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Cottage Shack Articles: You’ve Got Mail (A-Team Part 4) – Nov. 18, 2021

To read the original article and others visit the Cottage Shack

My name is Clay and I am one of the original members of the A-team at Coldwater Canadiana Heritage Museum (CCHM). The A-Team is a group of dedicated volunteers who use their particular skills and experience to improve various aspects of the museum. On any given Wednesday you will see anywhere from six to twelve of us working on up to three different projects. These might, for example, include erecting a pole barn, restoring a buggy, installing a new roof, replacing old boards on a barn, adding signage, creating a kid-friendly playhouse, maintaining a steam-powered tractor. The list is endless.

Although there is a lot yet that needs doing of that we wish to accomplish, a truly amazing transformation is taking place at CCHM and we are proud to have a part in it. You could too!

In earlier stories of the A-Team, I wrote about volunteering at the museum on Wednesday mournings and about how our group was expanding. I also shared some details about the early restoration and refurbishment projects we tackled.

Over the winter of 2017/2018 we were blessed with the use of a large, well-equipped workshop that belongs to my brother-in-law. By this time the A-Team was working both mourning and afternoon of a Wednesday and had grown in size to six members, so we were able to tackle two projects. One was the pre-fabrication of the framing for a future storage shed and Playhouse for kids – it will be the subject of a future article.

Restored Mail Sorter and Post Office Display 2021

The other project involved the restoration of an antique mail sorter donated by Tom and Terry Malloy who had obtained it about 15 years earlier in a Severn Township barn. It is a beauty. They had kept it high and dry in their basement throughout their tenure.

Sadly, they were unable to provide any knowledge about its origin. We chose to believe that it very likely had been employed in one of our local village post offices.

It’s fascinating that the modern postal system, having started with the inception of the adhesive postage stamp, came about in Canada mid-19th century around the time that pioneer Archibald Woodrow was building his homestead, the centrepiece of the museum.

The mail sorter was the forerunner of today’s post office box system. Whereas today people can whip into the post office with key in hand and quickly get their mail from their P.O. Box, in earlier times the mail was sorted into numbered, glass fronted boxes nestled together in a cabinet mounted one a table. The postal clerk or, in most places the size of Coldwater, the postmaster stood behind the table and handed you the mail from your numbered box. This meant that on occasion you would find yourself in line while another ahead of you may engage the postmaster in idle gossip. Customer: “Well…I heard…the cherry pie Mary Chater entered in the Fall Fair came from Walker’s bakery. And it won second prize!” Postmaster: “Perhaps Walkers might henceforth want to advertise their pies as prize-winning.” “NEXT!” But I digress.

That winter we restored our new gem. Bob remembers how a visit to a car wash solved the issues of some layers of crud. The next step required a level of dexterity since much of the finer pieces – the ones that were not already missing – had to be detached. Replacements for the missing and damaged pieces needed to be fabricated. John worked some serious magic by hand-carving a couple of rosettes. He also produced a long piece of scrollwork that crowns the front of the sorter. All the glass was replaces. Trip around the boxes posted a challenge. A few lengths of a closely matched moulding were the ticked. These we cut, fitted and attached to the glass with double-sided adhesive strips.

The completed assembly required sanding with two grades of fine sandpaper. Providing a finish that is close to the original colour required the mastery of our two most experienced antique refinishers, Mike and Bob. Mike grew up in a family of “antiquophiles.” When I asked him about the formula for the final coats of finish he said, “If I tell you, Clay, I’ll have to kill you! It’s a secret family recipe that my mother got a long time ago from a farmer in Trois Rivieres.” All I was able to determine is that it consisted of a highly flammable mixture of linseed oil, beeswax and turpentine in approximately equal portions. Apparently, the secret lies in the manner in which the elements are “cooked.” Two coats of this unique finish were buffed on with soft cotton cloths. Minwax stain was added to the mix when applied to the newer pieces to get a good colour match.

The final step of the process was numbering the glass fronts of the 54 boxes. This assignment was given to me, the very armature artist. Numbers, letters and sign painting not being in my wheelhouse, a trip to Staples was in order. There I obtained several sheets of peel and sticks decals that were relatively easy to apply. Voila! And very professional looking, I might add!

While we were busy at Gary’s shop, our honorary A-Team member, Rollie produced in his home workshop the elegant able upon which our mail sorter so proudly rests – the dilapidated table that had accompanied it was neither original nor salvageable. Therewith we were able to install the completed ensemble making it the focal point of the village post office on Main Street in the display barn at CCHM.

