Act 26
The Newfoundlanders
The story of the Farndales who
settled in Newfoundland
In 1910 John Martin and Bessie Farndale
emigrated to Newfoundland and established a grocery business in St John’s. His
son joined the Artillery in World War 2 and lived to be the oldest Farndale.
This
is a new experiment. Using Google’s Notebook LM, listen to an AI powered
podcast summarising this page. This should only be treated as an
introduction, and the AI generation sometimes gets the nuance a bit wrong.
However it does provide an introduction to the themes of this page, which are
dealt with in more depth below. Listen to the podcast for an overview, but it
doesn’t replace the text below, which provides the accurate historical
record. |
|
Newfoundland Troops arrive in Newfoundland Pathe
film of Newfoundlanders arriving in Britain to serve in World War 2 |
Scene 1 - St John’s
John
Martin and Bessie Farndale arrived in Newfoundland shortly after they were
married in 1910. John was a grocer and he became manager of a grocery
department in St John’s in eastern Newfoundland by 1935. Their sons, Raymond
William Stainthorpe Farndale (1914 to 2016) and Bertram Farndale
were born in Newfoundland in 1914 and 1919, the Newfoundland Line.
Nova
Scotia and Newfoundland
Newfoundland
Nova Scotia
St John's
was used by fishermen setting up seasonal camps in the early 1500s. Sebastian
Cabot claimed that St John's earned its name when he and his father, the
Venetian explorer John Cabot, in the service of England, became the first
Europeans to sail into the harbour, on the morning of 24 June 1494, the feast
day of Saint John the Baptist. However the earliest record of the location
appeared as São João on a Portuguese map by Pedro Reinel
in 1519. When the English mariner John Rut visited St John's in 1527, he found
Norman, Breton and Portuguese ships in the harbour. On 3 August 1527, Rut wrote
a letter to King Henry on the findings of his voyage to North America and this
was the first known letter sent from North America. A series of expeditions to
St John's by Portuguese explorers from the Azores followed in the early
sixteenth century, and by 1540, French, Spanish and Portuguese ships crossed
the Atlantic every year to fish the waters off the Avalon Peninsula.
On 5 August
1583, an English Sea Dog, Sir
Humphrey Gilbert, claimed the area as England's first overseas colony under
Royal Charter of Queen Elizabeth I. There was no permanent population, however,
and Gilbert was lost at sea during his return voyage, ending any immediate
plans for settlement. By 1620, the fishermen of England's West Country
controlled most of Newfoundland's east coast. In 1627, William Payne, called St
John's the principal prime and chief lot in all the whole country.
In about
1630, the town of St John's was established as a permanent settlement. Before
this, English fishermen were forbidden by the English government from
establishing permanent settlements along the English controlled coast. The
town's first significant defences were erected to protect new commercial
interests, after St John's had been temporarily seized by the Dutch admiral
Michiel de Ruyter in June 1665. The inhabitants of St John’s resisted a second
Dutch attack in 1673, led by an English merchant captain, Christopher Martin.
Martin landed six cannons from his vessel, the Elias Andrews, and built
an earthen breastwork and battery near Chain Rock commanding the Narrows
leading into the harbour. With only 23 men, the Martin beat off an attack by
three Dutch warships.
The
population grew slowly in the seventeenth century. St John's was Newfoundland's
largest settlement when English naval officers began to take censuses from
about 1675. The population grew in the summer time with the arrival of
migratory fishermen. In 1680, fishing ships mostly from South Devon set up
fishing rooms at St John's, bringing hundreds of Irishmen into the port to
operate inshore fishing boats.
The English
government planned to expand the fortifications of Fort William in around 1689,
but construction did not begin until after the French admiral Pierre Le Moyne d'Iberville captured and destroyed the town in the
Avalon Peninsula Campaign in 1696. When 1,500 English reinforcements
arrived in late 1697, they found rubble where the town and fortifications had
stood. The French attacked St John's again in 1705, the Siege of St John's, and
captured it in 1708, the Battle of St. John's, devastating civilian structures
with fire on each instance.
The harbour
remained fortified through most of the eighteenth and nineteenth centuries.
The final
battle of the Seven
Years' War in North America was fought in 1762, in St. John's.
Following a surprise capture of the town by the French early in the year, the
British responded and, at the Battle
of Signal Hill, the French surrendered St John's to British forces under
the command of Colonel William Amherst.
