July 14, 1901 marks the date of Jane Tait’s birth at River Hills close to Seven Sisters. Her mother was a Canadian from Ontario and her father was an Englishman from England. Coming from the west, Mr. Tait immigrated to Canada when he was 18 years old. At a very young age he sought for work in the area and luckily found one as a foreman for the CPR and did some farm work too.

Jane’s parents built a log house, and they hunted for deer or moose for their food. They also gathered wild fruits such as berries as there were no fruit for sale in the market.

Then the depression came, which had a big effect on Canadian people. It was not easy but all of them struggled through it. In fact, Jane still remember how the hall burned down to the ground during those times.

Doctor Ross’s house was the first building in town. There was a small station located where the present CPR station is located. The store owner was Howard Corrigan whose building was called Fort Howard. To purchase the goods, people used a special type of coin. Many people worked at the brickyard. The employer was Dave Wardrop. There weren’t very many stores in those times so peddlers came around selling little trinkets.

Jane attended the school on Polka Street in Whitemouth, she studied until grade 5.

Seven Sisters power dam was under construction around 1928. For entertainment they sang songs or just visited with their neighbours. Jane Tait feels those were the ‘Good old days”. The people socialized more and there was no competition between the people. Everybody worked hard but people were poor and they were still happy.

Winnipeg One Financing

www.famouspeopleofmanitoba.ca