Profile: Clarence Williams Douglas & Mary Louisa “May” Leach

Profile: Clarence Williams Douglas [1865-1923] & Mary Louisa “May” Leach [1863-1896]

Clarence Williams Douglas was born on 9 February 1865 in Owen Sound, Grey County [D00329, D00769, D00838, D01559, D04954] and was the youngest child of John Douglas and Louisa Williams.

Clarence grew up in Owen sound and lived most of his there [D02348]. At the age of sixteen he learned the trade of cutter by apprenticing with a tailor in Toronto [D01354] alongside his older brothers, Thomas W. And Frederick G. Douglas. Back in Owen Sound, Thomas W. Douglas opened a tailoring business where Clarence was employed for seventeen years [D02348].

Mary Louisa “May” Leach was born on 20 October 1863 [D00838, D01131, D01236, D01952, D04954] the daughter of Charles Leach and Margaret Delahaye. She grew up in Trafalgar Township in Halton County, Canada West [D01236], later moving to Oakville [D01334]. She likely met Clarence Douglas during the time he was apprenticing in Toronto.

Clarence Douglas and Mary Louisa “May” Leach were married on 27 December 1887 in Toronto [D00838].

Clarence and May lived on Mulholland Street (now 3rd Avenue West) in Owen Sound. They had one daughter, Muriel May Douglas, born 21 May 1889 [D00378, D05264, D05998].

On the morning of Wednesday 26 February 1896, May began experiencing some agonizing pains in her abdomen [D00233]. Several doctors were called in, but they were unable to save her and she died later that day [D00233, D01952]. The cause of the pains and her later death was determined to be an intestinal rupture [D00233].

The entire community was shocked and grief-stricken over her death as she was only thirty-two years of age and left behind a seven-year-old daughter [D00233, D04930, D05999]. Her funeral was held on Friday 28 February 1896 at 3 pm [D00233, D04930, D05999] and being very well-known in the community, drew a procession that was over a mile in length [D04930, D05999]. She is buried in Greenwood cemetery [D00233, D01131, D04954].

After his wife’s death, Clarence sold the house on Mulholland Street to Mr. George W. Patterson [D06017].

Clarence worked as a commercial traveller for a few years in the 1890s before partnering with George Marron to purchase the Paterson House Hotel from W.M. Matthews on 7 April 1903 [D06019]. The Paterson House had been considered on of the best managed hotels in all of Canada just a few years earlier, but took a bit of a downturn after Owen Sound went dry in 1906. Marron and Douglas co-owned the hotel until Clarence’s death in 1923. During their time as co-owners, George Marron and Clarence Douglas became very well-known over all of Western Ontario [D02348].



Clarence and May’s only daughter Muriel May Douglas married Lester Wright Brown on 26 October 1912 in Owen Sound [D00835]. Their first an only biological daughter (as well as Clarence and May’s only biological granddaughter), Frances Eileen Brown, was born 23 August 1918 [D00267, D00345].

In the evening of Thursday, 20 December 1923 passed out while entering his room at the Paterson House. He may have been drinking that evening, leading to the loss of consciousness, as he was known to have been a drinker. As he fell, he cut his leg on the door hinge and knocked over an oil space heater. He was found collapsed on the floor. A doctor was called, but by the time he began treatment, blood poisoning from the cut had already set in [D02348]. Clarence died two days later on Saturday 21 December 1923 [D01951, D02348].

His funeral was held on Monday 24 December 1923 at the home of his daughter, 1104 4th Avenue East [D02348]. The pall bearers were his nephews John Wilfred and Dr. Norman K. Douglas, his son-in-law Lester Wright Brown, his brother-in-law, George Milford and business partner, George Marron [D02348]. He was buried in Greenwood cemetery along with his wife [D01131, D02348, D04954].




Sources:
[D00233] "Deaths," (Owen Sound) Owen Sound Times, 27 Feb 1896, p. 5, col. 3.

