Henry William Zarn was born in Walkerton, Bruce County,
Ontario, on April 7, 1880. He and his brother Jack came west to Oak
Lake. Manitoba where their sister Minnie was working in 1898. After
working on farms in the Oak Lake, Alexander and Brandon areas for two
years, they each took a homestead in the Municipality of Pipestone near
where the village of Ewart was later located.
They almost gave up proving their homesteads, when money and food gave
out, and it was impossible to get anything on credit in those days.
However, a neighbour, Albert Gudmundson, encouraged them to keep going
and also bought them a supply of groceries to tide them over.
Henry married Ethel Amelia Goring born in Surrey, England on April
15th, 1881, who had come to Canada at the age of three with her
parents, James and Ada Goring.
Their first three children were born in a sod house, which Henry and
Jack had built, there and rest of their twelve children in the larger
frame house which was built in 1905.
Henry farmed first with oxen and later with horses; and had his
crops threshed by Jack Gallin's outfit and later by Tom McKay's
threshing machine. When his own sons were big enough to help, he bought
an outfit of his own.
They were good neighbours, helped in community projects; and Henry was
a school trustee for many years. They lived on the homestead from 1902
until 1945, when they retired to Virden, where they lived until 1959,
when Mrs. Zarn passed away. After that, Mr. Zam lived with his family
until he died in 1963. They celebrated their 50th Wedding Anniversary in
Virden with almost all the family and grandchildren
present.
Adapted from Trails Along the Pipestone, page 225
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