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Thi s is Shelley R i cher intervie w in g Mr. Erle C orne l l in his ho m e
at
222
Phipps S treet on A ugust
21, 1985.
S.R:
Hello Mr. C ornell and h o w are you today?
E.C:
Oh, I ' m fine ri ght no w , just gre at.
S.R:
What is your d a t e of birth ?
E.C:
J anuary
E.C:
And w here w ere you born ?
E.C:
In N:l:>r w i ch, Ont ari o .
S.R:
When d i d you m ove to Fort Eri e ?
E.C:
In
S.R:
And you ' v e lived her e v e ry sin c e ?
E.C:
Yes.
S.R:
So then, you didn't take any schooling around here right ?
23, 1902.
1920.
You did
all your s cho oling and t h a t in N or w ich.
E.C:
Y e s, in N or w i ch.
S.R:
Are you, or have you b e e n, a m em ber of a church?
E.C:
Y e s, the M ethodi s t C hur ch in N or w ich.
S.R:
What about here ?
E.C:
And here the Uni t e d Church no w .
It w as M e th odist but it's Uni t ed
no w .
S.R:
It w as M e thodist when you star t e d attending ?
E.C:
Yes.
S.R:
The M ethodist what ?
E.C:
Just M ethod ist Church.
S.R:
Where is that?
E.C:
We ll, tha t ' s in Fort Eri e .
B efore t he Uni t e d w as ... b e fore it w as
form e d into the Unite d .
S.R:
On the corner of Duf ferin and C entral, that church?
E.C:
Y e s, tha t ' s the same church.
S.R:
Would you kno w any o f the history of the chur ch a t all ?
E.C:
We ll, y e s qui t e a bit.
In that one sheet I had, I think you read or
had it wri t t en out.
S.R:
{
/,
But e v erything has t o b e said on t h e t ap e .
Anything that you c an
re m e m ber.
E.C:
Y e s, w e ll, the founda tion w as laid in
(1)
1913
of the present church.
�Before that it was an old wooden frame church on the same locality.
(
Now it's the United Church on that corner, rebuilt in 1913, the cornerstone.
S.R:
Have there been any changes since?
E.C:
Well, just in... yes, the Sunday School room auditorium was put on
after, in 1934.
S.R:
Would you recall any special events that the church had to offer
for the family?
E.C:
Well, we have celebrated our lOOth anniversary of the original church
way back in the 1800s. Ministers of course have been changed from
well, periods of years.
S.R:
Do you recall the names?
E.C:
Yes, there's, when I came Reverend Foreman. And then after that
was, oh who was that man, Rev. Perry, Rev. McCuaig, Rev. Hislop,
Rev. ... the one that married us... Hancock, then Rev. Slade,then
Rev. Russ, Rev. Hudson, and now Rev. Pocklington.
S.R:
E.C:
Present, yes.
S.R:
So then, Rev. Foreman was there when you started going in 1920?
E.C:
Yes.
S.R:
(
And Rev. Pocklington is the present-day minister?
Do you remember any prominent members of the church, like somebody
that has really done a lot to help in organizations, or just helping
the people?
E.C:
Some of the older members were L. Wenz and family and Rev. Learn,
choirmaster.
S.R:
Could you give a couple examples of what the Wenzfamily did?
E.C:
Well, the Wenz family, he was the contractor and built the church.
there's more there if you want it. Rev. Fowler and family, Hall,
J. Hall, John Hall and family, and L. C. McMurtry and family,
W. R. Mannick and family.
S.R:
Could you give me some examples of things they may have done?
E.C:
In the church?
S.R:
Yeah that makes them special.
E.C:
They've all been workers and they have it was some of those that
•.•
•••
backed when...
S.R:
(
The funding?
E.C:
... the members when they built the new addition to the church in 1934.
(2)
�There's more yet. I...oh yes, five boys out of the church were ordained
(
as ministers.
S.R:
What's that mean? Oh, they became ministers.
E.C:
They became ministers from our church here.
S.R:
Who was the first political representative that you can remember?
E.C:
W. M. German, Welland.
S.R:
Did he have anything to do with Fort Erie?
E.C:
Yes, it was
•..
Fort Erie was in his territory here and oh, he went
down here often speaking at meetings and so forth.
S.R:
Can you recall anything that he may something good that he may
•..
have accomplished?
E.C:
Well, he was in for, I don't know, at least two different terms, but
I don't know.
S.R:
Were they four year terms?
E.C:
Very well liked before, and I guess after I came here. Very well
liked. Pettit was another one from Welland. I forget what his name
is. Pettit, he was another one. He was either before German or
(
after him, I'm not sure.
S.R:
Would you recall the Reeve at the time?
E.C:
The Reeve of Fort Erie?
S.R:
Wouldn't it be the Reeve of Bridgeburg?
E.C:
Yes, it would be Bridgeburg in those days. I don't recall.
S.R:
Some of the changes that have taken place around here when you
•.•
moved to Fort Erie did you always live here at 222 Phipps Street?
E.C:
No, I built this home in 1945.
S.R:
Where did you live when you came?
E.C:
Over the store at 208 Jarvis.
S.R:
Could you describe Jarvis Street the way it was back then?
E.C:
It was a muddy lane, and I mean muddy. There wasn't any road paved
.••
roads. There was sidewalks were very scarce.
•••
S.R:
Were the sidewalks cememt sidewalks?
E.C:
Well, there were a few. They were pretty old and needed most
•..
of them have been replaced since. But it was in very bad shape.
The stores were, well, quite dilapidated. They weren't kept up like
(
they are today. We had quite a number of stores on the front street
but they weren't elaborate at all. They were just mostly wooden
(3)
�(
frame buildings.
S.R:
Would you recall the stores names or who owned them or if there
was any popular hangouts for the kids?
E.C:
No there wasn't in those days. We weren't bothered that way.
But, Valvo...what was his name?
Leo, Leo Valvo was the shoemaker.
He was Italian. He was a shoemaker here. And there was Charter's
Bakery, John T. James General Store, VaHey's Grocery Store. VaHey's
could go in there with the former members too. They were all
members.
S.R:
In the church?
E.C:
Yes, and the AAtwood's Furniture Store and Funeral Home. And,
let's see, there was the Review Company.
S.R:
Like the Time's Review?
E.C:
Oh yes, A. W. Johnson was the owner of the Review Company.
S.R:
It wasn't called the Time's Review then?
E.C:
Well, it was changed sometime around there but it could be called
the Time's Review anyways.
(
S.R:
With the newspaper, do you remember any star reporters or the
editor, anything like that about it?
E.C:
Yes, Albert Ray was the reporter for... well, I would say the Niagara
Falls paper and also our Fort Erie paper.
S.R:
Do you recall any of the other history of the Time's Review, any
other interesting things at all?
