JAMES ELLIOTJAMES ELLIOT
JAMES ELLIOT
Mr. Elliot was unmarried. After providing with great liberality for near relatives he bequeathed five thousand dollars to the Montreal General Hospital, five thousand dollars to the Protestant Hospital for the Insane and a thousand dollars each to the Western Hospital, McKay Institute, Grace Dart Home, the Protestant House of Industry and Refuge and the Salvation Army. His bequest to these many organizations showed his broad-mindedness and his deep interest in the welfare and uplift of his fellowmen.
Joseph Arthur Couture, a notary public practicing in Montreal and in Maisonneuve, was born on the 29th of December, 1881, at Sherrington in the county of Napierville, P. Q., his parents being Jules and Dométhile (Bourgeois) Couture. He represents two of the old French families of the province. His great-grandfather and his grandfather, both of whom bore the name of François Couture, were farming people, the former following agricultural pursuits at Lacadie, while the latter was a farmer at St. Cyprien in the county of Napierville. He married Sophie Ward and their family included Jules Couture, who married Dométhile Bourgeois. Her father, Pierre Bourgeois, was at one time a farmer at St. Jean, P. Q., and later at St. Cyprien, where he was residing at the time of his death. His wife was a member of the Granger family. Jules Couture was born in St. Cyprien, county of Napierville, and made farming his life work, but since 1900 has lived retired, his home being in the village of Napierville. His wife was born in the parish of St. John, P. Q., and died on the 15th of September, 1907. They had a family of twelve children, of whom three daughters and five sons are living.
Joseph Arthur Couture, the youngest of the family, attended the parish school to the age of ten years and afterward studied with the parish priest of Sherrington for three years. He next entered Montreal College, where he pursued a five years’ classical course and later became a student in the Seminary of Philosophy, where after two years, or in 1902, he won his degree of Bachelor of Letters. In September of that year he matriculated in Laval University where he studied law in preparation for the notarial profession, receiving his LL. L. degree in 1905. He was received as a notary in July of the same year and in September began practice in the village of Napierville, where he continued until the 1st of October, 1906. He then removed to the city of Maisonneuve, where he continues in practice, and at the same time maintains an office in the city of Montreal. He is likewise a commissioner of the superior court in and for the district of Montreal. He carefully prepared for his chosen calling and his knowledge of the law and his understanding of all phases of the notarial profession have given him high rank among his associates in that field of labor.
Mr. Couture is also interested in some syndicates, purchasing lots on the island of Montreal. He is a director of La Société du Boulevard Pie IX, Limitée and of Salmon River Gold Fields and of the Montreal Consolidated Real Estate and Investments, Limited. His connection therewith has resulted in bringing him good financial returns, while in his profession he is making continuous advancement.
On the 9th of October, 1905, Mr. Couture was married to Miss Mathilda Ida Lachapelle, a daughter of Alfred and Mathilde (Beauchamp) Lachapelle, the former in his life time a merchant of Montreal. Mrs. Couture died at Maisonneuve, at the age of twenty-seven years, on the 17th of December, 1913, leaving no issue. Mr. Couture is a member of the Roman Catholic church and in politics he was formerly a conservative but became a nationalist as he did not approve of the naval policies of either the liberal or conservative parties. He is still, however, a member of the Montreal Liberal-Conservative Club. He was for three years recording secretary of Court Gounod No. 3240, I. O. F., of which he is now deputy chief.
The name of Hon. J. O. Villeneuve is inseparably interwoven with the history of Montreal and its progress. Modesty at all times characterized his bearing and simplicity his habits, yet the sterling worth of his character and the high order of his ability brought him to a position of leadership in connection with municipal and provincial affairs. He labored untiringly for the best interests of Montreal while acting as chief executive of the city and was equally faithful in his support of matters relating to the provincial welfare when serving as senator. A native of the county of Terrebonne, he was born at Ste. Anne des Plaines, on the 4th of March, 1837, and his life record covered the intervening period to the 27th of June, 1901, when he passed away at the age of sixty-four years. He was but a young lad at the time of the removal of his father, Octave Villeneuve, and the family to Montreal, so that he was indebted to the school system of this city for his educational opportunities. He started in the business world as clerk in a dry-goods store in 1853, when a youth of sixteen years, and his traits of loyalty and faithfulness were manifest from the beginning, as is evidenced by the fact that he remained with one establishment until 1865. Ambitious to engage in business on his own account, he carefully saved his earnings until his industry and economy had brought him sufficient capital to enable him to open a grocery store at Mile End. There he conducted business for some time and subsequently founded the wholesale grocery house of J. O. Villeneuve & Company, which rapidly gained patronage and a high and well merited reputation in commercial circles. He was a farsighted man and one who on recognizing a public need at once sought to meet it. Realizing the lack of communication between the extreme northern section of Montreal and the outlying parishes, he established an omnibus route in 1860 between Mile End, Terrebonne, Sault au Récollet and New Glasgow, which he later sold to the Montreal Street Railway when it seemed feasible to extend the railway lines into that section.
