Today, June 21st, is National Aboriginal Day in Canada and summer solstice. On the longest day of the year, Canadians can recognize the contributions of First Nations, Inuit and Métis people to our national culture. What does this mean to the people of Albert County, New Brunswick? For millennia, Mi'kmaq have lived in Albert County.
Jim Landry of Landscape NB/PEI with Vimy Oak in front of Albert County Courthouse
If you missed the planting of the Vimy Oak Tree yesterday at the Museum, not to fear you can still visit the oak tree at its new home on the museum grounds. We planted the tree across from the English Oak tree planted in 1937 in commemoration of the Coronation of King George VI in front of the majestic county courthouse. The tree is planted with a direct view of our gun which was captured at Vimy Ridge on April 9, 1917 and won by Albert County in the 1919 Victory Loans Campaign.
Our Vimy Oak was grown from scions cut from one of the original oak trees grown from acorns gathered at Vimy Ridge in 1917 by Lieutenant Leslie H. Miller. He planted his acorns at his farm in Ontario, which he eventually called Vimy Oaks Farm.
After the battle of Vimy Ridge all but one oak tree was destroyed, so the Vimy Oaks Legacy Corporation was formed and began the project to repatriate the Vimy Oaks to Vimy Ridge in 2015. Our tree was originally slated to be planted at Vimy Ridge, but due to soil regulations was unable to be planted there. The project then sent over acorns from the Vimy Oaks in Ontario to France and and are growing them there. Our Vimy Oak tree is one of 250 that are going to be planted across Canada, and was the first to be planted in New Brunswick.
The day was made more profound as it was 100 years to the day that Lieutenant Louis Stanley Edgett from Hillsborough, NB died of wounds suffered from a counter-attack at Vimy Ridge on May 10, 1917. You can read more about him here.
With special thanks to the people who made this project possible: The Liptay Family for purchasing the tree, Jim Landry at Landscape NB/PEI for having the foresight to obtain 40 trees for NB and PEI, Kim Wilmot of Ayles Natural Landscaping from Riverview for helping with the planting and subsequent care of the tree and the Vimy Oaks Legacy Corporation for making the whole thing possible.
Thanks to the large number of people who attended the planting, along with the dignitaries present, our MLA Brian Kierstead, and representatives from the Hillsborough Legion Branch 132 President Keith Steeves, and Riverview Veterans Association President Peter Jubb.
From Left to Right - Brian Kierstead - MLA Albert, Stuart Liptay - ACHS President, Kim Wilmot - Ayles Landscaping, Peter Jubb - Riverview Veterans Association President, Keith Steeves - Hillsborough Legion Branch 132 President, Jim Landry - Executive Director Landscape NB/PEI
Lieutenant Louis Stanley Edgett was from Hillsborough, Albert Co., New Brunswick and was born June 23, 1894. He was listed as being born at sea on the Indian Ocean on board the Ship Stanley. He was the son of Annie Bella Steeves (formerly Edgett), of Moncton, New Brunswick, and Capt. Judson Hughes Edgett (mercantile marine). He enlisted with the 140th Battalion on June 20, 1916. His occupation was listed as student. He served overseas with 60th Battalion (Victoria Rifles). He died serving with the 87th Battalion of wounds suffered during an enemy counter-attack. He has is buried in LAPUGNOY MILITARY CEMETERY.
You can find his complete war records by clicking here.
He is listed on page 233 of Canada's Book of Remembrance.
There is a stirring memorial on the UNB website about midway down the page.
He is commemorated by a family stone in the Grey's Island Cemetery, Hillsborough, NB.
The War Diaries of the 87th Battalion on May 10, 1917 - Here and Here.
If anyone has any further information, photos or memories they would like to share please pass them along.
His personal war diary was published and can be purchased here.
Arthur Everett Tingley, 830262 was from Midway, Albert Co., New Brunswick and was born June 26, 1896. He was the son of Otis K. and Huldah Tingley, of Midway, Albert County, New Brunswick. He enlisted with the 144th Battalion on December 21, 1915. His occupation was listed as student. He served overseas with 8th Battalion (Manitoba Regiment). He has no known grave and is remembered on the Vimy Monument.
You can find his attestation papers by clicking here.
He is listed on page 339 of Canada's Book of Remembrance.
If anyone has any further information, photos or memories they would like to share please pass them along.
We have recently received some amazing photos of the Guns in Hopewell Cape which really helps in the guns timeline! One in particular from the photo collection of Verna Beaumont shows the Vimy Gun on May 9, 1943 sporting its green coat of paint. So we know from two dated photos the cannon was painted between 1935 and 1943 from the original camouflage colors to an army green. The cannons would stay green until they were refurbished at Gagetown in 1989 when they were painted grey.
