The Harvest Train

The Harvest Train – When Maritimers Worked in the Canadian West 1890 – 1928
written by A. A. MacKenzie

Although I strive for accuracy, the last I checked I was only human. Diana Tibert.

 

The Harvest Train – When Maritimers Worked in the Canadian West 1890 – 1928

by A. A. MacKenzie
ISBN 1895415640
Pubished by Breton Books
Year December 2001
Available: Most book stores and Nova Scotia libraries.

 

This book was published in 2002 by Breton Books and includes letters and interviews from former harvesters, W. J. C. Cherwinski’s The Incredible Harvest Excursion of 1908,
song by Steve Whitty, story and song by Dan Rory MacDonald, Recollections of a Prairie Bluenose by Jane MacKay Rutherford, and The Old Harvest Train by Vincent J.
MacDonald.

 

NOTE: Paragraph 0 is the paragraph continued over from the previous page.

Index of Maritime Names

New Brunswick
Belyea, Abner of Gagetown, NB: page 48, paragraph 3
Chestnutt, Walter O. of Sussex, NB: page 10, paragraph 4; page 50, paragraph 1
Day, Frank Parker of Saint John, NB: page 22, paragraph 3 – check story – author of Rockbound
Dickeson, Herb of Taxis River, NB: page 57, paragraph 1; page 109, paragraph 0
Elliott, Mrs. of Barker’s Point, NB: page 45: paragraph 2
Hall, Louis of Taymouth, NB: page 14, paragraph 1 – check story; page 51, paragraph 0
Noble, Vern of NB: page 89, paragraph 0
Rae, Arthur of Dumfries, NB: page 49, paragraph 1

