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- George Axford, Sr. was first born to William and Phoebe (Glens) Axford. George built himself a cozy white stucco cottage with a red roof, andreturned to Scotland for his bride. George and Phoebe had two children,Billy and George, Jr. who helped to keep life interesting at theBrownhill School for some years. The Axfords had the first gramophone in the district, a machine with avery large horn, which was fascinating to everyone. George also had thefirst gasoline engine to be used for threshing. He had considerabletrouble with it, particularly in cold weather, and the neighbors shooktheir heads and said that such s contraption would never replace the oldsteamer. Mr. Axford was always receptive to new ideas. At one time he tried out astraw burning stove for heating the house. A few of them were sold onthe prairie, were there was an abundance of wheat straw readilyavailable. They promised to eliminate all those lengthy sessions withthe axe and bucksaw. They merely succeeded in eliminating all domesticharmony. Mr. Axford’s stove produced a great deal of smoke and verylittle heat. The family went about red-eyed and shivering, while thewalls and ceiling began to resemble the inside of a chimney. Refuelingleft a path of straw and chaff, which litter had an unfortunate habit of spreading to all corners of the house. The trialperiod was of short duration. When the Wolseley-Reston line went through, Mr. Axford sold his farm andopened a store in Peebles. He was a man who loved a joke, and possessedof considerable wit. On one occasion his younger son, Geoge, Jr.,brought a young lady home to meet his parents. Mr. Axford welcomed herwith true Scottish hospitality. They sat around the fire, talking and drinkingtheir tea, the young lady with her back to the door, Mr. Axford came inquietly, tiptoed up behind her and gave her a hearty kiss. When the ladystood up, both startled and flustered, he said, 'If you dina like it youcan gie it back.' George’s father (Granddaddy) died at Peeples, a few years later Billy,scarcely grown to manhood, also died. Grandmother, who didn't’t havevery good health and had been gently reared and was scarcely fitted forpioneer life in the cold Canadian weather, which was hard on her, quietlypassed away in 1890 and the two George’s, father and son becameinseparable. Then, at the time of the ‘flu’ epidemic, young Georgesuccumbed. George, Sr. spent his last years in a little shack in theyard of his nephew, William Glen ‘Frank’ Ennis. This account is stated in the book - ‘Grit And Growth, The Story OfGrenfell’, by Annie I. Yule, 1970 edition page 7 and the 1980 edition,pages 7, 34 for biography and a picture on page 8 and in George Axfords’scrapbook in this Tree.
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