And now, dear reader, we have a problem and we need your help. Ad mid-point of the sorter and at the table level there is an opening for the pass through across the table of mail stamps, money, etc. It has a door the postal clerk can raise and lower as required. That is clear enough. However, there is also in that vicinity a turned rod about an inch and a half in diameter mounted between two protruding brackets. At approximately sic inches long it looks similar to the core of a toilet roller and is accessible from the front only. And it doesn’t rotate, but is locked in place with no apparent means of release. We are done stratchin’ our heads! Somebody Tell us what it is, and what is its purpose! PUH…lease!

If you are are retired – or not – and want to spend one day a week with a group of really great guys doing some remarkable historical preservation works, give me a call at (705) 209-1087. Or email me at clayyoung695@gmail.com.

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Cottage Shack Articles: All Around the Cobbler’s Bench – Nov. 11, 2021

To read the original article and others visit the Cottage Shack magazine

As curator and director of Coldwater Canadiana Heritage Museum (CCHM), I have had the pleasure of working on my interesting and informative displays. From wagons and buggies to tractors and buzz saws, the challenge is to ensure that our artifacts are well researched and well cared for.

One of our many displays is title “All Around the Cobbler’s Bench.” It is located in our carriage barn. A description based on our research accompanies the display.

Doug Binns, one of our devoted volunteers has a keen interest in the subject. He wrote about the talents of the Shoemaker in the Coldwater Current newspaper, July 2012. His article was titled “One Two Buckle My Shoe.”

The history of shoes is really quite simple. Even prehistoric man, wandering the world in bare feet regularly would have injured the soles of his feet. It did not take long for these nomads to ban together to find better ways of life. They soon began covering their feet with pieces of wood, animal hide or bark. Even today, this practice continues. An excellent resource for this information is the book All About Shoes by the Bata Shoe Company.

As society became more sophisticated, so did footwear. The simple sandal provided a much more pleasant way for walking. One’s social and financial status would eventually influence footwear fashion. Shoes also began to be designed for specific purposes, i.e., bedroom slippers, simple walking shoes, sports shoes, heavy work boots, skates and ski boots.

New fashions began to appear such as welt button, patent leather, lace and ladies’ spring heels. We are fortunate to have samples of most of the turn of the century shoes. The cost at that time would range from $1.95 for a pair of common-sense shoes to $3.00 for a more elite style. This we learned when perusing our 1906 Sears Roebuck and Company catalogue.

Although our collection is interesting, it pales in comparison to the Victoria and Albert Museum’s collection that boasts of more than 2000 shoes. Even more impressive is the fact that this display covers more than 3000 years. A shoe collector’s dream! A trip to London, England perhaps?

Although not on par with that museum, our collection includes a variety of ladies leather shoes and boots and some dainty, cloth covered shoes that usually completed a bridal outfit. The few pairs of men’s shoes and boots in our display have barely stood the test of time. Our children’s shoes, are tiny and fragile. As most of our footwear was donated by local folks, we lack examples of stylish footwear such as ones that would sport jewels, buckles or bows. DONATIONS GLADLY ACCEPTED!

As part of our display, we have some interesting tools of the trades of shoemaking and other leather works. For a long time, cobbler was a traditional handicraft – up until the invention of the industrial sewing machine in 1846 and the consequent advent of the mass production of footwear. CCHM has such a machine. It is heavy and cumbersome but still functional.

In small communities like Coldwater the shoemaker’s talents would be engaged to make all manner of leather goods including such things as saddles, reins, harnesses and other horse tack. Volunteer Bob Turnour, with a “heady” assist from Doug Binns also created a “harness rack horse” for the display of such artifacts at our museum.

If you are curious to learn more about vintage footwear, plan to visit us at Coldwater Canadiana Heritage Museum in the Spring to view our “All Around the Cobbler’s Bench” display.

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Cottage Shack Articles: Widow’s Weeds – Nov. 5, 2021

To read the original article and others visit the Cottage Shack magazine

My name is Patricia Turnour and I am curator at Coldwater Canadiana Heritage Museum (CCHM). Among other things, my very rewarding work includes acquiring new artifacts, setting up displays and researching local history. As a volunteer, not-for-profit organization CCHM benefits from the generosity of grants to hire students for the summer months. Their work in cataloguing our collection has been invaluable.

Through the articles we write, our individual interests are emerging. My previous research on hats grew out of my passion for them. I sport one every day that I work at the museum.

