HomeMy WebLinkAbout732"Personal memoire, 5 pages, of the Cherrywood Store and Life in Cherrywood
1928 —1942
Written by Bob Morrish September 2005.
FOREWARD
This story covers some history about Cherrywood and Cherrywood store and many of
the things that I can remember from when I lived there in the nineteen twenties, thirties
and forties. I also obtained information from conversations and letters from people who
lived in Cherrywood during the same time-Mac & Elizabeth Armstrong, Emily Pearse
(Petty), Mary Brown (Somerville), Phyllis Cockburn (Gates), John & Mary Teefy,
Don Stewart, Merna & Betty Burkholder and my brothers and sister. I obtained most
of the history from Helen Alves daughter of Agnes Alves (Petty) and John Sabean of
the Pickering historical society.
THE STORY
The store and the dwelling where the Roy Morrish family lived was built in 1872 by
Charles Petty, a pioneer and entrepreneur who also built and operated Cherrywood
brick yard and owned and operated a farm in the village. Charles Petty never
operated the store, but leased it to various storekeepers. Some of the srorekeepers
were Williams,Cranson,Murray Summerfelt, Alfred McPherson, John Green,
Tom Robins,Thomas Law, Robert Davidson and our father Roy Morrish who leased
and operated it from 1921 untill 1935.From 1929 to 1935 Our mother, Ella, and father,
Roy also owned and operated a store in Pickering. They also owned a barber shop
which was leased to Chester Butt, the village barber. In 1935 the Cherrywood store b
ecame available for outright purchase so our Mother and Father decided to buy it.
Running the two stores, one in Pickering and one in Cherrywood was becoming too
much work so they leased the store in Pickering to Ross Murison and a Mr. Booth.
One or two years later Booth & Murison bought the store in Pickering. Our mother &
father bought the dwelling and store in Cherrywood from the Petty estate in 1935 .
The old barn and ice storage shed were demolished and the barn was rebuilt to
make it more efficient for handling feed and coal and providing protection for the trucks
and car. The store was rebuilt and a new dwelling was built on to the west side of the
store The business included a coal storage shed and scales, first along side the
Canadian Northern Railway in Cherrywood , and when the Canadian Northern was
abandoned (I believe in 1929), the coal shed and scales were moved to the south
side of the tracks opposite the Canadian Pacific Railway station in Cherrywood and the
business was served by Canadian Pacific.
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"Foreward Page 2 of 5
There was no hydro power in Cherrywood untill 1929. Before 1929 lighting was provided
by coal oil lights, naptha gas lights and wax candles. We had two coal furnaces for
heating . Our kitchen stove was fueled by wood or coal untill 1929 and when electricity
was installed we had a combination wood and coal stove for cooking .
We had ice refrigerators untill 1936. The ice was cut and hauled from Whitevale
pond and stored
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in an ice house behind the barn. A deep covering of saw dust prevented the ice from
melting througout the summer. Depending on the weather, usualy every ,
a block or two of ice was removed from under the saw dust and placed in a
compartment in the top of the refrigerator. Perishable foods were stored in the
bottom of the refrigerator.
We did not have indoor plumbing untill 1936 when our new house was built beside
the store.
The store and facilities at Cherrywood provided most of the things needed by the
people of the community and surrounding farms,--groceries, tea, coffee, dry goods like,
linens, overalls, socks, boots, shoes, school supplies,hardware, ice cream, pop,candies,
tobacco & cigarettes, coal, wood, feed for cattle, horses, pigs, mink,dogs and cats and
binder twine for harvesting grain. Our father did the buying of all of the goods and
transporting them from Toronto to Cherrywood by truck and rail.He usually made two trips
to Toronto a week to do the buying and picking up. This job was usually done on
Mondays and Thursdays. Some of the wholesalers were groceries from National
Grocers, the hardware from H.S. Howland, the dry goods from Gordon McKay,
boots and Shoes from W.B. Hamilton and Lyle Reed, tea and coffee from R.B. Hayhoe,
and the feed from Western Canada Flower Mills who were later bought out by Master
Feeds. Feed was also bought from Reesor's Marmill in Markham and corn gluten feed
from St. Lawrence Starch Co. in Port Credit.
Our mother, (who was a partner in the business) and Beatrice Petty who worked in the
store,(and later Mary Tool, Isobel Tran, Blanch Petty, Carol Armstrong) were reponsible
for obtaining orders (mostly by phone) for the various things the customers wanted.
Mary Tool, Isobel Tran, Blanche Petty, Esther Reesor, and Carol Armstrong also worked
at various times for our Mother, helping with household chores and in the store.
All of us had a hand in putting the orders together in boxes and stocking the shelves.
Fred Ireson did the delivering and helped with many of the other chores that were
required to run the store. Before Fred Bo Bonner and later Jim Fenney did this work..
