Wednesday, October 26, 2016
Jackie Robinson in Montreal
"It is ironical that America, supposedly the cradle of democracy, is forced to send the first two Negroes in baseball to Canada in order for them to be accepted." (Chicago Defender editorial, April 13, 1946)
Delorimier Stadium (1950), home of the Montreal Royals, top farm team to Brooklyn/LA Dodgers and Jackie Robinson's first pro team.
Manny McIntyre, a black athlete who excelled at both baseball and hockey and was prominent in Quebec sporting circles during the 1940s, passed away on June 13, 2011. His death came almost 60 years to the day when he first stepped onto the playing field at Sherbrooke's Stade du Parc as a member of the Sherbrooke Canadiens, a baseball team in the newly formed Class C Border League, and became one of the first half-dozen black players, and the first Canadian, to traverse Organized Baseball's demonic colour barrier. Regardless of his other accomplishments, and they were many, McIntyre will always be remembered as a courageous baseball pioneer who successfully cracked through an impenetrable, albeit invisible, barrier, one so hostile it had prevented men of colour from playing baseball at the organized level ever since the game's early development.
Jackie Robinson - 1946
Indeed, the year 2016 marks the 65th anniversary of the integration of professional baseball in America. When Jackie Robinson, the first black man to play a regular game on an otherwise all white diamond, entered his first game wearing a Montreal Royal's uniform in April of 1946, he established a precedent and opened a door that could never again be closed. The integration of baseball had begun...
Chicago Cubs – 0
Cleveland Indians - 6
©2016 Linda Sullivan-Simpson
The Past Whispers
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Tuesday, October 25, 2016
Saint Catherine’s Day
For generations of Quebec children, Saint Catherine's Day was the sweetest of the year — marked by community gatherings and turning gooey molasses into pulled taffy.
With the Roman Catholic Church's gradual decline, however, the celebrations meant to honour Catherine, considered the patron saint of girls and unmarried women, have also cooled off.
But while most elementary school children no longer get to spend an afternoon pulling warm buttery taffy into golden strands, some Quebecers are keeping the Nov. 25 holiday alive.
"At one time it was as big as Halloween," says Madeleine Juneau, general manager at Maison Saint-Gabriel, a Montreal history museum that hosts festivities to celebrate the occasion.
In previous decades, schools would mark the day with a party with taffy pulls and hat-making contests. The night before, townspeople would get together for food, music and dancing.
Women who reached the age of 25 without being married were designated "old maids" or "Catherinettes" and had to wear an outlandish bonnet as they were teased about their inability to find a husband. Juneau says the festivities were also a chance for young women to attract husbands by offering them candy to showcase their culinary skills.
"It's an extraordinary holiday, and we want people to relive it," she said.
On Nov. 20, their Saint Catherine's Day festivities will include traditional music, storytellers, and taffy-making demonstrations by women dressed as Kings Wards — young French women recruited to move to New France to serve as potential brides for settlers.
The namesake of the day is Catherine of Alexandria, who, according to legend, was beheaded in the early fourth century for refusing to marry a Roman emperor.
But Quebec's candy-making tradition is traced to Marguerite Bourgeoys, a nun and educator who used to make taffy to entice her young students to come to the school she founded in 1658.
The Maison Saint-Gabriel, a 300-year-old farmhouse once purchased by Bourgeoys, has committed to keeping the tradition alive as part of its mission to educate visitors on life in Quebec in the 17th to 19th centuries.
Although public celebrations have largely fallen by the wayside, the tradition lives on in some Quebec kitchens.
In the east of the province, a group of 40 women — and a few men — from Sayabec are preparing to boil, pull and cut 25,000 pieces of the candy using the traditional recipe of molasses, sugar, corn syrup, butter and baking soda.
Marielle Roy, the president of the women's group who organizes the event, said she, like most others, first learned the technique from her mother.
Now, she says, the group does it as a fundraiser and for the pleasure of carrying on a tradition.
