HANTSPORT by Sylvia Crowell

Hattie Chittick once wrote a book,
Called ‘Hantsport the Smallest Town’,
But when we were young, we thought it big,
There were many shops and stores around.

Of course we were little children then,
And there sure seemed a lot,
Why the drugstore on the corner,
Even had a soda shop.

There was Pulsifers, the Five and Ten,
Oldershaw’s Grocery Store,
Don’s restaurant, a hardware store,
But wait! For there is more.

A jewellery store, a barber shop,
A bank, post office too,
Ted Patton’s store, a theatre,
Garages? There were a few.

Chesley’s Artificial Limbs,
Lee Harvey’s grocery store,
The Kozy Korner Café,
Moss Smith made candy, that’s for sure.

Yeaton’s Candy Factory, Murray’s Mill,
The Gypsum Company too,
Canadian Keyes Fibre and of course,
Minas Basin Pulp and Paper to name a few.

A shoe store by the post office,
Simpson’s Sears had an office there,
You could stop at a shop on Main Street,
To have curls put in your hair.

There were four churches in our town,
And everyone could see,
That every Sunday morning,
They were busy as could be.

We were lucky, for you know,
We had two Doctors in our town
Dr. Smith sure cured many,
With the best medicines around.

A large schoolhouse on School Street,
Where a lot of us started school,
Many remember Miss Lawrence,
She taught the primary rules.

Then there was Miss Blackburn, Ethel Young,
And of course Miss Whitman too,
Otis Clayton, Principal Mr. Clark,
Just to name a few.

I remember Domestic Science,
We made things we didn’t like,
But we were told by the teacher,
“It is good, eat every bite”.

Now the teacher would leave us,
Saying, “Eat and clean up fast”,
I’m not sure if janitor Frank Newcombe ate it all,
Or if he put it in the trash.

The Churchill House where on July the First,
The grounds seemed to explode,
With canteens, rides and dances,
It was a sight to behold.

The Grand Street Parade on that day,
Brought hundreds to our town,
The Dick Beazley Road Race, Box Car Derby,
Princesses in lovely gowns.

Pulp boats came in to the wharf,
Loading there for a day or two,
Tied up at the Minas Basin wharf,
The little tugs did too.

Gypsum boats would come in,
Be loaded and ready to go,
Back out to the Bay of Fundy,
Before the tide had turned you know.

We walked to school from Rand Street,
Up and down twice every day,
No school buses, no storm days,
The road was called the “Alaska Highway”.

Now I’m not sure how it got that name,
But I think that I know why,
Walking down that hill in winter,
The cold would bring tears to your eyes.

We had an outdoor rink for winter fun,
With woodstoves in the dressing rooms,
There was something about skating,
While smelling wood-smoke fumes.

Perhaps it kept us warmer,
Just knowing it was there,
But that old skating rink,
Brought folks from everywhere.

We took swimming lessons in summer,
We’d walk down o’er the hill,
Through town, down by the station,
Then across the Murray’s Mill.

Past the Bank’s house to Avon Street,
Then down the wooden stairs,
The water was so cold some days,
It turned bravery into tears.

Hantsport has the William Hall Memorial,
That stands proudly in the town,
The first Nova Scotian to receive the Victoria Cross,
For bravery all around.

So you see, it was quite big,
And heaven knows, I’ve missed a few,
Like Isnor’s Restaurant, Green’s Canteen,
This town has more history too.

From the great shipyards of long ago,
And Sea Captains by the score,
To tug boats that my Dad went on,
Just who could ask for more?

A Mr. Barker brought a baby home,
Named the lad Peter Coalfleet,
Peter was my great, great, great grandfather,
And I think that’s pretty neat.

Mr. Barker chose that name,
For it was a fleet of coalboats that were lost,
The brave Mom had latched the baby to her chest,
To save him at any cost.

Hantsport has changed over the years,
It has lost big businesses too,
But I’m sure it will rebound again,
It just needs folks to see it through.

And if Hantsport remains a town,
Or joins a municipality,
Hantsport will always be the same,
You can’t change history!

By
Sylvia Crowell
July 24, 2014

And thanks to Sharon Scott for telling me about this!

-Heather