11 October 2010

Download Stories from Sam

Cover of book
Stories from Sam: 
The Barters of Avondale and the 
Orsers of Hartland, New Brunswick
By Samuel G Barter, et al

This 90-page compilation of tales and memoirs by my great-grandfather, Samuel G Barter (1871-1963), paints a vivid portrait of early days in Carleton County.

The chapter on the history of Avondale NB has been expanded to include excerpts from a 1972 CBC Radio interview with Sam's daughter Jane in which she recalls her childhood (at the turn of the last century) in what was then a bustling little village. "We had straw rides and we had skating parties. We'd go down to the pond... and have torch parades on the ice and have logs on the edge of the pond to sit on for seats. The boys would help us with our skates and we'd take a lunch down sometimes if we could sneak it out of the house."

An abridged and updated version of Sam's A short history of the Orser family, last published in 1951, is included as well. Sam's mother was Trecia Orser. (And, by the way, an Orser relative wrote me a while back saying "The first record of the family goes back to a single man [and his subsequent spouse] at approximately 1637.")

Some of the PDF files are large and may take a while to download.


Foreword

Avondale — A turn-of-the-last-century boomtown!
The development of the hamlet of Avondale NB up until the early 1900s and beyond.

The Barters — From seafarers to landlubbers
In 1855, James M Barter and his wife, Mary Ann Mills, became the first landowners in Avondale; Sam traces his forefathers back to about 1750 in Devonshire, England.

Once upon a time, many years ago... Tales from my father
Sam Barter certainly loved a good story and in 1930 his second child, Florence, faithfully recorded a number of his tales. Of the three presented here, one is quite widely known; it is about a witch in Tennant’s Cove NB sometime during the years 1816-1820.

Sam Barter — A noble life
Sam’s own life story, as he recounted it at the age of 59, paints a remarkable picture of rural life that is now long gone.

Sam’s Great War
Sam kept diaries and journals while in France during World War I which provide a first-hand account of the horrors in the European Theatre. "August 10, 1918: I came to where the German front line had been... Soon came upon five dead Germans just as they had died in a machine gun pit. One had his face all smashed so no nose showed... "

Diary of three sons of old New Brunswick in Paris, 1918
Will Barter’s account of three brothers on the loose in recently-liberated Paris.

A short history of the Orser family
Of interest to Sam because his mother was an Orser, this story detailing the origins of “Hartland’s first family” includes episodes during the American Rebellion.

Orser family beginnings in New Nederland
Excerpts from Daniel Turner’s 600-page take on the family genealogy help clarify and broaden the background of the NB Orsers.

Moving along... Jane, Peggy and Ted
All about my grandmother, Jane Barter, and my mother (who were both truly remarkable women for their times) along with a brief biography of my father who was a British Homechild.

Note: Documents linked from above are copyright.

© 2009, Charles Edward Allen Reynolds (except excerpts from other works as noted)
ISBN 978-0-9812818-0-3