Chocks away in St. Charles

Situated in the middle of the continent, Winnipeg is very much an aviation town, and it played a key role in pioneering commercial aviation in Canada. One hundred years ago Kirkfield Park (often referred to as St. Charles) on the city’s western outskirts witnessed many firsts in the field (pun intended).

Kirkfield Park, directly north of St. Charles Country Club, stretched from Portage Avenue to Saskatchewan Avenue. Its one-mile (8-furlong) racecourse was larger than the present-day 6½-furlong Assiniboia Downs track, and hosted early motorcycle, automobile and horse races before its use as St. Charles Aerodrome. Quail Ridge now sits in its infield. [1917 Stovel's map]  

The Canadian Aircraft Company (CAC) was founded in the fall of 1919 by World War I pilots Capt. G. A. Thompson and Capt. A. L. Cuffe. With support from several businessmen, they were able to purchase two Curtiss airplanes and property in St. Charles for an aerodrome and hangar. Thompson and Cuffe were the first to fly any aircraft over Winnipeg.

Curtiss JN4 Canuck (sister to the American "Jenny"), a WWI trainer favoured by barnstormers and stunt fliers and used for recreation post-war.  [1]
      

CAC understood the need to promote its operations. In November 1919 The Hudson’s Bay Company sponsored “A Dayful of Uncommon Attractions” that included demonstrations of “the fine art of flying.” Captain Thompson flew over the downtown store in his “1919 Victory Loan” aeroplane and performed stunts. Onlookers clamoured for coupons dropped from the air. The day included a display of aeroplane photos from the Canadian Front. Victory Bonds were sold and a free draw prize of one $50 bond was advertised, along with sales on store merchandise like ladies’ wear, china, ranges, winter fabrics, coats, and of course, furs.

Hudson's Bay Company advertisement, Winnipeg Free Press, November 1919
   

In February 1920 CAC president F. E. Cole urged Winnipeg’s Works and Property Committee to build a proper aerodrome. He suggested that one of the city’s parks, such as Kildonan’s exhibition site, could provide a suitable location. The city took no interest and refused to consider the idea. [3] They did pass the request to the Parks Board, but that Board felt it was not their decision, since they were under control of City Council.  [4]

Undaunted, CAC continued its operations in St. Charles, and met all Canadian Air Board requirements. In April 1920 Captain A. G. Goulding and Capt. G. A. Thompson, were the first two Canadian pilots to pass the Canadian Air Board medical tests. As commercial pilots, they also had to demonstrate their skills in flight. Likewise, the St. Charles aeroplanes and aerodrome received Air Board approval.  [5]

CAC’s pilots, like its managing director Capt. A. G. Goulding, had impressive military experience.  [6]
   

Aviation was a growing fascination for all, and flying clubs mounted all sorts of promotional events to drum up business and convince citizens that flying was safe.

After World War I civil aviation expanded at tremendous rates, and public interest grew with every report of barnstorming and aerobatic stunts, air races and long-distance flights. 1920 was an especially noteworthy year for the Canadian Aircraft Company, and its operations garnered much newspaper coverage. The advantages of air transportation were becoming more and more evident.

Noted pilot Capt. F. J. Stevenson (for whom the Winnipeg airport was first named), was employed by the Canadian Aircraft Company after his war service and test flew the first British Avro aircraft received at the St. Charles aerodrome.  [7]
   

An early first for the St. Charles landing field was marked on May 3, 1920 when Lieutenant A. E. Bingham landed there with the first airmail from the U.S. to Canada, a two-hour and 10-minute flight. He commented on the fascination with flying in Grand Forks, but added, “If it were not for the flying, I should say that Grand Forks was dead.”  [8] 

Advertisement, May 1920. Having passed all inspections, the Canadian Aircraft Co. could offer daily passenger flights.  [9]
   

A lengthy article in the May 8 Winnipeg Tribune titled, “Example of White Man’s Miracle,” featured a photo of a “Great Winged Bird” at CAC’s St. Charles Aerodrome being inspected by a supposedly awestruck Aboriginal chief. However dated the rhetoric, the article did go on to recognize aviation progress and the impact it would ultimately have in opening up the North.

“It is proposed among other utility purposes to use these great airships in solving the transportation difficulties that face the more inaccessible of our mining developments.” Winnipeg Tribune, May 1920  [10]
   

Flights from St. Charles Aerodrome were not all passenger trips. The company routinely gave demonstrations that included stunt flying and wing-walking. A brief article in the Winnipeg Tribune of May 14, 1920 announced that a demonstration of wing-walking would be held at St. Charles, followed by a puzzling quote from a company director stating, “We are opposed to ‘stunt’ flying, because we believe it retards the development of aviation. […] But wing-walking is not a ‘stunt.’ It is to be demonstrated to instill confidence in the public in aviation.” [11]

Advertisement, May 1920. “Get on a St. Charles street car. It will let you off right at the aerodrome.” The Canadian Aircraft Company offered passenger flights, and performed flying demonstrations – including wing-walking – to promote its business. While the Tuxedo site was included in ads, it was hardly mentioned in news reports, and St. Charles remained the main site of the company’s operations.  [12]

   

At its Annual General Meeting in March 1920 the company’s Board of Directors laid out upcoming plans. Long-distance flights were not anticipated, because of the risk of forced landings and the paucity of good landing strips at far-flung destinations.

