WINTER IN MUSKOKA AT LAST - GOOD FINDS ON THE ANTIQUE TRAIL - CANADIAN SYMBOLS BACK ON TRACK
BLUSTERY WEATHER AND AN AILING VAN, BUT WE MADE IT BACK HOME
THE HALLMARK OF THE COLLECTOR? THE UNDENIABLE SIGN OF A TRUE ANTIQUE HUNTER? YOU BET! A VAN FULL, I MEAN FULL-UP OF NEAT STUFF! A 1930'S BAKE TABLE WITH FLOUR DRAWER, TWO SMALL PINE TABLES, A NICE VINTAGE GLASS VASE, (PROBABLY AN AMERICAN FACTORY PIECE), A VERY OLD PINE PICTURE FRAME THAT WILL FIT A SMALL ORIGINAL, OIL-ON-MASONITE (LANDSCAPE) I BOUGHT LAST WEEK. WE SECURED A COUPLE OF NEAT HAMILTON, ONTARIO, COLLECTIBLE TOOTHPICK HOLDERS (WE THINK), MADE IN GERMANY, DEPICTING THE CITY COURTHOUSE, AND THE OTHER THE C.N.R. STATION WITH A STEAM ENGINE, WITH PASSENGER CARS, ARRIVING AT THE PLATFORM. I PURCHASED TWO VINTAGE MILITARY PHOTOGRAPHS, ONE DATING BACK TO WORLD WAR I, AN UNIDENTIFIED CANADIAN BATTALION (SEE PIC), AND THE OTHER A "ROYAL CANADIAN AIR FORCE MANNING DEPOT, FEB. 1941 - PERMANENT SECURITY GUARD TRAINING CLASS."
AS FOR OUR ONGOING CHALLENGE TO FIND CANADIAN SYMBOLS, ON ANTIQUES AND COLLECTIBLES WE FIND ON OUR WEEKLY HUNTS, TODAY WAS MARKEDLY BETTER THAN LAST WEEK…..WHEN WE "GOT SKUNKED." FOUND ABSOLUTELY NOTHING, EXCEPT A LEAK IN OUR POWER STEERING PUMP. I WAS ALSO DEALING WITH THAT TODAY IN THE MIDST OF A SNOWSTORM WITH GALE FORCE WINDS. THANKFULLY IT WASN'T COMPLETELY CYCLONIC, BECAUSE I'D HAVE FOLLOWED MY BASEBALL CAP INTO THE SKY, WITH AN OIL BOTTLE IN MY HAND. EVERY TIME WE HAVE CAR TROUBLE IT'S IN A VIOLENT SNOW STORM. SHOULD HAVE STAYED HOME BUT YOU KNOW, I JUST COULDN'T. WE MADE SOME GOOD FINDS, AND I WAS ABLE TO MAKE A CONTACT WITH A FRIEND WHO OWNS NUMEROUS RICHARD KARON PAINTINGS…..AND HAS AGREED TO SHARE THEM, FOR THE ARTIST'S BIOGRAPHY I'M PREPARING FOR THIS SITE, TO BE PUBLISHED LATER THIS MONTH. MR. KARON WAS A WELL KNOWN ARTIST, WHO HAD A STUDIO NEAR THE VILLAGE OF BAYSVILLE, ONTARIO, IN THE TOWNSHIP OF LAKE OF BAYS. IF I'D LET A LITTLE SNOW THROW US OFF OUR GAME…..I'D HAVE MISSED THIS CHANCE MEETING, AND SOME VERY CONTENTING ACQUISITIONS AS WELL. TRUTH IS, I LOOK FORWARD TO OUR ANTIQUING WEEKENDS, AND I HAVEN'T MISSED ON IN OVER A DECADE. SUZANNE IS A TEACHER, SO OUR SUMMER ADVENTURES ARE SEVEN DAYS A WEEK, INSTEAD OF THESE TWO DAY EVENTS, WHILE SHE'S WORKING.
