Thomas Howard "Tom" Walsh

Thomas Howard “Tom” “Tommy” Walsh
b- July 29, 1885, Canterbury, York, New Brunswick, BC
d- July 12, 1960, at his Cottage, 2 miles out of Wilson Creek, Sechelt Peninsula, BC, age 74
buried in Kitsumgallum Cemetery beside his wife Grace who died in 1926

Tom as a Young Man

He had gone to Wilson Creek because his health was failing and he thought that this new location would be good for him.
Unfortunately he passed away only a short time after he moved there.

Father- James Walsh,
b- Jan 13, 1857, Milltown, NB, age 34 in 1891
d- Feb 9, 1932, Bangor, Penobscot, Maine, USA
buried Mount Pleasant Catholic Cemetery, Bangor Maine

Mother- Theresa Anne Phillips,
b- Mar 11, 1863 Fredericton, NB, age 28 in 1891
d- Nov 5, 1932 Bangor, Penobscot, Maine, USA
buried Mount Pleasant Catholic Cemetery, Bangor Maine

Grandfather- William Walsh (1833-1892)

Regarding William Walsh: William Walsh appears in the 1861 Census, age 60, living with widowed son Michael and his son James, (Thomas’s father.) It certainly appears that William (c1801-before 1871) might be Thomas’s great grandfather, but the fact that the neither Michael nor James named any of their children William makes me wonder about this. (Given traditional Irish naming patterns, which Michael and then James followed in other respects, the name James Walsh would have been more likely as the name of Michael’s father.) I suspect that William Welsh might just have been a resident of Milltown/St. Stephen at the time and he took in Michael and James after Michael’s wife Margaret died. (There was a William Welsh who had lived in the area since around 1832, which would put him out of the running as Michael’s father, since Michael was born in Ireland.) But I have no evidence of this –it’s just speculation.

Grandparents – Michael Walsh (1833-1892)
Michael arrived from Ireland (probably County Cork) around 1850, a Potato Famine refugee.
I don’t know if he came alone or with family.

Thomas’s grandmother was Margaret Callahan,
born c1837 in NB, died c1859 in NB.
(I believe she died from complications in childbirth
when James’s brother Patrick was born.
Baby Patrick also seems to have died at the same time.)

His maternal grandfather was Uriah Barlow Phillips (c1836-1895)
Uriah’s grandfather, Zophar Phillips, was a United Empire Loyalist
and came to NB from New Jersey at the time of the American Revolution.

His maternal grandmother was Hester Ann Nason (c1846-c1872,)
also a descendant of United Empire Loyalists.

Tom had a brother and sister in Bangor Maine when he died.
siblings listed below

Telegrapher at Dorreen, when he got married, age 30 ??

Actually, according to the 1916 Directory of Northern BC
he was the GTP Station Agent in Terrace when they married.
(I know the marriage record states he was a telegrapher.)
I can’t find him again in a directory until 1920,
when he was still the agent in Terrace, as he was in 1921. I can’t find him in 1922
(and there is a different agent in Terrace (Henry S Creelman),
but in 1923 he was a Telegraph Operator in Doreen/Lorne Creek.

married Grace Freda Sparkes, Aug 9, 1916 at house of the Bride in Terrace
b- Jan 24, 1897, Stanhope, Haliburton, ON
age 20 when she married in 1916
d- July 23, 1926 in Hazelton BC, from TB, age 28
buried in Terrace Kitsumkalum Cemetery

daughter of William Charles Sparkes Jr., Merchant in Terrace
and Rhoda Almina “Minnie” Cowell

Tom and Grace Walsh

Tom and Grace had 3 sons:

Thomas Howard Walsh
b- Jan 17, 1920 in Hazelton BC
d- Feb 22, 1920 in Terrace BC

James “Jim” Howard Walsh
b- Feb 24, 1921
d-Mar 22, 2009 in Kamloops BC
1954 he was Manager of the Local Government Telegraph and Telephone in Terrace
with 510 telephones in town.
168 Local Lines and 6 Long Distance Circuits.
Later he worked for CN Telegraph.
He married Shirley Best,
daughter of William Kidd Best and Florence Beatrice Elizabeth Wootton.
Her brother, Clifford Best (retired Terrace Fire Chief) lived in Terrace.

Jim and Shirley had two children. Linda and Tom.
The family moved to Kamloops in 1972,
where Jim worked for CNCP Telecommunications until his retirement.

Rodger Gordon Walsh
b- Dec 27, 1923 in Hazelton Hospital, Hazelton BC
d- Mar 1, 1983 in Terrace BC, age 59
Served in RCAF in WWII
Rodger also worked in the CN Telegraph office in Terrace.

—- Lived in Bangor Maine before coming to Terrace age 27.
Came to Terrace in 1913.

Tom Walsh was Terrace's First Train Station Agent

Later became Dominion Telegraph Agent in Dorreen
June 1924 he moved his family to Hazelton,
and joined the staff of the Government Telegraph office there.
They returned to Terrace in 1928.

