September 2005 - Vol Five, No.10

History Helps, Volume Five, Number 10, September 2005
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GREETINGS!

Back to School

I was surprised to find that the institution of kindergarten had existed so early.

“LADNER KINDERGARTEN

In order to convince an unbelieving world that we are not behind the age we have our kindergarten.

The design of these youthful seminaries of learning is to reach very young children by means of object lessons that inform the eye without overtaxing the young intellect These are to be interspersed with light calisthenics, sewing, singing, etc.

An institution of this kind has been a long felt want, for besides the benefit to the children themselves, the boon it confers upon mothers who have much housework to do, cannot be overestimated. It relieves them from the care of these very young children during just those hours of the day when their work is most pressing and [therefore] the establishment of a kindergarten ought to be hailed by them with joy and thankfulness.

Of course the success of such an institution will depend largely upon the management and it is therefore with pleasure we hear that the two ladies who have taken hold of it are Miss Nellie Harris, daughter of F. W. Harris, and Miss Ethel Green, daughter of C. F. Green, clerk of the municipality. These young ladies have been long, well and favorably known amongst us for their energy and good judgment in our many public social affairs. Both are talented and accomplished, and there is no doubt that their association with the garten [sic] will give it the confidence of the parents of our ‘kinder.’

I am authorized to state that the terms of the garten will be as follows. One child per month, $1.50; two children, $2.50; age, 3 years up to school age; hours, from 10 a.m. to 3 p.m.”

Source: Vancouver Daily World, 14 September 1898, page seven.

When (and Why) Did We Stop Doing This?

“Annual School Visit

Delta school trustees will make their annual visit to all the schools in the municipality on May 6 and 7, it was decided at a meeting of the school board last Saturday night.”

Source: The Ladner Optimist, 16 April 1953, page eight.

Finding Out of Print Books

As “History Helps” seems to be becoming increasingly subscriber-contributed, I’m including, with permission and with thanks, this suggestion from Annette Fulford:

“I found a great site for searching for older books that are hard to find. It is AbeBooks at http://www.abebooks.com/ .

When I was researching war brides of the First World War I had a hard time finding anything in the library catalogues because the books were not designated as written by war brides. I was able to put in the term "war bride" in the search engine at AbeBooks and many books could be found, including the ones I wished for from World War One war brides. I was then able to find these titles at the Vancouver Public Library, which I borrowed through Interlibrary loan.

Hopefully, this will help someone else in their research quest.”

Local Genealogical Research

Here’s a recently published book that you may find helpful in your research:

“Planning a Genealogy Trip to the Vancouver Area: A Finding Aid to Historical Sources in British Columbia’s Southwest Corner Compiled by Judith Argent, Edited by Stephanie Kurmey. This comprehensive handbook will guide family historians and genealogists to all currently known resources for family history records in the Vancouver and lower mainland areas. The guide is arranged by geographic regions, which enables the user to zero in on a particular area of interest. Indexed alphabetically as well as by subject, this handbook is user friendly, in a handy spiral bound 5 1/2" x 8 1/2" size, with approximately 329 pages. It holds a wealth of information for those seeking to complete their family trees in the Greater Vancouver area. Due for publication in July $15 per copy or $19 mailed ISBN 0-9692197-5-X Cloverdale Branch, 5642-176A St. Surrey, BC V3S 4G9, (604) 576-1384 Ext. 6 Fax: (604) 576-0120
http://www.spl.surrey.bc.ca/
email - genealogyresearch@city.surrey.bc.ca

Weather Information, aka Meteorological Glossary

Of what use could this website possibly be? Well, it told me what a “silver thaw” was. Who knows what you might need to consult it for.

http://amsglossary.allenpress.com/glossary

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Gwen Szychter, M.A.

P.S. Here's a favour you can do for me: If you liked this newsletter and found it helpful or just interesting, please pass it on to a friend or colleague. Thank you.