Like, he worked for this company that installed elevators and- and-stuff. And ah- and so they- they had a falling out and- and so he went back to s-- to the States- to Cleveland and ah mother Ethan moved up here where she looked after ah- her ah grandma McCoy and- and grandpa.

Speaker: Ah no, no. Ah he owns a big place down in ah- in- Interviewer: Ottawa. Speaker: No no, in the States. Interviewer: Oh okay.

Ah um we had gone out earlier in high-school and then um the summer that I was going off to university, we got back together and he- he went to school in the States on a hockey scholarship.

Speaker: So we plan two events in the community, the Festival's committee. One is the carnival and then the other is homecoming weekend, July-first weekend. Interviewer: And what happens then? Speaker: Um so we- we're starting off- we have a comedian, a local girl that's a comedian that lives in the States. She's starting ah Wednesday night. Then we have a- oh, Tuesday night we have a kid's character thing like Dora.

They have- they're the ones that has the- well it used to be Grants, um, it's like a forest place, forest, forestry I-guess. ... But now it's some company from the States has bought it so yeah that's pretty much all there is in Englehart.

Speaker: Yeah. We were overseas a lot. And we were down the sta-- ah, pretty well around Canada and the States and we were enough- Interviewer: So why do you love- why do you love here? Speaker: It's peaceful. We have to look after our cat too (laughs).

So, you go finishing when you want, you can go hunting. The only thing that's ah, sucks about hunting is ah, all the rules 'cause people from down south and the States ruin it for us. People from down south.

Interviewer: Have either of you been outside of Ontario? Speaker: Mm-hm. Interviewer: And where would it be? Speaker: Well we've been to Sweden. Been to Sweden a couple of times and we've done quite a few holidays. We've been to the States a number of times and ah been to the Caribbean- in fact we just came back from a- a cruise- what, about a week ago- a month ago-

But my- when my brother did the gen-- genealogy, the Drake name was linked to ah, France. And then Belgium. And then some stopped in England, and then over into the States, and then up into Canada. And ah, the Drake name was also spelt different. It was D-R-A-Y-K-E.

Ah, and so some of his relatives- brothers. They went back to the States. Um, and in those days communication isn't like now. Ah, people don't see each other for ten, twenty years.

... and people will drive around purposely- they- they get their jollies out of just seeing these old theatres and I- I met a guy like that. He came up here to Kirkland-Lake for a business meeting one time. This guy was from the States, um, Minneapolis and I had a meeting with him and I'm driving him through town and he says, "Stop! Stop! Stop!" and I say, "What?" He says, "Stop! I got to get out!" and he pulls this camera out of his briefcase and he takes like a hundred shots ...

Interviewer: Um, and have you been elsewhere outside of North-America? Maybe to Europe? Speaker: Hm, no, just the Dominican and the States, I've been down to the States, hm F-- F-- Florida, and Tennessee.

Speaker: ... to be able to be a performer I think that they're a part of a guild or a union. Like in- Interviewer: Yeah. Speaker: Actra's a big one here in- in Canada and I think the States too. Interviewer: Mm-hm. Speaker: Um the Writer's-Guild and-different-things-like-that.

He picked it up right away and he started talking about well, you-know, what really happens and- his grandfather- like ah my sister-in-law, her dad um has dual-citizenship. He was raised in the States and moved to Canada, lived in Temagami. Um he's a contractor by trade. He fought in a couple wars. Um I think the Korean and something else, and so he's had experience.

That's his older brother. Willie-Marshall's in The-States. Nelly-Podolsky's in ah, I think he's in The-States. Ted-Lindsay lives in Detroit. He's one of the more famous guys. Daren-Puppa- he was playing for Tampa-Bay and Buffalo. Ah, Bobby-Murdoch lives in Calgary.

Oh yeah. There's Wayne-Gretzy. He's not ours but ah- Billy-Harris. But ah- ah, Danny-Daoust from V-town. Played for ah, Toronto for eight years. Donny-Blackburn's in The-States. Ralphie-Backstrom i-- Colorado, really nice fellow. And Wayne-Connelly is from ah, Rouyn-Noranda but Wayne has lived in Kirkland-Lake for quite some time, he's- good friend and neighbour. I play golf with s-- Wayne every day.

Speaker: And it- we never got charged until I got to about maybe fourteen fifteen and then costs escalated. But this whole area was here was a swimming p-- Interviewer: Swimming area. Speaker: Swimming pool, yeah. This is the works- Interviewer: Oh. Speaker: Department down here. Now they've got it into- they- you-know, it- it's still used as-

Today you use electric blasting caps, ah- man, it's a little more technical than it was in those days. And ah- and ah- it's ah- but it was- it was just as hard in them days to do it as it is today. To- to work in the mines. As a matter of fact today- Interviewer: Mm-hm. Speaker: Ah, today mining is- how should I say that? Is ah- today, mining is ah- I would say ah- a little bit different ...

Interviewer: So was that when you began to lose your hearing? Speaker: Oh yeah. Interviewer: Oh yeah? All the blasting? Speaker: From the drilling, mostly. Interviewer: Drilling. Speaker: Yeah. Interviewer: You didn't have any protection at all. Speaker: Well, they didn't have protect in them days. Interviewer: I see. What would you wear? Speaker: Just a hard hat. We used to put Kleenex in our ears, ah- that's it. Today they had mufflers, uh, and so on, but in them days they didn't have that.

Speaker: Ulcers is not a big thing today. They just give you some pills and say "Take them for thirty-days and-" But in them days it was a little different. Interviewer: So they view- how did they view it? How did they view ulcers back then? Speaker: They thought it was very serious. And ah I had to go on a special diet and-all-this-stuff and ah- and ah they put me in the hospital ...