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The Wolf family saga c By John Sommer Last week I started to tell you about Waldemar Wolf, a German who went to Denmark 100 years ago. He married in Denmark and became a butcher. In 1906 he came with his wife, Christina and two sons to Canada and settled in Hamilton. He was on the way to a comfortable life when he grew rest- less again and moved his family to 160 acres of bush country near Timmins in 1913. In the meantime, Anna Wolf (later Mrs. Bingham), who told me all this a good year ago when she lived at the Bennett Centre, had been born the year her family arrived in Canada, and a year later, a third son joined his older siblings and completed the Wolf dee Let me continue with their The most Paine event of her childhood, as remembered by Mrs. Bingham, was a great bushfire that swept past her family’s farm in 1916 and destroyed the little town of Matheson six miles away. Waldemar Wolf and his wife Christina were on their way to Matheson with their horse and a “sloop” on a rough and narrow road, to get some needed supplies, when they spotted, from a lookout, a huge mountain of dark smoke pil- ing up into the sky over the distant bush country. To the Wolfs it looked as if the fire causing the smoke was moving in the same direction they were moving - towards Matheson. Waldemar Wolf gave a flick of his whip, urging on his horse to a faster trot. When they reached Matheson, the town’s inhabitants seemed to be unaware that their set-. ” tlement was in danger. The Wolfs quickly did their shopping and talked wherever they went about the wall of smoke they had observed while on their way to town. The result was that the newly installed telegraph was put to use to get more information about the fire. Yes, the fire was moving in the direction of Matheson, was the answer they got. They were also told that a train was on the way to Per axle installed. Most cars. Replace shoes, ia springs, resurface dru inspect hydraulic en, Chee! int if necessary, road evacuate the people of the town. The Wolfs, meanwhile, hurried home to their farm and their chil- dren. They hoped their land would be spared, but they were not so sure when they watched the wall of smoke that had moved much closer and had become a lot more threat- ening since they had spotted it first. The family watched with horror the devastating force of nature devouring acres and acres of bush not far from were they lived. In the end they were lucky. A slight change of the wind turned the fire past their farm. The people of Matheson were not so fortunate. The train arrived in time to get most of them to safety. Some people stayed behind howev- er because they had decided to fight the fire and save their houses and belongings. But these brave attempts were in vain. Long before the fire reached the town the air got hotter and hotter and suddenly the trees exploded from the heat and the fire was upon them. The few that had stayed behind lost all their bravery when they realized what was happening around them. They jumped into the river that flowed past their settle- ment and immersed themselves in the still cool water. There they held on to rocks and waterlogged tree stumps while ithe ifire raged all around ‘them, destroying i everything they had created for themselves in Ideas & the Art years of hard labor. One young woman died. Escaping toward the river, she had fallen while trying to jump over the hot rails of the railway tracks and was burned to death. Not all days, thank God, brought terror and heartbreak of this kind: Most days, months and seasons went through the slow, ritualistic circle of the year, from the'long, long winter that lasted from November until March or even April, to the short and overwhelm- ingly beautiful burst of spring, to the hot, fly-ridden summer and col- orful but melancholic autumn. Waldemar Wolf and his sons raised