We just lost another of our old schools chums, Barbar Roseth (Bremner) of Rocky Mountain House, Alta., on Jan. 29 at the age of 89. She was born Dec. 25, 1930. Barbara has been in a senior home for a good number of years. Her husband, Ed Roseth, passed away a few years ago. She leaves behind a family of three boys and one girl. The boys are all married and have family in the Caroline, Alta., area. The only girl, Louise, is married and lives in Toronto.
Barbara was the youngest daughter of Harry and Annie Bremner. She had a sister, Peggy, and a brother, Alec. Her father, Harry, came to the Baljennie area in 1912 to buy a farm, then married Annie McLaverty. Times were tough back in those years.
Barbara took most of her schooling at the old Baljennie School and by correspondence. Her mother was the janitor for the school for a few years. Many mornings they were a great help to my sister and I when we first started school. We lived two and a half miles from school. When the weather was good we walked a mile across two different pastures on an old trail to meet the Bremners to catch a ride to and from school. We were all good neighbours for many years.
In 1947, the Bremners sold their farm to Jack Rowlands (my dad) then packed up all their belongings and animals on a train from Baljennie to Cheterville, Alta., where Harry cleared more land to farm and pasture their livestock on. He passed away in 1959 and Annie passed away in 1966.
Barbara got a job doing domestic work in the summer months. In the winter she worked as a cook in a lumber camp. That’s where she met her future husband, Ed Roseth of Stouff, Alta. they got married in November of 1950. They followed work in the oilfields for three years, then they bought their own farm close to her dad in 1953. They farmed and kept some cattle as well as some dairy milk cows and sold milk and cream. As the boys grew up and were able to help out, they also had a sawmill and a lathe mill.
Barbara and Ed Roseth, over the years, have been back to visit the old homestead. The old log house is still standing and vacant.
There is a large photo hanging in the Western Development Museum in North Battleford of the McLaverty family and one member in the photo is Barbara’s mother Annie. The photo was taken in early 1904 and did appear in the old Western Producer newspaper, taken by someone passing through the area. The McLaverty family came to Baljennie in 1903. They travelled with the Barr Colonists.
On many of our trips to British Columbia, we made an overnight and day or two stop each way to visit with Ed and Barbara and family. One day we attended a three-day family reunion.
Our thoughts are with the family at this time.
The month of February has been extra extreme. It’s moderated a little but the forecast is for below normal temperatures for the rest of the month. Most of the school buses in the area did not run for a few days.
Family day will be celebrated Monday Feb. 18, with everything closed and no school. We have just passed Valentine’s Day, so Happy Valentine’s Day to all my readers.
