Kenora Great War Project

 

Personal Details
Date of BirthMarch 22, 1894
Place of BirthLowell, Massachusetts
CountryUnited States of America
Marital StatusSingle
Next of KinCharles P Kelpin, father, Stony Mountain, Manitoba
Trade / CallingAccountant
ReligionRoman Catholic
Service Details
Regimental Number2147423
Service Record Link to Service Record
Battalion34th Fort Garry Horse
ForceCanadian Expeditionary Force
BranchCanadian Cavalry
Enlisted / ConscriptedEnlisted
Address at Enlistment11 Devon Court, Winnipeg, Manitoba
Date of EnlistmentApril 27, 1916
Age at Enlistment22
Theatre of ServiceCanada
Prisoner of WarNo
Survived WarYes
Death Details
Date of DeathAugust 30, 1969
Age at Death75
Buried AtSt James Cemetery, Winnipeg, Manitoba

Kelpin, Paul Brault

Paul Brault Kelpin was born on 22 March 1894 in Lowell, Massachusetts, USA. His father Charles Patrick Kelpin was from Ste Anne de Stukely, Quebec while his mother Marie Louise Brault was from Woonsocket, Rhode Island. The couple married on 12 June 1893 in Lowell where Charles was working as a furniture dealer. A second son, Charles Arthur was born in 1896 in Lowell. By the time of son Louis Henry’s birth in 1898, the family had relocated to Rat Portage (later renamed Kenora) in northwestern Ontario. The family was eventually to settle in Stony Mountain, Manitoba where Charles became the superintendent of the quarry. At one point he was also the general manager of the city of Winnipeg’s water works construction (1916). Children born in Manitoba were Marguerite Mary (1900-1980), John Edward (1902-1994), William Alfred (1904-1904), Norah Louise (1906-1987), Olive Albina (1908-1987), Albert Joseph (1910-2001), and Mona Victoria (1913-2010).

Paul was living in Winnipeg and working as an accountant when he signed his attestation papers with the 34th Fort Garry Horse on 27 April 1916. He gave his father Charles in Stony Mountain as next of in. He was to train as a trooper with the 34th FGH Service Squadron until 22 October 1917 when he was found medically unfit and discharged from service, chronic back pain causing him to be hospitalized at Camp Hughes as well as at St Boniface during training. Paul also had a heart murmur and a degree of rheumatism.

Paul’s brother Charles went overseas with the 196th Battalion and served in France/Belgium with the 1st Canadian Motor Machine Gun Brigade, awarded the Military Medal in May of 1918. His brother Louis went overseas with a draft to the 34th Fort Garry Horse in July of 1918, serving in Great Britain with the Canadian Reserve Cavalry Regiment.

On 21 October 1922, in Winnipeg, Paul married Vera O’Dell Wright. Born in 1901 in Assiniboia, Manitoba, Vera was the daughter of Robert John Wright and Mary Emily Else who had married in 1893 in Winnipeg. Over the years Paul was to work in the building industry in Winnipeg, sales manager of Building Products and Concrete Supply at the time of his death. The couple gave birth to three children, Charles Robert, Paul, and Joyce Gail. Paul was a member of many clubs and organizations including the St Boniface Kiwanis Club, Winnipeg Horsemans Club, the Red River Exhibition, the Pan American Games, and the Humane Society, serving in positions of responsibility.

Paul died on 30 August 1969 in the Winnipeg General Hospital. He was predeceased by his infant brother William (1904), his father Charles (1954) and mother Marie (1960), both in Victoria, British Columbia, brother Charles (1957) and his son Charles (1964). At the time of his death he was survived by his wife Vera, son Paul of John D’or Prairie, Alberta and daughter Joyce (Lorne) Chapman of Akron, Ohio. He was also survived by six grandchildren, and his brothers Louis, John and Albert and sisters Marguerite Doyle, Norah Fatt, Olive Lacroix, and Mona Russell. Vera died on 25 February 1983 in Akron, Ohio where her daughter Joyce Chapman was living. Paul and Vera are interred in the St James Anglican Cemetery in Winnipeg.

By Judy Stockham

Gravemarker photo courtesy of Jim Hicks, findagrave.com.


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