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list price: $36.95
edition:Hardcover
category: History
published: Nov 2003
ISBN:9781550173031
publisher: Harbour Publishing Co. Ltd.

Edenbank

The History of a Canadian Pioneer Farm

by Oliver N. Wells, edited by Marie Weeden & Richard Weeden, foreword by Allan Fotheringham

tagged: post-confederation (1867-)
Description

A richly illustrated chronicle that captures more than a century of life on a landmark Fraser Valley farm. This fascinating account details farming methods of a bygone era and all the toil, triumph and tragedy behind the establishment of a championship dairy herd.

When Allen Casey Wells passed through the valley of the Chilliwack River en route to the Cariboo goldfields in the spring of 1862, he observed some lush natural meadows on the prairie. Several years later, he returned to take up land here for himself and his young family, establishing a farm on Luckakuck Creek that would come to be known as Edenbank--home to the Wells family for the next four generations.

A.C.'s grandson, the late Oliver N. Wells, tells of the days when teamsters rode horses and cows were milked by hand. He relates how several generations of his family, with extraordinary determination and vision, pioneered farming techniques and developed an award-winning herd of Ayrshire cattle that they exhibited across the country. His account also provides insight into the life of a contented man who loved the land and his birthplace and left an important legacy.

About the Authors
Oliver N. Wells (1907-1970), a farmer and stock breeder, was also a naturalist, writer, ethnographer and historian. Before conservation became fashionable, he established a bird sanctuary on his family's land. He helped to revive Salish weaving techniques and documented the Halkomelem language and native myths in a number of publications.

Marie Weeden, the youngest daughter of Oliver Wells, grew up on Edenbank Farm. Like her father, she has a keen interest in history, particularly that of the Chilliwack area. She co-edited and researched The Chilliwacks and Their Neighbors, a collection of interviews by her father. In 1970 Marie and her husband, Richard Weeden, took over the management of Edenbank Farm and subsequently tried in vain to have it preserved as a provincial heritage site.


Richard Weeden and his wife, Marie, took over the management of Edenbank Farm in 1970 and subsequently tried in vain to have it preserved as a provincial heritage site. He and Marie co-edited Edenbank: The History of a Canadian Pioneer Farm in 2003.


Allan Fotheringham has been a journalist and columnist for nearly 50 years, first with the Vancouver Sun, for nearly three decades with Maclean's, and more recently with the Globe and Mail, the National Post, and Zoomer. He has published eight previous books, including Fotheringham's Fictionary of Facts & Follies and Malice in Blunderland. "Dr. Foth" lives in Toronto.

Editorial Reviews

"The pages of Edenbank will do much to keep the legacy of this remarkable pioneer farming family alive."
-Mark Forsythe, Bookworld

— Bookworld

"Anyone who likes farms, or likes farming will like this book."
-Ron MacIsaac, Island News

— Island News

"The fascinating account describes the farming methods of a bygone era while describing the satisfaction to be found in family, nature and the rhyme of the seasons."
-Edgar Dunning, Delta Optimist

— Delta Optimist
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