Freetown, past and present

Chapter I: Location and physical setting -- Poem, the long view -- Where is Freetown -- Natural features -- Bedrock -- Overburden -- Water -- Vegetation -- Wildlife -- Fish -- Shellfish -- Insects. Chapter II: Pioneer settlement -- Native people -- The Acadians -- British conquest & the land lottery -- The United Empire Loyalists -- John Clark's land -- The Thomson-Gordon land -- Settlement progresses inland -- Burns settlement -- Irish settlers arrive -- Why Freetown? Chapter III: Transportation -- Road sales -- The horse and buggy days -- Early roads -- Poem, The Freetown pavement -- Rail transport -- The advent of the automobile -- Modern transportation. Chapter IV: Economy -- Poem, Man of the Soil -- Early agricultural methods -- Marsh hay -- Inland haying -- The commons -- Dairy farming -- Freetown milk haulers -- Dunk River Dairying Co. (1944) -- Grain harvesting -- Poem, Tater Picking -- Potato farming -- Poultry industry -- Comparison of farming -- Lime kiln -- The fox industry -- The flax industry in Freetown -- Mushroom plant -- Soya beans -- Freetown farmers 1985 -- Taylor's mill -- Clark's mills -- Poem, The Old Mill on the Dunk -- Mills' on the Dunk at Scales Pond -- Mills at Mill Valley -- Burns' mills -- Wall's mills -- The Village Store (poem) -- Auld's General store -- Mr. Auld (poem) -- Ralph R. Burns General store -- Other general stores -- Dress making -- Shoe making -- Tailoring -- Blacksmiths -- Quarrying Island stone -- Wheelwrights -- Brick making -- Texaco Service station -- The Dunk River Salmon Hatchery -- Other businesses -- Poem, Hazards of Hair. Chapter V: Education -- Poem, Dearest Teacher -- The first years -- The three school districts -- School fair 1923 -- School teachers - Upper Freetown -- School teachers - Lower Freetown -- School teachers - South Freetown. Chapter VI: Religion -- Roman Catholic Mission of St. James at Summerfield -- The United Church, formerly Methodist -- Drowning incident -- Poem, Still, Still with Thee -- United Church Women's Organizations -- Poem, When Eldon Made a Noise in Church -- The Presbyterian Church -- The Presbyterian Young Peoples Society -- Other Presbyterian Youth Groups -- Presbyterian W.M.S. -- Presbyterian Ladies Aid -- Lower Freetown Sunday School -- Church of Scotland -- Freetown Union Sunday School -- Other religious activity -- C.G.I.T. -- Tuxis Group -- Freetown People's Cemetery -- Freetown People's Cemetery list of burials -- Freetown Methodist-United Church Cemetery list of burials. Chapter VII: Community organizations -- Early Temperance societies -- Sons of Temperance -- Keeping his pledge -- Patrons of industry -- Women's Christian Temperance Union (W.C.T.U.) -- Birch Grove Women's Institute -- Lower Freetown Women's Institute -- Foresters Hall -- Birch Grove Hall -- Other centers -- Independent Order of Foresters -- Justices of the Peace -- Dunk River Farmers Institute -- The Freetown Harmony 4H Club -- Scouting at Freetown -- Girl Guides -- South Freetown Red Cross and Sewing Club -- Farm radio forum -- Freetown-Bedeque Camera Club -- The Legionnaires. Chapter VIII: Community life & communications -- Poem, The Friendly Faces -- Postal services -- Newspapers -- A Glimpse of 1896 -- Freetown notes -- Some reminiscences from 1901 -- Fox catcher -- The development of radio on P.E.I. -- Modern ways of communication & effects on community life -- C.B. radios -- Village homes and residents from the early 1900s -- The dirty foot -- A well kept secret -- Retirement party -- The eagle catcher -- Who turned off the lights? -- Reminiscing with Margaret (McCarville) Murphy. Chapter IX: Recreation -- Games -- Music -- Christmas concerts -- Rink and hockey -- Hockey in the eighties -- Outdoor skating -- Ice cream socials -- Boxing -- Lower Freetown social gathering -- Hallowe'en -- Tug of war -- The wheelmen -- The hungry thirties -- The thirties remembered -- Race horses -- Stock car track -- Bear swamp -- Beaver dam -- Sports fishing -- Dances -- Broomball.