Anecdotes from Shellbrook

During my visit late this summer with Dena Davis, my Dad's cousin, she graciously shared some of the family tales recorded by her father, and my great uncle, Arnold Davis.

Ki-yi-ing

​Dr. French* was a female practitioner of medicine.  She came directly from England. She was middle class English. In her practice of medicine, she was always followed by two large dogs.  One dog, evidently attracted by a female dog in the livery stable, came charging in. He was immediately captured by my father (Charlie Davis) and a couple of his hired hands.  They tied a can to his tail and shoved him out onto the street.  The hound went ki-yi-ing down the street.  Dr. French, attired in the new jodhpurs and riding boots, was in the drug store when the hound caught up with her.  Several spilled and broken bottles later the dog was restrained and relieved of its burden.

The town constable naturally couldn't find out who did it because town councillors (my father was on council at that time) were in on it.

*Dr. Margaret Douglas French, born 1887 in Southsea, Huntingdonshire, graduated from Durham University in 1904 and migrated to Canada in 1912. She practiced medicine in Shellbrook until sometime between 1925 and 1930, when she moved her practice into Saskatoon, dying in 1950.

A Rosy Red Bum

At that time (1915), their system of sewage was an outdoor toilet and two seats with holes in them, underneath these holes were two tin pails to receive the excretion. There was a lift up door at the back and the scavenger used to lift it up, take out two buckets and dump them into a large horse drawn truck and replace the pails. My Aunt Olive, who was visiting at this moment, had need to use the toilet. She was wearing a hobble skirt. She proceeded to relieve herself. My older brother, Pete, who had seen her go into the toilet went to the back, lifted the lid and touched her on the seat.

​A horrible scream emerged, the toilet door flew open and Olive tried to run.  Result was a lady flat out on the ground with steaming anger.  Fortunately, nothing was hurt except her dignity and a rosy red bum, naked and pointing skyward.  She swore at Pete, who promptly marched downtown and got a policeman and told him his aunt was swearing something terrible and to put her in jail. 

Sunday Drive in 1911 - Charlie and Emily Davis with baby Pete (front) and Robert Dearle Dunning and Olive (Campbell) Dunning (back)