| Notes |
- Birth (Original extract) 1901-424-841
Andrew Wilkie
Date: 13 December 1901, 2 h 40 m PM at Hall Row, Crossgates, Dunfermline, Fife, Scotland
Sex: Male
Parents: David Wilkie, Coalminer & Annie Wilkie MS Scott, married Jun 3 1901 Dunfermline
Informant: Annie Wilkie - signed
Registered: December 26 1901 at Dunfermline; David Watson Asst Registrar
1911 Scotland Census - Crossgates, Dunfermline Civil & Ecclesiastical Parish, Fife, Scotland; 1911-424/00 035/00 031
Lines 30-34 inclusive
Address: ?Aitkens Row #247
David Wilkie, Head, Age 30, married, Coal Miner, worker, Birthplace Muchart Perth
Ann Wilkie, Wife, Age 32, Married x 10 yr, 2 chn born, 2 chn alive, Birthplace Haddinton, Tranent
Andrew Wilkie, Son, Age 9, Single, at School, Birthplace Dunfermline, Fife
Janet Wilkie, Dau, Age 5, Single, at school, Birthplace Dalgetty Fife
Margaret Campbell, Age 18, Single, Boarder, Linen Weaver, Birthplace Fife, Dunfermline
Immigration:
Canadian Passenger Lists 1865-1935; Roll T-4744
Name: Andrew Wilkie
Male
Age 10
Estimated Birth: 1902
Date of Arrival: 29 Aug 1912
Vessel: Carthaginian
Port of Arrival: Halifax, Nova Scotia, Canada
Port of Departure: Liverpool, England
Notes about the Carthaginian
Years of service 1884-1917
Funnels - 1, Masts 3
Shipping Line: Allan
Description: built by Govan Shipbuilding Co Glasgow Scotland
Tonnage 4444, Dimensions 386' x 45', Single screw, 14 knows, compound engines, Steel hull
History: Maiden voyage was Glasgow-Boston Dec 6 1884, served in numerous North Atlantic routes;
Sunk by a mine near Inishtrahull June 14 1917
Andy lived with his Parents in the Glace Bay area & New Waterton from 1912-1914 (May) when the family returned to Scotland in an attempt to improve Nettie's health (sister). WWI came and they were unable to return to Canada until 1920
2nd Voyage to Canada:
1920 - Pretoria ship
Name, Andrew Wilkie
Age 18
Occupation Miner
Birthplace - Crossgates, Scotland
Protestant
Object in coming to Canada: to join Father
Ever lived in Canada - Yes, Nova Scotia - Halifax Sep 1912, departed Halifax NS May 1914
Money: $30.00
Read & Write: Yes
Language: english
Passage paid by Father
Intend to remain Permanently in Canada: Yes
Destined Relative: Father - David Wilkie, Garden Plains, AB
Railway - CPR
Nearest Relative in Scotland: Grandfather - John Scott, North End Crossgates, Dunfermline
Dated: 08 Sep 1920
Description: Height - 5'5", Complexion Fresh, Eyes - blue, Hair - brown
Booking Agent: 3rd class, Ticket E36175, Pretorian, sailing from Glasgow on 9 November 1920 & Railway CP to Garden Plains
Agent: John Bryce, Dunfermline
1926 Prairie Provinces Census, Canada; Camrose County No 22, Alberta, Canada Castor town
Page 8; Lines 41 - 43 inclusive
Wilkie, Andrew, Head, Male, Age 45, Birthplace Scotland
Wilkie, Annie, Wife, Female, Age 47, Birthplace Scotland
Wilkie, Andrew Son Male, Age 24, Birthplace Scotland
In the volunteer transcription found on Ancestry.ca and Familysearch.org - their surnames are noted as Nilkis, but I clearly read Wilkie
Marriage: 13 Dec 1926 - License # 3588, Record # 1507
Andrew Wilkie & Hazel Belle Weeks, Knox United Church, Castor AB
Witnesses: Allister Finlayson & Dorothy Lone
Member of Masonic Order - Beaver Lodge No. 56, Castor, AB. Reg # 137; Grand Lodge # 22512. Dad was Worthy Master in 1940, PGP in 1958, District Deputy Grand Master of Dist.#9 in 1964-65
Certificate of Canadian Citizenship: #1481675
After the mine accident to Father - David Wilkie, neither of us worked in the mines again. I worked with Jim Lone at the Esso Bulk Station - unloading fuels from train cars to the tanks, as well as deliveries to the Farmers and locals who used fuel for heating purposes as well. Following Jim Lone's untimely death, Mrs Sybil Lone carried on - a huge disappointment to Dad (Andy) as he had hoped to take over that position. He also operated the Dray business (freight) from the CPR trains to various merchants of Castor and Mother - Hazel did the collections 1 - 2 x weekly.
