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Mary Elizabeth (Mamie) was born in Pierson, Manitoba on August
24, 1890. In 1909 she attended Normal School in Brandon, and taught in schools throughout Manitoba and Saskatchewan.
Mamie married Malcolm McCowan on January 1, 1921. They had
two sons - Leslie Riddell in 1923 and James Walter in 1934.
In 1953, Mamie came to Warren from Saskatchewan to look after her ailing mother,
who passed away the following year. She then continued living in the home, making her retirement at Warren.
In 1982 Mamie moved to Rosewood Lodge in Stonewall, living there until her passing
in June 1984, almost reaching her 94th birthday.
"This I Remember Best"
"Childhood memories by Mrs. M. E. McCowan (Mamie Riddell)"
Exerpts from "Along the Old Melita Trail" by Isabel M. Reekie - published
1965
Among the many little happenings I remember of those years when Pierson was a new
town are some incidents of our school days.
For a time our schoolroom was an upstairs room over an implement warehouse and
there must have been at least twenty-five steps to climb. George Brown delighted in practical jokes. He knew our
teacher, Miss Riddell, was new out of Ontario and was mortally afraid of an Indian, so when an Indian came to town robed in
his blanket and moccasins, Mr. Brown persuaded him to go to the school door and knock. Miss Riddell answered the knock
and when she opened the door and saw the Indian she threw her hands over her head and gave the most blood-curdling scream.
The Indian turned for the stairs and in his haste fell and rolled all the way down. Evidently he didn't hurt himself,
however, for he disappeared. We kids, having seen many Indians, were not afraid of them but were frightened when our
teacher screamed.
In those days people made their own fun and entertainment. Uncle Jack built
a skating rink back of his barn. Even mother tried to learn to skate, shoving a chair ahead of her. Several times
through the winter George Brown used to give us a taffy pull. He put a large pot of water and brown sugar on the old
pot-bellied stove, stirred it until it would string, then ladled it out to each of us carrying a chunk of snow. When
the taffy cooled on the snow, we pulled it. One day he was giving Uncle Jack his spoonful of taffy - oh yes, the adults
liked it too - when inadvertently it got into Uncle Jack's beard. Didn't we kids think that fun!
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