Alfred Jackson (1858-1935)
Born at Clinton, Ontario on 19 July 1858, he was the son of English immigrant Isaac Jackson (c1830-1925) and Sara ? (c1835-?). He quit school at the ate of 15 to apprentice for four years with contractor John Snell at Wingham, Ontario. He attended night school while working and later spent two years at Clinton High School, receiving a teacher’s certificate. He took business training at the Jones Commercial College of London, Ontario then taught school until 1882 when he gave it up due to ill health. In January 1882, he arrived in Winnipeg seeking new opportunities.
Educator, Builder, Real Estate Agent
In the spring of 1882, he took up a homestead where Boissevain now stands, built a home and broke some land. He returned to Winnipeg to work in the contracting business. He was preparing to return to his farm when his brother, Charles, became ill and died of smallpox, which was epidemic in Winnipeg at the time. Someone took over his farm during the delay in his departure and, having lost everything when the economic boom of the time collapsed, he returned to the teaching profession. He taught for two years at Wellington School, then was Principal of the Manitou School for two years. His ill health forced him to quit teaching and he purchased a farm near Thornhill. While living on his farm he served as a school trustee.
In 1896, he sold his farm and invested the proceeds in lots in the old Kildonan parish of Winnipeg. He carried on a contracting and real estate business in Winnipeg. He retired from the construction business around 1911 but continued to buy and sell real estate from his office at 522 Main Street. He kept a farm at Kildonan.
In 1881, he married Martha Emily Vodden (1867-1920) at Londesborough, Ontario. They had ten children: Charles Gordon Jackson (1884-?), Violet Jackson (1886-1970, wife of Reginald Martin), Daisy Jackson (1898-1973, wife of Frank Cottrill), Myrtle Jackson (1891-1915), Victor Edwin Jackson (1893-1919), Annie Fern Jackson (1895-1968, wife of Ralph Yake), Hazel Jackson (1899-1985, wife of Frederick Brooks), Olive Jackson (1901-2002), Norman Clifford Jackson (1903-1976), and Ivy Jackson (1906-?. wife of Roy Martin).
He died in Winnipeg on 23 March 1935 and was buried in the Old Kildonan Cemetery.
Sources:
- Reprinted with permission from the Manitoba Historical Society and updated.
- Marriage and Death Registration, Ontario Vital Statistics.
- Grave Marker, Find a Grave.
- Obituary [Olive Nevill], Winnipeg Free Press, 04 January 2003, page C14.
———————————–
Manitoba Genealogical Society has been transcribing cemeteries since the late 1970s. An abundance of information may be found in these transcripts, including the location of the burial site and information regarding burials where the grave marker is no longer visible. If you would like to purchase a transcript of a Manitoba cemetery, please follow our link.