She was born in 1868, married in 1889 and widowed in 1903 at the age of 35 when her husband George Smith Cutting succumbed to typhoid.
Times were tough. Winnifred took in boarders, did laundry for people, cleaned houses, grew her own food, preserved the produce, baked, and sewed the family’s clothing, all while raising their five children on her own. The eldest of whom was 13-year-old Howard.
Winnifred would harvest the seeds from her vegetables and flowers so she could propagate them in future years.
She successfully raised all of her children. Not an easy feat for a single woman at the turn of the 20th century.
Howard went on to marry Elva
Watterworth and they had four sons, Earl, Bert, Harvey and Murray, as well as
adopting Shirley, the infant daughter of Howard’s younger sister Mary Viola who
died in childbirth.
Harvey grew up and married Margaret Forman. And Jean, the eldest of their six children went on to marry Ed deBalinhard and have five children – yours truly being the second in line.
Before Winnifred passed away in 1949 in Carman Manitoba, she gave some of the seeds she had collected over the years to her grandson Earl (Harvey’s older brother) and his wife Annie who lived across the street from her.
Annie hung onto a little bag of poppy seeds for decades, and many years before she passed in 2013, she gifted them to her daughter Gwenda.
Gwenda was decluttering her home last year, in 2022, and came across the 80-100 year old little bag of seeds.
With little hope of success, some of the seeds were given to a relative who worked in a nursery in Manitoba to see if they would germinate.
To everyone’s delight, within 2 months the seeds had blossomed into the most beautiful frilly purple poppies!
And through the magic of the internet and Facebook, I took Gwenda up on her offer of some of the heritage seeds.
Winnifred had no idea that nearly 100 years later, I would be thrilled out of my mind to have those little suckers blooming in our wildflower garden behind our house.
Harvey grew up and married Margaret Forman. And Jean, the eldest of their six children went on to marry Ed deBalinhard and have five children – yours truly being the second in line.
Before Winnifred passed away in 1949 in Carman Manitoba, she gave some of the seeds she had collected over the years to her grandson Earl (Harvey’s older brother) and his wife Annie who lived across the street from her.
Annie hung onto a little bag of poppy seeds for decades, and many years before she passed in 2013, she gifted them to her daughter Gwenda.
Gwenda was decluttering her home last year, in 2022, and came across the 80-100 year old little bag of seeds.
With little hope of success, some of the seeds were given to a relative who worked in a nursery in Manitoba to see if they would germinate.
To everyone’s delight, within 2 months the seeds had blossomed into the most beautiful frilly purple poppies!
And through the magic of the internet and Facebook, I took Gwenda up on her offer of some of the heritage seeds.
Winnifred had no idea that nearly 100 years later, I would be thrilled out of my mind to have those little suckers blooming in our wildflower garden behind our house.
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| Great-great-great-great Grandma Winnifred Florence Elvina Christina Jay Cutting. (With baby Gwenda) |
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| Howard and Elva with Earl, Bert and Baby Harvey on the lap. |
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| Harvey with Jean, Liana and his first great-grandchild, Brandi. |
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| Winnifred's grandson Harvey, and his daughter Jean, and her daughter Liana, and her son Ken, and his son Xander - Winnifred's great-great-great-great grandson. |
