Thomas Clark
[Date Unknown]
*Mary Luska’s is one of those special spots I remember with great fondness. Truly miss her store.
During this holiday season many homes in Welland are decorated both inside and out to celebrate the Christmas holidays.
Mary Luska, owner of Mary Luska Interiors, has made elaborate changes to her home at 165 Edgar Street in Welland.
Virtually all the rooms in this historic house have been decorated to give a warm feeling of the Christmas spirit.
All of the decorations have been designed by Mrs. Luska and placed throughout the house so that each room brings out a warm and open atmosphere and allows one to share the meaning of Christmas and appreciate their surroundings.
The Luska home has a unique history which dates back to 1796. The land on which the home is now situated was part of a large tract of land granted to Captain Thomas Welch on June 22, 1796 by King George III.
In July, 1870, James H. Price bought 30 acres of the original tract and farmed and lived on that land. Henry W. Macoomb, father of former Welland mayor, Gabriel J. Macoomb, at the time related that when he was a boy, he and some of this friends went on sleigh-ride parties to the Price Home, now the Luska home.
In 1913, Plan Number 50 of the north-west area of the town of Welland, entitled the Parkway Heights Plan was registered in the Welland County Registry Office. The lands shown on the plan which now include the home owned by Edward and Mary Luska which was the Price farm-house, also created Price Avenue, Lillias Street, Edgar Street and other thoroughfares named in honor of the members of the Price family.
In the fall of 1986 the former Price farm-house was remodelled by Edward and Mary Luska to a beautifully created residence.
In the holiday period the once historic home reflects its past to give the viewer a look into the past and present of many Christmas season.
ISSUE NOT LAID TO REST YET.
By Greg Dunlop
Tribune Staff Writer
[Welland Tribune, 30 July 1986]
PELHAM-A report from the Pelham Historical Society has been unable to lay the Hillside/Dawdy Burying Ground question to rest.
Last autumn the society agreed to a request from the Pelham town council to research the history of the Canboro Road cemetery. Council had been approached by a descendent of the Dawdy clan who claimed the Hillside Cemetery had been renamed in contravention of a 60-year old agreement and that the graveyard’s original name should be restored.
Council members decided they didn’t have enough information to base any decisions on so they asked the Historical Society to investigate the matter and try to clear up a few questions. The society’s report was ready last week and President Mary Lamb presented it to council.
.Lamb said even after all their work there were still some grey areas.
“I’m surprised we haven’t been able to find more information. It’s hard to believe there isn’t someone in town who remembers where, when and why the name was changed.”
The society circulated requests for anyone with information to come forward, but even with the public input the facts were difficult to nail down for certain.
“The cemetery’s board’s records are critical but they’re not around. No one seems to know what happened to them.”
So far the society is only able to peg the name change as happening sometime in 1933. Lamb said she went through old Welland Tribune clippings to see when the graveyard was first referred to under the Hillside name.
“I went through the death notices for all of 1933 and they referred to the Dawdy Burying Ground but the first death notice I found for that area in 1934 called it the Hillside Cemetery with Dawdy written in brackets.”
She said it was unusual the change was never reported in the newspapers of the time because they use to publish much less critical information. Anything of any significance was published back then, according to Lamb.
The society never did find an agreement between the town and the cemetery trustees where the town agreed not to change the cemetery’s name after they took it over in 1926. The graveyard had been known as Dawdy’s Burial Ground from the early 1800’s until 1933.
Lamb told council the society had done all it could, and unless someone else came forward with more information there was nothing more to add.
Mayor Bergenstein thanked Lamb and the Historical Society for their efforts.
Council decided to give Tony Whelan, the man who brought up the whole issue, a chance to study and comment on the report before making any decisions.
They requested Whelan to prepare his comments and information in written form and to present it at the next meeting of council, August 18.
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