[D00267] “Birth Announcements," Owen Sound Sun-Times , August 27 1918, p. 5; digital images(accessed 5 Mar 2017). Rec. Date: 5 Mar 2017. 

[D00329] 1911 census of Canada, Ontario, district 73, sub-district 57, Owen Sound, p. 3, dwelling 36, family 36; RG 31; digital images, Ancestry.com (accessed 25 Mar 2017).

[D00345] 1921 census of Canada, district 83, sub-district 36, Owen Sound, p. 5, dwelling 62, family 63; RG 31; digital images, ancestry.com (accessed 2 Apr 2017). Rec. Date: 1 Apr 2017. 

[D00378] Ontario Archives of Ontario, MS 929, reels 1-245, MS929; Reel: 93: 40, 11105, 76; digital image, Ancestry.com, (20 Apr 2017).

[D00769] 1891 census of Canada, Ontario, district 68, sub-district Owen Sound West Ward, Owen Sound, p. 8, family 39; RG 31; digital images, Ancestry.ca,Ancestry (accessed 13 Oct 2017).

[D00835] Ontario Archives of Ontario, Ontario, Canada Marriages, MS932; Reel: 211, 8620, Brown-Douglas; digital images, Ancestry.ca, "Ontario, Canada Marriages,"(accessed 9 Dec 2017).

[D00838] Ontario Archives of Ontario, Ontario, Canada Marriages, MS932; Reel: 63, 14388, Douglas-Leach; digital images, Ancestry.ca, "Ontario, Canada Marriages,"(accessed 16 Dec 2017).

[D01131] "Owen Sound Greenwood Cemetery Interments" (typescript, 2005), p. 81.

[D01236] 1871 census of Canada, Ontario, district 38, sub-district 2-b, Trafalgar, p. 25, dwelling 91, family 91; RG 31; digital images(accessed 30 Mar 2019).

[D01334] 1881 census of Canada, Ontario, district 150, Oakville, p. 50, dwelling 260, family 260; RG 31; digital images, Ancestry.ca (accessed 8 Jul 2018).

[D01354] 1881 census of Canada, Ontario, district 134, sub-district G, Toronto, p. 136, dwelling 657, family 713; RG 31; digital images, Ancestry.ca (accessed 30 Sep 2018).

[D01559] 1871 census of Canada, Ontario, district 37, sub-district 1-G, Owen Sound, p. 67, dwelling 258, family 262; RG 31; digital images(accessed 6 Sep 2018).

[D01951] Ontario Archives of Ontario, Ontario, Canada Deaths, MS935; Reel: 301: 429, 15709, 14; digital image, Ancestry.ca, "Ontario, Canada Deaths," Ancestry.ca (16 Mar 2019).

[D01952] Ontario Archives of Ontario, Ontario, Canada Deaths, MS935; Reel: 79: 593, 9512, 17; digital image, Ancestry.ca, "Ontario, Canada Deaths," Ancestry.ca (17 Mar 2019).

[D02348] "Prominent Hotel Man Passed Away Quite Suddenly,"Owen Sound Sun-Times, 23 Dec 1923, p. 1, col. 1; digital images(accessed 16 Mar 2019).

[D04930] "Deaths," (Owen Sound) Owen Sound Times, 5 Mar 1896, p. 5, col. 3.

[D04954] Greenwood Cemetery (Owen Sound, Grey, Ontario), G-S9-1.

[D05264] “Births," (Owen Sound) Owen Sound Times, 6 Jun 1889.

[D05998] “Births," (Owen Sound) Owen Sound Times, 13 Jun 1889, p.4, col. 4.

[D05999] (Owen Sound) The Advertiser, Owen Sound, 3 Mar 1896, p. 1, col. 7.

[D06017] "Marriages," (Owen Sound) Owen Sound Times, 26 Mar 1896, p. 1, col. 4.

[D06019] "Deaths," (Owen Sound) The Advertiser, Owen Sound, 18 Mar 1904, p. 1, col. 2.

X00305: Douglass & Williams Brewers in Amhertsberg?

