I am a newcomer to the Peace River country as I came in 1961. My husband was here from ‘28 to ‘32 and worked on the railroad to Dawson Creek. These were difficult times as you all know. So like many others upon leaving, he vowed to return when he had money to carry on. We didn’t have much money but we settled in the Fellers Heights district. At that time there were no phones, no electricity, and water was obtained in winter by melting snow as so many have done. But afterwards I was much impressed with the women who lived there, and some of their experiences. The first I met was Mrs. Nick Bradshaw. She didn’t ride horses or drive tractors as most women did but she accomplished the gathering of their one hundred head of cattle from the open range at that time. She did this on foot and, I believe, knows every trail through the bush in that area. She was fearless, as one day while picking berries, she discovered a bear eating on the opposite side of the bush. She was afraid her little dog might get hurt so she took him back to the house. She then came back to continue her berry picking with the bear, on their respective sides of the bush. She pitched bundles, shoveled grain, and then was in the house with a hearty meal prepared in short order. No one ever left her house hungry, but more likely overstuffed from her insistence that they eat more. In her sixties, when her husband broke his leg, she carried water from the dam in two-five gallon pails to water about twenty calves. When a young fellow stopped one day while she was carrying the water and offered his assistance, she said: "No, you are too little."

Another remarkable woman was Mrs. Mary Lundquist. At one time her husband Eric had gone to Dawson Creek with the team. As they lived about twenty-five miles from town it was a two-day trip. On his return home, he intended to stop in Sunnybrook for a film on farming being shown that evening. That morning Mary was sick, as was the oldest boy. Her oldest girl, Shirley was eight. So Mary had to do the chores, milking and vomiting by turns. When she came in the house, Shirley and the two younger girls said they’d go on the horse and open the water holes. In the process they fell off the horse and Sharon, aged three, broke her leg. Mary set it and bandaged it with splints the best she could. Then Shirley rode a distance of about 5 miles, to Julian Fellers for help to take Sharon to town. While away, Mary washed and dried the children’s clothes, as they had only one outfit apiece. Julian phoned Arras and got hold of Eric, who had just put up the horses for the film showing. Eric said that Joe Ralph who had a car, would meet Julian after he, Julian, had brought Mary and the little girl by sleigh to the road. This was done and by nine o’clock that evening they had Sharon at the hospital. They took X-rays, and the doctor only had to make slight adjustments to the leg Mary had set. Sharon was in the hospital a week, home in bed a week, and now her leg is perfect.

Norma Landiak, a Fellers, was another woman I admired. She too could ride and pitch bundles better than most men. When Bud and she were unloading bags of grain one day, he set one double sized bag aside for the two of them to carry. When he looked around, Norma had already removed it herself. She was a hunter as well, and I believe has several moose to her credit, as has Shirley Bell, Mary Lindquist’s daughter. She seemed to have a sixth sense to tell her when a moose was within riding distance, and rarely came home empty handed. She needed them too, with six girls to raise, and doing most of the farm work herself.

Barb Bertram carried bales and pulled water for sixty to seventy head of cattle while her husband was away working in winter. She sometimes called on Norma to assist her when difficulties arose at calving time. Her home was always open to anyone who was in trouble, including myself when my husband died suddenly.

A marvelous woman who arrived in Fellers Heights in 1928 was Mrs. Ivy Fellers. She came from Montana in a covered wagon, spending three years on the road, as they stopped along the way to earn money for food and supplies to continue. Her husband broke horses or did carpentry work. All together she had a family of fourteen children. Two of these were born on the trek up here. They brought a number of horses and milk cows with them. These created quite a problem crossing railroad trestles. Of course, the humans could walk on the ties, but it was difficult to get the animals to do so. The first years in Fellers Heights were no doubt difficult. Her husband had the mail haul from Arras to Fellers Heights receiving $5 a month for the four weekly trips. With this cash for beans and the moose provided by her sons who were good hunters, she managed to raise a fine family. She is a grand lady and now resides with her oldest daughter near Clayhurst.

They were a remarkable neighbourhood of women, worthy to be listed with the Women of the North.