In an era of transitioning from horses to automobiles it’s interesting to note some of the stories associated with these modes of transportation.
During my formative years I had the opportunity to experience actual horse power, as well as the “horsepower” from the Chevy that my father purchased in 1952.
In 1945 my parents started their farm operation in the Oakburn district. They bought four horses for $120 and bought two more the next year.
The horses provided the power to pull the farm equipment and were also utilized for the nine-mile trip to town for supplies, going to church or for visits with the neighbours.
My sister Adell recalled travelling in a cutter (open sleigh) a distance of eight miles to my grandparent’s farm near Horod for family Christmas celebrations. She also noted trips in the cutter to the annual Christmas concerts at the one room country school that she attended. On one occasion they upset the cutter when it hit a snowbank.
In 1956 a van (caboose) was purchased from a neighbour. The comfort of winter travel improved significantly. As the team of horses pulled the van, we sat inside in its heated comfort courtesy of the small box stove.
Roads were often blocked after a winter storm and travelling by car was not possible. After one bad snow storm my father and I took a trip in the van to Oakburn to get supplies and the mail. Several days later it was a welcome sight to see the rotary snow truck blowing away the huge snow drifts and making the roads car friendly again.
For the trip to town the road took a left turn to skirt around a lake. Since there was a steep incline on the sharp curve there were several instances when someone came to our house at all hours of the night to ask my father to hitch up the horses and pull out a vehicle from the ditch.
During one particular winter of heavy snow, neighbours regularly took a short cut through our farm yard and bypassed that sharp curve by going through our field. In the mid-1960s a road was constructed right across the lake and a straighter and safer route was established.
If horse power in the late 1940s wasn’t feasible for transportation then hiring a neighbour to take his car for a trip to town typically cost $2.
My mother had medical issues that necessitated procuring the services of a neighbour and his car to drive to Winnipeg for several appointments. In June 1949, on one of the medical trips to Winnipeg, my father purchased a used 1939 Pontiac for the sum of $825. My father’s records showed that the Pontiac kept breaking down. After several years of footing numerous expensive repair bills a more reliable Chevy coupe was purchased.
Along with family trips to various destinations, my father also used the new car to drive neighbours to town for supplies or for doctor’s appointments.
On Sunday afternoons my father and I occasionally went for a drive in the Chevy to John Prosak’s country store located next to Seech Lake. At the refrigerated cooler one could buy a bottled soft drink and at the counter a variety of confectionary items and canned goods were sold.
One of the store’s regulars, an old bachelor, John Grzebinski, bought the best canned meats for his array of cats while he got by on soda crackers and peanut butter.
Our Sunday afternoons usually concluded with a visit with John. If he was at the store we would give him a ride home. He was a kind gentleman farmer who lived in a clay plastered log house and was well read and well versed in history. John and my father usually spent their visit talking in Polish about politics and the homeland. John appreciated our company and occasionally gave me a quarter for spending money.
The Chevy was permanently retired and parked in the woods in 1964. At my parent’s auction sale in 1975 it was sold for $200 and it was the last time that I set eyes on the Chevy.
