Papa Hardy, Great Uncle Stan and Great Aunt Gwen circa 1922Biography of Gwen Dowding
April 23, 1920 – March 16, 2008
Gwennie Marianne Olson was born April 23,1920 in Langruth, Manitoba, near the shores of the west side of Lake Manitoba. Gwen was the ninth of ten children - and first daughter - of Thorstein Bjornson Olson, known as Steini, and Holmfridur Gudleif Olafsdottir Thorleifson, known as Frida, who immigrated as children to Manitoba with their families in the late 1800s.
Steini’s father, Bjorn Olafsson, was from Sulunesi, Borgarfjardarsysla, Iceland, and his mother, Gudrun Jonsdottir, was from Heimskaga, Akranesi, in the same county. The couple, including their two children, Gudny (married name Gwen Johnson) and Steini emigrated from Akranes, Iceland to Nova Scotia in July, 1878 with a group of immigrants. Steini’s younger brother, Doddrick, was born in Canada (in adulthood, Dodd Olson moved to New York, Milwaukee, and Minneapolis to manage large department stores). The Nova Scotia settlement was short-lived and some settlers moved on to North Dakota, others to Saskatchewan and Manitoba.
When the 1882 “boom” began in Winnipeg, Bjorn moved his family there. But, the so-called boom didn’t really happen and the family moved west again and settled in Thingvalla, Saskatchewan (now Churchbridge) with some other Icelandic pioneers. In 1893, the family moved once again. Steini, his siblings, and his mother traveled 200 miles in 9 days to be greeted by their father, Bjorn, who had already built a log cabin on their new farm in Lakeland district. Many Icelandic families joined the little group, and they scattered themselves along the western shores of lake Manitoba, from Big Point to Kinosota. There wasn’t much social life for a young man living along the lake, but several times Steini rode his horse 25–30 miles to go to a winter dance – arriving frostbitten!
Increased flooding of the lake during the late 1890s forced many settlers to leave Lakeland and settle in nearby Marshland district.
About this time, Steini met his future wife, Frida Thorleifson, at Bigpoint where her family lived. Frida’s father, Olafur Thorleifsson, was born at Svartagili, Thingvallasveit, Arnessysla, Iceland; his wife, Gudbjorg Gudnadottir, was born at Haga in Grimsnesi, Arnessysla, Iceland. Together, with their two eldest children, Holmfridur (Frida) and Gudni, they immigrated to Canada. Anna, the youngest daughter, was born in Canada. One of their daughters, Maria Sesslja (Mary), was just a baby when they emigrated, so she was left with family friends in Iceland, Haldor and Marina Danielson of Lundareykjadal. Mary was sent to Canada to rejoin her family when she was about 13 years old. She eventually married Hall Hanneson and raised a big family.
Back at Bigpoint, it was a one-mile trip from the Olson house to the Thorleifson house and Steini began making the trip in record time! Steini and Frida were married on May 22, 1899 in Westbourne. They built their first log home and barn in Marshland and Steini was able to purchase a small herd of cattle. His land was not very suitable for farming, so their livestock sustained them until other kinds of work could be found, like breaking land for other farmers. The Marshland post office was set up and Steini became the first postmaster. The family shopped for supplies in Langruth, a small community about 5 miles west of Bigpoint. With the construction of the railroad line, Langruth began to thrive.
Steini began the first lumberyard in Langruth when he discovered the community didn’t have one. Steini’s older sons, Frank and Bill, helped out with the business for a few years. A few years later, when the business started making money, the Olsons with their ever-increasing clan of boys moved to a small, temporary dwelling on Haney Avenue in Langruth. In 1920, after eight sons, their first daughter, Gwen, arrived. This was quite a surprise to the family. Gwen’s Aunt Anna (Mrs. George Lamb), who was living in Winnipeg, visited Langruth to see her new niece and declared, “She’s the first one that looks like a boy!” Her sister, Elfreda, arrived three and a half years later, the last of a brood of 10, and the two of them remained close for the rest of their lives.
