Letters from the Front – Part 6
November 15th, 2012
Throughout the month of November we will be posting excerpts from a selection of wartime correspondence between Pte. Sefton Stewart of the 77th Battalion, Canadian Expeditionary Force, and his family in Richmond, Ontario. The complete letters will be on display at the Stittsville Public Library in the Museum’s exhibit honouring Goulbourn in wartime.
This is letter number six:
Somewhere in France – September 22, 1916
Dear Mother:
Received your letter written Sept. 5th the other day, being very glad to hear from you all. Today I got letters from Clystal, Jonathan and Austin Dilworth.
I suppose George is back from the Fair. If he went, I hope he made out good; anyway it would be a good time for him. I am writing this in a dugout on my knees. By the time you receive this, the Richmond fair will be over. Hope there is fine weather for it. It has been very wet here lately, making the trenches very muddy and miserable.
We are now unable to send mail regularly as we were before. As you know, it has to be censored by our own officers. How did Pa and George get along with the grain? There must have been a splendid crop on the six acres.
They are now holding the Germans down very good but they are sure hardy guys. There is great talk of the war being over by Xmas, so they are rushing things at all points.
I am sure that Eric would have a splendid trip west, together with the other Richmond lads. How are Channon and Willie getting along?
You mentioned in your last letter about Sam McFee’s brother getting shot in the leg being an accident, but it wasn’t. It was a bullet from a machine gun that hit him while out working.
I hear Miss Cowell is Evyleen’s teacher, also George’s. Did you ever get my old 77thbadges which I sent just before leaving Bramshott? If sending any underwear, send full length. You were talking of sending money. Well, we can get Canadian money exchanged here.
Must close for now.
Best love to all,
Sefton
Letters from the Front – Part 5
November 12th, 2012
Throughout the month of November we will be posting excerpts from a selection of wartime correspondence between Pte. Sefton Stewart of the 77th Battalion, Canadian Expeditionary Force, and his family in Richmond, Ontario. The complete letters will be on display at the Stittsville Public Library in the Museum’s exhibit honouring Goulbourn in wartime.
This is letter number five:
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| The complete letters from Pte. Sefton Stewart are on display at the Stittsville Library. |
August 25, 1916
Dear Grandfather,
Received your letter August 23rd, being very much pleased to hear from you. I suppose on hearing of us in Belgium will be a surprise to you. Our visit in England was much shorter than I expected. We are now over in France and Belgium about two weeks.
On this front they seem to be holding the Germans very well, but things have been quite quiet lately. The other day, they put over a number of large shells around our quarters, not doing much harm. The report of these large guns was hard on the nerves at first but we are getting used to it. Already there have been five killed and several wounded out of our Battalion. I suppose you think well of the Scottish Battalion.
Have you been down home lately? I think you should go down and keep mother company. You are already aware that we can’t give any information that would put anybody wise to our situation…
Best love,
Sefton
Letters from the Front – Part 4
November 10th, 2012
Throughout the month of November we will be posting excerpts from a selection of wartime correspondence between Pte. Sefton Stewart of the 77th Battalion, Canadian Expeditionary Force, and his family in Richmond, Ontario. The complete letters will be on display at the Stittsville Public Library in the Museum’s exhibit honouring Goulbourn in wartime.
This is letter number four:
August 24, 1916 – Somewhere
Dear Mother,
Received two of your letters today, one from George, and one from Clystal. The mail is delayed some on account of our Battalion being divided. It is certainly interesting to travel over this country, seeing the fine property all in destruction. The Belgians seem a very quiet, friendly race of people.
I suppose you have already heard of the casualties out of the 73rd. These were out of the other company who are separated from us. They were coming out of the trenches, being green on the job, and got shelled. A company is now out with a working party taking supplies up to the trenches and repairing. Of course, all this is done during the night. When you get into the dugout, it is something like an underground world, everything being up to date.
How are they getting along with the harvest? You had a very good hay crop. That is a good idea working together with the Neelins.
Tonight I am not out, so am taking the opportunity of writing under the light of a candle.
With best love to all,
Sefton
PS. The Allies seem to have the best of the Germans, but today they put quite a few shells over, not doing much harm. It is thought the war will be over about Xmas.
WOMEN’S DAY: Fashions of Yesteryear on Display at Watson’s Mill Nov. 3-11
November 2nd, 2012
Come to Manotick for the ultimate Girl’s Day Out! Bring your friends, neighbors, and relatives for refreshments, in-store specials, prizes and much more! Arrive early in town and receive a complimentary gift, while supplies last. Women’s Day is an annual one-day festival in Manotick, held annually on the first Saturday of November. It is sponsored and coordinated by the Manotick BIA and brought to you by your local merchants.
