RECORDED: Williams Lake (B.C.), 1975-06-30 SUMMARY: An oral history interview with A. Cecil Henry, who describes Williams Lake in 1930, the Williams Lake Stampede, cowboying at the Gang Ranch and Chilko Ranch, his own ranch on Big Creek, and his work as a game guide.

The fonds consists of correspondence, photographs, clippings, manuscripts and production memoranda, mainly relating to A.D. Kean's feature film "Policing the Plains" (produced 1924-1927), as well as radio scripts (five annotated during production), clippings of the outdoor and cowboy life stories he wrote for the Toronto Star Weekly (ca. 1929-1936), and a video copy of his 1949 film "Fox Hunting in Canada".

The item consists of a reel of 16 mm film which includes the following:

1. Cattle ranch; log cabin; snow-covered hilltop. A rancher tends a newly-born calf. Cattle. Two bulls ready for a fight. A dressed-up young cowboy. Cowboys round up and drive cattle.
2. Orchard. Cherry picking. Making preserves in a test kitchen. Drying apricots: sulphuring, preparation, drying box. Preserving pitted cherries with syrup, raspberries with sugar. Boiling berries for freezing.

SUPPLIED TITLE OF TAPE(S): Stage drivng in the Cariboo RECORDED: [location unknown], 1967 SUMMARY: An oral history interview with Albert Power, who was "born and raised" a cowboy, and drove a stage in the Cariboo. He talks about a trip from Ashcroft to Quesnel ca. 1913, and cattle drives from the Gang Ranch to Fort Fraser.

CALL NUMBER: T0314:0001 RECORDED: [location unknown], 1964-07-23 SUMMARY: TRACK 1: Mr. Alfred Joseph Drinkell tells some stories about the history of the Dog Creek area of the Cariboo, from 1860 to 1914. Drinkell discusses his arrival in BC in 1911. He describes the ranches he worked at around Ashcroft, Joseph Smith's place, and his financial problems and life before he came to BC. He tells anecdotes about Judge Begbie. He tells a story about Samsome, a local doctor, and the legendary packer Jean Caux ("Cataline").

TRACK 2: Drinkell relates the story of Cataline's last trip and describes many trails in the area. He speaks of Joy Sim, a Chinese doctor, and pioneer medicine. He discusses some of Cataline's packers: Robbins, Wiggins Dan Smith, and the first settlers in the area. He describes the Hudson's Bay Trail, freighting, roads in the area, stories about Phil Grinder of Jesmond, a local school teacher, and educated people.

CALL NUMBER: T0314:0002 RECORDED: [location unknown], 1964-07-23 SUMMARY: TRACK 1: Drinkell describes the early days of Ashcroft, the Chinese in the area, two anecdotes: the Wright of the Dog Creek Ferry and the Stobie of the Gang Ranch. He offers the background of the Gang Ranch and describes cattle drives, the Duke Of York, a Barkerville bartender, and local Indians.

TRACK 2: Drinkell discusses cowboys, social life and Christmas. Then he mentions Indian-White relationships and a story about Indians and the law. He discusses the Chilcotin and Shuswap Indians, problems with the reserve system, Chinese settlers in the Dog Creek area, and the importance of Chinese in the area. Finally, Drinkell tells the story of five Indian women who killed themselves over a white man, and how nails and gold dust were used as money.

RECORDED: [location unknown], 1965-11-04 SUMMARY: TRACK 1: Mr. B.F. Young describes his family background; his mother and uncle at Lumby; his father's background; how his father came to Canada; the town of Lansdowne; the Chinese people there; farming; in the area; a story about a fire in the town; people in the Armstrong area; cowboys and other characters; Captain Shorts' canal; general comments about farming and development in the area. [TRACK 2: blank.]

SUPPLIED TITLE OF TAPE(S): Life as a Cariboo cowboy and stage driver RECORDED: [location unknown], 1967 SUMMARY: Bob French arrived in the Cariboo in 1892 at the age of 13. Driving a stage coach; robbers on the road from Barkerville. Life as a cowboy. Head cowboy on the Gang ranch. Cattle drives to Ashcroft. Crossing rivers. The first automobiles in the area.

