The Birch Bark Canoe(s)

Over the past couple of months I've tried to gather as much information I could about camp's birch bar canoe.


Years ago when I was at camp, I seem to remember being told that there were actually two canoes.


Now, I've taken a few bangs to the head and have done other things that no doubt killed whatever other few brain cells I was born with, so I could be wrong. Please correct me.


Anyhoo, here's what I think I know about the canoes:
The original one was built in the 1930s for cook Alfred David by some local Indians as a gesture of thanks.


David not only cooked for camp, but in his local travels also supplied food to the most needy during the height of the Depression.


One was the Skead family, who lived southeast of Devil's Gap near the back channel. Here are two letters from George Skead to David dated 1936. (Click on them to enlarge):

Now, as best as I can figure - again, I stand to be corrected - the Skeads and perhaps others made the original birch canoe for David in thanks for his generosity.
 After that, I'm not sure what was done with it or how it was displayed, if at all.

 Former camp director Punch Jackson says it was decided in the mid-60s to donate the canoe to what is now the Canadian Canoe Museum now in Peterborough, Ont.
 I believe that decision was made because the museum was the best place to preserve the canoe.

"The original birch bark canoe was donated to the Canadian Canoe Museum (Kanawa International Museum of Canoes and
Kayaks) during my term as director at Stephens," Punch says. "Discussions had started as early as 1967 when campers from Kirk Wipper's Camp Kandalore in Dorset, Ont. met with Stephen's Voyageurs at Boundary Falls (Manitoba/Ontario boundary) as part of the Centennial celebration.
"Camp Stephens hosted the Canadian Canoe School in the early 70s and that is where the deal was struck. Whipper agreed to replace our canoe with a new birch bark version made by a friend of his."
That "new birch bark version" hung in the dining hall for almost 30 years.

Dining hall as seen in 1975.

Once Lount Lodge was finished in the early 1980s, the canoe was moved. It's hung above the fire place ever since. I don't think it ever touched water, or was even meant to. You can see the second canoe here at the beginning of this video. Despite what the narrator says, it's not the original canoe.

Several months ago, alumni Doug Abra and his son Matt travelled to the canoe museum. They might be only people from Stephens who've seen the original canoe in decades.

Doug and son Matt Abra with original canoe at upper right.



The replica canoe as it now hangs in Lount Lodge

Postscript: Kirk Wipper died suddenly March 19, 2011 in Peterborough: 

Alfred David

Camp Stephens 1959-62

Camp alumni Hal Studholme gave this to me. I think it's a much younger Hal driving the boat at the end.

Another former director Bill Owen (no relation) sent me a bunch of B & W photos when he worked in the kitchen with Davey in the late 1940s and early 1950s. I plan to scan them all in, add cutlines and make a slideshow.

The beauty of these old photos and film is that for the most part they've been sitting in boxes for decades. Now we can all enjoy them.

And if there are any current camp staff reading this (I know there are), I also plan to burn some DVDs of all these videos. Maybe on a cold rainy night you can watch them by the camp fire in Lount Lodge.

1989 Six Week Return

The 1989 Six Weeks Girls: Sue Maxwell, Kelly Harcus, Shannon Fenton, Susie Burpee, Amy Hawkins, Kathy Hulsbosch, Shannon Bond, Kirsten Evans and Laura Simms.

The 1989 Six Weeks Boys: Trevor Sims, Patrick Yarnell, Ian Thomson, Trevor Defries, Jamie Hilland, Stuart Goldie, Tim Francis and Mick Lautt.

Master of Ceremonies: Bob Picken

This was produced in the fall of 1989. I didn't edit it as it appears someone else did many years ago. I left it as is. I suspect it was to be cut in a final edit, but I didn't see the point in me editing out people and their words so many years later.

It was supplied to me by Hal Studholme.

Canoe School '95

About a year ago I wrote a story for the blog about Steven Fletcher, the Conservative MP for Charleswood. Click here to read it.


Steven gave me four discs of transferred video tape. I passed them to Scott Place. He edited it and composed and performed the music. 


