On Saturday, 21 June 2025, the EBSNS held its Annual General Meeting at the Elizabeth Bishop House in Great Village, N.S. A good turnout of 19 board members and guests got through a lot of good business and enjoyed a lively, formative talk by Laura Schwarz, EBSNS Vice President and manager of the Bass River Heritage Museum. Her subject was the fascinating history of the Dominion Chair Company of Bass River, N.S. It was grand to be back in the EB House. The EBSNS is deeply grateful to the St. James Church of Great Village Preservation Society for its careful stewardship of this dear old house. Cheryl MacRae gave a detailed update about the house and it was good to hear that many artists are still enjoying time there, that lots of creativity is happening under its roof, which Cheryl reported must be replaced, so efforts are underway to secure funding for that big project, which must be done in keeping with the historic nature of the house, since it is a registered heritage property. Below are some images from the meeting.
Board member Rosaria Campbell started off the meeting reading two Bishop poems: "Manners" and "Sonnet"
Some of the merry band who gathered. One of the surprises of the meeting was the sharing of old centenary banners that had been in storage for some years. Immediately, many who were present purchased them as souvenirs. We still have a few left, but expect to sell them all.
Said banner being held by Pam Riley. These banners hung in Great Village for a number of years in the early 2010s. The Great Village School will be doing an art project in the fall which will produce artwork by the students that will be put on new banners to hand in the village.
Our meeting concluded with a delightful and informative talk by Laura Schwarz. The Dominion Chair Company, known for its famous "Bass River Chairs" had a long and dramatic history punctuated by six fires at the factory -- you can't make up such history, no one would believe you. But it persevered and its chairs were sent around the world. Indeed, the EB House is home to a number of its chairs. The EBSNS thanks all those who attended the AGM and Laura who entertained us in such an enlightening way.
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