by Anne Patton
Dearest Dodie,
I miss you so much and pray you are well.
I am so sorry I let you and the family down. I am working as hard as I can to make it up to you. Every day means another dollar for our family and another day closer to coming home.
Thank you for asking me to take the pledge again. Some of the men in our bunkhouse drink at night but Patrick and I have not had so much as a sip. We play cards at night with some men who do not approve of drink.
I am writing this note quickly on my bunk so I can get it in the mail run to Edmonton that leaves early tomorrow. I’m told the letter will go by train to Calgary, then Regina, then Saskatoon. Imagine, back where we disembarked last spring.
Then the letter will travel by sleigh all the way to Lloydminster. I hope it reaches you by Christmas so I can brighten your day with all the love I’m sending you.
You brighten all my days every time I think of your cheery smile.
With warm affection,
Dad
“Oh, Mam, Dad says he hasn’t had even a sip of drink and there are other men in his bunkhouse who don’t drink either.” Dorothy felt her mouth stretching into a grin.
Mam peered up from her letter. “Willy says he has been put in charge of bookkeeping in the office. He’s by far the oldest man in the bunkhouse. Patrick found a younger partner for the outdoor work, so I don’t have to worry about your dad freezing in the forest.” Mam’s cheeks crinkled into a smile that lit up her eyes. Dorothy had never seen her look so pretty.
“My letter says he has learned to appreciate the sound judgment of the young men he’s working with. He apologized for ignoring my advice about building the soddie.” Frank tried to suppress his grin, but it broke free and spread wider and wider.
Dorothy looked from Mam to Frank. The family sat still, not saying a word, just smiling.
Finally Mam folded her letter and returned it to the envelope. “My letter also says how impressed your dad is with Patrick’s skills and hard work. Lydia will be pleased to hear that!”
Frank patted his pocket. “There’s a letter from Dad to Lydia in here. We’d better deliver it.”
“And it’s about time to make supper,” said Mam. “You’ll join us at the marquee, because there’s nowhere for visitors to eat in Lloydminster.”
“At the moment,” said Dorothy. “We’re going to change that, aren’t we, Mam?”
Mam thanked Mr. Herbert for the tea and promised to discuss the business plan tomorrow.
Dorothy, Mam and Frank stepped outside and instantly stopped in their tracks. A stunning apparition pulsed in the western sky – three shining suns in a row.
Dorothy blinked, then glanced again briefly. The suns were too bright to stare at directly.
“The Trinity,” Mam pronounced in an awe-filled voice. “God’s promise of sunny days ahead.”
“Sun dogs,” breathed Frank. “Blokes were talking about them in Battleford. Means more snow is coming.”
Dorothy stammered to compose her thought. “But…how can we suddenly have three suns?”
Frank laughed. “Only the one in the middle is real. The other two are reflections from ice crystals in the air.”
“How wondrous!” Dorothy said. “Like so many things in the North-West.” She walked along the boardwalk, hand-in-hand with her most marvellous mother and her best big brother. The sun dogs filled her with hope for a lifetime of opportunity and adventure.
Dorothy knew the Canadian frontier was exactly where she belonged.
Dodie examines this drawing of the muscles of the left hand from Anatomy, Descriptive and Surgical by Henry Gray. Popularly known as Gray's Anatomy, this book was first published in 1853.
Glossary of Terms
Aspirin: Since ancient times the leaves and bark from willow trees [and related plants] were known to ease pain and lower fever. Nineteenth-century scientists identified the active ingredient in willow extract as salicylic acid. In 1899 a German drug company, Bayer, began marketing a powder containing this acid to physicians. They named their new miracle drug: Aspirin. In 1915 aspirin became available without a prescription in its modern tablet form.
Barr Colony: Reverend Isaac Barr arranged with the Canadian government to reserve land in the North-West Territories for an all-British colony. He advertised in the British press for settlers, promising ease of travel. When his promises were not kept, the settlers rejected his leadership and asked Reverend Lloyd to manage the colony affairs. Mr. Lloyd renamed the settlement 'Britannia Colony'.
