Profiling: James Odgers Guy

The Oshawa Museum is comprised of three historic homes: Henry House, Robinson House, and Guy House.  Guy House’s namesake is James Odgers Guy, who purchased the house and quarter-acre lot in 1861.

James was born in Cornwall, England in 1828, the second son born to Thomas Guy Sr. and his wife Margery.  The family stayed in England until 1842 when Thomas, Margery and James immigrated to Canada.  Thomas Jr. joined them in Canada four years later when he immigrated with his wife Harriett and mother-in-law and two young children.

After their long Atlantic voyage (aboard the first-class sailing vessel the “Clio”), the Guys settled on a farm in Columbus, Ontario.  They remained there for four years before moving for a short time to Woodstock.  Finally, they moved to Bonnie Brae Point (a.k.a. “Guy’s Point”), where they settled in 1854.

James did not stay on the family farm.  He married Rachel Luke, also a Cornwall native, in 1852, and together the couple had seven children.  The family moved into Guy House in 1861, when James purchased the ¼ acre on which the frame home was built, paying £250 for the home.  All but one of their children lived with them in Guy House; sadly, their son William Arthur Guy died just five months after his first birthday on March 26, 1854.

On 9 June 1883, James began plans to move once again.  He purchased a half-acre lot on King Street East (between Division St. and Mary St.).  In 1884 James sold his property at the Lake and had a house built on his new King Street lot.  He named the house Llewellyn Hall, likely after his fifth child, who died in 1882.

Funds for the construction of Llewellyn Hall were made available through James’ widespread business success.  Some of his business interests were closely related to those of his brother.  The siblings shared a family business, dealing in coal and grain.  The Guys were involved in a coal dealership in Oshawa and grain elevators in Brooklin and Myrtle.  James ran his grain business from 16 Celina Street.

In addition to his business enterprises, James Odgers Guy held a diverse collection of important community posts.  He was Harbour Master of the Port Oshawa Co., Deputy of East Whitby, Reeve of East Whitby, Ontario County Warden, and Secretary of the Edmondson Electric Light Co.   He was also a Grammar School Trustee and a Trustee of Oshawa High Schools.  James’ extensive involvement with the Oshawa area prompted the Oshawa Vindicator to call this prominent citizen “Oshawa’s Grand Old Man” (Feb 21, 1908).

James Odgers Guy died on April 5, 1909.  His obituary ran as follows:

The Death of Mr. James O. Guy
A Highly-respected Business Man of Oshawa – Ex-Warden.
(Special Dispatch to The Globe)

Oshawa, April 5. — James O. Guy, an old and highly respected resident of this town, passed away to-day at the ripe age of eighty-one years. During his residence here he held almost every gift the people had to bestow municipally from Reeve to Warden. Politically he was a Liberal, and, above all, a kindly Christian gentle-man, for many years being a member of the official board of the Simcoe Street Methodist Church. Mr. Guy was a grain merchant for years, and was held in the greatest respect. His wife, three sons and two daughters survive. They are: F.A. Guy of Fort William, Arthur of Winnipeg, Edgar J. of Toronto, Mrs. E. M. Jewell of Toronto and Miss Ida at home.

He and his wife Rachel (who died on July 4, 1914) were both buried in the Oshawa’s Union Cemetery.

Profiling: Frederick L Fowke

This community profile is of Frederick L. Fowke, a turn of the century politician. He is one of the characters included in this year’s Scenes from the Cemetery, taking place Sept 7 & 8 at Union Cemetery. Tickets are still available for this event – for more info, please visit the event website: scenesfromthecemetery.wordpress.com

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Frederick Luther Fowke was born in Harmony Village in East Whitby on May 27, 1857.

 

FL Fowke, cropped from A982.45.21

The business activities of Mr. Fowke during the years from 1885 to 1915 spread into many fields.  He succeeded to the business enterprises of his father and carried on a general store, a grain business and a coal business, not only in Oshawa but had branches in Bowmanville, Whitby, Newcastle and Port Hope.

