Raoul Reymond - Silver Black Foxes on PEI

A native of Geneva, Switzerland, where his father owned a dental supply factory, Raoul Reymond first learned about the ranch-fox industry during a trip to the United States in the winter of 1919-1920. He decided to enter the new industry and came to Canada in January of 1925 intending to buy his foundation stock and returning with it to Europe to start a ranch in the Alps. Instead, Mr. Reymond found Canada and her people to his liking and stayed on to settle on Prince Edward Island, where his ranch started with just 12 pairs, soon became the second largest in Canada. 950 pairs of breeders spent the winter on his ranch during those years, but when times and the pelt market changed, Mr. Reymond, in 1938, reduced the number of foxes kept on his ranch and used the opportunity to make a rigorous selection. Only the very best animals remained on the farm and Mr. Reymond reaped the rewards of his efforts when in 1941 his entries in the P.E.I. fox show were high winners, including the grand champion and 4 championships plus many others. The slate of show winnings for Mr. Reymond's foxes continued to set records for a number of years, both in the silver and platinum classes and when foxes met with less demand in the market, Mr. Reymond diversified, adding mink and some horses to his ranch, winning prizes with those animals as well. It was not until 1948 that Mr. Reymond decided to close out his fox herd entirely, much to the regret of fellow ranchers.

 

- from pg. 127 of Silver Fox Odyssey: The History of the Canadian Silver Fox Industry by Joseph E. Forester and Anne D. Forester

The item below is from the website of Dalvay-by-the-Sea Hotel and tells of the Reymond family's involvement with operating a signature PEI hotel, an operation that would continue to involve their family over three generations.

Dalvay has since been operated as a leased private concession from Parks Canada. In 1959, Mr. and Mrs. Raoul Reymond became operators of Dalvay By-The-Sea. Hailing from Geneva Switzerland, the Reymonds had left Europe arriving in PEI in 1925 to take advantage of the lucrative fox breeding industry. After fox fur went out of fashion they turned their energies to inn keeping in summers and teaching music in winters to many Charlottetown families. The Reymond’s brought a European atmosphere of gentility and personal service to Dalvay that was unique to Prince Edward Island.

Dawson House Bed & Breakfast - The Model Cottage, Charlottetown, PEI

 Dawson House Bed & Breakfast operates as a tourist business located at 122 North River Rd. in Charlottetown, Prince Edward Island. It began as the private residence of Catherine and William B. Dawson.

Dawson House B&B - Charlottetown
photo credit TheDawsonHouse.com  

Our family shares a connection with each ancestral side of the founding couple, and having family pictures from both the Smith and Dawson families, this outline provides a few highlights regarding Dawson House and some of the families associated with it. Research notes from other sources has been added as well. 

The property was acquired by William B. Dawson in 1858 and comprised two acres of land on North River Rd. at that time. The property included the full block with six additional lots divided off over time. William Dawson was thirty years old having been born in 1828, the son of Thomas Dawson Jr. (1793-1878) and Elizabeth Clark (1802-1828).

Catherine & William B. Dawson
Collection of Ian & Daphne Scott.

Like his father Thomas Dawson Jr., William was a tanner operating the family business on Grafton Street in Charlottetown. 

Thomas Dawson Jr. (1793-1878)
Charlottetown tanner.
Collection of Ian & Daphne Scott.

Thomas Dawson Jr. lived most of his life on PEI. Born on the 22nd of September 1793 at Cootehill, County Cavan, Ireland he came with his parents to the Island in 1801. 

His father Col. Thomas Dawson (1762-1804) the grandfather of William, acquired 500 acres at Head of Hillsboro PEI to establish a family estate, Dawson's Grove, named after a family property in Ireland. Although Col. Thomas Dawson died three years later at the age of 41, the family became strongly established on PEI through their descendants.

