HomeMy WebLinkAboutThe Citizen, 1989-02-08, Page 20PAGE 20. THE CITIZEN, WEDNESDAY, FEBRUARY 8, 1989.
wedding
A romantic
Agnes Foster is seen in the centre surrounded by her family at a
recentbirthday celebration. Herweddingin 1911 was a simple
ceremony in her father’s home.
A19T1 wedding
Wedding at father's house
by Stephanie Lentz
Not everyone has a Great Grand
mother still living, let alone one
who can help you write your Family
History project for school. The
following description of my great
grandmother’s wedding in 1911
was part of a number of interviews
I did with her this past month.
“Great-Gram”, as everyone
calls her, was born Agnes Victoria
Hawkins on a farm near Sheppar-
ton, north of Goderich, in 1888.
I first asked her how she met her
husband-to-be, Herbert Foster.
She said they met at dances. Then I
asked her, “Was he handsome?”
She answered, * “Yes, I thought
so!” ’
The marriage was set for the
afternoon in her father’s house. An
Anglican minister, Reverend
Hicks, performed the ceremony
and Alice Bogie, Herberts first
cousin, played the organ.
Grant-Gram wore a white em
broidered dress and put her auburn
hair up in a bun. She didn’t wear a
veil or a hat.
After the wedding ceremony
they had a wedding dinner. The
meal included chicken that they
had raised themselves and pota
toes. Great-Gram says that her
Aunt Aggie Green, who lived
nearby, skimmed cream off the
milk pan for whipped cream. The
wedding cake, which Gram made
herself, was a fruit cake of four
layers with white icing. She said
she kept the top layer for over a
year.
There were no speeches made so
everyone got into the dancing
mood. Back then, people called
dances, and all dances were square
dances. Four couples danced in the
kitchen while Tom Bogie, Alice’s
brother, played all the popular
songs on the violin.
I was amazed that Great Gram
could remember some of the gifts
she had received: six white-handl
ed kitchen knives and a pearl
handled knife from her Aunt Sarah
Clark. Aunt Aggie gave her many
things because Great Gram was
named after her. Her mother and
father gave her a young heifer.
Gram does not remember the bride
and groom exchanging gifts, but
she did receive a gold wedding ring
and a pearl engagement ring.
After the guests had left, Gram
changed her dress to walk across
the field to her new home. My
great-great-grandfather Hawkins
built their house on land that Bert
had recently bought. It was a
one-and-a-half-storey red brick
house, and the brick came from the
Goderich Brickyard.
When I asked Great-Gram if she
had seen her house before her
wedding day, she said, “No, I
didn’t want to see it - that was the
men’s part of the preparations.”
Gram said the house wasn’t paint
ed or papered or stained when she
moved in, but she took her hope
chest with her which had quilts and
clothes in it. She also had a kitchen
table which had been made in
Lucknow.
Great-Gram and Bert would go
on to have four children in this
farmhouse, before Bert died very
suddenly in 1921. Great-Gram ran
the farm and raised her children
herself until her second marriage in
1928. But that’s another story ...
P.S. The kitchen table has re
mained in Great-Gram’s family,
and now lives in my family’s house.
In fact, I helped Great-Gram blow
out the 100 candles on her birthday
cake at this same table last
October.
ATTENTION BRIDES TO BE 1
punch
In 1787, when Robert Burns
wrote, “My love is like a red, red
rose,” he probably had a bride in
mind. Today, the rose remains a
symbol of true love and deep
affection.
A wedding, more than any other
occasion, is a time to express love -
for the bridal couple, for family
members, for special friends.
A rosy red wine punch is a
perfectly romantic beverage for
toasts filled with sweet sentiments
and heart-felt wishes.
ROMANTIC PUNCH
2 cans [16 ounces each] Jellied
Cranberry Sauce
4 cups Cranberry Apple Drink or
Raspberry Cranberry Drink
6 cups ginger ale, chilled
6 cups sweet red wine or rose wine,
chilled
In a large saucepan, combine
cranberry sauce and cranberry
apple or cranberry raspberry drink.
Stir constantly over low heat until
sauce melts and is smooth. Chill.
Just before serving, stir in
gingerale and wine. Serve with or
without ice cubes.
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BRIDES-TO-BE CALL 357-1382
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153 JOHN ST., WINGHAM 357-1382
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