Chapleau Moments

by MichaelJ. Morris

Although Chapleau is located on the Kebsquasheshing and Nebskwashi Rivers, the first site selected for the community was Tawagami, about five miles to the east about whereDevonis,accordingtoalong-handwritten articleintheRichardBrownleepapers.

The Devon site was apparently too swampy for a settlement near the tracks, so the Canadian Pacific Railway work camps were movedwesttowhatbecameChapleauby1885.A spur track for a boxcar, which became the first station was set out and Chapleau came into existence.

Before I go any further, and in the interests of full disclosure, I have no idea who authored this article which summarizes the first 50yearsofChapleauhistoryasthereisnobyline. It may very well have been Mr. Brownlee. It is excellent.

However, in 1901 Chapleau became a municipality with G.B. Nicholson as the first Reeve. Mr. Nicholson served until 1913 being returned by acclamation each year. Members of thefirstcouncilwereA.Rothwell,D.Royal,P.J. MacFarlane, andW. Boswell.To the best of my knowledge only relatives of Mr. Nicholson still live in Chapleau -- members of the Collins had no doors and when the snow piled up the section men shovelled it out. The oil was kept outsideandhadtobeheatedonstoves.

"The railroaders had a hard winter in thoseearlydays,buttheywerehardymen."

D. O. Payette described Chapleau as he sawitin1904whenhearrived.

"At least half of Chapleau was bush. Therewerenoelectriclights andcoaloilwasusedalmost exclusively for lighting purposes. The stores and hotels used acetylene gas. The water supply was had from pitcher pumps which drew the water from well pointsdrivenintotheground atvaryingdepths."

The author revealed that by late 1885 there were two rows of boxcars which had become temporary homes on "Stovepipe" and "Gosling"Avenues.

I was amazed to learn that by 1888 Chapleau had a public library in a boxcar with overtwothousandvolumesof"fineliterature'all donatedbySirWilliamVanHorne,thepresident of the CPR. The library was later located in the MechanicsInstitute.

The Chapleau Brass Band was established in 1888 and by 1889 Dominion Day onJuly1wasbeingcelebrated.

Effortsweremadejustbeforetheturnof the century to have Chapleau incorporated as a municipality but failed because an insufficient number of names could be found for a petition callingforavote.

Mrs. Eileen Collins, the wife of Charles W. Collins was a member of the Nicholson family.

The first act of the council was to float debentures for the construction of a public school.Thefirstschoolwasinatent,thenthefirst RomanCatholicChurchthenbacktotent.

Theauthornotedthatthesecondtentwas pitched on the spot where the United Church parsonagewaslocated.

"Itwasaveryprettyspot,andthetentwas nestled among the big pine trees. Great fun was had when the pinecones dropped on the roof making a drumming noise. There were twelve roughhewnseatsintheschool.

"Another feature of this school was the bigstoveinthemiddleandthosewhosatnearit roastedthoseawayfroze."

TurningtotheCPR,theauthorwrotethat the round house, a necessity in a railroad town,

Things changed quickly and that is a column for anotherdayaswelookatthe early days of Chapleau. If you would like to contribute to the story, please contactmeatmj.morris@live.ca

Onceagain,Iextendmysincerethanksto Margaret Rose (Payette) and Bobby Fortin who kindlyloanedmetheRichardBrownleePapers!