Weekend promotional flights at local beaches, fairs and exhibitions, however, would certainly continue. The majority of the company’s 162 shareholders agreed that stunt flying with thrill-seeking passengers was fine as long as those passengers accepted the risks. The shareholders were convinced by pilot and company director Capt. G. A. Thompson, who explained:

There is no more danger in stunting than in straight flying […] unless you do foolish stunts too close to the ground. The Avro plane was specially designed for stunting at the proper height, at least 2,000 feet from the ground, and usually 6,000, it is quite safe. The machines must be examined and in perfect order before the start. With all precautions taken before leaving the ground there is no excuse for a crash.

I believe that stunting on weekends would educate the public to believe in the sureness of aerial locomotion. To see a pilot up in the air looping, nose-diving, doing anything and everything with the machine, week after week, is bound to inspire confidence.  [13]

Daredevils performing on a Curtiss JN-4 "Jenny" in the 1920s. (:55, silent)  [14]

   

Thompson’s plan worked, and citizens were eager to take to the skies. One young society editor was very keen about a pending flight in April 1920, and showed up after a “morning at her hairdressers, getting shampooed and marcelled” explaining, “If I should fall, I want to look my best. […] I’m going to wear my best clothes, too.”  [15]

The spring of 1920 was an incredibly busy time the Canadian Aircraft Company. Anticipating growth, the Board ordered five Avro machines from England, spare engines and parts, and floats to convert the Avros to seaplanes. The company was the first to fly British planes in western Canada.

Avro 504 World War I biplane. Over 8000 of these trainers were built. Post-war, the Avro was among the over 20,000 surplus aircraft of the Royal Air Force. (2:16)  [16]

   

In May 1920 pilot Capt. A. G. Thompson and passenger Premier Norris led a massive bicycle parade, showing off one of their newly arrived Avro airplanes from England. The Winnipeg Free Press noted, “This will be one of the first flights of this craft, which embodies the latest improvements in flying machines. It is one of a fleet which the Canadian Aircraft company will have at its Portage avenue west airdrome this spring and summer.”  [17]

Always keen to promote CAC, on May 24 Captain Thompson flew Winnipeg’s mayor from St. Charles to the city’s Exhibition grounds for an auto race. The pilot gave an exhibition of flying and stunts in his Avro aircraft that thrilled the crowd.  [18]

No, it’s not another war, just pilots Stevenson, Thompson, and Ronald passing their nocturnal flight tests for the Canadian Air Board, May 1920.  [19]
   

A six-day flying tour was arranged in the spring of 1920 to promote aviation in Manitoba: 

Fearing that Manitoba farmers may still be “plane-shy” and hide under straw stacks every time they see an airplane winging over their heads, two members of the Canadian Aircraft company will start an “educational” tour of the province Monday.

Lieut. B. R. Ronald will pilot a Curtiss plane. Frank Ellis, parachutte jumper and mechanician, will accompany him. Ronald will carry a letter from Mayor Gray to the mayor of Morris, the first stop. He will carry passengers at all towns on the way to Shoal Lake, and will return to Winnipeg in about six days.

Capt. A. L. Cuffe, director and pilot of the company, arranged the tour to stimulate interest in aviation throughout Manitoba.  [20]   

The Canadian Aircraft Company of St. Charles had three planes in the air and 70 passengers on the first day (May 16) of the 1920 flying season.  [21]
   

In 1920 the Winnipeg Falcons won the World’s Amateur Hockey Championship. The welcome home celebration on May 22 included a parade “of gigantic proportions” from the CPR train station, down Main Street and Portage Avenue. The procession included civic leaders and sports figures from hockey, aquatics, baseball, cricket, curling, cycling, football, lacrosse, lawn bowling, tennis, rugby, and snow shoeing. At the end of the parade the hockey team would receive the Allan Cup at Wesley Hall (now the University of Winnipeg). A baseball game there offered more entertainment, and businesses along the route were encouraged to decorate their storefronts. Leading the parade was Capt. F. J. Stevenson of the Canadian Aircraft Corporation.