Nova Scotia
Beaton, Angus of Mabou, Cape Breton, NS: page 24, paragraph 0
Beaton, Dan N. of Antigoinish, NS: page 44: picture; page 51, paragraph 2
Barnstead, A. S. of Halifax, NS: page 57, paragraph 2
Bigelow, W. A. of Kingsport, NS: page 10, paragraph 4
Brodie, Dan of New Aberdeen, Cape Breton, NS: page 17, paragraph 5
Cairns, Amy of possibly NS: page 121, paragraph 4
Campbell, D. J. of New Glasgow, NS: page 51, paragraph 3; page 59, paragraph 1
Campbell, Edward of East Lake Ainslie: page 10, paragraph 5; page 47, paragraph 2
Campbell, Peter M. of Red Islands (is this Cape Breton or Quebec? He boarded in Quebec: page 24, paragraph 0
Carter, Harding of Stellarton, NS: page 107, paragraph 1
Chapman, Aubrey of Stellarton, NS: page 72: picture
Chapman, Fred of Stellarton, NS: page 72: picture
Collie, Mr. of possibly NS: page 21, paragraph 3
Cotton, Ernie of PEI, who lived in Trenton, NS: page 69, paragraph 3
Cunningham, Jack of possibly NS: page 11, paragraph 2
Cuttle, Lewis of Truro, NS: page 143, paragraph 1
Dennis, Mrs of Truro, NS (who married E. S. Dennis and lived on the prairies): page 48, paragraph 2
Dickie, How of Annapolis Valley, NS: page 107, paragraph 1
Fillmore, Roscoe of Amherst, NS: page 57, paragraph 4 continued onto page 58
Duncan Fraser of MacLellan’s Brook, Cumberland County or Inverness County, NS: page 10, paragraph 5
Forrester, James of Truro, NS: page 147, paragraph 3
Fraser, Mrs. J. W. of Pictou County, NS: page 118, paragraph 1
Gillis, Dan Allan of possibly Cape Breton, NS: page 19, paragraph 1; page 50, paragraph 0
Goodwin, Lee of Kingsport, NS: page 50, paragraph 0
Graham, Mrs. of Pictou County, NS: page 119, paragraph 2
Grant, A. D. of Pictou County, NS: page 49, paragraph 2
Grant, Dan J. of Morristown, NS: page 44: picture
Johnson, Crosby of Middle Stewiacke, Colchester, NS: page 53, paragraph 0
Logan, Miss of possibly Pictou County, NS: page 118, paragraph 2
MacDonald, H. M. of Antigonish, NS: page 47, paragraph 2
MacDonald, Jim of Sunny Brae, Pictou County, NS: page 10, paragraph 3
MacDonald, Joe of Baddeck, NS: page 49, paragraph 3
MacDonald, Maurice ‘Blue’ of NS: page 10, paragraph 5; page 108, paragraph 2
MacDonald, R. F. Grant of Sunny Brae, Pictou County, NS: page 10, paragraph 3
MacDonald, Vincent J. of Antigonish, NS: page 44: picture
MacDougall, Dan Rory of Cape Breton, NS: page 113, paragraph 1 and continues until page 117
MacDougall, Mike of Cape Breton, NS: page 113, paragraph 1 and continues until page 117
MacFarlane, Colin of Cape Breton, NS: page 17, paragraph 1
MacGillivray, Dan ‘Decket’ of Antigonish, NS: page 44: picture
MacGillivray, Selina of Antigonish, NS: page 46, paragraph 2
MacInnis, Dan Hugh of Antigonish, NS: page 49, paragraph 3
MacInnis, W. F. of Lyons Brook, NS: page 49, paragraph 2
MacIsaac, two men of NS: page 48, paragraph 2
MacIsaac, A. B. of possibly NS: page 49, paragraph 3
MacIvor, Archie of Baddeck, NS: page 49, paragraph 2
MacKay, A. H., NS’s Superintendent of Education: page 46, paragraph 3
MacKay, Alfred of Big Harbour, Cape Breton, NS: page 51, paragraph 1
MacKay, Phemie of Pictou County, NS: page 120, paragraph 2
MacKay, Jane of Pictou County, NS: page 48, paragraph 0; Appendix B, page 118 to 126
MacKenzie, Daniel of possibly Pictou County, NS: page 11, paragraph 1
MacKenzie, Marjorie of West River Station, Pictou County, NS: page 11, paragraph 1
McLeod, Isabel of possibly Pictou County, NS: page 11, paragraph 1
MacNaughton, Alex of Antigonish, NS: page 44: picture
MacNeil, Angus J. of Grand Narrows: page 105: picture
MacNeil, Dan C. of Lakevale, NS: page 44: picture
MacNeil, Gus of NS: page 10, paragraph 5; page 52, paragraph 3
MacNeil, Steve of Big Pond, NS: page 48, paragraph 1
MacRae, Mr. of Toney River, Pictou County, NS: page 88, paragraph 0
Mason, Stan of possibly NS: page 49, paragraph 1
Matheson, George of possibly NS: page 21, paragraph 3
Meehan, Louis of Fairmont, NS: page 44: picture
Munroe, Mar’n of Pictou County, NS: page 119, paragraph 2
Munsie of Greenhill, NS: page 120, paragraph 1; page 121, paragraph 4
Murphy, Anthony of New Glasgow, NS: page 44: picture
Murray, Jim of Black Point, NS: page 50, paragraph 1
Nelson, Miss of Shubenacadie, Colchester County, NS: page 11, paragraph 1
Oliver, George of New Annan, NS: page 95, paragraph 0
Parker, Ronald of Berwick, NS: page 73: picture
Polson, Mr. of possibly Antigonish County, NS: page 13, paragraph 1
Reid, Edna of Plainfield, NS: page 120, paragraph 2; page 121, paragraph 4
Reid, Florence of Plainfield, NS: page 120, paragraph 2
Reid, Olive of Plainfield, NS: page 120, paragraph 2; page 121, paragraph 4
Robson, Lorne of North Sydney, NS: page 11, paragraph 0; page 51, paragraph 2
Roddick, Reverend George of possibly Pictou County, NS: page 11, paragraph 2; page 118, paragraph 2
Sampson, Murdock of NS: page 10, paragraph 5
Shaw, Elizabeth Creighton of West River, Pictou County, NS: page 46, paragraph 1
Smith, Andrew of Hillsborough, Cape Breton, NS: page 156: picture
Smith, John Robert of Hillsborough, Cape Breton, NS: page 156: picture
Smith, Peter of Arisaig, NS: page 44: picture
Rutherford, Jane MacKay: see MacKay, Jane
White, William of Mull River, Inverness County, Cape Breton, NS: page 156: picture
Whitty, Steve: page 113: his Harvest Song: “Going to the Harvest”

