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Clinton News-Record, 1984-03-21, Page 15• ?Yew the. Nine of the Olit ira! CLINTON NEWS -RECORD,. WEDNEWAY. MA tCH.21.1904—PAGE 15 Schp ear restoration 91 get.s ad in tiny settlements made up of one or two to travel with caution". This precious piece ,DUNT011. * Celebrations galoreare being itionalba.k.m planted this year for Chows historic shacks in locations unknown to most of us ... railway school capwtneh stands proudly in Raphoe ... Lafaresl ... Ruel ... Stackpool ... p , Sloman Memorial Park! Kukatush ... there were no street lights; no Not only is it file loth birthday of this par- pavement; no shops; no churches. The ar- ;' rival of the school car on rail slaws at those 1 ocular railway ear (built in 1914), but minute settlements became a joyful xrt- f' opefully, hate in the summer, the Restora- pn Committee of ORIGINAL CNR terlude in their lonely, monotonous lives. SCHOOL ON WIISELS 15089 will reach the More highways were built into the heart of halfway stage of its objective. To celebrate northern Ontario following the Second these events a traditional historic Gold World War, thus making it possible for Spike Ceremony is planned for Sept.1 at the busses to transport children to town schools. park. After 39 years of teaching on their school on CNRail who moved the old school on wheels, the Sloman retired in 1962 and wheels to Clinton on Oct. 22, 1982 and who returned to the old family°home in Clinton. have continued their interest by supplying a They left in place all the school room collection of rare photographs and historic equipment and furnishings so that the records, will be donating the Gold Spike for school car could be used as a permanent the ceremony. Also on this occasion CNRai1 display, as planned. Many conflicting will be presenting a commemorative plaque stories are reported regarding its acknowledging the remarkable work of the .whereabouts for the next 20 years, butwvhen school in the far north. it was discovered in the Mississauga yard of Residents of Clinton, and indeed all of the Ontario Rail Association in July 1982, it southwestern Ontario should be proud to had been the victim of vandals. Not even the have this historic railway school car windows remained; just charred rubble brought home where it can be preserved, covered the floors. A sad sight for Mrs. and its•story passed on -to -interested visitors.. Siomanand daughter. Margaret, whew they Mr. aiid-Mrs: Fred Sidman and their baby recalled how ...had -"been a model oif perfee Ontario's first fficienc when the ,last.sawit! . railway school car when it was taken from The Original CNR School on Wheels has passed another milestone. Recently the Clinton school car was incorporated and will soon be recognized for its historic value by CNRaII and the Ontario Heritage Foundation. To complete restoration work on the car, donations are now being received through yearly membership fees. (Shelley McPhee photo) daughter Joan were on tion and e y y - Toronto to Capreol in September 1926. The When Clinton's Town Council heard that old wooden coach was donated by Canadian the school on wheels was for sale, they realized itsy historic "value, and voted National Railways, and the teacher was unanimously to purchase it for the town. CN chosen by the Ontario Department of it Rail checked it for safety, then released it • •erm for its move , Chief In- Ferguson,•and Dr. J.B. McDougall,1982. The way -freight train from Stratford s ectar of the De _artxn nt of _Education for rt ea �fts P 'th ' t t" the travelling schools. Education under Premier Howard dramatic toClinton on Oct 22 oppose imposed quota The Huron County Commercial Fisherman's Association will seek legal advice in its battle against government - imposed quotas on . Great Lakes commercial fishermen. The association unanimously endorsed a motion to seek legal advice in an attempt to persuade the Ministry of Natural Resources to abandon its planned implementation of the commercial fishing quota system. The quotas, part of the Canadian Fisheries Modernization Plan, were to have been in effect March 1, 1984 as part of the licence issuing process. • At. a special meeting of the Huron Association in Goderich Thursday, members indicated that neither the season's licences nor the quotas, have been issued. • The Huron Association also hopes to solicit the support of the two other commercial fishing associations on the eastern shore of Lake Huron, to present a ' united front to the Minsitry. "A lot of fishermen will be unhappy with the quota system and we- have to take on - -the government as a unit, " newly a ecfecT-�. association president Ron Moody of Goderich..