animals for slaughter on the farm. Once the roads got better the men started a regular meat route from farm to farm, to provide the settlers with fresh meat. The young Anna Wolf stayed with her mother, after she finished school at 16, to help her with the many chores that never seemed to come to an end. She was a strong woman and often helped the men at their tasks. When father Wolf decided to replace the log house with a fine frame farmhouse, she helped the men to put down all the hardwood floors. But secretly Anna longed | for a life that was She never understood why her (519) Donna Gill-Purdy* John Way* HOMELIFE / GRAYFORD REALTY INC. REAL ESATE SERVICES 942-1071 (416) 452-0375 "QUALITY" BUILT gn 2 plus acres! Gorgeous sq.ft. all the 7 wants! Main floor family y huge deck sitchen, master with full ensuite and valn coset. Ove full heated garage with 14 ft. ceil ing forthe handyman. This ‘one defini Asking $259,000 Cal Donna i-Purdy* or John Way* (519) SION of 416) 4520575. Brake Inspection, Adjustment, __ Cleaning, Top-Up Fluid, Oil Change: | (Valvoline Oil, Fram Filter, Lube Chassis) FRONT END REPAIR Ball Joints * Tie Rod Ends | ©Control Arms. * EV Joints father had moved them all from Hamilton to this harsh and lonely country. One day, she vowed to herself, she would go back there to find the conviviality she was miss- ing so mut When Anna was about 20 years old, her mother went to Denmark for a long visit with the relations she had been parted from since leaving for Canada in 1906. Anna took over her chores until her mother returned. Eventually Anna Wolf managed to. return to Hamilton, but more about. that next k. ee] John Sommer has been the direc- Shady Ladies King Pins Lawnbowlers Hi-Rollers Dustbusters TEAM STANDINGS ACTON BOWL WWEbbem aus Dae Acton 853-04 ~ TUESDAY NIGHT LADIES ~ HIGH ROLLERS Halton Hills This Week, Saturday, April 3,'1993 — Page 27 ontinues - Matheson fire tor of Gallery House Sol, located on Charles St. in Georgetown since 1962. What's black and white, and read all over? ip [HIS WEEN 873-2254 ~ TRIANO MIXED ~ ~ SMURFS ~ ~SMURFETS ~ Cody Wilson 134 - Whitney Carroll 141 Greg Pokocky 119 Ashley Uiterwyk 97 Josh Beaton 114 — Emily Stirtzinger 86 ~ MEN ~. ~ LADIES ~ Singles Singles Andrew McCauley 125 Adrianna Burton 136 Adam Burgess 114 _ Balie Horder 123 Raymond Peterson 104 Doubles Doubles Andrew McCauley 248 — Balie Horder 239 Adam Burgess 213 Adrianna Burton 223 Raymond Peterson 170 ~ Sarah Kobsa 217 Singles , Singles Brock Spears 143. Amanda Williams 104 Kyle Harding 133. Holly Wescombe 101 Ryan Waller 111 Kylie Kruk 91 Doubles Doubles Brock Spear 268 Holly Wescombe 200 ie Harding 233 .. Amanda Williams 176 it McArthur 212 Kylie Kruk 91 i Singles Singles em David Albano 179 Laura Kobsa 184 em Trevor Walker 167 Meagan McGrath 182 fy Daniel Newell 166 Sara Kruk 145 Z i Triples pm David Albano 500 MeaganMcGrath 467 fe Trevor Walker 474 Laura Kobsa 431 Daniel Newell 464. Sarah Kruk 381 Singles Singles. Brandon McGrath 189 Angie Aheam 209 Adam Ahearn 166 Janette Jensen 184 Joey Price 138 Sarah Perkins 162 tiples Triple Brandon McGrath 476 © Angie Aheam 540 Adam Ahearn 452 ~— Janette Jensen 502 Joey Price 387 Sarah Perkins 464 n Singles Singles 4g Wes Fountain 222 Grace Robertson 257 teil Ross Smart 221 Anna Arnold 241 bm George Lee 203 Pat Giguere 233 gam OFo Brown 181 Kathleen Tulk 226 is] Triples Triples 3 Ross Smart 579 Grace Robertson 577 mi George Lee ~ 528 Pat Giguere 52 aa Wes Fountain 499 Elma Braida 539 waa Oro Brown 452 Anna Arnold 531 Singles Triples T. Uiterwyk 274 ‘TT. Uiterwyk 818 A. Mowat 257 ~—-‘S. Walton 688 J. Wray 254 A. Mowat 688 J. Knott 675 Singles Singles Bill Cripps 277. ~—~ Nancy White 246 André Conway 61 Sherry Wilson 244 Sheldon Stuckless 258 Donna Brownlee 221 * Triples Triples André Conway 677 _ Nancy White 634 Bill Cripps 663 Mardie Phillipps 596 Ryan Wilson 658 Donna Brownlee 576