In August 2019 I finally posted a draft blog post from 2016 about my trip with my maternal Aunt Deb to visit my other maternal Aunt Barb in Ohio in 2016. Things I Learned About My Nova Scotia Roots (in Ohio)
In that blog post I wrote about the story that I heard about my Aunt Barb nearly drowning in the narrows of Halifax Harbour when she was a baby and that made it to the front page of the newspaper
With thanks to my Aunt Deb, my sister Kelly and my cousin Jodie, I have added it t the original blog post (Things I Learned About My Nova Scotia Roots (in Ohio)) and I am posting the story here as well.
Into Cove Water: Floats About Until Rescued By Her Mother
Photo by Fraser
SHOWN
above are Mrs. Fred Creighton and her daughter Barbara, inset picture
Harold Sarson, who gave the alarm that resulted in the rescue of the
two-year-old girl.
TWO YEAR OLD Barbara Creighton,
pretty little daughter of Mr. and Mrs. Fred Creighton, of Tuft’s Cove,
is alive and well today, but only after having gone through one of the
strangest experiences recorded here in many years.
The child, one of a family of three, had wandered from the Creighton
home at Tuft’s Cove on Sunday afternoon, following her father and little
brother who had gone for a sail in a boat. Unaware of the danger,
little “Babs” toddled out on the family float and unseen by anybody,
toppled headlong into the water.
FLOATED IN WATER
Just
what happened then is not known, but it was more than five minutes from
the time she disappeared from the float that Harold Sarson, a young
boy, noticed the baby floating in the water nearby. Calling frantically
for help the boy attracted Mrs. Creighton’s attention and realizing
that her baby’s life was endangered, she rushed to the scene.
“Babs” was floating head up in the water, apparently enjoying
herself, but at her mother’s approach she struggled and sank beneath the
surface.
OBEYS MOTHER’S PLEA
Disregarding
her own safety, the mother began to wade out. She called to the child
urging her not to be afraid, but stay quiet until she got there.
Obediently, “Babs” stopped struggling and in this way remained afloat
until the mother, up to her neck in the water, was able to reach out and
grasp her clothing.
IS MYSTERY
How
the child remained afloat without is a mystery. Mrs. Creighton was
inclined to treat the matter lightly when questioned this morning. If
Babs had not obeyed her command to remain quiet it is quite likely that
she would have been drowned as there were no swimmers in the vicinity
who could have gone to the rescue.
Mr. Creighton
is an employee of the Halifax Shipyards and is a prominent softballer,
being a member of the Tuft’s Cove Mountain Lions team.
Source: Halifax Newspaper: Estimated date: September 1935
A place to honour my ancestors: Moynahan, Coughlin, Broderick, Annal, Brennan, Hussey, Hess and Duffy. (Essex & Kent County Ontario, Michigan, Pennsylvania, New York, Ireland, Scotland); and Creighton, Moreland, (Nova Scotia, England and Scotland); and Foreman (Ireland, Scotland and Norway)
Saturday, September 21, 2019
Into Tuft's Cove: Aunt Barb Floats About Until Rescued By Nana!
Labels:
Creighton,
Halifax,
Moreland,
Tuft's Cove
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Footnote from my aunt
ReplyDelete“Quite an amazing story it is, and outcome too. Turns out my sister Barbara, is a phenomenal swimmer to this day and Mom (Nana) never learned to swim! Thank you for posting Cindi Foreman ...”