For the occasion, Watson’s Mill is hosting a special exhibit featuring period clothing. The exhibit showcases beautiful reproductions and some original pieces, borrowed from the collections of Watson’s Mill, Rideau Township Historical Society, Goulbourn Museum, OsgoodeMuseum, Vanier Museoparc and Nepean Museum. Visitors will see a large variety of pieces spanning from the mid 1700’s to the 1950’s, including basic, every day Upper Canada fashion, upper-class ladies-wear from the 1860’s to 1920’s, Victorian wedding apparel, mourning pieces, and of course, a variety of original, and unmentionable!, “under things”.
Period pieces will be displayed both at the Carriage Shed and the Dickinson House, from November 3rd to November 11th. Admission is by donation. The participating community museums are all members of the Ottawa Museum Network—get your Connexion Card, and save on OMN participating museum admissions and special cardholder events throughout the year. Visit ottawamuseumnetwork.ca for more details on the Connexion Card.
In addition, community members are requested to clean out their closets and bring their gently used ladies clothing and accessories, which will be collected at Watson’s Mill and the Carriage Shed during the Women’s day weekend. The donated clothing will be forwarded to local women’s shelter organizations.
On Saturday, November 3rd, come to Historic Dickinson Square and discover fashions of yesteryears. Not only will ladies feel “girly”, they will leave wanting to spend the day shopping, appreciating modern-day clothing!
Watson’s Mill is a unique 1860’s grist and flour mill located in Manotick, on the shores of the Rideau River. A working industrial heritage site in greater Ottawa, it has a remarkable history linked to local politics, the building of a country, and a tragic love story. The WMMI mandate is to preserve Watson’s Mill as a working historic grist and flour mill, and a social, cultural and educational focal point for the community and visitors.
The Royal Treatment
October 16th, 2012
Looking for an excuse to wear your tiara this weekend? Come to the Stittsville Public Library Saturday, Oct. 20th and immerse yourself in all things Royal. Test your knowledge of Royal trivia, take a peek at regal artefacts & enter a royal look-alike contest. Are you a dead-ringer for the Queen or Prince Phillip? If so, you could win a prize!
There will be fun for the whole family at The Queen – A Celebration, a joint venture between the Goulbourn Museum and the Goulbourn Township Historical Society. Take a peek at a collection of royal artefacts and memorabilia, play a Royal Romance trivia game and dress in your best royal finery and prepare to dazzle! Children aged 4-8 can compete in a best dressed Prince & Princess contest.
This program runs from 1:30 – 4 pm. Refreshments will be served and as usual, this event is free. The Stittsville Public Library is located at 1637 Stittsville Main St.
Spooky Fall Craft Success!
October 15th, 2012
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| We had a full house for our Spooky Fall Crafts event yesterday! Kids came wearing awesome costumes & left with a creepy Halloween scene that included a haunted tree & spooky spiders in a pumpkin patch. Six-year-old Taylor, above, puts the finishing touches on her craft. |
The Best Medicine
October 10th, 2012
We`re tickled pink with the response to our Kits`Club Joke Contest! Seven-year-old Theo even submitted an entire book of jokes he created himself! Thanks for making our day, Theo!
As a member of the Kits’ Club, children receive our seasonal newsletter with fun games & activities along with photos from events that are exclusive to kids. We keep you up-to-date about events, contests & include special extras. We also offer monthly Family Craft & Activity Days at the Museum. Every time you participate in one of our monthly craft days we put a sticker on your membership card – after only 5 visits you win a prize!
A Sweet Winner!
September 24th, 2012
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| Ten-year-old Kayla Kranz, of Richmond, dropped by the Museum this weekend to claim her Candy Counting Contest prize. Congratulations Kayla! Don’t eat all 68 of those candies at once! |
We Have A Winner!
September 17th, 2012
Congratulations to Kayla Kranz our candy contest winner! 10-year-old Kayla dropped by our booth at the Richmond Fair on the weekend and guessed that our candy jar contained 67 candies. She was only off by one! (The jar contained 68.) Kayla also wins a Kits’ Club Membership. Way to go Kayla!
Richmond Fair…and a Giant Jar of Candy!
September 12th, 2012
We’re busy prepping for the Richmond Fair this weekend! We’ll be giving presentations to Grade 4 students all day Friday & manning our booth Saturday & Sunday. Be sure to stop by and say “hello” – we love hearing your stories about the Goulbourn of yesteryear. And did we mention you could win a great big jar of candy? Whether you’re a kid or a kid-at-heart, nobody can resist a good old-fashioned candy counting competition!
