IRON RIVER - Iron River resident John Tkatchuk was an avid collector of old farm equipment, vintage washing machines, stamps, posters, records, and much more. The items became a personal museum known locally as Gido’s Place – and turned his front yard into an attraction.
On March 29, Tkatchuk passed away. The land where the museum was located had been passed down to John from his family, and now has been inherited by John’s son, Mark Tkatchuk, who has been staying at Gido’s Place, working to find new homes for his father’s vast collection.
Several little buildings cluster in the front yard jam packed with things collected over the years, including a yellow church, a light house, and a trapper’s cabin. Bottles, books, photographs and knickknacks line dusty shelves, and everywhere you turn there is something strange, fascinating, or funny to discover.
Mark said his father would host school field trips and curious visitors, never charging any money for it. He did it out of the sheer joy of sharing his passion with others.
An auction is being planned for Gido’s Place, giving fellow collectors the opportunity to treasure hunt in a treasure hunter’s yard - and allowing John to share his passion with people one last time.
John’s niece, Leila Fadeyiw, wrote his eulogy and explained that John had spent his retirement foraging the dump and auctions to add to his collection, and gathering scrap metal to build all sorts of structures, giant model planes, and other creative endeavors.
“Even through his illness, John remained positive and upbeat. He will be remembered for his many travels and his love of music. John always had a joke or a story to tell – that boy could talk,” said Fadeyiw.
She spoke about his time as a mechanic, and his entrepreneurial spirit that started at a young age.
John was born in 1933, and his family moved to the Iron River homestead in 1939 where he would make two cents per tail trapping gophers, and dug and dried Seneca roots to sell by the pound.
Fadeyiw said John was a self-taught musician, who bought his first guitar from the Eatons catalogue after finding $20.
“John played in various bands throughout his teen years. Every weekend the self-taught musicians, John and his brother George, would play every local hall they could to raise enough money to buy a car,” said Fadeyiw.
Mark explained that his father's love of music stayed with him throughout his life.
“My father was also in some bands. When he lived in Vancouver, he was in a band called the Vancouver Polka Pals, and then he was in a band up here called the Swing Tones. We still have these posters that you would put on the side of the barn and people would come to hear them play,” said Mark.
The Vancouver Polka Pals recorded two albums in the late 1960s.
“John continued to play his guitar even in later years, and would play events like Haying in the 30’s. He was a very talented musician,” said Fadeyiw.
Mark said his father also made several instruments himself, including a guitar, a violin, and a dulcimer.
Mark described his father as a character and spoke fondly of his sense of humour. Some of his fondest memories include time spent cooking in the outdoor clay oven John built.
Fadeyiw said John had built the Ukrainian clay oven, called a peech, with the guidance of his mother, and he would invite big groups of people over to join him at Gido’s Place.
