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3 AN EN Bec cagA ER SRE LTE) Seta LH OAR RN RL EA ye LDCR SH ROL LR FERRE HOP 3 A aa aaa NE FE EEE ARATE TE FRCL IPAS EEF PANE ~ ANd ' wh " Lav ViVi 36-- PORT PERRY STAR -- Wednesday, June 21, 1978 Blue Ray celebrates 30 yrs. by-Mabel Cawker A large number of guests from Chapters within Dis- trict 11, filled the Masonic Hall, Queen Street, Port Perry on the evening of June 8th, for a 'gala' Birthday celebration. Members from the follow- ing chapters were received - Durham, Sunbeam, Whitby, Aloha, Laurel, Bircheliff, Scarborough, Toronto and the loyal members of Blue Ray. DON'T MISS ... DOWSON'S Many distinguished guests were escorted to the East and made welcome by Asso- ciate Matron Sister Frances Gibson assisted by Worthy Patron Brothér Sam Caw- ker. Our new D.D.G.M. elect Sister Bessie Cosway was congratulated on her elec- tion: Presiding Matrons and Patrons were greeted. Past Matrons and Patrons of Blue Ray, as well as those from Expansion Sale SPECIALS See Ad on Pages 26 & 27. ¢ yA , 3 annie other chapters were wel- comed. A very special wel- come was given Charter, and Life members of Blue Ray. D.D.G.M. Sister Audrey Martin spoke briefly on the work of Order, and offered encouragement to members to assume office, also wish- ing for Blue Ray many hap- py and progressive years ahead. Other distinguished guests brought "greetings" and 'Best Wishes." Business was reduced to a minimum so that everyone could enjoy the evening to the fullest. Just before closing Sister Marjorie Edwards was es- corted to the East and pre- sented with her 25 year pin by Sister Frances. Marjorie expressed pleasure in re- ceiving the Pin and extended "best wishes" to Blue Ray for success. Another member honoured recently was Sister Minnie Fisher who received a Life Membership from the Chap- ter, in recognition of the faithful service rendered to the Chapter since becoming a member. A short programme was enjoyed consisting of humor- ous readings by Mrs. Emmy Con of Caesarea, the intro duction being made by Sister Minnie Fisher. Sister Nellie Pring of Dur- ham sang two solos in her beautiful Scottish voice, accompanied at the piano by Sister Winnifred Newton of Whitby. Sister Jean Ash- borne from Fenelon Falls entertained with a delightful solo and a bit of humour in her own inimitable style. Appetizing refreshments ' ~H 354 (FRENTE = A3- Sy A ANAT sed dae didn ddutalid abitohdssng dad shine were served by the mem- bers. A beautifully decora- ted Birthday cake graced the centre of the table flanked by candles in the form of a Star. The cake cutting ceremony was performed by our Dis- trict -Deputy Grand Matron Sister Audrey Martin. To round out a full evening the Birthday Draw under the capable convenership of Sis- ter Frances Gibson was held. (Winners names announced in last weeks paper) Blue Ray members wish to thank each and everyone who as- sisted in selling tickets to make the Draw a success. Anniversary! Let him know Norman Cafik, M.P. for Ontario Riding would like to inform his constituents that special birthdays and anni- versaries are commemorat- ed by certificates from the Prime Minister, the Gover- nor General and, in some cases, the Queen. If you know of an upcoming 80th, 90th, 95th, 100th (ete.) birth- day or 50th (etc.) anniver- sary, Mr. Cafik would appre- ciate you letting him know so he can pass the information along to the Prime Minister and Governor General. In order to make sure that the greetings arrive in time, it should be sent in about 6 weeks in advance of the event. Send the full details along to either Mr. Cafik's Pickering Riding Office at 84 Kingston Road West or to the office in Ottawa at the House of Commons. rr port perry S {eo} . Stationery & Office Surprly 235 Queen St. - Port Perry - 985-7383 3 \ See Us Today For All Your REPAIR SERVICE TO ALL MAKES & MODELS OF OFFICE MACHINERY. = another lay with one end up in the air. De-railed mule train incident A few weeks ago, the Star ran a photograph in the Remember When clumn of a derailed mule train which was submitted by the Scugog Shores Museum. Very little information was available at the time, but since then an article from an old newspaper explaining the entire incident has been brought to us by Mr. Bob Vernon. The article appears to have come from a Whitby newspaper as it is written up under the heading Brian Winter's Historical Whitby. Here it is. A number of older residents are likely to remember one of the most memorable events to occur in Whitby during the First World War: the famous mule train wreck. At 4:30 a.m. on the morning of November 2, 1916, a train of nine cars and an engine was eastbound on the CPR tracks, approaching the junction with the Grand Trunk line from Whitby to Port Perry (now the CNR line). At the junction stood a switching tower where the man on duty was supposed to give a signal for the train to stop or proceed. He gave the signal to proceed, but instead of opening the derailing switch on the Grand Trunk line as a safety measure, he opened the derailing switch on the CPR line and the train shot off the, tracks. A protecting rail kept the engine from plunging off the roadbed, but the tender turned over on its side and plowed up the track for some distance. The car behind the tender left the track too, but did not turn over, and the remaining eight cars stacked themselves up behind it like the cars of a model train set. Three of the cars were swung completely at right angles to the track, another turned a sommersault, and Part of the twisted mass lay over the ditch and through a farmer's wire fence. The train was loaded with mules, 20 to a car, that were being shipped, probably to Montreal, to be sent overseas as part of the war effort. As a result of the wreck, these poor beasts were tossed around in the cars and piled up on top of each other. A number broke out through holes in the smashed cars, and remarkably few were killed. A number, however, were injured and had to be destroyed. Each mule was valued at $97, and the total loss of animals was estimated at about $1,500. This meant that at least 150 mules were either killed or had to be destroyed, although press reports of the day say many of them were saved. No members of the train crew were injured. When word reached town of the mule train wreck, everybody who could, dashed up to have a look. Local citizens stood on the crippled engine, posing for pictures, and military inspectors came to view the accident. The CPR wrecking crew did not arrive till well on in the morning, and it was 3 o'clock in the afternoon when the line had been sufficiently cleared and a new track laid to allow passage of regular trains. The wreck occured on a Thursday, but it took till Saturday to clear away all the debris. The rescuers broke into the cars to free the mules that were still alive, and although piled on top of each other in"one upturned car, the mules scampered out, limping into the nearby fields. Others were not so lucky. Their carcasses lay scattered about the wreck site. A big crane was brought in by the railway to pull the mess apart, and it seemed everybody in Whitby was wandering about the site, examining the wreck or picking up souvenirs. No record is given of what happened to the careless switchman who caused the whole thing in the first place. An interesting footnote is that this wreck was well documented by amateur photographers on the site, and a number of pictures, like the one above, are in the Whitby Historical Society's archives. The writer of this column, a few years ago, found two pictures of the mule train wreck at the Ontario Archives, but the archives staff did not know what they represented. They had the pictures listed as a wreck at Myrtle Station. The writer, recognizing the scene, and _ the mule standing in front of the train was a signifigant clue, was able to set the record straight on the matter. | Uxbridge 852-5291 | J QL TTT Tey . = Denture Therapist 66 Brock St. W., 163 Simcoe St. S., Oshawa 579-8752 214 Dundas St. E., Whitby 668-7797 CULT TT TTT A