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By Debbie Luchuk Mary Peck, author of several historical books, photographer and researcher spoke on her "Brilliant Career" at the monthly meeting of the Durham Cana- dian Club. "I have been a teacher, home- macer, research historian and have now become a writer. "Today, history is considered the best selling non-fiction writ- ing in Canada. In days past, history was political, and econo- mic. Social history is now the big thing. Th«Iere are all kinds of people who are not historians trying to get into the game, for example, Pierre Berton." Peck said that writers such as Berton have produced fiction under the guise of history, and that these works are distorting the true historyfor many people. "«History is the story.of people. Archaelogists dig in other people's garbage; historians read other people's letters." Peck worked on research that went into the restoration of the Louisbourg fortress on Cape Bre- ton Island after doing graduate work at the University of Ottawa in the early sixties. Between that time and the late sixties, Peck said she "looked around for work for many years," looking for work in locations where her husband and children went. "I worked on the Inventory of Historic Buildings in Quebec, on French documents, which is a huge inventory of buildings across Canada. "Buildings in central Canada must be dated back to 1885, Western Canada back to 1910 and the Atlantic Provinces back to the 1700s (to be considered for the inventory),"Peck said. In 1972, Peck and her family moved to New Brunswick and she worked full-time on the res- toration of King's Landing, Fre- dericton. "It was an open concept (his- torical site), with lots of property, with lots of gardens." There was a reconstructed Acadian village nearby as well, and Peck said that this village "has far outstripped King's Land- ing, withlots ofench tourists." At this time in her life, Peck began to collect souvenir pic- torial china from various places in Canada, china with scenes of buildings in towns and cities. "I started first with (collecting pieces of china that featured) buildings that had vanished, and then collected other pieces with historical buildings (still stand- k's china collection is com- prised of approximately 500 pieces. *Her photography interest MARY PECK began while in New Brunswick, and Peck made a series of tele- vision programs of historical pho- tos for two years. Other jobs Peck held were positions with the Maritime Aboriginal Land Rights Commis- sion and work with the Public Archives in Ottawa as supervisor and writer for an exhibition on the Rideau Canal. It was in early eighties that Peck began writing books on historical subjects. "I decided through doing New Brunswick history to do 'The Bitter With the Sweet,' and the book was released in time for New Brunswick's centennial year. Other books Peck has written include a book of historical pho- tos of New Brunswick, a book on Nova Scotia history, and most recently, a book on Canadian journalistic reaction to the Span- ish Civil War. *"You can never get to the top of the heap after 20 years, but you can have a good time," Peck concluded. Peck relates her past to club ore For During the Month of April..... Choose From Our Outstanding Collection of Pennsylvania House: • Solid Cherry & Mahogany Furniture • Time & Again Wicker Collections • Plus Our Complete Custom Upholstery Line - Available in over 1,000 fabries Example: Buy One Piece Save 20% Buy Two Pieces Save25% Come and visit our Gallery to compare the Quality and Design of our furniture! WHITBY FREE PRESS, WEDNESDAY, MARCH 29, 1989, PAGE 9 HOW TO PROTECT YOUR BATHROOM INVESTMENT lncreasingly we're hearing f rom people who are concerned about the damage that powdered abrasiMe cleansers can do to their expensive sinks, tubs and fixtures. KLING non abrasive lotion cleanser is the best product we've seen for general bathroom cleanup. The thick lotion clings to vertical surfaces and soap scum is literally removed with a soft wipe of a cloth. Fixtures are left sparkling like new. The entire washroom smells clean and fresh. For mildew buildups in showers or rust stains on tubs we recommend Butcher's PEARLY Tile and Porcelain Cleaner. This easy to use spray and wipe product clean-S like magic yet contains no abrasives, no acids and no caustics. At Swish we guarantee everything we sell. If the product doesn't perform to your satisfaction, bring back the unused portion - we'il give you your money back. MAINTENANCE LTD. 500 HOPKINS ST., WHITBY 666-1224 I ess -i "I know what it's like to need cash in a hurryé National Trust knows, too." When a career and kids and a social life don't leave much time for banking, count on National Trust to make it as fast and easy as possible. NATIONAL TRUST A National Trustco Company Consuit the hite Pages for a National Trust Brand near you.