E.C:
Well, they were the main printing company and did the... Carroll's
Grocery Store, and then there was John A. Yeo&: CoP1pany, a men's
store. And another is C. Jackson, a men's store, Robin's Shoe Store,
Gibson's Jewellers Store.
S.R:
Gibson's is one place that's there still then.
E.C:
Yeah.
S.R:
Could you tell me anything about the amalgamation of the three
villages?
E.C:
That's Fort Erie and Amigari and Bridgeburg. Well, Amigari was
a little settlement up in the west end, up there just around where
the Horton Steel is, up just west of that. Fort Erie of course was
(
the other end of town, and this was the north end of town. And
they were amalgamated two different times. Amigari came first
(4)
�.
I believe and then Fort Erie...or Bridgeburg joined in 1930. .I think
(
'33.
S.R:
So Amigari went to Fort Erie and then Bridgeburg went to Fort
Erie?
E.C:
Well, yes.
S.R:
Or did Amigari come to Bridgeburg?
E.C:
They kind of joined both of us and then Bridgeburg went in with
Fort Erie in 1933.
S.R:
Would you know the reasons why? What political figure was behind
it or...just any of the reasons why they decided to amalgamate
it?
E.C:
Gilmore Road was the dividing line. It was just duplication on that
side and this side. When we got the bridge built, the Peace Bridge,
why then we began to amalgamate ourselves. There was a Fire
Department in the other end of town and a Fire Department here,
and it was all duplicated. It still is as far as that goes, but we just
simply joined together and worked together from then on as one
(
council. And now of course it's Regional.
S.R:
Were there any politics involved?
E.C:
I would say so, no, not as far as joining goes.
S.R:
Would you recall any special things that Amigari had to offer?
E.C:
No, it was just a settlement of itself up there. It had a church...it
came in with us...I don't know, part of Central Avenue anyway.
But it was just a little church up there in the Sunday afternoons
for that section of people. Queen Street Church amalgamated
with us too. They closed up their church and amalgamated with
Central Avenue United Church because it was a United Church.
And Rev. Russ had the doings of that.
S.R:
Did Amigari have any type of factory or any kind of work?
E.C:
Well yes, the Grand Trunk Hotel up there. It hasn't got a very good
name right now. But anyway it was up there, and Hart&. Cooley.
S.R:
Is that where the railroad was located, their offices, in the Amigari
area?
E.C:
(
What was it?
S.R:
The C.N.R.?
E.C:
Oh the C.N.R., no they had their station in Fort Erie down at the
railway tracks just coming up across the river on the railway bridge.
(5)
�It was a railway station in there. On one side was the Grand Trunk
(
and on this side was the New York Central. They were both there
together because they all come across the bridge you see and went
their separate ways.
S.R:
Do you recall any of the industries in the area ...I know the ones
that are in here now, but there must have been some that came
and either left during the Depression or left for different reasons?
E.C:
The Arner Company was one, and that's just the other side of the
railroad bridge. And it's now an apartment building, but that was
where the Arner Company was. They manufactured drugs. And
there was...the Jello Company was in previous to that even. That's
where the Jello started, in Ontario, Canada. Some others were
the Mentholatum Company, yeah, that's there.
S.R:
And where was that?
E.C:
It's right behind the Arner Company on Lewis Street.
S.R:
Oh, that long big building there.
E.C:
I think they have closed up now and gone back to their home-point
in Buffalo. But they used to be in there. The Pierce
(
&
Stevens
is up there now in Amigari. And the Pierce Favourite Prescription
and all that was made over there on Courtwright. I rePlember
it when it was just the Pierce Medical Company I guess. And then
the Trico Company was in there too. The Trico Company, a branch
from Buffalo. The Wildroot Company was in there. Well, that
was closed out and went back to Buffalo.
S.R:
And where were these?
E.C:
On Courtwright Street down there. Where Custom Pharmaceuticals
is. The hotel is down there, the Barnea House. Pratt
&
Lambert,
yeah, the paint manufacturer. That's at the top end of Courtwright
Street.
S.R:
E.C:
Very badly. We had from 25 - 30% men out of work.
S.R:
Was there any help, any relief from the government or anything?
E.C:
Very little if any. I know, I took over my business in 1928.
S.R:
(
How did the Depression affect the town and the family?
So right before the Depression then.
E.C:
The Depression started in '29.
S.R:
Well, was it a hard time keeping your business going then?
(6)
�E.C:
(
You bet your life it was. Any business, because quite a few went
out of business at that time. There was ... nobody had any money.
A few...those that were on relief...I'd say 25 - 30%, they had to
work for the town sawing wood, digging ditches for so many days
a week to get their relief money.
S.R:
Would you remember how much that was?
E.C:
I don't know. It wasn't good,I know that,because I was in business
then.
S.R:
Do you recall any stories of things that happened during the Depression?
E.C:
Not much except what I've already spoken of. It was very depressing
I'm telling you.
S.R:
What did Fort Erie have to offer in the line of sports?
E.C:
Everything. They are well organized in sports, have been for years.
The Mentholatum ball team in 1925, '26 and '27, sponsored by the
Mentholatum hardball team, they went on in 1925 - '26 'till the
very last game to get the Ontario championship. They didn't make
it. They lost in the last game. Those fellows are all gone now.
I used to know them personally. They're all gone. They were a
(
great bunch. They were all Fort Erie fellas. That was the nicest
part of it.
S.R:
Did the town have... where did they play the All-Ontarios? Was
it in Fort Erie or someplace else?
E.C:
No, they... you see, we had a district here, Port Colborne, Niagara
Falls, Welland and Fort Erie. The four teams from each of the
four localities played. You'd go there one time and they'd come
here, you'd go down to the Falls and they'd come here.
S.R:
What about when it came time for the All-Ontario Championship?
E.C:
Well, that's when you had to meet somebody from another territory.
I remember once going to Bowmanville, down east of Toronto, to
play a game down t here. We went to Brantford to play a game
up there.
S.R:
E.C:
No, I didn't play for them. I just went and hollered.
S.R:
So how did you get to all these places? Were there cars around?
E.C:
(
You used to play for them?
Yeah, there were cars available to take you places. Then we went
to St. Thomas once to play a game up there. We went by train
up there.
(7)
�S.R:
(
Somebody mentioned something about signs on the store windows.
Bee ause it was so popular people would say, closed 'til after baseball
games.
E.C:
Yes, well they used to have signs put up, closed and gone to the
ball game. Now the ball games used to be played here down on
the ball diamond down on the Bowen Road, by the river. There
was a park down there and they used to play down there. It was
nothing for a thousand people to be showing up for a game.
S.R:
Did they have things different then they have right now? Right
now there is only a couple little benches and I wouldn't know where
you'd put a thousand people.
E.C:
Well, there was grandstands down there then. Two grandstands
that would hold about, oh I'd say three or four hundred people in
each. They used to play and knock the ball up the Bowen Road.
That's where the home runs would go, the Bowen Road there, yeah.
