Memorable Manitobans: William Wellington Joslin (1863-1939)

Businessman.

Born at Clinton, Ontario on 7 July 1863, son of John Joslin and Sarah Cooper, he came to Manitoba in December 1881 and lived in Winnipeg until the following spring when he joined a construction crew for the Canadian Pacific Railway. When his father arrived in Manitoba in 1882, he joined him in a claming a homestead north of Virden, which they operated until 1885. He then moved to Virden and, for five years, operated an agricultural implements business. From 1890 to 1892 he represented the Pateson Implement Manufacturing Company and, from 1892 to 1897 was engaged in the dray and cartage business. He spent the next five years as a representative of R. E. Trumbell, a wholesale liquor dealer in Virden and, in 1902, he bought the company.

In 1880, he joined the 33rd Battalion of Ontario Infantry and served in the Home Guard during 1885 North West Rebellion and later with the 91st Volunteer Infantry. He later served as a Sergeant in the Manitoba Dragoons and as a Lieutenant in the Manitoba Mounted Rifles. On 12 October 1889, he married Mary Melissa Hill (1868-1918) of Lenore. They had four children: John Stanley “Jack” Joslin, Alice Gertrude “Dot” Joslin (1893-?, wife of Wilmot E. Watson), Sarah Hazel “Sadye” Joslin (1896-?, wife of Matthew A. Anderson), and Anna May Joslin (1899-1986, wife of Reginald Merrick Coleman, daughter-in-law of George Benjamin Coleman). He was a member of the AF & AM, IOOF, and Ancient Order of United Workmen. He spent eight years on the Virden town council and five years as chairman of the Virden public works commission.

He died at Virden on 7 December 1939 and was buried in the Virden Cemetery.

Sources:

Birth, marriage, and death registrations, Manitoba Vital Statistics.

1901 Canada census, Automated Genealogy.

A History of Manitoba: Its Resources and People by Prof. George Bryce, Toronto: The Canadian History Company, 1906.

Obituary [Anna May Coleman], Winnipeg Free Press, 27 March 1986, page 55.

Obituaries and burial transcriptions, Manitoba Genealogical Society.

This page was prepared by Gordon Goldsborough.

Page revised: 10 September 2021

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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