I’ve been doing some more research on historical breweries in Ontario and I’ve found something interesting. Both “The Art and Mystery of Brewing in Ontario” by Ian Bowering [D06545] and “The Directory of Canadian Breweries Past and Present” by Richard L. Sweet [D06546] mention a Douglas and Williams brewery operating in Amherstberg, Essex County out near Windsor, Ontario.

The first source (Bowering) lists:

Douglas and Williams, brewers 1851 [D06545]

and the second one (Sweet) lists:

Douglass & Williams; brewers 1851-1853 [D06546]

I came across the attached record for Amherstberg from an 1851 directory of Canada West. This is presumably where Bowering got his information from.



So, the big question is, are these two brewers in Amherstburg the John Douglas and Thomas Williams who were operating a brewery in Guelph around the same time?

On the one hand, the names could be a coincidence, as Douglas and Williams are both very common names. On the other hand, perhaps this ties in with the fact that John Douglas’ marriage notice says that he was from Detroit. Perhaps they operated out of multiple locations? Perhaps Douglas was working as an agent for the Guelph operations?

The 1851 census would likely give some indication, but unfortunately that portion of the census has not survived for Amherstburg. I've checked the 1861 census for Amherstburg and there doesn't appear to be anyone with the surname of Douglas living there at the time. Nor is there anyone with the surname Williams with an occupation of brewer.

Next step: Check other resources to see if I can find out the first names of the Douglas and Williams of Amherstberg.

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Sources:
[D06545] Bowering, Ian, The Art and Mystery of Brewing in Ontario. Burnstown, Ontario, 1988.

[D06546] Sweet, Richard L., Directory of Canadian Breweries (Past and Present); Second Edition. Saskatoon, 1996.

World War One and the Douglas Brothers

In 1914, TW Douglas and Winnifred Henrietta Victoria "Etta" Wright had three surviving sons: John Cameron Douglas born 29 August 1887 [D00379], Thomas Wilfred Douglas born 23 April 1895 [D00307, D00334, D02604, D03212, D04728, D04954, D05659] and Stewart Arnold Douglas born 8 August 1898 [D06213].

Shortly after World War One began, John Cameron enlisted to join the Canadian Expeditionary Forces on 5 November 1914 [D02603]. He was among the first twenty men to enlist in Owen Sound [D05672]. He was assigned to the 20th Battalion [D02603].

John was awarded a good conduct badge on 5 January 1918 and was promoted to Lance-Corporal on 30 March 1918 [D02603].

John’s two brothers, Wilfred and Stewart both eventually enlisted as well on 28th May 1918 and were given the ranks of Sapper [D02604, D04654]. Stewart didn’t see much action in France before developing Rheumatic Fever and was eventually discharged back to Canada in January of 1919 [D04654]. Wilfred’s previous training as an electrician got him assigned to the Canadian Engineers and the 7th Battalion [D02604].

All three of the Douglas brothers survived the war.

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Sources
[D00307] 1901 census of Canada, Ontario, district 65, sub-district D-8, Owen Sound, p. 11, dwelling 89, family 100; RG 31; digital images(accessed 11 Mar 2017).

[D00334] 1911 census of Canada, Ontario, district 73, sub-district 48, Owen Sound, p. 8, dwelling 68, family 83; RG 31; digital images, Ancestry.com (accessed 25 Mar 2017).

[D00379] Ontario Archives of Ontario, MS 929, reels 1-245, MS929; Reel: 81: 534, 10982, 95; digital image, Ancestry.com, (22 Apr 2017).

[D02603] Canada, "Military Service Record - John Cameron Douglas"; digital images, ancestry.ca,ancestry.ca (accessed 1 Sep 2019).

[D02604] Canada, "Military Service Record - Thomas W. Douglas"; digital images, ancestry.ca,ancestry.ca (accessed 1 Sep 2019).

[D03212] Ontario Archives of Ontario, Ontario, Canada Marriages, Reel: 12-333, 12259, Douglas-Barber; digital images, Ancestry.ca, "Ontario, Canada Marriages".