Prince Edward Island
Cotton, Ernie of PEI, who lived in Trenton, NS: page 69, paragraph 3
Leman, Fred of Hunter River, PEI: page 139, paragraph 4 (he was killed 1908)
Taylor, Everett of Prince Edward Island: page 10; paragraph 5

Index of individuals of unknown origin or from provinces other than Atlantic Canada (not complete)

Annesley, John: page 50, paragraph 2
Blish, Charlie of Saskatchewan: page 122, paragraph 1
Brown, H. R.: page 57, paragraph 2
Campbell, Bill: page 49, paragraph 2
Campbell, John Neil: page 51, paragraph 2
Colley, James: page 56, paragraph 1
Edwards, Bob: page 110, paragraph 0
Edwards, George: page 56, paragraph 1
Fulton, Bull: page 94, paragraph 4
Gourley, Ernie: page 50, paragraph 0
Guy, Tom an Englishman: page 96, paragraph 0
Haythorne, George V. of possibly BC: page 57, paragraph 2; page 108, paragraph 2; page 110, paragraph 1
McEwen (Ewen), Tom of Winnipeg: page 108, paragraph 1
Pennington, Stanley an Englishman: page 88, paragraph 3
Peters, Walter: page 53, paragraph 1
Rutherford, John Percy of South Monaghan, Northumberland County, Ontario: page 125, paragraph 3
Stead, Robert J.: page 53, paragraph 0
Thompson, Henry R.: page 49, paragraph 2
Thompson, John Herd: page 54, paragraph 1
Yates, R. L.: page 53, paragraph 3

* * * * *

Additional Information

Whenever additional information is found on those who went west on the harvest train, it will be posted below.

 

The following obituary was posted to the Guysborough Mailing List by Doug Sinnis. He has kindly permitted me to post it here. John Robert Murray made several trips on the harvest trains.

MURRAY, John Robert: November 11, 1999, Halifax Herald (Obit #999): MURRAY, John Robert – 92, River John, passed away after a brief illness, on December 9, 1999, in Lillian Fraser Memorial Hospital, Tatamagouche. He was a son of the late Robert and Elizabeth (Murray) Murray. In the 1920s, he made several trips west on the harvest trains and spent some time in Trail, B.C. In 1928, he returned to River John, where he married, worked in the woods and fished. In 1935, he moved his family to Sudbury, Ont., where he worked in the nickel mines until 1941, when he enlisted in the RCNVR. He did convoy duty in the Atlantic and then served on the HMCS Uganda in the Pacific. He attained the rank of petty officer. In 1945, he rejoined his family in River John and for the next 30 years, was a popular and active member of the community. He was an original member of the River John Fire Department, served on the original board of directors for the Co-op, was an executive member of the Credit Union and very active in Royal Canadian Legion Branch 108. His last years were spent happily at home with his wife, enjoying the view of River John from the kitchen window and visiting with family and friends. Surviving are his wife of 70 years, the former Hilda Heighton; son, John, River John; daughters, Patricia Smith, Geraldine Hanson; sister, Mary Brooks, all of St. Catharines, Ont.; brother, Harry, Vancouver; 12 grandchildren; 24 great-grandchildren; many nieces and nephews. He will be especially missed by his granddaughter, Victoria; and great-grandchildren, Darlo and Amber. He was predeceased by an infant daughter; brothers, Herbert and Wilbur; sisters, Jean Cameron and Isabelle White. Cremation has taken place. A memorial service will be held Monday, December 13, at 2 p.m. in St. George’s Presbyterian Church, River John, Rev. Jeanette Fleisher officiating, assisted by Rev. Donald Sutherland. In lieu of flowers, donations may be made to the River John Remembrance Garden or a charity of choice. Arrangements entrusted to MacLeod’s Funeral Home, River John. (Posted to Guysborough List by Doug Sinnis)