Interview # 34

Name: Ray Willcott

Sex: Male

Age: 59

Place and date of birth: St. Alban's, June 8, 1939

Education: Grade eight

Occupation: Woodsman

Religion: Roman Catholic

Number of children : four

Names of children and where they live:

Glen - Ottawa

Vanessa - Ottawa

Karen - Conne River

Heather - St. Alban's

Phone : 538-3766

Place of interview: St. Alban's

Date of interview: March 1, 1999

Interviewers: Leah Marshall and Dale Willcott

Ray Willcott was born on June 8, 1939, in St. Alban's. His parents were Samuel and Gertrude Willcott of St. Alban's.

"It was all right growing up as a child. There was always something to do." Ray said. Ray would play football and baseball when he was growing up. He also played card games such as 120's and 45's. Another game he would play was "Johnny You Come Tickle Me." Whoever had the last card in their hand would get tickled. On Sundays he would play cards all day and night. Other nights he would play with his friends. When they saw Father Hayes coming, they would run away. Ray and his wife Effie, was the last couple Father Hayes married. They were married in 1965, Father Hayes left shortly after that.

The house he grew up in was really cold. "The wind would blow right through." Ray said. He was always cold because he didn't have much clothes. "Our clothes were nothing like the warm clothes you can get today." He said.

The first thing he ever bought was a pair of "hockies" or ice skates. He paid $10.00 for them. He did a lot of skating at night with his friends. "You never skated alone, you always went with someone just in case you fell through." Ray said. He liked "hockies" because they were fast but wood stocks were better for fishing. Ray would skate to Conne River and Crow's Head where the freight boats would come in. The people who owned the freight would use horses to pick up their freight.

Ray remembered when there were many sheep around in the woods. Ray would be sent out to catch them. They would pay him fifty cents for every sheep he caught. "That was a lot of money back then. We would be all day chasing after sheep. We'd chase them until they tired. Their tongues would be hanging out by the time we'd catch them." Ray said.

Ray started working in the woods at the age of eighteen. He was back and forth to Corner Brook every year. He would go in May and return before Christmas. Roland Organ and Walter Organ went to Corner Brook with Ray. They went by boat on the Bar Haven and the Baccolu. "All the meals on the boats were good." Ray said. All the food at the camps was paid for. Ray went back to the camps a couple of times because he liked the camps. He worked at camp 100 and camp thirty seven at Taylor Brook. All the foremen at Dear Lake had their own camps. "There was a lot of work in the woods if you did not mind going away. Many people from Bay d'Espoir worked there." Ray said. Ray also worked on the wharf with Huzzy for nine or ten months for $1.10 per hour. He worked on the foundation for Hydro for two years. He helped with the dam and intakes. "Every little crack that was at the bottom of the dam was cleaned because the grout had to go down there." Ray said.

Ray had a lot more information about the past but unfortatenatly the tape recorder malfunctioned. Ray remembered the past years fondly. He said there was more hard work back then but everybody was still happy.