Yesterday And Today, A Salute to Blyth's 125th Anniversary, 2002-07-31, Page 6ify
The way there were
Members of the Eastern Star Lodge, back row, from lett: Elva Garrett, Jean Fairservice,
Marjorie East, Olive Doherty, Betty Haines, Mrs. H. Sillib, Wellington McNall. Middle: Myrtle
Vodden, Mary Holland, Helen Gowing, Dora Shobbrook, Mrs. Walpole, Mrs. McCallum.
Seated: Ruth Shaddick, Edythe Phillips, Harold Vodden, Carman Haines. (Courtesy Jan Vodden)
The Radford family business has been Dart of> the
community for 61 years. During that time it has
undergone many changes in its endeavour to serve
the needs of the village and surrounding area.
Cattpatutatiatta an pa* 125t& Sittliclav
523-9681 Blyth 1-800-276-4163
6 generations have owned Nethery Farm
Alexander Nethery (1798 - 1877) and
his wife Elizabeth Cooper (1804-1895) and
family of 12 children left Ireland in 1850
and settled in Darlington Township. Three
of their children died at sea. When the
eldest son Lancelot purchased L42, Cone. 5
East Wawanosh in 1856 his parents came
with him. The property had a few acres
cleared and a log shanty. In 1881 Lancelot
(1829-1915) married Elizabeth Tyner
(1853-1910). They had one son Wm.
George (1884-1947). Wm. George married
Ada Campbell ( l 890-1943) in 1911 and had
5 children - Verna (Aug.-Nov. 1913). Isabel
Scanlon, Marion Snell, Jean Potter and
Wm. Alexander (1927-1990).
Alex took over the farm when his dad
was killed in a farm accident. Alex married
Jean Dawson in 1949 and had 7 children -
Larry (married Cathy Richardson), Connie
(married Murray Nesbitt), Joyce (married
David Ireland), Brenda (married Greg
Cardiff), Cameron George (Oct. - Nov.
1963), Denise (married Bill Tedesco) and
Angela (married Wade Berard).
Alex operated a dairy farm and had a
school bus run. When USS#3 E.W. and
Morris was closed he drove 5 students in a
1951 Ford to Belgrave School with a salary
of $877.00. In 1960 he purchased a 10
passenger Austin mini bus then when East
Wawanosh School opened in 1967 he
purchased a 1961 GMC - 54 passenger bus.
He drove the same route until his death in
June 1990. The farm was then sold to his
son Larry and Cathy. Their children arc the
sixth generation on the farm.
Jean Nether)' built a new home at 355
Drummond Street, Blyth in 1991.
Lancelot Nethery married
Elizabeth Tyner in 1881.
William Nethery
married Ada Campbell
in 1911
William and Ada's
children included (at
left) Isabel Scanlon.
Marion Snell and Jean
Potter as well as a
sister Verna who died
in infancy, and Alex.
The family of Alex (front row) and Jean Nethery (back row,
right) includes: Brenda Cardiff, Joyce Ireland. Larry Nethery;
(front) Denise Tedesco, Connie Nesbitt and Angela Berard.
"On a scale of 1 to 10"
Blyth is a 125
M.G.M.
TOWNSEND TIRE
• Full line of Cooper tires for passenger and v
light-medium trucks
• Firestone farm tires
• AN & lawn mower tires
Serving the area since 1995
Matt, Dan, Carrie, Wes,
J.C. & George
1 1 /4 miles east of Londesboro
r
" •
523-4742
N./
PAGE 6. THE CITIZEN, YESTERDAY and TODAY, WEDNESDAY, JULY 31, 2002.
Eastern Star Lodge once strong organization
the Grand Chapter, Order of Eastern
Star and its Sister subordinate
chapters gathered in Blyth Memorial
Hall to institute a new chapter of the
Order.
Worthy Grand Patron, Brother
Wellington Smith of Fort Frances
Elliott and John Elliott.
Today the membershp is 52. The
current Worshipful Master is Kevin
Walker.
Right Worshipful Brothers are
John Elliott, Rick Elliott and Bryan
Allan. Clifford Coultes is secre-
ary.
Masons' early records lost in fire
When Blyth celebrated its
centennial in 1977, the Eastern Star
Lodge was strong with 35 charter
members and a total membership of
90.
By the village's 125th, the Blyth's
chapter no longer exists.
The first meeting of the Masonic
Lodge in Blyth were held in the
upper storey of the former municipal
office on the south-west corner of
Queen and Dinsley Streets.
The next meeting place was above
the old Canadian Imperial Bank of
Commerce, but as a fire, in 1932
destroyed some of the records, there
is no way of knowing when the
move took place.
As repairs were being done to the
building to restore it after the fire,
lodge members met in the Orange
Hall. The new Masonic Lodge
Room was dedicated in 1933.
In more recent times, the Masons
have met in their rooms above the
former municipal office.
The first meeting to discuss the
possibility of organizing a chapter of
the Order of the Eastern Star in
Blyth was held in the Blyth United
Church Sunday school room on Feb.
3, 1953.
A month later representatives of
The story of Blyth's Masonic
Lodge dates back to Oct. 16, 1873,
when it first got its dispensation
from the Grand Lodge of Canada.
The Lodge warrant is dated, July 9,
1874.
The first charter members
included Worshipful Master William
Wilson, Senior Warden Charles
Hamilton, Junior Warden Donald
Bruce McKinnon and members
William Curtis, William Torrance
Hays, William Tucker, John Clark
and John Hutchingson and Secretary
J.B. Tierney.
There have been seven District
Deputies in the Lodge's history: J.B.
Tierney, W. Beacon, R.D. Philip,
H.T. Vodden, E.C. East, Grant
convened the afternoon meeting.
Sixty petitioners took their oath of
allegiance. The chapter was named
Regal Chapter No. 275 U.C. Order
of the Eastern Star. The name Regal
was taken because it was
the coronation year of Queen
Elizabeth.
Vera Urquhart was elected Worthy
Matron, while Worthy Patron was
Rev. Charles Scott.
Other officials were: Associate
Patron, Harold Vodden; secretary,
Myrtle Vodden; treasurer, Violet
Hawes; conductress, Doreen Carter;
associate conductress, Ruth
Shaddick; chaplain, Grace McCal-
lum; marshall, Olive Doherty;
organist, Ruby Philp; Ada, Mary
Holland; Ruth, Kathleen Walpole;
Esther, Jean Fairservice; Martha,
Elva Garrett; Electa, Betty Haines;
warder, Luella McGowan and
Sentinel, Carman Haines.
Like so many other organizations
in the village, the Lodge met at
Memorial Hall. That changed in
April of 1955 when they opened
their own chapter rooms in the
Doherty building on Dinsley Street.
However, in 1968, they moved back
to Memorial Hall.
Over the years the Eastern Star
made many contributions. Among
those were some to the Florence
Nightingale home at Agincourt, the
Canadian Cancer Society, the
Salvation Army, the Children's War
Memorial Hospital in London and
Easter Seals.
In 1977 Ruby Philp, one of the
original members, now deceased,
was one of the officers for the
Lodge.