Delivering was done in the north east area of the community on Tuesdays, the north
west and south west on Wednesdays and the south east on Thursdays. Special
deliveries of coal and feed were done whenever we had time during the week,
mostly on Fridays, Saturdays and Mondays. Occasionaly in winter, the country
roads were not passable for trucks and cars. In this situation deliveries were made
by our Uncle Murray Milroy who owned a farm a few miles from the store-and also by
Walter Holmes and Henry Michelle who owned nearby farms-using their sleighs and
his teams of Clydesdale horses.
Bill, Jack and I did some of the delivering and picking up things in Toronto,-
( mostly coal and feed) when we were old enough to drive a truck. In the 1930's
we had two trucks. The larger truck was used to pick up goods in Toronto and for
delivering large orders of coal and feed , and the other for delivering groceries and
smaller orders of grain and feed. Some of the trucks that I remember were a 1926
model T Ford, a 1928 model A Ford 2 ton stake body, a 1930 panel body Ford pick
up for the store in Pickering, a 1934 V eight Ford 3 ton stake body. These vehicles
were later traded in on newer models to do the same work. Our Father and Bill never
kept trucks or cars long enough for maintenance or reliability to become a problem.
Some of the cars that I can remember were a 1926 model T Ford, a 1928 Pontiac,
a 1935 Pontiac, and a 1939 Pontiac.
Page 3
Bill started to work full time at the store in 1950. He and Irene took over ownership
and the operation of the store in 1959 when they bought it from our mother and father.
The property and store was expropriated to make way for a new airport -
(which was never built) - in
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Foreward Page 3 of 5
1972. Under n agremeat with the govemmnl, frees and Bill continued to operate the Acre unfill 1911
when they negotiated the sale of the store and property to the Govemmdem The store was she the post
office . Char father was the postmaster instill 1971 and Bill was the postmaster from 1911 to 1911.
All of us, --Mary Armor, Bill, tack and I word expected to do our share of household and yard
chores, like washing dish o,smaping disarming the grass, wading, washing trucks and cars,
maintaining the tams court, Flooding the ice and removing snow Gam the pond and means court wham
we played hockey.
Cherrywood, from 1872 untill 19]2,-( when the whole arca was expropriated to make way for an
airport which was never built) was a small village with a church, school, carriage shop, blacksmith shop,
garage, cider mill, butcher shop and grocery store. To the I870's Charles Petry built abrick yard and
kilns and he and his son operated the industry unlill it was closed dawn in the 1920x.
The surrounding farms were considered to be pan of Cherrywood.
Cherrywood public school was was bounded by the Township line on the west, the 46 concession road
on the darn, Dixie mad on the sued add the 2^°con on the Borth,. The school was comes the
road from the store. Anybody wielding to extent their education beyond grade 8 went to Continuation
school at Pickering to get a Junior metric. To abrin a senior movie you took guide 13 at Whitby,
Scarborough or Markham.
Most of the recreational activities evolved fiom the family house and link yard, the school, the
Sunday School, the Church,—in the Milmy, Armstrong and Taylor farm bamsAming things like jumping
into a pile of lay or straw from as high a place in the band dart you would dare, —skating on froun
ponds, skiing on nearby hills, swimming in DulBns stock, the Rouge river and Lake Ontario. There was
radio, but no TV and no computers. Our favourite radio pmguims were the play by play hockey games
by Faster Hewitt with between period commeratorsWes McKnight, or Wind Common, Harold Canon
W Elmer Ferguson. Om favourite Sunday nik progams were Ink bevy with his usual cut of wife
Mary LivingsmmRochester, Danis day, ant Phil Hams. The humoer evolved around Berry's violin,
his old Maxwell car, his skin Flint approach to everything and his continual feud with Fred Allen. The
Fred Allen show was aLm Popular with his trips down Allen's Alley with his wife Portland and coming
ire characters like Mrs.Normaum, Senator Claglmmrind Titus Moody. Fibber M'Gce and Molly was
popular on Tuesday nimes,pmticularly when they opened the closet to by and find something. Jim
Hunter broadcast the news at 6:30 p.m. each evening followed by Wen Meltnight with the sports news.
Everybody in the commodity was given the opportunity and enaomaged to participate in the
recreational activities that were taking place, -- saMnll, hockey, skiin& fishing, rennis, swimming,
horseshoes, golf and card games.
There were card games around our kitchen Bible in the home, at the school and m the garage next to the
store. Jack occasionally played cards in the gauige with a group of card players rather door do his home
work. We had a monis coup in ow back yard which was
Page 4
popular summer activity for all of us, our family, our friends and our neigbours. Tends comparisons
were held involving a isms team from Pickering and players from Gerrywood. Horseshoes were
played on the home shoe pitch (4) comas the mad fiom
the store. The community hose shoe pitch replaced the old cider mill. There were 4 sets of pitches with
lights and horse shoe compositions were held which lvoved surrounding communities like Whihvale
and Cher Gmve. In Inter years when interest in horse shoes declined, the home shoe facilities across the
mad were repinN with a single pitch between the store and the garage next door. Our father took us
and our fiiends to Rice fske, Gnrgian Bay and Cameron Lake to swim and fish.