Mr. Villeneuve was frequently called to public office and it is a notable fact in his career that no public trust reposed in him was ever betrayed in the slightest degree. For more than seventeen years he was mayor of St. Jean Baptiste village and again, when the organization of the town took place, he served for four years more, carefully guiding the interests of village and town so as to bring about needed reforms and improvements. Following the annexation to the city in 1885 he represented St. Jean Baptiste ward from that date until 1894 in the city council and as a member of the finance committee his experience in financial matters was found to be of great service to the public. Higher official honors awaited him, however, for in 1894 he was elected Montreal’s mayor and filled that position for two years, proving a capable executive and one who most carefully and systematically safeguarded the public interests. For eighteen years he served as warden of the county of Hochelaga and in 1886 was elected to represent that county in the Quebec legislature, where his record was so commendable that he was reelected in 1890 and again in 1892. In 1888 he was made a member of the harbor commission and served for several years on that body. In January, 1896, he succeeded the late Hon. Joseph Tasse as senator for the De Salaberry division. All this, however, did not cover the many phases of his activity. For many years he was a member of the Board of Trade, and he had important business connections, serving as director of the Dominion Cotton Company, in addition to which he had other large manufacturing, mercantile and real-estate interests in the city. He was resident director of the Banque Nationale and a member of the harbor board and a governor of Laval University. He was also senior partner of the firm of L. Villeneuve & Company, wholesale lumber dealers.
In 1861 Mr. Villeneuve married Miss Susan Ann Walker, a daughter of Captain James Walker, of Sorel, Quebec, who survives together with their four children. Her father was a captain in the regiment stationed at Sorel and was a son of Dr. Edward Walker, surgeon of that regiment. Jacques Villeneuve, the eldest of the four children, residing at St. Jerome, Quebec, is proprietor of a stone quarry and brick manufacturing business there. He married Miss Lamontague and they had seven children, Jacques, Edgar, Charles Eugene, Lia, Adrienne, Marguerite and Jeanne. For his second wife Jacques Villeneuve wedded Miss Poitevin, and they have a son, Jean. Eugene W., the second member of the family, was born in Montreal in 1865 and was associated in business with his father until the latter’s death. He brought about the royal commission, giving a change of administration and management of the city by a board of control. In November, 1910, at a meeting held at St. Jean Baptiste market hall, he proposed that the centenary of the birth of Sir George Etienne Cartier should be appropriately commemorated and that steps should be taken for the erection of a monument to his memory. Since then the monumental enterprise has assumed not only national but empire scope and representatives of every portion of the empire will be present at the commemorative celebration September 6, 1914. Mr. Villeneuve has served faithfully as president of the executive committee in charge of the celebration and the erection of the monument. He married Miss Alice Crompton, and their children are James and Reginald. Frederic Villeneuve, the third member of the family, is a graduate of Laval University and was afterwards advocate in Montreal and in Edmonton, Alberta. For several years he waseditor of Canadian West and for four years, from 1898 until 1902, sat for St. Albert in the legislature. In 1909 he was appointed librarian of the Montreal Civic Library. He married Miss Howie, of St. Johns. Rachel Villeneuve, the youngest of the family, married Alphonse Morin, protonotary of St. Johns. Their children are Josephine, Louise, Susan, Pierre Villeneuve, Lucie, Madeleine and Andre, and they reside at No. 629 Dorchester West.
The death of Hon. J. O. Villeneuve occurred on the 27th of June, 1901, at the family residence at 862 St. Denis Street. Editorially the Gazette said of him: “Senator Villeneuve is dead at the comparatively early age of sixty-four. His career was a typical one and included fully thirty years of public service, municipal and parliamentary. His straightforward conduct and good faith gained him general respect and for almost a generation he could count on election to whatever office in the gift of the county of Hochelaga or city of Montreal he aspired to. His municipal career was crowned by the mayoralty of Montreal and his political work by a senatorship. He was a thoroughly well meaning man, of modest bearing and simple habits, whose innate worth was behind his business and public success. In his death Montreal loses a good citizen and parliament a member of safe judgment and right purpose.” To thus win the merit and plaudit of the press shows that the life of Hon. J. O. Villeneuve was one of far-reaching usefulness and of importance in Montreal. He neglected no opportunity, slighted no duty nor passed unheedingly the chances to benefit city or province by helpful service on his part.
John Dillon, for many years one of the best known merchants of Montreal, was a member of the firm of Reford & Dillon. He was born in Chambly, March 18, 1836, a son of John Dillon, Sr., a native of Belfast, Ireland, who emigrated to Canada and for some years resided in Toronto and Montreal, his death occurring in the latter city in 1875. He was father of two sons, George Graham and John Dillon. The former passed his active business life in Toronto, where he was connected with the retail dry-goods house of George Bowes & Company. He died in Toronto, while his widow, Mrs. Catherine Jacques Dillon, passed away in Montreal. They were survived by a daughter, Miss Elisabeth J. Dillon, who for many years lived with her uncle, John Dillon, who never married.
