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William Moreau (b. 1917)William Moreau was 12 years old when he began training and working in a blacksmith shop in 1929. He started helping Robert McColm, an elderly neighbour in his blacksmith shop. William Moreau reflects that he sort of fell into the trade through this act of goodwill. He studied and worked under Rober McColm for 8 years, making horseshoes and shodding horses. He also learned to make hooks and chains for the logging industry on the coast in this smithy. Indeed, William Moreau recalls that the first thing he made on his own was a grapple hook, not long after which he mastered the technique to make bunk hooks for the logging workers up the Grand Cascapedia River.
After training under Robert McColm in his forge for 8 years, William Moreau then went on to work and train under Billy LeBlanc in Black Cape for 2 years in 1937. Billy LeBlanc also made horse shoes in his forge but in addition to that he also made and repaired machinery, farm tools and implements, including rakes, and ploughs, etc.
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This is a grapple hook.2004
New Richmond, Quebec, Canada
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This is a grapple hook. It was the first thing William Moreau leaned to make under the instruction of Robert McColm.4
Bunk hook, made by William Moreau in his blacksmith shop for the local logging industry.2004
New Richmond, Quebec, Canada
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This is a bunk hook. Like the grapple hook, the bunk hook was an object in heavy demand for the local logging industry.6
Logging, Preparing for the Spring Drive1930
Woods up the Grand Cascapedia River, Quebec, Canada
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This is a photograph of some of the early forestry workers on the coast preparing for the spring drive.8
Transporting Logs, horses and logging1930
Woods up the Grand Cascapedia River, Quebec, Canada
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This is a photograph of early loggers using a team of horses and a sleigh to pull a load of logs in the winter.10
William Moreau's blacksmith shop, built in 1939 and still in operation today.1939
New Richmond, Quebec, Canada
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In 1939, at the age of 22, William Moreau decided to go into business for himself and he built his own blacksmith shop. William Moreau made horseshoes in his shop and shod horses. He also worked for Bobby Barter, the foreman operating the logging camps up river. He can remember travelling up river to the logging camps on the weekends and shodding all the work horses in the camp, sometimes he had help, but often William Moreau would shoe 20, 30 or even 40 horses alone. William Moreau also made chains, grapple hooks, bunk hooks, and pevie hooks for logging workers, and he took orders for the Bathurst Company in New Brunswick.William Moreau also made and repaired sleighs, buggies, and wagons. During the later years of his business, William Moreau also began making tractor parts and repairing tractors and snowmobiles.
William Moreau remembers that work in the blacksmith's forge was never really done. He recalls that there were often people lined up outside the blacksmith shop early in the morning waiting for him to open it, each wanting to be tended to first. People would also regularly arrive or require his services during the dinner hour, "we would feed them, and tend to their needs after. We fed a lot of people."
Horses were generally shoed for the first time between the ages of 2½ and 3 years old. William Moreau can remember when this event was celebrated in the blacksmith shop. People would bring in champagne to toast the occasion. There were always several people in the shop at a time and they would chat and argue for fun, "how I used to laugh! ‘My grey horse is better than your grey horse' one would say, to which another would respond, ‘Ridiculous! My grey hourse handles the snow much better than yours!" If they were not arguing over the superiority of the animals, they were arguing over the age of the animals.
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William Moreau's blacksmith shop.1939
New Richmond, Quebec, Canada
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William Moreau in his blacksmith shop tending to the fire.October, 2004
New Richmond, Quebec, Canada
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A photograph of William Moreau in his blacksmith shop. |
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