John
Lewis Powell, was born on May 13th, 1852 in Haverfordwest,
Pembrokeshire, Wales. The family
remained in Haverfordwest until the death of John's father Charles in 1857. Charles and Ann were both originally from
Abergavenny and after his death, Ann moved back to Abergavenny with her family
of 5 children, the youngest only a year old.
Times
were very tough for them; Ann worked as a charwoman to keep food on the table
and a roof over their heads.
By
the age of 14 John was apprenticed to Henry Thomas and Henry John Edmunds,
Printers and Stationers, Abergavenny (from 28 Apr 1866 until 28 Apr 1872). The
printers were located at 3 High Street for most of their time in business. John
may also have worked for Harley Morgan Printers in Monmouth.
Books
of John’s print styles were donated to the UBC library by family members. I have been unable to locate these
books.
Another story is that John Lewis went to Chicago before he moved to Winnipeg. I have not yet been able to confirm or disprove any this. I did find a John Lewis Powell witness to a marriage in Toronto in 1881.[1] It is possible that his first newspaper job was in Toronto, the first mention I found of him in Winnipeg was in 1883. He was listed in the directory as a printer. By 1888 he was listed as a compositioner with the Winnipeg Free Press.
[1] 13648-82 Alfred HALL,
31, widower, machinist, England, Toronto, s/o John & Mary, married
Elizabeth DAVEY, 18, Toronto, same, d/o William & Kate, witn: John
Lewis POWELL & Maggie HALL, both of Toronto, 22 Dec 1881
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This
photo was taken in Winnipeg. Not sure if
the other gentlemen are friends, work mates or members of the band that John
played a coronet in. I don’t know if the
band was in Wales, Winnipeg or Vancouver.
 |
What
I do know is that Sarah and John Lewis Powell were married in Winnipeg in 1885.
Their first two children Alice Mercy and
Grace Renetta were born there.
Winnipeg
directories for that time period indicate that the Powell’s were in Winnipeg
from 1883 – 1888, before relocating to Vancouver where John Glifford, James
Lester and George Samuel were born.
John
was the foreman of the print department of the News Advertiser, the forerunner
of the Vancouver Sun. John was the first
articled printer in British Columbia and when British Columbia decided to
“article” printers, his papers were used as the model. He was also a proof reader of manuscripts. In the early 1900’s he returned to England to
purchase new printing presses for the newspaper.
Information
about John Lewis Powell and his work with the newspaper comes from "A
history of Vancouver Newspapers" by Bessie Lamb.
"The history of the Vancouver News would not be complete without a
more personal reference to that pioneer James H. Ross who with his partner N.
Harkness began Vancouver's second daily newspaper.”
“Ross spent his boyhood in Belleville, Ontario, but as a young man the
West called him. He went first to
Winnipeg where he worked in a printing office and then later held a position
with the Winnipeg Free Press.”
“He came to Vancouver before the rails had reached it. He was in Vancouver in charge of the News when
the first train arrived May 23, 1887 carrying so many distinguished officials
of the Canadian Pacific Railway."
Did
James Ross work with John Lewis Powell at either the printing company or the
Winnipeg Free Press? Did James offer
employment to John at his newly formed newspaper the "Vancouver
News"?
By
May 30, 1887 this paper was listed for sale. In the spring of 1887 the
News-Advertiser was formed by the purchase and amalgamation of the two existing
daily journals, the News and the Advertiser.
Continuing
with "A history of Vancouver Newspapers"
“The first office of the News-Adversitser was
a one storey frame building on the spot now covered by the rear portion of the
Dominion Bank. In 1890 the office was
moved into a building at the north-east corner of Cambie and Pender Streets. This building was constructed by the
News-Advertiser at a cost of some $20,000. Although a barn-like structure it was
considered a notable addition to the city in those early days. The bindery was located at the corner of
Cambie and Pender Street. The late John L. Powell was the foreman of the job
printing room which was located behind the bindery."
“It was no easy task to publish a newspaper in the early days of
Vancouver's history. The first type was set by hand and the paper was
printed on a "Country Campbell" press, two plates at a time so that
an eight page paper had to be put through the press four times and then the
sheets folded by hand. Power was at one time supplied by an electric
motor, the News-Advertiser making the undisputed claim of being the first paper
on this continent to use electricity for its press. After the street cars
were started, however, the current was of too great a voltage and could not be
used. A water wheel was then installed in the Cambie Street building with
a steam engine for reserve power.”
