Wednesday, January 18, 2017

Life and Times of Carrie Smith born in 1914




Early Childhood

Sister Laura, made this dress (left) for Carrie to wear to a school Christmas party.  The material was "pink organdy."   It was fringed with blue ostrich feathers.
      Carrie lived her childhood on the Sahtlan farm near Duncan.  The photo, right, about 1922 shows Les about 3 years and Carrie about 8 years under the watchful eye of elder sister Laura about 18 years.  The younger children appear to have been wandering the farm collecting leaves or branches.  The buildings in the background are part of the barn and pen complex.  This may have been the rented house down at "river bottom" which the family used for a "couple of years" while they built at Sahtlam.





 
Living Through the Depression
The picture left was taken about 1937, shortly after the birth of Eleanor Smith to Carrie's brother Gordon and wife Patricia Swanson. Carrie would marrie Richard Foster at the end of the same year.  A popular outing for the family was Beacon Hill Park in Victoria.  Transportation was usually Bart Creighton the husband of Carrie's eldest sister, Josie.  Other cars were owned by Nels Smith and Richard Foster.


 Life on the farm was just the same.
   The Depression did not have a major affect  on the Smith family while they lived on the farm.  Vegetables came from their garden and meat was often wild venison or salmon. "Every week my mother would order about a 12 pound roast to be delivered for Sunday dinner," Carrie remembered.  "My father often went down to the brook before breakfast and caught a trout or two."  Money was in short supply but Pa seemed to find enough working on a road gang.  Carrie relates, "I was about 18 when one of the workers on the road asked my father if he could have a date with me.  The boy was the son of our doctor.  My father told him NO and never to ask again. He did the same to a boy who walked me home one day."


Being a teenager in the 1930s
   The photo above was taken May 21, 1933 on the slopes of Mt Tsuhalem.  The mountain was a popular excursion for young people in the Duncan area.  Notice at least three ladies are wearing Cowichan knitted sweaters, including Carrie who is in the lower right. Josie Creighton nee Smith is on the far right.
   About 1936, when  Carrie was 21, Bart Creighton used his influence with the King's Printer in Victoria to help Carrie get a job.  "They were printing the BC Statutes and needed extra help so he just said come on in.  After the job was finished he kept Olive and me on."  Carrie took a "room" in a building near Fort and Government which had "a very good cooking space downstairs." She stayed there about six months.  "Laura used to bring me my food for a whole week."

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Caroline Ellen Smith (1914-2007)





Caroline Ellen Smith, b. 1 March 1914 in Birdshill, Manitoba m. Richard Foster 15 December 1937 in Victoria BC. d. November 18, 2007 in Victoria BC.

      Father: Thomas William Smith (1867 - 1946)
     Mother: Wilhemena Ellen Tohm (1880 - 1957)

Caroline Smith circa 1934, age 20
Spouse: Richard (Dick) Foster, b. 9 July 1913 in Victoria, British Columbia, d. 14 October 1959 in Victoria, British Columbia  (Married Cyril Shearing 27 April 1963 in Victoria, British Columbia)

      Father: Richard Foster (1878 - 1947)
     Mother: Esther Eliza Chapman (1881 - 1953)

    Married: 15 December 1937 in Victoria, British Columbia

Caroline Smith circa 1929
     Caroline remembers her family’s trip across Canada from Manitoba in 1919 as an exciting adventure. It was a time of trains, wagons, bad roads and very few autos.  The journey was broken for an interval at Clark’s Crossing, Saskatchewan where brother Les was born and she ceased to be the baby of the family.  Of the journey, elder sister Josie “always claimed she was a nursemaid to a lot of drippy-nosed young sprouts” (Murray).  The young spouts were Freddie(7), Carrie(5) and Leslie the newborn.
   When Carrie was 23, she married Richard Foster, a city boy with a government job in Victoria.  The couple set up housekeeping, first in a rental on Helmeken Street and then at 1431 Richardson St. where both their children were born.  The war intervened while they were on Richardson but not before Dick had established chickens and a fine garden.
     In a letter from Halifax in 1944, during his military service, he wrote “I sure miss my gardening but from all accounts David (2 years) is doing it or at least ruining it.”
     Prosperity descended on the land as the war ended and the Depression faded into distant memory.  Dick and Carrie purchased a building lot on Richardson, expecting to build a larger house to accommodate the growing family.  About 1950, their plans changed.  Both Richardson properties were sold and  they moved to 1542 Hampshire Road, in Oak Bay. (still exists in 2005 much as it was) 
     The Hampshire house was old but very spacious, with three bedrooms on the second floor.  The kitchen was enormous with sitting space and counters all around.  A walk-in pantry had a port to an outside cooling cupboard.  The back porch and stairs were roofed with a sliding window that overlooked the large back garden and gave access to the clothesline.  The big living room window looked onto the usually, quiet street.  The front entrance passed through a sun room.  
Foster family circa 1946