All of Gwen’s eight brothers left Langruth in early adulthood: Bjorn Franklin (Frank), the eldest, went to Detroit, married Virginia Alma Winters and had one son, Bruce; Wilhelm Theodore (Bill) married a Langruth school teacher, Muriel Milton, and moved to Coaldale, Alberta where they had one daughter, Ruth Fern; Olafur (Oli) who never married, also moved to Detroit; Kjartan became a banker, married Olive Joan Routledge, and lived in Calgary, Montreal, Toronto, Havana, Argentina, and the Bahamas and had two children, John and Stephanie; Norman Leonard married Sophia Inga Johnson, (b.North Dakota) from Bigpoint, they lived in many Manitoba towns, finally moving to Calgary, and they had two daughters, Anna and Norma; John married Bernice and lived in Winnipeg and had one son, John Robert; Stan married Lillian, lived in Winnipeg and had two daughters, Linda and Judy, and later in life they moved to Surrey, BC; Louis Harold (Hardy) married Elizabeth, lived in Winnipeg, had two children, Brian and Cindy, and later moved to Fond du Lac, Wisconsin.
Gwen’s early life in the little town of Langruth was serene and predictable. Her greatest dilemma, she says, was learning to outwit her 8 older brothers who had tremendous wit and humour. Across the street lived the Gibsons, great friends of the family. Erling Gibson was a land surveyor, newspaper illustrator and photographer. He and his wife, Sophie, had four children, one of whom Gwen married after she moved to Winnipeg to study piano and complete a music degree. One of Gwen’s fondest memories, documented in a photograph, is of herself and some friends, including her future-husband Gowan Gibson, in the Olson’s backyard enjoying a “birthday party” for Gwen. At the tender age of 4, Gwen wandered the neighborhood inviting children to her house for a party, although it really wasn’t her birthday. When she arrived home and informed her mother of the party, Frida didn’t bat an eyelash; she simply made lots of Icelandic pancakes and other goodies and the party went ahead as planned! Gwen’s older brother, Norman, even provided some clownish entertainment and magic tricks for the children, donning a goofy hat and glasses.
After WWI, the lumber business was booming right along with farming and fishing. During the 1930s, however, the economy slowed and Steini sold his lumber business in 1936. For a few years, he did odd jobs in the oil industry and dray business as they finished raising their youngest boys and girls. In 1941, he was offered a job at MacDonald Air Force Station. Steini and Frida moved to Winnipeg in 1943, and then retired to Vancouver in 1948 where both of their daughters now lived. Their youngest sons, Stan and Hardy, joined the armed forces in WW2 and both returned safely home.
Most of the Olson children learned a musical instrument or two. The boys formed a family band and, when Gwen was old enough, she played the piano with them. Gwen moved to Winnipeg in 1937 to complete her music degree. Here, she reconnected with Gowan Gibson, his brother Orland, and his sisters, Fredl and Lois. The Gibsons were very artistic and adventurous and Gwen joined them in many exciting new experiences, including learning photography, motorcycle riding, and horseback riding. Gowan and Gwen dated for several years. When he joined the air force and was ordered overseas, the young couple decided to marry. They married in 1941 in the Lutheran Church in Langruth, Manitoba, and ten days later he was assigned to North Africa where he flew a transport plane between Dakar and the Tunisian area for two years. Gowan and Gwen corresponded regularly and he sent her several gifts, one of which was a ring she wore for the rest of her life. Gwen sent him a batch of homemade sugar cookies one Christmas and, by the time they arrived, they were powder. Gowan ate it anyway and told her the “cookies” tasted great. The battle of El Alamein ended in 1942, but Gowan’s plane was shot down in July, 1943, so the family often wondered if he and his crew were killed by friendly fire. A few years ago, Manitoba began naming geographical locations in honor of their young men and women who lost lives in the war. Gibson Point, on Webber Lake, is northeast of Lake Winnipeg, near Ontario.
Gwen left her family, friends, and memories behind her, packed up her beloved Heintzman piano, and headed to Vancouver in 1943 to join her now married sister-in-laws, Fredl Gibson Stewart and Lois Gibson Juzak. Here, Gwen began a successful career in photography. She photographed weddings, clothing lines, took many early portraits of famous Vancouver business people, and became the official photographer for Theater Under the Stars. Her black and white photographs of Vancouver at night, taken from atop Grouse Mountain, are extraordinary.