It was in Toronto that John Dillon formed a partnership with Robert Reford under the firm name of Reford & Dillon, wholesale grocers, and in 1867 the business was moved to Montreal. This association continued for about forty years and the business was most successfully and capably conducted according to modern progressive methods. A few years prior to his death Mr. Dillon retired from the firm, but maintained his interest in other industrial and commercial institutions. Up to the time of his death he was a director of the Mount Royal Milling and Manufacturing Company and was also vice president of the Gould Cold Storage Company. His business judgment was sound, his discrimination keen and his enterprise unfaltering. He could see farther than many a man in business circles, foretelling the outcome of any enterprisefrom the beginning and, moreover, he had the power to coordinate and unify forces into a harmonious whole.
JOHN DILLONJOHN DILLON
JOHN DILLON
Mr. Dillon was much interested throughout his lifetime in charitable work and among other institutions with which he was actively associated was the Old Brewery Mission. He was an active member of the Dominion Square Methodist church, which he joined as a charter member upon its organization.
The Montreal Star in announcing his death on the 15th of May, 1908, said, “In the death of Mr. John Dillon which took place this morning very suddenly at his residence, 19 McGregor Street, Montreal loses one of its oldest and most respected citizens. Mr. Dillon, who had been in good health, was speaking to a relative about 11:30 today, when he was overcome by heart failure, his death taking place almost immediately. Thus passed onward one who always strove to do his duty by his fellowmen.”
Carlos A. Hayes, who for a number of years was connected with the Grand Trunk Railway, lastly as freight traffic manager, was on July 1, 1913, appointed general traffic manager of the Canadian Government Railways, with headquarters at Moncton, New Brunswick. Mr. Hayes has long been prominently connected with Canadian railway service and has in that way contributed toward the opening up of vast natural resources in the Dominion.
He was born in West Springfield, Massachusetts, March 10, 1865, and when a boy of seventeen entered the railway service in 1882, continuing along that line with various roads in the United States until the year 1892, when he was made New England agent and, in 1896, manager of the National Despatch-Great Eastern Line. He held this position until 1903, when he became connected with the Grand Trunk Railway as assistant general freight agent in Chicago. Readily grasping railroad problems and possessed of the true generalship of a railway executive, he was chosen in 1908 to succeed J. E. Dalrymple as general freight agent of the Grand Trunk, with headquarters at Montreal, and there remained, first as general freight agent and later as freight traffic manager, until his recent appointment. Mr. Hayes is a well known figure in Dominion railway circles and stands high in the estimation of business men.
John Edward Martin, K. C., a well known member of the Montreal bar, was born in September, 1859, at Shefford, in the province of Quebec. He received his early education in the public school at Waterloo, P. Q., and at McGill Normal School, and later entered McGill University, where he graduated with the Degree of Bachelor of Civil Law in 1883, being the medallist of that year.
In July, 1884, he was admitted to the practice of law and began the practice of his profession at Sweetsburg, P. Q., in partnership with the late SenatorBaker. In 1893 he removed to Montreal and for over twenty years has been a member of the law firm of Foster, Martin, Mann, Mackinnon & Hackett, and his constantly expanding powers brought him prominently before the public as an able lawyer and led to his being named king’s counsel in 1903.
The litigated interests intrusted to his care have on the whole been of a most important character, and he has successfully practised before all the courts of the province, the supreme court of Canada, and has frequently appeared before the judicial committee of the privy council in London, England.
Mr. Martin has specialized in corporation and insurance law, and his preparation of cases is always thorough and exhaustive, and the court records indicate his ability in securing verdicts favorable to his clients.
He was a member of the council of the bar of Montreal for several years and batonnier of the bar of Montreal and batonnier-general of the bar of the province of Quebec during the year 1913-1914. In 1913 he was elected an honorary member of the American Bar Association.
Mr. Martin has been married twice. His first wife, Nellie, daughter of J. Rooney of Sweetsburg, P. Q., died in January, 1909. In December, 1910, he married Emily Violet, daughter of James Patterson of Guelph, Ontario.
In politics Mr. Martin is a conservative, and he is a member of the Anglican church. He is a member of the Mount Royal, Forest and Stream, Canada and the Laurentian Clubs. He has a wide acquaintance among the leading residents of the city, where his ability and personal worth have gained for him the high regard of those with whom he has come in contact.
James Alexander Lawrason Strathy, long a factor in financial circles in Montreal, was born in London, Ontario, July 22, 1857, where his father, James B. Strathy, was at one time collector of customs. The mother, Mrs. Elvira Strathy, was a daughter of Dr. Hiram D. Lee and of United Empire Loyalist stock. Liberal educational opportunities were accorded the son, who was educated in the Moncrieff Preparatory School, in Hellmuth College at London, Ontario, and in Upper Canada College. At the age of seventeen years he came to Montreal and entered the employ of the brokerage firm of Gordon Strathy & Company, later becoming a partner in the business. He subsequently was admitted to the Montreal Stock Exchange, while six years later he became a member of the Board of Trade. In the following years he devoted all his time to the Montreal Trust & Deposit Company, of which he was one of the organizers. He was appointed general manager of the business and remained with the company until his death. He was also a member of the executive committee of the Royal Electric Company and in business connections gave evidence of his ability to handle important interests and solve intricate problems.
