I am trying to get some history of Francois Lake made up for the younger generation.
Years ago it was called The Landing but it got changed back to Francois Lake.
Although I’m not living at the lake any more my heart will be here as long as I can draw breath. I was the postmaster here for 34 years. Plus may years in the store business. I was married here to a very special lady and raised a wonderful family and made so any wonderful friends that are still my friends.
Post office
Our mother Agnes Neave was a head of me with 23 years as postmaster. The first postmaster for the lake was Thomas Harris and the office was located three miles east of the lake in the Forde cabin. In 1917 the office was taken over by Robert Jeffrey and was located in the general store here at The Landing and has been located at Francois lake ever since. The Jeffrey store was huge with the residence upstairs. You could buy anything you needed. The office was again moved to another location very close to where it is today. It was moved from the Jeffrey store in 1921.
Postmasters who served at Francois Lake are as follows: Thomas Harris 1910 to 1913; L.O. Forde 1913 to 1917; Robert Jeffrey 1917 to 1921; John Short 1921 to 1922; Fay Short 1922 to 1922; John A. McLean 1922-1924; Ida Prosser 1924 to 1935; Edith Taylor 1942 to 1965; Hugh Neave 1965 to 1999; Kathleen Neave -Barnes 199 to 2002; Laura Bergen 2002 to present.
It is hard to believe that there has been a post office at Francois lake for 103 years.
In 1918 John McLean built a hotel very close to the present store. In 1922 it was a very cold winter and the hotel burned down. He did not rebuild and the post office was located in the hotel so he then moved the post office into a small building for a couple years. Then Mrs. Prosser took it over. The Prossers built and lived in our house. In those days you took our a contract for a year, so Edith Taylor had to keep the office to finish her contract. Then my mother took over for 23 years.
One thing I did find out was why Francois Lake settlement was called The Landing and the reason was there use to a be a heavy boat traffic at the time so the called it The Landing.
Even when we came into the district there used to be quite a lot of boats on the lake hauling freight.
Boat making
After we got ourselves settled, our dad decided he would try to build boats as more or less as a hobby.
Most all the boats at that time were rivers boat design. Of course they were wood, fibre glass at that time was unknown. The river boat was very safe and had a shallow draft. The first two boats were lumber, 24 foot lone and five foot beam.
There were lots of them on the lake. Even the forestry and game department used them. One fault they would dry out during the winter months. The next boats to be built were plywood, at that tie you could buy plywood for boats.
Dad used mother’s front garden for his workplace so he always would have lots of watcher. Bill Anderson who ranched 20 miles down the lake used a river boat for everything as there were no road.
One day we helped he load a mower, a hay rake and a drum of gas. The boat was low in the water. Some of the folks said he make it but he did. He had a 10 HP motor and Bill made many trips with that outfit, rough weather would never slow Bill down. The river boat is history but the sure did serve the purpose for many years.
One of dad’s boat I think it was his last one was the best. He called this boat the May Queen in honour of his granddaughter, Marie who the May Queen in 1967. In those day every year there would be a May Queen chosen and this was our Marie’s turn to be chosen. Our dad was so proud his granddaughter and his boat, the boat remained in our family for many years. They were fun times.
There were other boat builders on the lake, Jeffrey brothers who built with in board motors. These were very well done. Fred Paulig, a Talarose resident who also had one are made boats too. When the factory started making boats the local boat builders were more or less a thing of the past. A lost art. Our son mark has my dad’s boat building frame.
When we first came the Jeffrey bothers had two boat houses on the lake shore. The forestry used one and the kept a lovely big boat of their own. It was for years unused and we always wondered where it went as one day it was there and the next it was gone.
Here is a little story
One afternoon dad was kneeling on his good knee and heard a snap. He was really in a fix. He was unable to get around and he had a half finished boat ;eft. He had to be carried around. First to Dr. Holmes in town and no luck then to Dr. Mooney in Vanderhoof, no luck. Then Dr. Greene in Smithers, still no luck, dad was downhearted and no fooling, there was no cure.
On TV one night I noticed something about riding a horse as they were using horses for handicapped children. Next day I was riding our little saddle mare bareback and I told dad we would get some help and get him on it. So he road down the orad and he was gone along time. When he stopped at the step he got off himself and started to lead the pony, he was fine. His knew was cured. I talked to the doctor about this healing and he said was out of joint but not enough that the Xray must have missed it and by riding with no saddle his knee was hanging loose and the movement of the horse put it back in place again.
This is a true story and well amazing. Dad finished his boat and lived for a number of years. Maybe this healing was also a miracle who knows but it happened. This was serious as dad only had one leg.
Remember always God loves you and so do I.