Cyril Cook in Seaman's Uniform, May 9, 1943 with unidentified man in Air Force uniform.
Hopewell Vimy Gun Circa 1935 - Cyril Cook is in this Photo
Early Photos Circa 1920 of the Vimy Cannon in Hopewell Cape.
Special thanks to Justin Raworth who shared the images of the cannon from 1920 and Terry Smith, who shared the pictures of Cyril Cook from his Mother's photo collection (Verna Beaumont). Cyril Cook was her uncle. Both pictures are dated 9 May 1943.
We have just received some amazing photos of the Hopewell Cape Vimy Gun from the family photo collection of Susan Richardson. With special thanks to Kevin Snair of Creative Imagery for scanning and sending them to us! Five are from the 1930s and one from the 1960s. The photo of the five boys on the Hopewell Cape Vimy Ridge Gun is from 1935 and shows Douglas Higgins, Burton Fownes, Vernon Fownes, Cyril Cook and Harold Bishop on the gun. Isn't the camouflage paint job amazing!
Douglas Higgins, Burton Fownes, Vernon Fownes, Cyril Cook and Harold Bishop Circa 1935
Come join us LIVE tomorrow April 9, 2017 on Facebook as we walk through the capture of our Vimy Ridge Gun at 12 Noon. We will discuss the capture and how the gun arrived in Hopewell Cape, and the amazing story behind it. The Hopewell Cape Vimy Ridge Victory Cannon is one amazing story, don't miss it!
Cannon Captured at Vimy Ridge on Display at Hopewell Cape Square Circa 1920 - Sheriff Ernest W. Lynds in photo.
We have recently uncovered what maybe the earliest photo of the First World War Trophy Cannons located in Hopewell Cape. This cannon was captured at the Battle of Vimy Ridge - April 9, 1917 by Canadian Forces. On April 11, 1917 this cannon was turned on the enemy by the Royal Field Artillery. In the fall of 1919 this cannon was awarded to the people of Albert County for raising the highest percentage of money over their set goal for any area in the province during the Victory Loans Campaign of 1919. Their set goal was $110,000.00, and the people of Albert County raised $347,600.00. Three times the goal! (In today's dollars that is equivalent to $6.2 million. Not bad for a population of 8700 people!) The cannon arrived in Hopewell Cape on March 4, 1920 by train to Cape Station, and then by horse to Cape Square.
In the photo is Sheriff Ernest W. Lynds, and you can prominently see the plaque on the top left of the cannon stating how the cannon arrived in Albert County.
In 1998, an unusual archaeological artifact was found at Cape Enrage, in Albert County, N.B.. This artifact, the Cape Enrage Figurine, is a small image of a stylized human-like head carved into a piece of mammal bone.
Come join us on Saturday, September 10 at 7:30 PM and discover what we have learned about it, and speculate about its provenance, history and cultural affiliation. With special presentation by retired UNB Professor Dr. David Black.
If you have never heard of this amazing artefact then come and find out what makes it so special!
Entrance by free will donation.
With the summer weather finally here, cozying up in a quilt may be the last thing on your mind, but quilts are a hot commodity at the Albert County Museum right now as one of its major fundraisers gets underway.
The 40th annual quilt show and sale is taking place this week, beginning on July 12 and lasting until July 16 at the Hopewell Cape Community Hall at the Albert County Museum, 3940 Route 114, Hopewell Cape, NB.
To celebrate the 40th anniversary the museum will feature a special interactive exhibit called “Stitches Through Time” where visitors will be able to try their hand at quilting. The week will be interspersed with demonstrations as well as full workshops on Friday.
A hand quilting workshop will be offered from 10am to noon and a rug hooking workshop offered from 1pm to 3 pm. Pre-registration for the workshops is required. Call the museum at 734-2003 for details.
“The quilt show is the single biggest fundraiser for us,” said museum curator Donald Alward. “We greatly appreciate the support from those who attend this event, as well as the time put in by our wonderful volunteers to organize and keep this show running.”
This year there are more than 100 unique quilts for sale by a number of local quilters. In addition to the quilts, there are quilt tops, youth, crib & lap quilts, afghans and other sewn articles available.
The show will also once again include a raffle for one of the quilts. Tickets can be purchased throughout the summer and the quilt, which features the design ‘Road to Abbey’s House’, can be shipped anywhere in North America.
Admission to the quilt show is just three dollars per person and includes access to the “Stitches Through Time” exhibit. The Quilt Show & Sale is open each day during the museum’s regular hours, from 9:30 a.m. to 5:30 p.m.