Capt. F. J. Stevenson of the Canadian Aircraft Company in St. Charles circled the CPR train station in his plane and led the May 22, 1920 parade to Wesley College.  [22]

   

Although the company was concerned about long-distance flights, they did fly to other communities. In June they flew 50 pounds of paint to Minnedosa for the Brandon-Henderson Company. [23] It was a first for CAC. In July a 110-mile trip (85 miles as the crow flies) between St. Charles and Manitou took a mere 40 minutes.  [24]

A brief entry in the June 25, 1920 Winnipeg Free Press noted:

Commercial flying in Winnipeg and throughout the province is proving successful, according to an official of the Canadian Aircraft company yesterday. Many Winnipeggers are enjoying flights, and flying is becoming a feature at picnics, fairs, etc.. At Treherne, an Avro machine has been taking up passengers. Capt. E. J. Stephenson is the pilot. Among the passengers he took up was a lunatic, who, however, had enough sense, said Captain Stephenson, to enjoy his experience.  [25]

Politicians were enthusiastic about flight and enjoyed the efficiency and thrill of flying. Air travel allowed candidates to make speeches in several destinations in a single day. In June 1920 the Canadian Aircraft Company flew planes with painted slogans as part of the re-election campaign for Tobias Norris, Manitoba’s premier from 1915–1922. [26]

Winnipeg’s Mayor, C.F. Gray, was flown to the Brandon Fair in July of 1920 by Capt. A. G. Thompson of the Canadian Aircraft Company. They left St. Charles at 10:35 a.m. and made the 130-mile trip to Brandon in 90 minutes. The mayor called it a wonderful trip, stating, “My enthusiasm for flying is even greater than before.” The Free Press reporter concluded that, “The thrill and adventure of flying seems to have gripped the sporting spirit of the mayor of Winnipeg. That his worship has developed into an ardent enthusiast is borne out by the fact that on three occasions he has availed himself of this more invigorating mode of travel.”  [27]

The front page of theWinnipeg Tribune of July 22, 1920 featured this photo of Mayor Gray (left) with Capt. A. G. Thompson of the Canadian Aircraft Company, about to fly off from St. Charles to Brandon.  [28]
   

At the fair, Capt. Thompson gave a daily exhibition of flying and took passengers up for short flights. Another flying demonstration, however, earned more press coverage, as American “daredevil” Mark Campbell performed a series of wing-walking stunts on a biplane piloted by Aviator Casewell. 

The Brandon Sun of July 22, 1920 [29] featured a series of photos under the headline, “Daredevil Campbell Flirts with Death; Sensation of Fair” and hailed his performance each day of the fair. An airplane engineer, wing-walker Campbell performed across North America and performed in movies before leaving stunt flying in 1927 to design airplanes. He worked for Lockheed from 1934 to 1962.  [30]
   

In the fall of 1920 a trans-Canada flight sponsored by the Canadian Air Board took to the air. The excursion was a path-finding and mapping effort to determine how fast a transcontinental flight could be, and to explore the idea of national aerial mail delivery. The relay began in Halifax on October 7 and involved several aircraft and pilots. The St. Charles aerodrome was one of the staging points, and a de Havilland D.H.9A left on October 1 for Moose Jaw.

"This plane will be flown from Winnipeg to Moose Jaw by Capt. Horne in the trans-Canada flight. It is now at the Canadian Aircraft company airdrome at St. Charles, and is of the type described as 'D.H.9A.' Its engine generates 420 horsepower. The pilot seated in the plane is Capt. G.H. Pitt. Capt. C.W. Cudmore, M.D., D.F.C., is in uniform in the foreground."
Prior to departing for Moose Jaw, October 1, 1920.  [31]

CAC’s Capt. G. A. Thompson was chosen to pilot a de Havilland D.H.9A (G-CYBF) from Calgary to Vancouver, the trip’s last and most dangerous leg. With Lt. Col. Arthur Tylee (Commanding Officer of the C.A.F.) as passenger, Thompson battled fierce winds and snow over the Rockies, waiting out bad weather in Revelstoke before finally reaching Vancouver on the 17th. The entire trans-Canada flight took over ten days to cover the 3, 265 miles. Flying time was almost 45 hours. [32]

October 1920 was a notable month for the Canadian Aircraft Company, when it marked another aviation first. Cecil Lamont, an enterprising Free Press reporter, chartered CAC to fly him to Winkler, where a dramatic robbery of the Union Bank had occurred earlier that day. Pilot Hector F. Dougal made the 74-mile trip in 42 minutes, and Lamont was able to file his story (complete with an aerial shot of the town and photos of the bank and its blown safe) in record time. The paper congratulated itself, concluding, “In publishing latest developments in connection with the hold-up and furnishing readers of photographic views of the big story the Manitoba Free Press has set a precedent for news getting and thereby maintains its object of providing readers of the paper with current events of the day in an up-to-date fashion.”  [33]

Cecil Lamont scooped other reporters when he raced to Winkler to cover an October 1920 bank robbery.  [33]
   

Pilot Hector Dougal marked another first for the Canadian Aircraft Company in October 1920, when he and engineer Frank Ellis agreed to fly fur trader Frank J. Stanley to The Pas, about 500 miles north of Winnipeg. As the Royal Aviation Museum of Western Canada relates, the crew mapped out the route, and on Friday, October 15 headed for the first stop: 184 miles to Dauphin. Half-way there, they had to land in a plowed field at Gladstone to attend to a misfiring spark plug.

