Educator.
Born at North Field, England on 5 March 1880, he came to Manitoba in 1907 and taught at St. Paul School No. 4 (1907) and Elm Creek School (1907-1909). In September 1909, he moved to Winnipeg where he taught mathematics and Latin at St. John’s High School (1912-1919). In 1919, he took a three-year leave of absence, during which time he taught school at Cawston, British Columbia. He returned to St. John’s in September 1922, staying there until 1925, when he became Principal of Faraday School (1926-1944).
He and wife Mary Shortell (1878-1963) had three children in Winnipeg: Naomi Hilda Cornish (1911-?, wife of James Mitchell Gillison), James Hughes Cornish (1912-1990), and Geoffrey St. John Cornish (1914-2012). The family had separated by 1922 with his wife and daughter remaining in British Columbia. He resided at 3 Bannerman Avenue (c1911), 25 Bannerman Avenue (c1916), 335 Inkster Boulevard (c1940), and 422 Langside Street (c1944). He served as President of the St. John's Curling Club (1936-1937).
He suffered a fatal heart attack at Faraday School on 3 April 1944 and was buried in the St. John’s Cathedral Cemetery.
Birth registration [Naomi Hilda Cornish, James Hughes Cornish, Geoffrey St. John Cornish], Manitoba Vital Statistics.
1911 Canada census, Automated Genealogy.
1916 Canada census, Ancestry.
Marriage registration [Naomi Hilda Cornish, James Mitchell Gillison], British Columbia Vital Statistics.
Death registration [Clifford Cornish], Manitoba Vital Statistics.
“C. Cornish, Faraday principal, dies,” Winnipeg Free Press, 3 April 1944, page 3.
“C. Cornish, principal, dies suddenly,” Winnipeg Tribune, 3 April 1944, page 3.
Obituary, Winnipeg Tribune, 4 April 1944, page 19.
“Student body to attend Cornish rites,” Winnipeg Tribune, 5 April 1944, page 42.
Winnipeg School Days, 1871-1950 by W. G. Pearce, Winnipeg School Division, Education Resource Centre.
Death registrations [Mary Cornish, James Mitchell Gillison], British Columbia Vital Statistics.
Obituary [Mary Cornish], Winnipeg Free Press, 29 November 1963, page 25.
Obituary [Geoffrey Cornish], The Republican, 10 February 2012.
We thank Nathan Kramer, Rick Mutton, and Brian Cornish for providing additional information used here.
This page was prepared by Gordon Goldsborough.
Page revised: 5 February 2024
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