Material Type

Artifact

Date Range From

1910

Date Range To

1920

Materials

WOOL

No. Pieces

1

Length

205.0

Width

182.0

Description

OLIVE GREEN WOOL BLANKET. DARK GREEN WOOL HAS BEEN WOVEN ABOUT 15CM FROM EITHER END CREATING TWO 11CM WIDE STRIPES. THE SEAMS AT NARROW END OF BLANKET HAVE BEEN REINFORCED WITH BLACK WOOL IN HERRING BONE STITCH. IN ONE CORNER IS WHITE COTTON LABEL WITH RED PRINTING. HAS COAT OF ARMS FOR HUDSON'S BAY CO. WITH TWO RAMPANT DEER WITH SHIELD INLAID WITH CROSS. AROUND IT IS PRINTED "HUDSON'S BAY COMPANY INCORPORATED 1670". AROUND SEAL READS "ALL GENUINE HUDSON'S BAY COINT BLANKETS BEAR THIS SEAL". ACROSS BOTTOM READS "THE SEAL OF QUALITY" AND "MADE IN ENGLAND". ALL PRINTING IS FADING AND WORN. BLANKET HAS SEVERAL SMALL HOLES AND STAINS. ONE SIDE HAS A COUPLE OF GREEN PAINT SPLATTERS. EDGES AND CORNERS OF BLANKET ARE WORN AND FRAYING SLIGHTLY.

Subjects

BEDDING

Historical Association

DOMESTIC

MILITARY?