Footage. 15 reels of varying lengths containing miscellaneous footage and outs, as follows: rainbow over lake and mountains, then shot of a man in a field who picks and measures a huge mushroom [78]; man and women hunt grouse near T.U. Auto Court [116]; man and dog stalk game, cowboy herds cattle [215B, 216]; freight train exiting tunnel and shots of tunnel repair work (Kettle Valley Railway?) [52]; lessons in the classroom of a girls' school [50]; various views of a small town situated beside a lake, and nearby roads used by lumber truck and two-horse wagon [90]; automotive shop with men repairing fender (of Booth's car?), and a sawmill in operation [49]; children's life in a mining town, with sailing at nearby lake [236]; aspects of a cordwood supply company [205B]; moose hunting trip by horseback, grouse hunters return to cabin, horse-drawn wagon delivers boats to lakeside [246A]; a caravan of cars leave a garage and head onto a highway where they pass a horse and buggy [227]; children and soldiers play miniature golf in a back yard, and man and boy fish from a boat [162].

SUMMARY: TRACK 1: Two short interviews with people of the Cariboo. (1) Mrs. Elizabeth Wendel, who came to the Cariboo in 1910, describes how she learned to ride and hunt, and recalls her first hunting experience of shooting a grizzly bear with a .22 rifle [ca. 8 minutes]. (2) The next interview is with an unnamed steamboat captain (born ca. 1874). In 1900, he was piloting steamboats for the Canadian National line between Victoria and Vancouver, and landed a new job running riverboats on the Fraser River between Soda Creek and Quesnel. After some blasting to clear rocks along the route, the service was extended to Prince George in 1909. Later on, two steamboats built by Foley, Welch and Stewart operated between Tete Jaune Cache and Prince George, south to Soda Creek, and up the Nechako to the site of Vanderhoof. He discusses the three companies running boats on the Upper Fraser: the Fort George Trading and Lumber Company; Foley, Welch and Stewart; and the BX (Barnard's Express) company. His account includes descriptions of the boat schedules and the boats themselves, which operated on the Fraser until 1920. The boats burned wood for fuel and had a crew of about twenty. Some discussion of passengers and freight carried. Stories about the packer Jean Caux, known as "Cataline". [ca. 17 minutes] (3) The final piece is an editorial by Willis about cowboy heroes on radio and television and in movies, as compared to the reality of being a cowboy. [ca. 4 minutes] [TRACK 2: blank.]

SUMMARY: The story of cattle ranching in the Nicola Valley: its beginnings in the days of the Cariboo gold rush, and the work of ranchers and cowboys at the Douglas Lake Cattle Company. The voices heard are: Bill Brennan; Alex Bulman; Gerald Guichon; Fred Irwin; Doug Palmer; and Martin Starret.

Footage. Shows the North Thompson River area in autumn, with emphasis on natural features: forests, hills, plateaus, rivers, lakes, streams. Also shows a hotel, a farm, a garage, Long's General Store (Clearwater, B.C.) where residents congregate, cowboys, a horse and buggy on a dirt road, a trip on a car ferry, and a mining site.

RECORDED: Chilko Lake (B.C.), 1981-09 SUMMARY: Mr. Weir was born in Ontario, and at the age of 18 joined the North West Mounted Police, where he served for two years. Later he became a cowboy, a policeman and a cattle range detective.;

CALL NUMBER: T0420:0001 RECORDED: [location unknown], 1970-05 SUMMARY: TRACKS 1 & 2: Mrs. Dorothy Goldrick describes emigrating from Scotland to Ashcroft in 1910; the Colonist train; Winnipeg around 1910; Ashcroft in 1910, buildings, the Chinese people, cowboys, covered wagons, BX Express, the anti-English feeling; other English families; Hallowe'en pranks; and Kamloops.

CALL NUMBER: T0420:0002 RECORDED: [location unknown], 1970-05 SUMMARY: TRACK 1: Mrs. Goldrick continues with a description of the stage coach journey to Ashcroft; local native people; more about the Colonist train; a description of Savona, BC; a Hudson's Bay post across Kamloops Lake; anecdotes about life at Savona; impressions of Canada before emigration; life in Golden from 1911 to 1917; snow; forest fires; and Vernon around 1917. [TRACK 2: blank.]

The item is a film reel of out takes from the 1970s. It contains extensive footage of cattle being rounded up and herded at the Douglas Lake Ranch. A very large herd is seen in both long shot and extreme close-up, often in falling snow. Several mounted cowboys escort the herd.