“In January 1893 Vancouver experienced one of the coldest periods in its
history. The thermometer went down to
four degrees below zero and the New-Advertiser almost missed publication. Setting type by hand in a building not constructed
for cold weather was like handling chunks of ice with bare hands. The type cases had to be crowded into the
reporters' room where the men managed to set up the type. Printing the paper under such conditions was a
difficult task. The frost was on the
rollers and use had to be again made of the oil lamps placed under the ink
wells. Nevertheless the paper, though
some hours late finally appeared.”
“Typesetting machines were first used in 1893. A strike of printers occurred
in Vancouver and lasted a week, but not a single issue of the News-Advertiser
was missed. The paper was brought out by
members of the editorial and business staff. The strike was really an
ill-advised attempt to prevent the use of the "Rogers" typesetting
machines.”
I never heard stories about
my great grandfathers days as a printer in Vancouver but reading the above
accounts I can well imagine what John’s working conditions were like as well as
the pressure he must have been under to produce a newspaper on time each day.
The
Powell’s purchased and lived at 133 Keefer Street until 1894. In 1889 John also purchased the “Powell
Block” Lots 8,9,10 & 11 Block 33 (6th & Main) as well as 2159 Westminster (Main) Block
30. I think Block 30 was 591 W 7th Ave. as Grace & Lester were
living there in 1910.
Listed
in the directory for 1890 is John, Sarah and family at 2149 Westminster and
Sarah’s father & brothers lived in another suite in the same building.
2149
Westminster Ave Isaac Oakley
Samuel Oakley (Sarah’s
father)
Geo Lester Oakley
By
1894 Sarah ran a china shop (crockery & glass wear in the directory) on the
main floor of 2159 Westminster Ave & the family lived upstairs. Sarah
collected and specialized in fine Bavarian china, some of which various members
of her family still have. The Woman’s
Bakery later occupied the store and this is where daughter Grace met her future
husband.
John
Lewis Powell was a religious man, and was a co-founder, along with Fire Chief
J.H. Carlisle, of the Mount Pleasant Baptist Church. He was the Superintendent of the Sunday School
and taught a class called the "Fidelis".
The following is a speech given in honour of John Lewis Powell's 38th
birthday. He was presented with a class
picture and the speech was given by Katie Nickson.
Tragically
their first son John Glifford Powell drowned at the age of 3 years. Written in the Family Bible was the following:
"A brave, noble little chap - very small for his age and an
adventurous spirit to which may be attributed chiefly to the accident - greatly
beloved by all who knew him for his manly little ways & his affectionate
disposition."
How little Johnny's death must have affected his family. His father, John
Lewis suffered from depression probably all his adult life. It
is evident in the letters he sent to Sarah before they were married.
His trip back to Wales in 1884 was at the
recommendation of the doctor in Winnipeg who was treating him for depression
and melancholia. “I have had sleep every night since I left Winnipeg and ask
you to join with me in prayer and praise to thank Him our Heavenly Father for
giving back to me so much of that very necessary Blessing”(23 Sept 1884)
In
1909, according to the family bible, John was committed to the North Yakima
Sanitarium for treatment. June 6th,
of the same year, John "drowned" by falling into the Nachez River,
North Yakima, Washington.
John’s
3 month confinement in a Washington State mental hospital and the circumstances
surrounding his death were a mystery to me and to many family members. The family was divided as to whether his death
was an accident or suicide. His Washington State death certificate states
accidental death by drowning. Sun Life
would not pay the insurance policy as they ruled that John’s death was a
suicide. John’s son Leck said that John
was a very good swimmer and that his Dad walked into the river “until his hat
floated”.
Another puzzle to me was why he was in Yakima at all. A
mental hospital had been opened in the Vancouver area, so why wasn’t John sent
there? In his obituary, no mention is
made of the fact that John died in Washington State.
