Category Archives: Newsy Notes

Wood as Fuel

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“There has recently appeared the results of investigations into the wood-fuel supply by the Dominion Fuel Board, and while it contains little that is new to us who are extensive wood users, still, the repetition of some of the outstanding facts may remind us of matters that we have left undone in conserving this source of heat. 

A woodlot in Queens County, PEI.

“Consumption of wood as a household is about one cord per head of population in Canada and therefore constitutes an important item in the fuel bill. The use of wood is primarily confined to the rural districts and to towns near the source of supply for it is inferior to coal in fuel value and, on account of its bulk, costs more to transport.

“From information gathered, it may be shown that there has been for the past twenty years; a continuous shrinkage in the farmers’ woodlots which constitute the chief source of supply. To such an extent has depletion proceeded that split rail fences and even roadside and hedgerow trees are now a considerable item in the fuel wood supply. 

“This depletion is not attributable to any lessening of acreage as a general thing, but to the lack of foresight and care, principally due to the grazing of livestock which has served to prevent germination of seeds, killed off seedlings and injured standing timber. This is a point in which we display much apathy.

“The tendency today, largely due to these conditions, is to the use of coal and oil and this when accentuated will add considerably to Canada’s fuel problems.

A woodlot in Queens County, PE.

“Experience in other places has shown that the rehabilitation of run down wood-lots will require fifteen to twenty years of the most expert care and only a meagre yield of one quarter (or at most one half) of the normal producing capacity can be realized in the interval. The wood-lot owner has, in the main, still to be educated in the proper method of wood-lot management, and as this can only be made effective after many years training there seems to be no prospect of marked improvement in fuel production from wood-lots in the near future: rather, I imagine, the reverse.”

Newsy Notes by Agricola. February 28, 1929.

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February 20, 1956

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Blue jay in the winter.

“Today was a wash spread to fitful sun and cloud; a mild wind of February, and a sheltered hillside baring; a lone wild duck on wing and a blue jay’s shrill call. It was children off bright and eager to school-by sleigh, and the farmers busy about at the choring and hauling. We saw a grist being taken to the mill, one which will vanish smartly in tins and handfuls to the mangers of the stables about.

“‘Next thing we know there’ll be lambs’ Mack, little fellow of the place came in with the news today. ‘Yes, shortly. Do you know we’re not too far from spring now? There’ll be more calves and kittens too!’ he remembered. ‘I hope’ he added soberly ‘we’ll have good luck with those.’

…

Sugar maple sap collection.

“And through the branches of the maples in the yard, the little breeze played, bringing us tales of a sap-time of young years we knew… of honey-combed March snow in an old woodland where odd sugar maples grew. Not far from the sweetest brook rippled its thawing tunes as between woodsy banks it emerged in a meadow and ran at length to the river and Strait. And the trees tapped and tended by the farmlands thus providing nectar for themselves and any wayfaring maids could not know how far apart the band would one day wander to visit and dwell in separate climes and places.”

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PEI in Winter. Image Source.

Oyster Shell-Mud

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“Many of the early settlers in our province gathered oyster shells at low tide from some of the many extensive deposits that occur in the bays and rivers throughout ‘The Island.’ They burned these shells to secure quick lime, required in making the mortar, which they used in building their chimneys and fire places ,and for plastering their houses. They also observed that where these shells were burned the vegetation in the years following, was much more vigorous, this was particularly true of clover, cereals, and some of the vegetables.

Mussel shells

“The top layers of many of these deposits, particularly those that were exposed at low tide, were composed largely of blue mussel shells in various stages of decomposition. Ingenious farmers invented and constructed mud-diggers of different types, but quite efficient for the lifting of these deposits. Some of the first ones were mounted on scows, but it soon became a general practice to lift mud through the ice in winter. Most of the surface deposits of mussel mud were quickly exhausted.

“Underneath these there were usually deep deposits of oyster shells, sometimes almost pure oyster shell mud was located that extended to a depth of more than twenty feet. These muds were all referred to as “mussel-mud” the name carried from the surface deposits that were first used on land. It was a common sight, early in this century, to see dozens of mud diggers on many of our rivers and bays in winter. We have seen maps prepared for the Provincial Government, showing oyster beds in Malpeque Bay that extended over a hundred acres each. On some of these beds there are deposits of oyster shells over ten, fifteen and twenty feet. 

