Mr. and Mrs. George Tucker

Written by Zypha Wallaker

George Millard Tucker was born in Black River Falls, Wisconsin on Aug. 14, 1867 and moved at an early age with his parents to Pelican Rapid, Minn.

Mattie Peck was born in Forest City, Iowa in 1871 to Mr. and Mrs. Edward Peck. They also moved to Pelican Rapids, and on Dec. 24, 1886 George Tucker and Mattie Peck were married in Fargo, North Dakota.

They were blessed with eleven children while they still resided in the United States. In 1910 two more were born in Canada and they immigrated to Canada with 4 girls and 4 boys. Three sons and their father had been up to Canada and filed on a 160 acres – SE 19 R35 T17 W2nd – prior to moving. All the belongings including household goods and some machinery were in one box car. The stock which consisted of cattle, horses and some feed and a couple of pigs were in another box car and this one the men folk were allowed to ride in. They arrived in Watson on a cold day in October 1910 to find the ground already frozen. They were met by an old friend Clint Wright who took Mother and the girls to his place for the first night with team and wagon. The men got unloaded and came up the next day with team and the wagon loaded with their belongings and chasing the cattle behind. Tuckers were very fortunate to have Mr. Hod Lunsford offer his house to them for the first winter.

Mrs. Tucker had her ‘Home Comfort’ range along with her so was soon back into general housekeeping. Watson was the Post Office for the Tucker’s for many years. That winter the men cut logs and build a house on the homestead so they could move into it when spring came as Mr. Lunsford was bringing his wife Nellie and three daughter, Beatrice, Evelyn and Louise up from the United States.

Many homesteads were being taken up at that time so we soon had many neighbours. Everyone helped each other to get logs out and put up their homes. The men worked long days but the women were not idle – they were always ready with a good hot meal and a smile. The living was pain. Wild life was plentiful. My brother Dale was a good hunter and brought home many deer and moose. Mother would cure the meat and then smoke it in a little smoke-house build from logs and stuffed with moss. The partridges were plentiful, and wild duck and even wild turkey came down with a good aim. He also trapped muskrat and sold them at Watson. Father and the other boys cut wood to sell to provide food and buy material for mother to sew for clothing. She even made our little shoes from the leather from the men’s worn shoes and put heavy cloth for the upper part.

Soon my brother Fred took a local girl, Lettie Wright, daughter of Frank and Nora Wright, as his bride. They were married by Reverend G. Francis with a dance held afterward in his parents home. His homestead was not far away so he soon got a house up and was on his own. Their son Alton was born.

When my sister Mattie was 17 years old she took sick. The Watson doctor, Doctor Mulholland, west with he to Saskatoon where she was operated on for appendicitis. Those days that was a big expense and it took years before the bill was finally paid.

In 1914 the war broke out and parents with sons were very upset over seeing their sons leave when they were needed so badly to help clear the land and prove up their homesteads. The day came when two of my brothers were called. George was married by then to Joy Tourand and he never left Regina. He was on guard there. Dale was trained for a short period and was sent overseas but his battalion never got to the front lines.

On Nov. 17, 1916 my oldest brother Harry died of an accidental gun shot wound. He was only 28 years old. Rev. G. Francis conducted the funeral service in Clearview School with internment in the Bethany Clearview cemetery.

After losing our brother Harry, Mother had a real sick spell. Her father and a sister took her back to their home in the States for a rest. One evening my two older sisters had left with a sleigh load of young people for a dance in Watson and my father was away for a load of hay when the ceiling caught fire. Clayton Fielder, my nephew, was there and he ran to Ottoson’s, one and a half miles, for help. Soon Father arrived. He put the two little girls in the hen house and started throwing snow on the fire. I was 7 or 8 years at the time and remember carrying snow for him. The wallpaper on the ceiling was burnt as were the curtains and the sofa. It was a terrible thing to see the house on fire and no adults at home. Threshing time Father always went to run the separator on the big outfits south of Watson and the boys hauled sheaves. It was a time they could make a little cash. Our field was not large enough to call for threshing, but we had lots of good feed for the stock for winter. The cows were one of the main means of living for many families for years. There was a creamery at Watson where they could deliver the cream. Then chickens got more plentiful and some of the eggs were sold as was the surplus butter.

George Tucker, along with Ernest Ottoson, Mr. Segerstrom were the first trustees for the Clearview school which was built in 1912. The first teacher, Mr. Axford commenced his duties in 1913. He took many pictures in the district and taught my sister Francis how to develop them. Clearview School was a central place for all meetings. Church and Sunday School was held there at which time my mother played the organ. We got a violin which the boys soon learned to play. So we had music in our home for many years.

There was an Indian settlement close to our home and the Indians often brought furs for my father to take to Watson to trade. They wanted liquor but he refused to bring it. Some of the men got their hair cut short like my brothers.

Dad sold the homestead to a Mr. Ed. Wilson before the war ended and moved on a farm north of Spalding for a few years. Then my father bought land – SW22 R39 T18 – which is a mile west of the highway where they lived until the fall of 1927, when they sold that land to Mr. Nysteun. They retired to Melfort. In 1930 they returned to Spalding. George Millard Tucker was born in Black River Falls, Wis., to Mr. Lyman H. Tucker and Mary (Vannater) Tucker. He died in Spalding in 1940 at the age of 73.

Mattie Peck was born 1871 in Forest City, Iowa, to Edward Peck (born in Denmark, Lewes County, New York) and Sarah Malia (Siecho) Peck (born May 27, 1846 in England). She died April 23, 1966 in Middle Lake Pioneer Lodge, Sask.

George and Mattie were married Dec 24, 1886 at Fargo N. Dakota.

They had thirteen children:

Cora born in 1888. Died in 1977. (Mrs. Fielder)

Harry born 1890. Died in 1916 in Watson. Funeral held in Clearview school with Rev. Francis officiating.

Fred born 1892. Died in Langley B.C. in 1962.

Mabel born 1894. Lives in Bismark, N. Dakota.

George E. Born 1895. Died in 1954 in Spalding. Buried at Clearview.

Dale L. born in 1897. Died in 1954 at Carrot River. Buried at Clearview.

Mattie born 1898. Lives in Winnipeg, Man.

Frances (Muriell) born 1900. Died in 1922 in Humboldt Hospital.

Ethel Grace born 1904. Died in 1909 in Towner, N. Dakota.

Opal Fay born 1906. Lives in Kelowna, B.C. (Mrs. Brenna)

Zylpha Sarah born 1908. Lives in Spalding. (Mrs. Almer Wallaker)

Mayfred born in 1911. Lives in Calgary. (Mrs. Strom)

Florence Lilian born in 1914. Lives in Calgary. (Mrs. Fairman)