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JOHN HUGH LAUGHTON (1859 - 1933)
The records show that John Hugh Laughton was a commercial traveller (Canada
Box Company Ltd., of Montreal PQ) and
promoter of educational endeavours, as well as being Vice Supreme Ranger of the
Independent Order of Foresters. John Hugh Laughton was born in Niagara-on-the-Lake and later
lived in Walkerton, St. Mary's, Thedford and finally Parkhill. There
is a problem with the next generation of John Laughton's as we have records of
one dying in 1881 (see funeral card) and another in 1898 (see tombstone). This
is also recorded in the notes from Uncle Paul (see below). It may be an error on
the tombstone.
Please also see the new entry "The
Boys of Parkhill" that profiles the surviving sons of John Hugh and
Louise Estelle Laughton. This was written in March 2009 for the Middlesex
County 150th Anniversary.
In February 2009, access to the new 1891
Canadian Census provided information on the John Hugh Laughton 1859 Family
at the time it resided in Parkhill, Ontario, having moved there from Walkerton.
Here is a snapshot of that information. See also the Laughton
Document Listing on this web site. You will note that some of the children
that died early in life (Paul) are listed here and others had yet to be born
(George, Edna, Bessie). Edna and Bessie also died early in childhood. This
is also noted on the historic
tombstone photographs shown for the Parkhill Cemetery.
John Hugh Laughton 1859 Family in Parkhill, Ontario.
The newspaper death notice from John Hugh Laughton says
that he died at his home at 54 St. George Street in his 75th year (see below).
This would have been in London, Ontario. The Obituary of John Hugh Laughton can
be found at the end of this page.
The LDS Ontario Deaths 1869-1947 reports that John's
first wife Louise Estelle Laughton (nee Van Wyck) died on October 25,
1912 in Parkhill, Middlesex County, Ontario at the age of 52 years 9
months.. There is a question as to whether she was buried in Walkerton or
Parkhill and this report (although there are no original documents included)
suggests that Parkhill was the likely burial location. This report on
Louise also notes that she was born on January 7, 1860 to John Van Wyck and
Elizabeth McNeil in Charleston, Ontario.
A young John Hugh Laughton
Photo courtesy of Ivan Laughton
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John Hugh Laughton was apparently the first Laughton in our chain that was
born in North America.
It appears that it was in this generation that there was also a
geographic split in the Laughton clan. John Hugh Laughton (and his uncle
Jerome Laughton) stayed in
Walkerton but a number of his generation moved to the United States.
Julia and Margaret moved to Niagara Falls, N.Y.; Edward moved to
Manheim?, Pennsylvania and brother William
Severn moved to Detroit, Michigan. The son of William Severn
(William A) apparently worked in Ocala, Florida and his son David
Michael Laughton (and wife Lindy - see photos 1
and 2) reside in Plano, Texas (June
2008).
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John Hugh Laughton's
"Lacrosse Club" membership for 1881.
John Hugh would have been 22 years old at the time this card was
issued.
The original card is in the Paul Laughton Collection. |
John Hugh Laughton
(son George Van Wyck in the window - caption on original photo says
"sew that button on good George!) |
The records suggest that John Hugh Laughton resided in
Niagara-on-the-Lake, Ontario, prior to moving to Walkerton, Ontario. He
must have met and married Louise Estelle Van Wyck in the Walkerton area
and then moved to Parkhill. After the death of Louise he also lived in
London and re-married to Katie May Campbell.
The
original family tree diagram from Paul Laughton shows that daughters
Julia and Jean are buried with their parents (that would be John and
Louise) on the Canadian side of the border, 1/2 mile from the USA-Canada
border.
Note: Details on this issue were found in the summer
of 2008 at the Riverview Cemetery in Niagara Falls and through the
submissions from Lindy Ryan Laughton and John Ivan Laughton in the fall
of 2008. Those family pages have been updated with that new information.
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Louise Estelle Laughton (nee Van
Wyck)
(first wife of John Hugh Laughton) |
Louise Estelle Van Wyck was born in
Charleston, Ontario on January 7, 1860. John and Louise were married in Walkerton, Ontario
on September 15, 1880. Louise died of "dropsy"
on October 25, 1912. John apparently
remarried, to some disgust of the rest of the family, details are
sketchy but are noted in Paul's history
documents.
Louise Estelle Van Wyck is the source of the middle name "Van
Wyck" that went to each of the children of John Hugh and Louise
Estelle. A picture of her parents follows on this same page. As a
result of a trip to the Walkerton Cemetery in June 2009 additional
detail was found on the Van Wyck name and links, leading to a
significant update of those pages. Louise's parents were identified as
John Van Wyck and Elizabeth Mcneil.