Col. Thomas Dawson (1762-1804)
Public Archives of Nova Scotia

Elizabeth Frances (Tate) Dawson (1768-1849)
Public Archives of Nova Scotia

William B. Dawson and Catherine Smith were married on Monday evening, the 15th of December 1845. Catherine was a daughter of Jane and Isaac Smith. Isaac was an architect and builder of Province House and Government House. Both the Smith and Dawson families were very active in the Methodist community of Charlottetown with both Isaac Smith and Col. Thomas Dawson highly regarded as lay leaders. 

Isaac Smith (1795-1871) was the architect of the 

original Model Cottage now renovated and known as

 the Dawson House. He was father and father-in-law 

of Catherine & William B. Dawson.

Collection of Ian & Daphne Scott

While land was available for the couple adjacent to her father's home on the corner of Prince and Richmond street, across from the Methodist church, the couple instead constructed their home around 1858 on North River Rd. Designed by Isaac Smith and called Model Cottage it is now known as the Dawson House. The site was located among other estate properties and farms outside of the city centre. The structure has had two major fires, one in 1891 and then in the late 1970s or early 80s. It  has been remodeled extensively so that the current Italianate house is not an Isaac Smith design, yet elements of his creative work are believed to remain within the Georgian interior layout and central hall.

The tenure of the Dawson-Smith family in their home was from about 1858 to 1867. Financial difficulties lead to their departure to Illinois and the sale of their assets by creditors on 16th November 1867.  It would be a cousin of William, a 22 year old Benjamin Heartz that would purchase the property at auction and keep it in the family. 

Benjamin Heartz was the son of Jane Howard and Richard Jacob Heartz. The families were well known to each other as Benjamin's father Richard Heartz had apprenticed in the Dawson family tannery with William's father Thomas Dawson, (his Uncle Tom) before becoming a prominent businessman on his own. Known as The Baron, Richard was a private banker and owner of significant Charlottetown properties. Five months after purchasing the home, on the 24th of April 1868 he married Henrietta E. Davison. 

The family of Jane (Howard) & Richard Jacob Heartz
Benjamin Heartz is the third from left in the back row.  
Charlottetown, PEI
Collection of Ian & Daphne Scott. 

 Benjamin and Henrietta's son, Frank Richard Heartz who served as Lt. Governor of PEI was born in the house in 1871. The only daughter of Frank described the setting of the home at that time when there were only a few buildings amid the fields between the family house with its orchards and grounds and the school which was located at the edge of Charlottetown which her father attended. Tragedy would strike with a major fire burning the upper story in 1885. Most documentation of the building gives 1891 as the date of the major fire, but as the published source by Frank's daughter Ruth Heartz MacKenzie indicates 1885, this appear to be consistent with the events that followed.

Frank Heartz

The Heartz family moved and by 1888 and it was apparently owned by C.B. Chappell, a prominent Charlottetown architect, who was advertising the "suburban residence to let" at that time. By 1890 he offered the entire property for sale by auction. This sequence of events introduces the possibility that the renovations giving the house a distinctly Italianate style to the second floor and roof lines were designed by Charles Benjamin Chappell during the time of his ownership following the fire. Research continues to see if there is further evidence that renovation made during the 1885-1888 time period following the fire were the design work of Chappell.

.

Examiner 14 June 1888 p, 3

Examiner 11 August 1890 p.4

Examiner 11 August 1890 p. 3

Subsequent owners, the Smallwood family, would keep the property in their family for two generations when Charles R. Smallwood (1855-1928) and his wife Ada Louisa Scott Hutchings (1862-1946) acquired the home. Smallwood was a lawyer in Charlottetown who practiced alone and in partnership with  A.B. Warburton (7th premier of PEI). Their only surviving son Vivian Cuthbert Smallwood (1894-1943) was listed as a law student in 1916, and operated V.C. Smallwood Radio Laboratories from the home during 1932-1935 and listed as a radiotrician; he was considered a pioneer in the radio industry on Prince Edward Island. Premier Joey Smallwood the 1st premier of Newfoundland was Vivian's 2nd cousin. 

