Railway draughtsman, photographer.
Born in Grey County, Ontario on 24 May 1884, son of Charles Armer and Margret White Dunscome, he began working as a machinist apprentice with the Grand Trunk Pacific Railway before moving into its drafting office at Montreal, Quebec. In 1905, he became supervisor of the apprentice classes at Toronto, Ontario. By 1910, he was Chief Draughtsman at Battle Creek, Michigan. He transferred to the company's Winnipeg office, becoming Chief Draughtsman of the Mechanical Department. By the time of retirement in May 1949, he was Chief Draughtsman for the western region of the Canadian National Railways.
On 25 July 1916, he married Jennie May Henderson (1883-1946) at West Kildonan. They lived at 804 Winona Street in Transcona. They had no children. After retirement, he travelled extensively and indulged lifelong hobbies of photography and painting.
He died at Winnipeg on 18 October 1983 and was buried in the Old Kildonan Cemetery. A collection of over of his 22,000 photographs are held at the Transcona Museum.
Ontario birth registration, Ancestry.
Marriage registration [John Russell Armer, Jennie May Henderson], Manitoba Vital Statistics.
Death registration [Jennie May Armer], Manitoba Vital Statistics.
“Descendant of Lord Selkirk settlers dies,” Winnipeg Tribune, 23 May 1946, page 4.
“J. R. Armer, C.N.R. department head, retired May 31,” Winnipeg Tribune, 14 June 1949, page 11.
Obituary, Winnipeg Free Press, 21 October 1983, page 54.
This page was prepared by Glen Toews and Gordon Goldsborough.
Page revised: 28 March 2026
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