VALUE OF SHELL-MUD


“Potato stand, PEI” by are you gonna eat that is licensed under CC BY-NC-ND 2.0 

“The first application of shell mud to land not previously mudded was very beneficial. It invariably produced luxuriant crops of clover, (we remember fields that did not need to be raked, as large coils were not more than twenty feet apart), followed by increased crops of roots and grain. These muds were essentially lime, most of them contained eighty-five per cent and over of carbonate of lime with traces of nitrogen and phosphoric acid. They were good soil amendments. The farms near some of these deposits received very heavy dressings in the early days, but second applications proved of little value. The growing of certified seed potatoes was partly responsible for the decline in the use of oyster shell mud, which tended to increase potato scab. 

Loading sleighs with Mussel Mud. David Weale. Source

“The mud was either piled on the shore or near a highway where it could be hauled away later or piled in small heaps on the fields and exposed to frost, which broke down many of the shells before being spread on the land. We recall buying good shell mud at the diggers at four to six cents per scoopful of from 400 to 500 pounds. 

“The railway ran a spur line to a pier on St. Peters Bay near large shell deposits. The price charged for a 12 1/2 ton car (enough for an acre) of mud was $3.50 for many years. In 1920 this had been raised to $14.00 F.O.B. point of shipping. The value of lime for Island soils being established as a valuable soil amendment, ground limestone from the mainland has been imported in increasing quantities.” 


Painting by George Ackerman circa 1880.
Community Museums Association of Prince Edward Island. Source.

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Illustrated Historical Atlas of the Province of Prince Edward Island

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The Illustrated Historical Atlas of the Province of Prince Edward Island, colloquially known as Meacham’s Atlas of 1880, was one of the first attempts to map PEI in its entirety. A whole host of information can be found within the atlas; from detailed maps of each of the lots on the island – down to the individual houses, to realistic drawings of prominent citizens and their properties. It is a dream resource for any Island historian!

The Meacham’s Atlas maps before mosaicing.

For us at the GeoREACH lab, the atlas represents yet another opportunity to compile data on energy usage on the island during this period. We can see in the atlas the individual lots that compose our island even to today, each with personalized property information. The cartographers went so far as to outline the individual houses, barns, other infrastructure and property owners for each lot.

The Meacham’s Atlas maps after being mosaiced.

An important step in gathering the data from Meacham’s Atlas was to centralize all the available rasters (individual images) to a single resource. As all the lots were created independently, they would have to be stitched together into a single, geographically accurate map in a process formally known as mosaicing. This is why we have made, using GIS, a comprehensive mosaic of all the lots to easier represent this information.

The building points displayed over the entirety of Prince Edward Island.

Beyond that, we also entered data points for the over 16,000 buildings indicated on the map. Though it is still a work in progress, it is now available to be explored. You can adjust the different layers through the content window to look at churches, houses, mills, or schools, or can zoom in to a region you know well to see what it looked like in 1880!

Click here to explore the map.

The Kestrel

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“The Kestrel or Sparrow Hawk is about the size of a Robin, and is the only small hawk which has a shade of chestnut-red in its tail feathers. Reed truly says that it has ‘bright colors and odd markings.’ It is so handsome and at the same time so evidently harmless, that it has escaped much of the destruction aimed at its larger companions. Another point in its favor is its ability to adapt itself to its environment: it is equally at home in the pasture lands of the east and the forests of other regions.

“The Kestrel feeds principally on mice, large insects, frogs, and snakes. At times it attacks birds and may kill jays, quail, and other birds as large as itself. It may visit towns where sparrows abound, whence the name ‘Sparrow-hawk.’ Dr. Taverner, however, thinks that a more appropriate name would be “Grasshopper Hawk.” (And he notes that when taken from the nest young, this little falcon is easily tamed.) Scientists have examined 291 stomachs and found that birds were killed and eaten only in the winter when insects are not available. “It is obvious that the Sparrow Hawk is beneficial and should be protected.” 

“Kestrel or Sparrow Hawk. AOU 360. Summer Resident- List, 1916. One observed at Alberton, 1937.

“Adult Male: Head slaty blue, crown rufous; face pattern black and white. Black rufous with or without black spots or bars. Wings blue gray; tail rufous-red with a wide sub-terminal black band and a narrow white tip. Underparts creamy white to buff, a few black spots or none. 

“Female: Head and face like male; black wings and tail rufous, barred black; underparts more or less dark brown and streakedImmature birds resemble adults. Length of adult 10.5 inches.”

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