Alan H. Holman (1915-2010) became the owner from about 1956 to 1962 or so. His son Harry indicated, "I understand we swapped the house Father built on Goodwill Ave with Harry Morris. Pinky Morris may be able to give you more details." Swapping houses was not uncommon for members of the Holman family, and in 1910 Alan's father had exchanged his grand Summerside residence on Beaver Street for a prized pair of breeding silver black foxes during the great boom in fox ranching. 

Roger and Jeannie (Tweedy) Perry became owners of the home in the 1970s, modernizing it to suit a growing family. Roger Perry was a co-owner of Island Construction Limited for many years and manager of the PEI Road Builders Association for 15 years, as well as serving on Charlottetown City Council. An electrical short ignited a major house fire during their tenure which investigators narrowed to a pinched fridge cord. Escaping the fire onto a lower roof, they were rescued by the fire department, and moved to another home while rebuilding was undertaken, selling the restored property to Joseph and Rose Ellen Ghiz.

Joe Ghiz (1945-1996) served as the 27th premier of Prince Edward Island from 1986 to 1993. He was a justice of the Supreme Court of Prince Edward Island from 1995 until his death in 1996. Their son Robert Ghiz, grew up in the house and became the 31st premier of Prince Edward Island. His sister Joanne Ghiz a communications specialist working in government married Dalton James McGinty Jr. a Charlottetown lawyer and namesake son of the 24th premier of Ontario. The wedding of two political families received CBC news coverage.

Included below is the City of Charlottetown Heritage Dept. material on the property mentioned above. That research draws on the work of many individuals including the files of Catherine Hennessey.  

In 1858, William B. Dawson, the tanner had purchased the west part of Lot 14 and had built himself a beautiful residence called the Model Cottage on North River Rd. It was put up for sale in 1867 and purchased by his cousin Benjamin Heartz. Fires and many changes of ownership have not lessened the contribution this property makes to this block.

http://www.city.charlottetown.pe.ca/searchaproperty.php?propid=3113#research

- with additions by Ian Scott, August 17, 2013

The heritage value of 122 North River Road lies in its association with various prominent Charlottetown residents; its attractive Italianate influenced architecture; and its role in supporting the streetscape. The house was built for City Tannery owner, William B. Dawson. His tannery operated from Grafton Street in the City of Charlottetown. The large operation supplied many of the boot and shoe factories, as well as the saddlers in Charlottetown. 

In 1867, Dawson left suddenly for Illinois, owing a great deal of money to various creditors. According to the 16 November 1867 edition of the Daily Patriot newspaper, the estate of W.B. Dawson, including the "Model Cottage", was to be sold at auction in front of the Colonial Building (Province House). The property was described as including 2 acres of grounds, a stable, a coach house, a milk house, a coalhouse and a large garden all surrounded by a "substantial fence". Unfortunately, the home was struck by fire in 1891, however it was rebuilt. 

It has been remodeled a number of times. The home is Italianate influenced in its style. The Italianate style was a common choice in Charlottetown for public buildings however, 122 North River Road is a fine example of the style in a residential form. The Italianate style comes from the English Picturesque tradition and was a response to the widely used formal classical styles. Italianate homes are similar to the villas of the Italian countryside with their asymmetrical massing, square towers with a low pitched roof and round headed windows with wooden mouldings. 

The home has changed hands a number of times throughout its history. The prominent Heartz family owned it for a number of years. They were the owners of several businesses in Charlottetown and active politically. According to local directories, the Smallwood family lived at 122 North River Road for a time. Charles R. Smallwood was a lawyer in Charlottetown who practised alone and in partnership with A.B. Warburton. V.C. Smallwood of V.C. Smallwood Laboratories was a later resident. In the latter years of the Twentieth Century, 122 North River Road was home to Prince Edward Island Premier, Joseph A. Ghiz and his family. 