OBITUARY
ANDREW WILKIE
Suddenly on Friday June 18, 1976 ; Andrew Wilkie of Castor AB beloved husband of Hazel Weeks, dear father of David Allan of Kingston; Richard Andrew of Castor AB; and Mrs. Dennis (Heather Williams) of Calgary. Also survived by 7 grandchildren. Resting at the Funeral Residence of Gordon F. Tompkins, 49 Colborne St from Sat. evening. Service in the Chapel Sunday evening at 8 pm. The Ancient St Johns Lodge No. 3 will hold a service at 7 pm. Mr. Wilkie was a member of Beaver Lodge No. 56 of Castor. Service conducted from Knox United Church June 24, 1976.
Source: The Castor Advance
Death Registration:
Andrew Wilkie, Male, Married
Date of Death: June 18, 1976
Location: Tillsonburg, Ont
Age; 74 years
Reg # 1976-05-029861
Last Will and Testament - Andrew Wilkie
Town of Castor, Province of Alberta, made this 3rd June 1969
I leave unto my wife, Hazel Belle Wilkie, me entire Estate, for her own absolutely, to do with as she may see fit, however, should she not survive myself more than thirty days, I direct that my Estate shall be left to my children, who are Allan, Heather, and Richard to share and share alike
Executrix - my Wife, Hazel Belle Wilkie
Signed AWilkie
Witnesses: H. S. Macartney & F. A. Hunt
Recollections by Andrew Wilkie for a book published by the community of Castor.
Recorded by Kay Morasch.
My father and mother, Mr. and Mrs. David Wilkie, my sister Nettie, and I, left Scotland in 1911, arriving in Glace Bay, Nova Scotia, where Father worked in the mines until May, 1914, when we returned to Scotland to try to improve my sister's health. War started in August, 1914, and we couldn't get back to Canada because Father was needed in the mines and had to stay. When he wasn't working in the mines, he was coaling the warship at the Naval Base, one of the things that they had to do.
In 1920 we came to Garden Plains, where Father's sister, Mrs Jim Easton (Jenny) was living, and where Uncle Jim was working in the mines there. We then moved to Castor, where Father and I worked in the Remillard mine until Father had an accident in 1921 and we both gave up that line of work.
I did odd jobs for awhile, then went to work for Imperial Oil and stayed with that for thirty years. Father and Mother lived to have their 60th Wedding Anniversary. Nettie died in 1925. Mrs Easton now lives in the Paintearth Lodge. Uncle Jim passed on.
After Father's accident, when we quit the mine, I worked for Mr. Pickles on the farm for two summers. In 1926 Hazel and I were married. She was working in Ramsden's store and I had spent one summer delivering groceries , that was how we met. We have had a good life. The Hungry Thirties were not very pleasant but we managed to get over that.
We have two good boys and a good girl. Allan, the oldest, joined the Air Force in 1950. He'll be due to retire in about two and a half years. Heather has her R.N.; Richard, our middle, is an electrician - got his papers a month ago. We are all very happy about that.
