Baxter

(submitted by Lucy Bryson and Ora Baxter)

Samuel Baxter (1869–1944), his wife Florence Richards (1869–1921) and their two sons, Reginald (1895–1967) and Edward (Ted) Richards (1897–1990), were natives of Devon, England. They left Liverpool on June 5, 1913, and reached Quebec on June 14. Samuel and Florence planned to immigrate to Canada on the Titanic in 1912 but Florence was very sick, so they postponed their trip until the next year. The family proceeded to the home of John Sercombe in Bosanquet Twp. The Baxters and the Sercombes had been friends in England. For a time, the Baxter men assisted on the Sercombe farm.

Reginald (Reg) found farm work with C. Steer. There he had the unhappy experience of being in the process of evening milking when the barn was struck by lightning. Luckily he and the owner escaped to the safety of the yard, from which vantage point they watched the barn totally destroyed by the resulting fire.

Samuel and his two sons worked for local farmers in the hope that they would some day have a farm of their own. In the interval of working and hoping, Ted worked an entire year for $110. Of that amount, he banked $70.

Reg had been apprenticed to a gardener in Devon and wished to specialize in fruit-growing. John Sercombe introduced the Baxters to Jack Brown who, with his brother, operated a fruit farm east of Arkona. For a three-year period the Baxters managed Brown Brothers' apple orchard. They grew and sold a wide variety of fruit — apples, pears, peaches, berries, grapes and currants. Then Brown Bros. sold the farm to William Butler. With sufficient money for a down payment, and with considerable knowledge of fruit-growing, Samuel Baxter bought the Grogan farm, Lot 28, Con. 6 NER, Warwick Twp., in 1919.

In 1916, Reginald sent for his fiancee, Florence Thorne (1896–1990). Despite the dangers of the submarine-infested waters during World War II, Florence reached this country safely. She and Reg were married in St. Stephen's Anglican Church, Arkona, on October 25, 1916, the first couple to be married in this church.

When Mother Baxter died, Reg and Florence took over the farm. It was a highly successful venture. People came from distant points to pick their own fruit on the Baxter farm. Much of the excess crop was taken to the London market. Florence Baxter recalled those days as very happy ones for their family. They remained on this farm until 1962 when they retired to Arkona.

Sherri Perriam and Ted Baxter discussing fossils. Courtesy Arkona Historical Society.

Reg and Florence Baxter had five children: Joyce (m. Glen Dew), William (m. Reta Armstrong), Fred (m. Helen Herrington), Nellie (m. Mervin Eyre) and Ronald (m. Ora Douglas). The three sons stayed in the Arkona area; Joyce went to Forest and Nellie moved out of Lambton County.

Ted and his father worked together until 1924, when Ted went on his own, working for area farmers. In 1926, just prior to his marriage to Ada Dotzert (1893–1959), he bought the farm at Lot 27, Con. 6 NER. But luck was not with him. The Great Depression struck; farmers had little or no money; the bottom fell out of everything. Within twelve years, Ted lost the farm. There were no government subsidies, special grants or welfare payments in those days. It was a rough time, not only for Ted Baxter, but for most farmers.

After the loss of his farm, Ted and family lived on the Berton Smith place. Here they persevered against great odds until 1946, when they moved to Forest. Ted found employment in the basket factory, the canning factory or elsewhere.

Ted and Ada Baxter had four children: Samuel, Ardis, Lucille and David. Ada died after a long illness. Fortunately, by that time, the family was grown. Samuel married Muriel Eastman and they have two children, Charles and Cheryl. Ardis married Fred Maxfield and their children are William, James, Kathy, Laurie and David. Lucille Baxter married Carl Bryson. Their children are Douglas, Dennis, Debra, Donald and Darlene. David Baxter and Lorraine Park have a daughter Melody.

With family members married and his wife gone, Ted was on his own, but still active in his work and in the pursuit of his hobby, his artifact and fossil collection, which was displayed in a room of his Forest home. Ted Baxter began to collect Indian artifacts in 1922, on the farms east of Arkona and the lands adjacent to the Ausable River. Every field yielded something of value to this farmer-geologist as he cultivated the soil or tramped the river country. His keen eyes detected the arrowheads, the spear points, the fossils and the small remains of the distant past that most men would have dismissed as “just stones”. Ted Baxter identified them as valuable links with the earth's beginnings or with the primitive culture of indigenous peoples.

Members of the Arkona Lions Club saw great educational potential in the Baxter Collection. They conferred with the Lambton Board of Education, and obtained the right to use the vacated Arkona School, the only condition being that classes from Lambton County schools have free access to the museum. In 1971 the Lions Club persuaded Ted to bring his collection to the Arkona School. He was made the curator of the museum, and was given a rent-free home nearby. Inherent in the arrangement was the understanding that the entire collection would eventually become the property of the Lions Club. In the summer of 1972, the museum was officially opened by the Hon. Jean Chretien, Minister of Northern and Indian Affairs. By 1975 the cataloguing of the artifacts was complete, and the museum functioned in accordance with the regulations of the Historical and Museum Branch of the Ontario Ministry of Colleges and Universities.

The Indian artifacts, the rocks, the fossils and the hundreds of other interesting exhibits were found while Ted tilled the soil or scouted the country during a 50-year period. In later years, the collection was supplemented by donations from friends and amateur geologists. In 1984 Ted was recipient of the Ontario Trillium Medal for his public service. As time passes, Edward Richards (Ted) Baxter will become more and more recognized as a benefactor and as a folk hero.

Chapter 24 of 25 - Baxter Family

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