As a handsome and well preserved house, it is an asset to the North River Road streetscape. [1]

http://www.city.charlottetown.pe.ca/searchaproperty.php?propid=3197

copied - by Ian Scott, August 17, 2013

A portion of the content in Canada's Historic Places entry on the Dawson House was taken from the above (City of Charlottetown) entry. The full entry is copied below to ensure that the material is available in multiple locations in the future.

DESCRIPTION OF HISTORIC PLACE

122 North River Road is a wood framed, Italianate style, former home that is located on a large treed lot. The fine home or "Model Cottage" as it was once known, was built in approximately 1858. It served as a single residence for many years but now serves as the Dawson House Bed and Breakfast. The designation encompasses the building's exterior and parcel; it does not include the building's interior.

HERITAGE VALUE

The heritage value of 122 North River Road lies in its association with various prominent Charlottetown residents; its attractive Italianate influenced architecture; and its role in supporting the streetscape.

The home was built for City Tannery owner, William B. Dawson. His tannery operated from Grafton Street in the City of Charlottetown. His large operation supplied many of the boot and shoe factories, as well as the saddlers in Charlottetown. In 1867, Dawson left suddenly for Illinois, owing a great deal of money to various creditors. According to the 16 November 1867 edition of the Daily Patriot newspaper, the estate of W.B. Dawson including the "Model Cottage" was to be sold at auction in front of the Colonial Building (Province House). The property was described as including 2 acres of grounds, a stable, a coach house, a milk house, a coalhouse and a large garden all surrounded by a "substantial fence".

Unfortunately, the home was struck by fire in 1891, however it was rebuilt. A beautiful home, it has been remodeled a number of times.

The home is Italianate influenced in its style. The Italianate style was a common choice in Charlottetown for public buildings however, 122 North River Road is a fine example of the style in a residential form. The Italianate style comes from the English Picturesque tradition and was a response to the widely used formal classical styles. Italianate homes are similar to the villas of the Italian countryside with their asymmetrical massing, square towers with a low pitched roof and round headed windows with wooden mouldings.

The home has changed hands a number of times throughout its history. The prominent Heartz family owned it for a number of years. They were the owners of several businesses in Charlottetown and active politically. According to local directories, the Smallwood family lived at 122 North River Road for a time. Charles R. Smallwood was a lawyer in Charlottetown who practised alone and in partnership with A.B. Warburton. V.C. Smallwood of V.C. Smallwood Laboratories was a later resident. In the latter years of the Twentieth Century, 122 North River Road was home to popular Prince Edward Island Premier, Joseph A. Ghiz and his family.

The home currently operates as the Dawson House Bed and Breakfast. As a handsome and well preserved house, it is an asset to the North River Road streetscape.

Sources: Heritage Office, City of Charlottetown Planning Department, PO Box 98, Charlottetown, PE C1A 7K2    #0002d

CHARACTER-DEFINING ELEMENTS

The following Italianate influenced character-defining elements illustrate the heritage value of 122 North River Road:

- The asymmetrical massing of the building

- The various sizes and placement of the windows, including the grouped windows, the arched windows and the dormer windows

- The style and placement of the doors

- The gable roofs of the home with their wide eave overhang and heavy paired bracketing

- The style and placement of the large chimneys

- The wooden mouldings and decorative trim of the home all painted in a contrasting colour

- The porch of the west side with its balustrade and columns as well as the balconies of the second and third floor with their ornate treillage

- The large, off centre tower with gable roof and belvedere

Other character-defining elements of 122 North River Road include:

- The location of the building on North River Road

- The large treed lot with curved driveway

https://www.historicplaces.ca/en/rep-reg/image-image.aspx?id=5190#i1

- copied on 4, January 2024 by Ian Scott

Boot Shoe and Leather Manufacturers:

W. B. Dawson, City Tannery, Grafton Street. listing in the 1863 Lake Map

http://www.islandregister.com/lakem/1863lakem.html

Research notes by Ian Scott

William B. Dawson (b. 1828) should not be confused with his Charlottetown contemporary in the business community, William E. Dawson who served as mayor of Charlottetown. William Eddison Dawson (1829-1902) was born in Leeds, England. Coming with his parents from Yorkshire, his career included both business and politics. Both individuals used their middle initial to avoid confusion.