From 1898 to 1907, he occupied the position of Mayor of Oshawa.  This was at a time when Oshawa politicians held office for one year terms.  While occupying this position he introduced many progressive reforms such as Granolithic sidewalks, harbour improvements and sewer construction.  He was remembered mostly for his struggle for a public water supply.

On October 28, 1908, he was elected as a Liberal member of South Ontario to the House of Commons under Sir Wilfrid Laurier.  He created many improvements for Ontario County during his term which lasted until 1911.  The major issue of the 1911 election was reciprocity with the US; the Conservatives opposed free trade, and William Smith representing this party was elected, beating Fowke.  As World War I raged on, the election of 1917 became about the war and conscription.  Notably, Fowke split from supporting Laurier and the Liberals, who opposed conscription, and instead, supported Robert Borden and his Union Government.  Locally, William Smith (Unionist) was facing WEN Sinclair (Opposition) in this election, and Smith was again successful.

In 1918, Fowke was appointed one of the three commissioners to restore the section of the City of Halifax which had been destroyed by an explosion, caused by the collision of French Relief Ship, the Mont Blanc, and the Belgium Relief Ship, the Imo on December 6, 1917.  He was the only non-Haligonian to serve in such a role, and it was suggested by Dr. TE Kaiser¹ that his appointment was due to his support of Borden in 1917.

Postcard of Gladstone Villa, AX998.29.1

The Fowkes resided at 114 King St. East, now the offices of Kelly Greenway Bruce, which he named “Gladstone Villa.”  He also had a summer home in Chester, Nova Scotia, where they enjoyed an active social life.

During his retirement he spent most of his time travelling.  Frederick Luther Fowke died in 1939 and is buried in Oshawa’s Union Cemetery.

Scenes from the Cemetery is taking place Sept 7 & 8 at Union Cemetery; various start times, beginning at 2pm. We recommend buying your tickets in advance to avoid disappointment! To buy your tickets: scenesfromthecemetery.wordpress.com/tickets

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1. TE Kaiser, Historic Sketches of Oshawa (Oshawa: The Reformer Printing and Publishing Co., Ltd., 1921), 146-147.

Profiling: Dr TWG McKay

Thomas Wills Gibbs McKay was born on March 8, 1873 at the McKay family home in Oshawa. His parents were Donald H. McKay and Mary Elizabeth Gibbs, cousin of William and Thomas Gibbs.

Donald (known to the family as Daniel), had a successful career with the Denny & Company Marine Engineers and had sailed with the Merchant Marines until he was struck by cholera in Calcutta, India in 1868. He sailed to Canada in 1869 and worked for the Joseph Hall Iron Works as an engineer, building engines for printing machinery. Later he worked for the Universal Knitting Mills in Toronto. The family lived there, at 19 Gloucester Street, from 1886 until Donald’s death in 1911.

His mother, Mary Elizabeth Gibbs came to Oshawa with her father, Philip Gibbs in 1859. They were located close to her cousins T.N. and W.H. Gibbs in the village of Harmony.

Thomas attended Centre Street School in Oshawa during his early years and obtained a medical degree from the University of Toronto in 1896, winning the George Brown Scholarship and was a Starr gold medalist. That same year, he began practicing medicine with Dr. Francis Rae. He was also an examiner in primary anatomy for the Ontario Medical Council, associate examiner in clinical surgery and Medical Officer of Health in Oshawa from 1905 – 1945.

Early in his career Dr. McKay married Alice Adella Drew, a Toronto General Hospital nursing graduate, on April 4, 1902. It was at this time that he built their family home, a three-storey brick house at 58 King Street West, on the northeast corner of King Street and Victoria Street. They had three sons; Donald Drew, Wilson Gibbs and Ian Blake. The family also had a cottage on Lake Mississauga near Buckhorn, Ontario, and they spent much of their time there. After Alice died in 1933, McKay married her sister, Ina Estella Drew, in 1938.

Dr. McKay travelled throughout the community to houses and schools campaigning for issues such as inoculations and clean water. He was instrumental (along with Dr. D.S. Hoig) in establishing the health program in Oshawa’s schools.  Dr. McKay’s granddaughter, Adella McKay (Wilson Gibbs daughter) has said that her Grandfather was often paid in chickens and farm produce, if at all! This may be why they lost their Victorian home on King Street.