[D04654] Canada, "Military Service Record - Stewart Arnold Douglas"; digital images, ancestry.ca,ancestry.ca (accessed 1 Sep 2019).

[D04728] 1921 census of Canada, district 83, sub-district 45, Owen Sound, p. 1, dwelling 13, family 14; RG 31; digital images, ancestry.com (accessed 17 Oct 2018).

[D05659] “Thomas Douglas,"Grey County Surname Collection, 31 Oct 1975; digital images(accessed 3 Apr 2019).

[D05672] "Life Long Resident John C. Douglas Dies in Hospital,"Grey County Surname Collection, October 1960; digital images(accessed 14 Apr 2019), Grey County Surname Collection.

[D06213] Ontario Archives of Ontario, MS 929, reels 1-245, Reel 929; Series 142: 175, 119, 14903; digital image, Ancestry.com, "Ontario, Canada Births," (3 Apr 2019).

Update on X00298 - John Williams Brewing History Part 2

Last week I give an update on X00298 and the research on John Williams. This week I'm going to give an update on two of the other research questions.

2. There was a John Williams who supposedly opened a brewery in 1864 in Flesherton (From Whiskey and Wickedness) [D05727]. Is that the same John Williams?

3. His death record lists him as a brewer living in Owen Sound in 1889 [D03737]. Which brewery could he have been working for?

First, as far as the possibility of him opening a brewery in Flesherton, I managed to find a listing in both “The Art and Mystery of Brewing in Ontario” by Ian Bowering [D06545] and “The Directory of Canadian Breweries Past and Present” by Richard L. Sweet [D06546]. Both were under Artemesia:

The first source (Bowering) lists:

Williams, J., brewer, 1864 [D06545]

and the second one (Sweet) lists:

Williams, John; brewer and maltster, 1864 [D06546]

So, it would seem that there is evidence that a John Williams did open a brewery in the area around 1864 and that it was very short-lived. The question still remains though if this is the same John Williams who was the son of Thomas Williams. There was a John Williams living in the area in 1861 and 1871 who was Dutch but had no evident connection to brewing. It could have been the Dutch John Williams or perhaps it was a different John Williams who moved to the area temporarily. There is still more research to be done.

As for the third question, multiple sources suggest that there were two breweries in operation in Owen Sound in 1889: Eaton Brothers Brewery and the Schwan Brewery [D06545, D06546, D06547].



Eaton Brothers started in 1883 and it was believed that they took over from the Riddell & Secord Brewery. The Schwan Brewery was founded in 1885 and believed that they took over from Malone's brewery. It's not clear as to which one John Williams could have worked for. Many of the names of the workers at Schwan's have been documented [D06547] and his name is not among them. But that does not necessarily mean that worked at Eaton Brother's.

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Sources:
[D03737] Ontario Archives of Ontario, Ontario, Canada Deaths, MS935 Reel 54: 395, 5588, 1; digital image, Ancestry.ca, "Ontario, Canada Deaths," Ancestry.ca (6 May 2018). Rec. Date: 3 Sep 2017. Cit. Date: 6 May 2018.

[D03739] 1861 census of Canada East, Canada West, New Brunswick, and Nova Scotia, Peel, sub-district Brampton, Brampton, p. 15; RG 31; digital images, Ancestry.ca (accessed 13 May 2018). Rec. Date: 5 Feb 2018. Cit. Date: 13 May 2018.

[D05727] Cotton, Larry D., Whiskey and Wickedness Volume V - Wellington and Grey Counties, Ontario. Self-published, 2017.

[D06545] Bowering, Ian, The Art and Mystery of Brewing in Ontario. Burnstown, Ontario, 1988.

[D06546] Sweet, Richard L., Directory of Canadian Breweries (Past and Present); Second Edition. Saskatoon, 1996.

[D06547] Schwan, Terry, The Historic Schwan Breweries with abridged family genealogy. Guelph, 2013.