Some online genealogical references have listed William B. Dawson (b. 1828) as being named William Clark Dawson, with his mother's maiden name for his middle name. I have not determined the origin of that claim, but most PEI sources I have examines consistently list him as William B. Dawson.

References:

Descendants of John Jacob HEARTZ and Dorothea RHENE - The Island Register

Canada's Historic Places 

Biographical Dictionary of Architects in Canada - Isaac Smith entry

Dictionary of Canadian Biography -- Richard Jacob Heartz

Robertson Library UPEI, One of Them - Vivian C Smallwood

Santa's Spectacles

How Santa's old pair of glasses ended up on Prince Edward Island one Christmas Eve is a question that remains a mystery in our family to this day. And while the children remember it well, they still ask about those glasses every Christmas.

It was a snowy night, and big flakes of snow welcomed us on Christmas morning when the children scampered excitedly out of bed to head to their stockings hung by the fireplace. We could all see that Santa left presents for each of the three children.

With housecoats and slippers on, they opened their stockings, happily finding both an orange and apple in the toes, and not a single lump of coal. They knew that an apple or an orange, instead of a lump of coal, was a sign that even Santa knew how good they had been. How lucky they were with both. They found toys and sweet treats in their stockings too. 

Amid their excitement, they looked in the ashes of the fireplace and noticed an odd object. It was brown and rounded and didn't look like either coal or wood. The ashes were cool as I touched it carefully; we realized that it was an old metal case for eyeglasses. Prying the case open, they discovered a pair of old spectacles, round with golden metal rims. "These must be Santa's," the oldest boy exclaimed to his sister and brother, "He must have lost them!" Clearly a pair of round glasses was a most unusual thing to find in the ashes of a fireplace any day, but especially on Christmas. "What should we do with them?" I asked; to which the youngest one replied, "I suppose we could send them back to Santa." And so the case was safely placed on the mantle, with a plan to send them back to Santa.

Later they discovered that one of the lenses was badly cracked. Since they were inside their case, and not being worn when lost, I wondered out loud if they might be an older pair, too broken to wear and long forgotten by Santa in a coat pocket after he got his new pair. And thus the glasses were tucked away in a wee box with a note telling how these old glasses were found by the children amid ashes on Christmas morn. 

Our grandchildren now join the holiday gathering around that old fireplace with equal enthusiasm, and the story of those glasses is a reminder to all looking forward to the arrival of Christmas -- that even amid the ashes -- when one least expects to find anything, there can be welcome surprises at Christmas, and in fact every day.

 

 

Daily News on Prince Edward Island

The story of journalism on Prince Edward Island, includes luminary figures like Edward Whelan who founded the Examiner in 1847. The same paper would become the Island's first daily and perhaps reveals a story of friendly competition between two relatives. Henry Lawson (1829-1897) had served as editor of the Examiner in the 1860s but had moved over to the Patriot. His nephew, William Lawson Cotton (1848-1928), took the Examiner's helm in 1873 and created the Island’s first daily news in 1877 issuing the Examiner daily and renaming his existing weekly paper, the Weekly Examiner.

Henry Lawson, was not outdone and in 1881 converted the Patriot into a daily as well. Nipping at both their heels was the Evening News which by 1884 was a third daily.  While PEI had seen various publications come and go since 1787 thanks to the efforts of the uncle and nephew, Islanders had a variety of daily newspapers to choose from. Their pioneering efforts established daily news for Prince Edward Islanders.

William Lawson Cotton, known to family as Will, had a career of 49 years as editor before stepping aside. Although retired as editor and publisher he continued to write historical articles and a book called Chapters in our Island Story was the result. Will's Examiner merged with the Charlottetown Guardian in 1915 and eventually was absorbed by that paper in 1922. 