"November, it seems like a sad month, so to get together as a group of women does us good," she said. "It warms the heart."
The annual event, which inclues a community bingo night, is included on the Quebec culture minister's list of "intangible cultural heritage."
Because so few people are carrying on the day's tradition, Juneau says she gives out the recipe to Maison Saint-Gabriel visitors.
She explains how the candy is made in the hopes they'll try it at home with their kids.
"This is something that will be lost if we don't pass on the knowledge," she said.
Maison Saint-Gabriel's Saint Catherine's Day celebrations take place Nov. 20 from 1 p.m. to 5 p.m.
Guided tours of the museum are from 1 p.m. to 5 p.m. Tuesday through Sunday until Dec. 25. Visit www.maisonsaint-gabriel.qc.ca for more information.
©Linda Sullivan-Simpson
The Past Whispers
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Monday, October 24, 2016
The British and Canadian School
The British and Canadian School was founded in 1822 by a group of Montrealers with widely different political views: Horatio Gates, Louis-Joseph Papineau, John Frothingham, William Lunn, Alexander Ferguson, François-Antoine Larocque and Olivier Berthelet. These men were united in their commitment to the moral improvement of working people: the school was intended to serve “the children of all labouring people or mechanics” (that is, artisanal workers). The governors also wanted to provide an alternative to the schools run by Catholic religious orders and the very Anglican Royal Institution. The British and Canadian School was to be non-denominational.
British Canadian School – 1839
It would also be a “monitorial school,” based on a concept imported from Britain wherein one master taught the more advanced pupils (the “monitors”) who in turn taught the younger ones. Monitors were given special instruction outside the usual hours of 9:00 to 12:00 and 2:00 to 5:00 in subjects such as English Grammar and Geography; during regular hours, monitors taught reading, writing, arithmetic and needlework, and the master supervised. By this method, it was claimed, “one master can teach 1000 as well as 100.” The monitorial system was suitable for girls as well as boys, and at most times at least a third of the pupils were girls.
After a few years in rented accommodation, the governors secured enough government grants and public subscriptions to build a permanent school, designed by architect James O’Donnell (of Notre Dame Church fame) and built by master mason John Redpath (later of sugar fame). Land was purchased at the corner of Lagauchetière and Côté streets, in what was then on the outskirts of town. The cornerstone was laid in October 1826 and the school opened the following September. It appears to have functioned smoothly until after the 1837-38 rebellions, when it lost a lot of Catholic pupils. Even so, references to it in the 1850s and 60s suggest it was one of the best schools in the city. In 1866, Montreal’s Protestant school board acquired it and expanded it by adding a third story.
School register 1873 showing the name “Chas McKiernan.”
Despite being under the Protestant board, the school remained non-denominational, though it had long since abandoned the monitorial system. Many liberal or anti-clerical Catholic families sent their children there in the 1870s, including Charles McKiernan, aka “Joe Beef.” The school also attracted a fair number of Jewish children, who lived nearby – the synagogue was just around the corner. The school board paid the salary of a Hebrew teacher for the school, a service in return for the school taxes it received from Jewish property owners. This was the beginning of a long relationship between the Jewish community and the Protestant school system.
The British and Canadian School was finally closed in 1896 and the pupils transferred to a more modern building. The school was eventually used as a noodle factory. Today, it stands at the heart of Montreal’s Chinatown, probably the oldest surviving purpose-built school in the city.
©2016 Linda Sullivan-Simpson
The Past Whispers
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Sunday, October 23, 2016
Van Horne/Shaughnessy House
Built by William T. Thomas in 1874, this Second Empire building is made of two symmetrical houses, one on the west side and one on the east side. The west house was first occupied by Duncan McIntyre, while William Van Horne was the first owner of the east house.
Following Van Horne, T.G. Shaughnessy later inhabited in the east house. These three men had in common to be senior representatives of the Canadian Pacific Railway. Van Horne was president of the CPR from 1888 to 1899.
