9:00 am, 12 June 2001
Home of Shirley Christianson, Portage la Prairie

Present: Shirley Christianson, Bob Jones, Barry Bills, Glen Suggett, Gary Garrioch, Gordon Goldsborough (recorder)

It was agreed by consensus that the summary of the first meeting, held at Mallard Lodge on 27 May, was acceptable.

Planning: Suggett reported that he had approached Manitoba Conservation about the project and that it was received favorably, so much so that $3,000 was offered to cover some of our out-of-pocket expenses during the research phase of the project. The only condition was the money should be administered by the University of Manitoba (Delta Marsh Field Station) and that, prior to the money being granted, a detailed project schedule and budget should be prepared. It will probably take some time for the grant to receive approval from the provincial Treasury Board. Goldsborough circulated a preliminary schedule (copy attached) in which the project was subdivided into three phases: an 18-month research phase, a 12-month writing phase, and a 6-month completion phase. It was generally agreed that the schedule was reasonable as a starting point subject to future revision as needed. Goldsborough also posed several issues for consideration over the next few months, and he suggested organization of at least three sub-committees to deal with specific aspects of the work (publicity and fundraising, acquisition and archival, and publication). As for a project budget, several items for inclusion were identified: photograph reproduction (photographic and scanning – the budget for this should include in-kind cost of loaned equipment and peoples’ time, as well as actual expenses, advertising, stationery and postage, other consumables (CDs for storing photo scans, audio and video cassettes for interviews, receipt books), student salary, travel reimbursement, and form printing. Goldsborough will prepare an initial budget for consideration at a future meeting.

Information sources: A lengthy discussion ensued on possible sources of information on Delta. It was agreed that presentations in some of the communities that border the marsh would be helpful. Possible people to organize them were identified: Denzel Gamble and Don Poschenrieder for Westbourne, Maurice Blanchard for St. Ambroise, Jay Jadeske for Poplar Point, Percy Gregoire for Portage la Prairie. Jones talked briefly about the Phragmites processing plant that once operated at the marsh. A possible contact on that is G. Bruinooge in Portage la Prairie (604 3^rd St. NE, 239-0749). Other possible contacts are Ron Eadie in Portage la Prairie who used to live near Delta, and Doug (retired airline pilot) and Marion Fulton who live along Hwy 227 near the original Fulton farm. Garrioch will look into the feasibility of making copies of some of the photographs on the walls of Dick Wallin’s lodge at St. Ambroise, formerly owned by Jimmy Robinson. Christianson asked whether Clara Robinson (Jimmy’s widow) might be approached for information. She will arrange to obtain the remainder of some memoirs written for the Ritchie family who used to farm near Delta. Suggett suggested contacting the provincial Lands Branch for a list of lodge permits issued for Crown lands at Delta. Christianson reported that Joyce Ward had told her that Rose Campbell, now deceased, had written an unpublished history of Delta years ago. Her son Roxy is living in Calgary and might have a copy.

Publicity and fundraising: Garrioch will look into having someone design a logo for the project, as a way of identifying it in correspondence. He will try to have something ready by the meeting on 15 July. He also suggested, as a fundraising project, a calendar that could feature historical photos of Delta. There was general agreement that this was a good idea that should be pursued. Garrioch will check on the possible cost for such a calendar and report at a future meeting. A calendar would have to be ready by September or October. Christianson noted that a bake sale can be an effective way to raise money. Garrioch will compile a list of fundraising ideas for consideration by the group at an upcoming meeting.

Acquisition and archival: Suggett mentioned that he had borrowed some photos of duck hunting at the G. Wilson lodge in the early 1920s, and he had scanned them into computer files. Goldsborough thought that scanning will be the major way of making copies of loaned photos because the quality is good and the cost is minimal (as opposed to photographic copies which can be costly). He will prepare some guidelines on scanning so people making scans will obtain the best possible quality. He also urged the group to adopt the highest possible standards for preservation of donated and loaned materials, such as storing them in acid-free sleeves, folders, and boxes etc. Bills has experience with these materials from a previous project. There was general agreement that this was desirable. Goldsborough also suggested that all materials should be tracked using a computer database so we will know what we have. Irene Roddy at the Portage Library could be contacted about the database used to catalogue materials at Fort La Reine.