-said ".The ..whole fishing :. • ' ii dut'r-y should unite to fight ,ttie quota system." The members of the Huron Association, who employ as' many as 80 people in the county, are concerned that the quotas issued by Minister Alan Pope will not be sufficient to. sustain the industry. Many. commercial fishermen • will suffer financially as a result, they say. • But part of the problem is not knowing • what the quotas are or will be. Licences, containing individual quotas,.wereto have been issued by the first of the month, but last week fishermen were still waiting for word' from the government.. In the meantime, they decided to take some action of their own. Just days before the meeting, fishermen received a letter from.district manager J. -Hammill advising them "not to gear up or exert greater fishing effort or increase capital investment." The letter said there would be no guarantees that any allocation would be. sufficient to make an operation economically viable ,with increased investment. . Blake 'Evans-of--the-�MinistFy-of Natural -.. Resources, said the letter was merely a '°"' reaffirmation of a 1981 James Auld statement and was more precautionary in What to wear. this sunner nature than dictatorial. "In essence fishermen were just being cautioned on speculation. It's not a threat in any sense, just good business advice." The nine licence holders in Huron County have been informed that a 1.9 million pound quota, has been placed on whitefish caught in Lake Huron and Georgian Bay. However, quotas•on chub, trout and splake are still under discussion. The Ontario . Council of, Cgmmercial Fisheries is expected to present a response to the •modernization program and its recommendations once individual figures are received from the ministry. The OCCF says it plans to hold an executive meeting followed by a meeting with the minister to present the concerns of member associations. In the meantime, the Huron County group is taking a course of action it hopes will help resolve the problem' of quotas. President Moody stressed unity at the special meeting Thursday. "We have a real problem ahead and unity is the only way," he said. "We will ._take.onthe_fight.as_Lake.Huron_f ishermen. We must single ourselves out." Evans said the 'quota figures were still, joeing compiled and expected them: to be - released`sh *t'ly. The quota system is desinged to protect fish stocks and reduce competition. Quotas will be issued annually with the licences and the ministry will collect advance levies based on the size of the individual quotas. The ministry also plans increased enforcement efforts to prevent overfishing. Fabrics will be lightweight and cool for spring and summer, with many sheer gauzy cottons and blends such as lawn, batiste, linen and gingham, says Margaret Loewen, clothing and textiles specialist for the On- tario Ministry ,of Agriculture and Food's rural organizations and services branch. Chambray is another popular fabric that you may want to try this year since it lends itself to western or workstyle clothing or to resort and office wear. Chambray, once manufactured only in 100 percent cotton, now is available in blends of cotton and polyester, silk and synthetics. It is a plain weave fabric with a colored warp (lengthwise) yarn and a white or pale - colored filling (crosswise) yarn. The first chambray fabrics had. a blue warp and a white filling, but now other col- ors plus stripes and checks are corrimon, she says. , When sewing with chambray use lightweight fastenings, zippers, and inter- facings and always pre -shrink the fabric before cutting. Use .fine pins and sharp shears and use a fine sewing machine nee - die (number 11 or number 70). Finish all seams because chambray can unravel easily and try top stitching or using a flat felled seam to add interest to your chambray garment. At that time therewere hundreds of U A RA NT E E D families living in tinyypockets along the 4,500 miles of railway lines built in northern On- torio. As the railway wastheir only access NV EST I� E NTS to the outside world, therree were no available was appointed its escort,-wi ._ins ruc bons. _ schools for the children to attend. In the ear- ly 1920s Fred Sloman had taught school in northern Ontario and was aware of the plight of the great numbers of children who might never have an opportunity to acquire schooling. He