The Reminder is making its archives back to 2003 available on our website. Please note that, due to technical limitations, archive articles are presented without the usual formatting.
Few people are as invested in Denare Beach history as Les Oystryk. But even he was surprised to learn of a long-forgotten educational film detailing the area's most significant archeological finds. 'It seems to have sort of been lost to time,' says Oystryk, who works at the village's Northern Gateway Museum. Fortunately, the black and white 1965 film is lost no more after Oystryk recently unveiled it at a museum open house. Commissioned by Saskatchewan's Department of Education, the brief film chronicles the discovery of Fort Henry Frobisher, an independent British trading post established in 1774-75. The late Harry Moody, an amateur Denare Beach archeologist, located the site outside the village in 1953. In the film, an elderly Moody relays how 'old George Custer' _ a Cree man from Denare Beach _ spoke of an unusual mound at a particular site. Moody, wearing dark tinted glasses, says the description made him think the mound may have been the remains of a fireplace. That is indeed what Moody uncovered at the site, along with a 1770s era belt buckle. Fort Henry Frobisher had been found. In time, other items uncovered at the site would include a knife, a fork, the top of a glass bottle, a musket ball, a tea can, a copper kettle and remnants of a rum barrel, among others. The film includes footage of the Denare Beach area, including the village's original museum, which is still part of today's museum. Oystryk first heard of the film from an educator in Regina who was familiar with it, as well as Denare Beach and Moody. Oystryk asked 'an awful lot of people' about the film. No one remembered seeing it even though, he is certain, it would have been shown in Saskatchewan classrooms. He tracked down the film in archives in Regina and worked to add a copy to the museum. Using the museum's flat-screen TV and DVD player, Oystryk screened the film at the museum's Discovery Day open house last month, eliciting plenty of interest from attendees. As a kind gesture, Oystryk, on behalf of the museum, also presented a DVD of the film to Linda Custer, granddaughter of George Custer. A smiling Linda, who still lives in Denare Beach, accepted the DVD and a handshake from Oystryk as Discovery Day attendees applauded. Referring to George Custer's role in the Fort Henry Frobisher discovery, Oystryk observed how Cree oral history had kept stories of the fort alive for generations. DVD copies of the film are available for sale at the museum.