In
2009, a holiday in Washington brought me to Yakima, looking for the site of the
hospital that I thought John may have been sent to. At my husband’s
suggestion I ventured into the local museum in search of information. The
volunteer at the desk said that what I was describing sounded like the
Sanitarium on Nob Hill. He had the curator bring out some articles about
“the Sanitarium” and as soon as I read them, I realized this was where our John
was sent and why. This Sanitarium was modeled after the famous Kellogg Sanitarium[1]
“they
would cure any reasonable disease. But
there are cures, also for the unreasonable diseases. Every imaginable
kind of rational treatment may be had at this institution-all sorts of
electricity, the most thorough and up-to-date massage, all kinds of baths –
Russian, electric, hot, cold neutral, everything done strictly in accord with
medical science.”
 |
| Sanitarium on Nob Hill Yakima, Washington |
I
believe Sarah thought she was sending John for the latest and most up-to-date treatment
possible for his illness. Compounding his
history of depression would be the accidental drowning of his oldest son, Johnny.
Tragically
John’s stay at the hospital led to his own death. A question to the
museum curator “would the death of an escaped mental patient make the papers?”
He
produced the newspaper dated June 7, 1909. With the dramatic headlines “A Demented Man Drowns Himself”! I learned some of the details about John’s illness as well as
the circumstances surrounding his death. Was it just coincidence that John Lewis and
his son, his namesake, Johnny both drowned?
Ken
and I also went down to the Nachez River and although the water was low when we
looked at it, the river bank was high and cut away. Not hard to imagine a deep, fast flowing river
with spring runoff. Whether it was an
accident or suicide will never be known, but as evidenced in the newspaper
article, John was a very sick man suffering from severe depression.
“…he was brought here after breaking down from overwork, and has been
kept at the Sanitarium ever since. Sometimes he showed signs of
improvement, and at other times his condition was very bad. His wife
visited him a few days ago and found him wrestling with the fixed idea that he
was too poor to eat. He would take no nourishment, and although she did
all she could to convince him that he was able to have anything he wanted, she
failed.”
Granddaughter
Gwen said “Mother loved him deeply. Two years before she passed away she gave
me a letter to read – it was written just before he drowned and was very
touching and although mother said his death was an accident, it made me wonder.
Mother was sitting holding the letter
like a very precious thing. I never saw
the letter again.”
 |
| John Lewis Powell |
John Lewis was buried in
Section 3, Mountain View Cemetery:
In
loving memory of
John
Lewis Powell
born
May
13, 1852
died
June
6, 1909
He
being dead, yet speaketh
In
the family Bible, his wife, Sarah wrote the following:
After
great suffering from neuro mania our dear husband and father passed away.
A man greatly loved and highly regarded by all, a sincere Christian and friend.
Obituary John L. Powell
There was an
unusually large attendance of friends for the late John L. Powell at the
obsequies which were conducted on his remains at Armstrong & Edward's
Chapel, yesterday afternoon, by Rev. R. C. Parker, assisted by Rev. P. H.
McEwan and Rev. D. E. Hatt, General Missionary for British Columbia, and many
expressions of regret were heard upon the untimely death of the deceased. The chapel was filled to overflowing and
there were few dry eyes after Rev. Mr. Parker had preached an eloquent and
impressive sermon, which eulogized the memory of the man who had always led an
ideal and exemplary life. Rev. Mr. McEwan and Rev. Mr. Hatt also spoke very
feelingly. As a mark of respect and
esteem, the "News-Advertiser" job printing department, of which the
deceased had been the foreman for many years, was closed during the afternoon,
and the employees, both young and old, attended in a body. Mr.C. F. Cotton, the Business Manager of the
"News Advertiser", attended also, and represented his father, the
Hon. F. Carter-Cotton, who was unavoidably absent from the City. The Cymrodorion Society sang several old
Welsh hymns at the chapel and at the graveside, where the services were also
conducted by Rev. Mr. Parker and Rev. Mr. McEwan. Later the Oddfellows, of which the deceased
had been a member of many years' standing, conducted their impressive rites,
and the body was lowered into the grave.
There was magnificent display of floral offerings, which bespoke the
great esteem in which the deceased was held, and the coffin, hearse and four
carriages were filled with emblems, among them being the following.
The pallbearers were all old friends of the
deceased, as follows: Messrs. H. C. Mark, G. Pound (Sr.), E.L. Woodruff, J.
Beatty, W. Lawrence and T. B. Godfrey, the latter of whom represented the
Oddfellows.