Mr. Strathy was a justice of the peace of Montreal and in official position made a record equally creditable with that which he won in business. He was a member of St. Andrew’s Society and vice president of the United Empire Loyalist Association. Distinction and honors also came to him along military lines, hismilitary record dating from his appointment as second lieutenant of the Fifth Royal Scots of Canada, in 1880. He was advanced to the rank of captain in 1884, became major in 1891 and was made lieutenant colonel, commanding his regiment, in 1893, so continuing until his connection with the regiment ceased in December, 1897. In 1894 he became vice president of the Canada Military Institute at Toronto and the same year was appointed to the staff of the governor general of Canada as an extra aide-de-camp.
Mr. Strathy was widely known in sporting circles. As a gentleman rider he was the winner of the Montreal Hunt Cup Steeplechase in 1880, 1881 and 1886 and of the American Grand National Hunt Steeplechase at Saratoga in 1882 and of the steeplechase open to gentlemen riders. His political allegiance was given to the conservative party and the interests and duties of citizenship found ample recognition in his life activities.
On the 9th of January, 1885, Lieutenant Colonel Strathy was married to Miss Margaret, daughter of Andrew Robertson, of Montreal, and they became the parents of six children, of whom five are living: Marguerite F., Isabella D., Alison L., R. Lee A. and Elvira M. The family circle was broken by the hand of death when on the 7th of October, 1901, Lieutenant Colonel Strathy passed away. He was a popular member of the St. James Club and his position as a business man and in military and sporting circles classed him with the representative residents of his city.
John Rigney Barlow, a civil engineer, who in 1900 was appointed to the position of city surveyor of Montreal, has since served in that capacity and is one of her best known civic officials. A native of Scotland, he was born at Stornoway, Lewis, on the 29th of July, 1850, a son of the late Robert Barlow of the Canadian Geological Survey. The first five years of his life were spent in the land of hills and heather, after which the family came to the new world. John R. Barlow was reared in Montreal and started in the business world in the employ of the Canadian Geological Survey, with which he remained from 1872 until 1875. He then entered the service of the corporation of Montreal in 1876, and did important duty in that connection. He was engaged in the construction of water works in the town of St. Henri and did other important duties. He became assistant city engineer of Montreal in 1880 and was made deputy city surveyor in 1882. Further advancement came to him in his appointment to the position of city surveyor in 1900, and he is now acting in that capacity. He thoroughly understands the scientific principles which underlie his work as well as every practical phase of the business and now occupies an enviable position among the civil engineers of Montreal.
In March, 1877, Mr. Barlow was married to Margaret Coutts, a daughter of the late Rev. William Darrach, and they reside at No. 78 St. Luke Street. Mr. Barlow is a member of the Engineers Club and also of the Canadian Society of Civil Engineers, in which he was elected to membership in 1887. His fraternal relations are with the Masons, and his religious faith is that of the Presbyterianchurch. His professional relations have brought him an extensive acquaintance, while his sterling traits of character have gained him firm hold upon the affectionate regard of those with whom he has been brought in contact.
Clearly defined purposes and close application were salient features in the career of William Smith, who died in Montreal on the 14th of March, 1910, when nearly eighty-four years of age. He was born in Lanarkshire, Scotland, September 20, 1826, and came to Canada when a young man. He practically spent his remaining days in this city. He at first engaged in the dry-goods business, which he followed for many years with good success. Eventually he became a manufacturing tobacconist and again prosperity attended his efforts in the commercial field. He also owned valuable real estate, having taken advantage of early opportunities for investment along that line. The soundness of his judgment and the clearness of his vision were indicated in the rise in his property values, making his holdings well worthy of consideration.
WILLIAM SMITHWILLIAM SMITH
WILLIAM SMITH
Mr. Smith was married in Montreal to Miss Margaret Watson, daughter of George and Margaret (Selkirk) Watson of Montreal. He continued to make the city his home until his life’s labors were ended in death, when he had reached a venerable age. He was a man respected by all and such was the regard entertained for his opinions, that his advice was frequently sought upon important questions. He was an attendant at Erskine church. Mr. Smith is survived by his widow, who resides in what has been for years the family residence, built by Mr. Smith at No. 56 Simpson Street and which home stands on the site of the former home of Sir Alexander Mackenzie, discoverer of the Mackenzie river and the first European to cross the Rocky mountains.
Joseph Arthur Bourgault is one of the most prominent figures in real-estate circles in Montreal, his well defined and carefully executed plans constituting a potent force in the substantial development and improvement of various sections of the city. He is yet a young man but has already attained a position that many a one of twice his years might well envy. He was born May 30, 1887, at St. Louis de Bonsecours, Richelieu county, P. Q., his parents being Henri and Caroline (Loriviere) Bourgault, the former a native of Ste. Victoire, Richelieu county, and the latter of St. Judes in St. Hyacinthe county, P. Q.