William Lawson Cotton (1848-1928)
From the Illustrated Historical Atlas of the Province of Prince Edward Island
 published in 1880 by the J. H. Meacham Company, 

 

His Uncle Henry's paper, the Patriot, would see many name changes long after he had moved to Victoria BC. From Daily Patriot 1881, Island Patriot 1910, Prince Edward Island Patriot, 1920, Charlottetown Patriot, 1923, and Evening Patriot 1924. Eventually it would fold into the same ownership as the Guardian functioned as an afternoon edition but with a strong focus on local content. It was published on a distinctive peach coloured paper which stood out among other papers. It ceased publication on June 9, 1995.

William Lawson Cotton at top left - Henry Lawson at top right
From the Illustrated Historical Atlas of the Province of Prince Edward Island 
published in 1880 by the J. H. Meacham Company, 

Henry Lawson was a parliamentary correspondent reporting from Ottawa during the sittings of the House by travelling to the capital for the duration of each sittings. 

Henry Lawson 1829-1897

Image from family collection of Daphne & Ian Scott

The best chronology of Prince Edward Island newspapers was compiled by Heather Boylan in 1987 for the Public Archives of Prince Edward Island. Called Checklist and Historical Directory of Prince Edward Island Newspapers 1787-1986 it is a coil bound volume of 211 pages that outlines the history of each publication and names of editors and publishers, as well as locations of microfilm copies or originals. It also provides a year by year listing of papers published in any given year and the present locations for accessing them.

An item published by the Times-Colonist in Victoria BC indicates:

Henry Lawson, Colonist editor -- 1888-1897

Henry Lawson served as editor of the Colonist for eight years, until his death in 1897. Lawson left school at an early age and was largely self-educated. After working as a teacher and school principal, he turned to journalism, and spent 40 years in the field, starting in Prince Edward Island. He worked as editor of the Summerside Progress, then the Charlottetown Patriot. After he bought the Patriot he made himself its Ottawa correspondent when Parliament was in session.

After he sold his newspaper he worked for several others across Canada. he was offered the editor's job at the Colonist in the fall of 1888. Lawson's daughter Maria continued to work at the Colonist after he died. She retired from the paper in 1934 at the age of 82.  

Henry Lawson 1829-1897
Image from family collection of Daphne & Ian Scott

Additional resources:

• Dictionary of Canadian Biography entry on William Lawson Cotton.
• Article Journalists Follow in Fathers' Footsteps regarding Henry Lawson and his daughter Maria Lawson.
• The Guardian: Our History written by Gary MacDougall, a former managing editor at The Guardian.
• About Patriot - Island Newspapers -- UPEI Robertson Library
• Checklist and Historical Directory of Prince Edward Island newspapers 1787-1986 by Heather Boylan

French Television on Prince Edward Island

In viewing the 2022 version of the The Prince Edward Island Acadian Quiz created by the Sister Antoinette DesRoches Historical Committee, I noticed an interesting question

9) Since what year can French television be picked up across the Island?  a) 1960;  b) 1970;  c) 1980.

Answer: 1980

On November 5, 1980, most Islanders were able to watch French television for the first time. On that day, thanks to a retransmitter located in Bonshaw, Radio-Canada put on the air the complete programming of the Moncton station CBAFT. Prior to that date, only people in the western part of the Island could receive the signal from the Moncton transmitter, which had opened in 1958.

In 1981, Radio-Canada created a permanent reporter position on the Island. Yvon Michaud was the first to fill this position. 

- thanks to Georges Arsenault and the Sister Antoinette DesRoches Historical Committee

Robert Harris, Island Artist

 Robert Harris (1849-1919) remains the most famous portrait artist associated with Prince Edward Island. In preparing for a short talk on his life, I decided to post some useful links for others researching his life and work.

