Saint John Urban Renewal

Ellen Drewery - the compassionate face of Saint John property expropriation

2008-11-05T15:31:00.000-08:00

I first wrote about Ellen Drewery last year in THE LOST VALLEY blog. It was a pleasure to share my few memories of her as a Sociology teacher at U.N.B. because some of her words have stuck with me over the years, and it is not hyperbole when I say that I have quoted her to my own students hundreds of times. On the subject of human sexuality I can still Ellen's simple, (Steinbeckian) explanation for homosexuality, incest and a host of sexual fetishes: "People have sex with the people they're with." You can read what I had to say in my blog of November 25, 2007. Simply jump to Lost Valley: The S.J. Urban Renewal File - an update.

I began my studies at U.N.B.S.J., staying within my $$comfort zone, and for two years lived with two aunts at Foulis Court. When I moved on to U.N.B. Fredericton to finish a major in history, I lost track of Ellen. If she ever mentioned in class working with displaced Urban Renewal families I forgot about it. Only two years ago, I learned she had in fact been an important voice in dealing with social displacement during the forced evictions and demolitions. The following is a news story from 1968 which introduced her to the Saint John public. Like any introduction it is polite in tone. In a future article I will discuss the rockier side to Prof. Drewery's tenure with the City of Saint John.

The Urban Renewal Field Office at 509 Main Street. To the left was the Main Brace Naval Veteran's club, which still exists on Main, located at the foot of Elm Street. Ellen Drewery began work at the Field Office in August of 1968.
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The Evening Times-Globe, October 3, 1968
“Personal Touch’ For Urban Renewal

The Saint John Urban Redevelopment Office has added the “personal touch” in carrying out its massive north end renewal scheme.

Miss Ellen Drewery, a full time, on-the-job sociologist, has been dealing first-hand with the problems facing families affected by the project since August.

“The trend today is toward more and more emphasis on the personal touch, rather than just the bricks and mortar aspect of urban redevelopment,” says Assistant Redevelopment Officer Guy Spencer. “There has been a growing awareness that the technical people can’t do a sociologist’s job, a vital part of any renewal project.”

Mr. Spencer said the move to broaden the scope of what he calls “people planning” within the project started last year with the hiring of a relocation officer. “Now the picture has been rounded out with a highly trained person to deal sympathetically and understandingly with the sociological aspects.”

Miss Drewery, who has had wide and varied experience in dealing with people, both before and during her studies at the University of Western Ontario in London, arrived here in August.

Meeting Families

Now, from her office at 509 Main Street, she is meeting with members of relocated families, helping them adjust to new conditions, assisting those uncertain about an upcoming move and dealing with those already moved but unhappy in a new setting.

“Saint John has, I think, a very advanced urban renewal program – forward-looking enough to want a sociologist,” says Miss Drewery.

“To many of these people life has always been a struggle. They lack knowledge of approaching and dealing with authorities. They have been more dealt with, than dealing.”

Mr. Spencer said problems of a business nature will continue to be handled by Redevelopment Officer Donald Buck. Miss Drewery will be the “ear” to hear personally the problems of the bewildered and uncertain.

Not all the problems they bring to the office are within her field. But since her arrival she has established herself as a coordinator with various agencies in the city and is prepared to refer people to specialized help for full discussion of their special difficulty.”

By the late 1970s the Urban Renewal Field Office had itself been torn down, exposing the red brick wall of the old bank next door. The bank building still enjoys a second life as the HQ of the Main Brace Naval Veteran's club. See (X) in photo. The Main Brace was my grandfather's daily hangout at the time this photo was taken.

UPDATE May 25, 2010 - Not long after I posted this Blog article I had an email from from Ellen's best friend in Saint John. She informed me that Ellen was ill but being well taken care of. On Saturday I received further word from a Blog reader that Ellen Drewery died at Saint John Regional Hospital on May 22, 2010. I expect that the folks at UNBSJ will do their duty and honour her contribution to the early development of the campus. Suffice it to say that Prof. Drewery's dedication to improving the lives of the working poor in Saint John has been forgotten throughout the North End and at Saint John City Hall. A few Blog articles on the Internet will not change that reality, but one can always hope.