Joseph Arthur Bourgault pursued his education in the schools at Sorel, P. Q., and was graduated from St. Bernard College on the 19th of June, 1905. He started in the business world as a bookkeeper and afterward was traveling salesman, but eventually turned his attention to the real-estate business, which he conducts under the name of J. A. Bourgault & Company with offices at No. 97 St. James Street in Montreal. His progress has been continuous, and his effortshave been constantly of greater public value, as he has developed and improved property which hitherto had been an unsightly waste or had little commercial value. In 1911 he developed and sold Montmorency Park including eleven hundred lots which brought three hundred and seventy-five thousand dollars; and in 1912 he sold a part of Niagara Garden including thirty-two hundred lots, of which nineteen hundred brought four hundred and twenty thousand dollars. He also sold a subdivision on the south shore called Woodbine Park including over eleven hundred lots. All this extensive property has been sold exclusively by Mr. Bourgault. He is a wide-awake, alert, enterprising young man thoroughly in touch with the real-estate market. He knows what property is for sale, is conversant with values and seems never to make a mistake in his investments. He was graduated at the National Salesmen Training Association, which has its headquarters in Chicago, and he is a member of the Headquarters International Realty Company of that city.
On the 25th of November, 1912, in Montreal, Mr. Bourgault was married to Miss Berthe Daignault, a daughter of the late J. Daignault. They have gained many friends during the period of their residence here. Mr. Bourgault has attractive social qualities which render him popular socially and add not a little to his success in the management and control of an extensive and growing real-estate business.
In Montreal stand many evidences of the ability and skill of Daniel Wilson in a number of the larger and more substantial buildings of the city, where for a long period he engaged in the business of general contracting. He was born in Avoch, Scotland, March 2, 1827, and was in the seventy-ninth year of his age when he passed away. He had been a resident of Canada since 1853, having come to the Dominion to take charge of stone quarries at Pointe Claire for the construction of the Victoria bridge. After the completion of the bridge he entered upon the work of general contracting and erected many of the largest buildings of Montreal, including the Royal Insurance building, Molson’s Bank, the Merchants Bank, the Mutual Telegraph building, the Erskine church, the Windsor Hotel, and others. He retired from business about 1886, having met with notable success that brought him a gratifying income.
Mr. Wilson was prominent in public affairs. For eight years he represented St. Antoine ward in the city council and was interested and active in support of various projects which have had to do with the welfare and upbuilding of this city. He was also Protestant school commissioner for a number of years and aside from positions having to do with the public service he was connected officially with various charitable and benevolent projects. For six years he was on the board of the Outdoor Relief and the Protestant Hospital for the Insane, was a life governor of the General Hospital and a trustee of Mount Royal Cemetery Association. He was also one of the oldest members and for eleven years a deacon and twelve years elder of the Crescent Street Presbyterian church andwhen other interests left him leisure for sports, he enjoyed curling and became one of the founders of the Caledonia Curling Club.
Mr. Wilson was married in Scotland to Miss Margaret Stephen, who died in Montreal in 1856, being the mother of two children: James, a resident of Montreal; and Margaret, the widow of Henry Downs, of St. Paul, Minnesota. In Montreal, in 1858, Mr. Wilson married Miss Catherine MacGregor, a daughter of Daniel MacGregor, and to this union six children were born: Robert, a contractor residing in Vancouver; Lillias Ann, who died in young girlhood; Lillias Isabella, the wife of Peter C. Small, of Vancouver; Christina, who married James Sutherland and died in Montreal in 1896; Kate, who is Mrs. William A. Coates, of Montreal; and John William, a contractor of Montreal.
On the 14th of February, 1906, Daniel Wilson was called from this life, leaving behind him a record of many good deeds undertaken for the benefit of his fellowmen and consummated in following the highest ideals of manhood and responsibility toward those with whom and for whom he lived.
Arthur Ecrement, who for many years has figured prominently in the public life of the province and is a well known representative of the notarial profession, was born at St. Gabriel de Brandon, on the 29th of June, 1879. Liberal educational opportunities were accorded him and after attending Montreal College and Laval University he entered upon public life. In fact his activities have always been of a public or semi-public character and his labors have been of far-reaching and beneficial effect. For five years he was secretary to the Hon. R. Dandurand, speaker of the senate, and he was also secretary of the liberal organization of the district of Montreal. He was first elected to the house of commons in 1908, in the liberal interests, and his efforts as a member of that body have been pursued with a singleness of purpose in the interest of general progress and good government. He brings to bear in the discharge of his duties executive ability, keen insight into the situation and a loyalty to the public good that is above question.
One of the most popular and able ministers in the Anglican church in eastern Canada is Rev. Frank Charters, who for the past seventeen years has done earnest and zealous work as rector of St. Simon’s church, Montreal. He is a man of force, experience and capacity, high in his ideals, earnest in his purposes and straightforward in his methods, and his labors have been potent forces in the spread of the doctrines in which he believes and in the promotion of the moral development of the community in which he resides.
