Two communities on opposite ends of the Strait of Canso are celebrating special anniversaries this year.
On Monday, residents in the Town of Mulgrave celebrated their history as later this year the town will turn 100-years-old.
With Feb. 20, Heritage Day, designated to honour the remarkable people, places, and events that have contributed to the town’s rich history, volunteers with the Mulgrave Heritage Centre decided to honour one of the first families to permanently settle in the Mulgrave area, including Annie Meagher, who is one of the oldest surviving members of the family.
Calling it a celebration, George Freer, with the heritage centre, told The Reporter in an interview that the 100th anniversary of the town’s incorporation is not until December, but with it being Heritage Day, Meagher turning 100 and being from one of the first families in Mulgrave, it made sense to proceed.
Pointing out Meagher has a good memory, heritage centre volunteer Neil Stewart suggested Meagher can help educate younger generations about the history of the town.
The Peeples family, which was sometimes spelled as Peebles, settled in the Mulgrave area sometime before 1785. The family emigrated from Northern Ireland and John Peeples was granted 500 acres of land in 1785. Shortly after, he was given an additional 500 acres of land.
This land was located from the Pirate Harbour area towards the main part of what is now the Town of Mulgrave. Several Peeples brothers settled in the area at or around this time, and the early property maps indicate that, along with John Peeples, there were James Peeples and William Peeples.
The Peeples family has had a consistent presence in the area since that time, and have contributed to the formation of the town and its history.
The Peeples family were involved heavily in several areas including; fishing, lumber, storefronts, liquor sales, and postal service, while their descendants were involved in various trades and other endeavours.
Still to this day, there are several Peeples families living in the Mulgrave area. Meagher is the daughter of Ernest and Mary Peeples, she married Bernard Meagher in August, 1944, has four daughters and two sons, and is over 100-years-old.
As the reigning matriarch of the Meagher clan, she has an extensive memory of the people and events that have shaped the Mulgrave area over her lifetime, as well as knowledge of the family history that has been passed down from previous generations.
Before the Canso Causeway was constructed, Stewart said Mulgrave was a “booming town,” and despite many challenges since, there are many people from the town who should be honoured, noting “we’ve had doctors, and lawyers, and Indian chiefs from this town.
Before the Canso Causeway, when Mulgrave was the only link between Cape Breton and mainland Nova Scotia, Tom Meagher, who is a relative of Annie’s, recalled that most of the shopping was done in Mulgrave.
Additionally, the group will also be recognizing the contribution of Meagher’s brother Earl Peeples, who passed away on Aug. 10, 2022 at 91.
Along with being a skilled craftsman, Earl was a former member of the heritage centre and played a significant role in the design and construction of the railway model that is on display in the museum.
The Mulgrave Heritage Centre is currently looking for food donations for their centennial celebration to accommodate the attending guests, but Freer indicated McDonald’s in Port Hawkesbury has agreed to supply coffee. He said anyone else looking to help can contact him at 902-623-1335.
Two hundred years after Holy Guardian Angels Parish in L’Ardoise recorded its first baptism, descendants of the original parishioners gathered to celebrate the beginning of a very important year.
Prior to the establishment of a Roman Catholic parish in L’Ardoise, the community was a mission of the Parish of Arichat. That changed with the baptism of Cyrille Martell (son of Francois Martell and Suzanne Poirier) on Jan. 8, 1823, Steve Sampson, chairperson of the 200th anniversary planning committee told The Reporter.
The committee spent several months preparing a year of special events and an upcoming book under the theme of “ancestry, faith, family” to be released this year, Sampson said, noting that the intent was to “honour our ancestors,” and it will highlight a number of parishioners who went “above and beyond” in their contribution to life in the parish, calling them “our first teachers.”
In his remarks during the Jan. 8 service, Reverend Bedford Doucette echoed the sentiment, reminding parishioners that their ancestors were “real people who made it possible for you to be here today,” and affirmed the importance of paying service to history.
In that vein, redesigned banners bearing the names of families in the parish hang around the church paying tribute to ancestors, in addition to the theme banner in the centre aisle of the church.
In addition to the book, Sampson said there will be 2024 calendars available with old photos.
The sisters of the congregation Les Filles de Jesus played an integral role in the community beginning in 1943. For more than 40 years, they were leaders in education and spirituality in the community and that will be reflected in anniversary material, Sampson said.
The history of the parish was gathered from various sources, Sampson noted, including internal church records, the Diocesan Institute in Antigonish, the Beaton Institute in Sydney, and a book by Reverend A.A. Johnston on the history of the parishes in the Diocese of Antigonish.
Much of the information will be shared throughout the year and celebrated in various ways, Sampson said, adding that church concerts, souvenir memorabilia, and a special Labour Day weekend service are among the plans.
While the incorporation of a town and the first baptism in a parish seem worlds apart, the fact is they are both celebrating the formation of communities.
In one sense community means celebrating a time when people united to build a parish and a church, and on the other hand, it’s a milestone for a place that was one of the more prosperous in this region, and has since endured.
In both cases, people who are proud of their heritage are celebrating, preserving and promoting their history, and in that sense, two community anniversaries acknowledging two different things, couldn’t be more similar.