      The television era dawned while the family lived on Hampshire.  It was the beginning of life with Lawrence Welk and Ed Sullivan.  There were family battles over who should get up to change channels and who should adjust the “rabbit ears”.  There was always a western to watch and game shows made their debut.  
     Five years later they purchased a property at 2021 Carnarvon, two doors off Foul Bay Rd, just inside the Oak Bay boundary.  A typical mid-fifties 1250 square foot house with all the "modern" features was built.   The bedrooms were small, and  one bathroom was shared.  The tub had a shower, an innovation that was beginning to catch on at the time.  In the basement, Dick soon built a "rumpus room" for the kids to play and entertain.








Cyril Shearing & Carrie Smith marry in 1963
    When Dick died in 1959, Carrie was thrust into the workplace in order to pay the bills.  She landed a job at the Queen's Printer where she had previous part-time experience and was acquainted with Dick's fellow workers.  By 1963, when she married Cyril Shearing, her children had become independent and her financial future was secure.  Her life was filled with golfing dates, bridge games, poker parties, old time dancing and travel.  Grand children began to appear in 1963 and kept arriving at intervals for the next 10 years.  By 1974 when the last one was born, Grandma's role as matriarch was well established.  She took the children on little trips to town and big trips camping. She made endless lunches and dinners.


Cyril and Carrie circa 1980; Each winter they traveled south to Palm Springs for golf and lawn bowling.

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Maude Mary "Polly" Loane (1854-1941)





Maude Mary Loane, b. 1854, m. William Henry Elliott, 9 April 1874, d. 1941
       
             1 William Henry Elliott (2), b. 16 January 1873, m. Mabel Wallace, 1895, d. 13 June 1940

             2 Mary Maude Elliott, b. 5 October 1876, m. Phillip H T Watson, d. 22 April 1965

             3 Edith Elliott, b. 16 October 1878, d. 17 October 1878

             4 Ivy Laurel Elliott, b. 3 January 1880, d. 4 June 1880

            5 Henry (Harry) Edward Elliott, b. 11 June 1881, m. Mabel Beatrice Dew Hewlett, 8 April 1901, d. 13 January 1964

            6 Ruby Elliott, b. 11 March 1884, m. William Armstrong, d. 9 July 1974

            7 Golda Elata (Tady) Elliott, b. 18 August 1885, m. Andrew James
            Allison, d. 8 October 1974

            8 Linaria Victoria Elliott, b. 24 May 1887 m. Herbert Edwin Lawrence, 11December, 1907
             1 Tady Lawrence b. 6 October 1908  d. 11 April 2005 (no children)
                 2 George Lawrence b. 13 September 1912  d. 15 June 1995  (two children)
                 3 Ruby Lawrence b. 27 March 1923 (5 children)

The inscription above was in the family Bible handed down to Tady Lawrence with copies to family members.
This family portrait of the Elliott family was handed down to Tady Lawrence.  The names can not be corroborated but are probably as follows: Left, standing is Maude Loane, sitting below her is daughter Lenaria.  On Maude's left is daughter Golda (Tady).  The other two ladies are probably Mary and Ruby.  William Henry Elliott is standing on the right.

The people in this photo cannot be confirmed.   I believe they may be as follows:  In the centre W.H. Elliott with Maude directly above.  On the right was one of the Loane sisters, probably Catharine


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Monday, January 16, 2017

Mary Smith of Toronto (1845- )




Mary Smith, b. 1845 in Canada in Barrie, Ontario d. 1911

              Father: Thomas Smith, b. 1802
                 Mother: Eliza James 

 Mary Smith was the youngest child of Thomas and Eliza.   According to  the  1861 census  she was  "born in Barrie" but in subsequent years after here marriage she lived in East Toronto.  Her husband, John Russell, was a brick maker or stone cutter in 1881, however in 1857 at the age of 18 he was recorded as a labourer.  In 1892, John was living in Simcoe, Vespra near Barrie.  Their son, Joseph,  became a member of parliament for East Toronto.

