John George Wood (1891 - 1982)

Born 5 Jul 1891 in Scarborough, Ontario, Canada

Ancestors

Husband of Mabel Green — married 21 Feb 1912 in Agincourt

Died 1982 at about age 90 in Calgary, Alberta, Canada

Problems/Questions Profile manager: Fred Nix [send private message]

Biography

John George Wood is born in Scarborough Township, Ontario (now the city of Toronto, Canada), on July 3, 1891, the son of John Henry Wood (1859-1897) and Margaret Isabella Paterson (1862-1899) [1][2]. Although the birth registration shows the name as “John George” the first part “John” has been written in afterwards. John George goes through life as “George.” Also, some records show the birth date as July 5 instead of July 3, 1891. His father, John Henry, is a farmer who has a farm very close to, if not beside George’s grandfather – Elias Wood (1830-1910) [3]. His grandmother, the wife of Elias, was Mary Ann Mason (c1835-1863) who died 28 years before George was born. Elias had remarried – Rebecca, born in England -- sometime prior to 1881.

George’s parents die young -- 1897 and 1899 – so, in the 1901 census records, George is living with his grandparents -- Elias and Rebecca Wood [4]. He has not been positively identified in the 1911 census records. However, there are several “George Wood” names in western Canada – one in Manitoba, two in Alberta – that could be him. The census records show these “George Wood’s” to be single and to be born in Ontario. And the two people by the name of “George Wood” in Alberta are the right age (20), the are labelled English and at least one of them is shown to be an Anglican. Our best guess is that the George Wood of interest here left home and travelled to Western Canada.

However, and whether he went west or not, he is back in Ontario by 1912. On February 12, 1912, George, marries Mabel Green in Agincourt [5]. Agincourt, Scarborough, is the village near the family farm. The wedding record shows that both the groom and the bride resided in Agincourt at the time of the wedding which casts some doubt on the idea that George had travelled west sometime before this. But it may simple be that he had gone west, come back to Ontario, and moved back in with his brother on the family farm in Agincourt. Mabel Green is a descendant of the Thomson family, the first European settlers in Scarborough. George and Mabel have two children, both born in Alberta:

• Murray George Wood c1916-2000 + Mary Belle Matheson c1919-2003

• Campbell Robert Wood c1918-? + (1939) Marie Isabel Mould 1918-?

In Alberta, George and Mabel first farmed in Midnapore – today this is a southern suburb of Calgary, just to the east of the MacLeod Trail [6]. In the 1916 census, George and Mabel are living in the district of MacLeod, Alberta [7]. (This may be the same farm as the one at Midnapore as the district of MacLeod, in the 1916 census, is a large area south of Calgary.) They have their first child with them – the 11-month old Murray George who is shown in the census as “George Murray.”

They have their second child in 1918 and Mabel dies that same year. One has to guess that she dies as a result of the childbirth. In the 1921 census records, George is shown as a widower with two young boys [8]. He is now living in Calgary East and working in a dairy as a butter maker. His unmarried sister, Violet, has come out from Ontario, presumably to help raise the two boys.

In 1925 George marries Julia Elizabeth (“Jewell”) Colpitts (1900-1981)[1][10]. No marriage record as been found, so we do not know where this wedding occurred (although Calgary is the likely place). George and Jewel have two children:

• Eileen Jewell Wood 1926-2016 + Marte Guy Soley Howatt 1920-2003

• George Wood + Edith McCowan

In the 1926 census records, George and Jewell are living in Calgary East with George’s first two children.

Jewell dies in 1981 and is buried in the Union Cemetery in Calgary. George dies in 1982 and is buried with her.

Sources

[1] The 1968 Paterson family tree by Marjorie Paterson shows George as the 5th child of John & Margaret Wood. It shows his first spouse as Mabel Green and it shows 2 children from this marriage: (1) Murray + Marybelle Matheson; (2) Campbell + Marie Mould. It shows George’s second spouse as Jewel Colpitts and it shows 2 children from this marriage (3) Eileen + Marte Howat; (4) George + Edith McCowan.

