Election Day 70 Years Ago

June 11, 1945.
I plowed in the morning and in the afternoon Dad, both Uncles, Bud, and I went to vote at Balrobie in the democrat with Gleam and Embers. Mrs. Ernest Senft was D.R.O. and Bill Peake was polling clerk.
We saw Sid Phillips and his family there . Also Mrs. McCullough, Sam Smith, Bernice and their 2 children, Jack Mintzlar, Howard Van Luven, Robert Senft, Charlie Huber and Red Schmidt on the way home. Lutzs' overtook us and Bud went with them.
Didn't have time to do anything much after we got home. There was a letter from Dick in the mail. We were listening to election returns on the radio and heard that the Liberals are returned to power with a smaller majority.

This is actually a photo of Kate Hobetzeder in a "democrat" since I do not have one of the Nevard's conveyance. Chances are good that some time that same election day that Kate and family showed up at Balrobie to vote.

Narratives 8 The War Years

On April 3, 1916 Uncle Horrie enlisted in the 195th battalion of the Canadian Infantry Corp. In November he sailed on the Empress of Britain for further training in the U.K. and by the end of the month he had landed in France to join the battle.
Uncle Arthur joined up in August of 1916 with the 238th Battalion of the Forestry corp and went to Scotland.
Reverend Moffat was now taking the Church services at Balrobie. He came in 1915 and had the loan of Uncle Horrie's horse, Captain. Bill was confirmed while in Regina in 1915 at Grace Church by Bishop Harding.
Around that time Dad built a log stable for the livestock. For the first years he had a sod stable. In 1917 he added on to the log stable. I was just beginning to get about outside by that time and very helpfully put my foot in the freshly mixed plaster Dad was using on the walls. He carefully washed my foot saying, "it would not do for your mother to see that".

Bill Nevard by new barn.

We had a dog named Nell and her pup, Frank. Mother said that when I was out playing with the dogs she could hardly tell boy from dog. In that year Mr. North bought a pair of pigs from us. They came for these one Sunday morning. Mr. North had his two sons, Tom and Ed with him. Tom Smith was also along with  him on this occasion.
That summer Aunt Daisy came up from the city for a while and lived in their house on the farm, Winstanley Grove. Our farm was named "The Poplars'. Mrs. McNeil had suggested calling it "the bluffs" but Mother did not agree. Mrs. McNeil had named their farm "Murdock" after a place in Scotland.
On the southeast quarter of section 12 just south of McNeils's lived Mr. and Mrs. Ferguson and their daughter Shatty. In 1917 at haying time Mr. Ferguson had his team run away with the hay rake and he suffered bad head injuries so Shatty came over to our place to get Dad to drive them to the station to catch the train for Regina. Mother had Shatty stay the nights at our place while her parents were away. That year we had Christmas at Fergusons. The next year they came to our place. Mrs. Ferguson said she was going to keep me. I thought she meant it and was quite worried. Actually I don't remember it, being aged two at the time, but have heard it referred to since.
Aunt Daisy held a picnic at her place in 1917 in aid of the Red Cross. I imagine all the neighborhood would be there. I remember hearing that the North family were there. Ed North told me that he remembers sitting on the running board of Tom Goff's Model T Ford.

                   Goffs and Nevards. Model T in background.

Narratives 7

That same year, Tom Goff and his  bride, Mary Elizabeth Lane were married in the Arthur Nevard home on November 27.
1911 was also the year of the earthquake. It happened on a Sunday afternoon. Dad, Mother and Bill were visiting at Braithwaite's (the farm that Hobetzeders bought later). There was an earth tremor that rattled the dishes in the pantry.
The Leslies homesteaded on the northeast quarter of section 26. They were burning some rubbish one day when the fire got away and traveled across Uncle Arthur's land and burnt his shack down. On the Sunday the Leslies followed the path of the fire finding out that Uncle Arthur's shack was no longer there. They paid him for it.
In 1911 the crop was hailed. Now the next paragraph will sound a little inconsistent but according to what I was told, Bill shoveled grain for Uncle Horrie. Uncle Arthur had an accordion and Bill played it so naturally he wanted one of his own. Uncle Horrie promised him that if he shoveled the grain for him he would buy Bill an accordion. Mother remarked that Bill got a little weary so Uncle Horrie would make the motions of playing an accordion to encourage Bill to continue on with his shoveling.
Aunt Daisy enjoyed company so one week a couple of young women came and spent a few days with her. When Mother and Dad got the mail and weekly paper there was a letter written by Aunt Daisy stating that there were lots of bachelors around and Aunt Daisy closed the letter with, "Come along girls".
I believe it was that fall when Uncle Arthur and Aunt Daisy went to live in Regina. The crops were hailed again in 1912. I think Dad worked in Regina that year. He worked on the jail one year, the Normal school another year , and lastly, the Regina General Hospital.

The Reverend H.A. Lewis came as rector of St. Johns Church in Fort Qu'appelle in 1911. He began holding Church services in Balrobie school. He came to our home Saturday evening, spent the night there and held the service the next morning. While here he would give Bill lessons. One day Mr. Lewis came along and Bill did not see him approaching while he was stooking. The stook fell down and Bill got rather angry at the miserable stook. Mr. Lewis said "too bad" and helped Bill to put the stook back up. They sat on some sheaves and Bill had his Sunday school lessons. Bill did all the stooking in 1913 when he was eleven years of age.
In 1914 Uncle Horrie worked in Regina. That was the year that war was declared in Europe. In February of 1915 Mother and Bill went to Regina. Bill went to Wetmore school until the end of June. Yours truly was born March 4, 1915 on Atkinson Street. I believe it was in the 2100 block. On the fourth of April I was baptized in Grace Church , Regina. That is where St. Matthews Church now stands. The Reverend Erp was the minister. Mother wanted Bill to be one of my god-parents but he was not well that Sunday as he had just his tonsils removed the day before. On the Monday, Mother and Dad brought me home to the homestead. Uncle Horrie was there to meet us and take us home from the train. The big item of news that day was the Jack Johnson-Jess Willard world championship heavy weight boxing match. As there were no radios in those days the news came over the rail station to telegraph wires. As the train stopped at each station they heard how the fight was progressing. The match was over before they arrived at Lipton so they were not kept in suspense. Jess Willard won in twenty or more rounds.
Dad made a cradle for me but I would not sleep in it. The cradle was used as a newspaper stand or holder instead. The Sunday following my arrival home was a nice day so Mother took me to Church at Balrobie school. The Reverend Lewis asked Mother about having the baby baptized. Much to his surprise Mother told him that it was already done. I understand the reason for my baptism in Regina was because they heard Mr. Lewis was leaving and there was a possibility of not having a replacement for a while.