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John Edward Wilson
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Born at Renfrew, Ontario on 22 May 1878, son of James Wilson and Mary Ann Macmillan, both of his parents died by the time he was three years of age. He went to live with the Garvey family south of Buckingham, Quebec until he ran away three and a half years later and walked to Ottawa. He was admitted to the St. Patrick’s Catholic Orphans’ Home which placed him as a helper on the farm of Hugh McKay at Metcalfe, Ontario. He left in 1891 to work successively at sawmills, a lumber camp, and a woolen mill.
In the spring of 1895, he traveled west, arriving at Pilot Mound where he worked as a farmhand and carpenter. He took a course at the Winnipeg Business College and continued carpentry work in Manitoba and New York. Returning to Winnipeg in February 1902, he began buying lots and constructing homes on them for sale. He built several apartment blocks as well as the Winnipeg Sanatorium. During the First World War, he served with the Royal Canadian Engineers. Returning afterwards, he worked in the building trade at Chicago, Illinois. He later returned to Winnipeg.
On 26 February 1902, he married Christina Reddy (c1879-1910) and they had three children: Florence Corinne Wilson (1903-?, wife of ? Anderson), Oliver Edward Wilson (1904-?), and ? Wilson (?-?, wife of Bruce Amos). On 2 April 1913, he married a second time, to Rose M. Weightman (?-?). He attended the Roman Catholic, Presbyterian, and Congregational churches, and was a member of the IOOF, Order of Foresters, Adanac Club, and Greater Winnipeg Builders Exchange.
He died at his Winnipeg home, Suite 16 - 244 Logan Avenue, and was buried with his first wife in the Elmwood Cemetery.
Some of his construction works in Manitoba included:
Building
Location
Year
Status
282 Mountain Avenue, Winnipeg
1909
363 Mountain Avenue, Winnipeg
1910
365 Mountain Avenue, Winnipeg
1910
161 Langside Street, Winnipeg
1910
138 Young Street, Winnipeg
1911
437 Desalaberry Avenue, Winnipeg
1911-1912
149 Langside Street, Winnipeg
1911-1913
854 Alverstone Street, Winnipeg
1912
86 Young Street, Winnipeg
1914
92 Young Street, Winnipeg
1914
See also:
Historic Sites of Manitoba: Walker House (29 Cornish Avenue, Winnipeg)
Birth, marriage, and death registrations, Manitoba Vital Statistics.
Obituary [Christina Wilson], Winnipeg Tribune, 21 June 1910, page 5.
“New apartment block [Almonte Apartments],” Manitoba Free Press, 10 April 1911, page 13.
The Story of Manitoba by F. H. Schofield, Winnipeg: The S. J. Clarke Publishing Company, 1913.
Attestation Papers, Canadian Expeditionary Force, Library and Archives Canada.
Obituary, Winnipeg Free Press, 26 April 1956, page 41.
We thank Jordan Makichuk for providing additional information used here.
This page was prepared by Gordon Goldsborough.
Page revised: 13 August 2023
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