    Spouse: John RUSSELL (1839 - )
    Married 1 December 1863 in Toronto by Rev. H.J. GRASETT.

Children and grandchildren:

  1 Martha Jane Russell (1864 - 1914)

  2 Elizabeth Russell (1866 - )

  3 Joseph Russell (1868 - 1926)
Joseph Russell (1868 - 1926)  was a Toronto businessman and politician. He was the oldest son of John Russell, a brick maker and stone cutter.  Joseph Russell was from brickmaking clan like the Prices and the Morleys., only the Russells were Irish Anglicans. He owned the brickworks at 1308 Queen Street East at Alton Avenue.

Russell was a candidate for the Ontario legislature in 1908 but was unsuccessful. Supporters then nominated him as an Independent candidate against incumbent Conservative MP Albert Edward Kemp, splitting the Conservative Party in Toronto East. Kemp's opponents accused him of neglecting constituents as well as hiring foreign workers (Macedonians and Italians) at poor pay to undercut Canadian workers. Russell won praise for offering rates of pay that allowed workers to "live in houses of their own, and not herd a dozen into a room."

Russell defeated Kemp by almost 800 votes in the 1908 federal election, but Kemp rebuilt the Conservative Party riding machine and defeated Russell three years later in the 1911 election.

  4 Emma Louise Russell (1869 - 1893)

  5 Anne Eleanor Nellie Russell (1871 - 1934)

  6 Maud May Russell (1874 - )

  7 Nellie Russell (1875 - )

  8 Gertrude Russell (1876 - 1920)

  9 Alexander Russell (1880)

10 Alexandra Russell (1880)

11 Mable Irene Russell (1888)


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James Henry Smith (1871-1948)




James Henry Smith, b. 30 March 1871 at Toronto, Ontario, d. 4 December 1948 at Duncan, British Columbia

         Father: Richard Smith, b. 1840 at Fort William, d. 19 March 1906
         Mother: Agnes Noel, b. 10 December 1840, d. 24 October 1931

Uncle Henry, as he was affectionately called by the Sahtlam Smiths, was son of Richard Smith, cousin of Thomas William. He was a hardworking businessman who arrived in Duncan about 1919, several months before Thomas. He opened a general store called J.H.Smith, The People's Store with an initial declared value of $50,000. Soon a restaurant was added above the store and a second store opened in Cowichan.

Thomas and Henry had always been close. It is thought that Henry may have been the persuasive force that coaxed Thomas west.

The ties between the two families stemmed from the early days back in Winnipeg. Thomas had worked in the hotels owned by Richard Smith (R.R. Smith and Co.) Henry had also managed several facets of the family business before he came west. The Richard Smith family became wealthy and influential, supplying goods to the CPR along the Manitoba route.

Henry's claim to fame among the Smiths of Duncan, happened after he moved to San Francisco. He was there during the famous earthquake of 1937 and sent back a first hand account.

His final business, which began in Duncan but eventually carried him to the USA, was manufacturing shoe inserts similar to those produced by modern podiatrists. Henry became "Doctor J.H.Smith", head of the Corrective Foot Appliance Company of Long Beach. He had returned to Duncan for a few months in 1948, when he died suddenly from a cerebral hemorrhage.







Spouse: Agnes Pauline Cooper













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Richard Smith of Fort William (1840-1906)




Richard Smith, b. 1840 , d. 9 March 1906 in Winnipeg, Manitoba
         Father: Thomas Smith
         Mother: Eliza James married (24 May 1827 in Toronto, Canada)

Richard was the founder of "R. Smith & Co." which began supplying foodstuffs to the CPR at major stops and eventually owned a number of "cafeterias and kitchens" along the train route. A CPR passenger locomotive was named in his honour in July of 1918.

Richard left Toronto sometime before 1861 and took a job as engineer on the railroad in Quebec. Before 1871 he had married and moved back to the Ontario.

His body lies beneath a big statue inscribed "How many hopes lie buried here?"

Spouse: Agnes Noel, b. 10 December 1840, d. 23 October 1931

Married: 27 June 1865 at Durham, Quebec (Congressional Church).

