What Else Did Mum Do ?: Library

Mum did more than run a household and raise children . Those jobs alone could fill a book with the list of tasks , chores and tricks for survival . She was also active in as many ways possible in her community .

Library: In her early days (1948/9) , newly arrived as a war bride , one place Mum looked for immediately , was a public library. When she found none , she thought it would be good idea to start one . She approached the Town Office with a plan to start a lending library with donated and used books . Townsfolk and people along the rail line would surely benefit from a library .

Handy with a Needle

Mum came with skills of her own to the bush of Northen Ontario/Quebec from wartime England . Her stint on the farm and in the British Army gave her particular skills that turned out to be essential in the isolated places in Canada .

Flour came in 50 and 100lb bags made of sturdy (500 thread count) cotton with the company name stencilled onto the front and sewn shut with cotton string . Once the flour of each bag was used up , she harvested the remains -a yard and a half of cotton fabric and string .

On Wash Day , she would scrub each bag