History of St. Saviour's,
Nelson, British Columbia
Part III - Half a Century:
The Journals of T. L. Leadbeater

The Reverend T. L. Leadbeater (1948 to 1956)

The Rev. Leadbeater wrote the following account after visiting St. Saviour’s half a century later in the summer of 2006.

“We were in Victoria, B.C. when Bishop-elect F. P. Clark phoned me from Nelson to say that he had been elected the Bishop of Kootenay; and to invite me to come to St. Saviours Pro-Cathedral as the Rector and later the Dean. He had previously contacted me to make me aware of this possibility because of my association with him at St. Chad’s College in Regina, where I had been a student and the Sub-Warden of the College as well as the Rector of St. Matthew’s church. Prior to that he had been in Pense, west of Regina, when his daughter, Mary K. was born. Furthermore his wife Marion knew my wife, Betsy, because they were both nurses at the Regina General Hospital.

Since his election was to be followed by the Lambeth Conference in England, which met once every 10 years and to which all Anglican Bishops in the world were invited to attend-The World Anglican Congress also met every 10 years (5 years apart) to which all Bishops and representative clergy and laity met. Bishop Clark was anxious to attend the Lambeth Conference and wanted us to leave Victoria as soon as possible. His phone call to Archbishop Sexton in Victoria allowed us to do that: usually a 3-month term was required.

To enable us to move quickly, the wardens at the Pro-Cathedral arranged for a Nelson Moving Van Company to pack up our household belongings within the week, so that we would be on the way! However, since Betsy’s parents had not seen our son, David (6 months old) we drove first to Shaunavon, Saskatchewan, for a few days rest and visit, and then drove west to Nelson. Unfortunately, during an overnight stay at Fort McCleod, David must have caught something infectious because he became very ill; and as we missed the last ferry from Crawford Bay, we had a further night delay. However, we called Mrs. Clark to arrange for a doctor to see David on our arrival the next day. It was a very anxious time for us and we were thankful to have our first meeting with Dr. Shaw. He cared for us throughout our stay in Nelson and became a very fond friend too! A further set-back, due to the Clark’s not having moved, was that we were given accommodation in a small house on Vernon Street, partly furnished, and not very satisfactory for a sick child. Dr. Shaw came to the house at least twice a day and it was a great relief when David began to recover, and we managed, with help from some of the parishioners, to attend some receptions for meeting the congregation and to do the first Sunday services. The inconveniences of the Vernon Street residence enabled us to move into the rectory with the support and assistance of the vestry before the Bishop and Mrs. Clark returned. This was a blessing with respect to David as well as ourselves, as we needed to get settled into the parish.

In some ways, it was a surprise to me that I was called so soon in my ministry to such an important parish – the Pro-Cathedral of the Diocese: but I did not distress as the Bishop had considerable respect for my ability and commitment, especially with regard to the religious education and activities of children and young people. This was very important to me but I never forgot the elderly; and this was fully expressed when we were able to create better accommodation in the parish hall extension on completion.

After settling in, it did not take long to establish the pattern of parish life. The regular Sunday Services continued as follows:

8:00 a.m. St. Saviour’s Holy Communion
11:00 a.m. St. Saviour’s Holy Communion – first and third Sunday
Morning Prayer and sermon – second and fourth Sunday
3:00 p.m. St.. Andrew’s Willow Point Afternoon service
7:00 p.m. St. Saviours - Evening Prayer and sermon

At the request of the congregation at Willow Point, their service was transferred to 9:15 a.m. This created a little difficulty for me due to the timing of the ferry across the lake – there was no bridge just a glorified barge crossing from one side to the other on heavy cables every 7 1/2 minutes each way. This meant catching the ferry, following the 8:00 a.m. service at the Pro – Cathedral at 7 1/2 minutes before 9:00 to get to the service at 9:15 a.m. at Willow Point. Traffic was not the problem – due to the condition of the road, traffic was always light!! Getting back to the Pro-Cathedral in good time was easier unless, of course, there were some car troubles! If that happened, I just left the car and hitched a ride!