S.R:
Did they ever have lights put in there, or no, that was just at Oaks
Park?
E.C:
(
No, that's before lights. No, we just played in the afternoon.
S.R:
What about the arena, do you know what it used to be called? Was
it always just the Fort Erie Arena?
E.C:
Always the Fort Erie Arena wasn't it? Yes. The Buffalo Bisons,
when they started up in the International League, they didn't have
an arena in Buffalo. They came over to Fort Erie and played in
our arena.
S.R:
Is that who the Sabres are now? They used to be the Bisons.
E.C:
No, they weren't called Sabres then. They were just called the
Buffalo Bisons Hockey Team.
S.R:
Do you recall anything about the cave-in?
E.C:
The what?
S.R:
The roof collapsing at the arena.
E.C:
Oh the roof, yes. The roof caved in in a heavy snow storm in about
1930 something, 1932. We had a terrific snow storm here. Now
outside of my store we had a snowpile ten feet high that I had shovelled
up away from the store. The arena had all that snow on it. It just
(
simply caved in. There was nobody in the arena at the time to
get hurt or anything but it just ruined the whole arena. They had
(8)
�to rebuild the whole place after that. It's on the same locality
{
now, but that's what happened.
S.R:
That big snow, was that like the blizzard we had before in '77 and
the one last year?
E.C:
Well, it was one like that but only it would be worse.
S.R:
Do you recall anything about it?
E.C:
Oh, except it tied up the town for two or three, three or four days.
You were just blocked right in, that's all.
S.R:
Did they have much snow removal equipment?
E.C:
Oh, not as much as they have now. They had some but you just
had to really wait and get it cleared away, and then clear out another
street and so forth. But it was bad.
S.R:
E.C:
Snowmobiles? They didn't have any emergencies at all.
S.R:
No?
E.C:
None that I recall. Everybody helped one another more.
S.R:
(
What did they use for emergencies and stuff? Now they use snowmobiles.
Did Fort Erie raise any big sports stars either for hockey or baseball?
E.C:
Yes. Who was the fellow that played for the Chicago Black Hawks?
Pierre Pilote. He was a local hockey player and went on through
the St. Catharines bunch he played for and then went to Chicago
and played on. He's now retired of course. He was one and there's
a Rombough isn't there? A younger fellow in later years was called
Rombough. There's a golfer fella by the name of...Brent Tape's
son. Now I can't...he was a golfer. He used to play with the big
shots in the golf.
S.R:
Like Jack Nicklaus and all them?
E.C:
He started in the junior around here and he got to be a pro. I don't
think he plays anymore. And there's...
S.R:
Do you remember who the captain of the Mentholatum team was?
E.C:
Well, I guess you'd call it Bill Houck. He was a member of Parliament.
No, this is Jack Houck. He wasn't a member of Parliament. He
was the one that got the team together and was the boss.
S.R:
The captain?
E.C:
The captain. He was awfully good to work with and work for. The
fellows just adored him.
S.R:
What do you remember about the old Fire Halls?
(9)
�E.C:
(
Well I showed you a picture of that. I think you had it the other
day.
S.R:
Could you please tell the location and describe it a little bit?
E.C:
Well, it's where the present Town Hall is, only it faced Central Avenue
just on the alley that goes up there between our church and the
present Town Hall. It was situated right there and your library
was right next to it. A small building right next to it.
S.R:
Could you describe the Fire Department? Was it just the Fire Department
then or were there other things in it?
E.C:
Well yes, the jail was in behind it and the Town Council chamber
was upstairs in the old rickety building. Yes it was, and then the
fire bell was up on top. You had to pull it and ring the fire bell
with a rope.
S.R:
Oh, and that was the alarm?
E.C:
To bring the firemen over. It was just a voluntary group, horses
and a steam engine.
S.R:
(
Do you recall any of the people who ran it?
E.C:
Well, there was Frank Benner. He had the team of horses and the
engine was in the Fire Hall of course. They had to keep steam up
there in case there was a fire. He'd have to get his horses, harness
them, bring them up to the Fire Hall to get the thing and go out
to fight the fire.
S.R:
Was Frank ... Frank Benner was in charge of the horses so he wasn't
the fire chief then?
E.C:
No, he wasn't the fire chief.
S.R:
Would you recall who the fire chief was?
E.C:
Well, let's see, no. Since then there's been several. E.C. Butler
was one of the late years. Oh I know, way back there before that
was Ezra Shull. He was a fire chief way back.
S.R:
About how many people were on their volunteer force?
E.C:
Oh, I'd say twelve, twelve or so, maybe fourteen.
S.R:
So there's more now then there was then?
E.C:
Oh yes, there's more now.
S.R:
Do you recall any big fires?
E.C:
Yeah, the Horton Steel Works burned down in 1922.
S.R:
Would you know why?
(10)
�E.C:
No, I don't know why. I don't know if they ever found out why or
not. It just simply, it was a frame building then and just burnt to
the ground. Yeah, the Liquid Veneer people.
S.R:
Where was that?
E.C:
The Liquid Veneer Company, it burned three different times in different
locations.
S.R:
That must have been getting a little bit suspicious then eh?
E.C:
Well, it was that type. Liquid Veneer polish and remover, you know.
S.R:
Oh a combustible chemical?
E.C:
A chemical that it was made out of. They weren't careful enough.
They weren't careful enough. I guess that was about the size of
it.
S.R:
Was anybody hurt in any of these fires?
E.C:
No, nobody was hurt, thank goodness. It was mostly at night when
they weren't working. Hart
&
Cooley burned down once too, way
back in the 1940s I guess, Hart
&
Cooley.
S.R:
E.C:
(
Do you recall anything about the Police Departments?
Police, well, I think when I came here Bridgeburg had one policeman.
S.R:
Do you remember who he was?
E.C:
I can't recall. He's been gone for some years.
S.R:
Was he located in the Fire Hall building, the old Town Hall?
E.C:
Yeah he was, that's about the only place there was.
S.R:
And that was back when it was horses?
E.C:
Yes, it would be.
S.R:
Before there were telephones how did you get in contact with this
guy? Did very much ever happen?
E.C:
With getting the firemen out?
S.R:
No, police.
E.C:
The police?
S.R:
Did you have to go down and tell them? Was that the only way, there
was no alarm system for him at all?
E.C:
I don't recall that there was. When they built the new Town Hall
in '22 there was a police office in there. Of course the Fire Department
was in there too. They were new quarters and up-to-date quarters
then until they got their separate Fire Departments.
S.R:
Do you recall when the Fire Department moved across the street
(11)
�then?
(
E.C:
From the office from the Town Hall?
S.R:
From the Town Hall.
E.C:
Well, that would be about, oh, about 15 years ago, something like
that.
S.R:
Oh, so it hasn't been that long then?
E.C:
No, it hasn't, no. It is more or less a new building. They got crowded
out of the Town Hall because they wianted their space,iyou see.