On 24 April
1800, the United Irish Uprising was a mutiny by nineteen Irish soldiers
who were part of the British garrison stationed in Newfoundland. The mutineers,
who were suspected to be members of the Society of United Irishmen, fled to the
countryside after the mutiny failed, and were apprehended in a matter of weeks
and court-martialled. Of the seventeen mutineers captured, eight were executed,
four were let go while five were sentenced to penal transportation.
The
eighteenth century saw population growth, the beginnings of a government,
establishment of churches, reinforcement of commercial ties with North America
and development of the seal, salmon and Grand Banks fisheries. St John’s was
primarily a fishing station, but also a garrison, a centre of government and a
commercial hub. St John's served as a naval base during the American
Revolutionary War and the War of 1812. A Great Fire of 1892 destroyed a
significant portion of the city.
Guglielmo
Marconi received the first transatlantic wireless signal in St John's on 12
December 1901 from his wireless station in Poldhu,
Cornwall. St John's was the starting point for the first non-stop transatlantic
aircraft flight, by Alcock and Brown in a modified Vickers Vimy IV bomber, in
June 1919, departing from Lester's Field in St John's and ending in a bog near
Clifden, Connemara, Ireland.
After
settling in St John’s, John worked as a grocery manager. Raymond later
recalled I was born in St. John’s, Newfoundland on February 23, 1914. My
parents, John and Bessie Farndale, immigrated to Newfoundland in 1910. My
father was employed by The Royal Stores Ltd as Grocery Department Manager. We
were the only family of Farndales in Newfoundland. The family has been traced
back to about 1280. I have records going back to 1760, when William Farndale
was born in Brotton, Yorkshire. He was my
great-great-great Grandfather, dying in 1846 at the age of eighty-six. My
family’s first home was at 24 Cochrane Street, where we lived for about four
years. I was baptized on June 11, 1914 by Reverend A. Clayton. I was
confirmed on January 27, 1929 by Canon A. H. Hewitt.
1886 to 1966 The grocer who
emigrated to Newfoundland |
Remembering
his life from the perspective of his eighty eighth birthday, Raymond
continued his recollections of this time. We then moved to 35 Cochrane
Street. My brother Bertram
was born July 24th, 1919. My recollections of these early years are quite
“sketchy” but I do remember some of the neighbours, including the Carnells, Oakes, Ryans , Edwards, Days. As well, I recall
spending summers with the Gladneys in Freshwater
Valley. They owned and operated a small farm, complete with horses, cows, pigs
and chicken. Paddy Gladney drove a “horse and carriage,” the fore-runner of
taxicabs. Bertram and I were both baptized in St. Thomas’ Church, which dates
back to 1699. The building I remember was built in 1836. In the late summer of
1919 I contracted Scarlet Fever, which was a very contagious disease in those
days. This prevented me from starting school in September. I did not enrol
until September 1920. To sum up, the first six years of my life were pleasant
ones.
During
the years leading up to my confirmation, I had become a fairly regular attendee
at both Church and Sunday School. Sunday School classes were held on Sunday
afternoons. The superintendent was Mr. H.Y. Mott. I can’t recall any of the
teachers’ names. We were taught to memorize the Lords
Prayer, the Apostles’ Creed and to understand the Ten Commandments, all part of
the “Catechism.” At about age 12 I became a Bell Ringer. The Church had a set
of bells, which were rung before every service for fifteen minutes. Services
were held each Sunday at 8am, 11am and 6:30pm. There were about twelve bells of
different sizes, each attached to ropes, making up an “octave.” In the bell
tower, the ringers played hymns by following the “music” and pulling the ropes
by numbers. I enjoyed the experience and became fairly proficient. In 1931 I
had the best belfry record for that year, and received a prize. I was then
seventeen, and I believe I discontinued my bell ringing shortly after that. I
continued my membership in the church until 1938, when I moved to Corner Brook.
