Heroes Come in all Shapes and Sizes - Halifax Explosion

Archibald MacMechan

This week I made a wonderful find that documented the Halifax Explosion which led me to the realization that heroes come in all shapes and sizes. From a young boy pulling his mother to safety to newspapers helping families find each other, the work of the official Halifax Explosion historian, Archibald MacMechan, has these detailed stories and more. Finding this collection of works online, courtesy of the Nova Scotia Archives, is a reminder that there are a lot of caring and generous people in this world.  Though some of the notes and pieces are rough, many demonstrate the acts of kindness and generosity we’re all capable of.  Acts of kindness like:

Norman Roberts, an eight-year-old, rescued his mother and sister before their house burned down. 

Dr. Grace Rice, a woman doctor, helped many who were injured. 

The December 10, 1917 issue of The Morning Chronicle, helped family and friends by listing the wounded and where they were located, as well as, those who were identified as dead.  My grandfather Joseph Landry and his brother Dan’s tenants, Mrs. Gibson and 2 children, having lived at 38 Union Street, were listed at Camp Hill hospital on page 6 under “Partial Alphabetical List”.  Uncle Dan Landry’s 23-year-old wife, Annie Landry and 18-month-old son Clarence Landry were listed in article “List of Dead Recovered Among the Ruins.” This means he identified them some time between Thursday, December 6, 1917 and Saturday night, December 9, 1917. (Remembrance Book)

In the New Year, may we remember to do acts of kindness.

Note:  Link to his complete work: https://novascotia.ca/archives/macmechan/results.asp?Search=&Start=1

From Despair to Hope – Halifax Explosion

Writing about the aftermath of the Halifax Explosion, in a memoir about my grandfather Joe Landry’s family, has been wrought with tragedy as well as triumph.  One of the worst tragedies and greatest triumphs, involved my grandfather’s slightly younger brother Dan Landry.

Thursday, December 6, 1917
Halifax, Nova Scotia, Canada

Photo by Cal Shook

In the early hours of the morning, at 38 Union Street, a 26-year-old Dan Landry and his 23-year-old wife Annie (Adams) had finished breakfast.  Their 18-month-old son Clarence is playing with a toy on the floor nearby.  Daniel and Annie are excited, they are expecting their second child.
Before leaving for work, Daniel kissed his wife Annie and then picked up little Clarence who had toddled over to him.  Little Clarence snuggled in as he was surrounded by his father’s muscular arms.  Life was good, as Dan said goodbye. He’s got a precious toddler, a loving wife, and a little one on the way.

Within hours everything would change.

Around 8:45 a.m. in the harbor below their home, there was an accident.   The Imo, a Belgium relief ship, collided with the Mont Blanc, a French munitions ship.  As they separated, the Mont Blanc caught fire and drifted toward Pier 6.  Its crew evacuated as the Imo maneuvered away.

At 9:04 a.m. the Mont Blanc exploded, leaving the Richmond district of Halifax, where Dan and Annie’s home was located, leveled.

Dan was working for Rhodes Curry Ltd, a construction and supply company at the corner of Windsor and West Young street, about a half mile from home.  Dan, unhurt by the blast, made his way through the devastation surrounding him and headed toward home.  When he reached Fort Needham,  he saw that his neighborhood was on fire.  By the time he made it to the area of his home, there was nothing left.  His search for his wife and children would leave him in despair.

In describing her brother Dan’s son Clarence, Anna Bella (Landry) Bradley said that he was, “…the sweetest little boy… He had curly blond hair and a sweet little round face. He was adorable.  And he could talk… …he could talk like everything. And my God, he was killed, too.” In regard to everyone located at 38 Union Street when the explosion hit, “…Annie was the one that was killed, Dan’s wife, and the children, two children, I say because she was pregnant with another one.”

How does a father, having lost his wife and children, go on?

I’m grateful that Uncle Dan found a way.

Hilda and Marie Landry, Myrtle Nicholson Landry,  Dan Landry
Note: Hilda and Marie are children of Dan and Myrtle Landry,

Hope arrived a couple years later when Myrtle Nicholson and he were married.  They had a large family and many grandchildren.  Though Annie, their unborn child, and Clarence are not forgotten, nor the pain their absence has brought, life and laughter have returned through the passage of time.

Note:  Upon further identification from Dan's family, the name "Myrtle Nicholson Landry" has replaced "Anna Bella Bradley Landry" and words "Anna Bella is Dan's sister." have been removed from the photo to the right.

A Young Rescuer on Union Street - Halifax Explosion

Fort Needham Memorial Park, Halifax, NS - Cal Shook

While doing research this month, one story about a brave young rescuer stood out.