The trio’s first night was spent in a Swan River Hotel, but the next day’s blustery weather delayed their take-off until mid-afternoon. Following the railroad, they endured cold windy weather and snow squalls in their open cockpits, and low fuel forced a risky landing at Hudson’s Bay Junction. It was the first arrival of an airplane in the area, and locals helped dig the wheels out of the muskeg. On Sunday, the weather was clear with a strong southwest wind, and they were able to lift off from a makeshift runway by 3:30 p.m. Within 40 minutes they finally landed in a cattle field south of The Pas.

Frank Ellis took the first aerial photo of Canada north of the 53rd parallel on October 17, 1920. The 388-mile trip took 53 hours, with six hours and 12 minutes of actual airtime. With winter fast approaching, Avro G-CABV was shipped back to Winnipeg by freight. 

The Canadian Aircraft Company’s Avro 504 biplane G-CABV
(Photo © Royal Aviation Museum of Western Canada)  [34]
   

In 1921, Capt. G.E. Brookes flew copies of the Free Press from St. Charles to the annual fair in Brandon. On the third day of the fair he encountered a fierce 12-minute rain and hail storm just west of Portage la Prairie that necessitated a detour and delayed the flight, but he arrived safely in Brandon. On his return trip he set a record time of 90 minutes for the 130-mile trip. The newspaper called his third round trip a triumph, noting that Brookes’ daily flights were “first evidences of the dependency of the airplane for constant and regular use in Western Canada.” While fair goers were thrilled by stunts and flight exhibitions, the daily newspaper delivery received praise for being “a great tribute to the organizing ability of the company operating the machine and to the airplane itself, as factor in the commerce of everyday business.”  [35]

The Winnipeg Free Press appreciated the efficiency of air transportation, sending copies of the paper to the 1921 Brandon Fair with Capt. G. E. Brookes, another Canadian Aircraft Company “crack pilot” operating out of St. Charles. [36]
   

Bill Straith, managing director of the Canadian Aircraft Company, sponsored “Flying Week” in Winnipeg, August 8 to 13, 1921. As usual, daily passenger flights were especially popular. A Tribune article about the event noted that, “No fewer than 500 Manitobans have been taken into the air by one aviator alone, Pilot G. E. Brookes, of the Canadian Aircraft company, whose airdrome is situated at St. Charles.” The article stressed the rigid tests for crews and machines required by the Canadian Air Board that ensured the safety of these flights. Pilot Brookes had thrilled passengers and onlookers in over 20 prairie towns, and the company could boast that, “during the past flying season and up to the present this year, the pilots of Winnipeg’s airdrome have taken up more than 3,500 passengers without a single accident.” 

Despite its impressive safety record, the Canadian Aircraft Company had to adhere to new regulations that prohibited stunt flying over cities and dictated that flights had to be conducted at heights that allowed gliding safely to a landing if an engine stopped. Thus, CAC pilots would have to maintain an altitude of 3000 feet over Winnipeg to ensure a safe landing back at St. Charles. [37]

“Aviators who are engaged in making Winnipeg’s flying week a success are shown above, the picture being taken while they were leaning on one wing of a big Avro ’plane. They are, left to right: “Art” Francis, air engineer and engine mechanic; H. Dougal, air engineer and pilot; H. Brooks, air engineer and rigger; A. Sinclair, airplane mechanic, and G. E. Brookes, air engineer and pilot. They are taking flights with passengers daily this week from St. Charles airdrome.”  Winnipeg Tribune, August 10, 1921 p. 1.  [38]
   

The Canadian Aircraft Company ceased operations in 1922. The new Canadian Air Board prohibitions against stunt flying and joy riding may have played a factor. The Board also recommended that the federal government stop providing financial subsidies to commercial air services. As David Riach concludes:

Whatever the reason(s) for its cessation, the Canadian Aircraft Company deserves recognition as Winnipeg and Manitoba’s “pioneer” air transport company. It achieved several local and Canadian aviation “firsts,” was a major player in early efforts to establish a municipal airdrome in Winnipeg, and strove to build “air-mindedness” among Manitobans. Moreover, after a few years’ hiatus, the company name would be resurrected in a way that further cemented its historical legacy – as Winnipeg’s first aircraft manufacturer. The architect of this revival would be former managing director W. A. Straith.”  [39]

Winnipeg eventually established a municipal airport on 160 acres of prairie grassland at the western end of Wellington Avenue in St. James. A huge crowd celebrated its opening on March 27, 1928. Now called Winnipeg James Armstrong Richardson International Airport, it was first named Stevenson Aerodrome (often called Stevenson Field) in honour of famed bush pilot and WWI ace Frederick J. Stevenson. Stevenson had worked for Canadian Aircraft Company in St. Charles following his military service. Later, he earned accolades as a skilled and fearless bush pilot with Western Canada Airways. He died on January 5, 1928 in a crash at The Pas. 

