Warning: Contains Spoilers from All Five Seasons!
Baileys
Bob Bailey, played by Dan Lett, is May's oldest son. In the first season, Bob is running the mine, but after many troubles, he skips out. Bob and his wife, Toppy, have marital problems, and the only way he can get Toppy back is by leaving the mine. While in Toronto, Bob finds another woman and leaves Toppy for her. Bob has a know-it-all way of speaking, and often makes the person he's talking to look foolish.
Doris Bailey, played by Kathryn Long, is Bob and Toppy's only daughter. Doris is a spoiled brat. At first she refuses to get along with Hub and Fat and as a result she and Hub get into a fight.
Grace Bailey, played by Kathryn Greenwood, is May's only daughter and the youngest May's children. Grace is around thirty years old and still lives with her overbearing mother. Grace has several relationships with guys, but in Grace's eyes, none of them are right for her. In the first season, Grace is a ditzy blond who, in May's eyes, is a "bumbling" girl and isn't grown-up. However, Grace often says thought provoking things. In the first season Grace lives under her mother's thumb, but in the second season, Grace slowly overcomes her mother, and with the help of Del Sutton she learns how to stand up to May. Grace is a wonderful aunt and enjoys having a good time. Throughout the show she pursues several different careers. In the fifth season Grace meets Vaniver Mainwairing and falls in love with him. After only knowing him a few weeks, she marries him and later regrets it.
Henry Bailey, played by Tyrone Savage, is Honey's second son. When Henry was a baby, he loved to eat and received the nickname Fat. Fat is more like his father, Jack. Like Hub, Fat doesn't enjoy living with his grandmother, but he likes May much sooner than Hub begins to like May. Fat's mouth often gets him into trouble. Because Fat is often whimsical in his thinking, people never really believe him when he tells them what he wants to do with his life.
Hubert Bailey, played by Dylan Provencher, is Honey's oldest son. Hub is similar to his mother, and is very stubborn. Hub detests living with his grandmother, but he and May eventually come to an agreement. In the first season, Hub does everything he can to earn money to help get the family back together. In the second season, Hub slowly becomes interested in the mine and becomes a lot closer to his grandmother. For a time Hub thinks that he might take over the family mine, but then decides that he wants to become a priest.
Jack Bailey, played by Booth Savage, is May's younger son. Jack doesn't get along with his mother. When the bank closes his hardware store, Jack goes to New Bedford to get the keys to his mother's lake house. While at the house, Jack is attacked by wasps and dies from the stings.
May Bailey, played by Shirley Douglas, is very overbearing and likes to be in control of everything and everybody. Because of that, May's children and grandchildren avoid telling her everything, and when May finds out, she asks them why they didn't just come out and ask. At the beginning of the series, May is hard to get along with, but by the end of the second season she is slightly softened. May has a heart problem and has a series of attacks that leaves her bedridden. While she is bedridden, her children "take" the mine from her, and May loses the mine to Mr. Gerrard. Because May and her husband started the mine and helped the making of New Bedford, she has a very hard time losing the mine. She retaliates though, and brings back her her mine.
Toppy Bailey, played by Robin Craig, is Bob's wife and the mother of Doris. Toppy and May get along very well, and in the first season, Toppy helps May keep an eye on Honey. Toppy dislikes Bob's continual working at the mine and leaves him because she's tired of being second to him. In the second season, she comes back to New Bedford and tells Bob that she will only come back to him if he quits working at that mine. Bob agrees, and he, Toppy, and Doris "run off in the night."
Violet Bailey, played by ____ (in the fourth and fifth season played by Natasha LaForce), is Honey's only daughter. When Jack dies, Violet is sent to live with relatives. Towards the end of the season Henry kidnaps Violet and brings her back to New Bedford. May then decides that Honey is a capable mother. Violet is always a minor character and has very few speaking lines. When she does speak, her lines are usually funny things kids that age say.
Cousin Jessie, played by Kay Tremblay, is in the second season. Jessie is May's cousin who took care of May when she was little. Jessie refuses to let her age catch up to her and -much to the annoyance of May- still tries to tell May what to do. Jessie helps May accept Honey as her daughter-in-law.
Barlow
Dr. Barlow, played by Don Allison, is in all five seasons. Dr. Barlow is one of the few people in town that May will listen to.
Behan
Marjorie Behan, played by Sally Cahill, is in the first four seasons. Marjorie works at the mine. She would like to get married and attends bridge parties. In between the third and fourth season she and Ollie Jefferson get married.
Callahan
Joe Callahan, played by Jesse Collins, is in the first two seasons. Joe is Honey's money-maker-idea brother. Joe tries to find ways of making money, and his ideas do not always work. He often depends on his sister to pick him up when he gets in trouble, but Honey quits helping him, hoping that it will force her brother to grow up.
Cramps
Callie Cramp, played by Lynne Griffin, appears in the second season and continues into the last season. Callie is the co-owner of the New Bedford Hotel and loves gossip. Because of her love of gossip, Callie often looks like an evil person. In the fourth season Callie softens up, and she seems to be a much nicer person. The gossip in Callie still emerges from time to time.
