Living Harvey

Other Events:

• Census: 1881, Stratford, Perth County, Ontario
• Census: 1901, Stratford, Perth County, Ontario
• Census: 1911, 109 Ash Avenue, St. Gabriel, Hochelaga, Quebec
• Census: 1921, 272 Brunswick Street, Stratford, Perth County, Ontario

Notes:

Published in "The Stratford Beacon Herald" newspaper on Aug 29, 1956

Father and Son Drew Pension From CNR at Same Time

A man has to have some hobbies when he retires from regular work, says Frederick W. Holman, 272 Brunswick St. Perhaps because he has had several hobbies over the years, the former C.N.R. despatcher is still youthfully active. Slim, swift of movement and alert in thought, he is younger at 83 years of age than many men 20 years his junior.

It is a bit hard to believe that Mr. Holman retired from the despatcher's key back in 1937 after 49 years of service. He gives due credit for his energy to his hobbies. An ardent fisherman, he can still reel them in when friends drive him to favorite streams - he no longer drives a car himself. Only this month he hauled in three beautiful trout from a little creek near the Halfway House on the St. Marys road. They were not as large, of course, as the ones he took years ago around Amulree, when the waters were cold and there were a few deep holes where the big ones could lurk.

PLENTY TO DO

Other major hobbies over the years have been hunting and ekeet shooting. But these he has dropped with the advance of years. Now he spends much of his spare time at his garden and lawn - and as he says, there's always plenty to do.

When Mr. Holman forsook dots and dashes 19 years ago, he and his father, F. Joseph Holman, constituted the only father-son team on the pension list of the railroad at the same time. The elder Mr. Holman had 40 years of service to his credit when he retired as foreman of the GTR bridge and building department in 1914.

The younger Mr. Holman always wanted to go railroading. He has never regretted his choice. Telegraphy led him, mainly because five brothers of his mother were telegraphers. One of them, the late Hugh Craig, worked in Brantford for a time with Thomas A. Edison, later was a telegrapher in the United States Civil War, and went on to become a superintendent of the Baltimore and Ohio Railroad.

Frederick was born in Stratford and attended Romeo public school, and also Central school which stood on a site near the present public library. After two years at the Collegiate Institute, he decided to learn telegraphy. At age of 16 years he started under the tutelage of the late George (Monk) Marr who was an operator at Stratford Junction.

Only a few old timers on the railroad remember Stratford Junction. It was a shanty near the edge of the city, where trains coming in on the Wiarton line went into reverse to back to the station. There was a junction at Tavistock too, Mr. Holman says. The prevalence of junctions, he thinks, could be traced to the amalgamations of competing lines in the Grand Trunk Railway during the last third of the 19th century.

PAY NOT HIGH

His first job as operator with the Grand Trunk was at Camlachie in 1889. Then he worked at Blyth, Wingham and St. Pauls before moving back to Stratford. Pay was not high - but he remembers getting board at Blyth or Wingham for $11 a month, with the landlord sometimes shoving back a dollar if he had been away for a few meals.

In 1892 he was transferred to the general office of the Grand Trunk at Montreal, where he remained for nearly 20 years. When he decided to return to Stratford he found rail officials helpful in locating a post here as relief despatcher. That was in 1911, two years before the present station was built.

He brought back with him his own typewriter - for in those days when a despatcher wanted to type his messages he had to buy his own machine. Otherwise, the messages had to be hand written.

There were far more trains to be routed in the old days than now, Mr. Holman says. Power was small and engines could pull trains of about 21 cars. "Engines were thick in those days," he mentions, recalling when eight passenger trains a day went through Tavistock - two down to Buffalo and two back.



Newspaper article from The Beacon-Herald newspaper, (Stratford, Ontario) Page 1:

VETERAN DESPATCHER RETIRES

FREDERICK W. HOLMAN

Father and Son Now Both Pensioners Of Railway

Frederick W. Holman Has Served as Railway Telegrapher 45 Years; Father, F. Joseph Holman, Now in 95th Year, Retired in 1914; Joint Service is 89 Years

Railroad history was established in Stratford today. When Fred W. Holman, 272 Brunswick street, popular Canadian National Railways train despatcher, left the dots and dashes this afternoon to enter a life of retirement on pension, he joined his father as a retired railroad veteran.

The elder Mr. Holman, F. Joseph Holman, will be 95 years of age next October. He entered his retirement from the Grand Trunk back in 1914, from the position of foreman of the Bridge and Building Department.

Officers of the railroad could not find a similar incident on record. Both Mr. Holman, Senior, and Mr. Holman, Junior, are quite deceiving in appearance respecting their ages. Between them they have to their credit eighty-nine years of service with the Grand Trunk and the Canadian National Railways. Fred W. Holman retires with forty-nine years of active service to his credit and when Mr. Holman, Sr., started his years of retirement he had served forty years.

"Naturally I'll miss the key and everything that goes with train despatching, but I guess I'll find something to do. I have a lawn which needs manicuring and then there is some painting to be done," commented the younger Mr. Holman, in speaking to the Beacon-Herald.

And speaking of painting, he observed that C. J. McKeough who has retired as superintendent of transportation, Stratford division, has taken to painting his house with W. J. Piggott, retired superintendent of the London division, has started painting his cottage at Southampton.

