Dale's Treasure Hunt
Containing Various Memories of GRHS and Our Classmates 1956-1967
as well as items of interest to our communities
(note: click on pictures to enlarge)
GEARY RURAL HIGH SCHOOL GRADUATION
1966
1966
(Thanks to Donald "Sandy" Cameron)
Ceremony was held on June 28, 1966, at the Hubbard Avenue School in Oromocto. Graduates were Geraldine Brooks, Donna Cameron, Tereca Sue Carr, Sandra Cormier, Guy Drummond, Garnet Gates, Stanley Howe, Gail Munn, Neil Munn, Carol Smith, Judith Smith, and Susan Smith. James Davidson was principal.
Ceremony was held on June 28, 1966, at the Hubbard Avenue School in Oromocto. Graduates were Geraldine Brooks, Donna Cameron, Tereca Sue Carr, Sandra Cormier, Guy Drummond, Garnet Gates, Stanley Howe, Gail Munn, Neil Munn, Carol Smith, Judith Smith, and Susan Smith. James Davidson was principal.
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1966
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1966
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1966
GEARY RURAL HIGH SCHOOL GRADUATION
1959
(thanks to Janet Greene (Stennick))
(thanks to Janet Greene (Stennick))
LeBaron Wood, Joanne Carr, Wayne Carr, Barbara Simpson, Fred Shanks
Barbara Simpson, Joanne Carr, Wayne Carr, Fred Shanks
LeBaron Wood
Hugh Elkins, Principal, presentation to LeBaron Wood
seated is Fred Shanks, Wayne Carr, Joanne Carr, and Barbara Simpson
Joanne Carr addresses Graduates and Guests
GEARY RURAL HIGH SCHOOL GRADUATION
1960
(thanks to Janet Greene (Stennick))
(thanks to Janet Greene (Stennick))
Edith Wood
Joyce Armstrong
Mary Jones
Leslie Collicott
Leslie Collicott, Edith Wood, Mary Jones, Joyce Armstrong
Mary Jones, Edith Wood, Joyce Armstrong, Leslie Collicott
(Smiles now!)
Edith Wood, Leslie Collicott, Mary Jones, Joyce Shanks
Is this not a great picture of winter/Spring driving in the 1950s? You are looking up the hill in Oromocto, the Oromocto River bridge is behind you, the railway station is to your left.
Billy Merrett had a lot of homework!
This is one of my favourite pictures of "old" Oromocto.
The picture from about 1950 was taken, I believe, from the top of the steel bridge which spanned the mouth of the Oromocto River behind the present-day Shopping Centre, just upstream from the blockhouse. The piers of the old bridge are still visible. I remember when they moved that bridge to the French Lake crossing of the Oromocto in 1961: my grandfather, Os Smith, worked on the project hauling sections of the bridge to French Lake.
My other grandfather, Arthur Cogswell, lived just to the left of this scene, between the railway tracks and the river, just where there is now a parking lot between the bandstand and the old track-bed. I remember visiting the house there in c.1954 or '55. As a child of 4 or 5, I took special note of the very loud train when it passed!
Taken at Gordon Hill's Esso Service Station on the Broad Road in Haneytown in 1954.
From Left: Marlene Grasse, Bobby Hill, Jacqueline Grasse, Connie Hill, Ralph Henry & Joey the Dog
Outside of William Peacock's General Store in Oromocto about 1950. From the left: unknown, Frank Webb, Roy Hunter, and Rusty Toole. If you know the boy on the left, let me know.
Inside of William Peacock's General Store in Oromocto, 1952: William Peacock and Frank Webb.
Above is a photo from the Daily Gleaner (from Helen Smith's scrapbook) showing the 1967 Debating Club at GRHS. Front row, left: Charlotte Gates, Sharon Carr, Donna Carpenter, Beverley Arseneault, Linda Simpson. Back row, left Dale Cogswell, Ken Smith, Brian Logue, Rick Shears, John Ryan, Allan Murray, Richard Archilles
A hot summer day in Oromocto, late-1940s, in front of the (Alexander & Maude)
Burnett General Store & Oromocto Post Office
French Lake students, c.1902
These are the parents and relations of many of our classmates.
Above is the prosperous looking farm and homestead of Adam Carr in Lauvina, before it was expropriated by DND c.1953. By permission of DND this farmhouse was used as a school house after the farms had been expropriated. There were two classes meeting here prior to the Geary School being completed: they were taught by Ruby Smith and Myrtle Carr. This accommodation ended early in 1956 and the classes had to go to the hastily completed classrooms in the new school.
