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Catharine began her trip
to Canada
coming from Europe in 1832. At the time of her arrival in Canada,
Lt. Thomas Traill was a half-pay officer and this influenced their decision
to leave the old country. The family’s arrival and her subsequent
illness en route to her new home were carefully narrated in her book
The Backwoods of Canada. On her way home, she found the many
taverns they visited to be in a poor state, and noted that the traveller
would have been lucky to find anything to eat at all. Many places offered
morsels of bread with coffee and charged exorbitant prices to the newcomer.
She betrayed very little or no resentment at her situation in her correspondence.
She avoided complaining about circumstances that she had little control
over. Once the Traills undertook the adventure of coming to Canada,
she resigned herself to making the best of it.
Strickland
home in Lakefield [Left to right: W.P. Band,
Mrs. S.S., sitting in background Mrs. Traill, T.B. Allen.]
[Taken ca.1863?] [Photograph credit: George M. Douglas, Lakefield, Ont.]
 During
her time as a pioneer, Catharine witnessed
how the cultures of the old continent and the new continent differed
and many times clashed outright. She described how she had come to terms
with her decision to follow her husband into their adopted country and
of her determination to succeed.
Eventually, the
family obtained a small plot of land which was cleared and a small dwelling
erected on it. Samuel, her brother had just built his own loghouse and
would be able to help them move in. Goods were bought from people in
towns and from local Natives and were exchanged for help from neighbours.
Everyone aspired to owning some farm animals and growing some food of
their own for sale or to eat.
She could see that
through the whole family’s efforts, more conveniences would come
and modest prosperity was sure to follow. She became accustomed, to
the deficiencies and soon started to negotiate a pleasant enough existence
for herself and her family. She corresponded often with family and friends
while she continued to engage in housework duties, as well as farming,
gardening, and bartering with neighbours.
Settler
recipes:
Soft Soap: "... Instead of boiling the soap,
which is some trouble,... the best plan was to run off the ley from
a barrel of ashes: into this ley I might put four or five pounds
of any sort of grease, such as pot skimmings, rinds of bacon, or
scraps from frying down suet... The barrel with its contents may
then be placed in a secure situation in the garden or yard, exposed
to the sun and air. In course of time the ley and grease become
incorporated: if the grease predominates it will be seen floating
on the surface... in such a case add more ley; if the mixture does
not thicken, add more grease. To determine the strength of the ley
try it by floating an egg or a middling sized potato, which should
rise about halfway above the surface of the ley..." (From Backwoods
of Canada*, notes to letter 6 page 77)
Candles:
"Everyone makes their own candles (i.e. if they have any materials
to make them from). The great difficulty of making candles... is
procuring the tallow, which a bush-settler, until he begins to kill
his own beef, sheep, and hogs, is rarely able to do, unless he buys;
and a settler buys nothing that he can help. A cow,... is often
slaughtered very advantageously, especially if the settler have
little fodder for his cattle. The beef is often excellent, and good
store of candles and soap may be made from the inside fat. These
candles, if made three parts beef and one part hog's -lard will
burn better than any store-candles, and cost half price. The tallow
is merely melted in a pot or pan convenient for the purpose, and
having run the cotton wicks into the moulds (tin or pewter moulds
for six candles cost three shillings at the stores, and last many,
many years), a stick or skewer is passed through the loops of your
wicks, at the upper part of the stand, which serve the purpose of
drawing the candles and the ends tied below after the sticks have
been put through the loops and the wicks are drawn tight. The melted
fat, not too hot, but in a fluid state, is then poured into the
moulds till they are full; as the fat gets cold it shrinks, and
leaves a hollow at the top of the mould: this requires filling up
when quite cold. If the candles do not draw readily, plunge the
mould for an instant into hot water, and the candles will come out
easily..."
(From Backwoods of Canada*, notes to letter 6 page 77-8)
Her neighbours proved
to be most valuable in helping the Traills' survival and that of other
bushpeople. Catherine easily integrated with the custom of calling on
those around her to help erect dwellings and clear land, and conversely
reciprocated. The different types of “bees” were affectionately
described and greatly appreciated. The benefitted party usually had
to cook for the many helpers who descended on the property to work on
whatever project needed to be finished. Usually all they required were
good meals and many brought tools and other materials along with other
family members to expedite the work. Other times, the opportunity came
to help someone else in need.
*References
of page numbers in this section are from Backwoods of Canada / by Catharine Parr Traill. Edited
by Michael A. Peterman. Ottawa: Carleton University Press, Inc., 1997.
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