MARY'S GENEALOGY TREASURES
Five children were born to Nick and Lillian Rohovie.
My Grandfather John Rohovie and both of my parents were
In 1903 my Grandfather immigrated to Canada and settled
At the turn of the century, which was the peak of European
Employment for my Grandfather was obtained at the
In 1906, my Grandfather returned to Romania. One can
Grandfather did return to Canada in 1909 bring with him his
My Dad entered the mines at age sixteen. At the particular time,
During the 'flu epidemic of 1918, my Dad recalled sharing
In 1911, my Grandfather's youngest son Ted, returned
For the next seven or eight years, life consisted of hard
Besides working the mines. Grandfather also operated
Meanwhile, the Coalhurst mine shaft was sunk and the
Miners, many of whom were single and ethnically
My father Nick, worked at the mine and also helped with
My Dad returned to Coalhurst with my mother as a
The furnishings they bought were basic and included
Grandfather returned to Romania in 1926, never to
Shortly after my Grandfather's return to Romania, my Dad
The Coalhurst mine closed down shortly after the explosion
Sore backs, crushed toes and fingers were the common
The life style for many changed with the depression. Life
Many people and families moved out of Coalhurst. Company
Through hard work and much effort, a decent living was
During the depression, people had to improvise. For example,
A stall was rented in the Farmer's Market which was
When my parents first arrived in Canada and settled in
Growing up during the depression and the thirties
In the winter months, traps would be set for muskrats
Local and country dances were fun evenings. If a trip
Some of the young lads would secure a small bottle of
Towards the late thirties and early forties, the economy
The station played an important part in our summer
To relieve the tension of boredom, we would hop a
My Mother has seen Coalhurst as a vibrant mining town,
All were born, raised and educated in Coalhurst. A daughter
who was the youngest, was born in the Coalhurst Hospital on
that fateful day of the mine explosion on December 9, 1935.
born in Voloca, a small village of Bucovina, Romania.
in North Lethbridge (No. 3, which is now Staffordville,).
He was not alone as others had immigrated before him
from the same area of Romania, which may have induced
him to come to a land of opportunities.
immigration, immigration had to be resourceful and able to
improvise in providing accommmodations. Shanties were
built into the coulee near No. 3 (Staffordville). Most of
the immigratns worked in the area coal mines, others
found employment with the railroad.
local mines. He had no intentions of settling in Canada
permanently. His intention was to earn enough money to
return to Romania and purchase more land there.
understand the loneliness immigrants endured, some went
back to the old country while many others never returned.
two sons, Ted and Nick. All three of them settled in north
Lethbridge (Staffordville).
miners and immigrants of the same ethnic background, tended
to share accommodations which were nothing more than
clapboard shacks. Life was a real hardship during that point
in time.
a bed with a very sick miner. The next morning when he
awoke, the miner was dead. He attributed his immunity to
hard work, sweat, lots of whiskey and good food impregnated
with garlic.
to Romania never to come back to Canada.
work in the mines and a bachelor's existence. Being a
boisterous people and causing mischief for the mounties
and police, special constables from the ethnic groups
were employed to keep the area under surveillance.
a general store which he purchased from the previous
owner as he was returning back to Italy. The store was
then renamed "The Romanian General Store". A Mr.
Toffy Osecki, recalls delivering groceries and general
merchandise to Coalhurst from this store. As a result of
Grandfather's trusting nature, credit was allowed and
extended for long periods of time. Most of the money
owing to him was impossible to collect which resulted
in a loss and the eventual closing down of the store.
mine commenced operation where he obtained work as
a miner. Shortly thereafter, he rented and operated a
hotel as well, in a place called Wigan located just east
of Coalhurst.
European, gathered at the hotel for good times.
Entertainment consisted of drinking, gambling and
on occasion girls from Lethbridge were part of the scene.
This was a fact of life amongst the lonely and single miners.
the running of the hotel. This arrangement proved
too much for him so in 1920, he returned to Romania.
While he was there, he met and married my mother Lillian.
young bride, in 1921. They moved in with my Grandfather
whose accommodation was not elaborate - a two room
shack. Shortly thereafter, my Grandfather presented my
Parents with a small four roomed house which he
purchased in Diamond City for the sum of $150.00 and
then moved it to Coalhurst.
a sewing machine. It was constantly used by my
mother in the ensuing years, becoming an excellent
seamstress. She also became a very good barber
and cut and trimmed hair for many boys who grew
up in Coalhurst.
return, passing away there in 1935. 1 remember vividly,
the letter notifying my father of his death, being edged in black.
