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Arlene (Payne) Petrany was born in 1938 in Peterborough. After living on Water Street for a few years her family moved and she spent most of her growing up years on Bennett Street. When Arlene was young this was the dividing line for the county, until January 1953 the street was technically part of Smith Township.

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Arlene Petrany's grandparents Olive and Melville Crowe and their daughter Zelda (Arlene's mother).
1919
Warsaw, Ontario, Canada

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The Reeds: Rhoda Olive, James Richard, Mary Elizabeth, Oscar and Mabel Myrtle.
1919
Young's Point, Ontario, Canada

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Both of her parents grew up in Warsaw, Ontario (Dummer Township to the east of Peterborough) both sides of her family the Crowes, Arlene's mother's family and the Paynes, her father's side, were on the shiploads of settlers who settled Dummer Township in the early 1800s.

Her mom and dad met in Dummer Township but they didn't go to the same school. Her mother's father was a widower and was very strict with her mother. He very rarely let her out of the house for social activities. She only went to grade 10 because that was all that was offered where she lived and her father couldn't afford to send her to PCVS (Peterborough Collegiate & Vocational Institute) in Peterborough to finish school.

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Arlene Petrany with her mother, grandfather and great-grandfather.
1941
Warsaw, Ontario, Canada

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As a child Arlene spent summers on the farm out in Dummer Township. She also used to spend time out near the Old Bridge Inn located at Young's Point, just north of Lakefield. She has several relatives from out at ‘The Point'.

As a child Arlene remembers her Payne relatives farming and having hired hands who lived in the house. There were big meals served and she still remembers the kitchen with the big long table and the big meal at noon.

She remembers taking lunches out to the people working in the field with her half-aunt Jean. She called Jean her cousin because she and her brother Ralph weren't much older than Arlene.

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Arlene Petrany and her dog Bambi.
1943
716 Water Street, Peterborough, Ontario, Canada

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When Arlene was born the family was living at 716 Water Street. She didn't want to leave Water Street because all of her friends were there. She says she has a photographic memory and can remember what every room in that house looked like. She remembers her crib from when she slept in her parents' room before getting her own room. The crib was steel and had nursery rhymes on it. She has very vivid memories of living there. Arlene lived there until she was 5 1/2 years old. Her great-grandpa got her, her first dog, Bambi, and brought it down to Water Street. The dog went with them to Bennet Street.

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Arlene Petrany on Bennet Street.
1947
Bennet Street, Peterborough, Ontario, Canada

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When the Payne's moved to their new house the address was 96 Bennet but due to some rezoning the numbers changed, it is now 240 Bennet. They had a big garden out in back and no sidewalks. It used to be all fields near where Arlene lived and she often walked to Bear's Creek and played there all the time. Arlene says that "it was so beautiful".

Arlene's dad was forever setting up things in their woodshed such as washtubs, BB guns, a horseshoe pitch, there was always something going on. There were always kids at their house. It was like the drop in centre. They would even shoot BB guns at the shed!

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Arlene Petrany talks about how she nearly failed kindergarten!
28 March 2006
Peterborough, Ontario, Canada

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Arlene started kindergarten when she was living on Water Street and went to Queen Alexandra Public School (now a Seniors' Centre). She remembers walking through a gully that was a shortcut and it came right out at the school. Her mom walked with her at the beginning but eventually a group of kids would just walk home together.

Arlene tells everyone that she nearly failed kindergarten because she was no good at cutting and pasting.

After moving to Bennet Street, Arlene went to Queen Elizabeth Public School for elementary school (then called S.S.#13). It was a small school, the center part of today's building. When Arlene started at Queen Elizabeth there were only two classrooms. The ‘juniors', kindergarten to grade 5, were in one room and the ‘seniors' grades 6, 7, and 8 were in the other. While she was there they built an addition down in the basement.

Arlene got the strap in grade 8, along with 14 other girls, for stealing boys' hats.
There was no playground equipment and the kids made up games, climbed trees, played marbles, played baseball, etc.

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Arlene Petrany, at the age of six.
1944
Peterborough, Ontario, Canada

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When Arlene was 6 years old she sang onstage downtown in a variety show at the old Centre Theatre. She had to audition at the local radio station. There were three prizes awarded and out of 15 or 16 contestants, she won third prize with her rendition of the song "I Don't Want to Play in Your Yard".