Dr. Charters was born in Montreal, March 16, 1865, and acquired his preliminary education at Arnold school and Fettis College. He afterward entered McGill University, from which he was graduated with the class of 1888. In thesame year he completed a course in the Montreal Diocesan College, and in 1911 he was given the honorary degree of D. C. L. from the University of Bishop’s College in Lennoxville. He is a governor of the Montreal Diocesan College and a member of the corporation of the University of Bishop’s College. He was ordained deacon in the Anglican church in 1888 and received full orders in the following year, going immediately afterward to Iron Hill and West Brome, Quebec, of which he became Incumbent. In 1896 he was transferred to Montreal, and here since that time he has done earnest and capable work as rector of St. Simon’s parish. This congregation was organized in 1892 and the church building erected in the same year by Dean Carmichael. Rev. Samuel Massey was first pastor and officiated until the spring of 1896, Dr. Charters succeeding him. The latter has proved a capable and efficient rector, fully conscious of the obligations and responsibilities which devolve upon him, and he has accomplished in the course of years a great deal of consecrated work among his people, whose love he holds in large measure. He is, moreover, a man of good business ability and foresight, and the affairs of his parish have been ably administered and the funds carefully conserved. Dr. Charters has two hundred and seventy-five families under his charge and manages a church property valued at fifty thousand dollars. He is very popular among people of all denominations in Montreal and his unostentatious life, filled with well directed and zealous labor and characterized by earnest personal service, has brought him the esteem and confidence of all who are associated with him.
The life record of John T. Wilson spanned sixty-four years. He was born in Greenup, Scotland, February 9, 1841, and died in Montreal on the 23d of February, 1905. His parents were John and Mary (Thomson) Wilson, the former a sea captain. The youth of John T. Wilson was marked by events and experiences such as come to the lot of all. He reached a turning point on the journey of life, however, when he bade adieu to friends and native country and sailed for Canada. Settling in Montreal, in 1866, he became one of the city’s foremost business men, his name being engraved high on the roll of those who contributed most largely to the commercial greatness and consequent prosperity of the city. He was for forty years the senior member of the firm of Wilson, Paterson & Company, importers and general manufacturers’ agents, continuing in active business until his demise. The volume of trade developed with the growth of the city and had its inception in the progressive methods, initiative spirit and undaunted enterprise of the partners.
When business hours were over and the cares of the day were put aside, Mr. Wilson greatly enjoyed a game of golf or billiards. His interest, too, reached out to many of those projects which recognize the needs of the city and the claims of humanity. He attended St. Paul’s Presbyterian church. For ten years he was a member of the council of the Board of Trade and was ever keenly alive to the projects instituted by that society for the benefit and upbuilding of the city. He belonged to the Canadian and St. James Clubs of Montreal, andthe Hunt Club. His business activity was evenly balanced with his honorable methods in trade; his interest in club life and in manly outdoor sports giving him the necessary rest and recreation from that line of work which takes strong hold upon the emotions and calls forth the more tender sentiment in nature. In a word, his was a well rounded character and his place as a representative citizen of Montreal none contest.
Successful in business, Charles Byrd rejoiced in his prosperity not so much because of the opportunities which came to him from his wealth, but because it enabled him to again and again aid his fellowmen. In this he was prompted by no sense of duty but by a higher interest in humanity—a genuine regard for his fellow travelers upon life’s journey. His hand was ever downreaching to aid those who were struggling to raise and he shed around him much of the sunshine of life not only through his material assistance, but also through the words of encouragement and inspiration which he spoke.
Mr. Byrd was born at Lachute, province of Quebec, March 4, 1848, and was therefore sixty-three years of age when he passed away at Nassau, Bahama Islands, on the 3d of March, 1911. He had been a resident of Montreal from early manhood, embarking in the grocery business upon his arrival here. This he abandoned to enter the Munderloh firm in 1868, at which time its founder, William C. Munderloh was in control. After the death of this gentleman Mr. Byrd entered into partnership with Henry Munderloh, son of William C. Munderloh, in the continuation of the business. In 1909 the firm was organized as a joint stock company and Mr. Byrd had active voice in its control, assisting in formulating plans which had to do with its substantial growth and progress. It became one of the important enterprises of the kind in the city and through his connection therewith Mr. Byrd won notable, gratifying and enviable success.
Mr. Byrd was united in marriage in 1873 to Miss Kate Macdonald, a daughter of the late Alexander Roy Macdonald of Montreal. During the last years of his life Mr. Byrd was in poor health and, accompanied by his wife, had spent two winters in the West Indies. He went again in February, 1911, in order to escape the rigors of the Canadian winter and there passed away on the 3d of March.
His memory is enshrined in a halo of good deeds, for he was continually active in support of organized charities or in individual assistance. He gave liberally to a number of the benevolent organizations of Montreal and served on the board of management of the Protestant Hospital for the Insane at Verdun to which he made a contribution of five thousand dollars. He was also one of the board of managers of the Montreal General Hospital to which he gave ten thousand dollars; was vice president of the Protestant House of Industry and Refuge at Longue Pointe, to which he gave ten thousand dollars; was vice president of the Moore Home and an officer of the Irish Protestant Benevolent Society, to which his contribution was five thousand dollars. He gave twenty-five hundred dollars to the Western General Hospital; two thousand dollars to the AlexandraHospital; two thousand to the Montreal Protestant Orphan Asylum; five hundred dollars to the Boys’ Home; one thousand dollars to St. Patrick’s Society, a goodly sum to the Erskine church for home movements and a sum of twenty-five thousand dollars for foreign movements. He was an elder of the old St. Gabriel church on St. Catherine Street and afterward joined the Erskine Presbyterian church when it was amalgamated with the Chalmers church. A high-minded Christian gentleman, the principles of his religion permeated his life in all of its different connections and his contribution to the world’s progress along moral and religious lines was a valuable one.