We hope you like it.


You can buy Scott's album Got Something To Say on iTunes.


In the past year I've upload 20 videos to YouTube. You can click through them on the Camp Stephens Alumni YouTube Channel.


Enjoy and don't be afraid to comment.


The most recent one came from England, commenting on the Camp Stephens 1975 video. 


"Lol my Mum and Uncle came here 7 years later as 6 weekers. :)"


Any guesses who the brother and sister are?


More video will be posted over the coming months as I and others convert and edit it. - Bruce

Passings

Errick (Skip) Willis


ERRICK (SKIP) WILLIS It is with great sadness that we announce the passing of Errick Skip' Willis on January 4, 2011. Predeceased by his father and mother, Errick and Louise Willis and brother Richard T. Dick' Willis; beloved husband of Kelly, brother of Anna Jane (Jim) Gilchrist, father of Scott, uncle of Stacy, Libby (Colin), and Kate (Jamie), Skip died peacefully from complications related to surgery to remove a tumour from his spine. An alumnus of Trinity College School and the University of Manitoba, Skip began his career in political consulting and lobbying before his internal compass settled on its own true north: environmental sustainability and climate change, which became the focus of his work and his guiding light over the past 15 years. Having developed the Canadian portfolios of several leading multi-national consultancies, Skip founded the Willis Climate Group in 2009. His focus was to help major industry and all levels of government realize solutions to the challenge of global climate change. This allowed him to choose those projects that most piqued his interest and to enjoy more time with his family, particularly at their country home south of Creemore, Ontario. In addition to the privilege of working alongside a cast of dedicated and creative professionals, Skip was honoured to have recently been named a Fellow of the International Emissions Trading Association. For the longest time, Skip's cancer was asymptomatic and he lived with it quietly. The family would like to express its appreciation to Drs. Hogg and Sahgal at Princess Margaret Hospital and to the staff and volunteers at the Toronto Western Hospital. Friends may call at the Turner Porter Yorke Chapel, 2357 Bloor St. W., Toronto, east of Jane subway, for a memorial visitation on Thursday, January 6, 2011 from 7:00 p.m. to 9:00 p.m. A Service of Remembrance will be held at Islington United Church, 25 Burnhamthorpe Rd., Etobicoke, on Friday, January 7 at 1:00 p.m. If desired, donations in his memory may be made to the Princess Margaret Hospital Foundation, L'Arche Toronto or Islington United Church. (Published on Jan. 06, 2011, Winnipeg Free Press)

Camp Stephens canoe trip 1966, Winnipeg Free Press

David Spencer Guest

DAVID SPENCER GUEST June 29, 1923 - January 4, 2011 It is with a profound sense of loss that his family announces the passing of David Guest. He leaves to mourn his passing his five children and their spouses: Barbara Roche, Andrea (Andy) Alkier, Carol (Randy) Dueck, Bruce (Laurie) and Doug (Allison), as well as 10 grandchildren, five great-grandchildren; his sisters Margaret Wilson and Liz (Keith) Ebbern, and sister-in-law Evelyn (Don) Lamond. David was predeceased by his wife of 63 years, Helen, in April 2010. David was born at the family home on Arlington Street, the fourth of five children. A dog lover, Dave always had a dog at his heels. During his younger years, the YMCA was his second home and summers were spent at Camp Stephens where he eventually became a camp counsellor as a teenager. It was through his competitive swimming at the Y that he met his wife, Helen. As a young man he continued his involvement at the Y with weight lifting, volleyball and active participation in the Y's Men's Club. He joined the Air Force and graduated as a pilot with the rank of Flying Officer I. The war ended just as he was posted to the Asian theatre. After the war, he joined his father in The Guest Shoe Company. He went on to own and operate five stores throughout Winnipeg until his retirement. As a boy David spent time at the family cottage at Victoria Beach. Later he and Helen built their own cottage at Victoria Beach where they enjoyed many happy summers with family and friends. David was an avid curler and belonged to the Granite Curling Club for over 60 years. After he retired from active curling he became an honorary member and enjoyed his involvement with the Senators. His children will be forever grateful for his quiet guidance, his humour, his positive example of community service, and his high expectations for each and every one of them. A private family service is planned. In lieu of flowers, please remember David by supporting a charity of your choice.

