HISTORY OF BOWMANVILLE
Part 14
By Mr. J. B. Fairbairn, P. M.
Coming to the east side of the creek, there was at the bottom of the hill, near the Bowman warehouse, a small confectionery. A brick building is now standing on nearly the same spot. John Sumpter kept it, there were only himself and his wife, no children having blessed their married life. He kept the place with scrupulous nicety and was much superior to the ordinary run, both in character and acquirements. He went to Georgetown for some years and afterwards came back to his first love, Senator Simpson, who had an especial liking for the old gentleman, made him caretaker of the old Ontario Bank building. The customers of the institution so like him - he was always pleasant and genial - that they publicly presented him with a gold snuff box. He afterwards took great pride in offering you a pinch of its contents. They both rest in the Bowmanville Cemetery.
The first sidewalk ran from his place up the hill to my father's, and this hill was as it come from the hand of Nature, a fairly steep ascent. The genius who planned the sidewalk ought to have been canonized. A twelve-foot plank and a step were successively laid one after an other until the level above was reached. My, it was a corker to get down those steps in the winter! It was all right for the boys who took many a header on their hand sleighs. The one who cleared the twelve feet at a bound, and held on, was quite a champion. Nothing in that line had ever been since invented that would equal it as a limb-breaker until the granolithic came into use. I think the one on our street terminating in Wellington an beat it; and worse and worse it has come to stay! A Dutchman was telling a friend what a narrow escape he had had, the vessel having done down with all on board. "Oh, how did you escape?" asked his much interested hearier, "Why, I didn't go with the hanged thing!" This is about the way I am situated, I have to use the turnpike in winter and navigate through the ice and snow as well as I can.
Those hills - they were very steep at the time - were a continual source of happiness to the young fry during the winter, and for the wine of real enjoyment nothing could surpass it. On a clear and frosty night the declivity was covered with a bevy of active boys, every nerve tingling with excitement. Starting at the top with a good hand sleigh, and running down with the speed of the wind over the bridge and half way up the other side, they climbed up again to repeat the exhilerating exercise, and many a night I spent in this sport. The owner of the best sleigh was determined by the speed in coasting down. Billy Stewart had a daisy, shod with steel. How he was envied by the other boys who could not afford so expensive a luxury! Hereby hangs a tale.
Billy Stewart was a nephew of Mr. John Simpson and he came I suppose, to learn the business. He was particularly good-looking, straight as an arrow, slight, muscular, and wiry. His uncle was too good to him. He was supplied with plenty of money to spend, and worse still, he boarded at the hotel. He soon got fast with the usual result. John Milne and he went into the grocery and liquor business. It did not last. What became of him I cannot say. A bright morning in his case turned out a night as dark as pitch.
Next on the east side of the creek the Babcock's had a bakeshop, a ramshakle affair and they were a rummy lot. They were either Canadians or from the States. I have reason to remember them as it was there the fire originated from which we suffered so much.
About 1836 there lived on the adjoining corner, afterwards occupied by Mr. McMurtry, a widow named Mrs. Chaplin the mother of the family some of whom are still living in this their native place. They occupied a very small frame house, a big old fashioned fireplace taking up considerable room. The poor woman saw hard times but she was clever and full of grit. For a long time after leaving Bowmanville, she was housekeeper for Bishop Strachan, in Toronto. While in his service she took ill, and later on died with relatives near Belleville.
Her mother was one of the finest characters we had among us. She lived for years in the house at present occupied by her grand daughter, Mrs. Samuel T. Gates. It is one of the old landmarks still to the fore. She married first Henry May who had taken up land north of the Main Road about four miles west, and here comes again one of those mysterious occurrences that is hard to account for. She was an ardent follower of John Wesley, I presume was a convert to that belief during the great revival in Ireland, brought about through the preaching and teaching of the celebrated Dr. Clarke. During her widowhood she became acquainted with Mr. John Burke, a Roman Catholic Irishman, and notwithstanding the vast difference in their religious views she married him. In 1850, before property depreciated so much, she made an arrangement with Dr. Lowe and James McFeeters by which they were to maintain her during life, she transferring a house and some three acres of land which she owned on North Scugog Street as a consideration for the same - Faithfully they implimented their part of the agreement, although before she died the land became of small value. Mr. Burke proved an attached husband and often conveyed her to her place of worship. She ended her days in the home now owned by Mr. John H. Morris, Beech Avenue.
Of the Chaplin family left orphans, four are still living, - William H., in Newcastle, who was adopted by the late James P. Lovekin, Esq.; Johh, of Kelowna, BC, who was brought up by W.K. Burke, Esq.; Thomas, a prosperous farmer at Campbellford, and the daughter before referred to.