Britannia: A Latin word used by the Romans to identify the land we know as England. In the 1700s the word 'Britannia' was revived to evoke English pride. Britannia is often depicted as a warrior goddess with helmet, trident and shield.
Colony: A group of people who settle together in a new place but keep ties to their homeland.
Colonist/colonial: A colonist is a person who is an original member of a colony. The Barr Colonists proudly adhered to their British beliefs. They considered themselves culturally superior to people who had been born in the colony of Canada and were not strictly following British social rules. They called these people 'colonials' as an insult.
Dr. Elizabeth Matheson: The first woman doctor in the North-West Territories. She worked alongside her husband at the Anglican Mission on the Onion Lake Reserve. As well as raising nine children, she managed a hospital and made house-calls into the bush on horseback.
Dr. William Amos: A recent medical graduate from Queen's University in Ontario when Isaac Barr recruited him for the Barr Colony. Dr. Amos never received the salary promised by Barr. He chose to remain as a frontier doctor, supporting himself on whatever small fees people could afford. After intense lobbying by Dr. Amos, a small hospital shed was built in town during the winter of 1903.
“eat or be eaten”: Erasmus Darwin, grandfather of Charles Darwin, first wrote this quote in a book called Phytologia in 1800. He declared “eat or be eaten” to be the fundamental law of nature, which he described as “one great slaughter house, one universal scene of rapacity and injustice.”
Fahrenheit temperature: The two main scales for measuring temperature, Fahrenheit and Celsius, are named after the eighteenth-century scientists who invented them. The Fahrenheit scale sets the temperature where water freezes at 32 degrees and the temperature where water boils at 212 degrees. In the Celsius scale the freezing point of water is defined as zero degrees and the boiling point is 100 degrees. In 1903 both Canada and Britain used the Fahrenheit scale. Today all countries in the world except the United States have switched to the Celsius scale.
Fireguard: a strip of ploughed land, several furrows wide, to stop the spread of a prairie fire. Fireguards were ploughed around homes, along railway tracks and wherever needed.
Fort Pitt: A fur-trading post built in 1830 by the Hudson's Bay Company at a large bend in the North Saskatchewan River. The remains of the fort are now protected as a National Historic Site within Fort Pitt Provincial Park. It is about 40 kilometers north of Lloydminster.
Gray’s Anatomy: A comprehensive medical textbook written by Dr. Henry Gray and published in 1858. Dr. Gray died three years later, after contracting smallpox from a patient. Gray's Anatomy is still considered the definitive reference on human anatomy. Updated editions have been published as new knowledge is acquired. The clear illustrations made it accessible to the general reader.
Harrogate: a spa town in North Yorkshire, England. For hundreds of years people bathed in the sulphur water bubbling up from underground springs. In the eighteenth century comfortable buildings were erected over the springs. In the nineteenth century these structures were enlarged into elaborate spa resorts for the wealthy.
King Edward: King of the United Kingdom and the British Dominions [1901-1910]. He was the oldest son of Queen Victoria and assumed the throne after her death.
Matthew Snow: An experienced prairie farmer hired by the Canadian government to instruct the Barr Colonists on practical agriculture. He a
lso advised on house building techniques. His reports can be read in the National Archives.
Onion Lake Indian Reserve: This reserve, about 50 kilometres north of Lloydminster, was formed after the signing of Treaty Six at Fort Pitt in September 1876. The treaty was signed between the British Crown and the Indigenous Peoples.
Reverend George Exton Lloyd: Raised in England, Mr. Lloyd trained for the army and studied for the church. At age 20 he sailed to Canada to continue divinity training. Lloyd joined the militia to oppose the Métis Resistance in the North-West Territories in 1885. He was badly injured at the Battle of Cut Knife Creek. During a lengthy recovery, he assumed the position of army chaplain. Later Lloyd returned to England to work for an Anglican Church Society. In their employ he came back to Canada as chaplain with the Barr Colonists, along with his family.
