Profile: Reginald K Burnet

Reginald K Burnet [1893-1963]

Louisa and Frank Burnet had six children together. Francis Ernest Burnett was the first, born on 5 November 1889 [D03783, D04043, D04044, D06723]. Harold Edwin was next, born 21 March 1891 [D04043, D04044, D04061, D06760, D06843]. The family moved out to Victoria, British Columbia in the early 1890s, where Reginald Kenneth Burnet was born on 21 December 1893 [D03783, D04139, D04044, D06741]. The Burnet family returned to Orillia about three years later. Their fourth son, Hebert Hewett was born in Orillia 31 May 1896 [D06731]. On 12 September 1898, a set of twins was born, including their first daughter, Helen Louise Burnet and Horace Arthur Burnet [D06709].

With a long history of military involvement, many members of the the Burnet family joined up with the Canadian Expeditionary Forces when the first World War began. Francis Ernest Burnet, the eldest son at twenty-five, was the first of the family to enlist on 12 May 1915 in Saskatoon [D06723]. He was assigned to the 53rd Battalion initially [D06723].

Reginald K. Burnet and his father, Frank Burnet both enlisted on the same day, 26, January 1916: Reginald in Orillia and Frank in Calgary [D04060, D06746]. Frank was so keen to join the fight, he claimed to be ten years younger than he actually was in order to enlist [D04060]. Reginald joined his family’s old regiment, the Simcoe Foresters, which had now become the 157th Battalion [D06746]. Frank was assigned to the 137th [D04060].

Reginald Burnet Sailed to England in October of 1916 [D06746]. In November, he was transferred from the Simcoe Foresters to the 10th Canadian Machine Gun Company and was in France the following March [D06746].

In August of 1917, the 10th Canadian Machine Gun Company was one of sixteen machine gun companies fighting in the battle of Hill 70 . On 24 August, Reginald received a gun shot wound to the left side of his head and lost consciousness [D06746]. He woke up a few days later in a hospital in St. Omer, France with a fractured skull [D06746]. Suffering with memory loss and impairment in his speech, he was sent for rehabilitation and later sent back home to Canada in April of 1918 [D06746].

Reg Burnet began his working career in 1911 with R.H. Montgomery, merchant tailor and men’s furnisher [D07315, D07317]. After the war, he returned to Orillia and found work at the store, which had been taken over from R.H. Montgomery by Jack Sinclair [D04139, D06742, D07313, D07315].

He married Wynona Beatrice Williams in Orillia on 8 April 1919 [D04139]. Wynona only lived for a short time after the marriage, dying in a hospital maternity ward on 1 August 1920 at the age of twenty-six [D04209].

A few years later, Jack Sinclair sold the clothing store to a group of four partners, Reg Burnet among them [D07315, D07317]. They renamed it the Arrow Store [D04317].

Reg remained at the Arrow store for a few years, eventually selling his interest in 1924, when he started his own business, Burnet Men’s Wear [D07312, D07313, D07317].

Reginald married his second wife, Olive Hilda Leatherdale 14 September 1925 [D06741]. They had one child together, Dale, who later joined his father’s business [D07317].

Like his siblings, Reg was highly involved in community associations, and remained involved with the Simcoe Foresters and Canadian Legion. He co-organized an “Across the Lake Swim” event that carried his name [D07314, D07317].

Reginald retired from his clothing store in 1961 [D07212]. He died at his cottage on Bass Lake 27 August 1963 at the age of sixty-nine [D07231, D07212].