Clamyweod had hockey and softball teams which competed in organized leagued with teams Gum the
surrourefing villages, Wlsitevale, Brougham, Pickering, Kinsale, DnbWon, Markham, Agincourt, and
Highland Creek. The manager -coaches and best fns and supporters of our hockey manss were our
father, Len Gates, and Bill Davidsn ant later Jim Palmer. Recreational hockey was played on the tennis
conn, and me brick yard pond and the organized hockey was played on the indoor riles at Markham
and Agincoot
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Formed Page d of 5
The rumor pubs were located on the 15I cencesion road at Rouge dvabne in the valley and the
other at the top of the west baNr of the rive. They wee meeting places where you got together with
your friends and talked over current local events,sports etc. and drank some beer. Jim McGrieken and
Bobbie Miller were usually there to keep us up to date on everything. Jim knew all the local gossip.
Bobbie, fm Whiteside never said anything but always nodded in agreement to anything chat was said.
No one ever knew what Bobbie did fora living and for some reason he always bad money for beer.
Sunday Schaal was mandatory, in our family and most of the oche families in the community. We had
to go to Sunday school before we were allowed to do other things like swimming playing terms or
hockey. no Sunday school and church people
rumored red many activities includin Sunday school picndes, church garden parties and church concerts.
Our fmha was one of our Sunday school human.I do not beliwe he lower a la about the bible but was
a good role model and highly respected in the community. He was also a school trustee and had a hand
n making sure we always had agood school teacher. As a Sunday school teaclandand as a forms)and
Ile most other people in me community at that time, you were expected you to know, the diffemce
between right and wrong, have aposi ve and wining cathode, respect for other people and their
treasury, exported obedience, excellence and perfection ind and made sere everybody in am class
participated in all the sports that were going on in the comrauuity. Our mother, Ella, a school teacher,
hid these same qualities and had due than to teach us more about humility, joy and happiness,
cleanliness, dreadfulness, goad moment and sharing.
Along with her parental responsibilities and working in the store, she was active in the Church, Sunday
school and community events. She was a Smiley schoolteacher, very active in the Church Ladies Aid,
communally played the piano in Sunday school, the organ in church, and sang in the church choir, and
occasionally a relief teacher at the school. She was active in organizing events at the school, card parties
and square dancing. Our grandmother Milroy also played an important role in our lives tight up
Page 5
moll she died in the 1963. Her wit, smile, laugh and positive attitude will always be remembered.
After finishing high school Bill, Junk, Mary Amu and I was encouraged and given the opportunity to
go on and come founder traimag. Bill took a business course at Ryerson College in Toronto, Mary
Anna grdmand in nursing at Wellesley hospital in Toronto and
then a Universitydegree in nursing from the UniversityofBrl6sh Columbia and Jack and I graduated
withdegrees in Civil Engineering fm University ofToronm. After flooding high school and not able
to get into the air farce because I was color blind, am mole Murray Morrish, a mechanical Engineer, a
graduate from the Universityol'Torom encouraged me to become an Engineer and took the time m
take me on a tom ofthe Engweering
facultyat U.ofT., and ofHart House the building which was the cense of most of the extra comcular
activities for men at the University. The building bad moms and facilities for swimming basketball,
gymnasium, pool hall, card rooms,a Murray, restaurant and a large ballroom for dancing.
In Chenrywood like most other small waif comm arties strict rules and guide lines were taught at
home, w the school, and in the Sunday school. At home ands school you were appropriately
discipfed,(including the staid if you did and follow the rules and guide lines. Tachy there we very
few rules, and iftherc are rales and guidelines they are not well communicated, and there is much Ices
discipline. In the old days the governments were not trying to tell you what to do and how to live your
HG. At an early age you had chores to do and were expected to do them. There was an free ride Gam the
government except in extreme cues when there was a genuine need for help and this came from the
local government under the name of 'relief' and, or, form friends end relatives.
School inspectors came around afew times each year to make save the teacher was doing O.K.
regarding his or bar's teaching responsibilities. On thow days the tewhers usually dilated their
questions to %e smartest kids in she chis. On those days l could relax. Most of the school teachers of
that era were tough and usually fair .There was little tolerance for misbehavior. Everyone had an
opportunity and encouraged to be continually physically and mentally active, both wodring and in
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Foreword
Page 5 of 5
playing. Times were sometimes a little tough,-moreso for our Parents than us, but there was usually
harmony, and fun in the home, in the school and in to community.
September 2005
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