SUPPLIED TITLE OF TAPE(S): Chilcotin ranching in the 1930s RECORDED: [location unknown], 1967 SUMMARY: An oral history interview with Dude Lavington. He talks about starting a cattle ranch 60 miles west of Quesnel in 1931; cutting roads; hunting; and the origin of his name "Dude".

RECORDED: [location unknown], 1965-10-30 SUMMARY: TRACK 1: Mr. E.P. Coles describes how he came to the northwest in 1905 when he was seventeen, after being prompted to do so by some people he met on the boat from England; his first impressions of the; area; the area which used to be called Grand Prairie, including anecdotes about people and events there; stories about a remittance man; stories about cowboys; and stories about taking cattle to load; on the trains. [TRACK 2: blank.]

RECORDED: Williams Lake (B.C.), 1981-09 SUMMARY: Mr. Desroaches spent most of his life as a cowboy in the Chilcotin; he arrived in the Cariboo in 1929.;

Stock shots. Shows grazing cattle and range plants; cattle auction or show; cowboys cattle; calves in corral; branding of calves. Also lambs and shepherd.

Footage. Shows a round-up of wild horses at the Flying U Ranch at Green Lake (near 70 Mile House, B.C.). Long sequences include ranch hands racing over hilly grassland, herding horses, then sorting them in the corral.

CALL NUMBER: T0306:0001 RECORDED: [location unknown], 1965-10-29 SUMMARY: TRACK 1: Mr. Harry Marriott describes his immigration from England to Canada in 1907. He describes his work on the Gang Ranch in 1912, his service in WWI, homesteading, several characters who settled in the Cariboo at the turn of the century, and in the 1960s. He discusses the growth of the OK Ranching Co. Ltd. the effects of logging;why he chose to live in Canada and working on a ranch in Washington State. TRACK 2: Marriott discusses his inability to get government jobs in the U.S.; ranching at Big Bar Lake in 1919; dry farmers; sheep farmers; the Gang Ranch and its history.

CALL NUMBER: T0306:0002 RECORDED: [location unknown], 1965-10-29 SUMMARY: TRACK 1 & 2: Mr. Marriott offers insight and anecdotes about characters and the town of Clinton.

RECORDED: Canal Flats (B.C.), 1982-06-09 SUMMARY: Joe was born and educated in the States. He came to Canada and worked as a cowboy until he took a job with the federal Parks department, working as a hunting and fishing guide until 1927. During the 1930s, he took whatever work was available. Later he became a forest ranger, quit that, and went ranching on the Kootenay River.

CALL NUMBER: T0098:0001 SUPPLIED TITLE OF TAPE(S): John (Jack) McNeill : pioneer life in Ontario and Saskatchewan RECORDED: Vancouver (B.C.), 1972-08-15 SUMMARY: Jack McNeill was born in 1885 and discusses life in Dunchurch, Ontario (1885-1903). Homesteading at Herbert, Saskatchewan in 1903 and the first winter spent there. Discusses methods of farming, house building, etc.; CALL NUMBER: T0098:0002 SUPPLIED TITLE OF TAPE(S): John (Jack) McNeill : homesteading in Saskatchewan RECORDED: Vancouver (B.C.), 1972-08-16 SUMMARY: Jack McNeill discusses homesteading in Herbert, Sask. in 1903: crop planting, winters, Mennonite emigration 1904-5, social aspects, schooling, ranch hand in Saskatchewan, and own homestead in 1908. CALL NUMBER: T0098:0003 SUPPLIED TITLE OF TAPE(S): John (Jack) McNeill : early life on the Canadian prairie RECORDED: Vancouver (B.C.), 1972-08-18 SUMMARY: Jack McNeill discusses starting a homestead, building sod houses, barns. He corrects some errors made in dates and schooling on the first and second interviews (T0098:0001 and 0002). These errors were made because his birth was never recorded (so when he thought he was 18 years old he was actually 21!). CALL NUMBER: T0098:0004 SUPPLIED TITLE OF TAPE(S): John (Jack) McNeill : a cowpoke enlists in the army RECORDED: Vancouver (B.C.), 1972-08-18 SUMMARY: Jack McNeill moves to Montana as a horse rancher and enlists in the American army. He discusses training, boxing in army, and experience of a "riot between the white and black", Washington, D.C. CALL NUMBER: T0098:0005 SUPPLIED TITLE OF TAPE(S): John (Jack) McNeill : ride 'em cowboy RECORDED: Vancouver (B.C.), 1972-08-25 SUMMARY: Jack McNeill discusses release from the army after guard duty; his return to Montana to claim his horses which had scattered after the war; contracts typhoid fever and recovers in his parent's home in Manitoba. Most of the tape deals with professional rodeo riding. CALL NUMBER: T0098:0006 SUPPLIED TITLE OF TAPE(S): John (Jack) McNeill : transition from the range to industry RECORDED: Vancouver (B.C.), 1972-09-06 SUMMARY: Jack McNeill worked in Helene, Montana at the American Smelter Co.; in Aberdeen, Washington at a door factory; and farmed his father's land for three years (3 crop failures) in Manitou, Manitoba. He later went to Calgary by freight train to look for work. CALL NUMBER: T0098:0007 SUPPLIED TITLE OF TAPE(S): John (Jack) McNeill RECORDED: Vancouver (B.C.), 1972-09-15 SUMMARY: TRACK 1: Jack McNeill discusses being on city assistance in Calgary for two months during the Depression. Took part in the On-to-Ottawa Trek in 1935. TRACK 2: Different jobs discussed, unions mentioned as well as his personal feelings toward work, the Depression and unions.