In
John’s will he refers to his property at 133 Keefer Street as well as the
property on the corner of Westminster Ave. (Main Street) and 6th
Ave. (N.W. corner).
Also
mentioned in the will were John’s shares in the North Fork Mining Company.
Shares that the family continued to throw good money after bad by paying the
yearly assessment on them. As I delved a
little deeper, I realized the president of the company
was John’s son-in-law, George Hutchings.
John purchased 1100 shares in 1897 and a further 6673 in 1899
NORTH FORK MINING
COMPANY LTD (British
Columbia Gazette 1899)
Notice is hereby given that an extraordinary general
meeting of the shareholders of this Company will be held at the office of G. W.
Hutchings, 416 Westminster Avenue, Vancouver, B.C. on Wednesday the 1st day of
March 1899, at the hour of 8 o’clock in the afternoon, to consider the
re-incorporation of the company, the sale or disposal of the Company’s assets
and such other general business, as may be before the meeting. Dated at
Vancouver, BC 26 January 1899
V.F. Johnstone, Secretary Office in 1901 to 1904
416 Westminster Avenue.
Even
after this meeting to discuss the disposal of the company’s assets it appears
John acquired more shares. My grandfather George Powell continued to pay the
assessment on the shares well into the 1940’s. At the time the accounting
firm handling the consortium of stockholders recommended dissolving the
partnership as so many stockholders had defaulted on their payments to this
firm.
After
the death of her husband, Sarah had a house built at 2820 Spruce St. where she
lived with sons Leck and George.
Building permit for the house on Spruce Street
Sarah
Powell suffered a heart attack while in New York awaiting the birth of her
daughter, Grace's second child, Elizabeth. She was ill for a year and then
passed away in Vancouver. I believe that
through her mother Mary Nobes, Sarah inherited a heart condition that plagued
many of the Oakley and Nobes descendants, heart problems and often sudden death
for both male & female family members – many in there 50’s and 60’s was
quite common. Whatever gene may have caused this problem appears to have
weakened in subsequent generations.
Sarah's will listed her personal belongings and which child was inherit her treasurers.
Sarah's will listed her personal belongings and which child was inherit her treasurers.
Vancouver Daily
World Saturday Oct 6, 1923
POWELL
The
death occurred Friday of Sarah Elizabeth Powell, aged 63 years, widow of the
late John L. Powell. She was born in Ontario and came to Vancouver 35 years
ago. She leaves to mourn her loss, two sons, 2 daughters, 4 brothers and 2
sisters. The funeral will take place Monday to Mountain View Cemetery after a
service at 2pm in the T. Edwards Granville St. Chapel. Rev. A. F. Baker,
assisted by Rev. A. W. McLeod of North Vancouver will officiate.
Buried
in the Mountain View family plot
In
loving memory of Sarah E. Powell
d.
Oct 5, 1923 in her 63rd year
"Underneath
are the everlasting arms"
In
the early 60’s the Mountain View staff made some changes to the cemetery that
angered my grandfather (George Powell) enough that he refused to be buried in
the family plot there. He had paid for curbing and perpetual care for the plot,
but as the cemetery was looking for areas to expand into they used up the
pathways for burial plots. As a result there are markers sandwiched right up
against the Powell monument and the curbing has disappeared.
A
family that grew with a city, almost from its very beginning, the Powell’s
fostered pride and a love of Vancouver that has carried through the
generations.
[1]
The Battle Creek Sanitarium, in Battle Creek, Michigan,
first opened on September 5, 1866 as the Western Health Reform Institute, based on the health principles
advocated by the Seventh-day Adventist Church. In 1876, John Harvey Kellogg became the superintendent, and his brother, W. K. Kellogg, worked as the book keeper. In 1878, a new
structure was built on the site, but it burned down in 1902. The following
year, it was rebuilt, enlarged and renamed The Battle Creek Sanitarium. As
Kellogg put it, they took the word Sanatorium, which back then was defined as
an English term designating a health resort for invalid soldiers. "A
change of two letters transformed 'sanatorium' to 'sanitarium', and a new word
was added to the English language". "The San" and Kellogg were lampooned
in the 1993 novel The Road to Wellville and the 1994 film
adaptation.
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