Above is the grant plan for the Geary-Haneytown area showing original grantees but with modern road placements and names. The lands expropriated by DND are left blank. The blocks of land could have been granted in any year after 1784 when New Brunswick became a province: other records show which years.
Notice the Farnhams of Farnham Settlement, the Haneys of Haneytown, the Carrs, Smiths, Fosses, and Rockwells of Geary. The land in the centre of Geary was glebe land set aside for public use but later granted and sold off: it is still marked as "Reserved" because that was the first official designation. The original intent of the founders of New Brunswick was to declare the Church of England the established or state-supported church (with control of the glebe lands as a revenue-generator, as per the British model) but that plan never reached full maturity.
A little help: The French Lake Road runs between the lots of William Crandlemire and John Foss; the Landing Road runs down the centre of Alexander Carr's lot; the Intervale Road runs in the centre of the Reserved Lands; the Mill Road runs on the north side of the Rockwell Stream and meets the Lauvina Road in Lauvina; notice the road running between the lots of M. Haney and T. Hamilton (you can still see the semi-used road at the Barrieau's property); the Cogswell Road (now spuriously called the Waterville Road) meets the Broad Road at Farnham Settlement; and the Guthrie Road is also shown. Other roads are easily identified.
The many small notations are codes applied by Lands Branch, Department of Natural Resources.
Grant plan of original land grantees for the Waterville - French Lake - Woodside areas.
Above is the Lauvina school house where many students from Lauvina Settlement and 'lower' Geary went to school. My mother, Nora Cogswell (née Smith) tells of walking to this school from the Os Smith property at the junction of the Broad Road and New Road, across the Rockwell Stream bridge, up the Mill Road, and across the Rockwell Stream again by the bridge at Lauvina. The school house sat on the left side of the Lauvina Road about half a mile or so up the hill eastward beyond the Roy Grace property. The school house (and so much more!) was expropriated by DND c.1953, and the Lauvina families had to move. The center of learning for so many stood vacant for some years and then (was) burned by Hallowe'en arsonists.
Haneytown school house standing empty after the students had been moved to the new Geary School in 1956. This building stood on the east side of the the Broad Road just at the end of the Guthrie Road (just down the hill from where Stanley Peacock's store stood.) Lester Carr drove the school bus picking up students in Haneytown and making the turnaround at Gordon Hill's Esso (Ed's Bicycle, Matheson's). A house has since been built on this site.
When the new Geary Consolidated School was opened in 1956, it was to replace several small, community schools. Most were one room school houses. Above is the French Lake school house which sat at the end of the French Lake Road on the meadows side just opposite the French Lake Baptist Church.
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| As they came from the chicken(s) |
This is not the usual type of "treasure" that I like to post, but I thought you might get a kick out of the picture. These eggs came from chickens of a friend in Geary who was selling the eggs for extra cash. None of the eggs are painted or doctored in any way. And "Yes, it went well with ham!".
Geary from the air, about 1951
The red lines mark the Geary Glebe, the blue mark the military expropriation border, and the green mark lots to be expropriated. I have added a few names in green to help orient you. |
| The perils of travel to Fredericton in the Spring before the 1960s. I remember it well. Do you? |
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| Every time we went from Geary to Fredericton, we passed this classically designed and wonderfully located Irving Service Station in Oromocto. Do you remember it? |
Geary Sky
Winter Carnival 1966 - Sculpture of Garwinnie
Winter Carnival 1966
Winter Carnival 1966
(ice hauled from Rockwell by David Stennick)
GRHS Hockey Team - Geary Flames, c.1965.
back: James Davidson (Principal) Billy Carr, Stanley Howe, Doug Donnelle, Garnet Gates, David Stennick; front: Robin Hanson, Norman Carr, Duane Boone, Victor Wood, Mark Allen
(Photo provided by Mark & Pat Allen)
We thought some of you might be interested in some comparative pictures -- Then & Now.
"Then" was 1956, the year Geary Rural High School opened and "Now" is 2011.
Looking down Rockwell hill in 1956: Smith's store in centre right, Coburn Carr's house at right
New Road enters from left.
2011
Looking down Rockwell hill with Osborne Smith's house on left, 1956.