History

BLANKET IS CLAIMED TO BE W.W.I. BRITISH ISSUE. HOWEVER, BLANKET WAS ALSO CLAIMED TO BE USED BY DONOR'S UNCLE, SLIM COX, CA. 1905. ORIGIN IS NOT CLEAR. IT IS KNOWN THAT MR. COX WORKED IN THE BREWERY FOR APPROX. 60 YEARS. *UPDATE* IN 2012 COLLECTIONS ASSISTANT DAVID SMITH CONDUCTED A SURVEY OF MILITARY OBJECTS. HE LEARNED THE FOLLOWING. ACCORDING TO THE LETHBRIDGE HERALD, ALBERT WILLIAM COX (KNOWN AS SLIM) CAME TO CANADA WITH HIS PARENTS FROM ENGLAND IN 1902. HE BEGAN WORKING AT THE BREWERY IN 1910, AND IN 1915 HE ENLISTED IN THE 39TH CANADIAN BATTERY AND WENT OVERSEAS. IN 1918 HE RETURNED TO LETHBRIDGE WHERE HE RESUMED HIS POSITION AT THE BREWERY. COX IS ONE OF THE FEW SOLDIERS TO HAVE TWO ATTESTATION PAPERS WITH DIFFERENT SERVICE NUMBERS AND SLIGHTLY DIFFERENT DETAILS. THE FIRST (FROM FEBRUARY 6TH 1915) INDICATES THAT HIS YEAR OF BIRTH IS 1888 AND ANSWERS NO TO ANY PREVIOUS MILITARY SERVICE. THE SECOND (DATED OCTOBER 11, 1915) LISTS HIS YEAR OF BIRTH AS 1889, AND INDICATES THAT HE HAD 2 MONTHS SERVICE WITH THE 13 MOUNTED RIFLES. BOTH FORMS LIST HIS WIFE ANNIE’S ADDRESS IN LETHBRIDGE ALBERTA AND HIS BIRTHPLACE BEING GILDFORD SURREY ENGLAND. HIS FIRST SERVICE NUMBER RETRIEVES TWO DIFFERENT SOLDIER’S FILES WITH THE NATIONAL ARCHIVES, WHILE HIS SECOND NUMBER RETRIEVES ONLY HIS LATER FILE. IT IS POSSIBLE (BUT ONLY SPECULATED) THAT IN ORDER TO CLEAR UP THE CONFUSION BETWEEN THE TWO SOLDIERS, COX WAS GIVEN THE OPTION OF FILLING OUT A NEW FORM. FOR MORE INFORMATION, PLEASE SEE PERMANENT FILE. *UPDATE* IN 2017 COLLECTIONS ASSISTANT RUTHANN LABLANCE CONDUCTED A SURVEY OF CLOTHING, INCLUDING A PAIR OF HORSEHAIR GAUNTLETS DONATED BY JACK AND MARY BAILEY. THE FOLLOWING BIOGRAPHICAL INFORMATION WAS COMPILED USING ARTICLES FROM THE LETHBRIDGE HERALD. GEORGE WILLIAM “JACK” BAILEY WAS BORN ON APRIL 26, 1914 IN LETHBRIDGE, AB TO GEORGE AND ANNIE BAILEY. HE MARRIED MARY LOUISE BAILEY (NEE BUTTREY) IN MEDICINE HAT, AB ON JANUARY 1, 1940. JACK PASSED AWAY AT THE AGE OF 82 ON MARCH 5, 1997. MARY LOUISE BAILEY (NEE BUTTREY) WAS BORN IN MEDICINE HAT, AB ON JANUARY 1, 1918, THE DAUGHTER OF WILLIAM AND SUSAN (MAIDEN NAME UNKNOWN) BUTTREY. SHE PASSED AWAY AT THE AGE OF 84 ON MAY 16, 2002. GEORGE ARTHUR BAILEY WAS BORN IN BRISTOL, ENGLAND AND CAME TO CANADA IN 1906, WHERE HE HOMESTEADED IN THE IRON SPRINGS DISTRICT IN 1907. IN 1912, GEORGE MARRIED ANNIE ELIZABETH BAILEY (NEE COX). THE COUPLE MOVED TO MONTANA IN 1912 AND REMAINED THERE UNTIL 1920 WHEN THEY RETURNED TO LETHBRIDGE. IN 1927, GEORGE AND ANNIE MOVED TO SHAUGHNESSY, AB SO THAT GEORGE COULD TAKE WORK AS STABLE-BOSS. HE PASSED AWAY AT THE AGE OF 85 ON SEPTEMBER 14, 1968. ANNIE ELIZABETH BAILEY (NEE COX) WAS THE DAUGHTER OF JOHN WALTER AND JANE ELIZABETH COX (MAIDEN NAME UNKNOWN). ANNIE WAS BORN IN SURREY, ENGLAND AND MOVED TO LETHBRIDGE IN 1905. SHE MARRIED GEORGE BAILEY AT DIAMOND CITY IN 1912. SHE PASSED AWAY AT THE AGE OF 85 ON MARCH 25, 1976. ANNIE HAD TWO BROTHERS: JOHN WALTER COX AND ALBERT WILLIAM “SLIM” COX. ALBERT WILLIAM “SLIM” COX MOVED TO CANADA WITH HIS PARENTS IN 1902 AND BEGAN WORKING FOR THE BREWERY IN 1910. HE ENLISTED WITH THE 39TH BATTERY IN 1915 AND SERVED OVERSEAS UNTIL 1919. HE RETURNED TO HIS POSITION WITH THE BREWERY, FINALLY RETIRING IN 1954. HE PASSED AWAY AT THE AGE OF 78 IN JULY 1966. SLIM WAS MARRIED TWICE: FIRST TO ANNIE TURNER WHO PASSED AWAY AT THE AGE OF 35 ON OCTOBER 8, 1927; AND THE SECOND MARRIAGE WAS TO DOROTHY EMILY SULLIVAN (NEE WYLIE). THEY WERE MARRIED IN SEPTEMBER 1948. DOROTHY PASSED AWAY AT THE AGE OF 96 ON OCTOBER 18, 1989. (SHE HAD PREVIOUSLY BEEN MARRIED TO MICHAEL SULLIVAN) JOHN WALTER “WALLY” COX WAS BORN IN GUILDFORD, SURREY, ENGLAND AND MOVED TO LETHBRIDGE IN 1906, WHERE HE WORKED FOR THE LETHBRIDGE BREWERY FOR 26 YEARS. HE PASSED AWAY AT THE AGE OF 61, A SINGLE MAN, ON JUNE 28, 1947. ANNIE, ALBERT, AND JOHN WERE THE CHILDREN OF JOHN WALTER AND JANE COX (MAIDEN NAME UNKNOWN). JOHN WALTER PASSED AWAY AT THE AGE OF 72 ON NOVEMBER 9, 1937. ACCORDING TO HIS OBITUARY, HE “CAME TO LETHBRIDGE FROM SUSSEX, ENGLAND 31 YEARS AGO, AND HAS RESIDED HERE SINCE.” JANE (MAIDEN NAME UNKNOWN) PASSED AWAY AT THE AGE OF 85 ON DECEMBER 30, 1946. SHE WAS BORN IN DORSET, ENGLAND AND MOVED TO LETHBRIDGE WITH HER HUSBAND. SEE PERMANENT FILE FOR COPIES OF THE ARTICLES FROM THE LETHBRIDGE HERALD.

*UPDATE* IN 2021 TWO COLLECTIONS ASSISTANTS, RYLEY GELINAS AND O. E., CONDUCTED AN AUDIT OF THE ROLLED TEXTILE COLLECTION, INCLUDING THIS ARTIFACT. RESEARCH CONDUCTED LED TO CONTACT WITH THE DONOR AND/OR NEXT OF KIN, HOWEVER, NO FURTHER INFORMATION WAS MADE AVAILABLE AS A RESULT OF THE AUDIT WORK.

Catalogue Number

P19930050007

Acquisition Date

1993-08

Collection

Museum

Less detail