S.R:
Would you recall any big criminal happenings that the police had
to take care of, or did anything that exciting happen in Fort Erie?
E.C:
Well, they broke into my drugstore. They got in through an upper
window, smashed the glass and got in. They stole all the prescription
drugs off tihe shelves. They broke into where I kept the narcotics
and took all of them, heroin, morphine, cocaine, all of them that
I had in there, tablets and powder both, to the amount of over $600.
They went around the shelves in the prescription department and
picked out Nembutal capsules, Seconal capsules, sleeping capsules
of all descriptions, depressant tablets and all that, just picked out
(
by the bottle.
S.R:
Were they ever caught?
E.C:
No.
S.R:
Do you recall when this was?
E.C:
The Police Station then was just next door, right kitty-corner to
my back corner of my store, right across the alley.
S.R:
Your store was right beside the Town Hall, right? On Jarvis Street?
E.C:
I was always beside the Town Hall, yes. Oh, way back when my
predecessor came in 1896, he had a small store down Jarvis Street,
down, about halfway down to the river. And he was burnt out there
when the Liquid Veneer Company, they were upstairs, and they
had a fire up there and it come down into the drugstore. And that's
in 1912 when they built the present drugstore building.
S.R:
Speaking about the drugstore, when you moved to Fort Erie, that
was your first job then?
E.C:
Yes, that's what I came for. That job was open and I knew. il,got
to know of it through a salesman, because I had worked one summer
(
bedore I came down here in a store at home because the druggist
(12)
�up there knew that I wanted to go through for a druggist. He knew
{
that the space was vacant here. Mr. Land, my predecessor here,
he wanted a druggist apprentice you see, to go through for a druggist.
You had to spend four years in a drugstore, and then after that,
go to college for a year to get your certificate. That's what I had
to do, a five year session.
S.R:
Then, when did you take over the store?
E.C:
I took over the store in 1928. I graduated in '25.
S.R:
What was it called before?
E.C:
Just Land's Drugstore.
S.R:
And then you called it...?
E.C:
I called it Cornell's Pharmacy.
S.R:
Do you recall any of the history of the building at all, or did Land
have it built?
E.C:
He had it built. He and a doctor who lived next door, he built his
half of that building, and Mr. Land built his half of that building
towards the Town Hall, brick for brick. Dr. Mencke, he was the
doctor next door, and Dr. Douglas was the oldest doctor in Fort
(
Erie. Not now, but at that time, because he was at the other end
of town.
S.R:
Oh, for the Fort Erie area.
E.C:
Yeah, Dr. Mencke looked after this end.
S.R:
What is in the drugstore now, so I would know the exact location?
Is the building still there?
E.C:
Oh, the building is there because the Town wanted it. They came
to me in 1974 and wanted to know if I wanted to sell out because
they got... Regional Government come in. Here's the offices from
Crystal Beach, and Ridgeway, and Stevensville, all came down to
Fort Erie, you see, the Regional Government. Well, that crammed
them full. They didn't have room for another desk or chair.
S.R:
Is that the building that's got all the glass on the front of it that's
...like the water and stuff like that? The Treasury Department?
E.C:
S.R:
Is there anything else you'd like to talk about, about the drugstore?
E.C:
(
That was my drugstore, that part of it.
Well, I was robbed again once by some, a couple of crooks. They
come in and took the attention of the girl, and wanted a certain
(13)
�ointment that his brother had gotten here, he said, a few weeks
(
before, but he couldn't remember the name of it, but he wanted
it. So the girl went over in the drawer on the other side looking
through to see if she could find it. He was with her and another
fellow was wandering around over here. Well, they couldn't find
what they were after, and then they called me over. Well, like
a darn fool I went over. In the meantime, that guy that was over
here, come in the back, and grabbed the deposit I had all made up
for the bank, $450.
S.R:
And when was that?
E.C:
Oh, that's...
S.R:
So, the first time the store was robbed was around '65.
E.C:
Yes, that's when the thieves took all the drugs.
S.R:
And then the second time was...?
E.C:
The second time was when the two thugs were in there and took
the deposit I had made up.
S.R:
Do you recall the Bertie Fair?
E.C:
Yes, that was held at the Race Track. They had booths and everybody ...
(
the farmers brought their produce in, pumpkins, squash and all that
stuff, apples. And it would be judged and they'd get prizes for it,
prize money for all this. They used to bring their sheep, cattle,
pigs, horses, big Clydesdale horses, they'd have displays, give prizes
for the best cared-for one and so forth. Cattle, calves, all the animals
and things were included in it, and then the vegetables. But, it
used to be a good farming country around here in those days. Now,
it has been changed because, well, there aren't the good farmers
around anymore. They didn't have stuff to display to have a showing
at all. So they had to quit that fair, it wasn't paying, and went off
altogether. As you know, there's a lot of farms around here now
that aren't used as farms. They're just simply wasted land, and
being built on, homes and other smaller manufacturing places. For
instance, like the lumber place out here on the Bowen Road. They've
got that all scraped out and they're going to make a lumberyard
out of it.
S.R:
(
Is that the place right beside the Queen Elizabeth, right beside
the bridge?
(14)
�E.C:
Yeah, yeah, the other side there. That's what's going in there.
There is also the helicopter place. That's going up there someplace.
I don't know where they plan to build the buildings, but that's all
going up. Fleet has been enlarged, and enlarged, and enlarged, 'til
now it covers in the whole area of ground there.
S.R:
And that used to be farmland?
E.C:
Before they started there there wasn't any. There was no building
there at all before they started. Well, that's about all I can say
about the Fair.
S.R:
Talking then about Crystal Beach and Erie Beach ...?
E.C:
Oh yes, well, Erie Beach was the nicer of the two. Well, maybe
I shouldn't say nicer, but it was nicer to us because it was closer
and it was, it seemed to be cleaner, you know what I mean. The
Buffalo crowd came over more to Crystal Beach then they did for
Erie Beach. They took to that more because of the boats.
S.R:
Because they had the Americana and the Canadiana?
E.C:
Yeah, and they had a boat ride from Buffalo right clean up to the
Beach you see. There used to be Customs Officers there and all.
(
S.R:
Were those the two boats though, or was it a different boat that
took you to Crystal Beach? Was it the Americana and the Canadiana
that took you to Crystal Beach?
E.C:
Yes, and there used to be the two boats. And I think they used to
cross at halfway, one come up and one come back.
S.R:
How did you get to Erie Beach then?
E.C:
Well, from the ferry from Ferry Street over to Agrette's Store,.
Then they'd...by ferry... that was a separate ferry. Then they'd unload
there and go on up to the Beach with this rail train. Steam train
it was. Snakehill
&
Pacific Railway they used to call it. It had
a regular engineer. It was one of these narrow gauge tracks, you
know. They used to go up there. It had two or three coaches on
the thing.
