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HomeMy WebLinkAboutThe Wingham Advance-Times, 1954-07-28, Page 23The founding of Wingham Mech­ anics* Institute seventy-eight years ago was the nucleus from which the Wingham Publiq Library of today has grown/ Regarding the name "Mechanics’ In­ stitute”, we are indebted to Mr. R. W. N. Wade in his Early History of Howick Township for the following information: ‘ “The history of Mechanics’ Insti­ tutes dates back to 1835 at Galt. This part of Ontario was largely settled by shepherds from Scotland. Among them was one who was very fond of reading and felt he must have books. d|He asked ‘Is there anyone in this '^place who will help me get some books together?’ It seems that three men, all cobblers, came forward, and among them, they formed what be­ came known as the Mechanics’ In­ stitute. "Besides these Institutes' having I books to loan, evening classes were held where lectures were given on different subjects to assist mechanics and artisans in whatever trade they chose, to acquire a greater degree of skill in the practice thereof. “Between 1870 and the ’90’s, these Institutes became an important tor in the social life of the communi­ ties of Western Ontario.” Duties of Librarian Apart from the terse statement that "the Wingham Mechanics’ Institute was organized in 1876/’ written re­ cords date back only to 1887, at which ’time the Institute rented quarters in the Beaver Block, and engaged a caretaker or librarian at the salary of one dollar and a half a week. His duties were to keep the rooms cleaned and swept, heated and lighted when necessary, in the afternoons and eve­ nings six days a week; to be respon­ sible .financially for any books or specimens which might be missing; and to see to it that those who were allowed the use of the reading room conducted themselves decorously therein. Among those who were members of an early .board of management were Mr. Young, Mr. S. J. McGill, Mr. Brockenshire and Mr. J. A. Morton. The first board meeting on record was held on Thursday, October 13, 1887. was drawn up, by which membership in the Institute was fifty cents, and - Mrs. Harcourt, Librarian At this meeting a consitution think list of which the In­ St. Ni- Happy 75th Anniversary TO THE TOWN OF WINGHAM Wingham Manufacturing Company Makers of Quality Toilet Seats Since 1928 the object of the organization was stated to be “the diffusion of scienti­ fic . and literary knowledge by a li­ brary of reference and circulation; by the formation of a museum in zoology, geology, or other subjects of natural science and manufactures; by the establishment of a reading room; by the formation of classes; by con­ versations or any other method the. board of management may proper.” It is interesting to note a magazines and newspapers were available to members of stitute in 1889: The Century, cholas, Chambers’ Journal, Canadian Horticulturalist, Harpers’ Magazine, Young Ladies’ Journal, Boys’ Own Paper, Scottish American, Scientific American Builders’ Edition, Poultry Review, The Globe, The Mail and Em­ pire, The Times, The Advance. In 1891, after the new town hall had been built, the Mechanics’ In­ stitute leased a room on the ground floor, presumably the present library, and two years later, the use of the reading room was made free to all residents of the town, and to those of nearby municipalities which paid a certain nominal sum yearly for this privilege for their citizens. This year, 1893, also saw the installation in the new reading room of electric lights which replaced the coal oil lamps used hertofore. Public Library In 1895, by the Public Libraries Act of the Province of Ontario, Section '26, the Wingham Mechanics’ Institute became the Wingham Public Library. Members of the board at this time were: Chairman, A. H. Musgrove; secretary, J. A. Morton; treasurer, R. Mclndoo; John Nicoll, Peter Fisher, Dr. Towle r, J. McIntyre and J. D. Stewart. In 1902 the town council assumed control of the Public Library, in that it appointed four members of the board of management, and the pub­ lic school board appointed three. It is emphatically stated in .the records that on the twenty-first of February, 1902, the first meeting was held of the board of management of the Wingham Public Library under the "free” system. At this time Mr. Abner Cosens was chairman of the board and Mr. J. A. Morton, secretary-treasurer. In 1906, when the new high school