The Mossbank tradition of apple pie day continued after one-year-off due to the pandemic.
Residents of Mossbank and district and visitors from as far away as Moose Jaw and Regina piled into the museum guest building for a piece of pie with ice cream and cheese, or sat at picnic tables on the lawn near the museum’s Ambrosz house.
Among them was Elaine Frost of Moose Jaw who came with two friends.
“I came for pie day,” she said. “I went to school here. We always come back for apple pie day. It’s nice to visit.”
The pies were donated by museum members and local folks who have apple trees in their garden.
The tradition started when the Ambrosz blacksmith shop and house became a museum. Museum members wanted to make use of apples from the tree in the yard. Thus was born apple pie day, held the third Wednesday every August.
The event is the main fundraiser for the museum.
About 65 apple pies are needed to feed hungry visitors during the afternoon. Any extra pies are sold to visitors.
Another tradition, young people pouring beverages and cleaning tables, continued as well.
Once the pie had been savoured, visitors were encouraged to tour the museum — a school house, Ambrosz blacksmith shop and house, the founders’ building and a recently erected building.
Kim and Reg Dyck of Moose Jaw were amazed by an old Red and White grocery store advertisement featuring a canned meat called Spork, two cans for $1. Oranges were six pounds for $1. Apples were $2.99 a box.
Frying chicken was 45 cents a pound. Ring baloney was 69 cents a pound.
They were amused by a Monopoly board game drawn on a cardboard Eaton’s box in 1934 by an 11-year-old.
The new building features a miniature thresher and steam powered tractor built from spare parts by the late Bert Kolash. The steamer’s boiler was made from an old hot water tank.
The display includes a vintage water well drilling machine to find the all-important water well needed to allow a farm to survive and thrive.
Ron Walter can be reached at ronjoy@sasktel.net
