Bahai Library Online

Chronology of the Bahá'í Faith in Canada

World Canada
   

Date 1953-10, sorted by date, descending

date event tags firsts
1953 12Oct
195-		 Irving and Grace Geary arrive at their pioneer post on Cape Beton Island and took up residence in Baddeck and later moved to Sydney. They stayed on the island until 1961. They learned of the Faith from Mabel Ives who made a teaching trip to Moncton, NB where they were living in 1937. [KoB280-282]
  • Frederick and Jeanne Allen arrived one day later and opened a small grocery store a few kilometers from Sydney. They remained until 1961 when they were asked to return to Charlottetown to maintain the Assembly. [KoB280-282; BW15458-459]
 - Knights of Bahá'u'lláh; Baddeck, NS; Cape Breton Island, NS; Frederick Allen; Grace Geary; Irving Geary; Jeanne Allen; Sydney, NS
1953 Oct
195-		 John Robarts (1901 – 1991) and Audrey Robarts, who had become Bahá'ís in 1937 in Toronto, pioneered to Bechuanaland (Botswana) with their children, Patrick and Tina. Aldham pioneered to West Africa. [Bahá'í Community of Canada. "John Robarts." Baha'i Historical Figures; CBN No 47 December, 1953 p1]
  • John was a member of the National Spiritual Assembly from 1948–53.
  • In 1953 they became Knights of Bahá'u'lláh when they pioneered to Bechuanaland sailing from Saint John on the 6th of January. [CBN No 50 March 1954 p2]
  • from John and Audrey Robarts. "They are now comfortably settled at Mafeking, where they were fortunate enough to buy an attractive bungalow with electrical equipment and furniture a few days after their arrival. Housing is very scarce in Mafeking and people who have been living in hotels for months looking for accommodation eye them with envy. The house is situated in an orchard with 12 varieties of fruit, and overlooks a golf course on one side and a fine school playground on the other. John had a choice of positions offered him in the insurance field, Nina has an excellent school and Patrick is in Johannesburg at university." [CBN No52 May 1954 p2]
  • In 1957 John Robarts was appointed a Hand of the Cause of God. [14 May 1954. Messages to Canada]
- Knights of Bahá'u'lláh; Aldham Robarts; Audrey Robarts; John Robarts; Patrick Robarts; Tina Robarts; Toronto, ON
1953 Oct
195-		 Mrs (Alexandra) Ola Pawlowska arrived in St Pierre and was named a Knight of Bahá'u'lláh for Miquelon Island and St Pierre Island. [BW13:454; KoB282-283; CBN No 46 November 1953 p5]
  • See CBN No 48 January, 1954 p5 for a letter from Ola describing the conditions on the island.
  • After four years she asked the Guardian's permission to leave and his reply was that she could provided she found a replacement. She went on to spend more than 30 years in Africa. [KoB283]
    		•  - Knights of Bahá'u'lláh; Miquelon Island; Ola Pawlowska; St. Pierre and Miquelon
    1953 Oct
    195-    		 Florence Mayberry of Santa Paula, California made a tour of Western Canada with stops in Victoria, Vernon, Saskatoon, Winnipeg, Calgary, Regina, Moose Jaw and Brandon. [CBN No 47 December, 1953 p4] Brandon, MB; Calgary, AB; Florence Mayberry; Moose Jaw, SK; Regina, SK; Saskatoon, SK; Travel teaching; Vernon, BC; Victoria, BC; Winnipeg, MB
    1953 Oct
    195-    		 The National Spiritual Assembly announced that the property that had been purchased the previous year at 188 St George Street West in Toronto had been sold. It proved to be impractical to alter the building to suit the needs.
  • A search for a suitable piece of land for the Haziratu'l-Quds and the Mashriqu'l-Adhkár was undertaken. [CBN No 45 October 1953 p3]
    		•  - Mashriqu'l-Adhkár (House of Worship); Haziratul-Quds (Bahá'í centres); Toronto, ON
    1953 Oct
    195-    		 Noland Boss arrived Yellowknife (MacKenzie District). Noland was one of the first believers to arise during the Ten Year Crusade, and to travel from his home community in the Okanagan Valley north to the frontier town of Yellowknife which was a twentieth century version of a nineteenth century mining camp. Here amidst a floating and ever changing population, Noland found employment and in later years to it he brought his bride. In the years that have followed, Noland and Bernice established their home and raised their family and, with undeviating steadfastness, have remained at their post.

    Other pioneers to Yellowknife were Ted Blencowe (1954 September) and later his wife, Helen, and Don and Midge Ulery, as well as Arthur and Lily Anne Irwin. [CBN No57 Oct 1954 p1; CBN No 207 Apr 1967 p8]

    		Bernice Boss; Don Ulery; Helen Blencowe; Midge Ulery; Noland Boss; Ted Blencowe; Yellowknife, NT
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