Close Alert Banner
Skip to Content

Lambton County Museums Logo

Contact Us
  • Lambton Heritage Museum
    • Visit the Museum
    • Events & Programs
    • Exhibits
    • Collections and Research
    • Learn
    • Museum @ Home
    • Virtual Education
    • News
    • Get Involved
    • About Us
  • Oil Museum of Canada
    • Visit the Museum
    • Events & Programs
    • Exhibits
    • Collections and Research
    • Learn
    • Get Involved
    • News
    • About Us
  • Lambton County Archives
    • Visit the Archives
    • Events & Programs
    • Exhibits
    • Collections and Research
    • Blog
    • News
    • Get Involved
    • About Us
  • Donate

lady looking at a museum display of old artifacts

The Young Canuckstorian Project - Sadie Knowles

More
Home...PortraitsThe Young Canuckstorian ProjectSadie Knowles
  • Open new window to share this page via Facebook Facebook
  • Open new window to share this page via LinkedIn LinkedIn
  • Open new window to share this page via Twitter Twitter
  • Email this page Email

Video Transcription

With the recent pandemic and the courageous work done by our frontline workers, The Young Canuckstorian Project looks to celebrate some of the outstanding community leaders from the past who have gone above and beyond the call for their Lambton, our home.

During the First World War, scrap drives became very important. The scraps were used to help with the war effort. Waste paper, old rags, scrap metal, and old rubber were useful in the war. Lambton County women successfully aided the soldiers at war with these scrap drives. It was during this time that seven women from Sarnia met and would change the face of the art world forever. One of those members especially would leave a lasting impact, Sadie Knowles.

Summer in Sarnia was particularly beautiful in 1914.  The ships were streaming up the St. Clair, families and farmers were busying themselves after a cold winter, when life would completely change on May 7th, 1914. Canada was suddenly at war. Men and boys were signing up to fight in the war while women were making hospital supplies and taking jobs in ammunition factories.

Everything was pushed aside in order to win the war and save our town. Committees formed including one that collected rags and scrap paper to sell to recycle it and raise money for the Red Cross.

The work was hard, tiring, and dirty but the committee raised $4,800 for the Red Cross by the wars end. At that point seven of the women from the conservation committee teamed up with Norman Gurd, a member of the Sarnia Library Board, to collect art for the Public Art Gallery they hoped to see open in the City someday.

The Sarnia Women Art Conservation Association had its first show in 1920 including paintings by Tom Thomson and future members of the Group of Seven. The Sarnia association members were fans and supporters of the groundbreaking artists before many Canadian art critics and collectors were.

You today cannot imagine the gratitude of the painters, the art critics in Toronto and Montreal were ridiculing these men and their works. In 1950, three remaining members of the association donated the collection of approximately 25 pieces of Canadian art to the Sarnia Library where the collection continued to grow.

Sadie, a children’s librarian at Sarnia Library for over 40 years, was the last surviving member of the group before passing away in 1984. Sadie Knowles' love of community and the art world will be forever remembered in Lambton County.

The story of Sadie Knowles wouldn’t be complete if we didn’t talk about her outstanding career with the Sarnia  Public Library, which started in 1922. In her early days she was trained in Toronto and trained under an innovative librarian at the famous boys and girls house. She brought these concepts with her to Sarnia including her own idea of “Story Hour”. Story Hour was not reading from a book…but rather an imagination exercise for the kids.

Sadie gave herself to her work…and loved “HER KIDS”. She never tired of trying to interest yet one more child in an intriguing book. As of a result of this dedication she served with the Ontario and Canadian Library Association and was known throughout Canada as an outstanding children’s librarian.

The Quota Club of Sarnia named her woman of the year in 1955 and she received the Canadian Centennial Medal in 1967. In 1982, Mayor Marceil Saddy declared a Sadie Knowles Day where she was honoured by the community…..the day it was held?...It was her birthday.

Additional Information

Sadie A. Knowles was born March 22, 1889 to John Knowles, a fireman with the GTR and Mina Knowles (nee. Mooney). Sadie is often remembered as a highly respected children's librarian at Sarnia Library for over 40 years.

Sadie began her career at Sarnia Public Library in 1922.  In 1931 she was placed in charge of the Children’s Library and continued as the Children’s Librarian until her retirement in 1969. During the early years she trained in Toronto with innovative librarian Lillian Smith of the Boys and Girls House.  While she brought in some of the ideas she learned during her time in Toronto, she also brought in many ideas of her own including the formation of the first Story Hour in Ontario.

She was also an active member of the Sarnia Women’s Conservation Art Association from the 1920’s until the group disbanded in 1956. It was this group who purchased numerous paintings and sketches from the Group of Seven and their associates, using the proceeds from funds raised through the collection of recyclable materials.