S.R:
Do you recall the engineer or any of the people who ran it?
E.C:
Well, I wouldn't want to say because that's been so long ago, I have
forgotten. But they used to have this dance hall, and it was a lovely
dance hall with a big gallery upstairs . You could go up and watch
the people down below dancing, spend an evening there, or dance
(15)
�yourself. They used to have big bands. Crystal Beach was the same.
They had a big Dance Hall with a big gallery around on the second
floor. You could go and watch them dance or dance yourself. I
was dancing up there one night. It was a hot night and I didn't have
a jacket on. I got told I'd have to go off the floor and put on a jacket.
S.R:
Oh, they like you well dressed then?
E.C:
Yes. So I went and put on a jacket. But I mean, that is what it
was you see. They kept it pretty good, pretty clean. But I don't
know...the last few years since they discontinued the boats they
haven't got the riffraff coming over. There used to be quite a bit
of trouble on the boat because they'd come over here and get a
few drinks then they'd start fighting, quarrelling, trouble. When
the boats quit, why-that quit too. And it had all kinds of...the Hall
people owned it and owned all the rides in there, and then Hall's
themselves had a great big booth where they made and sold their
homemade suckers on sticks. They were a nickle a piece then.
I guess they'd be a quarter now.
S.R:
(
Oh, they're still there then are they?
E.C:
Yes, they were really good tasty candy too. And then all around
that section was a whole bunch of stores, both across that corner
there...this was the entrance coming in. The stores were there
just in the summer, spring and summer, not for late fall or winter.
S.R:
Oh, around where the roller rink is now?
E.C:
Yeah, the warm weather stores. That's where I know the big, big
bands were. They used to come down here and they'd play for... oh,
maybe a weekend at a time, Saturday and Sunday night. I'm not
too sure just who they would be though, but they could be...Tommy
and Jimmy Dorsey, yeah, Dorsey's Orchestra. I don't know whether...
S.R:
So you don't know whether Guy Lorn bardo played there or not?
E.C:
I don't know whether his band was there or not. He was very popular
you know.
S.R:
At Crystal Beach they had all the beach to swim, but Erie Beach
didn't have a natural beach.
E.C:
(
Well, they had a pool for small children. Well they had...oh, and
I believe it was a homemade one, sand they brought in. It was a
small beach, if there was. I think there was a small beach, but they
(16)
�brought in more sand and made it enlarged. They made a pool for
(
children, and that...
S.R:
Didn't they have the largest pool in the world at one time? There
was a big pool and a little pool?
E.C:
Yes, it was too...the water was too swift flowing because the current
going by there made it quite difficult for swimmers on the river
itself and that part of the lake. The whole Lake Erie just comes
into the river.
S.R:
What about the athletic field? Do you know what events went on
there?
E.C:
Oh, its...I don't know what's there now. They used to have an athletic
field and there used to be a grandstand there too, because I can
remember being up there for a game of lacrosse. A couple teams
were there putting on a display.
S.R:
Were they big named teams that went there or was it basically...?
E.C:
I think they were big named teams like, maybe Buffalo, maybe one
from St. Catharines or something like that. They used to have a
(
good lacrosse team in St. Catharines.
S.R:
Are there any other interesting stories that you can remember about
Erie Beach or Crystal Beach?
E.C:
No, I can't recall anything that's different than what I said.
S.R:
You had mentioned the ferry landing on the bottom of Bertie Street,
was that the only one there was?
E.C:
The only ferry crossing. That was from the foot of Porter... Ferry
Street, right across the river to ...
S.R:
Well, that serviced the Fort Erie area, what serviced the Bridgeburg
area then?
E.C:
That was...well, that was the only one for Fort Erie, for our end
of town, and Fort Erie. If we wanted to go up there, which I have,
I walked up there on a day off and walked across, went on a boat,
and went across up Ferry Street, even up to Main Street in Buffalo.
S.R:
There wasn't any other way of getting across?
E.C:
Not across the river, there was no...oh, the Dummy. Yeah, the
Dummy, the railway bridge. We didn't speak about that yet did
(
we?
S.R:
No, we haven't.
(17)
�E.C:
(
The Dummy on the railway bridge. It used to run every hour from
here over to Black Rock and come back. People used to go across
there if they wanted to do shopping in Buffalo, or go to a concert,
or a show or something, why, they had to go to Buffalo, before there
was a show over here.
S.R:
Do you know when the show came over here?
E.C:
The show started here...first it was the Hanes Brothers. They had
a picture show theatre. And then it was taken over by the Ziff
family.
S.R:
Oh, that's when it was the Bellard?
E.C:
Yeah, the Bellard Theatre. They took it over, put up a big building,
a larger building, and made a good go of it.
S.R:
Where was that located?
E.C:
That was down where Don Dean has one of his parking lots down
there, where he's got his new Oldsmobiles. This side of that, there's
three houses down on that side of the street, well, it was just this
side of the...
S.R:
(
So the corner of Dufferin and Central...the corner, in that area?
E.C:
No, between that house that's now, the first one there, and the grocery
store that's on the corner. It was in there.
S.R:
Why did people go to Buffalo so much?
E.C:
Well, they had big stores in Buffalo and more articles for sale, more
variety of different things, especially, I suppose clothing, dressing,
dresses, and all that.
S.R:
Were things cheaper over there?
E.C:
Yeah, they were cheaper over there at that time. And they used
to go over, and they could...when they come back they were supposed
to declare them, but some people tried to smuggle things in if they
could, in their purse or something. But anyway, that's why they
went really. To go to a show for one thing... that seven o'clock Dummy
going over to Black Rock, that's across at the other end, it would
be crowded, just crowded, and maybe standing up...people going
to the show. At nine o'clock they'd come back, or ten if they wanted
to see part of the first show again.
S.R:
(
What about the...now, we're giving the Americans an exchange rate,
(18)
�did they used to give us an exchange rate, or were things just equal
(
then? Was there any difference in the money back then?
E.C:
No, there was no, not an exchange rate like there is now. Oh, that
has fluctuated in the years past ...and the up and down. But at that
particular time when the Dummy was going, it was all on the same
basis.
S.R:
How old were you when you got your first car?
E.C:
1949. I had to learn to drive.
S.R:
Oh, so you were getting pretty old to start? You weren't 16?
E.C:
I was 47 years old.
S.R:
Was it because you lived centrally located that you just didn't need
a car before then?