The original home is still occupied by my mother who,
presently is the oldest, longest living resident of Coalhurst.
had a yearning to return also. Our house was put up for sale.
A decision, not to return, was made but not before my
brother John had the "For Sale" sign torn down with a
garden rake.
of 1935. Dad, then obtained work at the Shaughnessy mine
and at the No. 8 mine west of Lethbridge. It was while
working in the No. 8 mine that he suffered a fatal heart
attack in May, 1955. Mining all of those years, from a
young lad of sixteen to the age of sixty-one, had taken its toll.
ailments that plagued the miners of those days.
became a real challenge. The mines slowed down and fewer
miners were employed. These were the lost years for many people.
This was an era when young and old men alike were compelled
to tramp and also ride trains across the country looking for work.
I can recall my parents feeding transients with what food they had
to offer. None were ever turned away hungry.
houses were sold for approximately $100.00. One may be seen,
to this day, located between Coalhurst and Monarch,
just north of the railway.
made possible, by keeping a cow, raising chickens and
vegetables. Pigs were purchased and butchered from
which hams, bacon and sausages were made, then
cured in a smoke house. Small plots were rented from
local farmers for gardens where one raised an abundance
of vegetables. These were wintered in a root cellar located
in the back yard. I recall, a wagon load of vegetables,
delivered to Lethbridge, which sold for twenty dollars.
Doug Adams made the delivery for five dollars a load.
To further help ease a difficult situation, some work was
obtained by thinning sugar beets, beet topping, potato
picking and haying.
Mother made bedding, tea towels, lunch cloths, curtains,
petticoats, etc., from flour sacks (Ellison's Best).
Such items as mentioned above, may be presently
seen in the Glenbow Museum in Calgary.
located in the Hudson Bay Building on First Avenue South
between Fourth and Fifth Street. At this stall, my mother
had a quick lunch counter where she served coffee,
home made bread, cakes, pies, sandwiches, etc. at
reasonable prices. This stall was operated on Saturdays
only.
Memories and Nostalgia
Coalhurst, they took up residence next door to the Start
family. Their young girl would come over and visit with
my mother. They had difficulty understanding one another.
Perhaps unknowingly, she contributed somewhat to my
mother leaming, speaking and understanding the English
language.
contributed to fond memories and nostalgia.
Activities, such as tumbling down freshly threshed
haystacks, fishing, hiking and swimming, were fun.
Swimming in the secluded areas of the irrigation canal,
provided for many hours of enjoyment and excitement,
always on the lookout for the ditch rider and on many
occasions, running to avoid being caught, often with our
clothes in hand as swimming was done in the nude.
and weasels. Jack rabbit hunting would also provide
many pelts which were sold in Lethbridge. During spring,
after the river receded from the high muddy flow, we
would use set lines to catch the many varieties of fish.
When weather permitted, we would swim the deep
back water holes, climb the tall trees, climb hills and
cliffs bordering the river. Most of these activities were
unknown to our parents.
to a country dance required a gallon or two of gas, a
farmer's tractor located in an isolated part of a field
provided a small amount. Most often, the music was
provided by Katie Nestoruk on the mandolin and Emil
Wyrostok on the drums, occasionally accompanied by
a piano player. At these dances, the women would
congregate on one side of the hall and the men on the
opposite side. When the music started, there would be
somewhat of a stampede towards the women's side. A
large container of coffee would be made at the Rohovie
house on many occasions and brought over to the hall
at midnight. Dancing would continue to one o clock in the
morning and sometimes later.
whiskey, each contributing about twentyfive cents towards
its purchase. It was surprising what a sense of well being
one good swig would provide for the whole evening.
Liquor was generally consumed outside as it was not
allowed on the premises during that era.
began a slow upturn as a result of the war in Europe.
evening activities when we were young. After hanging
around in the Billy Willis General Store, we would all
walk to the station to wait for the arrival and departure
of the night passenger train.
freight train leaving Coalhurst heading for Lethbridge.
We would spend a few hours in Lethbridge and getting
back to Coalhurst posed no problem. We would hop
on a night passenger train, grabbing on behind the steam
locomotive, as it was leaving the Lethbridge station.
The spot we chose to climb on, was approximately next
to the C.P.R. ice house. At this particular spot, the train
was moving rather briskly.
then die after the explosion. In recent years, she has seen
it come back to life and it is now a thriving community.
As she partakes of the Miners' Days activities, a sadness
comes over her recalling happy and sad days of the many
years gone by.
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