Interview #22

Name: Jerome Collier

Date: February 15, 1999

Interviewers: Kerri-Ann Snook and Dale Willcott

Phone: 538-3321

Place: St. Alban's

Sex: Male

Age: 61

Education: Grade eight

Place and date of birth: St. Alban's, August 21, 1937

Occupation: Logger

Religion: Roman Catholic

Number of children: two

Names of children and where they live:

Boyd - Ottawa

Libby - St. Alban's

Jerome was born in St. Alban's, on August 21, 1937. His parent's were Joseph and Cecilia. He grew up in a family of nine children, five boys and four girls. He had a lot of fun growing up as a kid. "I did a good bit of trouting and chasing young women. I to played 120's when I was growing up, did not play dart's until after I got married. There were many good times and many bad times. No trout today, like it was then because Hydro came and made all the water fresh." Jerome said.

Jerome can remember a few of his teachers; Mary Flinn; Betty Bruce, and Gordon Perry. "They were very strict, if you were bad they would put you in the corner on your knees. I got as far as grade eight. We had to go to church every day or they would punish us. The church was where the firehall is today." Jerome said.

Jerome lived in St. John's for eight years. " I didn't like living in St. John's because I could not get to do what I wanted to do. I could not get a job and the wife was on dialysis and she could not get anywhere." Jerome said.

Jerome's first job was in the woods, cutting pulp wood in Glenwood. He would get $7.00 a cord. It took a week and a half to get to Glenwood by boat. He made $200.00 or $300.00 a month. "It was a lot back then, there weren't many expenses in them days." Jerome said.

When Christmas came, Jerome would go mummering and have a good time. Boys dressed as girls and girls dressed as boys. "We drank mostly homebrew back then. I was too young to drink but after I got old enough we would sneak a few bottles." He said.

Dr. Tom was the doctor when Jerome was growing up. The doctor's office was where Rick Benoit's apartments are now. They would travel by boat to Harbour Breton if someone was sick. From there, they would send you to St. John's. You would get there by helicopter or by steamer, which would take a couple of days. Once a week, a coastal boat would go down around the coast toward Harbour Breton. One Coastal boat would go to Port Aux Basques and another would go to Argentia.

The best thing to happen to Bay d'Espoir was when the foundation for Hydro came here. When the roads came through and when the light and power were hooked up. Also in 1964, the water and sewer were hooked up and made things easier. "With the water and sewer, you did not have to dig a ditch to run your pipe down a hill from the well." Jerome said.

Growing up Jerome ate beans and wieners, molasses bread, and salt beef. A can of sausages would cost twenty-five cents a can of potted meat were only fifteen cents a can. "I forget much about the prices were because my parents bought it all. My mother made it along with $25.00 a month. We had our own vegetables, hens, chickens, and goats." Jerome said.

Jerome's mother made most of his clothes, suits, shirts, pants, and underwear. "I would not wear that underwear now." He said. His mother used a scrub-board and a gas washer. They heated their homes and done their cooking with wood stoves.

Jerome's mother was a midwife, and so was Joan Cox, and Eva Collier. His mother lost a few babies, he remembered one in particular because he had to bury one that died down St. Joseph's Cove. "I think it was a Dollimott but cannot be too sure. All I know for sure was that he was born premature." He said.

There were many cases of T.B., scarlet fever, measles, chicken pox and mumps. The only home remedies he could remember were when you had a cut you would stick it with turpentine. "I should know because I had many cuts." Jerome said.

Jerome got married in 1962. He bought his first Television in 1964, it was a big black and white RCA, it was a floor model.