John James Joseph “Jack” McPhail and Annie George

Updated May 2021 with new information

The firstborn son of Archibald James Jacob McPhail (1870-1941) and Cecelia (née Garrow) (1876-1941) was John James Joseph McPhail, born January 13, 1893. His father was 22 when he was born, and his mother was only 16. He had five brothers and four sisters.

It appears that Jack enlisted with the Canadian Expeditionary Force in Brantford, Ontario on January 16, 1918. Given the late date of his enlistment and the fact that he would have been of age in 1911, it appears likely that he was conscripted. Jack’s medical records indicate that he had some vision issues—a convergent squint and amblyopia (a lazy eye)—that could not be corrected with glasses.

On enlistment, Jack is living at 125 John Street South, but I have to wonder if his vision issues mean that he was also unable to read and write. I believe that 125 John has been a railway line since prior to the war). It also shows 145 Johnson Street South (there is no Johnson Street in Hamilton) and his likely address, 145 John Street South (the current business occupant at the time of writing is an insurance company, Jack likely had one of the upper-level apartments if this is the correct address).

145 John Street South, Hamilton (image via GoogleMaps)

Upon enlistment, Jack was spent three months at Whitley Camp in Surrey, England for training. His physique is described as “robust”, but Jack returned to Canada aboard the Olympic on December 7, 1918, and was discharged almost a year to the day after his enlistment as “medically unfit”. The records suggest that he had an Inguinal Hernia and that combined with his defective vision were reasons to discharge.

Discharge Certificate – John McPhail (Image via Library and Archives Canada)
Description of Medical Condition – John McPhail (Image via Library and Archives Canada)

It appears that at the time although the hernia was treatable with surgery, Jack chose to wait as it wasn’t causing him pain or discomfort. The military’s medical board came to the conclusion that the injury may have predated his enlistment. The records also suggest that like his father, Jack was an engineer—a physical job that likely wouldn’t have required him to read.

After his discharge, there aren’t many records to trace Jack. There is a February 1919 border crossing document suggesting that Jack went to Niagara Falls, New York for a visit.

(Image via Ancestry.com)

There is a 1921 Canadian Census record of a labourer named Jack McPhail living in a boarding house in Sarnia, Ontario who is the right age, but at this time, there’s no way to know for sure if this is the same man.

On December 18, 1923, Jack married Annie George, a widow. According to the marriage certificate, Annie was born in Manchester, England and her parents were William George and Margaret (née Hopkins). Both the bride and the groom were 30 years of age.

(Image via Ancestry.com)

Annie had previously been married to a man named David Atkinson. David died suddenly on May 7, 1922, of acute heart failure. Annie and David had one son, George. David’s death certificate suggests that the family was living at 24 Harrison Avenue in Hamilton at the time of his death. A shipping manifest suggests that George and Annie went overseas (no record has been found suggesting that Jack also went), possibly to visit Annie’s family in 1924 (after the marriage). George and Annie’s home address listed is also 24 Harrison Avenue, so it is presumed that Jack moved into Annie’s home after the marriage and they lived there at least until 1935.

24 Harrison Avenue, Hamilton (image via GoogleMaps)

The couple had five children together.

  • Dennis William McPhail (1925-1930)
  • Terrence Joseph McPhail (1930-2020)
  • Rita McPhail (deceased)
  • Margaret McPhail (deceased)
  • Norah Marie McPhail (-2015)

Dennis William McPhail,  was born September 15, 1925. He died at the age of 4 1/2 on January 30, 1930, of bronchopneumonia. The couple were still living on Harrison Avenue at the time of his death.

Death Certificate (image via Ancestry.com)

City directories suggest the couple moved to 61 Harrison Street by 1935.

Annie died on November 1, 1982. She is buried in Holy Sepulchre Cemetery in Burlington, Ontario.

Jack died on March 6, 1985. He is buried with his wife. 

Since this article was originally written, I have had some contact with a granddaughter of the couple and this resulted in filling in some of the blanks, but there are still some that remain.

Main image: Witley Camp 1917/1918 (image via Wikimedia)

Facebook
Twitter
LinkedIn
Pinterest

2 Responses

Leave a Reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

This site uses Akismet to reduce spam. Learn how your comment data is processed.

ABOUT AUTHOR
AG Knapper

I’ve been researching my tree for over twenty years…and I’ve found some easy branches, and some gnarly ones…

Get fresh updates
about my life in your inbox