Raymond was
educated at Bishop
Feild College from 1920 to 1929. The school
system in Newfoundland was denominational, operated by three main-line
churches. The Church of England (which later became known as the Anglican
church), operated several schools, including Bishop Feild
College where I was educated. The curriculum was patterned after the English
system. Only boys attended Bishop Feild. The girls
has a separate school, named Bishop Spencer. There were six “forms,” some of
them were divided into Upper and Lower. The Upper sixth is the final year,
described as Junior Matriculation, which was roughly the equivalent to grade 11
in today’s Canadian system. There was no kindergarten, so I entered Form 1 in
September 1920. I was a good student throughout my school years and received
many prizes and awards,. In 1925 and 1927, I won the Knowling Scholarship for
the best “all round boy,” determined by ballot of both the staff and the boys
of each form. I took part in all school sports, but did not excel! Being
smaller and somewhat younger than most of my class was a disadvantage. School
sports were soccer, rugby, basketball and ice hockey. His close friends
were Bert and Geoff Carnell, John Carnell, Frank and Joe Ryan.
In 1923,
Bessy took the boys back to Yorkshire for an extended break from September 1923
to August 1924. In 1923, there was a break in my education, due to an
extended trip to England. In July of 1923, my mother, Bertram
and I left St. John’s for Liverpool, England by steamer. Dad stayed at home,
and boarded with friends (the Moysts). We then
travelled by train to Loftus, Yorkshire
where we met Grandmother Stainthorpe and various aunts, uncles and cousins. I
remember visiting my Uncle Herbert Stainthorpe in Redcar. He has a house full
of canaries! We also visited some of the Farndale relatives in Guisborough, Northallerton, etc. In September we
moved to Redcar, so that I could enroll in Coatham Grammar
School. I adapted to school life fairly well , although I was somewhat lonely
and didn’t make many friends. Most of the students were “boarders” whereas I
was a “day student.” After two semesters I left Coatham
in preparation for our return to Newfoundland in July of 1924. All in all the
trip was a great experience, but we were glad to be home again.
They also
stayed in Whitby. During his stay in
England Raymond wrote
in to a popular children’s column in a Yorkshire newspaper and in June 1924, Raymond
won a prize for a letter which was published. Playful ‘Billy’. This is the
first letter I have ever written to you. I have no pets to tell you about, but
I will tell you about a cat that my auntie has. “Billy” is a playful cat. He
sits up and boxes you, and if you jingle your money in your pockets he will
jump up on your knee and try to get it out. I must now close (hoping to see it
in print) and wishing you and your circle every successful stop I remain, yours
truly, Raymond Farndale, Whitby. Perhaps this was a reference to his Aunt Hannah
or Aunt
Elizabeth.
The family
returned to St John’s on the SS Digby of the Furness Line in August
1924. For the next year, they lived at 9 Bell Street, St John’s. Raymond
recalled that on return in 1924, I entered Form 4 and followed the system
through to 1929, when I graduated with a pass mark.
From 1925 to
1930 the family lived at 60 Prescott Street in St John’s.
Summers
in Topsail. In the late 1920s and early 1930s, we spent entire summers in
Topsail, Conception Bay – about twelve miles from St. John’s. Topsail was a
lovely little village where many St. John’s families spent their summers. We
boarded with a local family (the Butchers) and had commuted to St. John’s with
various business people, including Anthony Tooton. My
best friends were Russell and Graham Strong, as well as Tom Windsor and his
brothers Stuart and Jack. It was there that I learned to swim. There was a
three-mile stretch of rocky beach and the water was very cold. However, we had
a lot of fun! We also spent much time exploring the nearby countryside, often
picking berries, which were abundant. We enjoyed helping the farmers at “hay”
time and we often played baseball in the hayfields.
Music. We
always had a piano in our house. Mother was a trained singer and also played
the piano quite well, although in quite an unorthodox manner. She read the
music using “tonic sol fa” method, which I never could quite understand! At age
15 I started piano lessons, but after two different tutors, I gave up in
despair. I then tried to master the
Hawaiian Guitar by taking correspondence lessons. This lasted a few months, and
ended in failure. I passed the guitar onto my brother. I did enjoy singing and
spent many pleasant Sunday evenings at the home of Maisie and Betty Gunn,
taking part in “sing-a-longs.” Also, whenever the opportunity arose I was
always glad to add my voice to a group, singing some of the tunes of the day.
I’ve always regretted that I did not study music. My inability to read the
notes was a handicap in later years, when I joined church choirs in Corner
Brook, New Glasgow and Halifax. I did have a very good “ear” and this enabled
me to manage fairly well. In fact, in Halifax I even sang a solo at St. Peters.
Newfoundland
did not have a university in 1929, so for those students wishing to continue
their education it was necessary to spend two years at Memorial College (which
later became Memorial University). A popular choice for university was McGill
in Montreal. This was not an option for me, as the cost was prohibitive.
