Reminiscences

A February 1925 letter

From Walter Harvie (1843-1932) in Coffs Harbour, NSW, Australia to
his sister Caroline Hill in Bakersfield, Kern County, California,  USA.

         "I received your very welcome letter and photos all right. Glad to see you and Danielena looking so well, and Ellen must have been a grand looking woman. As near as I can remember she resembled her mother. You say that the last time you remember seeing me you was playing in the lane, and I got over the fence out of the orchard and kissed you and said good bye, and told you I was going away. I must have been going to grand father Burtons, about six miles out from Windsor. I was with him there for some years. There were three uncles, they were working a large farm on lease. Jane was with me there.
         When their lease expired they went to live on their own property at St. Croix, except William who had a property about 100 miles away joining his brothers Walters property. I was with him about two years, then I came back to Avondale. Uncle Jim Harvie and Weston were in possession of our father’s farm. I then went on a trip to sea with a cousin Capt William P. Harvie who was part owner of a large schooner named the Avondale to the West Indies and called at different ports getting away from the ice. We were away about six months on the trip.
        When I came back I stopped for a while with Weston and with a cousin Mrs. Jenny Mills. Now Major Mills came home while I was stopping there. He had been first mate in one of Moshers ships named the Ava which had been wrecked on the coast of South America on a barren island and after being there for some time were taken off by a passing ship. They were given up for lost. Mills got another vessel and I went to Boston with him. You must remember Willie Dunbar a second cousin, who was living with his aunt Mrs. Mills. We were good chums. He went to sea after this and got on well. The last I heard he was Capt of a big ship sailing out of England.
        I am going to tell you that I remember a lot about our old home. You say your mother was not satisfied with the settlement of our fathers property. Well I never did know much about it. Our father died intestate. He was badly hurt in a gypsum quarry in which he had an interest and did not live long after. I can remember the occasion quite well. I think I was about eight years old at the time. I never knew Uncle Jim Harvie had any claim on our father’s estate, but I know that he was one of the trustees appointed by the court to look after our interests, and he gave me money at different times when I wanted it. Now the business could not be settled until Danielena came of age.
        Now about that time I had a Power of Attorney sent out here for me to sign and appoint some one to act for me. I sent it to Alexander Burton, an uncle who was to collect any money coming to me and hand it over to our sister Jane, who was married to Joshua Terfy, storekeeper at St. Croix, and that is the last I heard of it. I had letters from her since but she never mentioned getting anything.
       Now I am going to tell you that I remember a lot about the old place. Now the Moshers and Harvies owned nearly all the town of Avondale and the country for miles out. The Moshers had two large ship building yards and there were was always large ships being built there. The main road from the port went over a hill, about ½ mile to the top on the left going up two of the Moshers had good buildings. Captain William P. Harvie came next with a fine house. On the other side John Allison kept a general store, further up near the top was Major Mills place. From the top of the hill going down was Uncle James Harvie’s farm, on the left at the bottom of hill was Uncle Elkanah’s tannery and boot making shop. About ½ a mile further out was the lane leading up to our house. A big square two storied house about a ¼ mile from main road, the lane was lined with popler trees. On the left was a very large barn with an apple orchard behind it. At the back was a garden, on the right was a large orchard containing apples, plums, cherries, pears. About ½ a mile further on was Uncle John Weirs farm,  she was one of our Aunts, then there was another uncle I did not know, but I got word that two of his sons our cousins were studying for doctors in Canada, and one was a head teacher in a High School in one of the States. His name was Basil Harvie. Another uncle John Harvie had a plantation and slaves in one of the southern states when the Civil War broke out, of course he would lose the niggers. I have never heard of what became of him. Uncle John Weir had three sons, William, Andrew & John and three daughters, one married John Crossly who had his hand damaged in a threshing machine, one married a Mosher and the youngest married a son of Major Mills. He was Capt of a steamer on the coast here for a couple years with his wife and two daughters, but I never met them. I was about 300 miles up the country and left it too long and they got away without me meeting them. I got word that Capt Mills died soon after he got back.