CHARLES BYRDCHARLES BYRD
CHARLES BYRD
The life record of David Morrice might be summed up in the term successful achievement. It has, however, been more than the success that is calculated in the terms of dollars and cents, for his outlook of life has ever been broad, his conceptions of its opportunities accurate and his recognition of its duties and obligations correct. He has as fully and carefully met the last mentioned as he has his chances in a business way. While he has passed the eighty-fourth milestone on life’s journey, in spirit and interest he seems yet in his prime. To him might be applied the words of Victor Hugo: “The snows of age are upon his head, but the spring of youth is in his heart.” He was born in St. Martin, Perthshire, Scotland, August 11, 1829, and after acquiring his early education there, started in business life as an employe in dry-goods stores, remaining for some time in that connection in Dublin, Liverpool, Manchester and London. The growing western country attracted him with its almost limitless opportunities, and in 1863 he established himself in Montreal where he founded the business that has since become one of the most important commercial enterprises of the city. Under the name of The D. Morrice Company the business is now one of extensive proportions. Manufacturers’ agents and general merchants, they have one of the largest and best appointed establishments of the city, and Mr. Morrice is also at the head of important productive industries and is said to be one of the best authorities in cotton matters in the Dominion. He is president of Penman’s Limited; of the Canadian Cottons, Ltd.; and of the Montreal Investment & Freehold Company. He is likewise a director of the Bank of Montreal; of the Dominion Textile Company; and of the Mount Royal Cemetery Company. While he has now in large measure retired from active management of these interests, his opinions still carry weight in business councils, and his judgment and discrimination are those of a man of not more than three score years and ten. While conducting important and extensive commercial and manufacturing interests, he has found time to become a factor in the management and control of many projects for the benefit of his fellowmen in the alleviation of the hardships of life for the unfortunate. He is now vice president of the Montreal Tubercular Association; president of the Montreal General Hospital; president of the Montreal Sailors’ Institute; president of the Mackay Institute for the Deaf and Dumb; and governor of the Montreal Boys’ Home. He has long been an interested member of the Montreal Art Association of which he is one of the councillors and he maintainsan equal interest in Christian education as chairman of the board of managers of the Montreal Presbyterian College, in which position he has remained for forty-two years. He has ever been a firm believer in the early religious training of the young and has labored untiringly to advance the interests of moral direction for the youth of the land. In 1905 he was chosen vice president of the Quebec Sunday School Union and in 1902 was president of the Presbyterian Sunday School Association. In 1882 he erected the David Morrice Hall of the Montreal Presbyterian College at a cost of ninety thousand dollars. His gift to the Montreal General Hospital in 1906 made that institution richer by twenty-five thousand dollars and in 1910 he gave ten thousand dollars to the Montreal Art Association.
On the 14th of June, 1860, Mr. Morrice married Anne S. Anderson of Toronto, and of their children, William J. and David J., are connected with The D. Morrice Company. The others are Robert B., who is connected with Penman’s Limited; Arthur A., a resident of Toronto; James Wilson, a distinguished artist; and a daughter, who is now the wife of Allen G. Law, of the firm of Law, Young & Company of Montreal. The son, James Wilson Morrice, born in Montreal in 1864, attended the city schools and the Toronto University and afterward developed his art talent by study in Paris. He has not only won high reputation in that city but also in London and is considered one of the greatest painters of Brittany coast scenes. He has been a frequent exhibitor at the Paris Salon and one of his pictures has been purchased by the French government and another by the Canadian government for the National Art Gallery at Ottawa. He largely paints landscapes, yet gives some attention to figures and in all of his work there is an even balance maintained between technique, creative faculty and poetic feeling.
Mr. David Morrice is now eighty-four years of age, but still maintains deep and active interest in the church and in the benevolent and civic projects with which he is identified. Moreover, he still holds membership in the St. James Club, the Montreal Club, the Mount Royal Club, the Montreal Hunt Club and the Forest and Stream Club. Someone has said, “there is an old age which need not suggest idleness or lack of occupation; on the contrary there is an old age which grows stronger and better, mentally and morally as the years advance and gives out of the rich stores of its wisdom and experience for the benefit of others.” Such is the record of David Morrice.
One of the able advocates of Montreal and one who has filled with honor various official positions, is J. F. Dubreuil, a descendant of a distinguished family which has found mention in Abbé Tanguay’s “Dictionnaire Généalogique.” In this book L’Abbé Cyprien Tanguay mentions among the earliest ancestors of the house of Dubreuil the following. Christopher Dubreuil, born in 1696; Jean Du Breuil, born in 1655, a son of Pierre and Catherine (Gosselin) Du Breuil, married September 28, 1682, at Montreal; wife died December 22, 1685: one child; married August 6, 1686, Ste. Famille Marguerite Gaultier: seven children. JeanEtienne Dubreuil was a notaire royal and a brother of the above mentioned Jean. He married twice and had a family of many sons and daughters.