The Wikipedia entry is a good starting point, as is the Dictionary of Canadian Biography article.

An article in The Buzz in June 2021 about a major retrospective exhibition at the Confederation Centre Art Gallery is valuable, as is the description of the exhibition on the Centre's site.

Robert Harris, Self-Portrait 1890, watercolour on paper.
Gift of the Robert Harris Trust, 1965, CAGH-205.

A collection of materials including images by the late Robert Tuck, a relative of Robert Harris has been archived on the Way Back Machine (Internet Archives) and while the links are dated it includes helpful information.

An article, Robert Harris and The Fathers of Confederation, published in 1968 and written by Moncrieff Williamson likewise is helpful on covering a crowning achievement in his career.

The authoritative biography remains the book also written by Moncrieff Williamson,  Island Painter: The Life of Robert Harris (1849-1919). It was published by Ragweed Press, 1983 - 158 pages. 

George Di Carlo, paintings on Prince Edward Island

COURTESY OF SUSAN SAUNDERSON

Finding four paintings by George Di Carlo, the majority of which were painted on Prince Edward Island, began a search for information about Di Carlo and his career as a painter.

An obituary from 2007 confirms that the career of George Di Carlo (1926-2007) had been based in Montreal and that he had family members in Toronto.

Obituary George Di Carlo. Age eighty-one, after a debilitating stroke, died May 14 at the Montreal General Hospital. Montreal has lost a gentle, delightfully joyous, free-spirited, immensely talented artist, whose love for great Renaissance art informed so much of his work. He was a muralist, and decorative master, whose work graces the homes of many grateful residents in Montreal, London, and New York. His clients included the Ritz Carleton, Queen Elizabeth and Chateau Frontenac hotels. A step inside the Globe Building - 1350 Sherbrooke Street West - reveals a floor to ceiling masterpiece, an inspired depiction of the signs of he zodiac, rendered in marquetry, unlike anything to be seen anywhere on the planet outside of Italy - a Montreal treasure. George will be missed by adoring members of his family in Toronto, and his many Montreal friends who were privileged to spend time in the company of a supremely modest, angelic clown, when laughter reined supreme. His family and friends wish to thank the Royal Victoria Emergency, and the kind staff on the 14th floor of the Montreal General Hospital. Contributions to the Stroke and Heart Foundation, the Royal Victoria Hospital Foundation, and the Montreal General Hospital Foundation, would be appreciated by the family. There will be no funeral service: a memorial event is being planned to take place soon in Montreal.

Published in The Gazette, Montreal from May 16 to May 19, 2007.

George Di Carlo became a family friend of Flora & Keith Rogers in Charlottetown and when the family opened a new transmission tower in North River for their radio station, CFCY which was billed as The Friendly Voice of the Maritimes, George provided a painting of the new transmission facilities during a summer visit. The painting of the towers was inherited by their son William Keith Rogers (1921-2019) and his wife Laurette Boissoneault, who were longtime Montreal residents.

George's interest in both Zen Buddhism and the Baháʼí faith would have made him a comfortable visitor in the Roger's household in Charlottetown as Flora Rogers maintained contact and supported members of the fledgling Baháʼí community on PEI as it was becoming established. She was a member of Trinity United Church in Charlottetown, with a strong interest in personal spiritual growth. Baháʼí teachings note the essential worth of all religions and the unity of all people. 

Four painting owned by the Rogers family include:

George Di Carlo - At McGeana Farm Vernon Bridge PEI
The identification of farm name is still tentative based on unclear writing.
 

George Di Carlo - Rocky Point Wharf, Charlottetown, PEI 

George Di Carlo - 1950 CFCY New Towers, North River PEI

George Di Carlo - 1951
Location is not identified but shows reddish soil
and a waterfront scene suggesting coastal activity. 