On December 6, 1917, the Myra family lived at 52 Union Street. My relatives, the Landry family, resided at 38 Union Street. With the exploding of the Mont Blanc, houses in the Richmond section of Halifax were leveled which included Union Street..  At the Myra residence, thirteen-year-old Doris and her mother, Mary were the only ones home.  Uninjured, Doris found herself in the midst of the debris from the house, a fire had started and was closing in on her and her critically wounded mother.  After a failed attempt to lift her mother and with fresh blood covering her clothes, Doris took a piece of rope and tied it around her mother’s feet and then dragged her outside to safety.  Sadly, her mother Mary died later that day.

“Doris was one of three people believed to have survived on Union Street near Fort Needham as of the paper’s printing. Edward A. Myra, Doris’s father also survived,” according to author Katie Ingram in her book, Breaking Disaster. *

Ninety-four people from Union Street are listed among the dead in the Halifax Explosion Remembrance Book.  On that day my great Uncle Dan Landry lost his pregnant wife Annie and their 18-month-old son Clarence.

I’m grateful that among those who lived, was my grandfather’s next to youngest sibling, Anna Bella. Fourteen at the time, she was pulled from the rubble in a semi-conscious state and lived to share family stories.  In August of 2003, Aunt Anna Bella shared:

“It must have been terrible for my father and Dan to come home and see that, everything mowed down… And everything was burning, burning next to me. The house next to me was burning. And the next thing I saw was Elizabeth. But someone had taken me out and brought me out in the street because I was half unconscious… coming out like that… and I saw Elizabeth and thought, my God she’s safe…”



Note:
*from  page 88 of Breaking Disaster by Katie Ingram.  The newspaper that Ms. Ingram referred to was “The Morning Chronicle” published on December 10, 1917. The quote contained a footnote: "Doris Myra would later work as a clerk before marrying Joseph Paul Dubois in 1925. Her father Edward never remarried and would pass away in 1966 at the age of 91.”

A Picture on the Wall
A Father's Love

Watoto Children’s Choir

Watoto Children's Choir

My husband Jim and I are now unpacked and have guest rooms thanks to our excitement about housing a few members of the Watoto Children's Choir and their support team next week.  We moved to Gilford, NH a little over a year ago and the rooms looked more like storage lockers up till a couple days ago.

Watoto in Swahili means “Children”.

According to their website, “Watoto is a Church based organisation that cares for orphans and widows in Uganda. Our goal is to raise the next generation of Ugandan leaders.”

Their moto: Rescue, Raise, and Rebuild

Rescue – widows and orphans
Raise – in homes, with education and medical services
Rebuild – create an eco-friendly, self-sustaining economy

The Watoto Children’s Choir is coming to Gilford to share their stories and a message of hope and transformation through a lively performance of Ugandan music.

If you’re in the area and would like to join us, the concert is on:

Sunday, October 7 at 7:00pm.
First United Methodist Church Gilford/Laconia
18 Wesley Way, Gilford, NH

There might be a performance near you - they're in Massachusetts starting this week:  https://www.watoto.com/app/choir/calendar?start=2018-10-01#calendar

Two-Thirds of the Way Through 1st Draft of "A Picture on the Wall" - Halifax Explosion Memoir

Photo Halifax Harbour - Cal Shook

This month marks the completion of about two-thirds of the first draft for “A Picture on the Wall,” a Landry family memoir about the Halifax Explosion.   My paternal grandfather Joseph's family.

Earlier this week, I emailed my editor, a section about three family members who witnessed the aftermath of the collision between the Imo and the Mont Blanc.  The three witnesses would bring this family narrative right up to the explosion.  For two of the witnesses, split second decisions would forever change each of their family's lives. 

When I entered my editor Sylvia Clark’s home, a couple days later,  she greeted me with, “This is your best piece yet.  It left me wanting more.” 

With the revisions that need to be made and the continual striving to write something worth reading, I realize that I have a way to go before I come close to the captivating words of a J.K. Rowling or a Stephen King.  My hope and prayer is to leave a lasting legacy. 

Uncle Joseph Burke at Ground Zero – Halifax Explosion

What follows is a Halifax Explosion story about my great Uncle Joseph Burke based on information given by my great Aunt Anna Bella, along with research.*

Uncle Joseph Burke was married to Pauline Bouchard.  They and five of their seven children, ranging in age from five to twenty-six, lived in a cottage on 19 Stairs Street in December of 1917.

On December 6, Joseph – a stevedore, was on Pier 8 helping load cargo onto a ship called Curaca.  Pier 8 ran parallel to the Halifax shore.  Pier 6 was just south of it and headed straight into the shore.

