A River Runs Through It

Many of you have likely read – or watched the film adaptation of – Norman Maclean’s book “A River Runs Through It”. The elegiac work tells the story of Maclean and his brother growing up in Montana in the 1920s. In many instances the beauty of the book comes from the depictions of Maclean and his brother fly fishing. In Maclean’s words; "In our family, there was no clear line between religion and fly fishing." We think the same was true for William Venning.

This beautiful collection of salmon and trout fishing flies were tied by William Venning in the 1880s. Each fly is a small masterpiece, carefully constructed of materials such as bird feathers, badger hair, horse hair, and wool. Vening was obviously a master of the art –even the placement of the flies in their frame shows a flair for the artistic.

Where did Venning learn his craft? He was born at Smiths Creek in July of 1822. Smiths Creek, like much of Kings County, is a place shaped by water. No doubt it was here that William Venning first tested his skill as a fisherman. This interest would lead to his becoming a great fly-fishing enthusiast but, more importantly, it would also lead him to become the first Inspector of Fisheries for the Maritime Provinces.

Venning held the post of Maritime Inspector of Fisheries for 22 years, from the late 1860s to the 1890s. He is an oft cited source in publications of the day throughout Canada and even in fisheries policy in the Northeastern US. He contributed to many of the early studies of Maritime waters and to early fishing policies.

Mr. Venning, however, was not always the peaceful fisherman by the still waters. In 1883 he managed to seriously ruffle some feathers when he was charged by three men – James Steadman, Edgar Hanson, and James Dewolfe Spurr – for trespass and assault. All three laid charges against Venning “for forcibly seizing and taking away their fishing rods and lines, while they were engaged in fly-fishing for salmon in front of their respective lots.” All three claimed riparian rights that allowed them to fish salmon on their property without a license. Venning obviously disagreed, citing an Order-in-Council of June 11th, 1879, in section 19 of the Fisheries Act which read: "Fishing for salmon in the Dominion of Canada, except under the authority of leases or licenses from the Department of Marine and Fisheries is hereby prohibited."

The matter went to the Supreme Court of New Brunswick where Venning was found guilty and assessed to pay damages of $3000 to Steadman, $1200 to Hanson and $1000 to Spurr. The amounts are staggering – those must have been some pretty incredible fishing rods and lines. The matter did not stop there; it was taken to the Supreme Court of Canada. They too found Venning in the wrong but they all agreed that the damages assigned were excessive:

The damages here are entirely out of proportion to the wrong. No actual damage was done, except in the case of Spurr, by the seizure and taking away of the rod and the slight injury to the plaintiff's thumb in a struggle, which, according to the evidence of Mr. Burbidge, he engaged in as a practical joke. The whole proceeding seems to have been formal, and to have been so understood by all parties. Nothing like contumely or insult is complained of. The exhibition of a pistol, mentioned in the cases of Hanson v. Venning and Steadman v. Venning, was wrong, but even in these cases, too, the whole matter seems to have been preconcerted and understood between the parties.

Slight injury to a thumb… and possibly the appearance of a pistol?  That is a serious commitment to salmon no matter how you look at it.

Despite this misadventure Venning continued in his role as Fisheries Inspector for the Maritimes for several more years. The donor of this artefact believes it was towards the end of Venning's tenure that he created this particular arrangement of flies. The donor noted that the piece hung on the wall of the family home, “Hillcroft”, throughout her childhood, moving with her several times in later years. It was during one of these moves that the ‘key’ detailing the name of each carefully numbered fly was lost. Thankfully, we have a wonderful fly tier in our neck of the woods who has helped us identify some of these beautiful pieces (thank you Don Logan!); but even for experienced eyes, some of the flies defy identification – possibly because they were Venning’s own creations.

Fishing flies developed by a careful eye, a steady hand... and a lifetime of experience on the rivers of Kings County.

 

Top center, #3 - "Montreal"

 

#32 - "Royal Coachman"

 

#34 - "Parmachene Belle"



 

The Boys of Summer

In a photograph collection with hundreds of standout images, this one is an absolute favorite.

In 1932, the men of the Hampton Baseball Club made local history by winning the Kings County League (Western Section) Championship. To mark the event, the players posed for Saint John photographer Charles Conlon in a professional shot that captured the winning team alongside their elegant trophy.

The photo is interesting for a number of reasons, chief of which is the professional look of the team. The players are well suited with fine uniforms sporting the “HBC” logo of their club; they are not a rag tag group in second-rate jerseys and equipment. These were players in a well-organized and well-supported league even though, at the time of the photo, Canada was in the depths of the Great Depression. Money was desperately scarce, but the community of Hampton still put its best foot forward, supporting its team and their efforts. The worries of the day do not seem to penetrate here; this winning team poses proudly, secure in their win and their position within the community.

This prominent standing is also demonstrated by the inclusion of the player names on the picture mount (names that are still to be found in Hampton today, such as Bovaird, Dixon, Ryan, Fairweather). There was obvious pride in this local achievement, enough that each man was individually recognized on the final picture (we have a good selection of team photos within our collection – this was rarely the case!)

Part of the fanfare for this Hampton team was due, of course, to baseball’s incredible popularity at this period. And much of baseball’s popularity was due in great part to the performance of Babe Ruth. In fact, 1932 was especially historic for Ruth and his New York Yankees: they won the World Series and on their road to victory (in Game 3 of the series) Babe Ruth ‘called’ his shot, pointing to the center field bleachers as he came to bat, indicating that he would hit a home run….. which he did. A legendary act that has had sports fans talking ever since.

