Skunk Trouble, Haying Season, and Angels on Mt. Cheam

This post captures Mother and Father Wright’s silver anniversary and the unforgettable night a skunk took up residence under the Wright family’s home.

Written in Agassiz, British Columbia in June 1896, the Wright siblings paint a vivid picture of life in the Fraser Valley. Between the summer heat, haying season preparations, and luncheon plans with neighbours like the Agassiz family, their letters reveal a mix of hard work, community life, and unexpected challenges in rural life. From moonlit walks framed by beautiful mountains, to the less romantic tasks of trying to get rid of a stubborn skunk. These letters preserve the rhythms, textures, and smells of a season long past.

Letters Home

May’s Letter to Father and Mother- June 24, 1896

Received July 10
Agassiz, British Columbia

Very many happy returns of the 5th, I am afraid these letters will be at a rather late but I forgot how very near the time but it was getting. Since beginning this letter we have had a most exciting time, Jack saw a skunk run under the house and sent Major (one of the dogs) after it hoping to be able to shoot it as it ran out the other side, but it refused to move from the house & smells enough to knock you down, so we have been burning sulfur & now we are reduced to sitting in the verandah. I hope it will clear off soon as we want to go bed.

It is a lovely evening & nice & cool, but it has been a very hot day again. The river is rising fast now, but Burkett says to-day will be the highest water & so far it is not over the land anywhere. Yesterday, Mr. Jemmett & Leonard came to see us; also Nellie & Edith Agassiz, whom Jack & I rather hope will later in the evening; we had to go deliver cream there & then came home Captain Moore was there. I think he goes every evening. I am very busy here mending his shirts, all his working ones are wearing out.

With very much love & all good wishes from
Your aff. daughter

May Wright.

Jack’s’ Letter to Mother – June 24, 1896

Received July 10

Hazeley Ranch
Agassiz
June 24, 1896

My dearest Mother,

I am writing to wish you Many Happy Returns of your wedding day, and I hope that I may spend the next one with you. We are now having splendid weather only it’s rather too hot. Yesterday the two youngest Agassiz’s came over for the afternoon & May & I walked back with them after tea. It was a splendid night, a full moon & not a cloud in the sky. Every now & then we would come to a break in the trees through which we could see the mountains with their peaks looking so grand & solemn in the moonlight.

We shall begin haying the first week in next month & the boys are going to do it all with only one extra man. The water on the prairie is beautiful for bathing in now the sun has warmed it so that we can stay in any length of time without getting cold. We have just brought up one of the horses which we turned loose on the prairie about a month & he has come back looking another horse so fat & well, the prairie is certainly a good feeding grounds.

The Hamersley’s have asked May to go to them for the first of July but she is not going. I think we are going to give a luncheon party that day. The Agassiz Cricket Club are going to play on the prairie. We are going to ask now the members of to lunch with us first. I wonder whether you remember about the knitting work and I asked you about for Mrs. Agassiz. A skunk has just taken refuge under out house & stinks like the zoo. Mr. Sands has just come over to spend the evening with us so I mean to stop. 

With very much love and good wishes for you & Father.

I remain
Your very affectionate son, 

Jack

Cecil’s Letter to Mother- June 24, 1896

Dear Mother,

I am writing to wish you many happy returns of your wedding. I can’t help wishing very much indeed that I could be at home just for the day. We are getting the machinery ready for hay. We expect to begin on the 1st of July. We had a most exiting time at night a skunk got under the house so we had Mr. Hammersley’s dog under the house and then all of us stood round with guns but the skunk was one too many for us for her remained under the house & nothing we on early would lure him. The smell in the house was something frightful.

We have hired an old soldier (an Irishman) to work for us through haying, he has one failing though that is that when he gets his pension he gets drunk. We did not know what to do about having him because of that. But he came here and begged us to take him but I told him to go away & I would let him know next day. He did not like this much as he said that there was a lot of people who wanted him which is quite true, as he is a very good worker, so I told him that if he got work before I let him know he must take it.  But at that he got very angry & said he would do not such thing. Just then Jack came then Murry was quite contented and said ” ahh there is Mr. Jack now he will make it all right for me!” And Jack did make it all right. For he made Murry sign a paper saying if he got drunk while he was with us he will forfeit half his wages and Murry signed it at once. In fact, he would do anything for Jack. He seems devoted to him. I told Burkett what I had done & he said at once that if Murry have you his word not to drink he would never touch anything. He said he worked for him all last winter & never drank at all.

Father, I remain your affectionate son,

Cecil

Many happy returns to you and Mother.

Life In Agassiz

Snow Angel on the Mountain

If you are standing at the site of Church and look east at Mountain Cheam, you can view the formation of a snow angel looking down on Agassiz. This formation was first discovered by the Agassiz family in the 1870’s, however due to climate change over the years it is becoming more and more difficult to view.

{ Related Post: As Snow Melts, Angel Emerges Once Again on Mt. Cheam }

Why The Hazeley Letters Are A Treasure of Agassiz History

These letters were nearly destroyed as they were passed through multiple sets of people to tell the story of the Wright family. After arriving at the Agassiz Harrison Museum, it was clear that these letters were rich in local history, captured the early years of the town with great specificity, and offered a peek into the family and settler life in 1896. Letters like these humanize the settler experience. They show the daily lives of the people who lived during this time and make it more relevant to people today. Through transcription and research of these letters, new insights into settler life and the town have been discovered.

Explore More Pioneer Letters and Stories

If you enjoyed these letters from June and July 1896, you might also like:

• Those Named in the Hazeley Letters

• Inside the Life of May: Ongoing Research and Revelations

• WWI Soldier Spotlight: The Story of 2nd Lieutenant Harold Purton Wright

These firsthand settler letters offer a rare look at daily life in 1890s British Columbia, from gold mining rumors to cattle ranching, hospital work, and the realities of farming on the frontier

Follow @BCHistoryDiary to get the latest letters, stories, and behind-the-scenes research.

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