Not far away, two cargo ships – the Imo and the Mont Blanc, had collided in the harbor after heading straight at each other on the Dartmouth side of the harbor.*  At the last minute they both took evasive maneuvers that resulted in the Imo striking and piercing the Mont Blanc’s hull.  Under normal circumstances and with both ships still afloat, this wouldn’t have been a problem, but the Mont Blanc was loaded with 3000 tons of explosives.  When the Imo pulled back, the metal scraping metal created sparks that set off a fire in the first hold, located just below the Mont Blanc’s deck. Quickly flames lept onto the deck, blocking the crew from getting to the fire hose.  Fearing the ship would explode any second, the crew, captain, and harbor pilot got into life boats and rowed toward the Dartmouth shore.

Uncle Joseph was at ground zero as the Mont Blanc drifted into Pier 6 and ran aground.  He and others stopped what they were doing as the ship passed in front of them.  Smoke filled the air as flames traveled across its deck, ignited by fumes from barrels of Benzol (airplane fuel) stacked three and four high.  Then about nine barrels – one after the other, catapulted high into the air trailing smoke, exploding into flames with a loud roar.

Joseph and those around him watched as the blasts continued and the heat of the ship intensified - then one final seismic explosion.

“ Of course, my Uncle Joe, they never found a bit of him. They never found one bit of him. That was my Aunt Pauline’s husband. And they never found him at all, he was blown to bits because he was right on the wharf when the thing went off and they didn’t find him.” – Anna Bella (Landry) Bradley

It saddens me to think of his passing and the loss of a husband, father, uncle, and friend.

Not only was Uncle Joe a stevedore, but he was a carpenter and overall handyman, according to Aunt Pauline in a statement to the Halifax Relief Commission - Case #393:

"She said she and her husband had both been born in Cape Breton. Had come to Halifax about 15 years ago. And ever since had lived in a cottage at 19 Stairs Street. They were only paying $5.00 a month rent there, as her husband was very good at carpentry and made all the repairs to the house himself. Kept it in good condition, so the landlord did not increase their rent." - info. recorded by M.A. Boss on May 8, 1918

Wow, what an attentive man my Uncle Joseph was and my Aunt Pauline seemed very proud of him.  Are there many landlords that would keep the rent low for a well maintained house today?

Note:  Along with conversations with my great Aunt Anna Bella, I've done research at Nova Scotia Archives and the Maritime Museum of the Atlantic both online and on site. Reading Resources:  Ground Zero edited by Alan Ruffman and Colin D. Howell, Shattered City by Janet F. Kitz, The Great Halifax Explosion by John U. Bacon

*This wording has been changed following comments from a reader asking that I might reconsider that it wasn't a game of chicken.  I've removed the words "after a game of chicken" and replaced them with the words "on the Dartmouth side of the harbor".

Update on the progress of “A Picture on the Wall"

CSS Acadia at Maritime Museum of Atlantic
-Photo by Cal Shook

To date there are 27 people, who end up in about 16 different locations just before the Mont Blanc explodes around 9:05am in Halifax Harbour.  Since I shared the Landry, Burke, and Myatt Family Chart in last month's blog, I’ve written about the three families who occupy 38 Union Street.  Just prior to the explosion, a young family, the Gibson’s move into the vacant upstairs apartment.  Brothers Joe (my grandfather) and Dan Landry, owners of the home, are thrilled that Joe Gibson wanted to rent the apartment..  On moving day, family members get excited as an accordion,a violin, and then the Gibson’s new piano are brought up the stairs.  Thoughts of foot stomping music bring a sense of joy, a welcome respite from reminders of war sitting in the harbor below.

The morning of the explosion brings chores for the Landry children on the first floor. The Landry family still grieves the loss of mother Charlotte who died in January and a brother Leo who died on the front lines the year before.  Youngest of the boys, Jimmy, does his best to cheer everyone with his fun loving antics.

This coming month, I’ll be finishing up 19 Stairs Street and will continue working my way through  other locations that I’ve started.  Well that’s all for now, better get back to writing.

Landry, Burke, and Myatt Family Chart: Halifax Explosion

Inspired by conversations with my editor,  Sylvia Clark,   I’ve created a chart  to make it easier for  readers to visualize the families that I’m writing about in a memoir called "A Picture on the Wall.". 

Along with the above chart, I was wondering if information included in the Legend below might be helpful. 

What do you think?  Should I include it?  Vote "yes" or "no" and/or comment in the section below or on Facebook.

Do You Know the Simon and Hilda Myatt Family - Dartmouth NS - Halifax Explosion?

