6. | FREEMAN William Henry was born on 14 Oct 1862 in Hemmingford, Huntingdon, Co., Quebec, Canada (son of FREEMAN William and MCGRATH Frances (Fanny)); died on 06 Jul 1907 in Montreal, Quebec, Canada. Notes:
3. William Henry, born 14 October 1862 in Hemmingford, Huntingdon
County, Quebec. He was baptized on 16 September 1865 in the Wes.
Methodist Church, Hemmingford. William married Mary Catherine
Fitzgerald on 16 June 1884 in St.Marks Roman Catholic Church,
Prescott, Grenville County, Ontario. Kate, her nickname, was born
on 18 January 1862 in Prescott, the daughter of Irish immigrants,
Michael Fitzgerald and his wife Mary (Shea). He worked as a
brewmaster for Labatts Brewery, Prescott. William worked with his
brothers, Richard and Robert George Freeman, in the " Freeman
Brothers Furniture Store" on King Street, Prescott. William Henry
lived on Park Street as a tenant on the 1895 Voters List for
Prescott.
In the book, "History of Prescott" 1810-1967, by John Morris, on
page 197,
"W. H. Freeman, Park Street, had Prescott's first residential
telephone, ordered in March 1885."
In the "Prescott Journal Newspaper", dated Thursday September 16,
1897, under personal,
"Mr. Will Freeman of Montreal spent Sunday in Town".
William Henry moved his family to Montreal, Quebec where he
worked as a Forman Shipper for CPR Railways and lived in Verdun on
#10 Champlain Ave. This is from the Montreal Street Directories for
1897-1907. William Henry and his wife Kate became very ill. William
Henry died 06 June 1907 and Kate died 08 August 1907, 4 weeks later.
William Henry and Kate were returned to Prescott and buried in St
Marks Cemetery.
The children of William Henry and Mary Catherine (Fitzgerald)
Freeman spent their early years in the quiet town of Prescott,
surrounded by family and friends. As the economical situation
changed in Prescott, in the late 1890's, the Freeman's looked to
the large city of Montreal, Quebec, for a better life for their
children.
Montreal, Quebec sits on a foot shaped island in the St.
Lawrence River, in southern Quebec. It is one of North America's
largest inland ports. In its earlier days, Montreal was an
important fur trading center. With the building of Railways across
Canada, Montreal became more of a transportation center. During the
1890's, gas replaced coal for cooking and heating, electricity for
lights. There was an economic boom in Montreal from 1896 to 1914,
and a new middle class emerged of Clerical workers. The boom brought
stores like "Morgan, Ogilvy and Birks". There was an electric
street car for transportation within the city and Westmount and
Outemount became the homes of businessmen and merchants in lovely
brownstone houses.
Life grew easier and more comfortable for many Montrealers.
Soon cars were bumping their way over city streets and muddy graveled
roads. Between 1901 and 1911, Montreal almost doubled in population,
reaching close to half a million people.
More About WILLIAM HENRY FREEMAN:
Fact 1: September 16, 1865, bapt. Hemmingford Wes.Methodist,
Huntingdon Co., Quebec
Fact 2: June 15, 1884, bapt. Roman Catholic, St Mark's, Prescott,
Grenville Co., Ontario.
William married FITZGERALD Mary Catherine on 16 Jun 1884 in Prescott, Grenville Co., Ontario. Mary (daughter of FITZGERALD Michael and SHEA Mary) died on 08 Aug 1907. [Group Sheet] [Family Chart]
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