Ellen Drewery - Requiescat in pace

URBAN RENEWAL - Saint John heritage buildings were inventoried in 1970 and 1979 - Here's how

2008-11-03T21:18:00.000-08:00

The legacy of Urban Renewal in Saint John is a hot topic these days. Not so much a fresh perspective on social justice or urban planning agendas, but a growing curiosity of my generation about our past. We're nostalgic. In attempt to feed that interest, I will soon post a review of a new book of photographs which documents some of the old Saint John neighborhoods we have lost. I expect to receive it on Wednesday and I have a feeling it will make me sad.

My own interest in Saint John Urban Renewal goes way back to grade school memories of watching the demolitions, and I have written about them in THE LOST VALLEY blog. On a professional note, one of the Saint John history projects I managed in my youth was a survey for the Canadian Inventory of Historic Building. This was in 1979.

In 1970 a team from National Historic Sites in Ottawa had rushed in and photographed 1,041 buildings, many of which later fell to phased demolition in the North End. They worked fast and as a result there were errors to be corrected. In 1979 the Feds found it more cost effective to train local university students to do a second survey. My own family had a three story home expropriated in the valley, so I was keen to take on the C.I.H.B. project. Our sponsor was David Ross, then Director of the N.B.M.

I kept, and still have, my office copy set of the file cards for the 1970 Saint John survey and also a duplicate set of our 1979 project. In 1970 each home was recorded with three 35mm B&W images, but in 1979 we sometimes recorded additional features with closeup shots. In a future blog article I will publish an example of a C.I.H.B. three photo record of a Lost Valley dwelling - a home recorded in 1970 before it was bulldozed.

In the meantime I am posting a copy of a news article published on July 4, 1979 which described our work. Local media coverage was essential as we had constantly to encroach on private property. CBC Radio for example did two segments, explaining the importance of the project to Saint John residents. As you read the Times-Globe article below, note in particular Mike Murphy's comment about the fear of further expropriation of private property by the city.

The Evening Times Globe, Wednesday, July 4, 1979
[no Byline]

Photo of one of the team's on my crew in May - September 1979. C.I.H.B. staff from Ottawa trained us to sleuth out interesting structures in Saint John, and how to record the wealth of detail needed for the national inventory. I interviewed many students before choosing the six whom I felt had the appropriate skills. Three had to have sufficient photography experience to make a reliable permanant record of building heritage that was disappearing all around us.

