I never knew my grandmother Pearl (Smith) Adams, but I was certainly told many stories about this photo of Pearl and the deer.
Dad told me many humorous stories. This deer was taken in as an abandoned fawn. It was a buck which they named, somewhat originally, Bambi. This was subsistence farming with horses.
As the deer grew, his antlers became a problem so Grampa Perce would have a couple of these husky teenage boys take that deer to the ground and he would cut off those antlers with a hand saw. Be not dismayed, it does not hurt. Grampa put a bell on it so it would not be shot… you could hear it coming.
The best story was when the family went to bed in the winter months. Bambi, who was sleeping near the wood stove, would come up the stairs within half an hour and kneel on the edge of the bed and roll in. Whoever was on that side better move over. He said it smelled of cedar and forests. The sound of a deer on the stairs was inevitable and loud. Can you imagine a big deer laying on the bed beside you? A different time and a definite gift.
The story does not end because that deer roamed. It came into town and many people where afraid of it including mom. You know where Thompsons lived? Back then it was a valley and if mom saw that deer on the road behind her she would run down and up to get some distance between them. Bambi also terrorised a particular privy and knocked it over with a local woman inside…
The novelty was wearing off so it was decided to banish this deer to Horse Island (also known as Fitzwilliam Island)where deer were plentiful. It was a good idea but the boat crew did not appreciate this deer wandering around like a dog and tied its legs front and back; it struggled continuously to get up and died of a heart attack long before making it to Horse Island.
A piece of history and heritage.
Craig Adams,
Tobermory
