FOX FUR FARMING
Prince Edward island's fox industry began as far back as 1867 when the first foxes were dug out of the ground with a view to ranching them.
The place was Fox Hill, near North Cape and the man was a fisher- man named Thompson. There are no other details but Charles Dalton is regarded as one of the pioneers of the industry. He, along with his friend Robert Oulton, became partners in the first honest to goodness fox ranching effort in the province.
They began raising foxes within the confines of pens, constructed of wire netting which had to be dug down several feet underground to prevent the fox from escaping. The pen contained a wooden den for shelter.
Seemingly the Prince Edward Island climate lent itself well to the pro- duction of beautiful fox fur pelts. Prices sky-rocketed as high as twenty thousand dollars. Breeding stock brought even higher prices.
In 1914 due to the war, the European market fell and pelt prices were down to fifteen to twenty dollars a piece.
Following the war the price became more stable for a short while.
The extent of the fox ranching industry on Prince Edward Island can be gauged from a report in a Montreal newspaper several years ago, that. per capita, Summerside was the wealthiest town of its size in North America. This was directly as a result of the fox industry.
The company-owned ranches were located in the general location of the farms now owned by Mrs. Davis Moase and Walter Bergmann.
The Magic ranch was operated by Messrs. Lecky, Simmons, Callbeck, Lea and Stavert.
The Monkley ranch by Ed Monkley. The Urch-Champion by Ed Urch and Alexander Champion. The Leeland by John A. Lee.
Individuals raising foxes within the district were Davis Moase, Howard England, Harry Walker, David Walker, James Marchbank, George Ramsay, Harold Moase and William Taylor.
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