was completed, it was decided that a branch of the library be established there, and that the cabinets of botani­ cal and zoological specimens be loan­ ed to the school, The year 1941 marked the forming of the Huron County Library Associ­ ation, and four years later, the Wing­ ham Public Library became a member of this organization; this membership admits the local library to certain privileges, among them the loan of one hundred new books every three months. Three Secretaries A fact worthy of mention, is that in sixty-five years, the board of management of the Wingham Public Library has had only three secre­ taries; the late Mr, J. A. Morton, the late Mr. Dudley E. Holmes, and the present secretary, Mr. W. A. Gal­ braith. A record of service was set, too, by the late Miss Emily Holloway who was librarian for twenty-eight years. Since taking up quarters in the town hall in 1891, the Wingham Pub­ lic Library has periodically under­ gone minor renovations and improve­ ments. In 1953, thanks to a generous gift from the J. Cornyn Currie Estate, the room has been completely reno­ vated, re-decorated and re-lighted. It is now a place of beauty where citi­ zens of all ages may go to enjoy the books and periodicals. The librarian, Mrs. Wilmer Harcourt, is always ready to give wise counsel and will­ ing service to any and all who in need of such. These are some of the facts of seventy-eight year old story of Public Library, a story that covers a time of great change in history and customs. It is a story, too, of men and women to whom good reading was a privilege to be cherished, shared and passed on to succeeding gener­ ations. are the our Husky Men Were Required For Old Fire Department Page Twenty-Three Wednesday, July 28, 195# THE HOME OF FINE HOME FURNISHINGS INVITES YOU TO JOIN IN THE FUN OF WINGHAM And Hope to Grow with it We Are Proud to be a Part of Warren House Wingham's 7Sth,Anniversary I fl 71 L Jf •i * * * We are indebted to Miss Kathleen Pringle for the above story of the Wingham Public * Library. Pringle is chairman of the board year. M is s this Eire Was a great hazard jn the early days and fire fighting equip­ ment was limited. One of the first disasters due to fire was in Dower Wingham when JPeter Fisher’s grist milD woollen mill and residence burned to the ground, The grist mill was rebuilt and des­ troyed in the same manner a second time, while owned by Hutton and Carr, The Beaver block was burned out in 1887, rebuilt and completely de­ molished by fire again in 1912, These are only a few of the many conflagrations during those early days when members of the brigade labored with equipment that at this time seems very inadequate. Hook and Ladder Brigade The first hook and ladder brigade was formed in 1898 with^Wes Currie, 1st Lieut.; Jas. Flannagan, 2nd Lieut.; Peter Deans, secretary. Members of this branch were George Hanna, J. Dodds, Wes. Currie, Peter Deans, Jas. Flannagan, Harry Snell, Frank Kling and George Fowler. These men were to work in conjunction with the fire brigade under the supervision of Tom Manuel and a subscription for money provided them with the necessary uni­ forms. The fire reels were hauled to the fire by man power. These two-wheeled carts, the wheels being about five feet apart with 1500 feet of hose wound on the reel, made a heavy load to haul by hand. An iron tongue with a neck yoke bolted on the end and hand grips on either side, provided the means of hauling the reel. The brigade was in possession of three reels and one ladder wagon, which was also hand drawn and equipped with two ladders. One of these ladders is still in use on the small fire truck. There were about sixteen men on the fire brigade with the chief' receiving payment of $100 per year and the other men $32.00. Sports days were held in the various towns at which firemen of the district congregated, each town competing in fire drill as well as other sports. It was necessary for members of fire de­ partments to be physically fit and ex­ ceptionally good runners. In later years the draymen some­ times pulled the equipment. When the alarm sounded they would rush off to the fire hall, the first one there and hitching his horse to the equip­ ment, was the one to be paid. - Not until the year 1937 did Wingham have a fire truck. This first truck, a *37 Ford, is still in use as a second fire truck when needed. The first drivers appointed were Neil and Jim Carr, Roy Manuel and Bill