Rosehip: The fruit of the rose plant. Rosehips are the size of berries and usually bright red. They form after the blossom has been pollinated and continue to grow when the flower petals fall off. The best time to harvest rosehips is after the first frost, which sweetens the flavour. Rosehips make a nutritious tea or jelly—a good source of vitamin C.
Soddie: A small house built from strips of sod, cut from the prairie grassland using a hand-held plough. With a strong knife the strips were divided into blocks about 30 inches [90 centimeters] long. The deep roots of the prairie grasses kept the sod from crumbling. The blocks were layered like bricks to build the walls. The roof was built from poplar poles with sod laid over top.
Telegraph line: A wire strung along a series of sturdy poles that allowed people to transmit messages by electronic signals over long distances. Each message was encoded and decoded on a special machine.
To encourage settlement of the North-West Territories, the Government of Canada offered quarter sections of land free to homesteaders. With a $10 registration fee they gained permission to use the land. In order to obtain legal title the settler had to live there for six months of each year for three years, cultivate at least 30 acres of land and erect buildings worth $300. The above declaration is part of a document submitted by Robert Holtby Jr. to apply for legal title. Saskatchewan Provincial Archives.
Acknowledgements
I am grateful to my Victoria writing group for ongoing support from beginning to end. My fellow Whiskey Jacks will notice how many writing prompts became scenes in the novel, taking it in surprising directions. Thanks to two Victoria writers, Robin Stevenson and Claire Mulligan, for their stimulating writing courses that helped carry my novel further. In these courses I met my new writing friend, Marilyn Holman, who gave her time generously to discuss details of this book.
Special thanks to several dear friends whose feedback made my novel more accurate in time and place. Wilfred Burton drew on his wide-ranging store of wisdom to advise me on Métis culture, horse habits, and numerous details of prairie life. Elizabeth Barker, who was raised on a Saskatchewan farm, also critiqued with an insider's eye for historical and botanical accuracy. Having grown up in England, Gillian Kisman provided feedback on British speech patterns and details of Yorkshire history. Janet O'Meara motivated me with ongoing enthusiasm for my writing.
Several young readers from my grandson's school discussed the first draft and also suggested words to explain further in the glossary. Thanks to Seamus Farragher, Shonna Hernon, Athena Drew, Lily Rowland, and Clara Chudley for your thoughtful feedback. A young fan from England, Ella Opatunde, read the manuscript with sharp eyes and insightful comments.
Working with my editor, Alison Lohans, has been a valuable learning experience for me. She read the manuscript with close attention to every page and explained the literary rationale behind each suggestion. Alison also communicated her enjoyment of the narrative and rekindled my belief in my story.
As always, appreciation to my family for tolerating my obsession with prairie history and offering support on many levels. Sika hosted the critiquing session with the neighbourhood kids who enjoyed tea and scones as they discussed the book. Thanks in advance to Kara and Sika who will organize book-launches in their respective cities as they did for the previous book. Kudos to Waldo for dealing with every kind of computer glitch.
Thanks to granddaughter, Callista, for posing in winter clothes on a warm spring afternoon.
Author's Note
In 1903 a thousand British settlers hunkered down for their first winter in the North-West Territories. They expected the weather to resemble winters they had experienced in the British Isles. Their disregard for local advice led to many dangerous encounters with the frigid temperatures. The incidents in this novel were inspired by the misadventures of Dorothy Holtby Boan, who had been a child in the Barr Colony. I met Dorothy when she was 89 years old and taped her memories of the bone-chilling perils of her family's first prairie winter.
Dorothy recalled how her family built their sod house: “After they built the sod walls, they dug holes and put poles to hold the walls straight. The roof was made of poles too, and more sod was put over top of it. The roof rested on the upright poles. Then it was quite warm. The trouble was, as wintertime came, the sods began to settle and there was a big space between the wall and the roof all the way around... It was so cold, especially at night, that our eyelashes froze and we couldn't open our eyes in the morning and the blankets froze to our faces.”
