Item
Courier
Jan 31/1974
Excellent photo of McAdam Station Bldg.
Atlantic Advocate?
February, 1974
A New Kind of Bustle for Minister's Island
Heather MacDonald
So an era of Canadian history fell in Montreal last fall to the merciless roar of the bulldozer!
And had Sir William Van Horne, the dynamic force behind the construction of the CPR been there, no doubt some of the language he lavished on his workers in years past would have dismissed any ideas anyone every had of touching his home. But to the ever-engulfing city, even history succumbs. A pity, for the man's character often becomes enshrined in the home in which he lives. But such evidence of Sir William's tastes and character has by no means disappeared from the Canadian scene with the demolition of the Montreal residence. . . .
Minister's Island was purchased in April 1972 [sic] by an American from Corea, Maine, who refers to his profession as the "land business." Norman Langdon, a boyish 40, says he went to Brown University for two years, thought he knew more than they did, and found out 10 years later he didn't. But he says he learned more that way, it just took him longer.
This isn't new to him. He has bought, restored and sold other island properties along the coast of Maine. But they were "on a much small scale," he says. He speaks of Minister's Island and Van Horne's estate, which he renamed "Harbour Farm," with a degree of sentimentality. "I saw this house three years ago Christmas when I was looking through old magazines. There was an aerial picture of the whole island. I was in the land business at the time and the article mentioned developing it into a club. I'd never heard about it, so I decided to look into it. It was still here and they'd never done anything with it. When I first saw it, I figured I had to have it, and I ended up getting it!"
The island had been purchased by a group of ten American businessmen around 1959. Their initial aim was to develop the island into a club where families could come for vacations. Prior to this, it had been rented every summer for 10 years by two Americans, following the death of Adaline Van Horne, Sir William's daughter. . . .
Van Horne's sea-girt refuge from the world has undergone many changes through the years, not to mention the many Langdon himself has made. "I had laid it out and was going to sell some 35 sites," says Langdon. "I sold a few, then had mixed feelings about it and I tried to buy them back. They didn't want to sell. I didn't know but that I might try to keep the whole thing," he says.
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"I don't need this big house, but I like it. It's something you can relate to, it's real; it's something that's tangible, and besides people, there's not much in this world you can relate to. You get into big cities and things like that, and it's just day to day emotions I guess," he says.
"I might sell the other lots. If someone wants to buy them, they are there, and they are for sale at this point."
Langdon is aware of the island's historic value, and he says he can't understand why the provincial or federal government did not buy it. "It seems they don't have much interest in this kind of stuff until it's too late. It is funny, because they talk about Americans owning this island, and Van Horne owned it and he was an American! They've always owned it!"
Besides Sir William's 40-roomed home, the Minister's house, and the gardener's cottage, are stables, a carriage house, the milk house, a bath house, the windmill that pumped their water supply, and the enormous barn that sheltered Van Horne's herd of Dutch belted cattle. The barn stands empty today, its interior in "perfect shape" says Langdon, but its exterior is receiving a complete facelift. The only livestock roaming the farmland today are five highland cows which Langdon brought from Sydney, New Brunswick, and "the one that doesn't belong," he adds.
The cattle, with unrestricted freedom, have been accustomed in the past to take excursions to the mainland when the tide is out, and "the one that doesn't belong," a sad, white-faced calf, is the unfortunate result of one of these trips. "I'd like to have a bunch of them," says Langdon, "but they seem to be driving some people crazy."
In addition to the work on the buildings, he has also rebuilt about three miles of the existing road on the island. "The original road came through the hedge along the shore, but we've blocked it off with stones. In the winter you can't plough it because there is no place to put the snow, and two cars can't pass on it."
Minister's Island is undoubtedly the love of Maritimers who have for year roamed . . . of the hundreds of summer visitors to St. Andrews. The curious atmosphere surrounding the island often brings visitors peering up to the windows, but Langdon hasn't restricted the island to the public. "There are times I'd like to," he says. "It gets to be a real drag, and if we ever restrict it, it will be because there are always a few who spoil it for others. You would like to think you are being nice by not restricting it."
He adds, "If I were going to be here a lot, and live, here, I wouldn't want people peering in my windows. If you were going to have a place like this, I would think one of the reasons would be for the privacy."
Sir William's home, the focus of a lot of work, was badly in need of it when Langdon purchased the island. "What had happened," says Langdon, "was the asbestos roof had leaked in about 20 places and the water had gotten in upstairs and taken the plaster down. It was in the rugs and furniture, and it was quite a mess. In another two or three years you couldn't have afforded to fix it. We've put a new roof on it and redecorated about 70 percent of the house," he says. Who is we "we?" "Well, myself."
"The basic stuff here was good," he stresses. "The house was completely furnished, and I had a pretty good-sized house in Maine that I . . . . Langdon described the original décor as simply "dull and sombre."
Now entirely void of any window covering, the house is a light, airy mixture of the old and new. The walls in most of the rooms are a basic white, the woodwork and trim vary from dusky blues, reds and yellows to wine shades.