I was told by my parents, as a youngster, that the "Van
Wyck" name was given to the oldest son in each line. It appears
that the trend happened only twice, once when my father was named
Charles Van Wyck Laughton and the second when I was named Richard Van
Wyck Laughton. Olga and I had four daughters, thus the name was not
passed on.
Some time later I found that my cousin David Graham
Laughton passed on the Van Wyck name to his daughter Sarah Van
Wyck Laughton. As such, the duplicate prints of the Van Wyck pictures
shown below were sent to Sara.
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This is the original wedding certificate of John Hugh Laughton and
Louise Estelle Van Wyck, handwritten and dated September 15, 1880.
The red underline I suspect is from Paul Laughton who is questioning
the Miss Mary Laughton that appeared as a witness at the wedding. John
Hugh Laughton did have a sister Mary Ann Laughton - a possibility? |
Master Picture of John Hugh
Laughton
and unmarked photo above.
(Click on photos to see full scale
images) |
The master photo of John Hugh
was ripped from an album and above that is another picture which is not
identified. Is it possible that these are photographs of some of
the brothers and sisters of John Hugh Laughton?
Do you know who these people are? Do you
recognize anyone or any resemblance in these photos? |
I have extracted a paragraph from the letter of Uncle Paul (Paul MacDonell
Laughton) that was written on April 6, 2004, as it provides some details on the
family during this era. Other paragraphs have also been extracted and
inserted into the pages of the individuals. A complete copy of the letter
is provided in PDF format on the Genealogy
Page. Here is what Paul wrote:
"As a general comment, the bits &
pieces I have assembled are loaded with inconsistencies & contradictions.
George Van Wyck's siblings are a case in point. I have all sorts of paper
trails, the family tombstone in Walkerton, & several funeral cards. Fred,
Harry, St. Clair [known as Clair] & Louise [known as "Tot" for
reasons no one seemed to remember] Van Wyck you all know. The others were: two
John's, both dying in infancy, one 2 Oct 1881 at 1 month & 15 days, the
other in 1898; I also have a note of another dying at 6, but no other trace!
Paul, the one who drowned at Grand Bend off the pier (other records say St.
Mary's), was 1887 to 1 July 1899,
age 12; Edna, who died of scarlet fever, was 1894 to 1894 according to the
tombstone, "died April 24, 1894, aged 2 years" according to her
funeral card; Bessie was 7 Nov 1898 to 26 Dec 1905, so GVL (George Van Wyck
Laughton) knew her well."
Since the birth of Fred Van Wyck Laughton in 1882, the
name middle name Van Wyck has been carried forward, first to all the
siblings and later to the eldest son. I must confess that after the birth
of four beautiful daughters, I have ended the tradition, as there are no sons
that carry the Van Wyck name. It would appear to me that the name comes
from John Hugh Laughton's wife Louise Estelle Van Wyck, as each of their
siblings carried the Van Wyck name.
Some time ago, I was given two
large portraits, measuring some 21" x 18" that were the origin of my
middle name (Van Wyck). Some time later I found miniatures of these photos in the files of my
father Charles
Van Wyck Laughton, who was the grandson of John Hugh Laughton and Louise
Estelle Van Wyck. From these notes I was now able to confirm that these
were in fact the parents of Louise Estelle Laughton (nee Van Wyck) who married
John Hugh Laughton. On the back of the pictures, clearly in my father's
printing it was stated:
Great Grandfather Van Wyck, father of Louise Laughton
(grandmother) - the reference being to the grandmother of Charles Van Wyck
Laughton.
Great Grandmother Van Wyck, mother of Louise Laughton.
The LDS
Family Search Project states that the father of Louise Estelle was John
Van Wyck and the mother was Elizabeth McNeil. The report (LDS
link) notes that Louise died in Parkhill and that she was 52 years and 9
months old at the time of her death. This information was confirmed as a result
of the June 2009 site visit to the Walkerton
Public Cemetery where it was clearly shown that it was "Eliza Van Wyck
(nee Elizabeth McNeil) that was buried at that location.
Great Grandfather Van Wyck
father of Louise Estelle Laughton
John Van Wyck, German (Dutch?)