Back in January, my wife and I decided to challenge ourselves as antique dealers. Sometimes we have to do this kind of thing, to shake off complacency. We thought it would be neat, to follow the lead of a book, released some years back, entitled "The Maple Leaf Forever - A Celebration of Canadian Symbols," by Donna and Nigel Hutchins," published in 2006 by The Boston Mills Press. The fabulously illustrated, large format book, profiles many of the most recognized national symbols, dating back well into the 1800's, and progressively pronounced through the 1900's. The early pieces were not just souvenirs, but signs of a budding sense of of national identity, and pride in a fledgling nation. So it's not uncommon to find many of these symbols, depicted in early Canadian folk art, ranging from pine carvings, whirly-gigs, quilts and handcrafted rugs, to weather-vanes and food packaging labels…..many of those being designed by some of Canada's soon to be "Group of Seven" artists…..such as A.J. Casson. We decided to try our hand at hunting for these nationalistic pieces ourselves, and share our finds with readers. We decided to do this symbol hunt over the course of one year, but for the July 1st, Canada Day celebration, we also planned to show our halfway-there progress. The trick here, is that there are three defining symbols we're looking for……the beaver, the maple leaf, and the image, insignia etc., of the Royal Canadian Mounted Police. We have been going at a snail's pace so far this winter, with only a few venues open, to browse for these treasures. We've made finds on all but one weekend so far. Today I was able to get a nice circa 1967, Canadian Centennial Plate, marking the country's Confederation 1867-1967, with the image of the "Fathers of Confederation." A border of provincial crests is composed of the shields, connected by a wreath of maple leaves. The commemorative plate was made by Wood & Sons of England. Cost, $2.00. The second find, which is much newer but an important resource book for us (we hunt for maple syrup related antiques), is entitled "The Maple Syrup Book," by Janet Eagleson & Rosemary Hasner, published by Boston Mills Press, in 2006. As a good condition used book, it cost us $7.00. The maple leaf is clearly visible on one of the maple syrup bottles, pictured on the front cover. We have a number of books on Maple Syrup production, and seeing as we are in an area where there are a significant number of sugar bushes, and many pioneer pieces still surfacing at farm and estate auctions, we like to have as many guide books like this as possible. This book offers a mix of new pictures, but blends them with images of maple syrup collectibles, including First Nations birch bark containers, wooden spiles and artifacts related to maple syrup making in Canada. As I've written about before, I could very easily opt to live in a sugar shack for the rest of my life. The great joy of the season, here in Muskoka, is to be invited to a sugar bush, when the sap is being boiled down. The allure of the woodlands, and the sweet smell of syrup in production…..did I mention the wood smoke, makes it truly, and naturally intoxicating. So I was happy to get this book, to add to my collection, with the small assortment of maple candy molds we found on our travels in Muskoka. As a long time reporter for the Muskoka and regional press, I have written many feature stories on maple syrup making in these beautifully haunted Canadian woodlands…..so this seven dollar investment, will help with research, on my very next call to the sugar bush.
Canadian Landscape artist, Tom Thomson - and what a nice find
In July 1917, an up and coming Canadian landscape artist, vanished while traversing (Ontario's) Algonquin Park's Canoe Lake. His canoe was found short while after he had left the dock at the Mowat Hotel, heading out for a short fishing trip on another lake. An experienced canoeist, on a perfectly calm summer day, it is alleged Tom Thomson fell out of his canoe, while having a pee over the side. At least this is what some folks have suggested as the cause of his fall into the water. Tipping from the canoe, hitting his head on the gunnel, entering the water unconscious. There was no water found in his lungs. His body was found floating between two islands, about a week after he went missing. The hastily arranged, and incomplete coroner's report, concluded Thomson had been the victim of accidental drowning. The ink wasn't even dry on the coroner's signature, on that conclusive, official document, before area residents were claiming it was more likely, the artist had been killed by someone he knew, also residing in the lakeside community of Mowat. This and the fact that Thomson's body was exhumed from the Mowat Cemetery, where it was buried, and shipped for re-burial in the family's plot, in the village of Leith (near Owen Sound). Thomson had actually been buried before the coroner could have a look at the body. The Thomson family wanted their son home, and Tom's brother George, is said to have made arrangements with a local undertaker, to handle the exhumation.