His concern wanders to the actual preservation of the estate and he says, "You know, I've had a lot of people look at this place and say, 'I'd like to buy this land, but I'd tear down the house, bulldoze it, and build one of my own!'
"There have been a number of them," he says. "I wanted to fix up the barn because I like it and I think it adds to the island. Someone said to me, 'Why don't you tear it down? What do you want that old thing for?'
"If you tear down the barn, and the house, you might as well move away because there isn't much left!"
The bath house, a stone tower built on the shore just below the "big house," is unused today. In the centre of the upper story is a large circular fireplace around which the bathers used to warm themselves after a dip, in the chilly waters of the bay. It's copper hood has been stolen, one of the few articles lost by theft during the years when the island was unoccupied.
"It would make a great guest house," says Langdon. "But you just don't need it with this house!"
The bath house has a full basement with a number of change cubicles and . . . At low tide, traces of the pool, used in Van Horne's day, are still evident. It was dammed up with boulders to hold the water as the tide went out and made for a warmer 'swimming hole' than the cool Bay of Fundy Waters.
The Minister's House is in the process of getting an internal overhaul. "I like that house," says Langdon. "It has a lot of character and in fact I like it better than the 'big House' in some ways."
Would he ever consider living in it instead?
"I've thought about it, but I'd have to give it some real soul-searching because of me being me. If I do that, this whole thing changes prospective completely!"
The main project was restoring the buildings on the island, and he has no plans for building any more. "I've got it where it belongs. It was getting it there that was expensive."
The Dutch architectural features of the barn and some of the other buildings are even more evident in the stone windmill that stands in the center of the circular drive, directly behind the "big house." The windmill is unused today, but in Van Horne's day pumped the water supply for the house.
The only building left untouched in the boarder's house near the barn. In days past, it housed the families of the workers. It will, in time, be restored, says Langdon.
"What I want to do is finish up the work, then all I need is somebody to take care of the grounds. I've done most of the work, probably more than I figured on doing, and I can't keep pouring money into it."
Despite the number of years the island lay unattended, thefts were almost nil. An amazing fact considering that the carriage house alone holds an antique dealer's dream. Among the four carriages are high leather-seated buggies and Surreys, reminiscent of the days when a Sunday drive down an empty lane was the highlight of a week's activities.
Langdon intends to preserve these.
If there is anyone around St. Andrews closely associated with Minister's Island and the Van Horne era, it is Bill Clark, whose father was the gardener in those days, and raised his nine children in the gardener's cottage. Bill himself raised his own four children there and lived in that same cottage until eight years ago when he moved to the mainland. "You should talk to Bill," Langdon told me. "He loves to talk about this place. He was born in the gardener's cottage and his father was operated on on the kitchen table because they couldn't get him to the mainland."
"Those nine kids went to school off and on and it was quite a hassle," says Langdon. "In the winter this place has its problems."
But Bill won't share his memories with everyone. "The Van Horne's," he says, "would come the end of June and stay until October, Lady Van Horne was a real lady!"
The one problem about the island, which is often regarded as a blessing too, is the tides which govern everything from when they can get off the pick up the mail and groceries in St. Andrews, to getting back on in time so they won't be stranded on the mainland. There are stories to be told about the tides alone!
Langdon adds, "I'm sure there is a lot of history to the island if you could dig it out. All you get are bits and pieces of stories which I'm sure are wildly distorted."
One of the most interesting, and real stories, concerns the Persian rug on the living room floor in the Big House. Langdon described the dimensions of the living room as "about the size of a two-bedroom ranch house. The ceiling is 14 feet high. On one side of the rug is a hole, now discreetly covered with a basket. The story goes that the houseboy was cleaning an urn and didn't think to do it outside. The acid spilled, eating a hole in the rug, and gobbling up a bit of history as well. "We haven't really cleaned it," says Langdon. "We just vacuumed it, and it's been lying there for at least 78 years. They used to drag it across the lawn to clean it, and that took about eight men."
Ruth and Alistair Cameron now live in the gardener's cottage, which was subject to a decorative overhaul prior to their moving in last spring. "I'm not here all the time and you are better off with someone on the island. You can't leave a big place like this unoccupied," says Langdon. Cameron, Woodstock New Brunswick's former postmaster, enjoying an early retirement, now rarely leaves the island domain except for short trips or to look for the frequently straying highland cattle. But the Big House isn't empty in Langdon's either. Keith Clark, one of the young men involved in the restoration work has been living in the house which is predominantly ruled over by Langdon's three-year-old St. Bernard dog Charlie Brown, the island's most non-historic and probably most appealing phenomenon. Charlie's job is watchdog, getting visitors, getting in the way, and getting used to the two cats which have been recently added to the ménage. So there is a different kind of bustle to the life on the island these days!
Sir William might even be proud of the great strides taken to preserve his home; a big task well on the way to a successful completion. As Langdon says, "It's like anything of this size. To a lot of people this isn't big, but to me it is. Many times when you start something, you think it is going to 'get you,' believe me, and it almost 'got me' two or three times. But I've got beyond that. I finally got a hold on it."
