Hecla Island, Manitoba

Steinnes - Pall Jakobson and Sigrid Jensdottir home
and Community Library, Hecla Island, Manitoba

Hecla is one of the largest islands on Lake Winnipeg in the province of Manitoba. It is approximately nineteen miles long by six miles wide (at its widest point).

Its name was Big Island, and history has written that when the Icelanders came in 1876 they changed the name of the island to Mikley, which means "Magnificent Island".

The early years on the Island were difficult for the Icelanders. The first winter on the Island was extremely cold, and a small pox epidemic swept through the community, and unfortunately 30 of the 145 settlers died.  The surviving settlers were strong in spirit and determined and took to the land and built a community.  Fishing became a livelihood for the Icelanders. They built their own sawmill, and began to farm the land. The community for the most part was self-sustaining.

The Steinnes house, where members of my family were raised, was also the community library. The Library was entirely Icelandic, whose books came by ship directly from Iceland. Records indicate that the library was founded on February 6th, 1896 and was named "Morgunstjarnan" (Morning Star). The public library remained in operation until 1967. The home also had traditional Icelandic scenes painted on the walls,  painted by a resident at the Steinnes home - Asunder Eymundsson.


Beggi Palsson carrying a calf, Hecla Island, Manitoba

Additional sources:

Scattering of Seeds - Immigration History- http://www.whitepinepictures.com/seeds/ii/21/history2.html

136 - New Iceland - A Forgotten Nordic Colony In Canada - http://bigthink.com/strange-maps/136-new-iceland-a-forgotten-nordic-colony-in-Canada

History of Gimli Manitoba Settles - http://www.gimlicommunityweb.com/history/history.php

History of Hecla Island - http://www.reocities.com/heartland/woods/4013/history.htm

Manitoba History: Nya Island I Kanada: The Icelandic Settlement of the Interlake Area of Manitoba
http://www.mhs.mb.ca/docs/mb_history/27/icelandicsettlement.shtml 




Cecille May Wood

Cecille May Wood

Cecille May Wood, born September 1912, came from a large family, or large according to present day, maybe not so big in those days. There were thirteen children in her family. She was raised in Manigotagan, Manitoba. Her father was John Wood and her mother was Mildred Bruce. 

Cecille became a cookie in a lumber camp, and in her teens moved to Hecla Island. In 1931, she married Páll Pálson, and had three children with Páll. One being my dad, Johann Paulson.

In 1940, Cecille left Hecla, and she and my dad (age 9) went to Sipiwesk Lake on the Nelson River, about 25 miles north east of Wabowden to live. Dad noted, "that there was no more schooling that term, but in the autumn, I was in a correspondence course in grade three. Mom was a tough tutor to me". 

That may have been because when Cecille was younger, she had been promised $5.00 by her grandfather if she passed her grade seven year. She passed both seven and eight in the same year, and because there was no high school available, that was the end of her formal schooling at the age of thirteen. 



Páll Pálson and Cecille Wood (1931).

Dad noted that "The lessons came at regular intervals by mail and a test in each subject had to be written every two weeks, and forwarded to Winnipeg for correction. His Mom's assessment of his progress was quite severe, and the individual in charge at the correspondence branch thought that she was a bit harsh". He completed the year in the top 10% in the province and was enrolled again in a correspondence course for grade four in the fall of 1942.

Later, Cecille remarried to Gudjon Gudjonsson (John Johnson), and had two additional children. At some point, they moved from Sipiwesk Lake to Thicket Portage. There she served as post mistress of Thicket Portage for many years as well as co-owner of Johnson's General Store. She took an active interest in the life of the community and the well-being of her family.  In 1971, her and John retired and moved to Winnipeg.

Cecille was a hard working, independent woman, with a wide variety of interests and skills. She had a sense of adventure which she indulged through travel in her later years. When she was 73, she participated in a canoe trip with my dad, down the Beren's River.

Cecille passed away in Winnipeg, Manitoba March 2001.

Johann Paulson

Palli Palson with his wife Cecille Wood,
Johann on his father's shoulders (circa 1934).

Johann Paulson was born October 3, 1931. His parents were Cecille Wood and Páll Pálson. He spent his early years growing up with his Dad and his family on Hecla Island, and with his Mom at Sipiwesk Lake and Thicket Portage.

Before Dad passed away in 1997, he wrote about many events in his life. One story was that "When I was a child, I was always very sickly. It started with eczema as a baby. I have been told that they had to tie my hands and feet to the four corners of the bed, so that I wouldn't scratch. As I got a little older, I developed asthma, which stayed with me for the rest of may life. Grandfather, Johnny Wood said "Poor little Johann, he will never live to see grey hair".

However Dad did, and he went on to do many things in his life.

