~ Fiction – With a Grain of Truth ~
June 30, 1905 – Ulverston, Cumbria, England
Robert Wells is at home with his parents, John and Agnes.
Robert: Mom, Dad we need to talk. Look at this ad, it says here that the Canadian Government is making land available in the West, free. 160 acres! Can you imagine owning that much land? I want to be part of this, I want to go to Canada.
Agnes: Canada is a long way away, Bobby. And cold!
Robert: There’s no work here, and no decent pay if I do find a job. I’m 18 years old, and I can’t even get work at the rock quarry that pays enough to live on.
This ad says the soil in Saskatchewan is rich. I could grow wheat, raise cattle. It’s the new Eldorado! That’s where I want to be.
John: You can’t believe everything you read, Bob. The foreman at the rail yard said there might be a job coming up on the line crew. Maybe you could ask about that.
Robert: I am tired of “maybes” and “mights”! A mite is an insect on a chicken’s ass!
Agnes: Robert! Language!
Robert: Sorry Mom, but I want to be that guy (points to the farmer in the ad), with my own land, my own horses, and a wagon. Look! That’s probably £200 worth of wheat he’s sitting on, proud and happy!
I’m going to be that guy!
Robert Edmundson Wells c1903
John and Agnes, preparing for bed.
John: Robert is set on going to Canada.
Agnes: I don’t like it. He is only 18, not married. He isn’t ready yet.
John: You were only 17 when you had him. Were you ready?
Agnes: I didn’t have a choice. I was 17 and pregnant, I had to grow up fast.
John: It turned out well. Look at you!
Agnes: You had something to do with that. Marrying a girl with a two-year-old son, and no prospects. What were you thinking?
John: I was thinking “Now, that is a pretty girl! With a built-in family. I better grab her before somebody else does’’.
Agnes: That makes you a bigger fool than I thought you were. Now, blow out the lamp and tell me that again.
A Month Later:
Robert: I wrote to Uncle Tom, out in Gravelbourg. He says he will help me stake a homestead if I immigrate, but only if you approve.
There is land to be had not far from Tom’s. He says it is good heavy soil, only six miles to the rail line.
The Canadian Government will pay for passage on a CP ship and rail to Moose Jaw. I have to repay the fare before they will settle a homestead, but Uncle Tom says the first good crop should take care of it.
I really want to go. What do you say?
John: It sounds like you have thought this through. Your mother and I have talked about it, we will miss you, but we think you should go. We hope that you will make a good home out there where the deer and the antelope play.
Robert Wells – Home on the Range, 1930s
Agnes: Bobby, we don’t have much to give you, but I want you to take this $20.
Robert: No! Where did you get that much money? I can’t take it.
Agnes: I have been saving it from the milk and egg money. We thought we might spend it on your wedding, but it looks like that is postponed for a while. Take it with our blessing.
Robert Wells boarded The Lake Manitoba, a Canadian Pacific Passenger liner, at Liverpool on March 13, 1906.
The Lake Manitoba steamed into St. John New Brunswick on March 25. Robert boarded a train and made the journey west to Moose Jaw in seven days.
Robert arrived in Moose Jaw, April 1, 1906, travelling alone. He had a few clothes in a suitcase, high expectations, and the $20 his mother had given him (approximately $450 at current value).
An excerpt from the Passenger Log of The Lake Manitoba, March 13, 1906
Meanwhile, back in England, February 13, 1905, …
Eleanor Jane Fallows is living at Manor Farm, Broughton-in-Furness, Cumbria. Eleanor is 16, working as a maidservant for the Grosvenor family. Eleanor explains her situation to her friend Liz:
Eleanor: It’s not so bad really. Mrs. Grosvenor is ill, so she stays in her room most of the day. I think her illness is mostly in her head, but I don’t see her much. Elsie, the little one, is charming.
Liz: How old is she? Elsie?
Eleanor: Five. She has so many clothes, and pets, and playthings! It is wonderful being rich. My job is to see to Elsie’s every need, not hard work really, but I think I am going to move on.
Liz: Whatever for!? It sounds like a great position, good pay, one child to look after, and the mom stays in bed all day. Why would you move?
Eleanor: It’s Mr. Grosvenor. He is not around often but when he is, the randy old fool is constantly on me. He sidles up behind me, always groping and leering. And he smells like the bung end of a whiskey keg. If his testicles weren’t attached to his wallet, I would run them both through the wringer on the washer.
Liz (giggling): I’d like to see that! Or maybe not. Do you think he is dangerous?
Eleanor: Probably not, but he gives me the creeps.
Letter’s Home
(fictional)
Eleanor Fallows departed Liverpool July 2, 1909, aboard The Empress of Britain. She was 21 years old and 7 months pregnant. Robert met Eleanor at the train station in Moose Jaw and took her to his home in Caron.
Their daughter Eveline (Eva) was born September 19, 1909.
I don’t think Bob and Nellie ever legally married, but they lived …
… Happily, Ever After.
Eleanor and Robert Wells (Right). Bill and Eva (Left), with grandchild c. 1951
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