Homesteading V

Any family has a few small memorable events as time passes.  The homesteading Lawton family in Ernfold, Saskatchewan, Canada was no exception to that.

On one occasion Will and Cora hitched up the buggy horse and drove to town for supplies.  The three children were left home alone for the afternoon.  As evening approached the children were playing upstairs in the home.  Lloyd and Floyd decided to go downstairs as it was beginning to get dark.  Lloyd, descending first, spotted what appeared to be a bear on the lower floor.  Floyd and he retreated up the stairs to their parent’s bedroom where a long gun was kept.  They loaded the gun and sat quietly on the top of the stairs hoping the bear did not attempt to climb up there searching for children to attack.  This was the scene as their parents returned and entered the home.  Lloyd and Floyd were soundly chastised for having loaded the gun in fear of a buffalo hide coat that had carelessly been left in a corner of the downstairs room.

At that time the land was barren with not a tree in sight of the homestead.  Cora said she missed that part of her former New York upbringing, so as a surprise to her Grandpa Will contacted a former neighbor back there and had a silver maple seedling sent to their home in Ernfold.  It was duly planted near the house, and lo and behold, it thrived and began to grow straight and tall.  Some of the neighbors were fascinated to see the Lawton’s tree, and it was remarked about from time to time.  It was the only tree for miles around.  Later, when the family moved on to Montana, Cora wanted to take the tree with her, but Grandpa told her it would only die so it was left behind.  I wonder if it grows there yet?

After seven years on the Ernfold homestead, in 1918 the family moved on to the Glasgow, Montana area to yet another homestead, but that’s a story for another time.