What wages did we earn in the mine? That is a hard question to answer because you were getting paid a certain amount a ton for mining it. But I worked on the farm for $30.00 a month at Bulwark, and worked that summer in town, delivering groceries for $30.00 a month, just to have a job. It was a big lift when I started getting $90.00 a month, but that dropped considerably in the Dirty Thirties.
What mines were operating in your time?
Well, there was Shaw's, Remillard's, Phillips', McCormick's and there was one west of the County Shop on that land of Nichols'. They said that there was very good coal there, but I never worked there myself. And there was Jack Armstong's and that one across the Highlevel bridge, over there by Fletcher's buildings that was operated by Alfred McNeil who used to have the Boarding House in Castor. He was elevator agent at Veldt, too, for awhile.
Would you name some of the men you worked with?
I have a picture here. This is my Uncle Bill Scott, this is Omar Remillard, here's Edson Miller, Tim Miller's uncle. And of course the wee chap with the curly hair is me. This is Ray Trost, and this is my Dad, this is Mr. Jasper, and this is my cousin Bob. And this one, I am not sure of , but I believe it is Gus Wetter. Gus worked there.
How could you see without electricity?
We had carbide lamps. If you want to go into Ray Meyer's barber shop, he has one he will show you. You screw off the bottom and fill it half full of carbide, the rest water. Then turn the little lever at the top and the water starts to drop. And out comes air, just like gas. There is a flint on it - just like a cigarette lighter, and there's a flame that comes out of there.
What were some of the dangers of working in a mine?
Very few. I never saw a real accident until Dad had his. Cut and bruised fingers were common, just as in any other work. But in the explosion, Dad lost his eye, and the coal dust was embedded in his skin, that is, on his face, and it was impossible to get it out. His skin pebbled over, and never returned to normal, and his face looked dark. It was something that no one had ever seen around here.
How did the mines here compare with those in Scotland?
No comparison. The mines here were, at the most, thirty or forty feet deep. Both mines used props. The props here were wooden, and approximately five foot. The mines that I worked in , in Scotland, were 250 fathoms straight down, and that is a six-foot fathom. When you reached the bottom, you went into work, then you would start to climb to the coal face that had all been worked out until you came to where they were digging out the coal.
There was a long seam of coal where you worked, a man and a boy like myself would work every ten feet along. The coal was cut with a machine, during the night or in the afternoon. There would be a man down there who would bore a hole, pile it with dynamite and blow that down. When the man & the boy would come in at six o clock in the morning, they would clean all this coal out. It would go down the incline and go out to the bottoom as we called it. It would go out the shaft to the top. This incline was steep enough that the full coal cars going down would bring up the empties. And from there a pony would pull them up to the shaft. The ponies would get up to the top once a year and would be practically blind from having been down there for so long. When I started to work it was in 1915-16, and there was no light except for the carbide lamps.
When you worked on the mining crew, you were down in the hole for eight hours, and you didn't get out until your hours were up. You took your lunch with you in a tin can, for if you didn't , you wouldn't have any, because the rats would have it all eaten.
- (Research):
Birth (Original extract) 1901-424-841
Andrew Wilkie
Date: 13 December 1901, 2 h 40 m PM at Hall Row, Crossgates, Dunfermline, Fife, Scotland
Sex: Male
Parents: David Wilkie, Coalminer & Annie Wilkie MS Scott, married Jun 3 1901 Dunfermline
Informant: Annie Wilkie - signed
Registered: December 26 1901 at Dunfermline; David Watson Asst Registrar
Marriage: 13 Dec 1926 - License # 3588, Record # 1507
Andrew Wilkie & Hazel Belle Weeks, Knox United Church, Castor AB
Witnesses: Allister Finlayson & Dorothy Lone
Certificate of Canadian Citizenship: #1481675
Death Registration:
Andrew Wilkie, Male, Married
Date of Death: June 18, 1976
Location: Tillsonburg, Ont
Age; 74 years
Reg # 1976-05-029861
|
My Scottish "Wilkie" Family
1901 - 1976 (74 years)
Occupation
