-
NO. 4-3, MARTIN HUNTER SERIES sidebar 3 of 3 – Shipwreck Coast and the Comet
In 1876, Whitefish Bay and an 80-mile stretch of coastline to the west were well on the way to acquiring the sobriquet Shipwreck Coast. The steamer Comet became one of its victims. One of the directors of Great Lakes Shipwreck Historical Society recently commented, “There are 550 confirmed shipwrecks [in Lake Superior], and
//
-
GERALDTON VIGNETTES –7 of 7
October 1944 This is the street to Pine Grove Cemetery. Pictorial clues are the house in the extreme left and the ditch for drainage of the muskeg. A haul truck served as a hearse. Rev. A.J. Calder, in the front passenger seat, was the minister of St. Andrews Presbyterian Church. When Ernie Bies first asked
//
-
GERALDTON VIGNETTES –6 of 7
October 1944 Alex Heino was one of the first to be interred in Pine Grove Cemetery. Geraldton would not have a funeral home until 1952. A new casket and fresh flowers had to be imported, likely from Port Arthur or Fort William, now Thunder Bay. Land access to Geraldton was a gravel highway and the
//
-
GERALDTON VIGNETTES –5 of 7
October 1944 During wartime, the citizens of Geraldton carried on as usual. It being recognized that Geraldton was built in “muskeg”, tons of gravel and clay were hauled in. A pit was dug in the garbage dump to accommodate night soil (human waste), movies were screened, magistrate’s court passed sentences, and kids attended school. When
//
-
GERALDTON VIGNETTES –4 of 7
October 1944 Jan (John) Bies was born in 1904 in Slovakia and emigrated to Canada in 1927. He married Anna Huckova in Slovakia in 1932, and his wife and daughter followed him to Canada the next year. Just days before the accident in October 1944, local miners agreed not to exercise their right to
//
-
GERALDTON VIGNETTES –3 of 7
October 1944 A bulletin from the Ontario Department of Mines details how the accident occurred. Alex Heino was drilling a bootleg hole, one that had residual blasting powder in it. His partner, John Bies, after issuing a warning, sought shelter ten feet away. Ernie Bies wrote me, “My mother was six months pregnant with me
//
-
GERALDTON VIGNETTES –2 of 7
October 1944 “The city [Aachen] occupies a very strategic position on the Belgian border and was therefore a cornerstone in Adolf Hitler’s Siegfried line. This included construction of a line of ‘dragon’s teeth’ along the city’s western edge and the construction of several fortifications. Aachen was the first major city in Germany to be
//
-
GERALDTON VIGNETTES –1 of 7
October 1944 While armies clashed in the European and Pacific theatres, a tragedy was unfolding in a little community in Northern Ontario. A hardrock miner died 18 levels underground in the Little Long Lac gold mine. Alex Heino had been working there since 1935. At 56 years old, Alex left behind a wife and
//
-
13 things Canadians do that confuse the rest of the world
Canada might be known for its friendly people and beautiful landscapes, but there are some uniquely Canadian habits that leave visitors scratching their heads. These everyday behaviors seem perfectly normal to Canadians but can appear downright puzzling to people from other countries. The truth is, many of these quirks come from Canada’s unique culture, climate,
//
-
VISIT TO PORPHYRY ISLAND
On Monday, August 11th, our family group visited an island in Lake Superior. Porphyry Island is 15 kilometres east of Silver Islet community, at the tip of the Sleeping Giant. You have no doubt been following the weekly posts of Paul Morralee in The Chronicle-Journal about this island and its historic lighthouse. In spite of
//
-
MARTEN FALLS FN Access Road & Archaeology
Archaeology & Cultural Heritage – My Own Summary – “The Stage 1 Archaeological Assessment looked at the history of northern Ontario over the past 11,000 years, focusing on the Paleo, Archaic and Woodland periods through the 19th and early 20th centuries.” “In the fall of 2019, a Stage 2 Archaeological Assessment was conducted, focusing on
//
Search
Categories
- Atikokan (5)
- Beardmore (2)
- Chapleau (2)
- First Nations (2)
- Fort William (2)
- Geraldton (5)
- Greenstone (2)
- Hearst (4)
- Heron Bay (1)
- Housekeeping (1)
- Jackfish (1)
- Kenora (1)
- Lake Superior (3)
- Longlac (5)
- Marathon (1)
- Nipigon (6)
- North Bay (1)
- Peninsula (1)
- Port Arthur (5)
- Railways (2)
- Sapawe (4)
- Schreiber (1)
- Superior North Shore (10)
- Thunder Bay (10)
- Uncategorized (29)
- White River (1)
Recent Posts
Tags
albert richer atikokan Canadian National Railways canadian northern railway canadian pacific railway canoe cnor CNR CPR grain elevators hbc highway 11 hudson's bay company hwy 623 jane bow jerry's taxi longlac marina moose nipigon ojibway pic river port arthur rodger pearse brown sapawe sault ste marie sawmill t a reynolds taxi windigoostigwan lake