Bert Ambrose (bottom left) and his assistant Dan Darnall.

Things were very different when Bert Ambrose first made his way to the Peace River. He was a Nova Scotia boy, born in 1897, the fifth in a family of six. His father died when he was only 12. It must have been a hard struggle for his mother, Annie Laurie, to bring up her large family on the farm. Particularly hard must have been when her four sons all left her to go in World War 1. Only three returned. Bert himself joined the Nova Scotia Highland Brigade. He was in time to take part in the battle of Vimy Ridge and was wounded there on Easter Sunday 1917. This ended his career as a soldier. He was transferred to England where he spent a year and a half in hospital before returning home.

By this time, the war was over and men were hearing of new frontiers in the west. Bert came west with many others who were determined to find new lands in which to settle landing in Fort St. John in 1919.

His first job here was feeding cattle through the winter at Vern McLean's ranch on the Beatton River north of Rose Prairie. After this first winter, Bert homesteaded at Cecil Lake and then with his brother, he filed on the land north of town. This land was well away from town then, but part of it has since been incorporated in the town boundaries. (The elementary school bearing his name stands on this property today.)

His brother left after a while for Alberta where he lived with his mother. In 1926, Bert joined him and worked with him on the town milk round. After his rnother's death in 1927, he returned to Fort St. John.

Bert's heart was in farming but his experience at Vimy Ridge left him without the strength for continual heavy work. He started to work in the old C.M. Finch Store and worked with Les Steacy for a time.

It was in 1932 that he first started at the post office. He had no idea in earlier years that he would take up this kind of work, though he had taken a bookkeeping course in Halifax before coming west, knowing that he would be unable to stand the pace on the farm. He went to work for postmaster R. L. Pickell at first. It was a long way from being a full time job. Mail was caried weekly by team, Cecil Warren being one of those who had the mail conract in those years.

He kept up the farm at the same time, dividung his time between form and post office. In 1934 he married Barbara Bernard, who had been teaching school at Fish Greek. He had two sons, Peter, who studied chemical engineering at UBC, and Jerry who attended Victoria College in the fall of 1961.

Barbara was as much of a Fort St John institution as Bert, having been on hand to help out at the post office whenever Bert was short-handed. Barbara could tell you the names, families and box numbers of everyone in town. She was a tireless worker in the community, particularly in the Anglican Church, which misses her sorely.

By 1942, when Bert become postmaster himself, the weekly mail run had become daily. The highway building boom was on and post office business was increasing. At the time he took over the mail was hauled by Ross Darnall and Tom Miller, who ran the bus from Dawson Creek.

The first location of the post office was beside the 1961 Hudson's Bay store. Then it was moved to a spot beside Stuby's, and then to a building occupied by Vern's Men's Wear. Forty-one years ago Bert took over the building that was still in use in 1961, though with no larger staff than he had before. When he retired he still had on six full time assistants and two part time, but the new building was already getting crowded said Bert.

In 1961 the mail was hauled by Ralph Berger from Dawson Creek. He also carried mail to the post offices at Taylor and Baldonnel. From Fort St. John there four outgoing mails every day, and there were three local runs, going twice daily.

"You could work for the post office for 50 years and still learn," said Bert. Changing geographical boundaries throughout the world make constant demands on post office staff, who must know where to find the information, even if they don't have all at their fingertips. For the first 20 years, he found little change in the work, but after that the job had made more and more demands. Bert had to spend the years always watching the clock, checking the time for the registers for air mail, for the mail to Hudson's Hope or North Pine. His was a job which called for careful attention to detail and it was a heavy responsibility.

In late August of 1961 he left with Barbara for their new home in Parksville, near Nanaimo, where he spent the winters in well earned rest. Their house, which they had occupied since 1943, was rented out for the winter, but we did not lose them entirely, as they hoped to return in the summers. Bert had been in the North too long to be able to stay away altogether.

As he took it easy in less rigorous climes, he had many memories to sustain him, the memories of a great country whose growth he had watched from small beginnings to a thriving community which still has far to go.

Bert passed away in 1968. This hard-working gent, who lived through Fort St. John's growing pains, will not soon be forgotten.

[ Back ][ Main Index ][ People Index ][ Next ]