Wok N Roll with us...Bob and Teri Along with Atlas and Kalani: Dauphin Manitoba October 11, 2018

Dauphin’s population is about 8,000. Its economy is based on agriculture, producing grains, oilseeds such as canola and sunflower and also producing honey.

We first visited the Fort Dauphin Museum. On the grounds are a trapper’s cabin, Blacksmith’s shop, log cabin, one-room schoolhouse, and a church. We had an exceptional talk in the schoolhouse from a man that attended school in one of the one-room schoolhouses. He explained many things. Each schoolhouse taught 25-35 children. Each farm family had close to 10 kids so a schoolhouse in many cases would only have 3 families attending in one schoolhouse. The schoolhouse taught grades 1-8. He went through various aspects and details and also covered various discipline measures depicted in the pictures. There was the press your nose on the blackboard, tiptoes required with hands behind your back, and there was the strap and also the hold the books arms stretched out as the teacher continued to teach. We also visited the other various buildings on the grounds and saw many items from Canada’s past. There were even two dugout canoes that were left behind by German prisoners of war who were housed not far away at the Riding Mountain National Park during the Second World War. We ended our tour with tea and tea biscuits complete with homemade jelly. Like yum!

Our next destination was the Historic Ukrainian Catholic Church of the Resurrection in Dauphin, Manitoba. During the 1920’s and 1930’s, Dauphin became the center of a large Ukrainian block settlement. The church was designed by the Reverend Philip Ruh, (1883–1962), whose architectural talents assisted many Ukrainian Catholic parishes throughout Western Canada. The churches designed by Reverend Ruh came to be known as "prairie cathedrals." The Dauphin church is said to be one of his best. Built by volunteers during the depression years, the floor plan of the church is the cruciform shape. There are five cupolas (benia in Ukrainian). Traditionally five cupolas represent Christ and the four evangelists- Matthew, Mark, Luke, and John. In 1957, the noted iconographer Theodore Baran (1910–1995) undertook the religious painting in the church interior. His frescoes, icons, and murals create a visually spectacular interior. In the center of the church where the main dome is located, looking up one sees the iconology of the heavens and a place of angel flight. The four icons in this dome represent the four great feasts of the church- Christmas, the Sermon on the Mount, the Resurrection and the Ascension. Right under the dome are four triangles each containing artwork representing one of the four evangelists. The iconology using both figures and colors shared with us on our tour was fascinating and we all felt like we could listen all afternoon to the small lecture given. After our tour, we had a wonderful authentic Ukrainian dinner cooked by the ladies of the church. We had Potato Varenyky, Beet Borshch, Holubtsi, and Nachynka to name just a few of the selections. I especially enjoyed the Beet Borshch which is a beet soup with various vegetables and a heavy cream added.

In 1990, the parish undertook construction of a new church but respected their architectural heritage by preserving this beautiful landmark. After dinner, we toured the new church also, and while beautiful, it does not hold the same sort of beauty we felt like the incredible historic treasure that sits across the street.