The coroner, at the inquest, had relied solely on hearsay, as there had been no witnesses to the mishap. Key testimony was provided by those who found the body, including a written report (from the on-shore autopsy) from Dr. Howland, who was cottaging on the lake at the time. An impromptu exhumation, by researchers into Thomson's death, in the mid 1950's, found that the Mowat gravesite, that had once belonged to the Canadian artist, as a final resting place, was found to have a casket and a body within. A supposedly empty plot wasn't empty at all. So for decades the question thusly has been, "is Thomson's body still in Algonquin Park?" "Or is he buried in the family plot in Leith, Ontario?" One revered Canadian artist. Two graves. It's still a mystery that inspires several books each decade, but never answering the question. If one was to leave flowers……would they be placed atop the plot in Leith, or on the still-occupied grave in Mowat (Canoe Lake)? There has never been a conclusive examination of the gravesite in Leith, to prove once and for all, Tom Thomson's body was returned home. This is a thumbnail history of Thomson's demise, and all the interesting situations that have developed since that tragic day, when Canada lost one of its most promising painters. You can read more about the Tom Thomson mystery, in a series of fully researched articles (published in Curious; The Tourist Guide originally) you can archive, on my Muskoka and Algonquin Ghosts blogside, by clicking on……..http://hauntedmuskoka.blogspot.com/
The reason for this little intro, is that I have just secured a copy of small book, the second one written about Tom Thomson, originally published in 1937, twenty years after his sudden death. The first book, was being researched in the late 1920's, courtesy a Canadian historian / biographer, by the name of Blodwen Davies. I believe her book came out in the early 1930's. She was the first writer to suggest, there was ample evidence, Tom Thomson had been murdered. In fact, she raised her concerns about this, to the Ontario Provincial Police, but they refused to re-open the case. This was after she had conducted many interviews of area residents, who had known and worked with Thomson, while he stayed on Mowat Lodge property. He worked from a small cabin on the property. I own a later printing of this book, but as a rigorous Thomson researcher, who also believes the artist was murdered by Mowat Lodge hotelier Shannon Fraser, my file remains open to any new information. I've published four feature series in regional publications, over the past dozen years, and the one book I've wanted to own, for my Tom Thomson collection, has continued to evade me. This afternoon, I was looking through the old and out of print books at a local shop, here in Gravenhurst, and by golly, there it was. It is a tiny green cloth-covered, hardcover copy, of Albert H. Robson's book, entitled simply, "Tom Thomson," published by the Ryerson Press, in Toronto. It was the first time in the study of Tom Thomson, that a publication paid for a collection of full color re-prints of his art panels. It isn't a big book, but it carries quite a bit of weight in terms of the early celebration of this artist's work.
Tom Thomson was one of the founders of the Canadian Group of Seven artists, although he died before it became an official art movement. The impressions of nature, by the Group of Seven, with Thomson's work considered part of this new and exciting expression of nationalism, were not well accepted by many of the mainstream art critics of the time, who preferred more classic, conservative landscapes. It has been said of Group of Seven art panels, that you could hear the wind rushing through the pine forests, and smell the hardwood hillsides, and feel the spray of waves crashing in a turbulent lake. It has been said of Thomson's depiction of the Northern Lights, that it inspired feelings of cold, isolation and loneliness. They were unconventional art panels to some…..a refreshing, liberating escape from tradition, for others…..some of them, even considered themselves bold and boisterous fans, of this artistic liberation. Several were connected to the major art galleries of the country…..proud to acquire these exciting new depictions of the nature of Canada.
I was very pleased to have found this evasive book, on Tom Thomson, that I would like to share with you, in tomorrow's blog. It was worth going out into the bitter cold, pushing back against the strong wind, and even having to keep refilling the power steering fluid reservoir, just to get back home…….with this little book in tow. Us antique hunters are crazy folk. As it is known, the antique profession attracts eccentrics……, well, by golly, we fit right in.
Thanks for joining me for this antique-hunting blog. If you think you might like to know a little bit more about one of Canada's legendary artists (who has two graves by the way), as noted in this hard to find little text, please reconnect tomorrow, and I'll share the story with you.
Goodnight John-Boy!
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