Young. The present cement block fire hall was erected in 1948 and stands beside the old one, now used by the Regiment for storing equipment. In 1951 a new Chevrolet truck with an auxiliary pumper was purchased by Wingham, East Wawanosh, Morris, Turnberry and Howick Townships, Awards Presented The Pothumus Award bronze medal was presented to Phillip Pawson and his family in honor of the bravery of Lois Dawson, who gave her life in an effort to save Billie Reavie, son of Mr. and Mrs, Rutherford Reavie, from drowning in 1950. Parchment certificates were also presented to Lenard Reinhart and Nel­ son Nicol of Wingham, and Robert Arbupkle of E. Wawanosh, for acts of heroism in rescuing Billie Reavie and the late Lois Dawson from the icy waters of a pond on the George Kerr. Recent Disasters During the past few years the larger fires requiring the of the local brigade were at the Rate sawmill in 1949 when the mill was a complete loss; in June of the same year, when the Wingham Manufactur­ ing Company operated by Charlie Cooke had a big fire, and in 1950 when the Howson & Howson mill was burned to the ground. During the flood in the spring of 1947 the Wingham Fire Brigade work­ ed all night, and rescued residents of Lower Wingham from their homes in row boats. It has been impossible to obtain the names of all the fire chiefs in past years. Mr. Cline and Mr. Jos. Bullard held this position for many years be­ fore 1898 and since then Mr. Dinsley, Jack Crandle, John Currie, Albert Louttit, Bill Lepard and Jim Carr have served in this capacity. There may have been others during this time. Present officers are: Chief, Jim Carr; deputy chief, captains, Cowan; Caslick. farm of some of services to- H. LITHGOW EARLY LIBRARIAN Not many people in Wingham day will remember an eccentric character named William Lithgow. Early members of the Mechanics’ In­ stitute, of which he was honorary li­ brarian, may still have some recoU lection of him. He was one of the most highly edu­ cated men in all this district, having been a teacher in that great educa­ tional institution, one of the world’s most famous, the Glasgow University. Like many others of a high-strung, nervous disposition, John Barleycorn was his weakness and cause of his downfall in the scholastic world. It was always a pleasure to enter into conversation with him and listen to his broad Scotch accent and withal his excellent and correct grammar. He delighted in being of service in any possible manner to his fellow men and would gladly give freely of his higher education to any young man who was Seeking to become a member of any profession. Needless to say he was held in high respect by a legion of Warm friends. Chief, Dave Crothers; Larry Hiseler and Stewart secretary-treasurer, Wilford McKibbon broke ground forPhillip the erection of a new residence on the corner of Centre and Patrick Streets. The building will be of brick and cost about $1,500. —News item 1885. ? Follow the Daily Activities of the 75th Anniversary In 1 at recol- inter- when mem- J, A, McDonald Was 38 Years With Brigade o While trying to gather information on the fire department it was natural to contact J, A, McDonald, who retired in 1946 after completing 38 years of service with the Wingham Fire Bri­ gade. Mr, McDonald came to Wingham from his birthplace, St. Helens, 48 years ago and for some years was em­ ployed by the streets commission. A man with his experience on the brigade is bound to have witnessed many fires, and we found his lections of days gone by very esting. Jack Crandle was in charge Mr. McDonald first became a ber of this organization and during his time he served under five dif­ ferent chiefs. One of the heaviest runs the veteran fireman could remember was at the time of a stable fire on the back of the lot now owned by Wilfred French. The runners for the reels had become rusty over the summer months and on this, their first trip of the winter, were quite sticky. The men were completely tired out from the haul before they reached the scene of the fire. Under ordinary circumstances there was always plenty of water pressure in the main street section but the farther east, the less pressure there whs. The hydrant at the C.P.R, tracks on Victoria Street was the most west­ erly and residents beyond the extent of the hose from that point were with­ out fire protection. A fire alarm system was installed by the Bell Telephone Company in 1902, whereby the town