He wrote about some of the home remedies that he endured in his younger days, that were supposed to be good for coughs, colds, croup, bronchitis, etc. One was "a mixture of goose grease, lemon, and honey, and because I frequently had a cold, goose grease was saved throughout the neighbourhood to help me. I was fed this mixture by the tablespoonful. Another pet cure was "coal oil" (kerosene), also taken by the tablespoonful. For asthma attacks, the remedy was to inhale the smoke from a burning (smoldering) blotter that had been soaked in saltpeter solution and dried."

Páll Franklin Pálson

Páll with his Aunt Matthildur

Páll Pálson was born on Hecla Island, Manitoba January 9, 1906.  Unfortunately, when Páll was just a baby, his mother Johanna Palldottir died when the steamer she was working on "The Princess" was wrecked during a storm on Lake Winnipeg.

Páll was raised by his mother's family on Hecla Island, Manitoba at the Steinnes house. 

Páll spent 25 years as a commercial fishermen on Lake Winnipeg.  My dad, Johann, spoke about freighting on Lake Winnipeg. In the"thirties" the Palsons ran a freighting outfit that carried supplies from Riverton to Hecla, Manigotagan, San Antonino Gold Mines and to fish outposts. These were horse drawn sleighs with large draught horses weighing approximately two thousand pounds.




Fishing on Lake Winnipeg, Manitoba

Freighting team, Lake Winnipeg, Manitoba

This was the depression era, and the men that drove the teams of horses and cared from them were mainly in their twenties and thirties. My dad once said that "a horse in good working condition was just as important as a man...and sometimes more intelligent."

He later went on to work as boat operator in the pulp and paper industry near Geraldton,Ontario. He retired and lived with our family in Keewatin.

People said that Páll was a gentle man, and took great care of the horses. He would often walk with a spring in his step, so he was nicknamed "Springy Palson".

Páll passed away in Kenora, Ontario, November 1981. 

Johann (Joe) Paulson - The Teacher

Johann (Joe) Paulson retires (left) - Kenora Miner and News July 6, 1989

In 1989, after a 35+-year career of teaching, Johann (Joe) Paulson (my dad) retired from the position of Mathematics Department Head, from Beaver Brae Secondary School.  Joe graduated from Manitoba Normal School in 1951 and taught one year in Waskada, Manitoba, followed by four years in Plumas Manitoba. In 1957, he returned to his home village of Hecla, Manitoba, where for three years, he taught 28 students in grades seven through eleven, all subjects in one room, and was administrator to a "grade one-to six" room in the same building as well as a grades one-to-eight one room school, three and a half miles away.  (He is listed as the Principal for the Hecla Island School (1957-1960)). In his spare time, the recreation activities of the community were also his responsibility. 

In 1960, he moved to Arborg, Manitoba for one year, and taught senior physics and math in a five room high school, followed by two years at the University of Manitoba to complete his Bachelor of Science degree. In 1963, he moved to Keewatin, Ontario, and started teaching at Lakewood High school, located in Kenora, where he taught math until Beaver Brae and Lakewood high schools amalgamated, at which time he moved to Beaver Brae where he remained until his retirement.

During the first 18 years of teaching, he spent 17 summers at "summer school", taking  professional and upgrading courses in Winnipeg, Gimli, Vancouver, Thunder Bay, Waterloo, Toronto, and London. 

He noted at his retirement, that some of the highlights of his career were, in addition to his association with students in the classrooms, and the staff members, were the extra-curricular student-related programs.  Those included coaching two baseball teams and two hockey teams during each of the four years of Plumas; running the "rifle club" at Lakewood; coaching the "Reach of the Top" team and having a district winner in the Ontario playoffs: and above all, the three summers that he and my mom (Margaret) ran a canoe program for students from the age 10 to 15, one of which had 28 students in fourteen canoes that they were "in control of" for two weeks on the Winnipeg river.  All and all, he noted that all the years were good to him. 

Icelandic Line starting with Magnus Helgasson

Ingibjörg Hordal Thorsteinsdottir (circa 1890)

Magnus Helgasson
|
Gissar Magnusson
|
Gudmundur Gissarson married Ingibjorg Jonsdottir. Their daughter was Vigdis Gudmundsdottir.
|
Vigdis Gudmundsdottir (1834-1908) married Magnus Thorkelson (1830-1885). Vigdis and Magnus had eight children. One of their sons was Björn Magnusson.
|
Björn Magnusson (1876-1954) married Ingibjörg Hordal Thorsteinsdottir (1874-1960) (confirmation photo left). Björn and Ingibjörg had two children. (Magnus. B. Magnus and Margret Ingibjorg Ragnahildur Magnus)
|
Magnus B. (Barney) Magnus (1912-2008) married Annie Elizabeth Cobb (1915-1989). Barney and Annie had 4 children. - Margaret, Dianne, Brian and Mark.
|
Margaret Magnus (1940-2016) married Johann Paulson (1931-1997). Margaret and Johann had two children.