Photo by Cal Shook

From my great Aunt Anna Bella's memory featured in last month's blog, I'm hoping will come a much fuller story of the Myatt family.

Thanks to Paul C. Landry's comments on last month's blog post shared with the Facebook group "Nova Scotia Genealogy", I have the names of the Myatt family living in Dartmouth, Nova Scotia the day of the Halifax Explosion.   They are:

Elda Elizabeth (or Hilda) b. Sept 17, 1889 at River Bourgeois,
married Simon Myatt (Maillet) and had 3 children: 

-Anne Victoria b. Oct 10, 1908 

-Florence Margaret b. Nov 29, 1911 

-Joseph Leo b. Jan 1, 1915

At the time of the explosion my great Aunt Anna Bella and grandfather Joe Landry's first cousin Hilda Myatt would have been 28 years old  and the mother of Anne age 9, Florence age 6, and Joseph age 2.  Hilda's husband Simon might have been a bit older than her, being married once before.

Paul C. Landry, also commented about where the children ended up years after the explosion:

-Anne Victoria married Robie Whidden Oct 5, 1926, at Elmsdale, NS. In 1975 she was in Newmarket, Ontario. 

 -Florence Margaret married George Stewart Dec 31, 1935, Halifax, NS. In 1975, she was also located in NewMarket, Ontario. 

-Joseph Leo married Laura Keddy Apr 12, 1936, Enfield, NS. He was living in Toronto at the time of his birth certificate application on Mary 18, 1964. 

 I believe Simon was previously married to Rose Mary Manette, according to the census returns. He had a son Angus living with him in 1911, who reported his death Sept 2, 1926. 

 I found Angus' marriage certificate which gave his mother's name.
Angus died Mar 30, 1958, at Halifax, NS, having never married.
He also had 2 sisters. (Rose b. 1893 and Mary b. 1896)

Hilda Myatt lost and eye as a result of the Halifax Explosion and I wonder if any other family members were injured.  Do you know if there was a separate Relief Commission for the people living in Dartmouth at the time of the explosion?

Hilda died in 1918 of influenza and it might have been hard for Simon to be a single dad with young children.  Were the children able to stay with him?   Any additional information you can give me about the Myatt family before, during or after the explosion would be greatly appreciated.

Do you know Mrs. Myatt, a Bouchard-Burke born in River Bourgeois, Cape Breton?

St. John the Baptist Church - Photo by Cal Shook

Do you know Mrs. Myatt, a Bouchard-Burke born in River Bourgeois, Cape Breton?

Mrs. Myatt was a survivor of the Halifax Explosion and is the person I believe my great Aunt Anna Bella Landry was talking about in the following quote.

“…my cousin living over on the Dartmouth side… just on the other side of Halifax Harbor.  Well she was injured.  She lost an eye and she was badly hurt.  I can’t remember her name…  I don’t know if she died since or not. I know her sister’s name was Marie. But that was a sister to her and I can’t think of her name. 

Of course, my Uncle Joe, they never found a bit of him. They never found one bit of him. That was my Aunt Pauline’s husband.  And they never found him at all, he was blown to bits because he was right on the wharf when the thing went off and they didn’t find him.” -  Anna Bella Landry Bradley, Halifax Explosion Survivor 

Mrs. Myatt is the daughter of Joseph and Pauline (Bouchard) Burke from River Bourgeois, Cape Breton.  She was born between 1889 and 1894. 

The Burke Family moved to Halifax around 1905.

Her father Joseph, a stevedore, was killed in the Halifax Explosion on December 6, 1917.

Mrs.  Myatt’s mother, Mrs. Pauline Burke was visited by G. Hoban of the Halifax Relief Commission on 16 of December 1918 who recorded the visit as follows: 

“Mrs. Burke seemed depressed…   Her married daughter Mrs. Myatt who had been injured in the explosion and lost an eye had contracted influenza and died leaving three small children, and this was a great blow to her.”   G. Hoban, HRC Case #393 

Can’t begin to imagine how it must have felt, losing a husband and then a daughter to influenza, leaving her three children without a mother – so devastating. 

On 10 of February 1919 an E. Williamson of the Halifax Relief Commission went to visit Mrs. Burke then wrote:

“ Called for Mrs. Burke… Child stated her mother was out.  Had gone to Dartmouth to nurse a cousin who was very sick with a cold.”  – E. Wlliamson, HRC Case #393

Two months after her daughter dies, Pauline goes over to Dartmouth to take care of one of her daughter’s children, a cousin to her other children.