Instead I enrolled in the Butler Business College in September. One month
later, I took a job with Imperial Oil Ltd., as Junior Clerk in the main office
on Water Street. The monthly salary was thirty-five dollars.
Friendships.
One of my best friends in my class at school was Horace Rosenberg. He was also
my rival in scholastic tests. We used to visit each others
homes after school and play games. He was especially good at chess and tried to
teach me (without much success). After 1929, he went on to Memorial College and
later to McGill University in Montreal. He became a medical doctor. I saw him
only twice since then, once in Edinburgh, Scotland in 1942 and once during a
train trip from Corner Brook to St. Jonh’s in the late 1940’s. When I was about
twelve years old, I developed a strong friendship with George Cook, who lives
at 99 Bond Street. We spent many happy times together and I was in included in
most of their family outings. Sadly, George died of cancer in 1960. Other
friends were Clifton Gardner, Wilf Moore, George LeMessuner,
Bliss Murphy, Arthur and Lawrence Wood and many others. Every Sunday afternoon
a group of us would take long walks, either to Cabot Tower, the Southside, Cape
Spear, Quidi Vidi Lakeor Cuckold
Cove. I have lost touch with all of these friends now except Wilf Moore, who
served with me in the 59th Regiment (Nfld) and whom I
visited several times since them at Regimental reunions and once in St. John’s
at the veterans wing of the General Hospital.
In 1929, Raymond was
encouraged to repeat the year and apply for a scholarship, but instead I opted
to start a business career. My first job was Junior Clerk with Imperial
Oil Ltd. I started in mid-October of 1929. In September I had started a course
at the Butler Business College. I found this interesting but quit to take the
Imperial Oil job. My salary was $35.00 per month. I resigned in September 1930
to take a position with Tors Cove Trading Company Limited at $100.00 per month.
I enjoyed my first job and left on good terms.
I joined
this firm in October 1930, at a starting wage of $100.00 per month (about three
times my previous salary!). The owners were Avalon and Will Goodridge, two very
fine gentlemen. It was a pleasure to work for them. Their nephew Owen (also
known as Peter) worked there and we became good friends. I also remember Will
Strong, Hilda Diamond and Hilda Warford (later she married Joe Combden, and we met again in Toronto in 1960). In fact, she
was Denise’s Godmother at her christening in 1962.
From 1930 to
1938, the family lived at 173 Gower Street, St John’s, in the East Ward. By
1935, John, then aged 49, was a manager with a grocery department.
Raymond
remembered that my first vehicle was an Ariel motorcycle, 350 c.c., brand
new and cost $350.00. I was very proud of this cycle and drove it often,
generally accompanied by my best friend George Cook on the Pillion seat. On one
occasion, when travelling along a country road (all the roads were country
roads in that day!), a young pony on the edge of the road took fright and
jumped towards us. A collision resulted and George and I were thrown from the
bike. The pony ran away unharmed. Apart from a few bruises we were okay and
were able to continue our journey.
In 1932,
in order for me to better understand the markets, I took a trip on a freighter
bound for the West Indies. I embarked on the M.V. Fagerbro
in March of 1932. She was of Norwegian registry, 1500 tons gross. The itinerary
was St. Pieree and Miquelon, Puerto Rico, Barbados
and Martinique, returning via North Sydney, Montreal, Botwood
and finally St. John’s. The return cargo was mainly molasses, in 50 gallon
barrels. This was indeed a great experience.
The next
year I bought a small car, an Austin Mini. In July 1933, I attended a tennis
tournament in Harbour Grace and on the return trip had an unfortunate accident,
this time a collision with a bridge. It was late at night and very foggy. I had
two passengers, Jack Norris and Bill Harris. Jack injured his eye-lid, and it
is permanently partially closed. There was a police investigation. I was
cleared of any criminal responsibility and no charges were laid.
In 1934,
I bought a 1929 Model “A” Ford 4-door Roadster and enjoyed this car without any
mishaps. I sold this vehicle in the fall because winter storage was a problem.
From then on I depended on others for transportation, primarily Maurice Devine.
My next car was purchased after the war in 1946.
I
resigned from Tors Cove Trading Company in 1937 to take a position with Bowaters Newfoundland Ltd. in St. John’s. Bowater Corporation were cutting
trees for mine pit props and planning to buy corner brook paper mill from
International Power and Paper Limited. This purchase took place in 1838, and
Raymond was one of three people transferred to Corner Brook which became his
next home. Raymond was appointed Assistant Secretary-Treasurer.
