Interview between Dr. Lewis H. Thomas and W. E. Davies.

Description

Dr. Lewis H. Thomas and W. E. Davies continue their interview. They discuss how land was assigned to the new settlers to Canada and how there was a rush to establish schools for the teaching of English, to help with their integration. They talk about the impact the first world war had upon the population, and how the inter-war period was an agriculturally prosperous time due to the favourable weather conditions. W. E. Davies also talks about the strong singing tradition amongst the settlers and how initially, Welsh services had been conducted at the newly established chapels and churches in the area. Singing competitions were also commonplace at the time. They discuss several photos and artefacts that Mr. Davies has held on to including a medal he received at the Patagonian Colony Centenary celebration. Mr. Davies also comments how the floods in Patagonia in 1905 resulted in the loss of many records relevant to the colony however, he had many stories and knew of many personal histories of life in the colony which he describes to Dr Lewis. Mr Davies also talks about how the instability of the government in Patagonia at the time was a great influence in his father’s decision to move to Canada.