Memorable Manitobans: George Douglas Simpson (1883-1978)

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George Douglas Simpson
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Businessman.

Born on Manitoulin Island on 27 November 1883, while his parents Joseph William Simpson (1854-1949) and Elizabeth Purvis (1859-1949) were holidaying, brother of William Purvis Simpson and Harold Edward Simpson, he came to Selkirk at the age of three and was educated at Selkirk School.

He began working as a stenographer and bookkeeper in a general store operated by William Robinson. He founded the George D. Simpson Box Company at Selkirk then sold it and moved to West Kildonan where he founded the Kildonan Canoe Company. In 1942, he succeeded Thomas Pollock as President and General Manager of the Selkirk Navigation Company, retiring in 1963.

On 20 August 1912, he married Evelyn Irene Colborne (1885-1962) at Winnipeg and they had a son Douglas Colborne Simpson (1916-1967). He served on the Selkirk municipal council and Selkirk Fire Brigade. He was a member of the Selkirk Rotary Club, Selkirk Golf Club, Selkirk Curling Club, and Selkirk United Church. An active sportsman, he golfed and curled into his 90s. His younger brother was hockey player “Bullet Joe” Simpson.

He died at Selkirk on 3 March 1978 and was buried with his wife in the St. Clements Mapleton Cemetery.

See also:

A Brief History of the Manitoba Fisheries by Alexander S. Barbour
MHS Transactions, Series 3, 1955-1956 Season

Sources:

1901 Canada census, Automated Genealogy.

Birth and marriage registrations, Manitoba Vital Statistics.

“Mr. G. D. Simpson,” Selkirk Enterprise, 23 December 1964, page 20.

Obituary, Winnipeg Free Press, 6 March 1978, page 125.

Obituaries and burial transcriptions, Manitoba Genealogical Society.

This page was prepared by Gordon Goldsborough.

Page revised: 2 July 2022

Memorable Manitobans

Memorable Manitobans

This is a collection of noteworthy Manitobans from the past, compiled by the Manitoba Historical Society. We acknowledge that the collection contains both reputable and disreputable people. All are worth remembering as a lesson to future generations.

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