WINDSOR, N.S. — As statues of Edward Cornwallis, Sir John A. Macdonald and other historical figures continue to fall across Canada, a polarizing fictional character in Windsor may also become a thing of the past.
Jim Ivey, a councillor with West Hants Regional Municipality, is requesting the removal of all Sam Slick imagery from the former town of Windsor.
And, judging by council’s lack of discussion on the topic at its Sept. 8 committee of the whole meeting, his fellow councillors are in agreement: it’s time to bid farewell to Thomas C. Haliburton’s satirical character.
"Ultimately, it was brought forward because the debate on Sam Slick still continues 12 years later. It appears almost annually that somebody wants to have another go at trying to resurrect or redeem the character of Sam Slick,” said Ivey in an interview.
He said given today’s heightened awareness of race issues, those “who have the ability to speak up should and need to do so.”
Ivey has proposed the removal of the wire silhouettes of Sam Slick that grace a handful of telephone poles in downtown Windsor, as well as the light up weather vane that sits atop the Victoria Park gazebo.
There is also one remaining wooden Sam Slick that leans against the Welcome to Windsor sign off Exit 6.
From the 1970s until 2008, Windsor hosted a summer festival known as Sam Slick Days. In 2008, the committee in charge used an image created by the late Canadian artist C.W. Jefferys. It featured a Black man, on his knees, crying out to Slick. It was based on a scene found in the chapter entitled Slavery in Haliburton’s book The Clockmaker, or The Sayings and Doings of Sam Slick of Slickville. There was a public outcry over the image and a conversation was launched to try to better understand Haliburton’s writings and whether the community was celebrating racism.
The festival then changed its name, first to Windsor West Hants Summer Fest, then in 2014 to Avon River Days.
In 2009, when new highway signage was being prepared for Windsor, council agreed ‘Home of Sam Slick’ should be removed.
Ivey says removing the remaining iconography of Slick is a positive step towards healing the hurt that’s been caused to the Black community. He said it’s a way to say Slick is not a hero.
“Some people will say, ‘well, this is erasing history’ and this isn’t looking to erase history. It’s that I’m not looking to see that we celebrate a component of history that isn’t worth celebrating,” said Ivey.
As for the famed author who penned Slick, Ivey said people can still read his work and visit the Haliburton House Museum to learn more about his contributions to society.
“I wouldn’t say that we celebrate Haliburton as much as we acknowledge and recognize him historically and the same thing with Slick,” said Ivey.
“Part of that writing is something that I don’t think anybody could be proud of and there are other aspects that other people find appealing.”
While Slick is known for popularizing many sayings, including quick as a wink, an ounce of prevention is worth a pound of cure, and facts are stranger than fiction, his writing often featured terms and phrases that are derogatory and, as Ivey says, patently racist. The use of the N-word is commonplace.
LESS AND LESS RELEVANT
Kel Hancock, the president of the West Hants Historical Society, said in a message that the society was unaware of the proposal but said the municipality is well within its rights to remove something they own.
“The reality is that marketing of Windsor as the ‘Home of Sam Slick’ is a brand that is already long gone; like it or not. I personally see no harm in removing the last vestiges of that brand and moving forward because the subject is complex and fraught with contradictions that don't have simple solutions,” said Hancock.
“Perhaps, we should just acknowledge the effects on other cultural groups in our community, and the fact that it's less and less relevant in defining who we are today,” he continued.
Hancock said between the archives at the WHHS museum and the provincial Haliburton House Museum, both located in Windsor, there is “plenty of historical information on the Haliburton family and its contribution to our West Hants heritage.”
Mayor Abraham Zebian, of the West Hants Regional Municipality, said in a phone interview that keeping such symbols as Slick in the community serve as a daily reminder of racism.
“The small, little things mean a lot and they have deep implications and can be very hurtful,” he said.
Zebian said council is committed to taking a strong stance against racism and removing the icons would be in line with that ideal.
“Here in West Hants, our community has zero tolerance of any form of discrimination or racism and we just won’t stand for it. We will combat it in every way that we possibly can,” said Zebian.
The topic of removing Sam Slick’s likeness from downtown Windsor will return to council Sept. 22 for a final decision. Zebian said council hasn’t discussed where the icons would go once removed.
TIMELINE
1796 — Thomas Chandler Haliburton was born into a wealthy family.
1815 — Haliburton graduated from Kings College in Windsor.
1816 — Haliburton met his future wife Louisa Neville. The pair had 11 children; six sons (three died in infancy) and five daughters.
1820 — Haliburton started his own law practice in Annapolis.
1824 — Haliburton became judge of probate.
1826-29 — Haliburton entered politics as Annapolis County’s representative in the Nova Scotia House of Assembly.
1829 — Haliburton’s first book An Historical and Statistical Account of Nova Scotia, in two volumes, was published by Joseph Howe.
1829 — His father, William Haliburton, died, leaving the position of judge of the Inferior Court of Common Pleas open for Haliburton to claim. He returned to Windsor.
Mid-1830s — The first of several books featuring Sam Slick, a fast-talking Yankee clock-peddler, was published. Prior to this, Sam Slick appeared as a series of sketches in the Novascotian. These books were popular in Britain, the United States and were translated to German.
1841 — His wife died suddenly while in Halifax at the age of 48. Later that year, Haliburton was appointed justice to the Supreme Court of Nova Scotia.
1856 — Haliburton retired with a small pension, sold his stately Clifton House in Windsor, and moved to England. He then married a wealthy widow friend, Sarah Harriet Williams.
1865 – Haliburton died.
Mid-1970s — A summer festival known as Sam Slick Days was created in Windsor. It was held annually on the weekend prior to the first Monday in August.
2008 — A controversial image featuring Sam Slick and a Black man appeared on the brochure for the 2008 Sam Slick Days festival.
2009 — The summer festival was renamed Windsor West Hants Summer Fest.
2009 — Windsor’s council began discussing the removal of Sam Slick from highway signage as the town once billed itself as the ‘Home of Sam Slick.’
2014 — The summer festival was renamed Avon River Days.
2020 — West Hants Regional Municipality is looking at removing the remaining Sam Slick icons from public property, including wire silhouettes on telephone poles and a weather vane on top of the Victoria Park gazebo.
DID YOU KNOW?
Thomas C. Haliburton’s fictional character Sam Slick allowed the author to provide an outsider’s critique of Nova Scotians and their political and social views. Slick characterized townsfolk as lazy.
According to the Haliburton House Museum’s website, the popularity of Haliburton’s writings, in particular those involving Slick, has waned due to “their sometimes imperialistic, misogynistic, and racist storylines, but also because the sketches satirize political events of the time that are unfamiliar to today’s readers.”
However, many everyday sayings were first popularized by Slick, including bark up the wrong tree; an ounce of prevention is worth a pound of cure; quick as a wink; and facts are stranger than fiction.