The Albert County Museum is excited to host our second of five "Opening Windows to Our Past" Diary Explorations, Thursday, June 30 at 7:30 pm. Taking place the last Thursday of every month, the "Opening Windows to Our Past" Series, is going to explore some of the many diaries in the museum's collection. It's a walk through the past as told by the very people who lived it!
Our next diary was written by Benjamin T. Carter (1844-1922). Here is a brief biography as written by Zachary A. Tingley, a student guide at the museum.
It was 1861 in Hopewell Cape Albert County, a young clerk was aiding patrons as they inquired about his father’s masonry work. This young man was Benjamin T. Carter (1844-1922), the son of Christopher and Barbra Carter. Benjamin was baptized at St. John’s Anglican Church in Rustico, Prince Edward Island on 16 March 1845. His family moved to Albert County between 1851 and 1861, the exact timing remains unclear. Nevertheless, in the 1850’s Christopher Carter moved his family to Hopewell Cape in search of work as a stone mason.
Benjamin’s experiences in Hopewell Cape helped shape him into a successful master mariner and community steward. His position in the community allowed him to form intimate relationships with the Bennett family in Hopewell Cape, and this only augmented his status within the community.
Benjamin was first married to a Julia A. Dickson (1850-1870), it was with his first wife that he had his first two, and only, children Charles and Lillian. After Julia died in 1870 Benjamin was left a widower with two children, this was not an ideal situation to be in during the mid-1800s. As a result, Benjamin married again in 1872, his second wife was Althea M. Bennett (1836-1906). Althea was the sister of Henry J. Bennett, R. B. Bennett’s father. The reasons for Althea’s death remain unclear; however, what is clear is that it took some time before Benjamin was ready to marry again. Yet in 1911, Benjamin was married again to his third and last wife Jessie McNaughton. She remained his wife until his death in 1922.
Not much is presently know about Capt. Benjamin Carter’s time as a sea captain; however, Benjamin did receive his captain’s certificate in 1895 in Saint John, New Brunswick. His diaries seem to reveal more about his life as a farmer and community leader in Hopewell Cape rather than as a Captain on the high seas. Capt. Benjamin T. Carter was a father, farmer, captain, husband, and even a sheriff. Capt. Benjamin Carter currently is resting in the Jonah Cemetery in Dawson Settlement, New Brunswick with his first wife Alice.
Come on out Thursday, June 30 @ 7:30pm and find out what he has to say!
The Next Opening Windows to Our Past Series is:
Thursday, July 28 @ 7:30pm
Thursday, August 25 @ 7:30pm
Thursday, September 29 @ 7:30pm
Saturday, May 21 is OPENING DAY at the Museum, with the start of the 2016 season. It's going be one fantastic day with the Grand Opening of the Steeves 250 years in Albert County exhibit, and its big announcement. This coupled with opening day of the Museum Market and the museum itself, it's going to be one exciting day to be in Hopewell Cape.
We're super excited about our Grand Opening of the Steeves: 250 Years in Albert County exhibit, and our huge Steeves Family announcement of a major component of the exhibit which has just been approved by Library and Archives Canada, and is to be ready in time for the Steeves Family Reunion in July. Come and hear the big news!
The “Steeves: 250 years in Albert County” exhibit is planned as a special exhibit at the Albert County Museum which coincides with the 2016 Steeves 250 Family Reunion and is scheduled for exhibit for two years. A full gallery of the museum has be dedicated to this theme and includes displays of ‘all things Steeves’. The exhibit has been carefully selected from over 700 Steeves related artefacts in the museum collection, with each artefact on the display having some special historic significance. The highlight of the exhibit is the original 18th century clock that Heinrich and Regina Stief brought from Germany.
The Market at the Museum is having its fourth season in the most unique location for a farmer's market anywhere. The market is located in Exhibition Hall surrounded by the Museum's extensive collection of antique farm implements, pioneer tools, and early home furnishings and appliances. It brings the past and the present together so people can see the tools that were once used to make the products they're buying at the market today. The Farmers and Crafters Market is a joint venture between the Albert County Museum and Foods of the Fundy Valley, a local non-profit organization whose mandate is to encourage local food awareness through education and promotion.
One of the highlights of the market is the weekly breakfast prepared by the Museum. Each week it is a different breakfast sourced from the local economy.
The museum is open 9:30am -5:30pm and the Farmers and Crafters Market hosted by Foods of the Fundy Valley is open 9am-1pm. The weekly ‘Breakfast at the Museum’ is open 9am-noon.
We hope to see everyone at the Museum on Saturday! Remember Market and breakfast start at 9am, the Museum opens at 9:30am and Grand Opening of Steeves Exhibit with its' big announcement is at 11am!