J. F. Dubreuil was born at Lachine, province of Quebec, January 24, 1845, and is a son of Joseph and Hélène (Barré) Dubreuil, the former of Pointe-aux-Trembles and the latter, of Montreal. The father was for many years a notary public. J. F. Dubreuil received his education at the Jesuit College of Montreal, famed for its thorough teachers, and completed the course of instruction by graduation on February 6, 1866. He subsequently engaged as an advocate and as he was able, capable and conscientious, soon enjoyed a profitable practice, his services being demanded by a representative clientèle. He served from 1873 to 1882 as deputy clerk of the crown and peace, and from June, 1883, until June, 1889, as deputy sheriff of Montreal.
On January 26, 1869, at Sorel, Mr. Dubreuil was united in marriage to Miss Marie L. C. Beaupré and they have the following children: J. F. L., vice president of the Commercial Travelers Association; George, who is employed in the registry office at Hochelaga; Charles, of Richelieu, Ontario; and Raoul, who is with the Canadian Electric Company.
In his political faith Mr. Dubreuil is a conservative, giving his support to that organization. For many years he has made Montreal his home and has witnessed the change from a comparatively small city to that of a world’s metropolis, having participated in bringing about the transformation according to the best of his ability. He is deeply interested in the growth of the city along material, as well as intellectual, lines and as he has always lived a life of conscientious righteousness, is highly esteemed and respected in the community where he is widely known.
No worthy enterprise of Montreal sought in vain the assistance of John Rankin, and his public spirit found expression in tangible effort for the general good. At the same time he conducted important business affairs as representative of large corporate interests of his native land. He was born in Lanark, Scotland, in 1825, and had traveled far on life’s journey when death called him February 27, 1908. Coming to Canada in 1854, he carried on business first under his own name and afterward as senior partner in the firm of Rankin, Beattie & Company. He also represented J. & P. Coates, the world renowned thread manufacturers of Paisley, for many years, and was instrumental in establishing for them a large Canadian business. He was likewise financial agent for the house of Arthur & Company, of Glasgow, and in the further development of his business interests became one of the founders of the Shedden Company and of the Guarantee Company of North America. As his worth and business talent became recognized his cooperation was sought along many lines and when keen business judgment prompted his investment in any interest he was almost at once accorded voice in the management. He became a promoter of the New York Daily Graphic, the Consolidated Bank and of the Montreal & Sorel Railway, now a part of the Delaware & Hudson system. As a business man, his position was second to none and his record was one which any man might be proud to possess. He never madeengagements that he did not keep, nor incurred obligations that he did not meet, and his name became a recognized synonym of integrity and enterprise in commercial and industrial circles. At River David, in 1861, Mr. Rankin was married to Miss Louisa S. C. Wurtele, a daughter of Jonathan Wurtele, in his life time, Seignor of River David. The following children were born to Mr. and Mrs. Rankin: James L., a contractor of Montreal; Archibald J., who resides in Edmonton, Alberta, where he is a clerk in the government offices; John, who is a civil engineer, residing at Victoria, British Columbia; Norman S., who is connected with the Canadian Pacific Railway at Calgary; Allan C., a bacteriologist in the employ of the Siam government, at Bangkok; A. G. Ernest, who is a notary of Montreal; Louisa M., who is Mrs. John Fair, of Montreal; and Isobel S., at home.
None ever questioned Mr. Rankin’s interest in the city and the general welfare of its people. He stood for all those things which are a feature in civic betterment and his interest in moral progress was evidenced in his membership in St. Paul’s Presbyterian church, of which he was secretary and treasurer when the present edifice was erected. He was also a governor of the Montreal General Hospital. His high standing is further indicated in the fact that his name was on the membership roll of St. James Club. To him were accorded the “blest accompaniments of age—honor, riches, troops of friends.”
The summer home of Mrs. Rankin is “Manor House,” Pointe Seche, County Kamouraska, Quebec.
While Dr. Emmanuel Persillier Lachapelle has gained prominence and won honor in various directions, perhaps the one act which will longest stand as an enduring monument to his worth and work will be the creation of the board of health of the province of Quebec, of which he is now the president. His efforts were a potent factor in bringing about the organization of this board, the far-reaching effects of which are immeasurable. In this and other connections he has entered upon a campaign of education for the purpose of bringing to the public a knowledge of sanitary and health conditions that will forever prevent widespread contagion and check the ravages of disease even in individual cases. A man of strong character and wide knowledge of men and things, his life work has by no means reached its full fruition. In private and hospital practice he has gained eminence and his name is associated with one of the strongest and best equipped medical schools of the country.
Dr. Lachapelle was born on the 21st of December, 1845, at Sault au Récollet, Quebec, his parents being Pierre Persillier and Marie Zoe (Toupin) Lachapelle, descendants of some of the earliest settlers of New France. His father was born at Cote des Neiges, in the county of Hochelaga, in the province of Quebec. Making his home at Sault au Récollet he followed farming and was proprietor of grain mills. His parents were Pascal Persillier and Marie (Ladouceur) Lachapelle, who lived at Cote des Neiges. The maternal grandparents of Dr. Lachapelle were Charles P. and Angelique (Leduc) Toupin, of Montreal. The ancestors came to this country in the early days of the Frenchcolony and were married at Laprairie, near Montreal, on the south shore of the St. Lawrence river.