Educator.
Born at Myrtle on 26 March 1896, son of Albert Halstead (1856-1953) and Mary Ellen Lobb (1862-1940), he attended Myrtle School and, after moving with his family to Winnipeg, also Wesley College. In 1917, he enlisted in the Canadian Expeditionary Force and served with the 6th Field Ambulance in France.
Following his military discharge, he resumed his education and received a BA degree in 1920. At that time, he was appointed a history instructor in the collegiate department at Wesley College, rising to Dean in 1924, and holding the position until his death. He received an MA degree from the University of Chicago. He was President of the Manitoba Educational Association (1952-1953) and a member of the Schoolmasters’ Club.
On 12 June 1923, he married Jean Elizabeth Thexton (1896-1991) at St. Andrews. They had two sons: Vernon Harvey Halstead (1924-1945) and William Albert “Bill” Halstead (1926-1991). He was active in the St. Andrew’s River Heights United Church and YMCA, serving on the national council of the latter. He was a member of the Masons, Outlook Club, and National Club.
He died at Winnipeg on 1 January 1957 and was buried in the Chapel Lawn Memorial Gardens. His honorary pallbearers were John Thomas Haig, Reginald J. Horton, Spencer Cox Guest, Merlin Victor Borden Newton, Olafur Thordur Anderson, William C. Naylor, Frederick Drury Baragar, Walter C. McDonald, Donald Herbert Murdoch, and Ewart Horace Morgan.
Birth registrations [Carl Nelson Halstead, Vernon Harvey Halstead, William Albert Halstead], Manitoba Vital Statistics.
1901 Canada census, Automated Genealogy.
Attestation papers, Canadian Expeditionary Force, Library and Archives Canada.
Marriage registration [Carl Nelson Halstead, Jean Elizabeth Thexton], Manitoba Vital Statistics.
“Dean Halstead dies in hospital,” Winnipeg Free Press, 1 January 1957, page 3.
“Dean C. N. Halstead to be buried Thursday,” Winnipeg Free Press, 2 January 1957, page 4.
The History of the Manitoba Educational Association by Ernest Butterworth, MEd thesis, Faculty of Graduate Study and Research, University of Manitoba, 1965.
Obituary [Jean Elizabeth Halstead], Winnipeg Free Press, 25 May 1991, page 43.
William Albert Halstead, FamilySearch.
Obituaries and burial transcriptions, Manitoba Genealogical Society.
We thank David Halstead for providing additional information used here.
This page was prepared by Gordon Goldsborough.
Page revised: 27 September 2026
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