Not long after her move to Vancouver, Gwen met Gordon Dowding. They married in 1945. The newlyweds spent their honeymoon at their log cabin on Grouse Mountain. Other members of the wedding party stayed next door in “The Banff” cabin. In 1948, their eldest son, Mark, was born. Three years later, Colin was born, and three years after that, their daughter, Lisa, was born. With the encouragement and support of Gwen, as well as his parents, Jack and Vivian Dowding, Gordon pursued a U.B.C. law degree. After graduating in spring of 1954, he moved the family to south Burnaby, where the children would spend their childhood. Meanwhile, Gwen’s parents, Steini and Frida, her Aunt Anna (married to George Lamb), and her sister, Elfreda (married to George Jorgenson), and her family moved to Vancouver. It gave Gwen great joy to have them so close. In his retirement, Steini wrote down his early life experiences in Thingvalla, Bigpoint, and Langruth in a book called, “Pioneer Sketches” (1960). It also contains a short story and occasional verse he wrote, some written in Icelandic.
Gordon’s law practice, as well as his interest in politics, directed the path of Gwen’s life for the next 25 years. Raising three children, attending many, many political meetings, and volunteering in numerous community organizations left her little time for herself. Aside from regular family camping, boating, and ski trips, Gwen’s true sanctuary from the stresses of motherhood and politics occurred on Sunday mornings. She joined the Unitarian Church of Vancouver and, for more than 50 years, she revitalized herself and gained many friendships in the process. She also joined and volunteered for the Icelandic Hofn Society and its Solskein group, and the Icelandic Canadian Club of BC, where many life-long friendships developed.
One of the highlights of Gwen’s life was a trip to Iceland. Officials in a helicopter escorted her and Gordon to a still steaming hot lava field. Even more exciting was a visit with some of her cousins on the Olson side of her family. Decedents of Olafur Olafsson and his wife Gudny Eyvinsdottir of Vestra-Sulunes, Melasveit, Borgarfjardarsysla, gathered together for a visit in Gwen’s honor. Their youngest son, Fridrik (born 1853), remained in Iceland while his two brothers, Olafur and Bjorn, emigrated to Canada in 1878. Gwen and Gordon loved to travel and, over the years, they also explored India, Sri Lanka, Australia, England, Scotland, Europe, Cuba, Hawaii, Mexico, and all four corners of the U.S. to visit family.
When SFU was built in 1965, Gwen became a charter student and pursued a passion for English Literature, the French language, and psychology. She and several other concerned parents began PACE pre-school for children with learning disabilities in Vancouver, the first of its kind. She was elected to Burnaby council in 1972 and enjoyed serving her community in this new capacity.
When Gordon was elected Speaker of the Legislature in 1973, the couple moved to Victoria where Gwen was finally able to pursue her artistic interests once again. She took painting lessons and created some beautiful works of art. She purchased a Steinway grand piano and played for hours on end. However, Gwen missed her family and her old friends, and so not long after Gordon lost the election and left politics in 1975, they decided to move back to their Burnaby home. Eventually they moved to Maple Ridge to be closer to Gwen’s sister and brother-in-law, their daughter, and their grandchildren, Chelsea and Jesse. Many new friendships developed in Maple Ridge, and they enjoyed long walks on the dike with their dog. Gwen fought and won a battle with breast cancer in 2000. After Gordon’s death in 2003, she moved to Parksville, B.C. and then neighboring Qualicum Beach, to be closer to her daughter.
Gwen’s first husband’s nephew, Peter Stewart, and his niece, Jay Stewart (the children of Fredl Gibson), recently reconnected with Gwen when a photograph of Gowan Gibson’s grave was acquired through the Maple Leaf Legacy Project, a service provided by Canadian volunteer photographers who travel to war graves around the world. Gwen was very grateful to see a photograph of Gowan’s final resting place in Africa, and she and her family thought this was significant and poignant because photography had been a great bond between Gwen and Gowan. In her last months, Gwen loved hearing from family and life-long friends and spent her time reminiscing with her children and grandchildren, as well as her nephew, Peter. She was brave, intelligent, humorous, witty, loving, and peaceful until the end. The world will miss Gwen as much as Gwen will miss the world.
No comments:
Post a Comment