Thanks everybody.
Joel, sadly Northgate is gone, and is being developed into what ever plant/industrial hub is going in.
I was really hoping to find some goodies and mementos of days gone by in Northgate. I actually have a little story that is related to Northgate...
A few years ago my wife and I were exploring old abandoned pioneer homes, and came across an old house deep in a bunch of trees. It was the overgrown remains of a homestead. There was a very old house still standing, but leaning to the point that I couldn't believe it was still up. The main floor was one room and completely empty, except a few old large tin squares with embossed patterns on them nailed to the wall. There was a square opening in the ceiling, and the remnants of old boards nailed to the wall as a ladder. Nervously, we made our way up and saw something amazing. The attic was packed with stuff, mostly buried in shredded and rotting paper, dirt, and animal poo. There was a trunk, and piles of old magazines from the 1890's to the 1930's, and a lot of old clothes. Most of these things would disintegrate upon touching, and the smell was awful. We discovered some baby raccoons in an old box, and steered clear of them and knew the mother would return after we left.
We were able to salvage a few items - some small old bottles, a button, some WWI era stamps, and some magazines and paper goods. The best finds were some very old letters and postcards. It was interesting to read them and learn about the author. Her name was Emily Holmes Orr, and I assume the belongings in the old attic were hers. She lived in/around Northgate, and she was a nurse. It must have been a hard life being a pioneer nurse on the prairies! She was actually the founder of the Junior Red Cross, with the first branch in the world located in Northgate!
ON OCTOBER 7, 1915, MISS EMILY HOLMES-ORR ORGANIZED THE NORTHGATE JUNIOR BRANCH OF THE CANADIAN RED CROSS SOCIETY WITH A MEMBERSHIP OF ELEVEN CHILDREN. THE FIRST JUNIOR BRANCH IN THE WORLD TO RECEIVE A RED CROSS CHARTER, ITS INITIAL ATTENTION WAS DIRECTED TO THE NEEDS OF WAR CASUALTIES. THE BRANCH CEASED TO EXIST WHEN THE NORTHGATE SCHOOL WAS CLOSED IN 1964
I did manage to find a 1914 5cent silver in Northgate last summer. I like to think that Miss Emily Orr dropped it there for me a century ago!
