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Sunday, February 21, 2010

Love Letters from a century ago


Saxmundham
April 26/1910

My Dear Horrie

I was very pleased to receive your nice letter this morning and to hear that you were all well. I hope you are still having nice
weather so that you can get the seed in alright. We are having very showery weather here at present. Father has finished
putting the seed corn in and today he has been drilling beet or (mangold) and then will only have the swedes to drill.
Does your cow give much milk? We got 68 pounds of butter this week which is the most we have ever had. We are going to
take it to the town tomorrow but there will be too much to carry all one time. We get about 56 eggs in a day.
It was 4 years ago yesterday since you went away from here. Annie went back to London last Saturday. She had a nice
little change as she stayed here three weeks. Herbert was very good to spare her for so long wasn't he?.
Louie and little Ethel are at Lexden.They went a fortnight ago last Saturday. I don't know when they are coming back again.
The Suffolk Agriculture show is going to be held at Saxmundham this year in June and in July the Essex Yeomanry and the
Essex and Suffolk. Cyclists are coming to camp on Hurts Hall Park, Saxmundham so I expect it will seem quite a busy place.
Is there any flowers out on the prairie yet? The cowslips are out in the meadows now. I am sending you one just for a little
remembrance of the last time you were here. I wonder how long it will be before I see you again. I don't think I shall forget you
even if it is lots of years and now I think I will bring my letter to a close as it is getting rather late.
Hoping you are all quite well. With love to all and my best and truest love to you Dearest, I remain your everloving Alice
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Yet another in the collection of letters mailed between my grandfather and grandmother, Horace Nevard and Alice Hall.
Horace had sailed off to Canada to take up a homestead in Sask. in 06 while Alice remained working on her parents farm at
Saxmundham, Suffolk.How difficult must it have been for him to sail half way around the world not knowing when they might
see each other again? And it was to be another 6 years before they met again when
Horace returned to England in 1916 in the Canadian
Expeditionary Force , soon to see action in some of the big battles of World War I in France. It must have been a stressful time to be separated
all those years , briefly re-united and then separated again by war , now knowing if he would survive. Luckily he did and they were married in 1919, soon to return to his homestead in Saskatchewan.

Sunday, February 7, 2010

Mystery Photo


Couldn't resist this vintage postcard of my home town for sale on ebay recently. I've collected a few vintage "elevator shots" over the years but this one was unique in that it appeared to have some sort of parade or procession down main street. It took a bit of research through history books and other old photos. I couldn't see any cars newer than the early thirties. What few trees were visibile had no leaves showing so it had to be spring or fall. Finally it was the sign or banner high on the lead float that gave it away when I found a photo taken from another angle in the local history book. It was the Jubilee celebration for King George V and Queen Mary. An event that was apparently celebrated in many towns and villages across the country on that day, May 6, 1935.
Interesting comments written on the back by the photographer give few clues..........
"Taken from top of an elevator. God it was dusty.....but anything for art(?) Its a procession in commemoration of an old settler- or somepin' Anyway, this is all the Llptonians-such a crowd- and I am going to have to live with them!!! "

I wonder who wrote that brief comment? Obviously someone who was new to the town as they did not seem to know what the parade was all about.
New grain elevator manager? Not likely as I doubt they would complain about the grain dust which was a daily occurence in the old elevators.