Dearest Mother Pt 8: Cards from Friends

Postcards to a Métis Matriarch

In 2024, my father shared with me some postcards he had kept. They were passed down by his great-grandmother, Eliza Scheer (nee Desmarais) a Métis midwife who ran a boarding house in Fort MacLeod in the early decades of the 20th century. Most, but not all, were from her son George, who enlisted for the First World War.

Now that they have come to me, I want to share them so that these words and pictures can connect family and friends across time as well as distance.

Popular Stopping Place

Eliza’s boarding house was one of the centres of community for south-west Alberta and its matron a friend to many.

My grandfather Laurence Long recalls “This was a popular stopping place for many of the settlers arriving and included names as the Hunter Brothers, the Brattons, Johnny Franklin, Kootenai Brown, Father Lacombe, and many others.”  

Eliza clearly made many friends throughout her life, so it isn’t surprising that several of the family’s collection of postcards are from friends to her or her and her husband. 

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Postcards from Frank Lewis

To Eliza, Sept 23, 1914

To Eliza, Oct 25, 1914

How Frank Lewis knew Eliza, other than being from Fort MacLeod, I do not know. Like her son George, he signed up during the First World War and travelled to England, then Europe. Unlike George, he did not make it home. Frank Lewis died April 23, 1915 at the Battle of Ypres and is buried in Belgium. 

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Postcards from Margaret

To Eliza, Dec 9, 19[…]

Is this postcard from the same woman as that below? I originally thought so, but the difference in spelling makes it seem unlikely. This postcard is just covered in mysteries – including the year it was sent, which is even more unintelligible than the author’s script.

As much as it might seem like whinging, Margaret’s complaints to Eliza about their family illness is relevant: Eliza was a practical nurse and may have looked after Margaret or her family’s health in the past.

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Postcards from M. McDonald

To Eliza, Nov 5, 1916

The “Mrs. Long” is Eliza’s daughter Mary, who married Robert M. Long in 1902 (and is my great grandmother). You can read some postcards from her here. “Rita” is Mary’s only daughter born 1913 (you can see her practising her signature as a child on her uncle’s postcards here). “Wilbert” is Eliza’s youngest son who would have been about 15 and likely still at home helping his mother at the Boarding House. I am not sure sure who “Lucenie” is.

Elsewhere on this postcard, M. McDonald notes that she is staying at Lacombe House in Midnapore, Calgary. Father Albert Lacombe, the famous missionary, was a family friend who baptised several of Eliza’s children and worked closely with Métis and First Nations communities across the West. His last great project was the building of a charitable home in Calgary. Lacombe House was a “a substantial facility to accommodate orphans, the aged, and the poor.” Its tradition continues with the Father Lacombe Care Foundation.

Father Albert Lacombe himself died this same year, 1916, at Lacombe House of an influenza. No doubt the Scheers were among the mourners, for they knew him personally as well as by reputation.

Postcards from Alice

To Eliza?, May 1917

This translates as “See you soon, your sincere friend Alice.” I am afraid it is not clear at all who Alice is or why she refers to Eliza as “Mrs Scheer Georges”. (it may even be addressed to M. Scheer Georges, meaning Monsieur – I cannot be sure). It is relevant here to remember that Michael Scheer, Eliza’s husband, was a Frenchman, and that Eliza’s daughters all learned to read and write French. The image on the postcard is by H. Milan and depicts Rue quinquerue somme in Picardie, France. 

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Laurence Long quoted in Fort Macleod History Book Committee (Alberta). 19771990. Fort Macleod–our Colorful Past. Fort Macleod History Book Committee. Pgs 439-443.

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I am a descendant of Eliza (Desmarais) Scheer through her daughter Mary, grandson Laurence, and great-grandson Richard. I am a storyteller and amateur historian. This story is part of my online exhibition Dearest Mother: Postcards from a Métis Trooper in the First World War.