Next meeting: Preparations for the public information meeting on 15 July were discussed. Goldsborough has arranged for use of the Delta Interpretive Center, and he had prepared a notice for comment, copies of which will be circulated to members of the steering committee (to be posted in prominent public places), to people who attended the Mallard Lodge meeting, and anyone else who might be interested in attending. After brief discussion, it was decided to start the meeting at 1 pm. The meeting will include a presentation by Goldsborough (similar to the one he made at Mallard Lodge with more historical photos included). The general approach of the project will be described and, hopefully, discussion of possible information sources will ensue. Suggett will prepare copies of a form to be filled in with the name and address of people with information (as well as notes about the best time to contact them etc.). A list of contact names and addresses for specific subject areas (preliminary copy attached) will be circulated. (Apologies to those “contacts” who were not approached beforehand – please let Goldsborough know if you would like to be added or removed as a contact for anything.) will be circulated. A meeting of the steering committee with be held there at 11:30 am. Suggett offered to arrange a lunch for the committee. Christianson and Bills will coordinate publicity for the meeting in Portage, including inclusion in the Leader and Daily Graphic, the community events sections of the local radio and television, notices to the Manitoba Historical Society, and the Fort La Reine newsletter. Anyone thinking of other venues for publicizing the meeting should go ahead and follow them up.

Adjournment: The meeting adjourned at about 11:15 am.

Delta Marsh History Initiative

11 June 2001

Schedule

Phase	Description	Total Time
1	· Initial project planning · Fundraising for research · Public presentations and requests for assistance · Collection of documents, photographs, etc. · Live interviews · Copying of loaned materials, curation of donated materials · Organization of materials and development of database	18 months
2	· Initial book outline prepared · Fundraising for publication · Writing responsibilities assigned · Writing of primary text · Follow-up research	12 months
3	· Text editing, photo selection, preparation of graphics · Page layout of camera-ready copy · Preparation of materials for transfer to archives	6 months

Some issues to consider

· fundraising – sources, tax status, public donations

· division of labour

· sources – people and paper

· acquisition policies – copyright, privacy, etc.

· copying materials – method, specifications

· storage and archival of collected materials?

· information database?

· next meeting

Sub-committees

· Publicity and fundraising

· Acquisition and archival

· Publication

Delta Marsh History Initiative

Contact information

Subject area	Contact(s)
General inquiries	Gordon Goldsborough University of Manitoba, Winnipeg R3T 2N2 Phone: 474-7469 or toll-free at (800) 432-1960 ext. 7469 E-mail: ggoldsb@cc.umanitoba.ca Delta Marsh Field Station (University of Manitoba) Box 38, RR 2, Portage la Prairie R1N 3A2 Phone: 857-8637 E-mail: delta_marsh@umanitoba.ca
Hunting, lodges, waterfowl	Bob Jones Box 96, Portage la Prairie R1N 3B2 Phone: 239-1803 E-mail: bjonesph@mb.sympatico.ca Glen Suggett 24-200 Saulteaux Cres, Winnipeg R3J 3W3 Phone: 945-7763 Gary Garrioch 50 Essar Ave, Winnipeg R2G 0S5 Phone: 339-6929 E-mail: ggarrioc@mb.sympatico.ca
Cottages	Shirley Love Box 38, RR 1, Portage la Prairie R1N 3A1 Phone: 857-8120 Doug De Pape 154 Woodfield Bay, Winnipeg R3R 3B1 Phone: 896-4811
Schools, churches	Barry Bills 40 Radisson Ave, Portage la Prairie R1N 1A9 Phone: 857-3020
Fishing, trapping	Maurice Blanchard 2-839 Duke Ave, Portage la Prairie R1N 0S1 Phone: 857-3807
Farming	Doug Love Box 24, RR 1, Portage la Prairie R1N 3A1 Phone: 857-8220 Don Wilkinson 25-2^nd St. NW, Portage la Prairie Phone: 239-6315
Miscellaneous (any other areas)	Shirley Christianson 118 Wilkinson Cres, Portage la Prairie R1N 1A8 Phone: 239-6903