Joseph Harvey Lennox (1877 - 1947)

Born 20 Jun 1877 in Ontario, Canada

Ancestors

Husband of Annabelle Young — married 19 Dec 1906 in Rainy River, Ontario, Canada

Died 18 May 1947 at age 69 in New Westminster, British Columbia, Canada

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

Biography

Joseph Harvey Lennox is born on June 20, 1877, in Innisfil Township, Simcoe County, Ontario, Canada according to some sources [1][2]. Innisfil Township is on the west side of Lake Simcoe, south of Barrie. Various records refer to him as “Joseph” or “Harvey” or sometimes even “Harry.” Joseph Harvey’s parents are Joseph Lennox (1840-1922) and Elizabeth Boake (1839-1929). They were both born in Upper Canada, but their parents were all born in Ireland. They lived for a time after they were married in Alliston, Simcoe County, which was a village a few kilometres west of Innisfil Township.

The first record found for Joseph (the son) is in the 1881 census when he is a three-year old boy living with his family on a farm in West York [3]. This farm is in Downsview which is now a part of the northwest end of Toronto. Joseph has four older sisters, and the family is shown as Irish and Weslyan Methodist. The family is still in West York in the 1891 census although this time they are in St Alban’s Ward [4]. Presumably the family has moved off the farm in Downsview. Joseph’s father is a lumber merchant. Of some significance, a nearby family in the 1891 census records is Robert and Elizabeth Young who have a 12-year-old daughter named Annabelle.

At some point after the 1891 census, the Lennox family moves out west, to the North West Territories. This will become the new province of Saskatchewan in 1905. In the 1901 census, Joseph and his father are farming in Saltcoats, a little southeast of Yorkton [5]. They have relatives, on the Boake side of the family, living in the area. In fact one, Edward Warren Boake, was in Yorkton in the militia during the 1885 rebellion. The 1885 rebellion saw the Métis under the leadership of Louis Riel and others – most notably Gabriel Dumont – rise up against the encroaching Canadian population which was spreading west with its railway and surveyors. It was an important, if sad, turning point in the history of Canada.

On December 19, 1906, Joseph marries Annabelle Young (1879-1958) in Kenora, Ontario [6]. Annabelle’s family had moved up to Kenora (Rat Portage as it was then called) sometime in the 1890s. Clearly Joseph and Annabelle had kept in touch from their days in West York.

Joseph and Annabelle have two children:

• Margaret Elizabeth Lennox 1909-1942

• Gordon Lennox c1913-? + Marguerite Sinclair

In the 1911 census, Annabelle and Joseph are living on a farm in Saltcoats, Saskatchewan and they have a one-year-old daughter, Margaret [7]. There is also a servant and a farm helper living with them. Saltcoats is, today, just off the Yellowhead Highway, about 360 kilometres east of Saskatoon. It is not too far west of the Saskatchewan-Manitoba border. In the 1916 census records, they are still living on their farm in Saltcoats, and they now have two children [8]. Annabelle’s mother, Elizabeth Young, is also living with them. The 1921 and 1926 census records also show the family living in Saltcoats [9][10]. And it is known that Joseph (Harvey) was still on the farm in 1922 when his father dies in Toronto.

But at some point, they leave the farm and move west to British Columbia. They probably leave during the “dirty thirties.” The 1930s, through a combination of the Great Depression and drought, saw several thousand farms in Saskatchewan and Alberta abandoned.

Various addresses from family correspondence put them at one time or another in North Vancouver, New Westminster and Coquitlam -- all to the north or east of Vancouver. Their one daughter, Margaret, dies in 1942 in New Westminster at the age of 32. She may have been living with her parents at the time.

Joseph dies on May 18, 1947 in New Westminster, British Columbia [11]. He is buried in Forest Lawn Memorial Park in Burnaby [12]. Annabelle dies in 1958 and is buried with him.

Can you add any information on Joseph Lennox? Please help grow his WikiTree profile. Everything you see here is a collaborative work-in-progress.

Sources

[1] The 1968 Paterson family tree by Marjorie Paterson shows Harry Lennox as the spouse of Annabel (Annabelle) Young and it shows 2 children: (1) Gordon + Margaret Sinclair., and (2) ..Margaret.

[2] the reference to Joseph being born in Innisfil Township has been lost.

