Robert Blatchford: A Remarkable Man and Good Friend

Mar 18, 2015

I, and many others, have lost a good friend who died on Mar 11 in Toronto after a battle with an only recentlydiagnosed aggressive disease. He will be sorely missed by many whose lives he gently touched. He leaves no enemies behind.
Carolyn McCulloch, past chair of the Cloyne and District Historical Society said: “such a gentle man. I shall really miss him and his considerate friendship. The lake will miss his wonderful knowledge of how it all was, back then.”
Bob has made an invaluable contribution to the preservation of the history of the Cloyne area, particularly that of Skootamatta Lake and Bon Echo Park. His historical memory, so important to many in the community, is now gone. The Pioneer Museum became very important to him in recent years and it is amazing that such a small community has this marvelous resource.
Bob cottaged on Skootamatta (formerly Loon Lake) since the early ‘30s after his parents, Douglas and Dr. Ellen Blatchford, bought the cottage on what is now Loon’s Nest Rd. Through his investigation and discovery, Bob became the unofficial lake historian with an almost photographic memory of people and their activities – going back to local pioneer land grant families. Upon his retirement from Nikon, Bob spent from May to October at the lake and was able to focus on his historical research.
He also was dedicated to the history of Flora MacDonald (1867-1921) teacher, seamstress, entrepreneur, reporter, suffragette, and the owner of Bon Echo from 1910. Her son, Merrill Denison, famous playwright and author, eventually donated the land so it could become a provincial park. As well he took a great interest in the local history of a Mohawk family, the Beys
From the time of her ownership, Flora MacDonald developed the site at Bon Echo to glorify the teachings and philosophy of the famous American poet, Walt Whitman. This included the hiring of Scottish stonemasons to carve in the massive rock, in 12ft. letters, her dedication to OLD WALT. To assist in the promotion of the poet and the site, with its hotel facility, she published pamphlets called “The Sunset of Bon Echo”, six issues from 1916-1920, a fascinating view of Bon Echo times and activities. The memory of such publications passed into history and were virtually forgotten. Bob committed to finding them, and with the assistance of Ian Brumell of the Cloyne and District Historical Society, all six ‘Sunset’ issues were eventually gathered, and reprinted. Today, the Flora ‘Sunset’ pamphlets continue to be in demand and sold, almost 100 years after original publication - a tremendous contribution to the preservation of a previously forgotten world.
The second example relates to the Mohawk family of John and Annie Bey (Bay), who came to the area in the late 1800s with the enticement of free land. They didn’t get any, but remained due to the beauty of the area and were allowed to live on Levere land at ‘Indian Point’ near the Bon Echo site on Lake Mazinaw. John was skilled at hunting, fishing, trapping and building canoes and other wood products, and with Annie, had 12 children. He was featured in Flora’s ‘Sunset’ issues. Annie later died in their house fire, which resulted in the dispersal of most of the family, who left with bitter memories of their treatment. One son became a policeman in Detroit and another was a noted sniper in both World Wars - a hero. A daughter, Matilda (Tilly) stayed as she married Bill Schwager.
A great granddaughter of Bill Schwager and Tilly Bey is Laura Schwager. Bob encouraged Laura to write about her family history in the area, which was published in the Skootamatta Newsletter in 2010. In 2013, Bob convinced Laura prepare a more lengthy version, and the Cloyne Museum agreed to sponsor an evening in Barrie Hall in Cloyne for Laura to relate such history for the benefit of the wider community. It was attended by a ‘standing room only’ crowd - a fitting closure on the very unhappy experience of the Bey family in the area.
On a more personal note, my family will be forever in Bob’s debt for his care of my parents (now deceased) at the lake. Since then, Bob and I have had many enjoyable dinners at my cottage - always informative with a drink and lake history discussed. It was my pleasure and I will treasure the memories of the good times.
Thanks, Bob, my good friend. We will miss you.
James G. Oborne, Winnipeg