HOW BEAR RIVER GOT ITS NAME

Bear River is a small, rural community eight kilometers west of Souris. Bears were seen roaming along the river and throughout this community many years ago. So, some early residents christened it Bear River. In fact, between 1875 and 1895, over twenty bears were killed in this area.

Charles Kelly used to sit on a rail-fence on a warm summer’s . evening, and watch a mother bear and her cubs playing in his back field. One day, a lady, Marjorie MacDonald, saw a bear and her cub near the edge of the woods, (known to her as the green bush). She was on her way to Bear River South School to begin her day as a teacher.

Jimmy Johnny MacDonald often told Marjorie that he also saw bears in his back fields. They were hungry for mutton, but Jimmy had erected a high fence to enclose the field where the sheep grazed. Thus, they were kept safe from the animal’s vicious claws.

Edward Mallard and James Manning lived in New Zealand, a community two miles East of Bear River. One day, they discovered a bear’s den in the woods. The residents were informed that a hunt was in progress. The store and railway station closed for the afternoon, and all the men in the area for miles around stopped work so that they could join in the excitement. However, James and Edward came across the bear and managed to kill her, and two of her cubs before the others arrived for the hunt. They also captured two cubs alive. It is unusual for a bear to have more than two cubs, and there was a great deal of speculation about the possibility of another female bear still roaming in the woods. However, they were never able to find her. Denny Costello took one of the cubs home for a pet. Later, Denny’s pet became so big he had to tie it up with a chain. One morning, the bear broke loose and scurried off to the barnyard. It so happened that