Photo from findagrave.com

Dr. TWG McKay died at the family home in Harmony on March 12, 1945. He is buried in the Gibbs-McKay-Drew plot at Union Cemetery.

Learn more about Community Health in the 20th Century by visiting our latest feature exhibit! Visit soon because it will close later this month!

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Sources:

Oshawa Museum Archival Collection. McKay genealogy files.
French, Olive. Unpublished Manuscript. 1967.

Profiling: Terry Kelly

By Jill Passmore, Visitor Experience Co-ordinator

Terence Vincent Kelly was born in Toronto on May 28, 1931. He and his twin brother John were brought up in Belfast, Northern Ireland. At age 16, the young men returned to Canada where Kelly eventually studied law. He moved to Oshawa in 1949 and worked at General Motors for several years. In 1956, he started his own law firm, which is still in operation today and known as ‘Kelly Greenway Bruce.’

114 King St. E. in 1984.  This is still the address for Kelly Greenway Bruce

Many knew him throughout the region as a sports fanatic who took every opportunity to watch and support the many sports that were played in Oshawa and abroad. His love of sports and community involvement came together in the 1960s, when local citizens raised funds and campaigned to have a new sports complex built in Oshawa. Terry Kelly was the one who spearheaded the campaign and served as the Finance Chairman for the project. Nonetheless, he was also a driving force in many other local and provincial charities.

A997.43.1

Mr. Kelly was inducted into the Oshawa Sports Hall of Fame in 1995 and the Oshawa Walk of Fame in 2007 and served as chairman of the Canada Sports Hall of Fame Selection Committee. His community work was recognized with many prestigious awards including the Centennial medal in 1967 and the Queen’s Silver Jubilee Medal in 1977, Queen’s Gold Jubilee Medal in 2002 and Queen’s Diamond Jubilee Medal in 2012.

In 2005, the Ontario Justice Education Network established the Kelly Cup. The OJEN is a non-governmental agency who develops innovative educational tools that introduce young people to the justice system, help them understand the law, and build their legal capability. The Kelly Cup is a series of competitive mock trials for students, whose past winners include O’Neill CVI from Oshawa and All Saints CSS from Whitby.

Terry Kelly passed away in 2015 after practicing law for over six decades. In his obituary, son Tim Kelly said, “He wanted to see Oshawa thrive.” After living in Oshawa for over sixty years, Terry Kelly saw a lot of change in Oshawa. He did his best to ensure that people were active, and had a safe place to play sports. Before he died, Terry lived to see the name of the Civic Fields changed to Terry Kelly Field and the project officially came full circle.

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Sources:

https://www.durhamregion.com/news-story/5263269-terry-kelly-celebrated-oshawa-lawyer-sports-fan-dead-at-83/

https://www.genealogiequebec.com/necro/ontario/toronto/the-globe-and-mail-toronto-on/1590321/KELLY-Terence-Vincent/obituary

http://ojen.ca/en/oocmt/central-ontario-greater-toronto-golden-horseshoe/durham-region-kelly-cup

Profiling: Polly Ann Henry

By Laura Suchan, Executive Director

Recently Stoney Kudel, President of the Oshawa Historical Society, and I completed a project annotating the memoir of Reverend Thomas Henry. The memoir published in 1880, one year after Thomas’ death, was written by Polly Ann (P.A.) Henry his daughter in law.  As the Oshawa Museum works towards telling a more inclusive view of Oshawa’s history, we thought it was important that information regarding Polly Henry was included in the annotated version of the memoir. Historian David McCullough says, “History is no longer a spotlight. We are turning up the stage lights to show the entire cast.” His quotation emphasizes the reality that history is generally told from the perspective of one sector of society and it is imperative as historians and those entrusted with the stewardship of our community’s history, that we look to tell our story with a broader, more diverse approach.