"I've put a lot of myself into it!"
What has been accomplished on Minister's Island shows ample evidence of the imagination, the sense of history and the intense drive of the man who has brought it about. Sir William might well have improved of him too!
Courier
March 7/1974
Now It's Official: Algonquin Hotel now owned by Province. .
The grapevine has been working overtime and it's pretty well common knowledge that the historic Algonquin Hotel in St. Andrews has been purchased by the Province of New Brunswick. The only difference is that now it's official: In a joint announcement shortly before press time, Hon. Carl Mooers, Minister of Supply and Services, Hon. Bill Cockburn, Minister of Fisheries and Environment, and Leland McGaw, MLA Charlotte, confirmed that the hotel properties were bought from Algonquin Properties Ltd. for $792,000. Operated for years by the Canadian Pacific Railway and regarded by Charlotte County residents as a dowager aunt with the smile of a young niece, the hotel was sold to Algonquin Properties Ltd. in 1970, and operated in 1973 by the provincial government under a lease containing an option to purchase.
"The results of two feasibility studies," Mr. Mooers told the Courier, "indicated the viability of the Algonquin as a resort hotel, and the government expressed its option to purchase and will provide funds for an extensive renovation program." He added that the Hatfield government was "most confident of a successful contribution to south-western New Brunswick when the hotel is brought up to modern standards. It is understood that one of the main tasks is to provide baths for rooms that have been previously rented on the basis of having to share a bathroom. The purchase includes all the hotel properties, including the two golf courses and Katy's Cove. The management agreement with CP Hotels Limited will be extended, which will mean the ancient hostelry will benefit from CP Hotel's national sales and advertising programs. (The hotel's name now appears on CP matchbox covers across Canada.)
Mr. Cockburn and Mr. McGaw expressed their appreciation of the government's confidence in the future of the Algonquin, noting:
"The Algonquin has long been a landmark on the St. Andrews scene and has a well-established reputation throughout Canada and the United States." Both members foresaw that in its capacity as New Brunswick's only resort hotel, the Algonquin would play "an extremely important role in the province's tourist industry."
Said Mr. Cockburn: "The importance of the Algonquin to St. Andrews and all of Charlotte County is immeasurable, and I feel the government's determination to assure its continuation is a clear indication of continuing interest in this area."
Renovations now underway constitute the first phase of the three-phase renovation program, which will include the refurbishing of lobbies, rooms and areas of general service, including convention meeting facilities. Structural renovations will also be undertaken, and such recreational facilities as the golf courses will be improved.
The Fredericton Hotel Company will hold the Algonquin properties on behalf of the provincial government, and loans and advances for major renovations will be provided through that company. As an aging St. Andrews observer noted this week, "The old lady has always been part of this area. Now she belongs to us."
Telegraph Journal
March 7/1974
N.B. Buys Hotel
New Lease on Life for the Algonquin
By E. R. Merchant
The provincial government has purchased the historic Algonquin Hotel in St. Andrews. The announcement was made in the Legislature Wednesday by Supply and Services Minister Carl Mooers who said the government will pay the Algonquin Properties Ltd. $792,000 through the Crown agency, the Fredericton Hotel Company, for the Charlotte County hotel. Mr. Mooers said that agreement had been reached in principle and the sale included all the hotel property including two golf courses and the Katy's Cove swimming area.
"The government has also approved a three-phase renovation program totalling $2.4 million to modernize facilities at the hotel," Mr. Mooers said. The renovations will include refurnishing and modernizing of lobbies, rooms and service areas, provision of additional private bathrooms, and providing modern all-purpose and convention meeting facilities. Structural renovations will also be undertaken, and recreational facilities, including the golf courses, will be improved.
The hotel will be operated by the Canadian Pacific Hotels Limited on a long-term management contract and that company will provide the necessary day-to-day working capital.
"This transaction means the continued operation of New Brunswick's only resort hotel and the renovation program ensures that the economic importance of the Algonquin Hotel to Charlotte County and the N. B. Tourist industry for years ahead," Mr. Mooers said.
The province took over operation of the hotel last year after the owners said it would be closed. It was operated under a lease containing an option to purchase.
Courier
June 20/1974
School Superintendents from New Brunswick have conference at Algonquin.
Courier
June 27/1974
CP Hotels Programs. Algonquin included.
Courier
July 11/1974
Ad for Dick Turpin's Pub—Algonquin.
Courier
July 25/1974
Do We Want Nuclear Power?
Courier
Aug 8/1974
Tourism in earlier years. 1874. Address to farmers on boarding tourists.
Gerald Rudolph Ford
38th President of the United States (August 9, 1974 to January 20, 1977)
Nickname: "Jerry"
Born: July 14, 1913, in Omaha, Nebraska
Fire at Conley's Lobster Plant
Aug 26, 1974
St. Andrews Fire Department
Courier
Dec 14/1974
Hatfield Defends Nuclear Power Decision.