My maternal Grandfather was the oldest of 13 children. He was born in Pavelche, Stanislawow, Galicia, Austria (Austro-Hungarian Empire) which is now Ukraine. He along with his parents and 3 other siblings emigrated to Canada in 1913 at the age of 9 to escape severe prosecution by the Empire and what was horrific living conditions in Ukraine.
The family landed in Halifax and were sent to Saskatchewan where they homesteaded just outside of Wynyard. (Closeish to Yorkton). My Grandfather stayed in Wynyard and bought a 1/4 section of land from Hudson Bay Company for $900 in June 1937 where he farmed for a number of years before moving to town and taking a job with CPR on the Coal Dock after the dirty 30s. He later moved to Saskatoon with family where he worked installing the first gas lines for the City, before finally moving back to Wynyard where he worked managing the local Golf Course before heart attacks forced him to retire and pass on. I loved this man more than anyone else, he was my hero. Always had time for the children.
My maternal grandmother, also of Ukranian origin, was born on a homestead in rural Saskatchewan where she met my Grandfather in later years. She did what she had to do to help the family survive. During the dirty 30s my Grandfather had to go to northern Ontario to work as a lumberjack and she stayed home with 4 children and kept the farm running and the children growing. Very very difficult days. After they moved to town she took up nursing and practised that profession until she retired in the late 1960s. A wonderful human who LOVED family and cooking and lived to the ripe age of 98. I have many of her recipes to this day, Perogies, Holuptsi, etc...they have been passed down many times since.
My Paternal Grandfather and Grandmother also came from Ukraine (Pohorilivka) and also escaped the suppression of the Ukranian people in the late 1800s. Unfortunately I dont know a lot about them as my mother divorced out of that family when I was young. I do know that my Grandfather was a jack of all trades, but was also a farmer in Saskatchewan near Dafoe and my Grandmother was a stay at home mom. They were from what I understand wonderful people, I wish I knew them better. Later in life I reconnected with that family and it has been a wonderful experience!
Homesteads from both sides still exist, and the one thing that I took up a number of years ago was to be the owner of the family tree. My family's maternal side is now over 2300 people and still growing. I have an active Descendants Group on Facebook that helps all of these family members get to know one another. Ancestry.com was an excellent source for info and I highly recommend it to those who are of like mind.
|