Jailer.
Born at Exeter, Ontario on 21 March 1863, son of Richard and Mary Downie, he came to Crystal City in 1880 with his parents. As soon as he was old enough, he homesteaded and farmed until 1889. He then moved to Winnipeg and joined the Police Force. He was appointed Chief Turnkey in the Provincial Goal (1891) then Special Deport Officer in the Department of Immigration also in charge of Immigration Hall (1908). He returned to the Provincial Goal as Chief Turnkey, served from 1915 to 1919, then was appointed Governor of the Provincial Gaol in July 1919, succeeding William Henry Lindsay, serving in this position until his retirement in April 1938.
He was married twice, first on 24 February 1886 to Lydia Elizabeth Best (c1861-1918) at Pilot Mound and they had four children: Winnifred Ruth Downie (1887-?, wife of John Ross Cumming), George Wilfred Downie (1888-?), Mary Ethel Downie (1891-?), and Walter Gordon Downie (1893-?). On 5 July 1920, he married Lena Maud Turner (?-?). He was a member of the Masons (Capitol Lodge) R.A.M., King Edward Preceptory; a member of Clan Stewart, O.S.C. (Deputy Royal Chief), honorary member of the Lux in Tenebris Club (Blind) and the 18th Troop Boy Scouts, and a member of the United Church. In 1925, he lived at 161 Vaughan Street, Winnipeg.
He died at Winnipeg on 25 December 1942 and was buried in the Old Kildonan Cemetery.
Marriage registration [John Crawford Downie, Lydia Elizabeth Best], Manitoba Vital Statistics.
Birth registrations [Winnifred Ruth Downie, George Wilfred Downie, Mary Ethel Downie, Walter Gordon Downie], Manitoba Vital Statistics.
1901 Canada census, Automated Genealogy.
Marriage registration [Winnifred Ruth Downie, John Ross Cumming], Manitoba Vital Statistics.
Death registration [Lydia Elizabeth Downie], Manitoba Vital Statistics.
“Wife of J. C. Downie, Chief Turnkey, dead,” Winnipeg Tribune, 16 August 1918, page 7.
Marriage registration [John Crawford Downie, Lena Maud Turner], Manitoba Vital Statistics.
Pioneers and Prominent People of Manitoba, Winnipeg: Canadian Publicity Company, 1925.
Death registration [John Downie], Manitoba Vital Statistics.
“John C. Downie, former jail governor, dies,” Winnipeg Tribune, 24 December 1942. [Manitoba Legislative Library, Biographical Scrapbook B9, page 122]
This page was prepared by Gordon Goldsborough.
Page revised: 20 April 2025
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