One of our Icelandic lines starts with Olaf

Several of my ancestors originated from Iceland. One line starts with Olaf.

Olaf , he had a son Rafn.
|
Rafn Olafson, he had a son Thorkel.
|
Thorkel Rafnsson married Margaret Gudmundsdottir. They had a son Magnus.
|
Magnus Thorkelson (1830-1885) married Vigdis Gudmundsdottir (1834-1908). Magnus and Vigdis had eight children. One of their sons was Björn Magnusson.
|
Björn Magnusson (1876-1954) married Ingibjörg Hordal Thorsteinsdottir (1874-1960). Björn and Ingibjörg had two children. (Magnus. B. Magnus and Margret Ingibjorg Ragnahildur Magnus - pictured left)
|
Magnus B. (Barney) Magnus (1912-2008) married Annie Elizabeth Cobb (1915-1989). Barney and Annie had 4 children. One of their daughters was Margaret.
|
Margaret Magnus (1940-2016) married Johann Paulson (1931-1997). Margaret and Johann had two children.

Picture: Margret Ingibjorg Ragnahildur Magnus with her brother Magnus B. Magnus (circa 1920)

Gestur and Bergthor Palsson

Gestur and Bergthor (Beggi) Geirhard Palsson (1901 Census has their last names as Jakobsson) were brothers. Their parents were Pall Sveinbjorn Jakobsson and Sigridurd Jensdottir. Gestur was born September 16, 1891 and Beggi was born in 1894. Other members of their family were Johanna, Thorstein, and Matthildur.

Most of their lives were spent on Hecla Island, fishing and farming. Gestur married Anna Bogadottir Signurgeirsson, and Bergthor married Helen Johnson.

My Dad once told a story about an event in the Steinnes house. "The seniors of the household, Gestur, Beggi and Helen collected animals of all kinds from time to time and I awoke one morning with a goat standing over me in the bedroom, with one foot on each side of my head. It had climbed on top of the rear porch by way of the nearby woodpile and from there around two sides of the house on the verandah roof, and into my open window. Unfortunately, for the goat, a short time later when Gestur went to the kitchen one morning, (he was usually the first one up) the goat was on the table with one foot in the sugar bowl and the other in the cream jug. I don't know what happened to the goat after that."

Many families made their lives on Hecla Island. In the 1970's, the government turned part of the Island into a provincial park. Many families had to leave the Island, and the Palsson family went to Riverton. The old house Steinnes house was destroyed. Gestur and Beggi passed away shortly after they moved to Riverton, Manitoba.


Resources : 
Mikley The Magnificent Island, Treasures of Manitoba Hecla Island 1876-1976.

Johanna Palldottir

Johanna Palldottir (1901 census has her last name as Jakobsson) was just a baby when her parents Pall Sveinbjorn Jakobsson and Sigridurd Gudrun Jensdottir immigrated to Canada.  Records indicate that they landed in Quebec City, Quebec from New Glasgow, Scotland in July 1887 on the Buenos Ayrean.

Sigridurd had been previously married to Pall’s brother, Thorstein.Sigridurd and Thorstein had five children together, however one child died in infancy, and when the a plague struck Iceland and killed hundreds of people, Thorstein and their youngest child (a son) also died. Surviving children of Sigridurd and Thorsteinn were Elin Elizabeth, Holmfridur and Matthildur.

Pall and Sigridurd immigrated to Canada around in 1887 with the children and Pall's mother Gudrun Hjaltadottir.  In Canada, Pall and Sigridurd had four children, Gestur, Bergthor, Thorstein, Matthildur.

Johanna Palldottir worked as a cook on the cargo vessel, "Princess". The once glorious steamer was converted in 1887 to a cargo vessel, and travelled Lake Winnipeg carrying bulky items such as railroad ties, and hauling barges.

By accident one day in searching for more information on the "Princess", I came across the following wiki reference http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/SS_Princess from the Frances Russell's book : Mistehay Sakahegan: The Great Lake. He details the history of the vessel, and its accident on August 24, 1906.

On August 24, 1906, SS Princess was carrying a cargo of 1,600 boxes of fish, and a full crew, when it encountered a storm. As the captain tried to turn the vessel to safety, the waves damaged the hull, and three of the crew, including Johanna were trapped below. The story goes on to say that "The passengers and crew quickly moved in to two small lifeboats, but Captain Hawes, 17-year-old cabin servant Flora McDonald of Selkirk and 19-year-old cook Johanna Palsdottir never made the last boat". Six lives were lost that day, including 19-year old sailor Johann Jonsson, Loftur Gudmundsson of Gimli, and Charles Greyeyes, a native Canadian.

The tragic loss of Johanna and the other crew members affected many people and communities, particularly, her only child, Palli, who was a baby at the time. Palli was raised by Johanna's family and grew up to spend a large part of his life on Lake Winnipeg as a commercial fisherman.