and any images used may not be the same as those that accompanied the original publication.
120 years ago
September 1905
As the fall harvest proceeded in 1905, there were a number of reports of potato rot. By mid-month it did not seem to be as prevalent as the outbreak of 1903.
Drayton’s schools opened on Sept. 4, with about 150 in the public school and 50 in the high school. Rural schools had already been open for two weeks.
A big change took place in downtown Drayton on Sept. 1, when O.B. Henry turned over the keys of his hardware store to the partnership of McLaughlin and Sturtridge. There were also changes in Moorefield, where Andrew Malcolmson had a new business block under construction. In early September he had Alex Lewis lined up to open a tailoring shop in one of the stores. And down the street, George Simpson sold his warehouse to W.P. Clark.
Temperance advocates, enjoying a new plateau in their activity and popularity, called a meeting at Goldstone’s Methodist Church for Sept. 11. They wanted to have a plebiscite for prohibition placed on the Peel township ballot at the December elections. As might be expected, those present endorsed the idea, and formed a committee to take the necessary steps. Meanwhile, another committee agreed to draft and circulate a petition on the subject, to be presented to council.
Several churches, and especially the Methodists, scheduled harvest home events during September. Glen Allan scheduled its services for Sept. 10, with a dinner the following night. A week later, Teviotdale Methodist held its service, with a tea and entertainment the following day.
Holy Name Roman Catholic Church, on Concession 12 of Peel, reopened Sept. 10 after major repairs. Dr. Teefey of St. Michael’s College in Toronto conducted the service, and in the evening gave a lecture describing St. Peter’s Basilica in Rome. Many Protestants attended the evening service.
Peel and Maryborough councils cooperated in petitioning the Board of Railway Commissioners to demand bridges at all road crossings where the railway track was higher than the road. Councillors believed that steep approaches caused problems to farmers, and that visibility was poor at those spots. The move followed recent fatal crossing accidents at Palmerston and Goldstone.
Yet another railway fatality occurred on Sept. 12, but this one was not a crossing accident. James Cannon had spent an evening at Kaiser’s Hotel in Goldstone, and was using the tracks to walk home at about 11pm. He neither heard nor saw the headlight of a freight train creeping up behind him. When he failed to return home his family sent out a search party the next morning. He was discovered, horribly mutilated, beside the track. Cannon left a young wife and three-year-old daughter.
Goldstone Methodist Church’s Ladies Aid held a farewell tea on Sept. 11 for Miss E.J. Whale, who was departing for Manitoba. They presented her with a travelling case. Others moving west that fall included Henry Burlingham, who had worked at the Norris Carriage Works in Goldstone.
Several farms changed hands at good prices. John Smith of Concession 10 Maryborough, near Drayton, sold a 97-acre holding to John Mills of Palmerston for $3,800. The property included a new barn. A few miles to the northwest, George Noble sold his splendid 125-acre property, with new house and new barn, to Gideon Moore of Brant County for $9,150. Moore was well known in the area: he had formerly been the foreman of the Rothsay Cheese Factory.
A thunderstorm on Sept. 14 caused some minor damage through the area. But in Palmerston, lightning struck W.H. Finder’s flax mill and the structure burned to the ground, with the loss of all the contents. Finder’s loss exceeded $3,000; he carried only $800 of insurance.
Maryborough council met on Sept. 16. The chief item of business was setting the 1905 tax rate and appointing tax collectors: Charles Mannel to handle the south of the township for $67, and John McCreery to collect from ratepayers in the north half of the township for $67.
Peel council met two days later. The big item of business was approval of a new concrete bridge at Lots 6 and 7, Concession 17. The work went to J.D. Callaghan for $426.
The 1905 Drayton Fall Fair committee was determined to put on the best show in years, and worked continuously through September for the event, scheduled for Oct. 3 to 5. They arranged a deal with the Grand Trunk to issue half-price return tickets to Drayton on the three days of the fair.
