Claudia Smith Gives Us a Glimpse at Winters Past - theHumm November 2016
Claudia Smith Gives Us a Glimpse at Winters Past - theHumm November 2016
Sleigh bells are in the air in the latest book by local historian Claudia Smith. By Word of Mouth — Snowdrifts and Sleigh Bells captures the challenges of long ago winters in rural Lanark County and invites you to partake in the seasonal celebrations.
You will hear the crunch of snow as people go to poultry fairs, rural school concerts, shooting matches and millponds to skate. You will stand beside a horse-drawn snowplough as the teams are given a break from the heavy work and the men stamp their feet to keep warm. You will feel the bite of the wind as the rural mail sleigh bucks the drifts. And you will join the throngs of people travelling on the K&P Railway, heading home for Christmas.
School and community concerts were popular events for young and old. Billed as a “Grand Balloon Descension with Captain Santa Claus,” this 1885 extravaganza at the Almonte Town Hall featured the “descent of Santa Claus in a mammoth and beautiful balloon that was literally covered with a great variety of handsome presents.”
Skating parties were another popular winter pastime enjoyed from the “glaciarium” in Pakenham, to the flooded basement of a school, to ponds everywhere — whether on “cheese-cutters” or new, fancy skates.
By Word of Mouth — Sleigh Bells and Snowdrifts is illustrated with vintage photographs and drawings as well as a number of old postcards in full colour that are guaranteed to delight the reader. Of particular note in these postcards are the many guises of the snowman, from a World War II soldier to a snow-couple sitting romantically close on a log at a pond skating party.
This charming book is a collection of winter and Christmas articles written by Claudia, over the last 26 years, for the Lanark Era. It follows last year’s acclaimed and popular book about Lanark County barns called Barns: A Reflection of Changing Times.
The book launch will take place on Sunday, November 13 from 2 to 4pm. Come by the Middleville Community Centre to meet the author and enjoy some refreshments. There will also be book signings at the Book Nook in Perth on Saturday, November 26 from 1 to 3pm, and at Mill Street Books in Almonte on Sunday, December 11 from 1 to 3pm. All proceeds will go to the ongoing work of the Middleville Museum.
Claudia’s new book is like a favourite box of chocolates — just open it at any place and you’ll be tempted to read another and another.
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