The airfield in St. Charles remained in use beyond the Canadian Aircraft Company’s tenure. Western Canada Airways (WCA), which had operations at the Brandon Avenue base on the Red River, established a flying school and made limited commercial flights at St. Charles in 1928 and 1929. WCA tried operating an airmail service to and from Calgary, but that only lasted for a month, ending on December 31, 1928. By mid-1929 the flying school left the St. Charles location, and its hangar was relegated to storage space and sporadic flights. WCA moved its operations to the newer Stevenson Aerodrome.  [40]

One WCA student pilot left a mark in St. Charles all too literally. Walter Lawson, a wartime pilot taking a refresher course, lost control of his 1927 de Havilland D.H.60X Moth (G-CAIG) after correcting a spin, plummeted 150 feet, and slammed into Portage Avenue at full speed:

Lawson was killed instantly. The airplane met the concrete pavement of Portage avenue at the corner of River street [now Raquette St. in Westwood] with a resounding crash as the nose of the machine tore a sizeable hole in the solid roadbed and the engine shattered into a thousand pieces in full view of the nearby spectators, making one of the most complete wrecks on record. Fortunately the highway was clear of traffic at the time.

No spark of life remained in the pilot when a few seconds later gentle hands lifted him from the ruins…  [41]

The newspaper account claimed it was a solo flight, but crash records claim an instructor in the plane survived with severe injuries. [42] Given the severity of the crash, perhaps the solo flight report is more credible.

The June 1928 airplane crash itself did not mark the end of flying in St. Charles, but by the end of 1929 activity had moved on. Stevenson Field (named after the late Captain Frederick J. Stevenson), had opened in May 1928 and became the official municipal airport in Winnipeg. 

SOURCES

1. Curtiss JN4 Canuck (Canadian version of the American “Jenny”) photo. https://ingeniumcanada.org/artifact/curtiss-jn-4-canuck
2. The Hudson’s Bay Company advertisement. Winnipeg Free Press, November 3, 1919, p. 10
3. “City Refuses to Assist Aviators.” Winnipeg Tribune, February 25, 1920, p. 27
4. “A. W. Puttee Appointed Chairman of Parks Board.” Winnipeg Free Press, March 18, 1920, p. 11
5. “2 Aerial Pilots Pass Inspection on Medical Fitness.” Winnipeg Tribune, April 17, 1920, p. 5
6. “Chosen to Manage Aircraft Company.” Winnipeg Tribune, March 17, 1920, p. 36
7. “Bicycle Parade Promises Weird Effects, Ancient and Ultra-Modern Cycle Styles.” Winnipeg Free Press, May 7, 1920, p. 8
8. “Aviation Notes.” Winnipeg Tribune, May 29, 1920, p. 25
9. Canadian Aircraft Co. advertisement. Winnipeg Tribune, May 7, 1920, p. 2
10. “Example of White Man’s Miracle.” Winnipeg Tribune, May 8, 1920, p. 5
11. “Aviators to Walk on Wings Sunday.” Winnipeg Tribune, May 14, 1920, p. 6
12. The Canadian Aircraft Co. Ltd. advertisement. Winnipeg Free Press, June 19, 1920, p. 2
13. “Passengers to be Taken on Stunt Flying.” Winnipeg Tribune, March 18, 1920, p. 37
14. YouTube Video (:55): Daredevils performing on Curtiss JN-4 "Jenny" in the 1920s. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vQCfKdIqQF4 
15. “Society Air Trip Delayed Until Monday.” Winnipeg Tribune, April 24, 1920, p. 2
16. YouTube Video (2:16): Avro 504 World War I biplane. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6WbFvpg2HZc 
17. “Prizes for Saturday’s Bicycle Parade Now on View in Downtown Window.” Winnipeg Free Press, May 4, 1920, p. 10
18. “Flying Stunts to Add Thrills to Auto Races.” Winnipeg Free Press, May 15, 1920, p. 13
19. “Night Flights Scare Sleepers.” Winnipeg Tribune, May 17, 1920, p. 2
20. “To Begin Long Aerial Tour on Monday.” Winnipeg Tribune, May 15, 1920, p. 1
21. “It’s Fly Time!” Winnipeg Tribune, May 10, 1920, p. 1
22. “Complete Arrangements for Elaborate Reception Saturday for Falcons.” Winnipeg Tribune, May 21, 1920, p. 18
23. “I Saw It in the Tribune.” Winnipeg Tribune, June 9, 1920, p. 5
24. “Flew to Manitou in 40 Minutes.” Winnipeg Free Press, July 13, 1920, p. 5
25. “Local Notes.” Winnipeg Free Press, June 25, 1920, p. 6
26. “Airplanes Will Display Norris Party Slogans.” Winnipeg Tribune, June 9, 1920, p. 1
27. “Mayor Gray Reports Having Wonderful Flight to Fair.” Winnipeg Free Press, July 23, 1920, p 14
28. “Mayor Flies to Brandon.” Winnipeg Tribune, July 22, 1920, p. 1
29. “Daredevil Campbell Flirts with Death, Sensation of Fair.” Brandon Sun, July 22, 1920, p.1 
30. “Guide to the Mark M. Campbell Collection, 1897-1963.” The University of Texas at Dallas, Eugene McDermott Library. https://utd-ir.tdl.org/handle/10735.1/7498  
31. “To Participate in Trans-Canada Flight.” Winnipeg Tribune, October 2, 1920, p3 
32. Ellis, Frank H. Canada’s Flying Heritage, 2nd ed. Toronto: University of Toronto Press, 1961.
33. “Free Press Uses Air Route to Get Story.” Winnipeg Free Press, October 14, 1920, p. 1
34. “Business Travel – Not Always a Perk.” Royal Aviation Museum of Western Canada. http://royalaviationmuseum.com/business-travel-not-always-a-perk  
35. “Free Press Pilot is Victorious Over Gale.” Winnipeg Free Press, July 30, 1921, p. 6
36. “Winnipeg Free Press Flies to Brandon Fair.” Winnipeg Free Press, July 28, 1921, p. 7
37. “City’s ‘Flying Week’ Sees Many Making First Trip in Air.” Winnipeg Tribune, August 9, 1921, p. 2 
38. “Principals in ‘Flying Week’.” Winnipeg Tribune, August 10, 1921 p. 1 
39. Riach, David. “Winnipeg’s First Air Transport Companies (1919–1920).” Research Summary. Winnipeg: Royal Aviation Museum of Western Canada, March 2020
40. “Stevenson Aerodrome – From Prairie to Flying Field.” (reprint of Western Canada Airways Bulletin, June 1930). Royal Aviation Museum of Western Canada. November 4, 2017. http://royalaviationmuseum.com/article-stevenson-aerodrome-from-prairie-to-flying-field 
41. “Flier Killed in Crash on Portage Avenue.” Winnipeg Free Press, June 18, 1928, p. 1
42. Aviation Safety Network, ASN Wikibase Occurrence # 1172. https://aviation-safety.net/wikibase/1172 

