Version 6.01

11 February 2025

David March © 2014

MARY JANE (MARIE) SAWYER

Mary Jane (Marie) Sawyer was born on 19 July 1873 in Orilla, Simcoe, Ontario to Henry John Sawyer (1843-1875) and Mary Stocker (1845-1928). Her siblings were: Ellen (1870-1929), Henry (1870-1939) and Thomas George (1875-1963). She also had five half siblings from her mother's marriage to Richard Mears (b 1850): Susan Jane (b 1878), Rosa (b 1880), Emily May (b 1884), Ida (b 1887) and Violet Eva (b 1891). In 1881 the blended Mears/Sawyer family was living in Monck, Muskoka, Ontario. By 1891 they were in East York Township, York, Ontario.

By 1911 Mary and her sister Rosa Mears had moved to Saskatoon, Saskatchewan and Miss M J Sawyer appeared on the roll for 3rd Ave Methodist Church. In 1916 Mary/Marie was enumerated at two different addresses: 538 Spadina Crescent with the Pinchcreek family where she was enumerated as Marie, and 216 5th Ave N where she was listed at Mary boarding with her sister Susan Stepney and her husband, William E. She was also listed in the 1918 Saskatoon Henderson Directory. Over the years that she lived in Saskatoon, she was employed as a nurse with the Public School Board.

Mary/Marie married William Henry Boswell Belcher on 3 October 1918 in Windsor, Ontario. On the marriage registration, he gave his address as Prince Albert, Saskatchewan and she gave hers as Windsor, Ontario. William was born on 20 August 1883 in London, Ontario to Boswell Belcher and Mary Anne Martin. William Henry Belcher filed a homestead claim on NE-22-48-3-W3 in Rozilee (now Shellbrook) RM, but he never received title to it. In 1916, he was living on that land.

In 1921 the Belchers were living in Windsor, Ontario. William died in London, Ontario in 1957 and Mary in Willowdale, Ontario in 1963.

Census records created when Mary was living at home supported the 1873 birth year, but those created after she moved to Saskatoon ranged from 1878 to 1883. Her marriage record supported a birth year of 1878. Because of the people she was living with in Saskatoon and the names of parents given on birth and marriage records, we are quite certain that all of these records were for the same woman, but it is odd that the age given on records varied so much over the years.

This family tree can be found on Ancestry under the title 3rd Ave Sawyer Tree.