Dec 1931 he was appointed to the Board of Commissioners of the Village of Terrace, completing James Kelso Gordon's Term
He ran again in Jan 1934

Walsh Ave. in Terrace, named after this man.

From my own memory (still to be confirmed) he owned some acreage on Walsh Rd. There were several cabins on the property, which he rented out to earn some additional income. I don’t know when he acquired this property but he was definitely living there in one of the cabins when I was a little girl in the mid to late 1950’s. I remember visiting him there and my parents and I lived in one of the other cabins for a time, which I also remember. Judging by my memories of the place, he may have been there for a number of years by then.

1933 they were gravelling Cory Rd, Sparkes Ave, and Walsh Rd.

In 1938 or early 1939 he was transferred to Wells, BC for a year (you can see him there in the BC Directory.) My dad told me he did his last year of high school in Wells. Of course, after that year he and his boys returned to Terrace.

1891 Tom and his family are in Parish of Canterbury in NB, age 6,

Father James Walsh, shown as Station Agent Canterbury, York Co.
Apr 22, 1895 his dad retired from the CPR

I know this is what the newspaper report says but I think this is just their way of saying that he resigned. This is also when the family moved to Bangor. At the time Bangor was enjoying a boom as a result of railway development in the area and many recruiters came to NB. I think he was recruited and saw more future for himself and his family in Bangor.

Father went to Bangor 37 years before he died.
worked for freight department of Maine Central as a telegrapher for 34 years

Siblings:

Margaret “Maggie” Ann Walsh
b- Mar 11, 1882 in Canterbury NB (age 9 in 1891)
d- Nov 12, 1958, Bangor ME, buried there as well.
Margaret never married.

Hester Theresa Walsh
b-Aug 12, 1883 in Canterbury, NB (age 8 in 1891)
d- Jan 31, 1917, Melrose, ME, buried in Bangor ME

Hester married John Joseph Bell.
They had five children, three girls and two boys.
Hester died during the birth of their youngest child.
The children were then cared for by Hester’s parents,
James and Theresa Walsh in Bangor.
One of their sons, James Frederick Bell,
was a well-known pioneering researcher
in mechanics and medical technology at Johns Hopkins University.
(his obit appeared in the New York Times.)

Thomas S. Walsh
b- ca 1885 in NB (age 25 in 1910 US census)
I don’t think this is a sibling – this is Thomas himself.
For whatever reason, the 1891 census taker wrote an S. for his middle name.

Mary Ann (May) Walsh
b- May 1, 1887 in Canterbury, NB (age 4 in 1891)
d- Jan 2, 1981 in Bangor ME, buried there as well.
lived in Bangor Maine in 1966 and until her death
She was a teacher and never married.

James Michael Walsh
b- Feb 14, 1889, Canterbury, York, NB (age 2 in 1891)
d- Nov 18, 1966, Local Hospital, Bangor, Penobscot, Co., Maine USA, age 77
buried in Bangor ME
Drafted in WWI in Penobscot county no 2, Maine, USA
draft form has his name James Michael Walsh, age 28,
Civil Engineer, City of Bangor Maine,
Lived at 147 Lincoln St.
retired 15 years, building Inspector of the City of Bangor
2 daughters and 3 sons survived him

James Michael Walsh was baptized Michael James Walsh but as an adult changed this to James Michael Walsh.

James Michael Walsh married June O. Graffam and she was the mother of his children,
but they divorced when the children were young, and he raised the children as a single parent.

Uriah John Joseph Walsh
b- Jan 22, 1891 in Canterbury, NB (3 mo in 1891)
d- June 3, 1950 in Brewer ME, buried in Bangor

John Joseph was baptized Uriah John Walsh (hence the “Urich” in the 1891 Census.) The name Uriah was the name of his mother’s father. Obviously he didn’t like this name because he changed it to John Joseph (the same names as sister Hester’s husband.) He married Madeline F. Fraser and they had a daughter and a son.

Joseph Walsh
b- ca 1899 in Maine USA (age 12 in 1910 US census)
d- Bef 1966

This one is a mystery. The only mention of him is in the 1910 Census - He doesn’t appear with the family in the 1900 US Census, when he would have been about 2. No living Walsh relations (including some who have lived all their lives in Bangor and knew most of Thomas’s other siblings) can figure out who he is. I have found no record of his birth, death or burial and no family members in Bangor can remember any mention of him, even though they knew about Thomas despite the fact that he had left Bangor in 1913. It is certainly possible that he was a son who died very young, as the birthdate does fit nicely, but it is also possible that he was a child staying in the house at the time and the census taker assumed he was a Walsh. This is something I need to investigate further. The name Joseph raises some questions since it is the same as Hester’s husband and also this is the name adopted by Uriah John.

Edward Stewart Walsh
b- July 13, 1904 in Maine USA (age 5 in 1910 US census)
d- Apr 13, 1963
buried Mount Pleasant Catholic Cemetery, Bangor Maine
He was married to Cecelia Conway. They had no children.

Many corrections and additions above, and both photos, are courtesy Linda Walsh, Granddaughter of Thomas Walsh, July 10, 2013
Thanks for the Additions Linda!

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