Starting as a women’s relief group to raise money for WWI efforts by collecting saleable wastepaper and rags, the women successfully aided the soldiers at war until the war ended. Afterwards, a discussion lead by the group’s president Francis Flintoft looked at ways of shifting their efforts to another community need. With a hearty vote of approval, it was decided that the group would use their efforts to form an art committee to buy art from Canadian artists. This proved to be a successful endeavor, having acquired one of the best collections of Group of Seven works in Canada during that time. 

After the group disbanded, Sadie along with the other two other surviving members, Dorothy Carlisle and Mrs. R.V LeSueur, donated their collection of 27 works to the Sarnia Library. These works, along with many others collected over the years, formed the foundation of the Judith & Norman Alix Art Gallery in Sarnia.

Lambton County Archives
    • Visit the Archives
      Toggle Section Visit the Archives Menu
      • What to Know Before You Go
      • Accessibility
      • Research and Copying Fees
      • Gift Shop
    • Events & Programs
      Toggle Section Events & Programs Menu
      • Events
      • Interactive Lessons
    • Exhibits
      Toggle Section Exhibits Menu
      • Virtual Exhibits
        Toggle Section Virtual Exhibits Menu
        • Historypin
        • The Township of Warwick: A Story Through Time
          Toggle Section The Township of Warwick: A Story Through Time Menu
          • Chapter 1: Scratching the Surface of Warwick Township (Geology)
          • Chapter 2: From Mastodon to Arrowhead (Prehistory)
          • Chapter 3: From Forest to Field (Early Years)
          • Chapter 4: To Everything There is a Season (Agriculture)
          • Chapter 5: From Cradle to Grave (Churches and Cemeteries)
          • Chapter 6: From Slate to Laptop (Education)
          • Chapter 7: Settlements from the Past (Birnam, Kingscourt, Saunders' Corners, Wisbeach)
          • Chapter 8: “My Kona, Your Kona, Arkona” (Arkona)
          • Chapter 9: Forest Roots in Warwick (A Personal Tour)
          • Chapter 10: Nothing Ventured, Nothing Gained (Businesses)
          • Chapter 11:Watford, My Home Town (A Personal Tour)
          • Chapter 12:Responsible Government (Political Leadership)
          • Chapter 13: Sports in Pictures (Sports Activities)
          • Chapter 14: St. Clair Borderers (Military pre-World War I)
          • Chapter 15: My Home, My Palace (19th Century Domestic Architecture)
          • Chapter 16: Home Children (Little Immigrants)
          • Chapter 17: From Farm Field to Battlefield (World War I)
          • Chapter 18: Good Times in Bad Times (The Great Depression)
          • Chapter 19: Home Front to Battlefront (World War II)
          • Chapter 21: Tires and Wires (Transportation and Communication)
          • Chapter 22: Overcoming Adversities (Natural Disasters, Accidents, Fires, Murders and Diseases)
          • Chapter 23: Recollections and Reflections (Miscellaneous Memories)
          • Chapter 24: The Ties That Bind (Family Histories)
          • Chapter 25: Captured Moments: One Last Look (Photos)
      • History of Community Concert Bands in Lambton County
    • Collections and Research
      Toggle Section Collections and Research Menu
      • Genealogy
      • Researcher Access
      • COVID- 19 (Coronavirus) Online Submissions
    • Blog
      Toggle Section Blog Menu
      • At the Archives
        Toggle Section At the Archives Menu
        • Collecting COVID-19 History at Lambton County Archives
        • Twas the Night Before Christmas
        • Who’s That Guy Again? Writing Safely on your Photographs
        • Rare World War One Photos and Diary Transcription Donated to Lambton County Archives
        • Lambton County Archives Capital Project - New shelving units
        • Archives Awareness Week 2014
        • Facility Name Change: Lambton Room to Lambton County Archives
        • Peek Into The Doors Open Lambton County Weekend
        • Doors Open Lambton County 2012
        • Constructing the St. Clair Tunnel
        • Ontario Genealogical Society's 50th Anniversary
        • A Foreign Affair: Upcoming Book Launch and Theatre Presentation at the Oil Museum of Canada
        • Ontario Vital Statistics: New Years Are Here!
        • The Lambton Room's New Blog: Exploring the Past
      • Conservation
        Toggle Section Conservation Menu
        • Preserving Historical Documents: Caring for your family documents at home
      • Exhibits
        Toggle Section Exhibits Menu
        • Sarnia: We Built This City
      • Historic Recipes
        Toggle Section Historic Recipes Menu
        • Pearl Betteridge’s Ukrainian Medivnyk (Honey Cake)
        • Mrs. Micheline Neif’s "Bouchées Princess”
        • Mrs. Ralph Smith's Butterscotch Cookie
        • Spicy Pumpkin Loaf
        • Isobel Sylvester's Magic Cookie Bars
        • Mary Koncovy’s Potato Pancakes (Pagachki)
        • The Lucan Family’s Chicken Stew
        • Mrs. A.C. Jamieson's Pickled Peaches
