14

Well, I think, as kids we sorta though the prairies was ours. We used to go up there and pick crocuses, so many, many times, bring em home, put them in some water, and they always seemed a new adventure every time you went up there. In fact…

and we called it the prairie

In fact, we used to see the kids that went to Bannatyne School, but they lived on the other side of Portage, and it was like they sorta lived there, but then we would hide behind my house on Harcourt Street. And we'd watch around the corner, cause we didn't have any paint on our house and we were kinda embarrassed to say the least. But when we'd see these kids come across there, we'd think 'oh, they're going up to get our crocuses again!

15

Flo's memories of prairie
1910

Credits:
Image courtesy of: Glenbow Archives, NA-4164-4

16

Yeah, going to pick the wildflowers, the tiger lilies were always nice. And daddy longlegs, and the little yellow ones, and we had great times there. Sometimes took a bit of a lunch, went up, spent all day there or went all the way across Saskatchewan Avenue-and that was a long way. And along the creek cause we used to find these little crab shells.

Crayfish.

And we'd think we had a real collection and spend a whole day across there. And then berry-pick in summer, and sometimes we sold the baskets, for $2.00 a basket and then we finally realized, that's an awful lot of work, picking a basket of sask…raspberries to get two dollars. And then we realized, hey, wait a minute, we're getting taking advantage of!

17

Never want to go back to that
1930

Credits:
Image coutesy of: Glenbow Archives, NA-2180-6

18

We had no water.

We didn't even have electricity.

No sewer, no lights

This was in 19…

And mud roads. So if you got stuck, you were stuck period.

Well after they put the sewer and water down, you sure got stuck.

And then every night at 8 o'clock, you shined up these darn lamps. Oh…I would never want to go back to that.

19

Drawn to the Prairie
2006
Pioneer Quest, Argyle, Manitoba

20

(on St. James prairie)

It's home.

Well, you're drawn to it. Even when I go downtown on the bus and I come home, my thought is I almost should get off at Harcourt Street and walk all that way up past Ness…or just this side. And you just can't help remembering the houses that were still there, that were then. And all the people we knew on Harcourt and they were…they were good to us as kids, a lot of people knew we grew up without a mom.

21

Change on the prairie
22 November 2004
Living Prairie Museum, St. James, Winnipeg, Manitoba, Canada

22

Well, I guess they had to come, but they spoiled a lot of things (laughs)…that I enjoy.

And for you?

It doesn't really bother me that it's changed, because like they say, everything's gonna change anyways. Ah, I like it just as much as I did as a kid, and through all our married life, and although it's built up a lot of course, it still to me is the same-and the same memories that we grew up with.

23

Other Prairie around St. James
2004
Living Prairie Museum, St. James, Winnipeg, Manitoba, Canada

24

..there was other virgin prairie around too at that time, quite a bit of it, there was some northwest of Williamette and Ainslie Street, there was a big prairie there, and then there was a rifle range.

25

Jack and Flo Brown at the Prairie Reunion
20 August 2006
2795 Ness Ave, Living Prairie Museum, St. James, Winnipeg, Manitoba, Canada

26

Boy, I tell ya, go back to before this place was, I was quite concerned about the prairie gettin lost, eh. And I intended to write something for the paper and..on it. I didn't do anything…and fortunately someone else did something and started this place up, but…