From: David Tinker <dtinker@blunile.guild.org>
  To  : Granville Times <dtinker@blunile.guild.org>
  Date: Tue, 2 Feb 1999 22:48:37 -0400 (AST)

The Granville Times, Vol. 3, No. 1

The Granville Times
Vol. 3 No. 1
February 2, 1999

It is hard to believe that Groundhog Day has come already.  I'm not sure I
fully realised that Christmas was over!  I will devote this issue to an
account of some of the Christmas doings in Annapolis and vicinity.

The first really special event to describe was the winter meeting of the
Historical Society.  From the 1920's to the 1950's, one of the leading
lights of the Society was a remarkable lady named Charlotte Perkins.  In
1951 she presented a 'magic lantern' show at the Fort Anne museum, with
slides made from photographs dating back to the 1850's, of scenes along St.
George street, the main street of the town (and the oldest thoroughfare in
Canada).  Remarkably, all the glass slides have been preserved, and not only
that, but a tape recording of the event survived.  This material was
transferred to modern media by Ernest Dick, the retired chief archivist of
the CBC, and now a local resident.  The quality of both the slides and the
audio was superb.

As well, Ern and a local photographer painstakingly calculated the exact
location of the camera that produced each of the historic photos, and took a
modern day photograph from the same points. The new slides were incorporated
into a presentation by Charlotte Perkins' successor as dean of local
historians, Dr. James How.  Thus we were treated to a live multimedia
presentation by the late Charlotte Perkins and James How, describing a
century and a half of life in Annapolis as recorded in streetscapes.  It was
a fantastic show.  The November show only covered the town from the lower
end of the street to the Fort.  The second half of the presentation is to
take place in a couple of weeks.  Fortunately the whole thing is being
videotaped and it will be shown and perhaps marketed by the Historical
Society, so that our summer visitors may be able to see it.

Two more events of note - first, the Christmas variety show at the King's
Theatre, made notable by the abundance of highly talented performers who
live in this area.  In a big city, it would compete with the high-priced
commercial events and be lost in the shuffle, but here the whole community
can come together to perform and/or be entertained.  Next, the annual
Victorian Christmas at the O'Dell House museum.  Let me try to give a word
picture of this.  If it seems to have been written in 1858 rather than 1998,
it's because we seemed to pass through a time-warp on the way to the inn.

We hurry down St. George street from our 'carriage' parked at the market
square - hurry because it is pitch dark and freezing, and a raw wind blows
off the river just a few feet to our left, sending scurries of snow along
the street, lit only by stars and the soft light from the old Georgian
houses along the waterside; inside them, scenes of Christmas cheer can be
glimpsed or imagined.  With considerable relief we arrive at the O'Dell inn,
and as we enter, the heat from the wood stove in the front room feels very
welcome.  The room is crowded with people, most dressed up in the very
latest fashions for 1859.  The innkeeper seems familiar, only because he is
so like the jolly host so well described in Mr. Dickens' new novel. The
house is well lit with candles and oil lamps, and after taking a glass of
rum punch in the public room, we move to the parlour.  There the young
Misses O'Dell and Ritchie are hosting a musical evening, with fiddles and
flutes and Mr. O'Dell's new parlour organ, brought over on the packet boat
from Boston.  All join in the old carols, made more sweet by the friendship
and affection shared with old friends.  Then we hurry into the kitchen,
where the cook and a footman labour with might and main before a woodstove
that is practically red hot, turning out pastries and sweet treats for the
guests.  How good these taste!  It is well that the stove is glowing,
because the cold wind blows though the windows and cracks in the old house. 
How fortunate we are that electric lights and airtight houses and central
heating and television have not yet been invented!

Christmas Eve in Annapolis Royal is always wonderful.  We began it with the
carol-singers, an impromptu choir who travel down the main street, stopping
at every house and shop along the way to give noisy and enthusiastic
renditions.  And of course it ends for us with Christmas Eve at St. Luke's
church.  Music is a major part of the spiritual experience of Christmas, and
it is a remarkable pleasure to be able to perform, even for a mediocre tenor
like myself.  But this year, Katie Tinker had a major part in the Christmas
Eve music, and her soaring descants on the violin inspired our choir to
reach musical heights we didn't know were possible - it was, indeed, a
stirring and beautiful service.  Then outside into the still night, with the
lights of the village of Granville Ferry shining on the water.

What would Christmas be without the Christmas bird count?  This year I was
persuaded to organise the count, and as a result I can give you the article
I wrote for the Annapolis Spectator.  This I shall do, but before closing I
want to particularly tell our Ontario friends that, except for the weather
that you will read about below, this has been a wonderfully mild and snow-
free winter in Nova Scotia.  Oh, we have had occasional snowfalls, just
enough to make it picturesque, and that brief cold snap at New Year's, but
no major blizzards (yet).  On my birthday a week or so ago, it was 18
degrees and sunny with balmy southerly breezes.  The Annapolis Valley was
the warmest spot in Canada!  Just thought you'd like to know that ;-). 
Right now it's a bit cooler, but no snow is in evidence.  And so, with the
following article I bid you,

So long till next issue.

David

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 David O. Tinker                    |   E-Mail address:
 4311 Granville Road, Box 2030A,    |         dtinker@tartannet.ns.ca
 RR 2, Granville Ferry, Nova Scotia |   Alternate E-Mail address:
 B0S 1K0                            |         dtinker@blunile.guild.org
                                    |   Voice: (902) 532-2916
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 ***  Plan now to visit the "Port Royal 400" Celebrations in 2005 ! ***
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Wintry Weather Affects Christmas Bird Count

The Annapolis Field Naturalists' Society annual Christmas bird count took
place on January 2, in very severe weather conditions.  Temperatures of -20
in the morning, 50 kph winds and blowing snow made for a hard day, both for
birds and birdwatchers - the birds were laying low, and many potential field
observers did likewise, or made abbreviated trips.  These factors
contributed to unusually low counts of both species (53) and individual
birds (4255). These were the lowest numbers recorded in the 10 years of the
Society's annual counts, though the severe 1992-93 winter produced results
that were not much better.  Nevertheless 24 hardy field observers braved the
storm, and 70 more faithfully monitored their feeding stations, and some
interesting sightings were reported.

The unusually mild fall and early winter contributed to several records of
birds that would normally be in the sunny south at this season: Kestrel (3),
Northern Flicker (2), Grackle (1), Cowbird (2), Robin (21), Song Sparrow
(32), White-Throated Sparrow (5) and most notably, Yellow-Rumped Warbler
(8). However the winter finches normally so abundant in December were seen
in low numbers.  Only one large flock of Evening Grosbeaks was sighted, and
only 35 Purple Finch.  Again this year the large number (306) of Mourning
Doves reflects the remarkable population increase of this species in our
area. Other notable sightings included a Barred Owl, a Black Scoter (on the
river above the causeway!), and two Red-Breasted Nuthatches.  The seabird
count was adversely affected by the severe conditions and poor visibility in
the Bay, but Loons, Red Breasted Mergansers, Goldeneyes, Buffleheads,
Oldsquaws and Black Ducks were seen in encouraging numbers.
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