45 years ago
September 1980
Dozens of volunteers devoted their waking hours to preparations for the 1980 Drayton Fall Fair, which ran from Sept. 7 to 10. The first big event was a couple of weeks earlier, when Florence Landman was crowned Queen of the Fair at the annual pageant. The fair itself exceeded the expectations of the committee. The Kinsmen organized the parade. Arthur’s High School Band and the Seaforth Brass Band provided the music. Saturday’s big attraction was an antique tractor show and competition, and on Sunday afternoon a horse show drew good crowds. The popular baby contest attracted 37 entries.
Drayton council decided not to hold a plebiscite on the matter of municipal water and sewer services. About 30 citizens turned out to the September council meeting, and they were as divided as council on the course of action to take.
Cecil Brimblecombe suggested a system of communal septic tanks in the downtown area, where problems were the greatest. Plans at that time were to service only part of the village. Alva Cherrey wanted only those immediately affected to have a vote in any plebiscite. Several retirees complained of the cost of the project. In the end, and partially due to the very high interest rates then prevailing, council decided to postpone any vote to 1981. Reeve Bridge said little on the matter at the meeting, and did not vote on the motion to defer.
At the same meeting, council received the resignation of Art Ott as bylaw enforcement officer and weed inspector. In his letter, he told council that those duties should have been combined with the building inspector’s position. Council had filled that position a couple of weeks earlier when they hired Bert Dobben.
In other business, council approved a grant of $1,000 to the new co-op nursery school being organized by Barbara Rigney, Mary Haugh and Linda Cherrey.
The Royal Bank had applied for permission to build a new branch on property owned by Alva Cherrey. Council approved the plans, but there were objections regarding traffic.
Though council had placed the brakes on the sewer project, it continued its slow passage through the bureaucracy. The provincial Environmental Assessment Board held a hearing on the matter. Three people objected. Elbert van Donkersgoed disapproved of prime agricultural land being used for a lagoon. Martin Duimering and Harold Udy feared a negative impact on the drainage of their farmland adjoining the proposed lagoon. The board promised a ruling in October.
The Centre Peel school controversy moved slowly toward resolution. The Wellington County School Board had refused to allow some parents to send their children to the closer Floradale school. When school opened, a dozen students tried to register at Floradale, but were refused. A lawyer hired by the parents bullied the board into reversing its decision, and to pay $782 per student to the Waterloo Board in tuition. By the second week of September school officials expected more students to switch schools. Their action lowered the Centre Peel enrolment to 49, and placed the continuance of the school in jeopardy.
The Drayton Rotary Club invited Louis Verbeek to speak at its Sept. 10 meeting. He related horrifying tales of his life and experiences in the Netherlands during World War II. On Sept. 13 the Rotarians held a baking sale and recycling auction at the fairgrounds.
Drayton Minor Hockey’s new executive took over in September. Its first task was addressing a $2,800 deficit carried over from the previous year.
Maryborough council hosted a public meeting on Sept. 16 regarding the odours drifting downwind from the Rothsay Concentrates plant. Reeve Bill Benson invited Environment Minister Harry Parrott to attend.
At their September meeting Maryborough councillors set Oct. 9 as the date for the nomination meeting. Council would be elected for a two-year term. Councillors voted $325 to the new Drayton co-op nursery school, and $100 to the Wellington County Plowman’s Association. They also agreed to erect a cairn at the Walker Cemetery, as requested by the Rothsay Women’s Institute.
Unhappy with the developers of the Riverview Heights subdivision on the eastern edge of Drayton, council decided to take legal action to have the road constructed to proper standards and paved.
Barb McCann of Rothsay organized a three-day charity yard sale. The event raised $986 for the Muscular Dystrophy Association.
Successful in their appeals to councils, the co-op nursery school committee collected donations of toys and ran a series of Saturday morning movies for youngsters at the Drayton Town Hall. The events attracted 60 to 70 youngsters. The nursery was to open on Oct. 6.
The big disaster in the area in September 1980 was a fire in a barn at the Martin Syndicate farm near Rothsay. It destroyed some valuable equipment stored there by Cox Construction.
*This column was originally published in the Drayton Community News on Sept. 2 and 9, 2005.
