Companions of the Peace: Diaries and Letters of Monica Storrs, 1931-1939

David W. Leonard is the project historian (Northern Alberta) in the
Historic Sites and Archives Service, Alberta Community Development. He
is also the author of Delayed Frontier: The Peace River Country to 1909
and the co-author of The Lure of the Peace R

As the most northerly extension of North America’s great central
plain, the Peace River Country of northern Alberta and British Columbia
was also the last major region of the continent to be developed for
farming. For this reason, it is regarded by some as Canada’s last true
frontier. Initially settled before World War I, without benefit of a
railway, the area experienced its greatest population explosion during
the late 1920s.

Joining the settlement wave at the time was a small group of dedicated
women known as the “Companions of the Peace,” who took up residence
at Fort St. John. Inspired by a commitment to the Church of England and
the cause of Empire, these women left relatively comfortable
surroundings, usually in England, to minister to the needs of those
struggling to make their way in this newly opened land. Combining social
and medical work with religious instruction, the Companions became a
strong community pillar, particularly during the trying times of the
Depression.

The longest-serving and most ubiquitous of the Companions was Monica
Storrs. The daughter of an English vicar, she had been trained in Church
work since childhood and had served as her father’s pastoral and
household assistant until he passed away in 1928. That same year, she
met Eva Hasell, a missionary with the Fellowship of the Maple Leaf, who
filled her with stories about the Canadian Northwest. Thus, at age 41,
Storrs made the bold decision to move to northeastern British Columbia
and open a mission that she called the Abbey. From here, she would
minister to the surrounding community until 1950.

Fortunately for posterity, Storrs kept a detailed record of her
activities. She also forwarded entries from her diary back to England to
attract new Companions. In 1979, the first three years of her diary were
published in a volume entitled God’s Galloping Girl, edited by W.L.
Morton. Companions of the Peace covers the remainder of the diary up to
1939. Throughout the book, much is revealed about the conditions of the
time and place and about how the close-knit group of women managed to
sustain themselves, as well as help others, in this harsh northern
environment. As source material, the book is invaluable for those
studying the region and/or the issue women faced on the Canadian
frontier.