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Royaumont

David Wylie Buchanan, born in 1854 in Sarnia, Ontario, was a St. Charles market gardener and recognized expert in prairie horticulture. The Winnipeg daily papers published long articles promoting Buchanan's ideas and reporting on the many presentations he regularly gave to horticultural societies and others. He was the publisher of the Commercial Trade Journal for many years, and was especially prolific in the early 1900s, when horticultural articles like the following were published in Winnipeg's daily papers:

• Fruit Growing in Manitoba -- Winnipeg Tribune, August 7, 1905, p. 9
• D. W. Buchanan on Perennials -- Winnipeg Tribune, April 2, 1907, p. 3
• Fruits in Manitoba -- Winnipeg Tribune, April 10, 1907, p. 4
• World Ransacked for Fruit -- Winnipeg Tribune, June 17, 1907, p. 10
• Plum Growing in Manitoba -- Winnipeg Free Press, September 20, 1910, p. 14
• Care of Currant Bushes Neglected on Prairies -- Winnipeg Tribune, April 19, 1924, p. 11

In 1907 D.W. published a comprehensive book entitled Horticulture in the North, advertised as "a complete guide to the cultivation of all fruits that can be grown in these provinces." It included chapters on home gardens, windbreaks, plant diseases, insect pests, trees, shrubs, flowers, and more. It was a scholarly work well worth its $1.00 price.

The LaFlèche family would have had a front row seat to the successful enterprise D.W. operated immediately east of St. Charles Street. Perhaps their large brood mingled with D.W.'s 10 children.

By the 1920s, D.W. was in his late 60s and turned his attention from his labour-intensive horticulture business to golf. A column in the Winnipeg Tribune of July 31, 1924 asked "Do Golf and Business Mix? What Do You Think?" and quoted D.W. under the subhead "Golf Course An Asset":

D.W. Buchanan, the well-known writer: "Any man who would injure his business by playing golf would probably find some other way of injuring it if he didn't play golf. I consider our municipal golf course one of the great assets of our city. It has popularized the cleanest and most beautiful game of the entire list. A sound mind in a sound body is the greatest set a business man can have. Man is a land animal; it does him good to get his feet on the ground. A game of golf twice a week will keep a business man in physical and mental trim."

Artist's rendering of the original Royaumont clubhouse completed in May 1922, courtesy Leonard Remis, Glendale Golf and Country Club
  [J. Alan Hackett, Manitoba Links: A Kaleidoscopic History of Golf, p.167]
   

D.W.'s promotion of golf in 1924 was no surprise. By then he was a trustee of the Royaumont Golf Club, developed on the 99-acre site of his nursery and orchard. The course opened to the public on May 24, 1922. Green fees were 50 cents. Advertisements noted that the clubhouse was on Portage Avenue, serviced by the St. Charles and Headingley street cars, which ran every 15 minutes. 

Winnipeg Free Press, May 20, 1922
   

Two hundred golfers showed up on opening day. A subsequent advertisement illustrated the full 18-hole golf course, although only nine were ready at the time. 

The Royaumont's club house was at Portage Avenue, handy for drivers and those coming by streetcar.
Winnipeg Free Press, May 27, 1922   

The endeavour proved popular. In 1923 the course opened early, on April 29, and it was announced that all 18 holes would be ready within 10 days.