supplied the firemen with telephones. Fires were reported to .central as well as the general alarm being giyen and All telephones of firemen were rung sim­ ultaneously by the operator. Mr. McDonald nearly missed one of the biggest fires of his career by sleeping through one of these alarms at the time of the Reaver block fire in 1912. They had apparently been ringing him most of the night but he didn’t hear the phone until nearly morning. In reminiscing about early days with the brigade, he said that he realised there wa,£ never anything pleasant about a fire, but when the old power company’s tool shed burned behind Cecil Merkley’s present garage, it could have been termed beautiful. When he arrived every color of the rainbow could be seen in the blaze, a truly spectacular sight. Editor Suffered Councillor’s Blows Apparently there was more than one way of settling differences with a newspaper publisher in early days. Councillor Lemmex, chairman of the printing committee in 1866, accused Wingham printers of robbing the town with their high prices for print­ ing voters’ lists, stating that Goderich would do them much cheaper. Editor Galbraith contacted Mr. Mc­ Gillicuddy of Goderich and found that the latter’s price for the same would have been $31 more. It was Mr. Galbraith’s opinion the councillor should apologise, the following week at Mr. Lemmex’s blacksmith shop, the councillor ap­ proached Galbraith from behind and gave him a good shaking up. W. E. Groves, principal of the public school was on hand and intervened. When arraigned before the mayor, Mr. Lemmex had his choice of $5.00 and costs or ten days in jail. list, that but On Parade! By Windy There has always been a constant argument between the new soldier and the old soldier, and it always sounds like this. Old soldier, "Yep, sonny, you sure have 'it soft compared to what I had to go through”. Young soldier, "Yes, but times have changed, this is the new army”. And so on into the night rages the battle. In this article I am going to describe the changes in the last seventy-five years, in other words an argument to end all arguments. Now I am not saying I have been in the army a long time, but my first offence was for having buffalo fur on my bow and arrow. The first thing that crops up in the army is going to the Q.M. stores to be fitted out in the latest army style. The first thing they say is "What size shoes do you wear?” The new recruit usually replies "A seven D, I have a very narrow foot you know”. How do you like that? Why years ago you were lucky to get a pair of boots in any size. I was so proud to have boots on that I walked backwards for the first six months in the army just to admire them. Next we come to falling out on morning parade. In the old days a man had to get a horse ready besides himself. If he got his horse ready first the horse was best dressed on parade. If he dressed him­ self first he was dressed the best, In either case one was poorly dressed and a horse can’t do extra drill for punishment, so guess Who? But nowadays a soldier just has to get dressed himself, gather up his books, and fall out on parade. And what about morning sick parade? In the good old days you could drag yourself in to the Medical Officer and if your trouble was from the neck up you got a 217 aspirin, if it was from the neck down you got a No, 9 pill. Nowadays you have a temperature up one degree and get sent home for the wife to nurse you as the hos­ pital is full. What do they call those fellows, oh yes, leads wingers. The drill to-day has changed a great deal from the old days. In the old days the sergeant would walk up to a man and say “Wipe that opinion off your face”. But now the sergeant calls out “Right Dress” and a new recruit will pipe up and say, “But this was the nicest one of my uniforms and I thought I was dressed right”, oh, brother! Then we come to the mechanized army of to-day. Gone forever are the horses in the army. In the old days when a soldier got sore from being on horse back all day an officer might ask what was the matter. He would reply "Sir, I never thought a thing so full of hay could be so hard”. But in this new army I once asked a new fellow, "Did you test the oil in that jeep”? ‘Wes”, he said "And it tastetl awful”. c Oh well, we can’t win them all. . So as a closing thought remember “Old soldiets never die”, they just smell that way . . . 99th BATTERY 21st A-TK REGT. R.C.A. WINGHAM A • t*4* ”