In 1890, a notable addition was made to the building: a beautiful semicircular greenhouse was added on the west side of the building. As for the east side, it was enlarged a few times over the years: first, from 1897 to 1899, then in 1906 and again in 1923.
The building was later occupied by a religious congregation, the Sisters of Service, who decided in 1941 to make an opening in the central wall to connect the two houses.
The Van Horne/Shaughnessy house was designated a national historic site of Canada in 1973. Despite this title, it came close to be demolished in the 1980s. It was rehabilitated and integrated into the Centre Canadien d'Architecture, following the plans of architect Peter Rose. The CCA now has its offices and meeting rooms in the historic building.
©2016 Linda Sullivan-Simpson
The Past Whispers
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Saturday, October 22, 2016
The Angus Shops
The Canadian Pacific Railway built the Angus Shops between 1902 and 1904 for construction and maintenance of locomotives and rolling stock. This large industrial complex covered about 48 hectares. There were 68 buildings on the site, including shops for construction and maintenance, a foundry, a forge, an administrative office, and a police and firemen station. The largest building was the "Locoshop", where locomotives were assembled.
In 1912, about 6 000 employees were working at the Angus Shops. A variety of services were made available to the workers directly on site. With a library, a recreation center, medical services, playgrounds, and a branch of the Bank of Montreal, the Angus industrial complex was truly like a small city. During the First and the Second World Wars, the number of employees reached 12 000; they produced boat engines, tanks and material for artillery.
After the Second World War, the production slowed down, as the cars and the trucks gained in popularity and the railways were lesser used. From the mid-1960s, some of the buildings were torn down. The production definitely stopped in 1992.
In recent years, the Angus industrial complex was recycled and refurbished. For example, about 12 companies now have their offices in the "Locoshop", plus a supermarket. The old factory's large walls and steel structure are in a prominent position, visible to the public.
McCord Museum http://www.mccord-museum.qc.ca/en/collection/artifacts/MP-0000.25.1003
©2016 Linda Sullivan-Simpson
The Past Whispers
All Rights Reserved
Friday, October 21, 2016
Atwater Library
The Atwater Library traces its origins back to 1828, when the first mechanics’ institute established in continental British North America was formed in Montreal. Today, with its official name, Atwater Library and Computer Centre, it is the sole survivor of the many mechanics’ institutes established in Canada in the 19th century. The rest were either closed or merged into public library systems. The Atwater Library and Computer Centre carries on proudly, aware of its traditions, but focused on the future.
In 1828, some prominent Montreal citizens formed the Montreal Mechanics’ Institution because they saw a need to educate workers for the emerging industries of the growing city. Patron of the new organization was Sir James Kempt, governor of Lower Canada and first president was Louis Gugy, sheriff of Montreal. Vice-presidents were industrialist John Molson; merchant Horatio Gates; Louis-Joseph Papineau, speaker of the Assembly of Lower Canada, and the Assembly’s representative from the west end of the city; and Rev. Henry Esson, educator and Church of Scotland pastor of the St. Gabriel Street Church. Active members appear to have been mainly artisans, craftsmen and shopkeepers who were employers.
Patterned after mechanics institutions that had already sprung up in England and Scotland, the aim of the new Montreal Institution was, according to Rev. Esson, “to see to the instruction of its members in the arts and in the various branches of science and useful knowledge.” Rather than classroom activities, the institution ran a lecture program, organized weekly information sessions and had a library and reading room.
It was a time when the building trades were expanding rapidly, highlighted by the construction of the Lachine Canal and Notre Dame Church. The population of Montreal was about 23,000, and the principal commercial and social centre of the city was St. Paul Street. Many educational institutions were developing at the time, including McGill University which began teaching classes in the arts and in medicine in 1829.