        • Butter Tart Pan Squares
        • Dutch Cabbage Rolls: Mary Schuurman
        • Never Fail Molasses Cookies
        • Wind Blown Cake
        • Oil City United Church - Mother's Chili Sauce
        • Oatmeal Bread
        • “Do You Know That…”
        • Mrs. J. Lang’s Crumb Cake!
        • Lemon Fluff Pie
        • Cinnamon Bread
        • Swedish Water Rolls
        • 1829 Ginger Pop Recipe Experiment
        • Lima Bean Chowder
        • Jersey Milk Fingers
        • Mrs. Basil Bourne's Date Pudding
        • Christine Jaques Date Squares
      • From the Vault
        Toggle Section From the Vault Menu
        • Arthur Brittain
        • Winners of Bonspiel
        • Sarnia Citizen’s Band
        • A Trip to the Royal Winter Fair by Marjorie Clemens
        • A Gem From Paris at the Lambton Heritage Museum
        • Sarnia Historical Film Footage on YouTube: 1941 Wartime Parade and 1950s Home Show
        • Local History Gem! The Sarnia Observer Negative Collection
        • The Story Behind Sarnia's Art Movement
        • Into the Belly of the Beast: Behind the Vault Doors
        • Where Did Our Collection Come From?
      • Lambton Stories
        Toggle Section Lambton Stories Menu
        • Sarnia Mechanics Institute
        • Snowmageddon
          Toggle Section Snowmageddon Menu
          • Bringing People In
          • Death in Kent
          • Destined to Run
          • Drive to the Airport
          • Emergency Response
          • Family Snow Event
          • Fearful Drive
          • Heading to School
          • Helping out in Wyoming
          • Pregnant and Stranded
          • Quiet and Cold
          • Short Stories
          • Snowmobile Rescuers
          • Stranded with Others
          • Warden Recollections
          • When Strangers Become Friends
          • Wyoming Fairgrounds
        • Lambton County Bee-keeping
        • Sarnia Vegetable Growers Association
        • Books on Wheels! History of the Lambton County Library Bookmobile
        • Interesting Lambton Businesses: The Newton Hat Shop
      • Portraits
        Toggle Section Portraits Menu
        • What is True History? The Shaw Gusher Question
        • The Young Canuckstorian Project
          Toggle Section The Young Canuckstorian Project Menu
          • Sadie Knowles
          • Dr. Marion Dougall
          • Elmer Kleinsmith
          • Deo Suzuki
          • Winnifred James
          • Edith Rice
          • Annie McLellan
          • James Merrison
          • Roy Caley
          • Jack Lewis
          • Tornado of 1953
          • Sheila Rose
          • Alf Corrick
          • Edward Causley
          • Leonard McMullin
          • Stewart Cowan
          • Charles Knight
          • Lambton Battalions
          • Lambton Remembers
        • An 1853 Letter from William P. Vidal
        • Trooper Donald McClure
        • Captain Eber Brock Ward
        • The Bury Family
          Toggle Section The Bury Family Menu
          • Captain Thomas Bury
          • John Edger Bury
          • Captain William H. Smith
          • Captain Henry Bury
          • Captain Martin Swain
        • Hope Millholland
        • Mrs. Hunter
        • Nicholas Plain
        • Peter Pennington
        • Richard Duncan
        • Noted English Officers along the St. Clair River
          Toggle Section Noted English Officers along the St. Clair River Menu
          • Captain William Elliott Wright R.N.
        • Captain Robert Dow Foote
        • Forest Resident Branches Out: The Brown Family Travel Documents
      • Researching Lambton
        Toggle Section Researching Lambton Menu
        • Newspapers at the Lambton County Archives
        • Online Resources Compiled by Lambton County Archives
        • Census Excitement and Chagrin
        • Future of Microfilm Machines
        • Genealogy Buffs Be Aware! Family History Centers
        • Genetic Genealogy
        • History Club: An Archival Program for Students
        • History in Surprising Places: Lambton County's Scenic Postcards
      • Virtual Books
    • News
    • Get Involved
      Toggle Section Get Involved Menu
      • Donate
      • Membership
    • About Us
      Toggle Section About Us Menu
      • Acknowledgement of Ancestral Lands
      • Our Story
      • Contact Us

Contact Us

Subscribe to this page

County of Lambton logo

About Us

Lambton County Museums is the home of Lambton Heritage Museum, the Oil Museum of Canada, and the Lambton County Archives.

Website

  • Lambton Heritage Museum
  • Oil Museum of Canada
  • Lambton County Archives

Resources

  • Privacy Statement
  • Terms of Use
  • Website Feedback

Discoveries that Matter Logo

Copyright © Lambton County Museum 2020

Designed by eSolutionsGroup

  • Sitemap
  • Contact
  • Accessibility
Close Old Browser Notification
Browser Compatibility Notification
It appears you are trying to access this site using an outdated browser. As a result, parts of the site may not function properly for you. We recommend updating your browser to its most recent version at your earliest convenience.