My first few weeks were spent getting to know all the families in the parish by visitations, and also the community. I was trained in theological college by the premise that “a house going parson makes a church going people” – and I think that this is still important!

Once we were settled into the rectory, located in the SW corner of the intersection of Stanley, Latimer streets, and David was recovered, we had the opportunity to enjoy our new and beautiful surroundings, and meet new people in the parish and community. Also our first summer gave us time to enjoy the pleasures of lakeside cottages and beaches, as a number of our parishioners, either resided or summered along the North Shore; to which the ferry gave us access. We also discovered that when summer was over and the children went back to school, things also got back to normal in the church and community. Furthermore, the tourist invasions had not yet reached present day attraction, along with the building of new houses. This did not happen until the improvement of the roads, bridges and ferries; and the road south to the U.S. border was a nightmare.

St. Saviour’s parish was no sinecure since it also involved me in diocesan and general synod affairs, and from time to time attention to other country points in the Kootenay’s, which also included summer van workers and the Sunday school by Post. Van workers were part of the Sunday School by Post system. A driver and a teacher would travel to rural areas and visit children and their families and bring to them quality Christian literature. I was the Director of the Sunday School by Post in the East and West Kootenays for quite a few years in Nelson. There were about 150 children involved. The vans operated from May to September and were parked for the winter months.One van worker stayed over two winters, living in the rectory, to assist me. Trudy Morrison was a great help and developed a weekday pre-school program in the parish hall in the mornings. At that time the hall facilities were quite inadequate but manageable with about twelve children. One major event that did occur, due to a very short letter that I wrote to the Nelson Daily News, which created a stir in the city.

The City Council seemed to be in disarray and my brief note to the newspaper suggested that recent antics in the Russian government seemed like a Sunday school teacher’s party in contrast to our local disruptions! The effects on the community were dramatic! Following its publication, I happened to walk along Baker Street and was overwhelmed by people wanting to thank me and shake my hand! This was followed by a request by a leading citizen, Dr. Morrison, inviting me to lunch to discuss the situation. The meeting with him and another community member, a woman accountant, resulted in calling a public forum, which was held in the theatre on Ward Street – the place was packed! Dr. Morrison introduced me and we both spoke to the crowd re: City Council; this was followed by appointing a committee to prepare a list of names for the forthcoming civic election. Another public meeting in the theatre produced a final list for the election – one for mayor and five councillors. The election won us the mayor (Joe Covey) and four councillors - one other was re-elected. The venture gave me much public notice in the community in respect to speaking at local affairs, and requests to run for public office, provincial and federal: which I did not accept - my ministry came first!

During our time in Nelson there were two Anglican parishes – St. Saviour’s on Ward Street and the Church of the Redeemer in Fairview: The Rev. William Silverwood was their Rector and their home was close by. Silverwood was also responsible for the church in South Slocan, so we worked together caring for several places in the Kootenay’s, which went without clergy for a time. This gave me access to the Church in Proctor, which did not take too much of my time, apart from an occasional service, but did expose me to an event, rather rare in the life of a clergyman! One day I had a call from a lady who attended the church in Proctor asking me to visit an elderly lady who lived with her husband on an acreage on the west side of town. In response to my question as to whom in the parish had visited this elderly lady, she responded by saying that some had tried but her husband wouldn’t allow them, and no doctor had been called. They had notified the R.C.M.P. in Nelson, but they could not do anything about it even though the husband had threatened some of the visitors.

