Elmer A. Travis was born February 7, 1900 in the Rolla District of North Dakota. His family farmed sixteen miles east of Rolla, North Dakota. In May 1905, his family, which included his parents and seven children, and some friends, decided to move up to Canada as there was no wood source within 25 miles of their homestead. They also desired more range for their cattle. The group settled eighteen miles north of Roblin in the San Clara District, with a single quarter section of land, eventually expanding to five quarter sections of land. Due to their location the family often did their shopping in Togo, Saskatchewan, and shipped their grain from Mycroft, Manitoba. During his youth, he met a local girl named Mary Louise Lafournaise (1900-1993)
Travis married Mary Louise Lafournaise on May 3, 1921 in the San Clara District. After their marriage they settled on their own farm in the district. Elmer served as a blacksmith for the local area while farming, working as a mechanic, selling Rawleigh’s goods, and hauling cream (1939-1940). In 1957, due to Mary’s poor health, they moved to British Columbia for a year, before moving back to Elphinstone, Manitoba. They then moved to Souris in 1963, where they continued to live, except for another year in Creston, British Columbia from 1967-68. Elmer Travis died in 1995 and is buried in Souris-Glenwood.
Custodial History
As part of the Westman Oral History Collection, this collection was accessioned by the McKee Archives in 1998. The original tapes from the Westman Oral History project were deposited in the Brandon Public Library. Copies of these originals were made by Margaret Pollex of the Brandon University Language Lab at the request of Eileen McFadden, University Archivist in the early 1990s. These copies compose the collection held in the McKee Archives.
Scope and Content
Item is an audiocassette tape containing an interview with Elmer Travis about homesteading and rural community life. Contents include settlement at Roblin, Manitoba, schooling, farming practices, housing, social life in the area, Mr. Travis’ musical talents, and his marriage to Mary Louise Lafournaise. In addition, there is content on the community working together on building, how to make lime from burning limestone, moving to BC and return to Manitoba, descriptions of the various jobs held by Mr. Travis, the installations of home telephones and hydro in his home district, Roblin hospital in the 1930’s, and his hobbies at the time of the interview in 1981. Interviewer is John E. Forsyth.
Notes
Included on the cassette are several musical recordings done by Mr. Travis. Transcript by Jaclyn Matchullis (2014). Description by Joel Springer (2011) and Christy Henry.
Language Note
English
Audio Tracks
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