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Memorable Manitobans: William John Watson (1849-1907)Born at Toronto, Ontario in 26 July 1849, son of William Watson and Elizabeth Barnett, he was educated at Toronto and at Seaforth, where the family moved while he was a child. At the age of 21, he enlisted as a member of the Wolseley Expedition, attached to Number 4 Company of the First Ontario Rifles, coming to Manitoba in 1870. Discharged as a sergeant, he decided to remain in Manitoba, finding work with the grocery business of W. H. Lyon & Company. He became bookkeeper of the firm when, in 1882, it was bought and renamed Powis & MacKenzie. He became a partner in the firm in 1903, which became known as K. MacKenzie & Company. In 1875, he married Elizabeth Kaufman, a daughter of Swiss immigrants who accompanied the Selkirk settlers to Manitoba. They had two children: Mrs. J. C. Thompson and William K. Watson. He was a member of IOOF, Masons, and Knox Church. He died at Edmonton, Alberta on 4 June 1907. Sources:1901 Canada census, Automated Genealogy. The Story of Manitoba by F. H. Schofield, Winnipeg: The S. J. Clarke Publishing Company, 1913. Death registration, Manitoba Vital Statistics. “Pioneer merchant dies at Edmonton”, Manitoba Free Press, 5 June 1907, page 1. This page was prepared by Gordon Goldsborough. Page revised: 27 April 2010
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