Bud’s Broken Elbow 1938?
Recently Dad and I made a visit to Battleford and stopped to see Auntie Jean. As it usually does when they get together, stories of their growing up on the farm near Brada came up. Their memories of when Uncle Bud broke his elbow stayed with me: As a kid they said, Bud was always […]
FORT BATTLEFORD Stockade Restoration 1954?
When I started at Fort Battleford I reported to the Superintendent of Prince Albert National Park. At that time the natural side of the park system had little interest in or knowledge of anything historic. It was general accepted by them that “man was in conflict with nature and therefore his presence in the country […]
RED BAY National Historic Site and how times change
Following Susan’s suggestion that I use National Historic Sites playing cards as subjects for stories for the blog about my personal experiences connected to each Site, I went to the deck and pulled out “Red Bay”. Turns out it is from the “Never been there / Never heard of it” pile. It is surprising, to […]
Now Something Completely Different or A HIGH ENERGY BREAKFAST 2022
Wednesday is traditionally Boiled Egg Day and this wednesday, February 23, Susan followed the long practiced event. Many years ago in1996, when I had my first heart attack, I was told that one egg a week was all the I must eat and it must not be cooked with grease, so Dorothy had set Wednesday […]
The S.S. Klondike National Historic Park
Figuring out what to give someone for Christmas can be difficult. For me (Susan) thinking of something for Dad is very hard. For my daughter Conni, finding the right gift is critical. This year she thought she found the perfect gift for her Granddad Tatro. A pack of cards from Parks Canada with a different […]
Suzie Barker’s Chair
About 3 years ago Dad was given an old rocking chair. Actually it was his Grandma Suzie Barker’s chair and it was in very bad shape. No wonder, it was at least 100 years old. Dad remembers his grandma rocking in it on her front porch when he was a boy. He also remembers sitting […]
How the Flying E Ranch almost became a National Historic Site 1973
In the early 1970s the Canadian federal government decided it was important to recognize the contribution of early ranching in the development of the west. I was given the job of researching and reporting on which of several ranches would be the best choice. It will probably never go down in history that the Bar […]
Country Song on the radio
Friday breakfast is bacon and eggs. This Friday as I cooked the bacon and Dad waited for his breakfast he asked me if I knew the song that went “bacon sizzling in the pan” Not much to go on so he started talking… “It was a song lots of people sang on the farm. It […]
MEMEORIES OF HRH PRINCE PHILIP
This past Friday April 9, I watched the news of the death of Prince Philip and found it touched me with unexpected sadness. Memory brought to mind my own encounters with the Prince. On both occasions I was struck by Prince Philip’s confidence, knowledge and sense of humour. During that same news report former […]
POLITICS WERE NOT A FACTOR
I have never been interested in politics nor ever a member of any political party. It has always been my attitude that people should be hired on merit and that I, in my new position at Fort Battleford, had also be hired as such. I had been given a responsibility and would do the best […]