Flett
Jim Flett, played by Robert Brokstael, appears in the third season and continues until the Christmas special. Jim is a scientist and teaches at the New Bedford school. Jim's son, Pritchard, admires Grace and wishes that Jim would date Grace, and in one episode, Grace pretends to be Jim's fiancé. Jim is very quiet and reserverd, and because of this, he lets Grace slip through his fingers.
Grady
Dot Grady, played by Corinne Conley, is in the first season. Dot is May's neighbor. Dot is a gossipy troublemaker and doesn't mind telling Fat unkind things about his mother.
Kendrick
Benjamen Kendrick, played by Graham McPhearson, is in the second and third season (different actor later in the third season). Mr. Kendrick is a banker at the bank. He tries hard to help May with keeping the mine open, but the bank continues turning down May's loan. When Mr. Kendrick learns about a shady deal, he notifies May.
Jefferson
Ollie Jefferson, played by Neil Crone, is in the first four seasons. Ollie owns Jefferson's garage. He is a slightly shy man who has a crush on Grace. He and Grace date throughout the second season, but Grace breaks up because she doesn't think that they are really right for each other. In between season three and four, Ollie marries Marjorie.
MacFarlane
Alice MacFarlane, played by Julie Annis, is in the first four seasons. In the first season Alice is a tomboy and enjoys pulling pranks on people. Alice has a chip on her shoulder and dislikes it when people try to help her out. In the fourth season Alice is pregnant and needs help from various people. Most of the time she refuses help. In the end of season four Alice gives her baby to a couple in town and leaves New Bedford for good.
Lorna MacFarlane, played by Maggie Huculak, is in seasons two through five. Lorna is Alice's somewhat crabby mother. Because of her husband's accident, Lorna dislikes the Baileys and tells her daughter not to talk to them.
McGinty
Leo McGinty, played by Gorden Pinsent, is in the second and third seasons. Mr. McGinty is Maisey's grandfather and runs the pawnshop. He moved to New Bedford to protect his granddaughter from things in the city. Leo used to work with May at the mine and gives her help and advice when May asks for it.
Maisey McGinty, played by Dalene Irvine, appears in the second season and continues until the last season. In the second season, Maisey is a tough tomboy who doesn't like being made fun of. By the third season Maisey is a lot calmer and much more enjoyable to watch. In the third season she uses a crystall ball to bring her father back. Maisey doesn't know who her father is, and doesn't even know that he really does come to town. When her grandfather dies, Eddie comes back to town, but May is given charge of Maisey.
Mainwairing
Vaniver Mainwairing, played by Andrew Jackson, appears in the fifth season. Van comes through town and makes an overnight stay because his car needs work. While in New Bedford Van sees Grace and falls in love with her. Van extends his stay in New Bedford, and he and Grace elope. Disaster incures with their marriage when Grace learns that Van was a con-artist.
Murphy
George Murphy, played by Christopher Bondy, is Silver Dome Mine's manager. George keeps May informed of the happenings at the mine.
Stoneman
Sergeant Stoneman, played by Rodger Barton, is in the first four seasons. Sergeant Stoneman is the head policeman (that we see) in New Bedford, and isn't afraid to bully May.
Suttons
Del Sutton, played by Ron Lea, is Max's brother. In the first few episodes of the second season, Del is irresponsible and acts like a kid. After a lecture from Max, Del slowly changes. Del works at Jefferson's Garage and works part time at CRNB radio. Del falls in love with Grace, but because Grace is seeing Ollie, Del stands back and waits until Grace and Ollie break up. When Del loses his job he leaves town which eventually causes him to lose Grace.
Honey Bailey Sutton, played by Cynthia Belliveau in the first through third season and played by Laura Breneau in the fourth and fifth season, is married to Jack Bailey and the mother of Hub and Fat. After Jack dies, May takes Honey's children away and tells Honey that she can't have the children back until she is able to support herself. After several misadventures, May grudgingly agrees to let Honey come back and live with her. Because Honey is very stubborn and determined, it helps her "survive" her mother-in-law and helps her find a job and her career. At the beginning of the second season Honey marries Max Sutton and opens her own hair salon.
Max Sutton, played by James Carroll, is a school teacher. Max teaches various classes, but his favorite class is physical education. Physical education is often threatened to be cut from the school program, but after much convincing, Max talks the board members to keep it. In the first season, Max helps run a food station by the railroad for the hobos. Because of this, May dislikes Max and she does her best to stop the physical education and stop Max from marrying Honey. Neither plan succeeds and in the second season Max marries Honey. Max also enjoys writing mystery plays and has a part time job working at the radio station. The school's new principal dislikes Max's second job and makes him quit working at the radio station.
Zack Sutton, played by Dougie LaForce, is born at the end of season two and is in the rest of the seasons. Since Zack is a baby he has very minor roles. In the fifth season, he is rushed to the hospital because Honey and Max are afraid that he has polio.
Wainwright
Whitney
Mrs. Whitney, played by Charmion King, is in all five seasons. Mrs. Whitney becomes the principal in season two.
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