By Lyonel Doherty, Times Chronicle
After 100 years of farming, the McLennan family in Oliver has sold the property, sparking much reminiscing as the surviving children share fond memories of their pioneering parents.
Siblings Frank, Alex and Lila sit in a semi-circle in the shade of the old house on Sunflower Street where they remember the good old days. A fourth sibling, Shirley, wasn’t able to join them.
“In the beginning, dad bought this piece of property [in 1921] because it was ideal,” Frank McLennan said, referring to the fruit orchard that his mother and father, Emily Mary Hall and Stanley Archibald McLennan farmed off Road 5.
Lila Walsh (nee McLennan) said her dad was a veteran of the First World War and took part in the Soldier Settlement Act of 1917 that offered unemployed veterans land in Oliver to farm.
Frank said the property was all clay loam at two per cent grade, which was “perfect for farming” in those days.
He explained that the “ditch” provided irrigation and recalled the subsequent sprinkler system was very difficult to move around. “As a result, most of the farmers lost the use of their legs,” Frank said.
Their mother Emily was the daughter of the man who bought the Oliver Hotel.
“She was waiting on tables, so she had the choice of all the guys who came in, so she married dad,” Frank chuckled.
He recalled the 10-acre orchard originally growing cantaloupes and apples, then apricots and prunes. Lila recalled the pickers using 20-foot ladders to reach the fruit.
Some of the children’s favourite memories of the farm include: the hand crank telephone; taking in a stray dog and calling him “Rusty” because of his colour; going up the hill to get a Christmas tree; and picking wild asparagus in the ditches.
Lila said dad was the easy-going type who loved adventurous outings. That left mom to be the disciplinarian in the family, she pointed out.
“I had a feeling that we weren’t really bad kids,” she added.
Frank agreed, saying they didn’t offer a lot of resistance as children.
“We had a wonderful childhood here, the house was always open for Christmas, we had big dinners, we went to Cubs and Scouts, mother ran the local Girl Guides, she was very busy.”
She also played golf as a charter member of the Fairview course, Lila added.Favourite memories of dad
Alex will never forget when dad took them hiking on Mt. Baldy in the summer to get away from the heat.
Frank vividly remembers going fishing for bass and perch with dad at Deadman’s Lake.
He also recalls filling the basement with wood, a chore that fell to him and Alex. He noted that dad had an old track vehicle that turned a belt, which turned a big saw that cut up apple and cherry trees.
“I don’t remember the house ever being cold.”
Shirley remembers dad being a lovely, kind man who would take her to the movies.
“I used to tickle his head and he would pretend it was a fly.”
Frank McLennan looks at old photographs of the family farm, which goes back 100 years in history. Lyonel Doherty photo
Favourite memories of mom
She was called “Gagy” because the oldest grandson, Bruce Walsh, couldn’t say grandma so he called her Gagy instead. Soon, everyone called her that.
Lila recalls mom really caring for the fruit pickers on the farm. “What I remember is we were told to take out water to the pickers.”
Gagy was known for her fabulous pies. She was always in the kitchen making something, particularly jams, relishes, and canned fruit for the winter.
Alex remembers Oliver as a very active community with many social clubs and shops.
“Mother was able to remember the name of every building on Main Street.”
All of the McLennan children attended the high school in town, and Lila recalls the school having an agricultural section for students to learn how to farm.
When Stanley McLennan died in 1960, Emily stayed on to run the farm with hired help. She lived a long life and passed on in 2002 in her late 90s.
At that point Frank and Alex took over the orchard, but now they are letting go after all these years.
“We’re at a point where we have done enough, we’re all retired and not able to find any family members who want to take over the job,” Alex said.
Frank says owning one farm for 100 years is a unique situation in Oliver.
Lila notes that she is very happy that a new generation family is taking over the farm now. Frank wholeheartedly agrees.
Shown here is an old photograph of the McLennan family on their farm north of Oliver.
Contributed photo