Winnipeg Free Press, April 28, 1923, p. 35

By 1924, the Golf Club had an 18-hole course and a 9-hole course. Advertisements solicited memberships, and boasted improvements, like a better water system, new greens, a larger clubhouse, and 50 new sets of Spalding golf clubs and bags for rent. Social events like tournaments and weekly dances were promoted. Annual fees were $10 for men, $5 for ladies, with 25-cent green fees per game. Luncheons and refreshments were available at all hours.

Winnipeg Tribune, March 21, 1924, p. 75
   

By 1926 Winnipeg boasted 23 golf courses, featured in a two-page illustrated promotion published by The Winnipeg Tribune. 

Winnipeg Tribune, May 31, 1926, pp. 22-23
[Wyman Laliberte, Flikr]

The ad included a photo of the river hole of the Royamount [sic] Golf Course:

This hole would be directly east of the St. Charles ferry and Catholic school.
   

D.W.'s golf course was a success. Memberships were limited to 600, and it was noted that "there will be no restrictions against ladies becoming members and playing whenever they like." (Winnipeg Free Press, September 18, 1924, p. 16)

In 1935 D.W. appealed the $7,000 assessment of his 99 acres (Lot 96, St. Charles) used by the Royaumont Golf Club. This amount was already reduced from the council of Assiniboia municipality's valuation of $7,620. The Manitoba Tax Commission listened to D.W.'s appeal and reduced it to $5,440.

In March 1942, D.W.'s wife Lillie Grace (née Power) passed away. The Buchanans were respected citizens of Winnipeg, and the papers noted her passing. Lillie came from a remarkable family. Her parents came from Scotland in 1866, homesteading in St. Charles at the site of the Royaumont Golf Course. Lillie's mother had trained in obstetrics at Glasgow University, and was Winnipeg's first medical nurse. The obituary in the Winnipeg Free Press (March 27, 1942, p. 2) noted that "Mrs. Buchanan took part in the women's suffrage campaign of 1912" but did not elaborate.

Winnipeg Tribune, March 27, 1942, p. 3

David Wylie Buchanan retired to British Columbia in 1944. He died in his daughter's home in Victoria in December 1949 at age 95. The funeral was held in Winnipeg and he was buried in St. James Cemetery.

In 1946 the Royaumont Golf Course was sold to a group of Jewish businessmen for $35,000 and renamed Glendale Golf and Country Club. The new club sold 200 memberships at $1,000 the first year, with annual dues of $60. The course itself was redesigned, with the first new nine holes ready by July 1, 1948 and another nine open in August 1949.  A new mid-century modern clubhouse designed by the architectural firm Green, Blankstein and Russell was built on the riverbank at the south end of the property by 1951.

The pioneer Buchanan home in June, 1947, showing the proposed area for Glendale's ninth green in the foreground.
  [J. Alan Hackett, Manitoba Links: A Kaleidoscopic History of Golf, p.233 and Manitoba Archives]

  

Construction of the ninth fairway and green in progress a short time later.
  [J. Alan Hackett, Manitoba Links: A Kaleidoscopic History of Golf, p.233 and Manitoba Archives]

The Glendale Golf and Country Club clubhouse, designed by Green, Blankstein and Russell, c. 1951
[Winnipeg Architecture Foundation]
   

In 1987 Glendale sold its Portage Avenue frontage (13 acres) to pay debts and finance a major redesign of the course. Renovations of the clubhouse in 1991 consolidated its two kitchens, improved the women’s locker room, and expanded banquet and meeting facilities.


See also:
Home sweet home 
There goes the neighbourhood 

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Tick tock

Recognize this sound? If you grew up in the Fraser household, you'll certainly know the soothing purr. On a quiet night, it could be heard from all our rooms.

Turn your speakers way up and listen closely.

There is an old riddle: As you walk in the door, you hear the grandfather clock strike one. Half an hour later, it strikes one again. A half hour after that it strikes one again. It strikes one again a half hour later. What time was it when you came home?

That's easy if you grew up with such a clock. When you walked in the door, you heard the last bong of 12. Half an hour later, a single bong marked the half hour, 12:30. At one o'clock it bonged once, and at 1:30 it bonged again to mark the half hour.

You might want to turn your speakers back down a little. BONG!

  

Mom and Dad bought the clock from a used furniture store in Winnipeg when they were setting up their household in the late 40s. Its unique style is variously known as Arts and Crafts, Mission Style, or Craftsman.

Dad polished the brass numerals and varnished the face. Well intentioned, but it destroyed the precious patina that antique dealers cherish.
    

