The Lansdowne Letters: Fun Is What You Make It

Sometimes I miss simpler times
living in isolated communities.

Some of the best fun
and the richest experiences
I’ve had happened when I lived
in Westport, a vibrant outport
on the lonely coast of White Bay, Newfoundland.

Waiting for the Coastal Boat

Westport, White Bay, Newfoundland

Early Summer, 1975
© M. Louise (MacBeath) Barbour/Fundy Blue

Or in an Indian fish camp 
on Lac Seul, Ontario
with eight other people:
my mother, my siblings,
John, Fritz, and Kokum.

         The Garrick and MacBeath families
         gather somewhere on Lac Seul.

        
       V-Shape:  Louise (me), Barb, Fritz, Roy
       Left:  Bertie and Mom (Sara)

 
                                                              Donnie:  above, girl in front

                                                              David:  one of the Garrick brothers

                                                              with children and/or nieces and nephews 

        The MacBeaths and the Garricks:  below     

         Donnie ~ first and front girl left                    Lac Seul, Ontario, Canada                 
           Louise, Barb, Fritz, and Roy                        Early Summer 1961                         

         Bertie and Mom ~ far right                           © M. Louise (MacBeath) Barbour/Fundy Blue

And, of course, in Lansdowne House!

When you have little,
maybe not even electricity 
or a radio,
you make your own fun.

Mom (Sara), we five,
and our beloved Gretchen
picnicking somewhere
on the shores of 
Lake Attawapiskat.

© M. Louise (MacBeath) Barbour/Fundy Blue

Mom, Gretchen, Bertie, Louise

Donnie, Roy, and Barb

The tiny white community of Lansdowne House

totaled fourteen once my father arrived:

Father Ouimet and Brother Bernier ~ Oblate Missionaries

Uno Manilla ~ Teacher, Roman Catholic Mission School

Two Mitchells ~ Hudson Bay Company

Brian Booth ~ HBC Clerk

Three MacRaes ~ Department of Transport

Three MacMahons ~ DOT

Margaret Kelly ~ Nursing Station

Donald MacBeath ~ Anglican Indian School 

Dad (Don) and Brian Playing Cribbage

Dad and Uno's "Cottage"

Lansdowne House, January 1961

© M. Louise (MacBeath) Barbour/Fundy Blue

The tight-knit white community
led an active social life,
Oblate Father and Brother included.
They played cards and other games 
with great vigor and serious competition. 

Wikimedia ~ Adam B. Morgan

One distinct memory 
my young Baptist self had
was standing by the kitchen table 
in the forestry building
and watching Mom and Dad playing bridge 
with Father Ouimet and Brother Bernier.
I was holding my breath 
and waiting for lightning to strike.

Five days after arriving in Lansdowne House,

Dad was in the thick of things.

Dad wrote on Sunday, September 18, 1960:

"I was invited out to dinner last night by the MacRaes, 

one of the two married couples at the DOT Station.  

They are a very nice young couple.  

You would like them if you met them.  

"Their names are Duncan and Maureen MacRae.  

They have a little four-month-old baby, Duncan Jr.  

I had a lovely dinner and a most delightful evening 

talking and teaching the MacRaes to play chess.  

They are most anxious to learn the game.  

They want me to come over Wednesday night 

for another talking and chess session.

"They are a lovely young couple.  

They even say grace at mealtime, 

and that something you don’t see too often now.  

I am getting quite religious myself up here.  

The Father, the Brother, and Uno 

say grace and cross themselves before every meal, 

so I say my own grace before each meal.

"You should have seen me setting out 

for the MacRae’s for supper.  

There I was all decked out 

in grey flannels, white shirt, blue blazer, tie, cufflinks, 

trench coat, rubber boots, and carrying my shoes 

to wear when I get where I am going.  

It is certainly different than anything 

that I have been used to up till now.

Dad heads out
for his canoe
on the first day
of school.
He dressed
like this too
when invited
for dinner.
He's taller than
the door!  LOL!
© M. Louise (MacBeath) Barbour/Fundy Blue  

"I didn’t leave the MacRaes until 1:00 o’clock in the morning; 

I couldn’t get away before that time.  

When I finally did leave it was quite overcast, 

and the water was quite choppy, 

so Duncan drove me home in his speedboat, 

and we towed my canoe behind.  

I can tell you that I came back across the water 

much more quickly than I went over there.

"Well, I have only been up here five days so far, 

but I have loved every minute of it.  

The country is lovely, 

and the white people up here 

are so friendly and hospitable, 

and the Father and the Brother are such congenial landlords.  

"Besides the two invitations to the MacRaes, 

I have been invited to Milt and Iona MacMahon’s 

at a date convenient to me.  

The MacMahons  are the other DOT couple up here, 

and the Mitchells run the H. B. store."

 Uno and Dad
 with baby Duncan
 on Uno's bed
 in their two-room "cottage."

Three of Fourteen

Lansdowne House,  Late 1960 or Early 1961

© M. Louise (MacBeath) Barbour/Fundy Blue

That's it for this edition, folks!
Signing off:  Don and Louise