       You should remember Uncle Elkanah who had a family of three boys and one girl, John who had a responsible position in Moshers Yards and married one of the Mosher girls, and George and Ira who worked with their father in the tanning and boot making business, and the girl whose name was Celestia. She married John Jeffries whose father was Governor of Nova Scotia. I never heard how they got along. Uncle Jim only had one son Weston. He was about 10 years older than me, but I never liked him. I got word that he joined the Northern Army during the Civil War, that he was promoted to be an officer of some distinction. He got home all right and soon after a rebellion broke out in West Canada and an army was sent out to put it down. A regiment was sent from Nova Scotia and Weston was in charge with the rank of Lieutennent Colonel. The trouble was soon settled but the troops were kept out there for a couple of years to straighten things up. Now the only Aunts that I can remember sisters of our father were Aunt Eliza (Mrs. John Weir) and Aunt Experience Cochran. She had two daughters, Mrs. Major Mills and Mrs. Dunbar and two sons living in Boston.
        I think our Fathers estate was the finest situated that I ever saw. It was very large in acreage and the view from the house was grand. You could look across the flats for about 8 miles, across one branch of the river to the town of Windsor, and the old log fort on the hill built by the French as a protection from the Indians. All our land was in the first place a grant from the English Government to our great grandfather, who sided with the British at the revolution. He built the old house and our Grandfather built some additions and divided the lands into farms and some small portions, it had belonged to the French who had been removed. Part of the land had been cleared and old orchards were growing on it when I was a boy. Grandfather Harvie you remember him, was alive when I left home. He used to tell me of things that occurred when he was young.
        I remember Weston’s first wife, she was a daughter of Capt Smith who owned a vessel running regular between Windsor and Boston. In the winter he would go farther south getting away from the ice. They had no family and she was always ailing. After she died he got married again and one son. He seemed a fine youngster.  He was about fifteen. My youngest girl used to correspond with him. He is about 24 now and she is the same age but she is now married and has three of a family of all girls. The last time I saw you girls you were living on the lower road going round to the old School House about ¼ mile from the Port. I noticed that you were very nicely dressed. There was a sheet of ice near your place and a lot of us boys were skating while there was a lot of young people looking on and you three girls were among them.
        Now you know that the Moshers owned besides the ship building yards most of the property in and near town, Nicholas Mosher was a member of parliament. Two of our cousins were married to Mosher girls. Do you remember a girl by the name of Joanna Mosher just my age. Well it was made up between the two families that we were to marry when we got old enough, but it never came off. She was a fine looking girl. I went to Boston soon after.
        I think your climate is similar to ours only upside down.  You are leaving the winter. I dont consider that we have any winter. A few light frosts, although 100 miles west they have both ice and snow. Everything suitable to a warm climate grows here to perfection. It is pretty hot here at times but we get the breeze off the sea nearly every day. I read a lot about Los Angelos in the papers. It seems to be a great city for sport, not only the moving pictures but prize fighting, horse racing and everything in the name of sport. Now as far as sporting goes you cant give the Aussies a back number. Now tell me something about Ellen. I got word from somewhere that she went East for a trip and was a fine looking woman and I dont know whether she was married or not and Danielena I have heard very little about her but I will expect a letter from her. Now I suppose you remember a lot of what I have been writing about, but it interests me to remember old times people and places that were familiar when we were young."