The Arts and Crafts Movement in Britain dates back to the 1860s and was a reaction against the "over-decorated aesthetic and disregard for the worker of the Victorian era." In America the movement also emphasized craftsmanship "that encouraged originality, simplicity of form, local natural materials, and the visibility of handicraft, and was concerned with ennobling the more modest home of the rapidly expanding American middle class." [1]

Mission Style originated in the late 19th century in the US and is associated with the American Arts and Crafts movement, but the term owes little to actual missions. Wikipedia explains the design philosophy of Mission Style furniture as follows:

Mission style is a design that emphasizes simple horizontal and vertical lines and flat panels that accentuate the grain of the wood (often oak, especially quarter sawn white oak). People were looking for relief after the excesses of Victorian times and the influx of mass-produced furniture from the Industrial Revolution. The furniture maker Gustav Stickley produced Arts and Crafts furniture often referred to as being in the Mission Style, though Stickley dismissed the term as misleading. This was plain oak furniture that was upright, solid, and suggestive of entirely handcrafted work, though in the case of Stickley and his competitors, was constructed within a factory by both machine and handworking techniques. [2]

Craftsman Furniture refers to the Arts and Crafts Movement style furniture of Gustav Stickley's "Craftsman Workshops," so-named in 1903 and operating until 1916. [3]

Although Stickley despised the term "Mission Style" as misleading, the present-day Stickley Furniture Company features a Mission Oak Collection of reproductions. The Morris chair is well known, and their tall case clock reissued in 1989 remains "a hallmark " of the collection. An original 1910 tall case clock sold at auction for over $71,000. [4]

Tall Case Clock in the Mission Collection of www.Stickley.com
    

The Arts and Crafts style exemplified by Stickley was a contemporary and natural fit with architect Frank Lloyd Wright's Prairie Style aesthetic, most pronounced between 1900 and 1915. 

The Prairie style emerged in Chicago around 1900 from the work of a group of young architects, including Frank Lloyd Wright. These architects melded the ideals of the Arts and Crafts movement, with its emphasis on nature, craftsmanship and simplicity, and the work and writings of architect Louis Sullivan. They embraced Sullivan’s architectural theories, which called for non-derivative, distinctly American architecture rooted in nature, with a sense of place, but also incorporated modern elements, like flat planes and stylized ornamentation. 

The Prairie style’s popularity faded rapidly in the United States after 1915, although its influence can be seen in everything from Modernist architecture to Mid-Century ranches. [5]

The clock graced the Frasers' central hallway for three decades and was right at home in its 1915 house. A web search has yet to uncover an identical one. Mom and Dad did come across another in an antiques store on Vancouver Island, but its maker or origins are unknown.

A few long clocks at the Canadian Clock Museum look familiar and similar, but are not the same. I photographed it, noted its details and dimensions (75.75" h, 18.5" w, 13.5" d), and sent this post to the museum to see if their experts could identify it. Because it has no labels or markings, however, its origins remain a mystery, and their best guess is that it is American.

The back of the clock is rough and has no label.
   

The clock works have no maker's marks.
   

Detail of weight acorns and leaded glass door.
       

How the grandfather clock got its name: [6]

Over 100 years ago in Piercebridge, North Yorkshire, England, there was a quaint country lodge known as the George Hotel. The George hotel was managed by two bachelor brothers named Jenkins also from England. 

In the lobby stood a floor clock, as they were called back in those days, that had been there for many years. One unusual characteristic on the old clock was that it kept very good time. This was uncommon, since in those days clocks were generally not noted for their accuracy. 

One day, one of the brothers died and suddenly the old clock started losing time. At first it lost 15 minutes per day but when several clocksmiths gave up trying to repair the ailing timepiece, it was losing more than an hour each day. The clock's incurable problem became as talked about as its precision had been. Some said it was no surprise that, though fully wound, the old clock stopped when the surviving brother died at the age of ninety. 

The new manager of the hotel never attempted to have it repaired. He just left it standing in a sunlit corner of the lobby, its hands resting in the position they assumed the moment the last Jenkins brother died. 

About 1875, an American songwriter named Henry Work happened to be staying at the George Hotel during a trip to England. He was told the story of the old clock and after seeing the clock for himself, decided to compose a song about the fascinating coincidence that the clock stopped forever the moment its elder owner passed away. Henry came back to America and published the lyrics that sold over a million copies of sheet music about the clock. 

Mom and Dad's clock has been well maintained, but needs a home where it can take pride of place once more. Fortunately, the clock did not "stop short, never to go again" when Dad died. 

Lyrics on Wikipedia

__________
Sources

[1]    Arts and Crafts Movement:
https://www.horizon-custom-homes.com/Mission_Furniture.html   

[2]    Mission Style Furniture:
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mission_style_furniture 

[3]    Craftsman Furniture:
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Craftsman_furniture 

[4]    Stickley Furniture tall case clock:
https://www.stickley.com/furniture/accessories/clocks/tall-case-clock

[5]    Prairie Style:
http://www.architecture.org/learn/resources/architecture-dictionary/entry/prairie-style 

[6]    How the Grandfather Clock got its Name:

https://web.archive.org/web/20150316184006/http://www.theclockdepot.com/history_of_the_grandfather_clock.html 

[7]    My Grandfather's Clock, performed by Johnny Cash:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=K0o8A4RccUY

[8]    Lyrics to My Grandfather's Clock:
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/My_Grandfather%27s_Clock

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