Bertram
returned to Yorkshire an lived in Northallerton
by the end of the 1930s, where he worked as an insurance agent. He too served
in the Second World War, in the Royal Army Ordnance Corps. He later settled in
Harrogate.
During the
Second World War, the harbour at St John’s supported Royal Navy and Royal
Canadian Navy ships that were engaged in anti-submarine warfare. It was the
site of an American Army Air Force base, Fort Pepperrell, that was established
as part of the Lend-Lease Destroyers for Bases Agreement between the
United Kingdom and United States. The base included several US-manned coast
defence guns, and a Canadian-manned battery of two Lend-Lease 10-inch M1888
guns was at Fort Cape Spear.
John and
Betsy returned to the UK in the 1950s initially to Guisborough and later to Southampton,
where there son Bertram
had settled.
Scene 2 – Corner Brook
Corner Brook
is a city located on the west coast of Newfoundland on the Bay of Islands at
the mouth of the Humber River. It became the second largest population centre
after St John's. It remains the administrative headquarters of the Qalipu Mi'kmaq First Nations band government.
The Mi'kmaq name for the nearby Humber River is Maqtukwek.
The area was
surveyed by Captain James Cook in
1767, about a decade after James Cook
was mate of the Friendship with John Farndale, a seaman
of Whitby. The Captain
James Cook Historic Site stands on Crow Hill overlooking the city. By the
middle of the nineteenth century the population of Corner Brook was less than
100, and the inhabitants were engaged in fishing and lumber work.
Corner Brook
became home to the Corner Brook Pulp and Paper Mill, owned by Kruger Inc.
Pulp and
paper industry, Corner Brook
Raymond
was transferred to the Corner Brook mill. He was employed by Bowaters, Newfoundland Pulp and Paper Limited and he
reported to General Manager H.M.S. “Monty” Lewin. He lived at Glynmill Inn, then a staff house for senior employees from
1838 to 1940 and then again after the war, from 1945 to 1946. In 1938, the Bowater organization,
which had been operating in St. John’s for a couple of years, bought the Paper
Mill from the International Power and Paper Company. I had joined the staff of Bowaters
Newfoundland Limited in 1937 and was one of four people transferred to Corner
Brook in October 1938. The others were Bruce Fraser, Jim Downing and Jack Lee.
A new chapter in my life then began. I was twenty-four years of age. I took up
residence in the Glynmill Inn, where the guests were
mainly company personnel. Room and board cost me $35.00 a month. I was assigned
to the Accounts Department and the other transferees went to the Woods
Department. I adapted quickly to my new life in Corner Brook. I joined various
sports clubs, and took part in badminton, tennis, bowling, skating and skiing.
My closest friends were Austin Purchase, Howard Humber, George Gullage, and
Alan Goodridge, all of whom are now deceased.
Raymond
served in 59th (Newfoundland) Heavy Regiment Royal Artillery during the Second
World War and we will return to his military service in Act 32.
He returned
to Corner Brook in October 1945. On 1 June 1946 he married Maud Ellen Tipple in
the United Church.
Raymond sang
in the choir of, and taught Sunday School, of the Anglican Church of St John
the Evangelist in Corner Brook.
From 1946 to
1954 her was employed by the Newfoundland Distributors Limited (West Park
Motors), Corner Brook. In 1946, Ray left Bowater to become Accountant, and then
General Manager, West Park Motors. At first they were the Newfoundland
distributor for Bombardier snowmobiles, and later, after Confederation, became
a Ford dealership. From 1946, they lived at 22 North Street, Corner Brook.
During his
time in Corner Brook, Ray was an active member of the Corner Brook Players
amateur theatrical group. He was also an officer in the badminton club and
various other clubs and Secretary-Treasurer of Blomidon
Club which later became the Blomidon Country Club after developing a golf course
and curling rink.
On 5 October
1948, he arrived in Norfolk, Virginia, on a round trip, with his wife, Ellen. On
SS Cornerbrook, First Class, Raymond and Ellen
Farndale, together making a ‘round trip by this steamer’.