In real life, as in my book, the women had to fend for themselves because the men had left in search of paying work. Dorothy's tale of their rescue from the poorly built soddie haunted me for years, before I thought of revisiting her story as a novel: “Nobody passed by our house because we were off the main trail. One day my mother got my sister and I wrapped up in all our warm clothes... She pointed through the brush and said to go for two miles to the nearest neighbour. She watched us go, I remember this so vividly, and the snow was deep. After a few minutes she called us back. That is why I'm here today because we would have frozen to death. Then Mother walked up and down and she prayed. I feel a tingle go through me from my feet to my head whenever I tell anyone that. The next day a man was going across country to Lloydminster, not following any road and that brought him to our door.” After that man reported their condition, someone came from town with a sleigh and moved the family into the marquee.
It has been fascinating to recreate Dorothy Holtby's world of over a century ago. I owe a great debt to Lynne Bowen, granddaughter of Dorothy's sister Bessie. Lynne's book, Muddling Through: the Remarkable Story of the Barr Colony, provides a comprehensive history and list of resources. I learned useful details of prairie pioneering from Of Us and the Oxen by Sarah Ellen Roberts. Sarah kept a diary which was later compiled into book form by her son.
Dr. Elizabeth Matheson became real to me through conversations with her daughter, Ruth Matheson Buck. When I taught at Ruth Buck School in Regina, Mrs. Buck visited my classroom to share tales about growing up on the Onion Lake Reserve. Her book, The Doctor Rode Side-Saddle, described her mother's medical work. At the time I never imagined that I would honour her mother's remarkable career in my own book 25 years later.
What a wonderful resource is the internet. I pored over hours of videos on how to snare a rabbit, skin a deer and butcher a carcass. I feel I could survive in the wilderness if necessary, although I would prefer not to be tested on this knowledge.
The young readers who critiqued my manuscript lobbied for a fourth novel so they could learn about Dorothy's future. For me the Bolton story ends when the family gazed in wonder at the sun dogs glowing in the sky. They experienced the same awe I felt when I moved to the prairies and encountered my first sun dogs on a frigid winter afternoon.
I will, however, tell you what happened to Dorothy Holtby, who was just as determined as her fictional counterpart. After the gruelling winter Dorothy, Bessie and their mother moved to Toronto to join Mr. Holtby who had found a good job there. Finding the lure of the frontier too compelling, the Holtbys returned to their farm when Dorothy was twelve. By this time Dorothy's adult bro
thers, Bob and Oliver, had built a comfortable log house on the homestead.
Soon afterwards a school was established in Lloydminster, teaching as far as grade ten. Although Dorothy had missed several grades, the teacher registered her in the grade appropriate for her age. “I was in grade seven when I finally got back to school. My sister got married and she lived in town and I was able to stay at her place.”
The family had no money for elaborate dreams so Dorothy opted to become a teacher. “I went to Normal School in Regina after grade ten. I taught a year, believe it or not, then you had to go to Normal again. They split it up so no one would be unable to get through to be a teacher for lack of funds.” After her first training course Dorothy taught at a one-room schoolhouse in the tiny hamlet of Edam. She was 14 years old at the time.
Dorothy saved enough money to attend Normal School in Saskatoon, where she earned her first-class teaching certificate. In 1914 she was posted to a one-room schoolhouse in Roseville, Saskatchewan. This tiny community south of Briercrest has disappeared but the small schoolhouse still exists, now used as a storage shed. Eight years ago Dorothy's son Jack accompanied me down a farmer's track to find this dilapidated structure.
In rural communities the schoolhouse also served as the social centre. At a community dance Dorothy met a young farmer named Alex Boan. They were married on January 10, 1917. Alex brought his bride home to the farmhouse shared by his eleven younger siblings, most of whom were Dorothy's students. He promptly built a small cabin in the farmyard to provide some privacy. That is where my friend, Jack Boan, spent the first years of his life.