tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-716407892466377250.post232904782822535751..comments2024-03-29T02:29:51.872-05:00Comments on West End Dumplings: Farewell to 412 Toronto StreetChristian Cassidyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17691310860448400887noreply@blogger.comBlogger6125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-716407892466377250.post-59152380250212419552018-11-12T22:16:54.896-06:002018-11-12T22:16:54.896-06:00(...cont)
Then there's Harry, Harald Cleven,...(...cont)<br /><br /><br />Then there's Harry, Harald Cleven, who was Dad's favourite brother and who died when I was only one on on the frozen basalt buttress of Mount Slesse during a thunderstorm, the plane smashing into it, following the wrong beacon and with the pilots only seeing the mountain-face as they were about to smash into it.... the date was December 6, 1956, and among the dead on the flight were most of the Winnipeg Blue Bombers and their major supporters, who included Uncle Harry.<br /><br />WestEndDumplings, Winnipeggers might be most interested if you to research and write about Harry, as he was president of the Manitoba YMCA and also the Manitoba Rotary and I don't know what else.....his son Jim and daughter Sue Hoplock are still alive if you'd like to find out details from them about him, though there must be lots in Winnipeg's newspaper archives; his youngest, Jeff, the youngest, who did the first loft-space redevelopment in downtown Winnipeg and worked as for major pension funds, died a few years ago.<br /><br />So those are the kids who grew up at 412 Toronto. Grandpa I've been in touch with the Office of Persons of Canadian National Significance about, and they agree he qualifies but wanted more documentation. This article of yours is a piece towards that end, and thank my cousin Kris (Odvar's grandson) who sent it to me.<br /><br />And WestEndDumplings...something Jim and I were curious about that maybe you could go ask about for me/us: - Dad's old pool hall had recently become a mosque when I was there in '07.... tout ca change- but we got wondering what they'd done with the old pool table... did the imam take it home or is it in their masjid's community hall - or is billiards contrary to the teachings of the Prophet?<br /><br />I'll bet it was as super-nice pool table... and I do wonder if the family piano was still in the house when the next family bought it, or where it went when Grandma left the house.Skookum1https://www.blogger.com/profile/02454267132163984177noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-716407892466377250.post-34397435400421789312018-11-12T22:16:10.051-06:002018-11-12T22:16:10.051-06:00for the benefit of others reading this page and al...for the benefit of others reading this page and also for the Winnipeg blogger who posted it, it's worth saying who was raised in that house and what became of them. For the blogger, if you want to contact me, I have group shots in front of the house of all the siblings and also of my Dad playing fiddle at some outdoor party in a Winnipeg residential area in the '30s in front a big house with a lot of guys, and also shots of him playing rugby and of the Winnipeg rugby team he played for.....you'd be able to know where such shots were, and also a lot of beach shots I have from what must be Lake of the Woods or up at Slave Falls, though some of Winnipeg Lake Beach, whatever it's called.<br /><br />Anyways, the Cleven kids are a whole story in themselves. My Dad became a boxer and also a billiards champion (kinda famous one, when he came back for Grandma's funeral in '64 my cousin Jim told me they had to bring bleachers into the pool hall up the street from 412 Toronto, as so many people wanted to see Dad play again... he could do all kinds of tricks, making the ball jump and such... and told me he once played with Minnesota Fats, and during his thumb-breaking days with the mob in the rum-running years he was around Chicago and Milwaukee a lot, and told he me he met Al Capone once.<br /><br />And that's just Dad. Lillian was a showgirl and became Miss Canada 1930 - I wish I had more pictures of her and knew about her career in her youth, as the '20s and '30s were an amazing time in showbiz anywhere. She "married up" in Chicago after divorcing her first husband, Norm Kierland, and became private secretary to the County Clerk of Cook County i.e. part of Mayor Daley's Democratic Party machine.<br /><br />Alf (Alfred) did very, very well for himself....ending up as Chief Factor of the Hudson's Bay Company with his name so well-established in fur markets worldwide. So well-established that when he died, the HBC came to my cousin Jim, Harald's oldest son, who was sales manager for Playtex Canada's western division, to ask him to take over Alf's job... they wanted him bad, but Jim said he didn't know anything about furs and let the opportunity go (Jim, you were a fool, buddy, man what I'd have given for that gig LOLOL).<br /><br />Odvar, who like my Dad had no high school education, nonetheless became an aerospace engineer and worked for De Havilland and Canadair, and worked on the Avro Arrow.<br />Skookum1https://www.blogger.com/profile/02454267132163984177noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-716407892466377250.post-29405878248948159172018-11-09T22:19:12.293-06:002018-11-09T22:19:12.293-06:00I'm Endre and Margit's grandson Mike, and ...I'm Endre and Margit's grandson Mike, and I have various photos of gatherings of grandma with others who I have no idea who they are, other than Uncle and Jenny (Uncle being how I grew up knowing Aadne, though he was my great-uncle). If you email me at [myname] at gmail dot com I'll send you what I have.<br /><br />I'd be interested in seeing what shots you have of the Clevens other than Grandma; my dad was Endre, the eldest. I have a few but not many shots of his siblings. Skookum1https://www.blogger.com/profile/02454267132163984177noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-716407892466377250.post-68074960088372493922018-10-29T20:58:19.842-05:002018-10-29T20:58:19.842-05:00This comment has been removed by the author.Anonymoushttps://www.blogger.com/profile/15593426437688475523noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-716407892466377250.post-17165271038896794802018-10-29T20:58:18.191-05:002018-10-29T20:58:18.191-05:00I'm Endre & Margit's great granddaught...I'm Endre & Margit's great granddaughter, Jacqueline. My grandfather was Harry Cleven. I'm sorry I didn't get a chance to see their house before it was demolished. Thanks for posting this info! Anonymoushttps://www.blogger.com/profile/15593426437688475523noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-716407892466377250.post-11693569182168292382018-01-10T12:44:24.493-06:002018-01-10T12:44:24.493-06:00Thanks for the informative history regarding this ...Thanks for the informative history regarding this house. My grandparents on my father's side of the family knew Margit Cleven well. I have inherited many photos of my grandparents and my father with Clevens, Hoinesses, Sandbergs and Hilleslands from the Norwegian Lutheran Church in Winnipeg. They appear such a close knit group and I can remember a few of them, but not Margit. I must have been too young. My grandparents lived a few km away at 1862 Assiniboine Ave and later moved to 997 Warsaw Avenue, but my early life was in St. Boniface. Last summer I brought my family to visit Winnipeg, which I had not seen since moving away in 1966 while in grade 4. It was a great history lesson for my son.<br /><br />Gary Jackson<br />Burlington, ONAnonymoushttps://www.blogger.com/profile/05133431604951407037noreply@blogger.com