From 1949 to
1950 they lived at 54 Humber Park, Corner Brook. Their son, Keith
Raymond William Stainthorpe Farndale was born in 1950. From 1951 to 1954,
they lived at 57 Elswick Road, Corner Brook and Raymond
worked for West Park Motors at Hal House who were appointed Dealership for Ford
Motor Company. He remembered his friends from that time, the Pooles, Bouzannes, Purchases,
Andrews, and Humbers, among others. From 1954-1959 he was employed by Corner
Brook Garage Limited and in 1955 he was Office Manager at Corner Brook Garage
Limited, the General Motors dealer. The family lived at 34 Reid Street from
1957 to 1959.
Scene 3 – Nova Scotia
In 1959, Raymond’s
family moved to New Glasgow in Nova Scotia, where they lived on Birch Street
until 1961. Raymond
was employed by the Pontiac dealership, Spencer Motors.
Having
resigned my position with Corner Brook Garage in the summer of 1959, we packed
our belongings and moved to New Glasgow in November to take up employment with
Spencer Motors Ltd., a Pontiac dealership. It had great potential in the
automotive field but was in need of some accounting skills to keep it
profitable. Bing Spencer, the owner/manager was a very personable fellow and
had been in business for about ten years. The early years were very profitable
but he was inclined to branch out into other fields such as an apartment
building in Trenton, a Trucking company, a service station in Guysboro and one in the Magdalin Islands. A large part of
the profits from the main business was used to finance these ventures, none of
which became profitable. In fact, most recorded losses. We adapted to life in
Pictou County very well. We made many friends and became members of the gold
club, bowling club and Lions club. We stayed at the Norfolk Hotel for a short
while, until a house became available in Stellarton
which we rented furnished for $75.00 per month. Our immediate neighbours were
the MacKeans, the McEacherns,
the Arthurs and the Buckles and we soon became friends.
In the
Spring of 1960, we decided to purchase a home in New Glasgow – a fairly new
home on Birch Street (cost $11 000). We had bought a new car before we left
Corner Brook, a prink Cortina. I as provided with a new car as part of my
employment package, so the Cortina became Ellie’s car. I enjoyed the challenge
of trying to keep Spencer Motors profitable, but after about a year it became
apparent that Bing and I were not on the same wavelength and when an
opportunity came up with a Toronto dealership I took advantage of it.
Consequently, we moved to Toronto in July 1961, to take a position with Lauria
Motors Ltd., Willowdale.
Scene 4 – Toronto
In 1961, Raymond
moved to Toronto, to the same place that two
previous Farndale families had emigrated in the late nineteenth century.
He was employed between 1961
and 1962 by Lauria Motor Sales Ltd, Toronto. Lauria became Roy Foss Motors,
General Motors dealership. The family lived at 2177 Avenue Road, Apartment 120,
Toronto from June 1961 to April 1962 and then at Willowdale. Raymond
worked for Roy Foss Motors in Toronto, another Pontiac Dealer in Buick.
Their
daughter Ada
Denise Farndale (“Denise”) was born in November 1962. Raymond was on the
voter’s list for Willowdale Avenue ay York, Scarborough, Ontario in 1962, an
office manager, with his wife, Ellie (also known as Helen). His father John
Martin was also listed and shown retired.
Scene 5 – Halifax
Halifax is
the capital of the Canadian province of Nova Scotia. Coastal areas of Nova
Scotia in the region of Halifax were inhabited seasonally by Mi’kmaq
before the influx of Europeans. The first permanent European settlement in the
region was on the Halifax Peninsula. The establishment of the town of Halifax,
named after the
2nd Earl of Halifax, in 1749 led to the colonial capital being transferred
from Annapolis Royal. The establishment of Halifax marked the beginning of Father
Le Loutre's War, which began when Edward Cornwallis arrived to establish
Halifax with 13 transports and a sloop of war on 21 June 1749. By unilaterally
establishing Halifax, the British were violating earlier treaties with the Mi'kmaq
of 1726, which were signed after Father Rale's War. Cornwallis brought along
1,176 settlers and their families. To guard against Mi'kmaq, Acadian and
French attacks on the new Protestant settlements, British fortifications were
erected in Halifax at Citadel Hill in 1749, Bedford at Fort Sackville also in
1749, Dartmouth in 1750, and Lawrencetown in 1754. St Margaret's Bay was first
settled by French speaking Foreign Protestants at French Village, Nova Scotia
who migrated from Lunenburg, Nova Scotia during the American Revolution.
