Thanks. I contacted them at the info email when I saw they have volunteers and staff helping with research but I will definitely contact the director directly. You aren’t kidding he has a history there in Fernie. I knew he owned quite a few businesses in town but was surprised to see he was also directly involved with the mines when I saw the picture of him and Fernie. Yes I found out he was involved in bootlegging when Wendy mentioned she would give me the grand tour when I come including the tunnel entrance in the basement used for bootlegging. Yes he may have been on the wrong side of the law at times but he also did a lot of good by giving miners a cheap place to stay, selling goods to them without the markup of mine companies, and donating materials to help build the church
Grandpa used to tell us the story about how somebody once tried to murder him. I still have not found the article at the time of the attempted murder but have read a lot about the black hand society. I would wonder if it was random or targeted but the more I read the more I am sure it was one of them since he wouldn’t pay the extortion. If he was anything like grandpa was there was no way he would have given into their demands. I found myself thinking, wow this sounds more like a movie post than real life events.
I am sure there is so much more and can’t wait to hear from the museum director.
Also, thanks for the link to the archives. I will definitely check it out.
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