requested permission to pack school books on his back and hike along the rails to meet these children. However, a plan was created which put schools on wheels for the first time. Both CNR. and CPR donated cars in 1926, and with some doubts, sent them out, for a six month trial. So successful was the trial, that soon, five more railway cars were put into the service travelling through remote areas of northern Ontario tothe Manitoba border. The original' railway coach used by the Sloman soon proved to be too small. Half of it had been converted . into a school room, and the other half was home for .Mr. and Mrs. Sloman and their five children. In 1940, Canadian National Railways replaced the ancient wooden coach with an 80 foot con- verted dining car, and this became the famous original "CNR School on Wheels No: 15089". Its unique history is presently being writ- ten for publication, and will relate stories of the families who regarded it not only as a v al_sch hat_a coce "t ft . ` " q ort tfd b1eR, and a place where light, love at laughter were constant. • Parents of the pupils were mainly. Euro - pear immigrants employed by the railway. Many had never attended schools in their homeland, and were unable to converse in English. The school car became a refuge for these education -hungry people. They lived iL 10 lA % 1 YEAR ANNUAL INTEREST 1 0 112 % 2 YEARS 7-1 ANNUAL INTEREST Rates subject to change John Wise INSURANCE BROKER LTD. 5 Rattenbury St., Clinton 482-9644 Res. 482-7265 of rolling stock travelled with true majestic dignity on its final trip on rails on that blustery Autumn day! A large white banner fastened over the front of the locomotive an- nounced the news, in bright red lettering, "CN TAKES SCHOOL CAR HOME TO CLINTON - No. 15089". Such a welcome it received! Public school children were brought down to the tracks, and at the first sound of the train whistle, their cheering began, and continued until the historic old coach came to a stop on the rail siding. None of these children had ever seen a school on wheels, and it's certain they will not forget that moment! Almost a month later settled weather made' it possible for Mr. Fred Sole and his son to transport by float the 55 ton school on wheels to its permanent. residence three blocks south of the CN tracks in Sloman Park. A Board of Directors was appointed with Ron Young as its chairman. Plans for an authentic restoration were drawn up, and soon generous donations began arriving from former students, friends, and. many co eerned residents . of 149.P Material - froni. A similar type of railway coach' was made available to the Restoration Commit- tee, and this stroke of good fortune saved a great deal of expense. Most of the labor has been carried out by Ron Young, Margaret Sloman, and Stanley Bodaly, a • retired CN car man who had worked on school car restorations in the CN London yards. Their plans for the completed --ear-ar-e to mak._,_ ragop<wher-e-school_ children can experience a day of learning on a school on wheela. Also it will serve as a unique .museum, proindslilg great interest for all tourists and residents, In 1985, the Ontario Heritage Foundation will express its recognition of the good work of ORIGINAL CNR SCHOOL ON WUE ELS 15089 among the people of northern:: Ontario whom it .served, when they erect the familiar blue and gold plaque at, a special ceremony at Sloman Memorial Park. - To complete the restoration, the Board of Directors of Ontario's first railway \school car requires additional funds. All purchases have been paid through previous donations. One donor who was physically unable to join in the manual work, went from door to door in his neighborhood and collected a welcome donation in dimes and dollars. Your dona- tions can be made by subscribing to an -an- nual membership to the ORIGINAL CNR SCHOOL ON WHEELS 15089;, the fee is just $5.00. Donations of $10.00 or more, are in- come tax deductible, and receipts will be issued. Your financial support for this worthwhile project reflects your concern in the preser- - vation - of" aurheritage ;for 'future - genera- tions. fees-- . � Donations :and_ Membership_ _.._ tions. hip _ should be made payable to: ORIGINAL CNR SCHOOL ON WHEELS 15089, P.O. Box 488, CLINTON, Ontario. NOM 1LO. The handsome, newly designed. member- ship Cards will be mailed to new.Members, .and all donations will be accepted with sincere gratitude. A Lifetime Membership wilibe presented to donors of $100 or more. 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