Background Note:

       In 1998 the original hand written letter, from which the above was transcribed, was held by Walter Harvie's great-granddaughter Mrs. Diane Boekenstein of Sawtell, NSW, in her Australian Harvie family memorabilia collection. It comprised nine pages neatly written in pencil on ruled note paper with limited punctuation but exhibiting a good standard of spelling. Its retention in Australia seemingly implies it was likely a draft for the actual letter. The addressee is not identified by name. Whilst not specifically identified it is apparent it was to Walter Harvie's half-sister Caroline (1850-1932) as his full sister Jane (abt. 1844 -) and his other two half-sisters Ellen (1848-1907) and Danielena (1851-1928) are mentioned. At the time of writing Caroline was living in Bakersfield in Kern County. At least one of her sons David Hill (1893-1968), who when he retired was the Head Electrican at Paramount, was then living in Hollywood and working for that movie studio. Also likely then living in Los Angeles were step-children from Caroline's late husband's first marriage,  Ivory Hill and Margaret C. Sanderson (wife of Jack), and perhaps another of Caroline's sons Chauncy Hill.
       Derived from the mention that Walter Harvie's youngest daughter (Verona) who was born on 24 May 1900 was then 24 years of age, and that the northern hemisphere was just leaving the winter, it can be dated as written in late February 1925.
       A transcript was published in 1986 in Nova Scotia in the first issue of "Harvie's Bulletin" by the Harvie Family Association of Hants County Nova Scotia that was formed after the publication in 1984 of the book by Leland Harold Harvie titled The Harvie/Harvey Family of Hants Co., Nova Scotia. That version of the letter omitted a sentence, that is included in this version, in which the writer mentioned he had last seen Caroline and her two sisters in a large group of young onlookers whilst he and several other boys were skating on a sheet of ice near where the girls lived at Avondale. It seems likely that year would have been 1859 after Walter returned for a short period to live at Avondale with two cousins before leaving for Boston from whence the following year he departed for Australia where he remained for the rest of his life.
       In respect of ice skating it may be of interest that the origins of Canada's great national game of Ice Hockey is traced to Long Pond in Windsor, just a mile or so across the river from Avondale,  where it is said boys from King's College School in Windsor first played the game. Today the Windsor Hockey Heritage Centre on Gerrish Street features artifacts, historical photos, and ice hockey history documentation.
       The  ‘old log fort on the hill’ was Fort Edward built by the British in 1750. Today only the blockhouse still stands. It is presumed Walter Harvie's reference to it as having been ‘built by the French’ would have been intended by him to convey, that as was the case, the actual construction work had been carried out by the Acadians (the term for the original French settlers in the area) before they were expelled in 1755 by the British. The reference to the view from the homestead being for 8 miles across the flats and encompassing Windsor and Fort Edward was obviously not intended to convey the house itself was situated 8 miles from Windsor - just the view.
      Whilst Harvie family lands were comprised of grants from the English government of Nova Scotia and, purchases from other grantees, the grants did not arise from support for the British side at the American Revolution that took place two decades later. Nova Scotia did send a regiment to fight on the British side and the majority of Novascotians, including Walter Harvie's great grandfather John Harvie, were sympathetic to the British cause.
      Walter's memory appears to have let him down in respect of his mention of an uncle who he said he had not personally known. He may have been saying he was named ‘Basil’ or this uncle's 3rd son was named Basil. The uncle in question was actually Andrew Harvey (1794-1872). In 1824 as his second wife he married his cousin and Walter's father's sister Abigail, and in the same year of 1851 that Walter's father died moved to Ontario. However perhaps more likely Walter may have been intending to say it was the 3rd son of this uncle Andrew who who was named Basil and had been a high school teacher in the USA . There were two sons Andrew and Abigail named Leander and Albert who as Walter correctly stated were both doctors. Their third son named Enoch was born in 1849 and moved to California. It is possible he was known as "Basil". Leander had eighteen children born between 1858 and 1883 in Ontario. The born in 1875 ninth was named Basil Coleman Hyatt Harvey Harvey and is the only Basil in the early Harvie/Harvey genealogy. In 1914 he would have been aged 39. He died in Chicago, Illinois in 1958 where he was the Professor Emeritus of Anatomy at the Medical School of the University of Chicago. A daughter of Walter's son Harold has advised her father told the family her 1914 born eldest brother had received his second given name of Basil as a result of at the time of his birth Walter Harvie receiving a letter from an overseas resident Harvie/Harvey relative named Basil Harvie. Perhaps the letter was from this Basil Harvey seeking details of Walter's Australian family? If such was the case Walter seemingly thought the letter was from the third son of Andrew and Abigail instead of from this then 39 year old grandson Basil.
     The house referred to, where the five children of Daniel Harvie were born and lived until about 1854, was on Roseway farm at Avondale that in the main was purchased by Walter's father Daniel Lockhart Harvie from his father Andrew in 1841. The original house, likely erected in the 1870's, burnt in the 1940's and was replaced with a house of very similar design. All spelling is as per the original.

Transcription from original by J. Raymond, Brisbane, Australia 1998