E.C:
No, it wasn't that. But I bought the business in 1928. Mr. Land
gave it up then. Mr. Land, my predecessor, was asked to take over
and be the vendor of the liquor store. They were starting a liquor
store here, and the government wouldn't allow him to have the drugstore
and run the liquor store as well. So, I took over then. Well, I had
only graduated in '25 and got married the first time in 1926. I didn't
(
have any money and I had to borrow to make a down payment on
the stock that I was buying you see, for the drugstore. Alright,
I had to pay that off. I no sooner got that paid off and a man came
to me one day and he says, "Wouldn't you like to buy this building
now? " I said, "Well, I would like to but I haven't got the money
to do it". I had got through paying off the stock. And he says," Well,
I know this is for sale and I know a man that wants to buy it but
I don't want to see him get it. You're here and established and I'd
like to see you stay here". So he says, "I can arrange that part,
if you want to, and the price is so and so". Well, I talked it over
with my wife and she says', "Well, if you think you can do it like
you did before, why-then good". So I took it on. Then I had to get
that paid off you see. So, when I got them all straightened around
and paid off, why-I found that I had nothing else to go forward to
right then, so I took on this project and...
S.R:
Getting a car?
E.C:
Getting a car. I said, "Well, I may as well have a little enjoyment
with a car". I never had one but I had to learn to drive. So, I learned
(19)
�to drive and I've been going every since.
(
S.R:
When cars first started coming out, did people have to take a driving
test and did you have to have a license?
E.C:
I had to take a driving test when I first learned. The fellas, and
relatives, and the fellas from Spears Store who had the agency for
the General Motors, it was Spears then, and one of the workers
in there coached me along and drove. Inside of a week, why-I was
tested.
S.R:
You were already for your test then?
E.C:
Yes.
S.R:
There were a lot of different men's groups around...?
E.C:
Men's groups, yes. Well, I wrote a few things down here this morning.
S.R:
You were involved in the Masons?
E.C:
Yes, I join�d the Masonic Lodge, Palmer Masonic Lodge in town.
S.R:
Could you take me through a little bit of the history of the lodge?
E.C:
Yes, I wrote a history because we celebrated our lOOth anniversary
in 1978 and I was the General Chairman of the whole thing. We
have a...well, I don't know if it means anything but there's all that
(
!...different offices that I hold and have held.
S.R:
You started in the Lodge on April 19th, 1927?
E.C:
That's right.
S.R:
And you're still a member now?
E.C:
Yes, 58 years.
S.R:
(reading his history with the Masonic Lodge from a booklet) And
you were the Worshipful Master, Assistant Treasurer, the Treasurer,
an Elected Honorary Member, District Deputy Grand Master...is
that like being a President?
E.C:
Well, it's more than that, it's your representative for our district.
There's 14 lodges in our district...District Deputy.
S.R:
I don't know what the rest of these things stand for...and then after
you were District Deputy Grand Master, you went to the Algin Lodge
of Perfection in Niagara Falls and the Hamilton Chapter Rose Croix?
E.C:
Yes, I belonged to the Hamilton Lodge of Perfection and the Rose
Croi:x in Hamilton.
S.R:
And the More Sovereign Consistory in Hamilton, and the Supreme
Council for Dominion of Canada-33rd Degree?
(20)
�E.C:
(
That's the 33rd Degree.
S.R:
The Rameses Temple in Toronto-Shrine Degree, Thrice Poussant
Grand Master-Algin Lodge of Perfection again?
E.C:
Yes.
S.R:
And the Grand Almoner-Algin Lodge of Perfection since 1964?
E.C:
And still am.
S.R:
And Charter Member of Niagara Chapter Rose Croix?
E.C:
Yes.
S.R:
All these things have different degrees too, because then it's Director
7th Degree-Algin Lodge of Perfection, and Director 16th Degree-Niagara
Chapter Rose Croix?
E.C:
Yes.
S.R:
And then in 1981 you were appointed Historian for the Grand Lodge?
E.C:
Yes.
S.R:
And all these things I said then were different degrees of getting
higher up?
E.C:
Yes, this is a Scottish Rite. It's all Masonary, the whole thing.
Here's your first, second, and third degree in the Fort Erie Lodge.
(
And then you go...branch up, and then the higher degrees. They
call them higher degrees but this is the basics of all Masonary.
S.R:
And that went as far as the District Deputy Grand Master?
E.C:
Yes.
S.R:
That was as far as the basics would take you?
E.C:
Yes.
S.R:
Could you go through and tell me a little bit of the history of the
Masons themselves? I don't know what the Masonary is.
E.C:
Well, it's a fraternal organization. They do good, and no one outside
of Masonary knows really what good they do do, because they don't
broadcast it. They are not like a service club. They broadcast everything
that they do, you know, and how much money they make and everything.
These people do a lot of philanthropic work and nobody knows who
does it. Money is spent. I kndw when I was District Deputy
Grand Master, I was on the Benevolence Committee, Grand Lodge.
That year our budget for Grand Lodge alone was $92,000. Every
lodge that had somebody that needed attention and needed money
(
for various reasons, were looked after through this Benevr01lrence
( 21 )
�Society from the individual lodge, besides the Grand Lodge. So,
(
it's hard to tell just how much money was spent altogether in one
year.
S.R:
Everything used to be a big secret about it before, didn't it? I heard
somebody mention before that their father was a Mason, and she
didn't even know anything about it. Things were kept very secretive.
Is it the Masonary?
E.C:
It's worse...it shouldn't be all that secret. There's a lot of, a few
things that are kept secret, where I wouldn't know or find out if
this man is a Mason, and he would do the same for me. That tells
them something. (he is showing me a ring with #33 on it) But there's
certain signs and that, that we have, that let's other people know
that I'm a Mason.
S.R:
Your ring has #33 on it. Is that...?
E.C:
That's the 33rd Degree Mason.
S.R:
That's as high as you went then...?
E.C:
That's as high as you can go anytime. That's the highest.
S.R:
That's like, you know, if you serve 50 years someplace they give
(
you a gold watch. That's the same thing as giving you your #33
ring is it?
E.C:
No, not exactly. You're appointed. It's an honorary, 33 is an honorary.
It's not any that you can just go and say, "I would like to join", through
regular channels. You are appointed, picked out, selected, and then
you're elected, and you go and get your degree.
S.R:
Does that mean that not everybody can join the Masons?
E.C:
Well, everybody can or can't, it just depends. They've got to be
good people.
S.R:
Oh, so they have to have...be voted in more or less then?
E.C:
Yes they do. They have to be voted on. But they have to be up-to-date,
good citizens.
S.R:
Do you know how this organization came about?
E.C:
Well, I can't say to that because it goes back to...as far as England
is concerned...ours all comes from England, since 1616. I can't tell
you just all about that.
S.R:
That was too far away and long ago.
E.C:
Kings even belonged. King Edward VII, he was a Mason, members
(22)
�(
of Parliament were Masons, a lot of them.
S.R:
Is there more that you would like to mention about the Masonic
Lodge?
E.C:
No. I think that's about all that I...
S.R:
Were you involved in any other organizations?
E.C:
Oh yes. Quite a lot, yeah. The Lions Club, in the 1940s, I belonged
to it at that time, I don't anymore. In 1922, I joined the Independent
Order of Oddfellows, the 1.0.0.F.
S.R:
What did they do?