My other passion is vintage clothing. We recently displayed our collection during the Coldwater Fall Fair. Our most interesting apparel is our selection of widow’s wear, also known as “widow’s weeds.”

What are Widow’s Weeds?

The word “weeds” is an old English term meaning garments. It was originally spelled “waeds.”

There have always been cultural rites associated with death. Common in Western society has been the wearing of black. But the most complex list of rules emerged during the Victorian era. Queen Victoria herself donned full widow attire after the passing of her beloved consort, Prince Albert. For over 40 years she continued to wear black. Even her staff wore black clothing and black armbands. It is believed that the only time she was not in black was when she was buried in her white wedding dress.

Only the upper-class women, who could afford the expense of replacing an entire wardrobe, followed Queen Victoria’s lead. When grieving the loss of a husband, parent or child her mourning rules were strictly followed. A mourning consultant would often be hired to guide a widow through the exercise, which included some bizarre regimens such as corresponding exclusively on black-edged stationary and greeting cards.

The weeds consisted of long black dresses, capes, veils, hats and shawls. All were usually made of coarse uncomfortable materials thus enhancing the widow’s suffering. This attire was not for the faint of heart, especially during the warm summer months! Weeping veils were worn to hide the widow’s face and most dresses had large sleeves used to wipe away the widow’s tears.

No adornments were permitted in the initial stage of one’s grief but eventually black jewelry called jet – a fossilized, light weight wood – was allowed. Few social engagements were attended besides church and funerals. Widows were expected to behave conservatively.

Following a year and one day of deep mourning, a period of half mourning prevailed, during which a slight brightening of attire to colours such as greys and browns was acceptable. After the year and a day of deep mourning, widows were meant to burn their weeds to provide closure and show the end of their grief.

After the Victorian era, these rituals and strict protocols faded. However, during the era the custom did prevail in North America.

CCHM is fortunate to have an extensive collection of widow’s weeds. Some of the items, we believe, were actually worn by the Woodrow ladies. Thankfully, they were more frugal than most and did not burn this clothing. They likely passed it on to others in need. It was also believed to be bad luck to wear these clothes when not in mourning.

To have such items intact is very special and our collection will be on display when we reopen in the Spring.

Stay tuned for my next article titled: All Around the Cobbler’s Bench about one of our latest displays. Located in the carriage barn is a wonderful display of shoes, skates, boots, harnesses, etc. The role of the shoemaker extended way beyond mere footwear.

(Portions of this article appeared in the Coldwater Current newspaper in August 2012.)

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Cottage Shack Articles: The A-Team at the Coldwater Museum (Part 2) – Oct. 1, 2021

My name is Clay and I am one of the original members of the A-team at Coldwater Canadiana Heritage Museum (CCHM). The A-Team is a group of dedicated volunteers who use their particular skills and experience to improve various aspects of the museum. One any given Wednesday you will see anywhere from six to twelve of us working on up to three different projects. These might, for example, include erecting a pole barn, restoring a buggy, installing a new roof, replacing old boards on a barn, adding signage, creating a kid-friendly playhouse, maintaining a steam-powered tractor. The list of to-dos at the museum is endless.

Although there is a lot yet that needs doing or that we wish to accomplish, a truly amazing transformation is taking place at CCHM and we are proud to have a part in it. You can too! Earlier this month in Part 1 of the story of the A-Team, I wrote about how a friend and I began volunteering at the museum on Wednesday mornings and by year two we had expanded to a crew of four. I also shared some details about the early restoration and refurbishment projects that we tackled. We continued our commitment into the following year and took on two challenging projects; the buzz saw and the dog walker. Here is a brief description of what was accomplished:

The Buzz Saw

It is a large saw mounted on a horse drawn sled that was used to convert downed trees into shorter pieces to be split for firewood. A log is placed on the carriage about the size of a part bench and as it is slid forward the overhanging log is cut by the massive circular blade. The early versions such as the one we are about to restore are belt driven by a tractor. Others on display at CCHM are motorized.

Our buzz saw was so rotten that the entire chassis and even the runners had to be replaced. We clearly needed to hatch a plan before driving in on this project. We took various pictures at different angles and mounted them around the workshop. We collaborated and formed a plan and subsequently sources the materials. Volunteer Bob – he is a scavenger – provided the makings for the new 9-foot runners from a couple of beams taken from a barn demolished years earlier at a golf course in Cambridge.