Born circa 1833 in Ontario
Liquor Dealer |
Great Grandmother Van Wyck
mother of Louise Estelle Laughton
Elizabeth McNeil, Irish
Born circa 1834 in Ontario
Died June 26, 1882
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Records of John Hugh Laughton showed that he operated or worked at the "Alex'r
Beattie & Co." company in Parkhill which is noted on the original
bill of sale that we have as "dry goods, groceries, crockery,
boots and shoes". Subsequent records reported that this company
became known as "Laughton's Grocery" and that it was owned by John
Hugh Laughton. The two sides of the bill of sale are noted in as
follows:
My recollection is that "Great Uncle Fred" (Frederick Van Wyck
Laughton) was also in that business, prior to serving as a Member of the
Legislative Assembly (MLA) for the Government of Ontario. We know that
prior to serving as an MLA that Fred was the Clerk of the Town of Parkhill, as
we have the Certificate of Appreciation issued to his brother George Van
Wyck Laughton for his service in the First World War. You can see a copy
of the certificate on the web page dedicated to Frederick
Van Wyck Laughton.
We have also come to learn that John Hugh Laughton also acted in the capacity
as Clerk of the Town of Parkhill from 1903 to 1914. Fred was the Clerk of
the Town of Parkhill from 1915 to 1943, so he apparently took over the position
from John Hugh. Together they served for 40 straight years as Town Clerk.
We have come across a picture of the surviving sons of John
Hugh Laughton:
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John Hugh sons:
(left to right)
St. Clair Van Wyck
George Van Wyck
Fred Van Wyck
Harry Van Wyck
Son of George Van Wyck, Charles
Van Wyck (my father) is in front of Clair. |
All of the children of John Hugh Laughton and Louise Estelle Van Wyck are
noted as follows:
 | John Van Wyck Laughton Aug 17, 1881 St. Mary's, Ontario
(died Oct. 2, 1881 at 1 month 15
days - buried
in St. Mary's - record not located) |
| Fred Van Wyck Laughton Nov. 1, 1882, Thedford, Ontario |
| Harry Van Wyck Laughton Sept. 20, 1884, Parkhill, Ontario |
| St. Clair Van Wyck Laughton April 30, 1886 Parkhill |
| Paul Van Wyck Laughton Oct. 17, 1887 Parkhill |
| Louise Van Wyck Laughton Sept 24, 1892 Parkhill |
| Edna Van Wyck Laughton April 22, 1894 Parkhill,
(died April 24, 1894 buried in
Parkhill) |
| George Van Wyck Laughton May 10, 1897 |
| Bessie Van Wyck Laughton November 7, 1898 |
| Other John Laughton's (see above note from Paul Laughton regarding
other John Laughton sons, one who died in infancy in 1898 (also on tombstone
- or is that an error?), however only one
"John" is shown on the chart - and perhaps another who also
died in infancy - a John appears to be the one who died in 1881 - see
funeral card). Was the 1st John Laughton really buried
in St. Mary's and the 2nd one in Parkhill? The LDS Family Search project
says John Van Wyck Laughton died in South Marysburgh in Prince Edward
County, Ontario on October 2, 1881 at the age of 1 month 15 days.
Could South Marysburgh be what was meant by St. Mary's, or did the LDS team
misinterpret the death registry? See also note below re records in family
bible. |
Additional information was obtained from the old
family bible of Louise Van Wyck Laughton ("Aunty Tot").
For example, the family bible is reported to have contained:
| Original marriage certificate of Louise Estelle Van Wyck to John Hugh
Laughton, Walkerton, September 15, 1880 (that may differ from the
handwritten version provided above) |
| Birth notices for:
Louise Estelle Van Wyck 1860 Charleston
John Hugh Laughton, 1854, Niagara on the Lake (conflicts
with chart?) |
| Children:
 | John Van Wyck Laughton Aug 17, 1881 St. Mary's, (died Oct. 2,1887 buried
in St. Mary's)
My Note: that appears to
highlight that there was only one (1) John Van Wyck Laughton as the LDS
Record of the Ontario Deaths 1869 - 1947 has the date of October 2,
1881. There is little chance that both the John Laughton sons died
on the same day 6 years apart. However that does not explain the date on
the grave stone of 1896-1898! |
| Fred Van Wyck Laughton Nov. 1, 1882 Thedford |
| Harry Van Wyck Laughton Sept. 20, 1884, Parkhill |
| St. Clair Van Wyck Laughton April 30, 1886 Parkhill |
| Paul Van Wyck Laughton Oct. 17, 1887 Parkhill |
| Louise Van Wyck Laughton Sept 24, 1892 Parkhill |
| Edna Van Wyck Laughton April 22, 1894 Parkhill, (died April 24, 1894 buried in
Parkhill) |
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| Fred, Harry, St. Clair, Paul and Louise were christened May 28, 1895 at
home.