E.C:
They were just another fraternal organization, but they're...
S.R:
Just around to help people out and give men things to do?
E.C:
Almost defunct now. They're similar. There's a few of them still
left. It used to be big. It used to be about...over 300 people belonged
to the...men that belonged to the Oddfellows.
S.R:
So, what it is now? It went from 300 to...?
E.C:
I don't know, it's way down now. Now I doubt if there's 50 left.
S.R:
There used to be 300?
E.C:
Yes, there used to be. We've got...there's two Masonic Lodges in
(
town here. There's our own, Palmer Lodge, and there's the Fort
Erie Lodge at the other end, but we meet in the same Temple across
from the Town Hall...then another one up at Ridgeway. Us three,
we kind of work together there, and anything special going on, why-we...
S.R:
Are there any other activities you've been involved in that you'd
like to mention pertaining to history and what they do?
E.C:
There was a Y.M.C.A. Railroad Board here in town. It used to take
care of the fellows that come in on the railway, like from St. Thomas
and that, and were staying overnight and going back the next day.
They had a big boarding house and rooming house up there...you
know where you go up Wintemute Street, well, you'll run right into
it. It's a great big building up there before you have to turn to go
up to Amigari. Well that's, that's where we used to meet, up there.
That was the Railway Boarding House and Rooming House, for overnight
fellows. Now it isn't that Y .M.C.A. The railroad part of it has
dropped because they just simply come and go.
S.R:
(
Isn't it on Lewis Street that they have an overnight spot for the
mainline?
(23)
�E.C:
S.R:
Oh, you mentioned Wintemute Street.
E.C:
(
Well, that's it. That's Lewis Street.
Well, Wintemute Street runs into Lewis Street you see, up there
at the top end.
S.R:
Well... oh, you mean those apartments, that long building that's apartments
now. But this is down at the bottom of Lewis Street, down near
the Boulevard more, right against the railroad tracks, and it has it's
••.
a hostel, or whatever it is, for men, overnighters to sleep. There's
a building there now.
E.C:
Well, that has nothing to do with the Y.M.C. A., whatever it is, I
don't know.
S.R:
Well, you're talking about that building is where Lewis Street and
•••
Wintemute meet.
E.C:
Yes, up there. That was the old hostel.
S.R:
Would you know approximately what year that was?
E.C:
Yes, a way back in the 1930s and '40s. It's been discontinued up
there as a hostel now. And then, I was on that board, and I was
on the Greenwood Cemetery Board as secretary-treasurer.
(
S.R:
What did that do?
E.C:
The Cemetery Board? It looks after all the burials, and plots where
people are buried, keep track of the
.••
it wasn't as big then, it wasn't
as large as it is now. I wouldn't want it today. But anyway, I got
out of that in the late 1930s, I guess. Then there's in '74.
•.•
S.R:
You retired in 1974?
E.C:
Yeah, that's when I sold my property to the Town.
S.R:
Were you at the building of the Peace Bridge, the Grand Opening
Ceremony?
E.C:
Yes, the Opening Ceremonies were in September
..•
!
won't say the
exact date but 1927 anyway. The Prince of Wales at that time,
•••
and his brother, were over from England, and the President of the
United States was supposed to be there but he couldn't. He sent
his aide, and they opened the Peace Bridge. Now, there was a parade
that came along the Boulevard from our end of town here, down,
of Dragoons on horses. There must have been about, oh, I'd say
30 of them. They paraded along.
(
S.R:
It says on this paper here that the Peace Bridge opened August 7,
1927, the official opening.
(24)
�(
E.C:
A ugust then.
Th ey
••.
b ehind t h e m c am e , oh , a string of cars.
There
must have b e e n , m aybe eight or t en l i m ousine s , and they had the
Prince o f Wales and his bro ther in w i t h the m .
O t h er digni t ari e s
fro m t h e S t a t e s and C anad a , i n govern m e n t and s o fort h , w ere all
in these c ars, and they w ent by.
on that ph o t o .
You c an see t h e m lined up there
The y had the w e l c o m ing d o w n b e lo w , wh ere you
saw that p i c t ure .
Th en the Prince of Wales and his bro ther, and
the aide fro m the Pre sident of the U n i t e d S t a t e s , w ent out to the
centre of the Bridge where the flags are n o w
b e t w e e n the S t a t e s and C anada
.•.
that's the b order
and they cut the ribbon.
Th at
•••
w as all there w as to that cere m ony .
As far as than k-yous , and w e l c o m ing,
and e v erything else a f t erw ard s , you kno w w h a t g o e s on then.
re m e mber
.•.
I c an
! have a m o vie cam era, and I t o ok a m ov i e of that .
I got the Dragoons when they le ft , paraded o f f .
There w as a lot
of foot soldiers besides, the Linc oln- W e lland R e gi m ent I gue s s , Lincoln- W e lland
R e gi m en t foot soldiers, they m o v e d o f f .
I got a p i c t ure o f that
little train going, s t arting off going up t o Eri e B e a ch .
S.R:
(
Oh, the Snakehill & Pacifi c .
Th at w as the
really the end .
S.R:
D i d they go any . . . the digini t arie s and the Prin c e o f Wale s
.••
. .•
w as
the cere m ony over then or w a s there a big p art y or a do a f t e r w ard s ?
E.C:
Big part i e s a f t er that , w e l c o m ing and g e t ting a c c quain t e d part i e s ,
and I think there w a s a dinner engag e m ent
b o t h s i d e s o f the ri ver.
.••
Th ey had one gre at big one in Buffalo b e c ause , the Peace Bridge
you se e , i s repre sented by, I think it's five m e m b ers from the S t at e s ,
Buf falo are a o r
. ••
and f i v e from C anada h ere .
are o n that representation board .
S.R:
S o m e o f our fello w s
But , th ere w as b i g d o s and
•..
Is there anything else you can think of in clo sing that you'd like
t o m en t i o n ?
E.C:
The N i agara Chri s t i an C olle g e , ye s .
It w as built by s o m e m oneym en
in Buffalo, po ssibly as a gam bling casino . . . club .
kno w
•••
i t w ent bankrup t o r w h e ther
..•
But i t w en t
! d on ' t
•••
they disp o s e d o f i t any w ay,
t o t h e o f fi cials of t h e C anadian, N i agara Chri s t i an C olle g e .
Now
they've m ad e a going concern o f it i n their church w ork, and school
w ork and all.
S.R:
(
Other than that , I don't kno w .
Th ey've also brough t over a lot o f Chine se t o the are a , having their
fore ign
•.•
(25)
�10
E.C:
(
I think there ' s
Chinese re st aurants here in the t o w n .
S.R:
Th ey're very popular t o o , all of the m , for such a sm all place like
Fort Eri e .
E.C:
Th e y sure are .
There ' s a large Chinese population here in Fort Eri e ,
b u t they're a l l g o o d pe ople .