Polly Ann Henry

Pauline (Polly) Ann Hayward Henry, was an accomplished photographer and author in her professional life and a loving mother and wife to her family.  Pauline was born to Reverend Joshua and Lydia Barker Hayward in Lowville, New York in 1825. Not much is known about Polly’s early life. Census records indicate she was the second youngest in a large family.  Her father, who Polly states died in 1840 after “twenty-three years of laborious work in the Gospel field” most likely was known to Thomas Henry. The Christian Palladium has several notices of Reverend Hayward  preaching in New York state during the 1830s and it is quite possible he and Thomas were acquainted.  Polly marries the third son of Thomas and his first wife Elizabeth (Betsey) Davis, George Henry in Porter Niagara, New York June 24, 1846. Polly and George settled on a farm by the lakefront in Oshawa and counted as their neighbours members of the Robinson and Guy families.  Soon two sons, Roland and Chauncy, were added to their family . By 1861, the family had moved to Bowmanville and were living in a 1 storey, frame house. They now had 2 more children, daughter Ella Jane and son George.  A fifth child, Thomas Eben Blake, was born in 1868.

Polly Ann and George Henry

Polly Ann was, at least for a time,  a professional photographer. Whether she had any formal training is unknown however she had a studio in Bowmanville which she ran for a short time as well as a studio in Oshawa which was sold in 1865 to another portrait photographer. The Pennsylvania State Special Collection Library has in its collection two portraits taken by Polly. [1]

The reverse of a photograph taken by PA Henry. Note, her location is Oshawa, CW (Canada West) telling us the photo was taken pre 1867

Most of the details regarding the writing and publishing of Thomas Henry’s memoir are lost to history.  Perhaps Thomas was following in the footsteps of several of his contemporaries, men such as Elder Abner Jones, Joseph Badger and Joseph Ash, who had published memoirs.  Or perhaps it was his daughter in law Polly that suggested to Thomas that he share his stories of spiritual development, plentiful travel and church leadership with family members and his friends in the church.

Just a few short months after Thomas’ death in September 1879, Polly had Thomas’ memoir completed and was researching publishing options. The only reference to the memoirs in the Henry collection comes from a letter written by George Henry to his step-mother Lurenda Abbey. In it George writes, “P.A. (Polly Ann) …. has Fathers history finished and wanted to see you, she had an answer from the [Publisher] – my house in [Dayton] Ohio about publishing Fathers history but not very encouraging.”[2]  The Ohio publisher referenced in the letter was most likely the Christian Publishing Association, headquartered in Dayton which published many of the Christian Church publications including the Herald of Gospel Liberty.  As a frequent contributor to the publication, Thomas Henry was likely known to the publishers. Interestingly enough, it appears they declined to publish the memoirs.  Polly’s next idea was to have family members contribute funds towards the publication costs, as noted by George “ [she] would like that such of the boys invest $20.00 each towards the printing and take books for their pay and for me to pay the [rest] as the fears if will be looseing matters. If you think favourable of it you can speak to them as you see them and what is done should be done at once.”[3] Unfortunately we don’t know if the family members gave any money towards the publication of the memoir or if it was George, as he feared would happen, who paid for the publishing. The Memoir of Thomas Henry was published by Polly in 1880 and printed by Hill & Weir, Steam Printers of Toronto.

Original Thomas Henry Memoir (l) and the recently published annotated memoir

After the memoir was finished we don’t hear much about Polly. She and George continued to live in Bowmanville where he became a successful fruit dealer. George passed away on March 6, 1892 of complications from diabetes. In  the 1901 census Polly is shown as living in Bowmanville with her son Thomas, his wife and three grandchildren.  Polly passed away on January 2, 1913 in Essex County Ontario.

Where those who walk shall sleep no more
The sleep of death. Are they not there?
Prophetic whispers answers, “There!”
Where those who love, their loved ones meet.

~From a poem written by Polly Henry

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References

[1] Rethinking Professionalism: Women and Art in Canada, 1850-1970 Hardcover – Apr 11 2012 by Kristina Huneault pg 164. Photos are part of the William C. Darrah Collection of cartes de vistas.

[2] Letter from George Henry to Lurenda Henry, February 3, 1880, Original in the Archival collection of the Oshawa Museum

[3] Letter from George Henry to Lurenda Henry, February 3, 1880, Original in the Archival collection of the Oshawa Museum