Children and Grandchildren:
Josephine Julie Smith, b. at Fort William, m. John Lynn Davidson
Louise A. Smith , m. C.Douglas Archer 30 October 1920 in St Andrew's Presbyterian, Fort William
Sydney Smith, b. at Fort William
Thomas Samuel Smith, b. 1867 at Richmond, Quebec, m. Hattie Beckstead; d. August 15, 1928 in Fort William
         1 Mrs. D. L. Bole [Smith]
         2 Mrs. Dr. J. Chisholm [Smith]
         3 Mrs. Roy Campbell [Smith]
         4 Thomas Henry Smith
Nelson Noel Smith, b. 15 April 1869 at Fort William, m. Agnes d. 10 September 1951
         1 Kathleen (Anderson) Smith born 1905
         2 Richard Noel Smith born 1899 (Sheila Smith, d. b. March 15, 1927, m.Richard Quinton)
         3 Noel Smith 1901
John.R. Smith, b. March 1871 at Toronto, Ontario
James Henry Smith, b. 30 March 1871 at Toronto, Ontario, m. Agnes Pauline Cooper, d. 4 December 1948 at Duncan, British Columbia
Ardagh Gilbert (Jimmy) Smith, b. 9 March 1889 at Fort William, m. Sadie McLeod d. 20 August 1946
         1 Eleanor Smith
         2 Josephine Smith
         3 Helen Smith
         4 Marjorie Smith


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Cundle Family Wills




Will of Thomas Cundle: Barrie June 1892

The inventory and evaluation of Thomas Cundle totals $19,249.

The following is a transcription of the testimony of Thomas Cundle given with his lawyers in 1872.

This is tha last will and testament of me Thomas Cundle of the township of Vespra in the County of Simcoe.  I give ___ to my wife Elizabeth Cundle all the estate real  and personal that I now own or shall __ possess of with full power as authority to sell, dispose of ____ the same or part or portion therof for the benefit and advancement of our children ___ the true intent and meaning of the said will being that my said wife shall have the full and absolute control after my decease of all my property for her own maintenance and the maintenance and education of our children in the first place and to make such division in allotment of said property or any part thereof amongst them or any of them either during her lifetime or ___ I appoint my said wife the sole executrix of this my last will and testament and the guardian of our said children.
Notes:
1 Horizontal lines denote words or phrases not included because they did not contribute to the genealogical information.
2 Elizabeth Cundle is Elizabeth Smith.
3 The value of the estate in today's currency would be in the millions.
-----------------------------------

Will of Richard Smith Cundle: Barrie 1907

The inventory and valuation of real estate lists 6 properties with a total value of $16,550.

The following is a transcription of the testimony of Richard Smith Cundle.

This is the last will and testament of Mr. Richard Smith Cundle of the town of Barrie ____
    I give _____ and Baymouth to my mother Elizabeth Cundle.  All my ___ and personal property whatsoever and wheresoever to hold the same for her own use for her life whatsover with power to her to divide the same at her discretion between my sister and two brothers in such ___ and in such a way as to __ my ___ ___  said  ____ to be exercised ___  __  ___ and Will.
Notes:
Richard Smith Cundle was the stay-at-home son who took over business details and management from his father.  He served on the town council as did his father.  His mother must have turned most properties over to this man since  she no longer has them 5 years later.  The other children likely  were given  properties as well. 
-------------------------------------

Will of Elizabeth Cundle: Barrie 1912

The inventory and valuation of real estate lists 2 properties and funds from the Richard Smith Cundle estate  totalling $5002. 

The following are transcriptions from the will and testimony of Elizabeth Cundle.

This is the last will and testaments of me Elizabeth Cundle of the town of Barrie in the County of Simcoe.   The widow and ___ in trust and the sole executrix of Thomas Cundle ___  and ___  Richard Smith Cundle in his lifetime ___.
     I give (various monies and properties) ___ and ____ to my son Archibald Charles Cundle of Butte Montana for his own use ___
    I give to my daughter Elizabeth Maria McCarthy the piano that's in our house.  ___ equally share and share alike between my two said sons Archibald Charles Cundle and William Ardagh Cundle and my daughter Eliazabeth Marie McCarthy ____

The petition of William Ardagh Cundle of the city of Great Falls Montana formerly of the town of Barrie, druggist and Archibald Charles Cundle of the said town of Barrie, gentleman
Notes:
1 Most of the original properties had already been dispersed to the children before Elizabeth's death.
2 Archibald Charles Cundle may have moved back from Butte Montana at his mother's death but William Ardagh Cundle seems to still be living in Great Falls Montana.
3 William Ardagh Cundle was a "druggist".   


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