They're
and do what they h av e t o do and
S.R:
t h e y m ind their o w n busine ss
•••
no troub le w h at e v er.
•••
W e l l , the ones that w ould c o m e from there
(N i agara
Chri s t i an C ollege ) ,
w ould be Chri s t i an p e ople anyw ay.
E.C:
Yes.
When I first c am e , th ere w as a lot of It alians here b e c ause
they w orked on t h e rai l w ay .
have gradually died out .
S.R:
There w as a lot of It alians.
Th ey
There aren ' t as m any.
The y're in the A m i g ari are a .
There ' s qui t e a fe w It alian s .
There
w as some thing you re m e m b ered that you'd like to say in closing
about the C e n tral A ve nue Bridge ?
E.C:
Th e Bridge w as bui l t w h e n Mr. H o w ard
M ayor of Fort Eri e .
He w a s
.•.
.•.
Mr. H . E . Th o mpson w as
he had made a t hru w ay b e t w e e n the
river and the other end o f F ort Eri e , the south end o f F ort Eri e .
He s a w t o i t that i t w a s a good thing for t h e t o w n .
(
It certainly
was be cause that w as a short cut for all the s chool kids going to
s chool in the are a .
S.R:
Oh , all the s chool kids used t o have to cros s the railroad tra cks.
Were there e ver any a c cident s ?
E.C:
W e l l , th ere used t o be a c cidents on there , p e ople g e t ting killed on
the rai l w ay .
S.R:
But t h a t ' s b e e n a godsend .
When you had you c ar or h orse and buggy, did you go over the railroad
tra c ks th ere or h o w did you get from the N orth End to the S outh
End ?
E.C:
Just by going around
•••
b e fore that bridge w as built , by going aroun d ,
e i t h er d o w n J arvis o r d o w n C ourt wright a n d around underne ath . . .
S.R:
O h , t h e boule v ard under the Int ernational Bridge .
E.C:
Th e boule vard , ye ah .
Go d o w n to the boul e v ard and go underneath
the railw ay bridge t here .
B e fore I forge t , Mr. Th ompson and a high
s chool s t udent , under the w orking of the Lions C lub , they're the
ones that sp onsored this.
Th ey sp ent all , one or t w o sum m ers on
the river inve stigating, trying t o find out why we have so m any
(
sand fli e s .
Th ey did find out to a d e gre e .
(26)
Th e y sprayed a spray
h ad
..•
�a sprayer that w ould go up and d o w n the stre e t s of the To w n , and
(
that did a lot t o w ard eradi c a t ing the sand fli e s .
Today we haven't
as m any as w e had back then, thanks to the Lions Club , and Mr.
Th ompson and his student helper.
S.R:
D o they still do that at all , spray ?
E.C:
N o , I don't think they spray anym ore .
The govern ment w on ' t l e t
t h e m use the spray p o w der, but th ere are n ' t as m any as there u s e d
t o be.
E.C:
I m i gh t say that , M i s s R o s e S e at on , the Principal of Phipps S tre e t
S chool, w a s h onoured by calling Phipps S tre e t S chool, R o s e S e a t on
S chool when sh e re t ired .
Th a t part i c ular school w as my s chool when
I w as on the S chool Board , t o look a f t er.
Th ey d e cided that i t w as
t o o old to carry on as a s chool and the B o ard re cently . . . w e ll, in
the last year , d e cided that w e should have a ne w school.
It w as
built behind the form er Phipps Street S ch o o l , M i s s R o s e S e a t on
S chool.
Th ey n o w have the ne w s chool built b a c k there .
Th ey t ore
d o w n the front , old s ch o o l , lands cap e d the whole yard . . . you'd n e v er
kno w that there w a s a s chool e v er there .
(
just
S.R:
Why didn't they
E.C:
W e l l , they had . . . they o w ne d t h e property and it w as for this end
build the ne w school t h ere , in the s a m e sp ot ?
o f t o w n you se e , parti cularly.
in three part s .
It w as an old s chool and it w as built
Th ere was a c entre part whi ch w as the olde st , and
they built on one end b e c ause they n e e d e d m ore s chool roo m s .
enlarged that and built on this end t o m ake it big ger ye t .
Th ey
N o w . . . it
w as d e t eriorat e d t o a d e gree w h ere it w asn ' t w orth rebuilding at
all b e casue the centre p art w as the one that w as giving a w ay.
So
t h a t ' s what got a ne w s chool up h ere .
S.R:
But they built it in a t o t ally d i f ferent sp o t o f their grounds.
The y
b u i l t it on E m eri ck A v enue ins t e ad o f Phipps Stre e t .
E.C:
Y e s , they d i d , b e cause they had the room b a c k th ere you s e e .
they've got room o n this side s o i t ' s all land s c ap e d .
Now,
D ouglas S chool
has b e en close d , and is n o w , I underst and , going t o be a senior citi z e n's
hom e .
that .
Mather S chool w as t orn d o w n and M ayor Hum m e l purch ased
They t ore i t down and it's lands cape d .
S.R:
Th ank-you very m u ch for the int ervi e w Mr. C ornell.
E.C:
Oh , you're w e l c o m e .
S.R:
Y e s , i t ' s fine , thank-you.
I h ope i t ' s what you w ere a f t er.
(27)
�
Dublin Core
The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/.
Title
A name given to the resource
Crystal Beach
Subject
The topic of the resource
Crystal Beach, Ontario
Description
An account of the resource
Select historical photos and documents digitized from the Fort Erie local history and Louis McDermott collections
Source
A related resource from which the described resource is derived
FEPL -LH - Archives
Contributor
An entity responsible for making contributions to the resource
Fort Erie Public Library and Louis McDermott
Document
A resource containing textual data. Note that facsimiles or images of texts are still of the genre text.
Interviewer
The person(s) performing the interview.
Shelley Richer
Interviewee
The person(s) being interviewed.
Erle Cornell
Location
The location of the interview.
Mr. Cornell's home at 222 Phipps Street, Fort Erie
Original Format
If the image is of an object, state the type of object, such as painting, sculpture, paper, photo, and additional data
Cassette tape
Dublin Core
The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/.
Title
A name given to the resource
Oral History - Cornell, Earle
Description
An account of the resource
Provided here is a transcript of Erle Cornell's interview. He discusses:
Churches
Amigari
Stores and businesses
Bridgeburg
Factories
North End
South End
Sports
Erie Beach
Crystal Beach Amusement Park
Ferries
International Railroad Bridge
North End
Masonic Lodge
Source
A related resource from which the described resource is derived
Fort Erie Public Library Local History Collection
Date
A point or period of time associated with an event in the lifecycle of the resource
August 31, 1985
1980s
1985
Amigari
Bridgeburg
Crystal Beach amusement park
Erie Beach
factories and industry
ferries
Fort Erie
international railroad bridge
north end
Oral history
south end
sports
transcripts