What Happened And Who Did It
"They lost the way thro' the woods seventy years ago.
Weather and rain have undone it again,
And now you would never know
There was once a way thro' the woods."Walter de la Mare
Now that you have unloaded your car, made your first mug of tea, sipped your first beer, sat on the deck absorbing the peace, while the tensions of life slip silently away through the tall trees, perhaps you would like to learn more about this historic little cabin which Diana and Phil were brave enough to buy in 1989.
Well, they were brave. Although the Lacon Cabin was historic and still habitable, thick broom covered the whole property, so that it was hard to see out of the high small windows with their crumbling frames. It was a gloomy, sad little house, which had been neglected for many years.
There was no septic tank and the family had to tramp outside in all weathers to the earth closet in the draughty outdoor shed. Water was uncertain. The original old dug well is now in the next door property and one can still see the bucket and chain and the steps leading down inside it. Most of the improvements and upgrading including the kitchen and the narrow toilet, are due to Phil's skills as a handyman. He also opened up the attic space and built the staircase. The fine old French windows came from the Empress Hotel during modernisation. Fortunately the Fosters have been careful to retain some of the quaint original features which add so much to the rustic charm of this old property.
If you walk back the way you drove in, until you reach the No Thru Road sign, then turn to face the sea, you will see below you a deep cutting - the old Way through the Woods- the original narrow little dirt road to the Lacon property in the days when the property extended over forty acres.
The two Lacon brothers were members of a titled English aristocratic family. They came out to Denman just before the First World War - though what brought them here I know not. Perhaps their family had fallen on evil days and the brothers came out, like so many other young and enterprising folk to seek their fortune. After the war the elder brother Reginald, had the good sense to marry an heiress from Halifax Nova Scotia. A member of the Cunard family, Hilda had been studying music on an extensive tour of Europe. She was a passenger on board the ill-fated Titanic on the ships maiden voyage in 1912. When the ship hit an iceberg many hundreds of lives were lost. Hilda was very fortunate to be one of the few survivors but lost the whole of her expensive trousseau.
At that time Denman Island was still being settled by hard working farmers. After felling the trees they used herds of roaming pigs to break up the tree-roots, in order to make a first attempt at ploughing possible. But Denman also attracted several wealthy families who built themselves substantial homes. The older Lacon brother Reginald, bought a considerable amount of land at the far end of what is now Lacon road. There he built a large house with gardens and a tennis court. A sophisticated lady but undeterred by the rigors of pioneering life, Hilda settled down to entertain in style. She imported her grand piano, filled the house with antique French furniture and in true Edwardian fashion changed her beautiful gowns several times a day.
But it is with the younger Lacon brother that we are concerned. Cee Lacon married Heather Bell-Irving - a jolly unsophisticated girl. They built this modest cabin and lived here until their deaths, settling down to a simple self-sufficient life, growing their own fruit and vegetables and keeping hens and possibly goats and a pig or two. For fish they had the sea and by the thirties they could row across to Buckley Bay to buy meat from the butcher without any thumbs.
Cee and Heather had no children of their own but befriended all the children on the island. There are still old people living on the island who remember the fun of being packed into the back of Cee's big truck to learn to fish and make camp fires on the beach, or hike through the woods, or to be taught to play tennis on Reginald's fine court. Cee himself was an expert, and had played at Wimbledon. He was something of a naturalist also and knew and loved every nook and cranny of the island and wanted to pass on his knowledge to the next generation.
The Lacon graves are in the little cemetry beyond the Methodist church. They are marked - Cyril 1886-1964 and Heather 1881-1969. In her old age Heather became slightly fay and Cyril died without making a will. The property therefore went to wealthy brother Reginald. Fortunately Heather's neice Norah Johnston was later able to buy it back. The ground was divided into Lots and in 1989 Nora sold the old cabin to Diana and Phil. Nora's son and his wife now live in the house to the north. It is good to feel that the land is still loved by the same family.
So welcome to this little old house. Maybe you will feel that its joints creak a bit, but then so do we all as we grow old. Soon the Lacon/Foster cabin will be seventy years old - years of being loved, then somewhat neglected and then loved again. We hope that you will benefit from its peace. Sit back. Relax. Enjoy.
Ready for that second mug of tea?
Sheila Baillie
Edinburgh, Scotland and Denman Island