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Ballad of Charles Davenport

from The Gift by Clary Croft

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lyrics

The Ballad of Charles Devonport

John Munro, Larrikin Music Publishing

I performed this song on CBC Radio Halifax in October of 2002 and, knowing little of the factual story, asked if there was a real person named Charles Devonport. That same day, I was contacted by Melvin Harris, in Cole Harbour. A very real Charlie Devonport had been his friend and Melvin introduced me to the world of the British Home Children. Between 1869 and 1948, an estimated 100,000 British children were sent to Canada. Their stories are ones of hardship, abuse, joy and opportunity. I was able to introduce John Munroe’s fine song to the family of Charles Devonport and so, as the line in the song says, we have been able to “trade one past for the other”.


Welcome home to Derby Charles,
Welcome back from Nova Scotia,
So many miles, so long to wait,
And never know your mother,
But I knew you'd mend the broken thread,
The one I never wanted broken,
So here we'll set the record straight,
Trade one past for another.

I never think about the war,
It conjures up too many shadows,
When life was hanging by a thread,
And nothing seemed to matter
Then a child myself I bore a child,
They said it best to hand you over,
And who was I in guilt and shame
To think that I knew better.

The Sisters said they'd bring you up
And give you what I couldn't offer,
Another family, different name,
They said I'd soon forget you,
And to keep you from the pain and loss,
"Poor orphan" was the tale they told you,
And to cleanly cover every trace,
To Canada they sent you.

You must have wondered through the years,
As you grew to be a different person,
What link you were within the chain,
What went to make the man
And oh - to be somebody's son,
And oh - to be somebody's brother
To be complete, to know your name
And how your life began

You found your way to Derby Charles,
You tracked me down from Nova Scotia,
To kneel beside the stone that says,
I was your loving mother
But you took too long, I couldn't wait
But here you see I always loved you
Too late to see it in my eyes
Too late for starting over

credits

from The Gift, released April 20, 2021

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Clary Croft Nova Scotia

Clary is a folklore researcher, author and recording artist. His newly published memoirs, Clary Croft: My Charmed Life in Music, Art, and Folklore, chronicles a career spanning over fifty years. His work with the traditional music from the Creighton Collection, has caused Clary to be called, “the acknowledged master of one of the richest repertoires in Canada.” [Halifax Mail Star] ... more

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