So I went and found the acreage! It had a five-barred gate that had to be opened and closed, when the horse or cow was in the pasture, which was quite a large area in front of the house. When I arrived at the residence and told the husband who I was he was reluctant to allow me in. Eventually, I got inside and sat down in the kitchen and talked with him. I asked to see his wife, who was upstairs, but he said she was asleep and did not want to be disturbed. After awhile he interrupted me and said that he had to go to the barn to attend to something, which he did – the barn was behind the house, some 30 to 40 yards and was back up with trees. As he left the house he called to his wife to tell her that he was going to the barn – there was no response, so I moved to the bottom of the stairs (if one called them that – more like a ladder, angled from the kitchen floor to the bedroom floor), and called her. Her response was “ Get me out of here!” It was an urgent call so I walked up the stairs quietly – no handrails!! When my head came above the floor of the bedroom I saw his wife in a bed. She continued to call. “Get me out of here!”

The place was a terrible mess and very dirty. I picked her up, after placing a blanket around her and moved down the stairs with great caution and placed her into the back seat of my car. At this point, the husband called to me. He went back into the barn for his gun: by which time I was driving towards the gate, which I had to jump out to open, move the car, close the gate, get back in and drive to the small ferry that crossed the river (when required). As I was driving away he kept calling, running after me and waving the gun: whether or not he had fired the gun I was not sure, but I had no intention to stop.

Arriving back in Nelson I went straight to the Nursing Home run by the Roman Catholic sisters – I had visited them before leaving for Proctor to make sure there was a bed. So my patient was taken care of immediately. I had also phoned Dr. Shaw who visited her after she was cleaned up and given clean sleepwear. The sister told me that they had never had a patient in such terrible condition! Afterwards, I realized my actions had been somewhat like a “kidnapping” so I phoned the R.C.M.P. After hearing all the details of the event, the R.C.M.P. planned to visit her husband. Later an officer phoned me to say that I had done the right thing: they wouldn’t have been able to do what I had done unless threatened. He also told me that the husband was now in the care of a relative.

His wife did not live long; she died in hospital and was cared for by distant relatives who had been found. Some months after all this he died, but I had no further contact and never saw or met the distant relatives; not even the funerals were held nearby. This story never ceased to be received with amazement by its listeners – positive and negative – but it is all true and I wouldn’t want to do it again!!

Another outstanding event of a very different nature happened when the vestry decided it was time to finish the church hall: moreover at that time we had enough experienced workers to do the work with no labouring costs. An architect gave us the plans, a city consultant gave us advice and Jim James, a first class carpenter, was prepared to accept leadership of the project. Following the breaking of the sod at which Archdeacon F. Graham presided after church one Sunday morning; work began in earnest, and as the building progressed, the women were able to direct and deal with the interior – painting, curtains, furniture, kitchen equipment and so forth. The building was to include an office for the Bishop and the Dean. The sudden death of the Bishop ended that plan so that the office, facing Ward Street became the Rector’s office and the other for the part-time parish secretary- Margaret Giles.

The women arranged an amazing number of programs for the opening of the hall; which included: daily lunch, a bazaar, a rummage sale, folk dancing and a parish dinner, at which the Bishop addressed the congregation and dedicated the building. The parish dinner was prepared and served with the help of the United Church ladies. Several of the local restaurants on Baker Street provided lunches, for which many in the community attended.

The project made headlines in the Nelson Daily News and one of the Vancouver newspapers claimed that St. Saviours’ Church Hall was the best church hall in the BC interior. Maybe an exaggeration, but it was splendid and provided space for a daily play school (Monday to Friday in the morning) and a school for special children in the afternoon – this was given financial assistance by some associations: Kiwanis, Rotary and so forth. A special room was made available for a senior’s drop-in on certain evenings, and there was adequate room for the A.Y.P.A., Scouts and so forth, parent meetings, the W.A., and the vestry; also a full sized projection screen. About that time the congregation at St. Andrew’s, Willow Point, built a new hall, including the parish room, which was built before my time; and joining the two buildings with a fine kitchen. All this was a blessing to the community for local affairs and so forth: it was a busy place.”

The Reverend T. L. Leadbeater moved to Edmonton where he was the incumbent at Holy Trinity for 23 years until his retirement. However, at the age of 92 (2007) he is still presiding at services near Red Deer, Alberta.