"STUDENTS LOOK AT OLD CITY STRUCTURES

If you own an old home in the Saint John area, chances are that you will be paid a visit by a group of students who are doing a survey of historical structures in the area.
Seven university students have been hired for the summer by the Canadian Inventory of Historic Building to locate and record all of the historic structures in the city that were built in the 1800’s or early 1900’s.
The students locate and map each building, record all of the structures exterior features and then photograph the building from all angles. The material is then categorized and sent to Ottawa to be placed in a computer bank. Once there, the data can be retrieved in printout and catalogue form.
Ronald Jack, a second year major at the University of New Brunswick is the project co-ordinator for the group. He said that a similar survey was conducted in the Saint John area in 1970 by the National Historic Sites Service. At that time only 1041 houses were recorded for Saint John, but Mr. Jack is optimistic that his group will be able to double the previous findings.
“The first thing we are doing is to verify all of the information from the previous study: that is we will verify existing structures, correct any mistakes in addresses and ownership and make note of any structures that have been demolished.”
So far the students have located 250 buildings in the last two weeks. Mr. Jack said that each team, which is made up of two students – one recorder and one photographer, records approximately ten buildings per day.
The job of the recorder is to fill in a 75-point questionnaire about each structure. The obvious geographical information is noted along with the date it was built; the original owner, if available; the current owner; and the name of the architect who built the house.
“We try to answer most of these questions, but in a lot of cases, like the original owner and the architect, the information is just not available,” said Mr. Jack.
He guessed that most of the older houses in Saint John were built sometime between 1850 – 1860, although there are a few that are even older. “Most of the older ones have been demolished for urban expansion.”
And the fact that Saint John had so many fires in its past shows that a great number of historic houses would have been destroyed.
Mike Murphy is one member of the survey group. His job is to photograph the buildings they locate. He said that so far most of the people they have talked to have been very co-operative, but some people chase them away.
“I guess some people think we are asking questions about their homes for the city. They’re afraid that their houses will be torn down.”
“But most of the people I talk to are very friendly. We get some people who love to talk and will tell you their family history. Others say this is a waste of government money”, he said.
Eva Weeks is another member of the survey team. She has no complaints about citizen co-operation in the area.
“I find that when you get involved with houses you meet a lot of very nice people who will take you inside to show you their houses. Some people have beautiful bottle collections,” she said.
Mr. Jack said that some of the other things his group looks for include the material the roof is made of, the type of front door and the type of glass in the windows.
But besides houses, the group is also interested in any historic structure. They will be photographing the original foundations of the reversing Falls Bridge and three existing horse troughs that have remained in the city since the 19th century.
One interesting thing that Mr. Jack has noted from talking with his survey teams is that everyone in Indian Town in the north end of the city can tell you in which house actor Walter Pidgeon grew up.
By the end of this week, Mr. Jack said he hopes to have his group working in the North End. Mr. Jack and his group have offices located at the New Brunswick Museum. Further information can be obtained by calling them at 603-1196 Extension 61.
The other members of the survey team include: John Cooper, Ping Chow, Caryn Thompson and Faith Jennings."

A Hidden Trove of Saint John Urban Renewal Photos is Suddenly Available

2008-10-31T15:33:00.000-07:00

Just over one year ago I began web-publishing a history Blog which I call THE LOST VALLEY. The setting of our story is a valley which bisects the city Saint John, New Brunswick, a coastal city which boasts a very old, incredibly rich and somewhat intricate history. Often rendered "St. John" the city is our family seat, though many of us are now scattered across Canada. If you visit the site you will find that the Lost Valley is not a 'blog" in the strictest sense, because most blogs tend to be breezy and brief, and they often go silent when the author loses interest in their subject. There are currently 45 articles archived on Lost Valley and several features dealt exclusively with the Urban Renewal demolitions of the 1960s and 1970s.

There is great news to share with thousands of Lost Valley residents who are scattered across Canada, and even further. If you have longed to locate a photo of the old street (maybe the actual house) you were raised, you are in luck. I recently learned what became of the many thousands of Official Photographs which were taken of the old Valley neighborhoods before they fell to the swinging ball and dozer blade. Yes the photographs do exist and 900 of them have just been printed and bound in a coffee table book which is being released for Christmas sale in Saint John.

At $50 the new book is rather costly and many senior citizens may find it a prohibitively expensive purchase. Not to worry. I have a friend in S.J. who offered to help me buy a reference copy and it is enroute. When that photo compilation arrives I will take "look up" requests - find your old street and house - and post the photo here for you to enjoy.

You can start sending requests to the Blog now. If you can't remember your old S.J. address, it's a great excuse to make a phone call to a family member who might recall it.

Photographer Ian MacEachern caught two visiting foreign sailors walking past the demolition rubble on Mill Street. Ian is a former Saint John resident who now lives in Ontario.

Urban Renewal in the North and East Ends of Saint John, N.B. involved the expropriation of property and forced eviction of tenants on an unprecedented scale. Many families were successfully relocated but an uncounted number of residents left Saint John permanently. THE LOST VALLEY blog is an attempt to reach the families of the diaspora through the Internet, four decades after the Valley was bulldozed. This new Blog will archive and supplement those articles which deal specifically with Urban Renewal.