Part IV: A Victorian Romance

The Courtship

It’s been a few months since the last instalment of the Christine Procter story. In Part 3, the Mitchell family had settled in Donald, B.C., a small community that was a divisional point on the Canadian Pacific Railway. I introduced you to Dr. Arthur Percival Procter, who practiced in the community in the 1890s, and won the hearts of its citizens. 

As a popular young doctor with good career prospects, Dr. Procter was quite a catch for the young unmarried ladies of Donald. I can visualize Sarah Mitchell and her friends at the Ladies Aid Society scheming to set the young doctor up with eligible young women. Here’s a fictional account of a dinner party, hosted by the Mitchells for Dr. Procter, before his move to Kamloops in February 1898:

Sarah Mitchell asked her brother Robert, a C.P.R. engineer, to drop off a dinner invitation to Dr. Procter at his office in the Donald train station. The note card read, “Mr. Collie, Mrs. Walter Mitchell, and Miss Christine Mitchell request the pleasure of Dr. A. P. Procter’s company at dinner on Thursday … at seven o’clock. Pleased to receive the invite, Dr. Procter told Robert that he was available to attend and drafted a note saying so for Robert to return to his family.

 Delighted, Sarah and Christine spent the next week planning an elaborate meal for Dr. Procter. On the day of the supper, Sarah laid the table with her best china and a seasonal floral arrangement. She asked Christine to wear her finest frock – a blue dress with a rounded neckline and embellished with handmade lace. Sarah then arranged her daughter’s glistening dark hair into a flattering coil at the top of her head and secured it with a comb.

 At precisely 7 o’clock, Dr. Procter arrived to dine wearing his best frock coat, silk tie and black trousers. Nervously, he fingered the chain of his new pocket watch tucked into his coat pocket. Smiling shyly, Christine met him at the door, and invited him to follow her into the drawing room to meet the rest of the family. He greeted Uncle Robert and William – now 10 years old - building a model train set on the floor. 

Spotting Christine’s self-portrait displayed on the mantle above the fireplace, Dr. Procter commented on the level of detail in the drawing and how perfectly it captured her silhouette. Christine said she copied a photograph taken by a local photographer in Donald. This sparked a conversation about recent technological advancements in photography and the new portable device – a Kodak camera – that allowed anyone to press a button and capture an image of their choosing. 

Later, Dr. Procter would tell his friends how taken he was by Miss Mitchell’s poise, artistic ability, and intelligence. In that moment, he was transfixed by the shine of her dark hair and the sparkle in her eyes, reflected from the glow of the fireplace. 

Sarah called everyone to the table and invited Dr. Procter to sit across from Christine and William. Uncle Robert took his place at the head of the table with Sarah seated opposite to him. Sarah prepared an extravagant, multi-course dinner that included an oxtail soup with sliced radishes on the side, a cold poached salmon with potatoes, roast venison, and pastries for dessert. Dr. Procter complimented Sarah on the delicious spread.

Over supper, Dr. Procter spoke at length about his family and experiences growing up in the Old Country. After his parents passed away, the young Arthur Percival Procter set sail to North America in 1886 and obtained a position as a schoolteacher in the Alberni public school. In the late 1880s, he moved across the country to attend medical schools at McGill and Manitoba University, and after graduation, returned to British Columbia to work with the C.P.R. railway.

Young William was captivated by Dr. Procter’s stories about his experiences as teacher on Vancouver Island and as a railroad physician. After supper, Christine and Dr. Procter were deliberately left alone in the drawing room, as Sarah put young William to bed. The dinner party was a splendid success that ignited a courtship between Christine and the young doctor.

After Dr. Procter (now affectionately called “Percy”) moved to Kamloops to set up his new practice, The Golden Era newspaper noted that the doctor paid several “flying visits” to Donald. Christine and Percy courted in the Mitchell home under the family’s watchful gaze. During one of these visits, the doctor asked Sarah and Uncle Robert for Christine’s hand in marriage.

The Wedding: September 12, 1900

The trunk of family treasures contains a faded wedding portrait of the couple and a tiny placeholder card inscribed with silver-embossed font “Christine Violet Mitchell – Dr. & Mrs. A.P. Procter.” As I coloured the wedding photograph, I imagined Christine’s wedding day, which took place on September 12, 1900 in Winnipeg, Manitoba:

The wedding day was considered to be the most important event in a Victorian girl’s life.  For Christine, it was the day her mother prepared her for from the moment she was born. The ambition of most of her schoolmates was to marry, and to marry well.  Christine’s engagement to the handsome young doctor made her the envy of her peers. 

Wearing her Sunday-best – a simple but elegant violet dress with a high-necked collar – Christine and her Uncle Robert walked down the aisle at Winnipeg’s First Presbyterian Church. At the altar, the couple recited their vows, and Percy slid a plain gold ring inscribed with their initials and the wedding date onto Christine’s slender finger. They exchanged a jubilant kiss and their family and friends pelted them with rice as they exited the church.

After the ceremony, everyone made their way to the wedding reception at Christine’s grandparent’s (William and Ann Collie) house after the ceremony.

After the wedding, the newlyweds, Sarah and William travelled by train to Kamloops, where they settled into their new home.