Can this local baseball club with their Kings County Western Division win compare to the feats of players like Babe Ruth and his New York Yankees? No. But what they accomplished at this time is still worthy of celebration. In difficult times, a local win like this brought people together, raising the spirits of all, just as Babe Ruth’s plays did for thousands of fans during the Depression. And though none of the names on this picture would ever attain the fame of a player like Babe Ruth, they did accomplish something Ruth did not – in the following year, they won their league championship again.

This is the winning ball that records the Hampton Baseball Club's next victory in 1933.

For a beautiful online exhibit of sporting moments in New Brunswick’s history, check out “Balls, Bats & Boats” by our friends at the New Brunswick Museum. An incredible collection of images and stories from New Brunswick’s sporting past!

An interesting side note for sports fans: Babe Ruth attributed much of his training and talent to one of the teachers at his Catholic school, Brother Matthias. Brother Matthias’ real name was Martin Boutilier and he was born in Cape Breton, Nova Scotia in 1872.

Hamm & Biscuits

A cookbook always offers great ideas and techniques but today’s artefact holds the recipe for Kings County business connections.

The advertisement at right comes from the 20^th Century Tiger Tea Cookbook. The book is filled with recipes, remedies, and advertisements for foodstuffs, including this ad for “Philip N. Hamm Biscuits” of Moncton, NB. The name of the manufacturer—and the history of his company—demonstrate the unique family connections that existed between so many of New Brunswick’s prominent merchants at this time in our history.

Philip Nase Hamm was a son of Matthias Hamm, a merchant who worked at the store of Philip Nase in Indiantown (Saint John West). Matthias Hamm was not just Mr. Nase’s clerk – they were brothers-in-law as Philip Nase had married Elizabeth Mary Hamm in March of 1847. Philip Nase’s diary entry for April 1, 1854 records the details:

I took Matthias Hamm, my wife’s youngest brother, in partnership in Business at I. Town, he having been acting Clerk with me since March 8/49.

Matthias worked as Philip Nase’s clerk until the summer of 1854 when an epidemic changed things for both businessmen; from the Nase Diary July 1854:

Cholera set in at St John and vicinity, proved most fatal in Portland, St. John Co. Inhabitants left Portland and Indiantown in hundreds for the surrounding country, we closed store and left for Nerepis where we remained three or four weeks at the end of which time I purchased my Father’s farm at Nerepis, sold stock to Mr. Hamm and Wm. G. H. Nase, brother and brother-in-law, and moved on the farm, 1^st Sep /54.

Philip Nase would remain in Nerepis for twelve years while Matthias Hamm ran Nase’s store. Not until 1867 would Nase return to Saint John, buying the store back from Matthias Hamm to run the business with his growing family as P. Nase & Sons.

Matthias Hamm, meanwhile, was growing his own family; his son Philip Nase Hamm was born in November 1862 and, as you can guess, the son was named for Matthias’ brother-in-law and business partner. Along with his names, young Philip Nase Hamm seemed to inherit the business acumen of both the Nase and Hamm merchants. Philip N. Hamm worked with his father for several years and then began his own business, the Philip N. Hamm Moncton Biscuit Works.

The Biscuit Works advertisement is a wonderful moment captured in time: from the crossed Union Jack and Red Ensign flags at its top to the image of the powerful steam engine, Philip N. Hamm was sending a careful message – this was a company prepared for the new demands of a proud, growing community. The list of biscuit offerings alone – a list whose final items states “And 100 other” options – shows that this is a businessman prepared for its customers.

The most telling feature of the advertisement for many New Brunswick consumers, however, would have been captured most clearly in the owner’s name – a union of two merchant histories that were well known and respected throughout the region.

The Diary of Philip Nase (1836-1885) quoted above was recently transcribed and printed by the Kings County Historical Society with the kind permission of the Nase family. It is a wonderful document, capturing over fifty years of business, political, and place history along the Lower Saint John River. From the first steamship trip up the river each year, to Abraham Lincoln's assassination, to intimate details of New Brunswick village life, Nase captured it all!

Copies of the book are available for purchase from the Kings County Museum for $20.

Wait a minute Mr. Postman!

As far as postal crimes go, this was a biggie.

In 1932, Hampton Postmaster R.H. Smith had a problem. The Christmas trade in his village post office had been brisk and many a letter or postcard had been mailed to celebrate the season. Now, a new year was here but no new ½ cent stamps had arrived for him to sell. What was a busy postmaster to do?

Well, Robert H. Smith took it upon himself to correct the issue. He grabbed his scissors and some 1 cent stamps, and then he cut those stamps in half and sold each half as a ½ cent stamp.

Cue the dramatic music: “Dunh dunh dahhhhhh!!!!

Cutting a stamp into sections in this way is kind of like ripping a $10 bill in half to pay for a $5 item; it’s just not done. In very few instances has such an activity ever been allowed by the postal service.  And yet, R.H. Smith, a reliable man of the town, long in the position of postmaster, took out his shears and

Snip!

Such stamps, known today as ‘bisects’ or ‘splits’, are the rare birds of stamp collecting. The practice was so uncommon that these stamps– if still affixed to their envelopes with cancellation for proof of mailing – can garner thousands of dollars at auction or through dealers. Thanks to Mr. Smith, we hold two such letters in our collection, both from early January 1932.

To our knowledge, R.H. never got into any serious trouble for his wanton act and he continued on as postmaster in Hampton until his death in 1938. He was buried in the Hampton Rural Cemetery next to the love of his life, wife Sadie (Hicks) Smith (interestingly, among our archives are numerous love letters R.H. wrote to his beloved Sadie – it seems he may have been his own best customer!)

So, if you tire of email and choose to send a letter by regular mail, do yourself a favor; leave the scissors at home.

If you’re like us, you've probably been humming a certain tune since you read the title of today’s blog. Go ahead and have a listen here. If only the Marvellettes had been around 30 years earlier to caution Postmaster Smith!