Then began the careful disassembly of all the rotten framework, keeping as many pieces as possible as templates. Next came the forming and fitting of the saw. It was then that we were forced to learn some new skills including mortice and tenon carpentry and how to drill square holes. Things went surprisingly well which prompted us to remark, “I love it when plans come together.” We said it so many times that we decided to call ourselves the A-Team and I potty the foo’ who gives us a hard time about that! This is how we became the A-Team at CCHM.

Today the buzz saw is stored under cover, but now the carriage is in need of repair. Another project to add to the list! Just so we don’t get too full of ourselves there is one small piece left over from the original. There is a prize for anyone who can figure out where it goes.

The Dog Walker

Near the end of our 3rd year, before time to close the museum for the season, the A-team was asked to assess some items in need of repair that were taking up space in the schoolhouse. They included a large octagonal turntable, some gears, a treadle wheel and several wooden shafts of various shapes and sizes. After some head scratching by the rest of us, Bob explained, “These are the parts to make up a dog walker that was donated to the museum by Joe King.” “You can’t be serious!” said we. “Yes, I am and I’m not joking,” he quipped.

It took some serious Googling to find out how a mechanical dog walker works – not a hire who walks dogs – before we were able to do all the fixes and add a fresh coat of paint.

It wasn’t until a few years later that, much to the relief of our school-marm Miss Patti, we removed all the components and sun-assemblies from the schoolhouse and created a permanent home for the dog walker in a unique structure – designed by volunteer Richard – that we built next to the original homestead. It was through the genius of volunteer Jay – he’s a millwright – that we succeeded at mechanizing it. We could not convince Richard’s dog Sass to walk on the turntable.

The dog walker is now on permanent display at CCHM. An electric motor turns the table and its gears drive the treadle which in turn works the arm up and down to operate a water pump. Dog walkers were also commonly used to work butter churns. Talk about a modern convenience of the time!

Stay tuned for Part 3, Building Fences.

See the original article and others at The Cottage Shack magazine

If you are retired – or not – and want to spend one day a week with a group of really great guys doing some remarkable historical preservation works, give me a call at (705) 209-1087. Or email me at clayyoung695@gmail.com.

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Cottage Shack Articles Museum Articles

Cottage Shack Articles: The Woodrow Homestead – Sept. 25, 2021

My name is Richard Jolliffe. As chair of Coldwater Canadiana Heritage Museum (CCHM) I invite you to visit us and experience life in rural Ontario during the times between 1830 and 1950.

Here is a very small sample of what you can experience as you wander about the property. The Woodrow Homestead and 6.5 acres on the Coldwater River was purchased in 1966 by a group of history buffs who then began the creation of CCHM. Subsequently the property was registered a Heritage Site.

It is hard to imagine this area being a farm when one looks out the front door of the homestead, no highway, no lumber yard, no buildings or structures of any kind. Picture a single level log structure built in the late 1830’s with a second level addition added on in 1864.

When Archibald Woodrow arrived from Scotland, his log building skills most likely would have been limited. The 15- and 20-inch squared-timber dovetail corner joints were constructed by skilled craftsmen. Unfortunately, we have no record of who actually built the homestead. It is hard to estimate the cost to build such a structure today even if you could find the materials and the skilled trades to do the work.

How difficult it must have been for Archibald, his wife Catherine and daughter Catherine to move from the island of Isley, Scotland across the ocean to a parcel of land in the wilds of Ontario Canada and to make a new life there was back in the early 1800s.

If I may add a personal note, Diane and I with two babies in tow purchased a 25-acre bush lot 37 years ago, cleared a spot and built a home to raise our family. We gleaned an appreciation of only some of the challenges Archibald and Catherine must have faced. From personal experience we are in awe of just how hard our antecedents had to work to develop this beautiful province of Ontario.

The fact that no famous person, prime minister or military man ever visited or slept at the Woodrow homestead is testimony to the people that worked so hard over the years to preserve this site as an example of the settlement program of the time in Ontario.

Oh yes, there is at least one interesting incident we know of that took place at the homestead. As the story is told, daughter Catherine eloped with George Borland. She climbed through a loft window as George waited at the Coldwater River with his canoe. And that is about all we know about that particular bit of history.

Brother Sandy Woodrow married and built a brick house which stood next to Timber Mart as you drive into Coldwater. It is long gone now. Bill Woodrow, Jim Woodrow, and Neil Woodrow, all bachelors, stayed on the homestead farm after Archibald and his wife Catherine passed. The other son and daughters all married and today many residents of the area trace their ancestry back to this homestead.

This is just a taste of this wonderful heritage museum and a smattering of our local history. Visit us soon. Bring friends and family. Admission is by donation.

See the original article at The Cottage Shack magazine