I am tempted to relate a distressing accident that will illustrate how primitive the surroundings were even in 1838 or 39 when it occurred. One beautiful Sunday morning in early spring my brother William, about three years of age, strayed down to the creek. He had been left in charge of an older sister. The annual spring flood was on, and torrents of water (occasioned by melting snow) were pouring down from the north, the creek was overflowing its banks, filling the whole valley. A large elm tree had fallen across the stream just below the bridge which was then there. In ordinary circumstances it was used as a pathway across the stream. Attracted by flood, the two went down to see it. William crawled on to the end of tree and dropped in, my sister, unable to rescue him, ran up to the house, then on the hill about where the billiard room now stands, so she had quite a distance to go, and gave the alarm. My father who was partly dressed at the time rushed madly through our garden and down the steep declivity wisely thinking that he would get him as he floated down with the current. I was standing with some other boys, watching the roaring waters when I heard my father calling to know if we had seen him. A minute or two before he had passed us, but his arms and feet were so submerged we thought it was a log. However as son as the object caught his eye my father knew what it was and rushed in to try and save him. There was a little island in the centre formed by the high tide. It was wide on the west and narrow and deep on our side. He managed to get on this island, with the little child in his arms, but, exhausted by the excitement and effort to reach it he dare not again attempt to stem the flood with out help. The alarm had been given and the people ran over the bridge and went down on the west side. The only man who dared try to help was carried off his feet and himself required help to get on terra firma once more. Mr. Chaplin, who reached the place on this side, took in the situation and with the aid of a plank got them across. William is still living today and I think there are few cases on record of resuscitation after being so long in the water. Dr. Nichol, who was then living in the Scobell home, fought with him for hours before he showed signs of life. How strange, the irony of fate! He enlisted in the cavalry of the American Army and went through the celebrated campaign un Sherman coming out without a scratch. He was in some of the fiercest battles fought in that famous march through Dixie. It looks as if he would die a natural death.
I pass our old place, and in my peregrination to the school house, I may as well take up the educational theme now. The first institution of the kind was held in a log house on King Street near where the Registry office now stands. I have no idea who handled the ferrule in this humble abode. I attended a dame school and was taught my letters by a Mrs. Cousins. The Cousins owned a lot on the corner, afterwards acquired by Geo. Haines, Esq., and upon which the Standard Bank and tow handsome stores are situated - the Wellington buildings. The house in a room of which she drilled us in the A, B, C's, was a small frame standing about in the centre of the ground facing King Street. In the rear Mr. Cousins who was a cabinet maker had his workshop. They were from the north of Ireland. He has passed out of my mind, but his wife was superior to him, evidently coming from people in a better station socially. The Warren children went to her at the same time. She was as good-hearted, and gentle a soul as there was in Bowmanville. Years after she became a widow she married Peter Coleman and lived to be quite old.
One of the most important and difficult problems to solve was how parents were to educate their children. Many were taught the rudiments by mothers in the home. As the number of youths increased it became imperative that a move should be made to get some kind of place in which they could be taught. All had to be done by the voluntary action of those interested and no doubt the burden was very unevenly distributed. There was no legal way in which money could be raised making all contribute according to their means. Mr. Bowman gave a quarter of an acre of land for the purpose. The deed, contained a clause stating it should be at the disposal of those wishing to use it for religious purposes, all denominations having equal rights to its occupancy, He, or whoever prompted this arrangement, had large and liberal ideas. The building was also used for holding the town meetings.
I do not well understand the way in which municipal affairs were managed but the meeting once a year was of great consequence. All the township's officials were elected, such as assessor, collector, etc; also regulations of different kinds were made, such as marks for hogs and cattle. These ran at large in the woods and got mixed so that it was necessary to have the ownership established in case of dispute. It was quite a democratic kind of Government. How the funds were raised and who were the contributors is not known. At any rate they managed to put up a frame building, a fair sized one for the times. When I first went to school there it was a sorry looking affair. The seats were raised one above the other on both sides, three tiers high. At the south end there was a desk above the level of the floor on which the pedagogue reigned supreme. There were additional benches on the floor space for extra accommodation. An old battered stove was in the centre. The jackknife had been freely used both inside and out of the building. The boys for diversion would put ink bottles on the red hot metal, stopping them up thereby testing the power of steam. The ceiling bore testimony to its efficacy, painting it red, black, and blue. The equipment was of the most meagre kind,-Carpenter's Spelling Book, Kirkman's grammar, The English Reader, and Walkingame's Arithmetic, these comprised about all. They were scarce enough and at an earlier date must have been hard to obtain.
Next - Bowmanville and Darlington History Part 15
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