[2] "Canada, Ontario Births and Baptisms, 1779-1899", database, FamilySearch (https://familysearch.org/ark:/61903/1:1:FM76-ZGZ : 13 February 2020), John George Woods, 1891. John George Woods (sic) is born in Scarborough on July 3, 1891. The name is written as “George Woods” and then the “John” has been inserted at the beginning. His parents are John Henry Woods and Margaret Isabella Patterson (sic). [the surnames are “Wood” and “Paterson”] John Henry Woods is a farmer in Agincourt.

[3] The historical maps at McGill University -- http://digital.library.mcgill.ca/countyatlas/ -- for 1878. This shows that Elias Wood owned a farm in Lot 27, Concession 4 and Lot 28, Concession 4. The Atlas does not give the lot size for this farm and, while a perusal of the map clearly shows the land in Lot 27, it is not obvious where the land in Lot 28 was located unless it is a tiny piece of land where the railway track curves slightly to the east.

[4] 1901 census. Ontario, York East 129, Scarborough, E-7, pg 2, family #17: Elias Wood (70) born May 30, 1830, farmer; Rebecca (82), born Apr 17, 1818; Alfred (17), born June 13, 1883, farmer; Violet (16), born May 25, 1885; Elias (13), born Dec 22, 1887; Henry (11), born Sept 7, 1889; George (9), born July 5, 1891; Leonard (8), born Mar 25, 1893. Elias & Rebecca were born in England; the rest of the family was born in Ontario. Elias & Rebecca immigrated to Canada in 1851 [? Or 1857]

[5] "Canada, Ontario Marriages, 1869-1927," database with images, FamilySearch (https://familysearch.org/ark:/61903/1:1:KS88-YJK : 8 March 2021), Margaret Isabella Patterson in entry for George Wood and Mabel Green, 21 Feb 1912; citing registration , Agincourt, York, Ontario, Canada, Archives of Ontario, Toronto; FHL microfilm 1,906,643. George Wood married Mabel Green (20) on 12 Feb 1912 in Agincourt, Ontario. The bride and Groom both show their residence as Agincourt. The groom’s religious denomination is Episcopalian and the bride is Presbyterian. The groom’s father is John Henry Wood and his mother is Margaret Isabella Patterson (sic). . The bride’s father is Robert Green, and her mother is Isabella Thompson. Both fathers are [were] farmers.

[6] The fact that they first farmed at Midnapore is from the obituary for Mabel Green.

[7] 1916 census, Alberta, Macleod, 39, pg 9, family #81: George Wood (25); Mabel (24); George Murray (11 months). George & Mabel were born in Ont., George Murray was born in Alberta. Their religion is Presbyterian. George Wood is a farmer.

[8] 1921 census, Alberta, Calgary East, pg 13, family #159: George Wood (29), widower, born in Ont., parents born in Ont., occupation is a butter maker in a dairy; Violet (30), sister, born in Ont., no occupation shown; Murray (5); Campbell (3). Both boys were born in Alberta. There is also a lodger living in the house.

[9] 1926 census, Alberta, Calgary East 43, Rosebud, pg 2, family #23: George Wood (32), born in Ont., parents born in Ont.; Jewel (26), born in New Brunswick, parents born in New Brunswick; Murray (10), born in Alberta; Campbell (8), born in Alberta.

[10] Find a Grave, database and images (https://www.findagrave.com/memorial/124522644/george-wood : accessed 24 November 2021), memorial page for George Wood (3 Jul 1891–1982), Find a Grave Memorial ID 124522644, citing Union Cemetery, Calgary, Calgary Census Division, Alberta, Canada ; Maintained by Deb (contributor 48155269) . “Son of John Henry Wood and Margaret Isabella Patterson. George Wood and Mabel Green were married at Agincourt, Ontario on Feb. 21, 1912. The 1916 Calgary census shows George and Mabel Wood, living at Macleod, Alberta, with son, George Murray Wood, born that year. George remarried to Jewell E. Colpitts at Calgary in 1925.”

Acknowledgments

Thank you to Fred Nix for creating Wood-9025 on 23 Oct 13. Click the Changes tab for the details on contributions by Fred and others.