Faulds

(submitted by Carol Faulds Clay)

The oldest son of Clara Edith Zankey and George B. Faulds, Ernest Faulds (1907–1992) married Ella Elliott from East Williams Twp., County of Middlesex, in 1936. In 1938 Ernie and Ella purchased a 150 acre farm at the corner of Bethel Road and Birnam Line (Lot 15, Con. 5 NER) in Warwick Twp. There they established and maintained orchards. People came from miles around to buy their apples and pears.

Ernie established a large herd of registered Holstein cattle in 1953, “Fauldale Holsteins”. He remained in the dairy business until the mid-seventies. Some time in the early 1960s they added 25 acres to their farm. Ernie and Ella worked long hours picking and sorting fruit and milking cows. They had four children: Ron, Bruce, Marilyn (Symington) and Carol (Clay).

Ernest Faulds home, Lot 15, Con. 5 NER. Courtesy C Clay.

Spare time was never a problem. There wasn’t any. There were apples to pick, chores to do, eggs to gather, hay and silage to be put into the silo and barn. Ernie served as a trustee of SS#4 and as an elder at Bethel United Church. Ella was involved with the United Church Women (Bethel Methodist/United and Warwick United). She is a life member of the United Church Women. She was also very involved with the Warwick Women’s Institute.

In 1980 Ernest and Ella sold 100 acres of the farm and built a house across the road on the remaining 75 acres. This was their retirement home for 17 years. They spent the majority of their lives in Warwick Twp. In 1992, Ernest died. Ella kept the farm until 1997, then sold it and moved to Orchardview Apartments in Arkona. Later she moved to Brookside in Watford.

Their oldest son, Ron, married Verna Johnson in 1965. He worked at the University of Western Ontario Physical Plant for 30 years. Verna was a teacher for the Middlesex Board of education for 32 years. Ron has several memories of growing up in Warwick Twp. He says,

I well remember the day the tornado went through Warwick Township in May, 1953. It was suppertime and the air was hot and sticky. The sky turned black and everything was silent, but suddenly we could hear the roar of the wind like several jet planes. We got up from the table and all ran to the open ditch behind the barn. This was a little difficult for Mom as she was about eight and one half months pregnant [with Carol]. She couldn’t make it over or under the fence. We watched the tornado come up 15 Sideroad and destroy Bert Lester’s barn and the cement silo. The air was full of hunks of cement and cattle from the barn. The force of the wind blew the chicken feathers right through the telephone poles. We watched it move north toward our home. Then it veered to the east and took out Howard Cable’s barns. It then went up in the air and came down further to the east, nearing Arkona, taking out Ray Bell’s house, the white schoolhouse and Glenn Edlington’s barn. It then disappeared from our view. It was my first experience with a tornado and I’ve had great respect for them ever since. The aftermath and clean up was a typical rural neighbourhood time when everyone pulled together to help others.

Another of Ron’s memories is threshing day, sometime from 1945 to the early 1950s, when Ron was in his early teens. He says,

Threshing day was a big time for us. John V. Tanton would arrive with his threshing machine and his big Case tractor. After it was set up the neighbours would start to arrive and begin loading the grain in the field onto wagons and bring it to the threshing machine. 12:00 sharp was dinnertime. The men would quit and wash up. There was a big washtub full of hot water outside. They would reach in and splash water on themselves. They would have a big drink of well water from a dipper that hung on the pump. Everyone used the same dipper and no one died of any communicable disease. After this they went in to a banquet that the women had prepared. There was usually a contest to see who could eat the most pieces of pie. After dinner the men would lay in the grass under the trees to snooze and talk. At 1:00 o’clock, John V. would say, “OK, boys, let’s go”. Usually by late afternoon we were done and he would move to the next farm and the whole process would begin again the next day. A real sense of community spirit existed at this time. The farming community relied on “helping your neighbour”.

Ron also remembers wood cutting bees and school days.

We had woodcutting bees, as everyone heated with wood. One neighbour with a buzz saw would set it up next to a woodpile. Two or three men would carry the small logs up to the saw and feed them into it while one or two men would stand on the other side and throw the cut pieces onto a pile. Neighbours knew each other and worked together.

In the wintertime at SS#4 Warwickwe had oyster suppers and organized crokinole. At Christmas time our school concert was like no other. Our teacher, George O’Neil, loved music and his concerts were elaborate affairs! About a week before Christmas the trustees came in and built a stage. There would be plays, music, solos and quartets. It was quite a display of school talent!

Bruce married Diana Golding and moved to Belleville where he taught high school until his retirement. He and Diana have 3 boys: Allan, Scott and Michael.

Marilyn taught school in Lambton County and married to Wayne Symington in 1967. They have three girls: LeeAnne, Krista and Laura. Marilyn remembers Bethel Methodist/United Church just north of the Faulds farm. She says,

Growing up in Warwick Township in the 1950s has left me with a wealth of memories. I lived on a farm, bordered by SS#4 Warwick School to the south and the Bethel Church and cemetery to the North. The church services at Bethel were always held in the afternoon, since the church was part of a 3-point charge, with Sunday school classes to attend before the service. My brother and I would usually walk to Sunday School as we were so close. During the winter the services were held in the basement where a huge wood burning furnace kept us warm. In the spring, the front doors of the church would be opened and the services were held upstairs in the sanctuary. There were two huge staircases on either side that led up to the spacious sanctuary, with a balcony to hold the overflow on special occasions.

As time passed and the face of the rural community changed, Bethel Church closed in 1961–1962 and was later torn down, around 1968.

Carol taught Literacy and Adult Education. She married Neil Clay in 1979 and they have resided in Warwick Township for the past 19 years. They have two sons: Rory and Ryan.

Chapter 24 of 25 - Faulds Family

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