The Pat Evans (Skipper's) Corner
Patrick Michael Oldfield Evans, known as Pat, or by local sailors as "Skipper", was a transplanted Brit who immigrated to Canada in 1928 at the age of 15 and died in Wakefield in 1999. A writer and historian, he established the archives of the Historical Society of the Gatineau, as it was then known, and later became its honorary archivist. The Pat Evans Corner honours his contribution to the Society and showcases some of his local research and writing. See article Archivist's lifetime work honors the Outaouais by Bob Phillips.
- The Pat Evans Corner contains the following collections:
- Echoes from the Past
- Up the Gatineau!
- A Tale of Two Chelseas
- GVHS Archives
- Scouts
- Gatineau River Yacht Club
Echoes of the Past
This book included a selection of articles on the history of the Gatineau from the Patrick Evans column "Echoes from the Past", originally printed in The Low Down to Hull and Back News and subsequently compiled by Jay Atherton and published in book form by the Gatineau Valley Historical Society (under its former name the Historical Society of the Gatineau) at Chelsea, Quebec, 1998.
The following are selected contents from this book:
- Preface by Ernie Mahoney
- Introduction by Jay Atherton
- List of Articles
- Patrick Michael Oldfield Evans - An Autobiography
- Reference Index
- To search articles, see Echoes from the Past in Low Down Articles.
Up The Gatineau!
For many years, starting with Volume 1, Patrick Evans assisted with the selection and editing of the Society's annual local history journal. He was also a frequent contributor. Three of his articles are included below, as well four tributes to him printed in Up the Gatineau! the year after he died.
- Articles on Pat Evans
- About This Year's Editor: P.M.O. Evans, A Biography by Josh Dolgin (published in Volume 14)
- Pat Evans, Neighbour and Friend (published in Volume 26)
- Pat Evans: A Tribute (published in Volume 26)
- Remembering the Life of Patrick M.O. Evans (published in Volume 26)
- Articles by Pat Evans
- Early Kirks Ferry, Quebec (published in Volume 1)
- Philemon Wright Memorial (published in Volume 7)
- Toponymy (published in Volume 14)
A Tale of Two Chelseas
A charming account of Old Chelsea and New Chelsea published in 1988. The beginning, settlement spreads, the economy, down on the farm, chores, pastimes, the importance of water and wood, the naming of Chelsea, local businesses, the postal service history.
- Introduction and part 1 (PDF 1.9 MB)
- Newer Chelsea (PDF 1.5 MB)
- References (PDF 4.4 MB)
- Appendencies (PDF 1.0 MB)
GVHS Archives
These are some sample pages from an undated document, written by Pat Evans in his meticulous handwriting, in his archivist role, on the procedures for accessioning photographs (PDF 315 K) given to the Society, and a second sample of his documentation (PDF 1.5 MB) of the Historical Society.
Scouts
In 1953, Pat Evans founded the First Wakefield Scouts troop and continued to lead local Scouting youth until 1964. As a member of the national Scout executive staff, Pat believed that the policies and procedures developed at HQ should be field-tested at the local level so Wakefield Scouts soon became a model for developing the national Scouts program during the 1950s and 60s.
The images below are from the 'Log Books' that Pat Evans created to chronicle the Wakefield Scout's happenings and events in his meticulous 'cut and paste' and handwritten style. As well, we have included the Scouts 'Shorts' newsletter that also provide another view into the history of Wakefield Scouts.
First Wakefield Scouts Log Books
| Book 1 - Oct 53 to Oct 55 | Cover-page 19 (PDF 4.3 MB) Pages 20-39 (PDF 4.2 MB) Pages 40-59 (PDF 4.2 MB) Pages 60-79 (PDF 5.1 MB) Pages 80-89 (PDF 1.8 MB) |
| Book 2 - Oct 1955 to Oct 1956 | Cover-page 19 (PDF 4.6 MB) Pages 20-39 (PDF 5.3 MB) Pages 40-59 (PDF 4.3 MB) Pages 60-79 (PDF 4.7 MB) |
| Book 3 - Nov 1956 to May 57 | Cover-page 19 (PDF 4.0 MB) Pages 20-39 (PDF 4.1 MB) Pages 40-59 (PDF 4.1 MB) Pages 60-80 (PDF 3.8 MB) |
| Book 4 - Oct 1957 to Nov 1959 | Cover-page 19 (PDF 4.0 MB) Pages 20-39 (PDF 4.1 MB) Pages 40-59 (PDF 3.5 MB) Pages 60-78 (PDF 3.6 MB) |
| Book 5 - Mar 1960 to Oct 1960 | Cover-page 19 (PDF 4.1 MB) Pages 20-39 (PDF 4.4 MB) Pages 40-59 (PDF 3.5 MB) Pages 60-85 (PDF 5.6 MB) |
| Book 6 - Nov 1961 to May 1964 | Cover-page 19 (PDF 4.8 MB) Pages 20-39 (PDF 3.8 MB) Pages 40-59 (PDF 3.6 MB) Pages 60-79 (PDF 4.2 MB) Pages 80-98 (PDF 3.5 MB) |
Wakefield Shorts (Newsletter)
- Scouts Shorts No 1 - Dec 1956 (PDF 1260K)
- Scouts Shorts No 2 - Mar 1957 (PDF 881K)
- Scouts Shorts No 3 - Apr 1957 (PDF 1420K)
- Scouts Shorts No 4 - Jun 1957 (PDF 529K)
- Scouts Shorts No 5 - Dec 1957 (PDF 706K)
- Scouts Shorts No 6 - May 1958 (PDF 772K)
- Scouts Shorts No 7 - Sep 1958 (PDF 232K)
- Scouts Shorts No 8 - Nov 1959 (PDF 693K)
- Scouts Shorts No 9 - Nov 1959 (PDF 1594K)
Gatineau River Yacht Club
Pat Evans was a founding member of the Gatineau River Yacht Club and held several key Board positions including Commodore and Secretary as well as being an active member. Shown below are selected items from Pat's role as club archivist, including a book that he wrote and assembled on the first 8 years of the Club (1962 - 1969), along with news clippings and pictures.
- Early Days At The GRYC
- G.R.Y.C. Logs - Chronicle from 1962 to 1969
- A G.R.Y.C. Chronicle - The First Five Years - part of the GRYC 1982 Annual Report (PDF 230 K)
- Me and GRYC -part of the 25'th Anniversary GRYC 1987 Annual Report - (PFD 174 K)