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In the death notice of John Hugh Laughton (see Lindy's Family Group Sheet)
there is a reference to "Jack" being at home at the time of the
death. That was a mystery until I realized that had to be John Campbell
Laughton, the son to John Hugh Laughton after he married Kate May Campbell,
as his first wife had died earlier.
John Hugh Laughton from London, Ontario (where he resided
when he remarried) reportedly attended the 1928 Parkhill
Reunion, as did a Mr. & Mrs. C. V. Laughton from Detroit, Michigan (that
would be Clair Van Wyck Laughton and his wife Eva Laughton). My Great Uncle Clair
Van Wyck Laughton had moved to Detroit and was married to Eva Wickert.
During my review of the Toronto Star historical web site to find the articles
on George Van Wyck Laughton (son of John Hughes), I was surprised to also find
articles or notices mentioning John Hughes Laughton. It seems to make the
history seem not so far away when you read it in the local paper. Here is
what we have found to date:
| Toronto
Star - March 29, 1929: John Hughes Laughton, who I had been told
was a key participant in the Lodge, is reported as the Chancellor Commander
of the Knights of Pythias, Toronto Lodge 50 who presided over annual dance
and reunion.
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| Toronto
Star - June 13, 1929: Obviously the Lodge is a big issue for John
Hughes Laughton, as this article reports on the concerns that the Lodge is
weakening the Church, as 500 attended the meeting of the Independent Order
of Foresters. JHL is noted in the last paragraph of this article.
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The obituary of John Hugh Laughton was reported in the papers on the day of his
death, November 22, 1933. For interest sake, we have also posted his Life
Insurance Policy from when he was 22 years old. The original document is in the
Paul Laughton Collection.
As always, click on the image to see it in a larger scale.
Letters attesting to the character of John Hugh Laughton, after his sermon in
October 1927 are available here in the documents section of the Family Tree
Website:
John Hugh Laughton & Katie May Campbell
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the death of Louise Estelle Laughton, John Hugh remarried Katie May
Campbell (1885 - 1925) and apparently caused great problems in the
family, particularly with his daughter Louise Van Wyck Laughton ("Tot"),
as recorded in the family history documents
of Paul Laughton. Tot felt that insufficient time had passed since the
death of her mother.
Katie May Campbell apparently had
two sons with John Hugh Laughton. Katie is buried in the Mount
Pleasant Cemetery in London, Ontario. Malcolm Campbell Laughton died
at 1 day old on June 29, 1916.
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date there are only limited details on the other son, John
"Jack" Campbell Laughton, other than we know that he did not
marry. There was a note in the files that Jack at one time lived at 215
Ten Eycle (?) Street, Waterton, New York 13601. We also know from a news
clipping in the files that Jack lived in London Ontario and worked for
the Ontario Department of Highways. He was 36 years old at that time but
there is no date on the news
clipping.
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The following appeared in the Obituary for John Hugh
Laughton:
JOHN HUGH LAUGHTON, eldest son of JOHN & KATHLEEN, one of Canada's most prominent commercial travelers died in his 75th year after a lengthy illness. His numerous
and varied interests, in which he had played a leading part, made him a well know figure in Western Ontario and throughout the province. This was especially true of his activities in educational matters.
There were few Western Ontario platforms upon which he' had not appeared, at some time during his career, as speaker, or chairman, and he was highly regarded as a public speaker.
For 28 years he was a commercial traveler, connected with the Canada Bag Company, Limited of Montreal. Holding membership with the Ontario Commercial Travelers' Association, he had risen in that Association until he was elected as its president.
In educational matters he was keenly interested and his activities in that regard brought him a few years ago, prior to his death, the posts of chairman of the Educational Council and chairman of the Trustees' of the Ontario Educational Association. He was the Immediate past Vice-Supreme ranger of the Independent Order of Foresters. For years he was a staunch supporter' of the P.C. party and several times he was asked to stand as a candidate, but always declined.
He was a resident of Parkhill for almost 30 years prior to coming to London, (just before
WWI) where he conducted a grocery business, but he became well known in public affairs. He was for many years the municipal clerk at
Parkhill and his educational interests commenced in that town, where he served as chairman of the public school board. Recently he had interested himself in the junior farmer organizations of the county and was honorary president of the Middlesex association. While in London he was a member of St. Andrew's Church and was a member of the Christian Commercial Traveler's Association of America, (The
Gideon's) A Bible in every Guest-Room.
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