Railwayman, horticulturist.
Born at Kincardineshire (later Aberdeenshire), Scotland on 9 February 1891, son of Elizabeth Reid, he immigrated to Australia and worked as a labourer near Narrabri, New South Wales. During the First World War, he enlisted with the Australian Army (March 1916) and was deployed to the European battlefields with the rank of Private. There, he survived multiple wounds and a gas attack before returning to Australia in 1919, receiving for his service the 1914-1915 Star, British War Medal, and Victory Medal.
He returned to Scotland, and there married Mary Jane Reid (1896-1986) on 4 July 1921 before immigrating to Canada later that year. The couple had three sons: Bill Reid (?-1956), Donald Reid (c1924-1925), and Norman Reid (1926-2000). They settled at Winnipeg where he worked at the Canadian National Railway Shops until retirement in 1956. A member of the Transcona Horticultural Society and citizen-member of the Transcona Parks Board from 1950 to 1954 (Parks and Boulevard Committee Chairman, 1950-1952), he oversaw boulevard tree planting and helped establish public green spaces throughout Transcona.
He died at the St. Boniface Hospital on 25 May 1982 and his cremains were interred in the Transcona Cemetery. He is commemorated by William Reid Park.
See also:
Historic Sites of Manitoba: William Reid Park (901 Leola Street, Winnipeg)
Death registrations, Manitoba Vital Statistics.
“Transcona meet names Hutzalak to head C of C,” Winnipeg Free Press, 16 January 1950, page 2.
“Transcona notes,” Winnipeg Free Press, 27 January 1951, page 5.
“Transcona notes,” Winnipeg Free Press, 12 January 1952, page 15.
“Transcona notes,” Winnipeg Free Press, 17 January 1953, page 16.
“Transcona notes,” Winnipeg Free Press, 9 January 1954, page 9.
Obituary, Winnipeg Free Press, 27 March 1982, page 53.
Obituary [Mary Jane Reid], Winnipeg Free Press, 29 October 1986, page 42.
Obituary [Norman Reid], Winnipeg Free Press, 6 May 2000, page C13.
First Australian Imperial Force Personnel Dossiers [NAA:B2455], 1914-1920, REID, WILLIAM DOUGLAS, National Archives of Australia.
This page was prepared by Nathan Kramer.
Page revised: 20 January 2019
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