Likes His Work

"When I was a boy a man was around reading the bumps on people's heads. He said I would be either a bandmaster, a physician or a telegraph operator. I took up the latter and I never regretted the move," commented Mr. Holman, who has lived most of his life right here in Stratford.

Born in this city, he attended public school and went to high school for about a year and then came his opening to get to work when he was sixteen. But railroading seemed like the only occupation for him. It was only natural in those days that a son should be a railroadman if his father was one. And in the Holman case, he had five uncles on his mother's side who were all railroad telegraphers.

One uncle in particular, Mr. Holman recalled, worked in Brantford with the great Thomas Edison. He was a telegraph operator during the American Civil War and later was a superintendent on the Baltimore and Ohio Railroad. He was the late Hugh Craig.

Mr. Holman learned telegraphy from the late George (Monk) Marr, who was an operator at Stratford Junction. No, there's no such a place as Stratford Junction now, but the old-time railroadmen will remember it. All there was to it was a shanty where an operator was located, at the east end of the city. In those days trains coming in on the Wiarton line backed into the Stratford depot from the Junction.

In 1899 Mr. Holman got his first job with the Grand Trunk as an operator at Camlackie. He worked at Blyth, Wingham and St. Pauls and was moved back to Stratford and then in 1892 was transferred to the general office in Montreal. He operatored at Montreal for twenty years and his next move brought him back to his native city and he has been here since.

"I was rather fortunate, I came back here as a relief despatcher and fortunately got located as a regular despatcher on a regular trick," said the veteran telegraph operator.A trick, in telegrapher's language is the stretch of hours at work.

Train despatching has not changed a great deal, as is the case in many other phases of railroading. Some twenty years ago the mouth-piece and the loud speaker were added to the equipment. Despatchers simply speak their orders into the mouth piece which hangs about the neck similar to that of a telephone operator and he listens to orders from the speaker. But the telegraph key is still used extensively and there has been only a few changes to it.

Train despatching plays one of the most important parts in the operation of a railroad. It is a despatcher's duty to know where all trains are at all times. It is his duty to see that unscheduled trains do not interfere with regular trains and to arrange passing points for them.

Mr. Holman believed that the busiest time of his whole railroading career was last spring during the big flood of the Thames River. For three days all traffic, passenger and freight, from the main Sarnia-London-Hamilton line was running through Stratford because of the wash-out on the double line.

When a despatcher goes off duty, he writes in red ink the location of all trains.

As far as hobbies are concerned Fred Holman likes fishing and hunting. He delights in skeet shooting and believes it to be one of the finest sports in existence.

In his possession he has a rifle which is most unusual. It is of .45 calibre and was using during the Fenian Raids. Its fire would carry over about a mile distance and train crews were equipped with these guns during the danger of the Fenian Raids.

Mr. Holman, Sr., is still quite active. He gets around for his daily walk which generally takes him down town and he still keeps up with the events of the world through columns of his daily paper. He resides with his son on Brunswick street.

Frederick married Dora Bowman on 26 Dec 1916 in 30 Francis Street North (initial house address was 19 Francis Street), Berlin, Waterloo County, Ontario. Dora (daughter of Reuben S. Bowman and Louisa H. Geiger) was born on 25 Jun 1885 in 162 Wellington Street North, Berlin, Waterloo County, Ontario; died in 1970; was buried on 10 Jul 1970 in Avondale Cemetery, Stratford, Perth County, Ontario. [Group Sheet] [Family Chart]

Other Events:

• Census: 1921, 272 Brunswick Street, Stratford, Perth County, Ontario

Notes:

Source: "Reuben Bowman, His Family" by Fred Bowman 1948

DORA BOWMAN, the fourth child of Reuben and Louisa Bowman, was born on June 25th 1885 in the house at the corner of Weber and Wellington Sts. in Berlin. She attended Agnes St. School, after leaving which she entered the employ of the Bell Telephone Company as a switchboard operator, afterwards following the same occupation in Detroit, London and Stratford.

She is married to Frederick William Holman, formerly a train dispatcher with the Canadian National Railways in Stratford and on pension since 1939. They reside at their home, No. 272 Brunswick St. in Stratford, and have a family of three girls.




Newspaper Clipping - undated

OBITUARIES
Mrs. Frederick W. Holman

Mrs. Frederick William Holman of Kitchener died Tuesday at the Coutts Pavillion, Freeport Hospital after a lengthy illness. She was 85.

The former Dora Bowman, she was born in Kitchener, June 25, 1885, a daughter of the late Mr. and Mrs. Reuben Bowman.

She had resided in Stratford for many years and moved to Kitchener a year ago.

She was a member of Zion United Church.

Mrs. Holman was predeceased by her husband, four brothers and one sister.

Surviving are three daughters [....]; one brother, Fred Bowman of Montreal; two sisters, Beatrice Bowman and Mrs. Hilda Shelley, both of Kitchener; and 12 grandchildren.

The body is at the Schreiter Sandrock Funeral Home where Rev. C.E. Hunking of Bethany United Church will conduct the funeral service and committal service Thursday at 2:30pm.

Burial will be at the Avondale cemetery, Stratford.

Notes:

Married:
The bride wore black velvet trimmed with black and white real fur. Prior to the wedding, Fred lived with his parents at 264 Brunswick Avenue in Stratford. After he was married he and Dora lived at 272 Brunswick Avenue in Stratford, Ontario.