An article on his career was published July 8, 2007 by The Gazette in Montreal

An accomplished artist who worked for love, not money

‘ He was basically a happy man who carried his happiness with him’ said a friend

• Montreal Gazette
• 8 Jul 2007
• ALAN HUSTAK THE GAZETTE

George di Carlo was an accomplished muralist and painter responsible for the lavish interior decor of a number of hotels and restaurants across Canada, including the Queen Elizabeth Hotel as well as the Royal Suite at the Ritz-Carlton in Montreal, the Hotel Vancouver and the Banff Springs Hotel.

He was 80 when he died in the Montreal General Hospital May 14, following a stroke.

“He had a fascination with mythological creatures and all the imagery that goes with it. He was influenced by the Italian renaissance and an expert at trompe l’oeil,” said Robert Verrall, a NFB filmmaker and friend who studied art with di Carlo.

“He was proud of his murals and of his chinoisorie. He was basically a happy man who carried his happiness with him. When he walked into a room, people brightened.

“He might have been much more commercially successful, but his modesty kept him poor.”

George di Carlo, the youngest of eight children in an Italian immigrant’s family was born in Belleville, Ont., June 29, 1926. His father worked for the Canadian National Railway. His brothers were all trained as tool and die makers, but di Carlo chose to attend the Ontario College of Art where he was awarded the Governor-General’s medal for general proficiency in 1946. He studied fresco painting in New York and in 1948 was commissioned to decorate a house in Westmount.

He lived in Japan for several years and studied Zen Buddhism and B’Hai. In the 1970s he lived in Europe where he started executing large scale works for interiors of hotels and restaurants as well as the homes of the rich and famous. He spent a year decorating the walls and ceilings of a London mansion for Lady Baille, the U.S.-born heiress who restored Leeds Castle in England, and decorated a New York apartment for Versace, the acclaimed fashion designer. His most lucrative commission was for a royal palace in Saudi Arabia.

“He was such a magical person. He never liked the idea of using mechanical devices when he worked. He said anyone could use a machine,” his niece, Marie LeBlanc, said.

“He liked being an original, one of a kind. He continuously reminded us that there is only one original.”

He rarely signed his own name to his works, using instead the name of the Greek god Proteus, who changed his shape at will.

The marquetry depicting the signs of the zodiac fashioned from Hawaiian Koa Flex wood in the Globe building at 1350 Sherbrooke St. W. in Montreal is considered one of his masterworks.

One of his patrons, Mike Rosenbloom, described di Carlo as an “incredibly talented, creative and discriminating.

“It took him two years to complete the marquetry,” Rosenbloom added.

“He painted furniture for us, wooden screens, doors, all kinds of things. I tried for years to get him to do paintings to sell, but he wasn’t interested. He did things he wanted to do and if he wasn’t interested in a commission, he wouldn’t do it. Things he liked, often he’d do practically gratis.”

Susan Saunderson, another of di Carlo’s friends, said: “He was one of those artists who lived on an abstract plane.”

“He was courtly, elegant – gentilezza is the word in Italian that best describes him. He was a mischievous angel with a gentle, wink-wink, nudge-nudge, sense of humour.”

Di Carlo also illustrated horoscope calendars for the International Astrological Society.

“He never allowed anyone to watch him work. He was very quick, very good, very generous,” said his long-time friend, Sam Ferstman.

“Sometimes he’d do a painting, and if he liked the customer he wouldn’t charge for his work, even when he didn’t have the money and couldn’t afford to give his paintings away. He could be generous to a fault.”

He had a vast library, enjoyed opera and classical music, and although he owned a television rarely watched anything other than the weather channel.

A memorial service is planned for the fall.

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With almost no changes, the National Post also published the article on July 10, 2007 with another picture of George di Carlo

Muralist decorated famed hotels and restaurants

JOHN KENNEY / CANWEST NEWS SERVICE

George di Carlo enjoyed creating his Italian Renaissance-inspired murals and paintings so much that he would often refuse to accept payment from customers. “He might have been commercially successful,” one friend said, “but his modesty kept him poor.”