2011
Osborne Smith house is gone: house to the left is closer to the Broad Road and was built by Eugene Duffy
Looking north to Smith's Store and Rockwell Stream, 1956
2011 (the old Freeman Smith homestead is still there, behind the trees)
As you see, I could not replicate the 1956 photo above for it would be of trees only!
Looking south toward Smith's Store up Rockwell hill, 1956
2011
If we go even further back:
Freeman Smith house, Irving garage and store in 1939
The garage is closed and the store is a residence, 2011
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In October, 1966, Grade 10 raised funds for the GRHS U.N.I.C.E.F. program by publishing in mimeograph form and selling a student newspaper called "Geary Gazette". The paper ran to 13 pages full of school-days' humour.
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Another Local Boy Does Good -- and after a full career, Wilmot has shown that the scholarship was put to good use. A belated congratulations from your classmates!
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A beautiful 1952 Cadillac with a sad story to tell -- this is Hank Williams' last car, the car in which he was riding the night he died, the night of December 31, 1952 - January 1, 1953. To the fans of classic country music, Hank was Elvis, Hank was Hendrix, Hank was Bird, and Hank was Lennon all in one. While we got our education at GRHS, Hank provided the soundtrack compliments of CFNB -- R.I.P. Hank.
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The GRHS crest was designed by Barbara McLaughlin (née Drummond)
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The School when it opened in 1956
The School in 1965-1966 -- notice another extension and Jim Davidson's 1961 Ford Convertible
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In 2006, a Golden Anniversary was held at the Geary school to celebrate the school's 50 years of useful social and educational contributions to life in Geary, French Lake, Waterville, Haneytown and points between. Those attending enjoyed a "pretty", good cake!
Shirley Caseley and Fred Shanks at the 50th Anniversary in 2006
Robin Hanson and Shirley Caseley at the 50th Anniversary in 2006
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1963 Graduation Class
Back from left: James Carr, William Armstrong, Vincent Smith, Roger Smith
Front from left: Morton Carr, Diane Carr, Sharon Armstrong, Rachel Brown, Joe Estabrooks, Floyd Hall
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1967 was the last year GRHS graduated students
Ruth Mitchell, Ted Carr, and Peggie Chessie won prizes.
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Players of our Hockey Team
The Geary Fina Jets
from left: Edison Carr, Weldon Carr, Wilson Carr, Ashley Carr (kneeling)
Linton Carr on his Dad's knee, c.1960
Picture from Weldon Carr is in the Medical Community Relief Committee calendar for 2011
Players of our Hockey Team
from left: Edison Carr, Weldon Carr, Wilson Carr, Ashley Carr (kneeling)
Linton Carr on his Dad's knee, c.1960
Picture from Weldon Carr is in the Medical Community Relief Committee calendar for 2011
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Our Home Softball Team: The Geary Comets
Back row: Bob Cogswell, Ted Carr, Dale Cogswell
Middle Row: Bill Carr, Garnet Gates, Norman Carr, Ossie Carr, Sheldon Grasse
Front Row: Dennis Belliveau, Sandy Cameron, Bill Owen, Jim Piercy, Stanley Howe
Back: Don Morehouse, Paul Britton, Dennis Belliveau, Garnet Gates, Bill Carr, George MacAleer (in front of Bill Carr), John Ryan, Ted Carr, Stanley Howe
Front: x (assistant coach), Ossie Carr, Bob Cogswell (Coach & Manager), Sandy Cameron, Jim Piercy (above Sandy), Dale Cogswell, Norman Carr (above Dale), Ronnie Carr, Art Carr
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Fenety Business College Graduation Program 1961
5 Geary Rural High School classmates graduated in the Fenety Business College Class of 1961:
Joyce Armstrong (Shanks)
Paulette Carr (Rogers)
Mary Jones (Tremblay)
Ron Murray
Barbara Simpson (Leger)
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Grade 9 class won a Centennial Year contest doing a History of Geary
(corrected copy)
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Rockwell Stream at Spring freshet, 1955
This is the Rockwell Stream in torrential rage in March of 1998. Notice the cakes of ice and water covering the roadway. The turn in the Rockwell is accentuated because of the wide-angle effect.
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The annual Orangeman's Picnic was a fun time for kids growing up in Geary in the 1950s and '60s. This photo was taken by Don Boone from the upper level of the Orange Lodge building on the Branch Road in July 1963. (On our Facebook site, many of the known people and vehicles are named).
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