I wonder if anyone in this family beside Mrs. Myatt was injured during the Halifax Explosion.   Her death in 1919 appears to have left Mr. Myatt (though he’s never mentioned) a single parent with three young children.  I’d appreciate any additional information you might have about Mr. and Mrs. Myatt and their children. I have some of their names and ages below thanks to HRC Case #393 from the National Archives of Nova Scotia.  Any additions information you can give would be appreciated as I continue to write a memoir about my grandfather and his family.

Note:   Below is a list of Burke family members, Mrs. Myatt’s parents and siblings, their ages and occupation or schooling on December 6, 1917 (Halifax Explosion) The Burke’s were living in five rooms at 19 Stairs Street in Halifax.  Mrs. Myatt might have been 26 at the time living in Dartmouth with her husband and three young children.

Parents
Joseph – age 54 – stevedore at Pier 8
Pauline – age 50 – housewife

Siblings
Malcolm – age 27 – (widower) – Merchant – was staying with family intermittently
Harry – age 20 – “mentally affected (non disaster) lives at city home” HRC case #393
Annie – age 18 – Moir’s Chocolate Ltd.
Marie – age 13 – b. 19 Dec 1904 – St Joseph’s School – 6th grade
Clarence – age 8 – b. 6 Feb 1909 – St Joseph’s School – 4th grade (boys went in afternoon)
Eddie – age 5 –  b. 6 July 1912 – not school yet

Thinking of my Grands– Passing It On

Photo by Tracy Soucy

My great Aunt Anna Bella Landry Bradley shared family stories with me.  Now it’s my turn to share her stories with my grand niece and nephew, Nora and Tommy.

Nora and Tommy, are young now, both being less than five years old.  They are in my thoughts with each word that I write about their Meme’s and my grandfather Joseph’s family.  Our great Aunt Anna Bella is one of his younger sisters. 

Many hours of transcribing my great aunt's and my visits, additional stories from my dad's and my generations, and research both in the United States and Canada are now coming together in a more coherent form.. As the words make their way onto the page its my desire to create a memoir that will captivate Nora and Tommy.  Hoping that it will be worthy of their passing it on to the next generation.  

The book is taking shape as I work to complete this draft by the end of the year with plans to self-publish later next year.

For a little about how this book came about and Aunt Anna Bella's Experience: A Picture on the Wall: the Halifax Explosion

Great Grandfather Michael Landry:  A Father's Love - Halifax Explosion

100th Anniversary of Halifax Explosion: 
A Walk in Fort Needham Memorial Park,
Hope and Survival Quilt

A Walk in Fort Needham Memorial Park - Halifax Explosion Remembered

Artistically forged metal and stone structures line the walkways of Fort Needham Memorial Park - giving insight into the magnitude of loss as a result of the Halifax Explosion on December 6, 1917.

It's a cold December day in Halifax and my cousin Linda Landry Horne and her husband David are giving me a tour of this reverent and peaceful park.

The steep grade of the stairs leading to the summit is evident as the individual letters of the word "RICHMOND" lead the way toward the summit of Fort Needham Memorial Park.  

Photo by Cal Shook

Richmond is the area in the North End of Halifax that suffered the greatest loss and destruction from the explosion.

Linda's grandfather Daniel Landry (age 25) and my grandfather Joseph Landry (age 28) co-owned the family home, not far from the base of these stairs, at what was 38 Union Street in 1917.

Tall cut-out steel posts baring the names of  churches, schools, and businesses destroyed support the hand rail to the left of the stairs.

Photo by Cal Shook

At the summit is the Memorial Bell Tower.  It overlooks the section of the narrows in Halifax Harbor where a fully loaded munitions ship, the Mont Blanc and a Belgium cargo ship, the Imo collided causing the horrific explosion - the Halifax Explosion. 

Photo by Cal Shook

The Memorial Bell Tower's carillon bells were donated by Barbara (Orr) Thompson

in memory of her family, the Samuel Orr family, that perished during the explosion. 

Barbara was 14 years old at the time.

Anna Bella Landry Bradley, Linda's and my great aunt and one of Dan and Joseph Landry's younger sisters, was also 14 years old that fateful day. She too, would survive.

Heading down the hill are statistics etched in stone:

Photo by Cal Shook

1 in Every 10 Left Homeless.

1 in Every 10 Was Military.

Photo by Cal Shook

1 of  Every 5 Injured.

1 of  Every 25 Killed.

This was a beautiful yet humbling walk.  So grateful for family members Linda and David for this opportunity and their insights.

Do you have family members that were forever changed by this horrific explosion?
Have you had a chance to check out this memorial park?

Note:  Newspaper clippings and minutes for original planning and dedication in 1985
           Hope and Survival Quilt