(Published Winnipeg Free Press Jan. 8, 2011)

Camp Stephens in the 1940s

Here's a few minutes of old film of Camp Stephens in what appears to the the 1940s, the same year the log cabin was built just above Emblem Rock. There's a few seconds of what looks like the installation of a window.
Whatever year it was shot, life jackets were not mandatory. It appears they weren't even a suggestion.
There was no sound on it, so my youngest and I added music. We hope it fits.
Thanks to Hal Studholme for supplying it.

Chapel Service on 100th Anniversary of Camp Stephens

This is the chapel service on the Sunday of the 100th anniversary, following the banquet and camp directors roast the evening before. (Click to watch)
I don't know the voice behind the camera.
It opens with a quick tour of Lount Lodge, then about 10 years old, and seques to Burton Boryen's (Tutt) participation in the service.
The theme of the service is that while much had changed with the island, like programming and new buildings, a lot had stayed the same since the very early days of Camp Stephens.

Alfred David's War

Alfred David is a legend at Camp Stephens.


He was camp cook for about 40 years. He died April 10, 1962 in Winnipeg after spending his last summer at camp.


He is buried at Brookside Cemetery in Winnipeg.

What's little known is that when he started working at camp in the early 1920s, and for the downtown YMCA during the winter, he was a veteran of the First World War. He served with the Princess Patricia's Canadian Light Infantry.



When the war started, David was not a young man. He was 30 when he enlisted Dec. 29, 1914 in Winnipeg.

Alfred David

David was was a soldier on the Western Front and was involved in the second battle of Ypres in the spring of 1915. 


That battle is known for the first use of poison gas in warfare. (Click on the highlighted words to read more about the battle).
David was captured by the Germans and was a prisoner of war until the war ended in the fall of 1918.


David's complete war records are  here.

Page from the regimental diary on day David was listed as missing.

They were supplied to me by Library and Archives Canada. These records belong to the Government of Canada and are stored in Ottawa. Included are his health records, pay records and his will, something every soldier prepared.


I thank Don Cochrane for helping me.


You can read earlier blog posts about David here and here.


"At the going down of the sun and in the morning we will remember them."

More photos added

As promised, here about 550 photos from camp archives collected by Lynda MacIntosh.
Some of you may have seen some of them before. Some of these photos haven't been seen in decades. Each is available for download. The task now is to identify as many people as possible.
To view this, click the play button and then click on bottom right-hand button to watch on full-screen.
I'll add even more and re-post in coming weeks.

I'm also trying to edit them into bite-sized collections for quicker viewing. Please bear with me; I'm learning as I go, too.

Camp Stephens 100th Anniversary~Camp Directors Roast

Following the banquet July 27, 1991 five past and one current camp director reminisced at about their time and the meaning of Camp Stephens.
Featured are Alex Owen (1958-59), Hal Studholme (1964-65), Doug McEwen (1966-70), Punch Jackson (1971-76), Lynda MacIntosh (girls camp), Grant Platts (1980-86) and Bob Picken (1987-??).

There are three parts.

In the coming weeks and months more video of camp back-in-the-day will be posted here.

To read the history of camp, click on Spirited Challenge to read and download. It was written by Picken for the 100th anniversary.

There are also references to the Native Lore program at camp. Bill Owen explains the program, with photos, in this post: Native Lore: In a Different Time.

Part One





Part Two





Part Three

Camp Stephens Newsletter Nov. 2010

Click the link below to download and read the most recent Camp Stephens newsletter:

https://docs.google.com/viewera=v&pid=explorer&chrome=true&srcid=1HN5PzDuJrURBuJuXbr6nS7BIUdj9iBUaiRGoIDrkOxTwfqB8BJsSPgYkCe07&hl=en