On 6
December 1917 the SS Mont-Blanc, a French cargo ship carrying munitions,
collided with the Belgian Relief vessel SS Imo in The Narrows
between upper Halifax Harbour and Bedford Basin. The resulting explosion, the
Halifax Explosion, devastated the Richmond District in the North End of
Halifax, killing about 2,000 people and injuring nearly 9,000 others. The blast
was the largest artificial explosion before the development of nuclear weapons.
Aid came from Boston, strengthening the bond between the two coastal cities.
Raymond
came to Halifax in 1964 and was employed by Wood Motors Ltd as office manager
until he left in 1979 aged 65. In 1964, the family lived at Bayers Road and
later moved to Main Avenue, Laurel Lane, Forest Hill Drive, Dublin Street and
London Street, Halifax.
From 1976 to
1984 Raymond
worked for Airport Transfer Limited. Denise started lifeguarding in summer and
there were memories of pool parties and more lots of socialising.
Many of the
Canadian immigrants docked in Halifax on their journey west, including the
Albertan Farndales, who we will meet next in Act 27.
Scene 6 – Guelph, Ontario
In 1990, Raymond
moved back to Ontario and settled in Guelph, west of Toronto, where he worked
part time with Procept Associates Limited and later
with Dave Moore and Associates. He recalled many happy hours during the day
taking care of his granddaughter Emily Watson.
The
Oldest living Farndale
As a 101
year old Veteran, Raymond Poppy Farndale, sat with his medals and war
scrapbook in front of his portrait. He took part in a project at Guelph Public Librray to commemorate a hundred portraits and a hundred
poppies. He said I thought it was an important project to remember those who
have served in the military or had some association with the military. Not only
do I feel strongly about the poppy and what it symbolizes, my 2 grandchildren
(Christopher and Emily) call me “Poppy” so it is quite special to me. He
was remembering the people I met during World War 2. I am one of the few
veterans left from my regiment and I felt I was representing all of the amazing
men and women I worked alongside. He added that while a lot has changed
since I was born, 101 years ago, some things have remained the same. One thing
I have always lived by is to treat others as you would like to be treated. If
you do this, you can never go wrong.
Raymond died
on 23 May 2016.
Ray
enjoyed a long and fulfilling life. Beginning Feb 23, 1914, in St John's and then
Corner Brook, Newfoundland and living most of his life in Halifax, Nova Scotia,
he peacefully passed away on May 23, 2016, in Guelph, Ontario, his new-found
home.
Ray, a
true gentleman, was kind and generous of spirit. He was passionate about
inclusion, notably those with special or medical needs and those marginalized
by poverty or life circumstances. He adopted many local and international
causes, always adapting with the times. He loved his Blue Jays, mystery novels,
choir singing, politics, good jokes and live music. A life-long learner, he
conquered the computer and worked well into his 90's, as an accountant. He
always enjoyed "doing his books", gardening, walking, swimming,
skating, ballroom dancing and amateur acting. While a man of few words, he
demonstrated deep emotion and always had a twinkle in his eye.
Ray was a
proud veteran of World War II, serving as Lieutenant in the 23rd Battery of the
59th Regiment of Royal Artillery and was awarded the Canadian Forces Decoration
(CD).
He was a
devoted husband to Ellie Tipple, with whom he shared many adventures, until her
passing in 2010. He was a dear father to Keith (Sue) Farndale, and Denise
(Jack) Watson and was a special Poppy to Emily and Christopher Watson and granddog Molly, who adored him. Ray was pre-deceased by his
British parents, John and Bessie, and his younger brother Bertram. He was a
loyal friend to many and had strong relationships, most recently with those at
Wellington Park Retirement Residence.
All who
knew Ray agree that his teachers and peers got it right when they awarded him
the Knowling Scholarship numerous times, as "Best All Round Boy"!
To honour
his wishes, cremation and a private memorial was held. Arrangements entrusted
to the Wall-Custance Funeral Home & Chapel. Memories were shared at
www.wallcustance.com. A tree was planted in memory of Raymond W. S. Farndale in
the Wall-Custance Memorial Forest, University of Guelph Arboretum. Dedication
service, Sunday, September 18, 2016 at 2:30 pm.
Whilst there
are no more Farndales in Newfoundland, Keith
Farndale expanded the geographical reach of the family further when he
settled in Ajijic in Mexico.
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Go Straight to Act 27 – The Albertans