[3] 1881 census, Ontario, 136 West York, York West division no 3, pg 33, household #139: Joseph Lennox (39), born Ont, farmer; Elizabeth (39), born Ont; Anne (12); Emma (10); Margaret [?Margareth?] (8); Rebecca (6); Joseph H. (3). The family is labelled Irish and W. Meth [Weslayan Methodist].

[4] 1891 census, Ontario, 132 West York, St Alban’s Ward, pg 4-5, household #21: Joseph Lennox (50), parents born Ireland, lumber merchant; Elizabeth (48), parents born Ireland; Marie (20); Maggie (18); Reebie (16); Harvey (13). For the children, the record shows father born Ontario, mother born Ireland – although the census record for the mother shows her born in Ontario. The family is Methodist.

[5] 1901 census, N.W.T, 203 East Assiniboia, Saltcoats, pg 1, household 2: Joseph Lennox (60), born 3 May 1840, farmer; Elizabeth (61), born 19 March 1839; Joseph H, (23) born 20 June 1877, farmer. The family is labelled Irish and Methodist.

[6] http://homepages.rootsweb.ancestry.com/~maryc/north06.htm “17213-06 Joseph Harire (Hairey?) LENNOX, 29, farmer, Innisfil Ont., Saltcoats, s/o Joseph LENNOX & Elizabeth NOAKE, married Anna Belle YOUNG, 27, Scarboro Junction, Kenora, d/o Robert H. YOUNG & Elizabeth PATTERSON, witn: Allan YOUNG of Kenora & R. L. LENNOX of Winnipeg, 19 Dec 1906 at Kenora”

[7] 1911 census, Saskatchewan, Saltcoats, township 23, pg 19, household #190: Joseph Lennox (33) born June 1877; Annabell (30), born Feb 1881; Margaret (1), born Oct 1909. Ruth Fuldsend(?) (22), servant; Lewis Samuel (22), help. Joseph is a farmer. Joseph and the baby are labelled “Irish,” and Annabell is labelled “Scotch.” The family’s religion is Methodist.

[8] 1916 census, Saskatchewan, Saltcoats, township23, range (?? 2 W 2nd), pg 13, household (either 130, 131, or 132 depending on which number is picked): Harry (maybe “Harvey”) Lennox (38), farmer; Annabelle (36); Margaret (6); Gordon (3); Elizabeth Young (56), mother-in-law; Jay Leflag, servant. Harry/Harvey, Annabelle and the children are Methodists. Elizabeth is Presbyterian. Harry/Harvey and the children are listed as Irish; Annabelle and Elizabeth are listed as “Scotch.”

[9] 1921 census, Saskatchewan, 226, Saltcoats, pg 6, family #61: Joseph Lennox (43), farmer; Annabelle (42); Margaret (11); Gordon (8). The family lives on Crescent Rd; they own their own house. The parents were born in Ontario; the children in Saskatchewan. Joseph and the children are labelled “Irish,” and Annabelle is “Scotch.” The family’s religion is Methodist.

[10] 1926 census, Saskatchewan, 26 Melville, Saltcoats town, pg 8 & 9, family 103: Joseph Harvey Lennox (49), born Ont, parents born Ont. Irish; Anna Belle Lennox (47), born Ont, parents born Ont., Scotch; Margaret Elizabeth (16), born Sask., Irish; Gordon Allen (13), born Sask., Irish.

[11] "British Columbia Death Registrations, 1872-1986," index and images, FamilySearch (https://familysearch.org/pal:/MM9.1.1/FLRF-PW3 : accessed 18 January 2015), Joseph Harvey Lennox, 18 May 1947; citing New Westminster, British Columbia, Canada; British Columbia Archives film number B13193, Division of Vital Statistics, Victoria; FHL microfilm 2,032,477. The record shows that Joseph Harvey Lennox died on 18 May 1947 in New Westminster, B.C. The birth date is shown as 20 June 1877 in Ontario and his parents were Joseph Lennox & Elizabeth Boake. His wife’s name is Anabel Young

[12] Find a Grave, database and images (https://www.findagrave.com/memorial/151304526/joseph-harvey-lennox: accessed 05 September 2022), memorial page for Joseph Harvey Lennox (20 Jun 1877–18 May 1947), Find a Grave Memorial ID 151304526, citing Forest Lawn Memorial Park, Burnaby, Greater Vancouver Regional District, British Columbia, Canada; Maintained by Wayne Knapp (contributor 48728074) .

Acknowledgments

Thank you to Fred Nix for creating Lennox-244 on 26 Dec 13. Click the Changes tab for the details on contributions by Fred and others.