Genealogical Profile: George Forbes (1868–1951)

Genealogical Profile: George Forbes (1868–1951)



Early Life
George Forbes was born on 14 May 1868 in Woolwich, England, to James S. Forbes and Ellen Benson. Little is known about his early childhood, but he immigrated to Canada circa 1880, at the age of 12. This significant move marked the beginning of a life that would span vast distances and diverse occupations.

Religious and Family Life
George was a devoted Roman Catholic, with records of his faith appearing as early as 17 February 1887 in Toronto, York, Ontario, Canada. On 27 February 1897, George married Jane Louisa D’Eye at St. Michael's Cathedral in Toronto. Their union was witnessed by James Forbes and Madeline D’Eye.

Together, George and Jane had three children:

1. George Edgar Augustine D'Eye Forbes (b. 1898)
2. James P. Basil Forbes (b. 1899)
3. Gertrude Ellen Forbes (b. 1901)

Sadly, Jane passed away on 20 January 1905, leaving George to raise their children.

Career
George’s professional life was as varied as his places of residence. He initially worked as a telegraph dispatcher in Toronto (1897) and later served as a train inspector in Edmonton, Alberta, by 1921. Over the years, George developed a long-standing career with the Canadian Pacific Railway (C.P.R.), working as an employee from 1885 to 1928 and holding roles such as dispatcher and train inspector. By the time of his retirement, his dedication to the railway industry was well-established.

In later years, George shifted careers, working as a fruit grower in Naramata, British Columbia by 1945, a region known for its thriving orchards and vineyards. His residence in Naramata reflects a quieter chapter of his life.

Residences and Travels

George’s life was characterized by frequent relocations. He lived in several Canadian provinces, including Ontario, Alberta, and British Columbia. Notable residences included:

• 20 Ross Street, Toronto (1897)
• Suite 15 Leamington Mansion, Edmonton (1921)
• Naramata, British Columbia (from at least 1945 until his death)

George also traveled to Seattle, Washington, USA, on 20 December 1945, perhaps reflecting his ties to family, business, or leisure pursuits.

Later Years and Death
In his later years, George resided in British Columbia, where he lived for 23 years. At the time of his death, he had been living in Vancouver for four months at 1970 McNicoll Street. George Forbes passed away on 13 April 1951 in Vancouver due to chronic myocarditis and generalized arteriosclerosis. He was buried at the Ocean View Burial Parkin Burnaby, British Columbia, on 16 April 1951.

Legacy
George Forbes’s life tells a story of perseverance, faith, and adaptability. From his beginnings in Woolwich to his varied career and family life across Canada, George’s journey exemplifies the experience of many immigrants who contributed to the development of their adopted country. His commitment to family, work, and faith continues to be remembered by those who study his life and lineage.

X00120 What happened to Jane Louise D'Eye after 1897?

George Hastings Rust-D'Eye and Henrietta Fox Addison had thirteen children born between 1862 and 1881. So far, I've been able to trace what happened to all of them except for one of them: their fifth child, Jane Louise D'Eye, born in 1868.

Jane came to Canada in 1883 with the rest of the family [D02319]. I have found her Marriage record from 1897, indicating that she married George Forbes, a telegraph dispatcher for CPR [D01887].

But that is the last record that I have found for her. Nothing after that marriage. I haven't found either George or Jane in any census record or death record. At least until recently.

I had a new look on my tree on Ancestry and specifically at the hints for George Forbes (none of the hints for Jane Laura D'Eye were valid). There were a number of hints given for George Forbes, but it's hard to tell which ones are valid and which ones can be ruled out. This is partly because the name George Forbes isn't that uncommon, but also because working for the railway, it's likely that he moved around a lot so it's difficult to say where he could have been living at any given time.

There was one hint, however, that caught my attention, it was a passenger record showing a George Forbes living in Naramata B.C.[D07128]. So I thought that I'd check with the British Columbia death indexes to see if I could find that person. Sure enough there was a George Forbes who died 14 April 1951 living in Naramata, B.C. [D07117].

In the record, the year of birth matches, he's a dispatcher for the C.P.R. He's listed as a widower and his wife's name is given as Jane Louise D'Eye. So it's definitely the right person. Not only does this tell us what has happened with George Forbes, but we now know that Jane had passed by 1951. This gives us a date of death range between 1897 and 1951, which is still quite a wide range.

Another piece of information that the death record gives was that he was in the province twenty-three years prior to his death. So, this means that he would have been living outside of B.C. during the 1921 census. With that in mind I did some additional searching in the 1921 census and managed to find a George Forbes living in Edmonton in 1921 with his daughter Gertrude. The dates match, he is listed as a widower and he is listed as a CPR employee, so it is likely that this is the same George Forbes [D07118].

Gertrude E. Forbes is nineteen years old in the 1921 census, which puts her birth year at about 1902 and also notes that she was born in Quebec. I next checked the Quebec birth records and found a Gertrude E. Forbes born in Quebec in 1901, with her parents being listed as George Forbes and Jane Laura D'Eye [D07119].

So, no definite answers yet, but we can at least now pin down Jane Laura D'Eye's date of death between 1901 and 1921.

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Sources:
[D01887] Ontario Archives of Ontario, Ontario, Canada Marriages, MS932; Reel: 91: 121, 1368, Forbes-D'Eye; digital images, Ancestry.ca, "Ontario, Canada Marriages". Rec. Date: 9 Sep 2017. Cit. Date: 17 Dec 2020.

[D02319] Canada, "Passenger List - SS Oregon 1882"; C-4532 C-4532, Library and Archives Canada, Ottawa. Rec. Date: 17 Dec 2020. ID: D02319. Cit. Date: 17 Dec 2020.

[D07117] British Columbia Vital Statistics Agency, death certificate 1951-09-004040 (1951), B13208; British Columbia Vital Statistics Agency, Victoria. Rec. Date: 24 Jun 2018. Cit. Date: 17 Dec 2020.

[D07118] 1921 census of Canada, district 6, sub-district 83, Edmonton, p. 11, dwelling 132; RG 31; digital images, ancestry.com (accessed 17 Dec 2020). Rec. Date: 1 Apr 2017. Cit. Date: 17 Dec 2020.

[D07119] Église Saint-Romuald (Farnham, Quebec, Canada), Drouin Collection, "Baptism - Gertrude Ellen Forbes," B.119; digital images, ancestry.ca (accessed 20 Dec 2020). Rec. Date: 20 Dec 2020. ID: D07119. Cit. Date: 20 Dec 2020.

[D07128] "Manifests of Alien Arrivals in the Seattle, Washington District," online images, ancestry.ca (accessed 20 Dec 2020), manifest, Nederland, 20 Dec 1945, 1207. Rec. Date: 20 Dec 2020. Cit. Date: 20 Dec 2020.