The item is an audio recording of an interview with Leslie Leighton made in Vancouver in 1974.
T0006:0001 track 1: Leslie Leighton's parents' backgrounds in B.C. from the 1860s. Father's Glenbrook Ranch at Savona. Building of irrigation works on Durant Creek, 1909. Feed for cattle. Housing on the ranch and building a log cabin. Description of cowboys working on ranch. Cowboys' drinking habits. Good food from chuck wagons. Interviewee as "The last of the first cowboys". Work for Cattleman John Wilson and with several of the original cowboys in B.C. Early cowboys on drives from Oregon and at the Gang Ranch.
T0006:0001 track 2: The Harper family ranches (Gang, Perry, Harper Camp and Kelly Lake). Leighton's own; youth, schooling. Description of the yearly round of ranch work. John Wilson's role in the region. Leighton's work as a stage driver for the BX company. Stage schedules and conditions on the Cariboo Road. Modern chuck wagon racing. Leaving Ashcroft at night.
T0006:0002 track 1: Breaking horses. Breaking techniques. Christmas on the ranch. Dances, weddings, fairs and exhibitions. Races and bucking contests. Saddle horse contests. Hospitals and childbirth in hospitals. Cowboys at the hotel when injured.

CALL NUMBER: T0006:0003 SUPPLIED TITLE OF TAPE(S): Leslie Leighton : life in the Cariboo PERIOD COVERED: 1860-1920 RECORDED: [location unknown], 1964-06-01 SUMMARY: Mr. Leslie Leighton talks about his father's and his own experiences in the Cariboo and Fraser-Thompson regions, 1860-1920. TRACK 1: Family background, mother's side (Uren). Town of Savona c.1870. Fat;her's background: a telegrapher who worked for Collins Overland Telegraph. A Chinese telegrapher. Mother's family. Ranch at Savona. Discussion of early rodeos, c.1905. Breaking horses. Ashcroft and Savona. "Stage Billy". Roads in Barkerville area. TRACK 2: Barkerville and people there, ca.1900: Andrew Kelly, John Bowron, George Turnstall, other old-timers. Stage business. Beginnings of Inland Express Company. Roads. People on the stage coaches. Other towns in the Cariboo. General comments.

CALL NUMBER: T0006:0004 SUPPLIED TITLE OF TAPE(S): Leslie Leighton : Walhachin and other memories of the Fraser-Thompson area PERIOD COVERED: 1894-1920 RECORDED: [location unknown], 1964-06-01 SUMMARY: Mr. Leslie Leighton talks about the development of Walhachin and other recollections of his experiences in the Fraser-Thompson area, 1894-1920. TRACK 1: Cataline (Jean Caux), a well-known packer. Chinese miners. Mining in area. The story of Walhachin and the Walhachin irrigation flume. The decline of Walhachin. Involvement of the Marquis of Anglesey. Anecdotes about Alphonse Foucault. Freight wagons and jerkline teams. More on Foucault and various exploits. More on Walhachin flume. Memory of first CPR train through Ashcroft. Story about Sir William Mackenzie's daughter Ethel and her husband. [TRACK 2: blank.]