By 1834, pre-Rebellion political unrest in Montreal, as well as rivalries based on religion and educational objectives, led to a suspension of activities of the Institution. The last meeting was held on March 24, 1835. more…
©2016 Linda Sullivan-Simpson
The Past Whispers
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Thursday, October 20, 2016
Eva Tanquay
Eva Tanguay was born in 1878 in Marbleton, Quebec. Her father was a doctor. Before she reached the age of six, her family moved from Quebec'sEastern Townships to Holyoke, Massachusetts. Her father died soon after. While still a child she developed an interest in the performing arts, making her first appearance on stage at the age of eight at an amateur night in Holyoke. Two years later, she was touring professionally with a production of a stage adaptation of the popular novel Little Lord Fauntleroy. Eva eventually landed a spot in the Broadway musical My Lady in 1901. The 1904 show The Chaperons led to her rise in popularity. By 1905, she was also performing in vaudeville as a solo act, where she would spend much of the remainder of her career.
Although she possessed only an average voice, the enthusiasm with which the robust Eva Tanguay performed her suggestive songs soon made her an audience favorite. She went on to have a long-lasting vaudeville career and eventually commanded one of the highest salaries of any performer of the day earning as much as $3,500 a week at the height of her fame around 1910.
Eva Tanguay is remembered for brassy self-confident songs that symbolized the emancipated woman, such as "It's All Been Done Before But Not the Way I Do It", "I Want Someone to Go Wild With Me", "Go As Far As You Like", and "That's Why They Call Me Tabasco". In showbiz circles, she was nicknamed the "I Don't Care Girl", after her most famous song, "I Don't Care".
Eva was brought in to star in impresario Florenz Ziegfeld, Jr.'s 1909 Ziegfeld Follies, where she replaced the husband and wife team of Jack Norworth and Nora Bayes, who were engaged in a bitter salary and personal feud with Ziegfeld. Eva requested that the musical number "Moving Day in Jungle Town" be taken from rising talent Sophie Tucker and given to her. Despite this, the two later became close friends.
Tanguay spent lavishly on publicity campaigns and costumes. One obituary notes that a "clever manager" told Tanguay early in her career that money made money. She never forgot the lesson, buying huge ads at her own expense and, on one occasion, allegedly spending twice her salary on publicity. Gaining free publicity with outrageous behavior was one of her strong suits. In 1907, Eva shacked up with entertainment journalist and publicist C. F. Zittel in a Brooklyn hotel for nearly a week—despite the fact that Zittel was married. Mrs. Zittel uncovered the affair by hiring detectives dressed as room-service bellhops to burst in on their love nest. It made headlines and in no way damaged Eva's popularity, reputation, or box office success. She got her name in the papers for allegedly being kidnapped, allegedly having her jewels stolen, and getting fined $50 in Louisville, Kentucky for throwing a stagehand down a flight of stairs.
Her costumes were as extravagant as her personality. In 1910, a year after the Lincoln penny was issued, Tanguay appeared on stage in a coat entirely covered in the new coins. Other costumes included a dress covered in coral which weighed 45 pounds and cost $2000, and a costume made of dollar bills.
Tanguay only made one known recording ("I Don't Care") in 1922 for Nordskog Records. In addition to her singing career, she starred in two film comedies that, despite the limitations of silent film, used the screen to capture her lusty stage vitality to its fullest. The first, titled Energetic Eva was made in 1916. The following year she starred opposite Tom Moore in The Wild Girl.
Tanguay was said to have lost more than $2 million in the Wall Street crash of 1929. In the 1930s, Tanguay retired from show business. Cataracts caused her to lose her sight, but Sophie Tucker, a friend from vaudeville days, paid for the operation that restored her vision.
At the time of her death, Tanguay was working on her autobiography, to be titled Up and Down the Ladder. Three excerpts from the autobiography were published in Hearst newspapers in 1946 and 1947.
Eva Tanguay died in 1947, age 68, in Hollywood where she was interred in the Hollywood Memorial Park Cemetery, now Hollywood Forever Cemetery. In 1953 Mitzi Gaynor portrayed Eva Tanguay in a fictionalized version of her life in the Hollywood motion picture, The I Don't Care Girl.
courtesy – Wikipedia
©2016 Linda Sullivan-Simpson
The Past whispers
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