Kenora Great War Project

 

Personal Details
Date of BirthFebruary 7, 1894
Place of BirthKenora, Ontario
CountryCanada
Marital StatusMarried
Next of KinMrs. Anne Vera Barnes, wife, of Ryley, Alberta.
Trade / CallingPublisher
ReligionPresbyterian
Service Details
Regimental Number2684378
Service Record Link to Service Record
BattalionRoyal North West Mounted Police
ForceCanadian Expeditionary Force
BranchCanadian Cavalry
Enlisted / ConscriptedEnlisted
Address at EnlistmentRoyal Northwest Mounted Police Depot, Regina, Saskatchewan
Date of EnlistmentMay 9, 1918
Age at Enlistment24
Theatre of ServiceGreat Britain
Prisoner of WarNo
Survived WarYes
Death Details
Date of DeathFebruary 28, 1978
Age at Death84
Buried AtWhite Rock, British Columbia?

Barnes, Clarence Wesley

Birth date and location: Clarence Wesley Barnes was born in Kenora, Ontario February 7, 1894, the eldest of four children.      

Names of parents and siblings: John Barnes and Emma Ann Bell married in Kenora, District of Rainy River on June 20, 1893. Emma was the daughter of Julia A. Parliament and Albert Bell. Besides Clarence, John and Emma had the following children: Loretta (b Feb. 6, 1896 married 1. E. Goddard, and 2. Humble); Lucy Annabelle(aka Lucy, b. March 20, 1900 m. Tom Mansell); and, John Minto (aka Jack, b. July 27, 1902; m. 1. Margaret Patterson and 2. Ann Wood). The family members were Presbyterian.  

Early life: Clarence  married Anna Vera (Vera Anna) Eastman (b. 1900, Sweden). A record has not been located for the marriage.    In 1916, they had been living in Ryley, Alberta, where Clarence was a Publisher.    Anna appears to have remained there after he enlisted.

War experience: Clarence enlisted in Regina at the North West Royal Canadian Mounted Police Calvary Draft at the Barracks, May 9, 1918. Between April and June, he successfully passed the following courses:    Musketry, Gas, Bombing, and Entrenching. Private Barnes embarked June 3, from Montreal on the  SS Bellephron, arriving in Gravesend,   England, June 21, 1918.    He was taken on strength at Shorncliffe on the same day.    After serving in England for a short time, he was demobilized as the force was reducing following the war. Clarence returned to Canada December 12, of that same year, sailing out of Liverpool. He was discharged February 14, 1919 in Calgary, Alberta.

Life after the war:    In the 1921 Census, Clarence and his small family were living on River Street in the town of Daysland, Alberta, where he was employed as a newspaper Editor. He and Anne had 2 children: Ottolina age 2 and Carl Wesley, age 1. Clarence is a Presbyterian, however, Annie and the children are Lutheran. Their son, Carl, died at the age of 7 in 1927 and is buried in Ryley Cemetery in Alberta.  

In 1933,   Clarence is recorded at a Border Crossing, entering the United States at the Port of Sweet Grass Montana. He is employed as a Salesman. His birth place of Kenora, and approximate birth year of 1894 are given, as well as his last permanent address: St. Regis Hotel, Calgary, Alberta.  

In the 1940 Canada Voters’ List, Mrs. Clarence W. Barnes, housewife, is listed by herself at 9630, 111th Ave., Apartment 11, Edmonton, Alberta. It is unclear if this is Ann.  

On December 14, 1943 at the Border Crossing at Niagara Falls, New York, Clarence is recorded as entering    the US.    His birthplace of Kenora, Ontario, was given and he was living in Edmonton, Alberta at the time.

At some point, he married or began to live with Margaret (Marguerite) Hughes and they resided in White Rock, British Columbia.

Date of death and burial location: At the age of 84, Clarence died on February 28, 1978 in White Rock B.C. His vital statistic record has his first name as Charles; however, all other information with reference to Clarence is correct.    Marguerite Hughes was registered as his spouse.    There were no results when a search for his obituary and his gravesite were carried out.    Further research may lead to additional information.

Prepared by Susan [Hillman] Brazeau – In support of the Kenora Great War Project – honouring all who served, remembering those who died

SOURCES:

Library and Archives Canada: Attestation Papers, Full Service File
MyHeritage (Newspaper search, family tree search)
Family Search (LDS)
1901 Canada Census
1921 Canada census
1933 U.S. Border Crossing
1943 U.S. Border Crossing
British Columbia Archives
Find-A-Grave (unsuccessful)

Border Crossing record

Border Crossing record


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