Version 6.01

02 January 2023

David March © 2014

SIDNEY WALTER JOHNS

Sidney Walter (Sid) Johns was born on 11 May 1877 in Exmouth, Devon, England to Thomas Johns (1840-1893) and Caroline Roberts (1848-1921). Sidney had eight siblings, Rosina (b 1867), Edith (b 1868), Lily (1873-1936), Thomas Richard (1875-1907), Arthur Ernest (1875-1924), Frederick Charles (1879-1936), Alice (1882-1965) and Mary Blanch (1883-1946). Sid’s father was a hotelier and Sidney was already working as a page (bell-boy) by the time he was thirteen.

Sid came to Canada with his uncle James aboard SS ’Sardinian’ from Liverpool to Quebec arriving on 22 October 1892. James brought his wife, Helen Louisa née Knott (1845-1917) and daughter, Beatrice H (b 1181) with him. By 1901, Sid was working as a grocer’s clerk in Carberry, Macdonald, Manitoba. On 26 October 1904, Sid married Edna May Hillman at Thunder Bay, Ontario.

Edna was born on 16 September 1878 in Ottawa, Ontario to Joseph Irvine Hillman (182-1898) and Harriett Grace Quinley (1824-1915). Edna had seven siblings, John Marcus Lee (1855 -1919), Lydia Ann (1857 -1885), George Quinley (1859 -1928), Lewis Alfred (1862 -1913), Harriet Evelina (Hattie) (1864 -1932), Frank (1866 -1943) and Lance Ervine (1869 -1955).

Sid and Edna had one daughter, Olive born on 21 June 1905 in Manitoba.

Sid and Edna arrived in Saskatoon in 1910 and lived at 408 22nd St. Sid first worked for Early Fruit Co as a traveller. The following year, he opened a real estate business, Saskatoon Commission Co and the family were now living at 216 4th Ave S.

In 1912, Sid returned to England travelling on his own aboard SS ’Megantic’ and arriving in Liverpool on 5 October. He sailed back to Canada on SS ‘Cedric’ departing Liverpool on 7 May 1914 and arrived in New York, USA on 16 May. Sid was president of the Saskatoon St John Ambulance branch and was awarded the Order of St John of Jerusalem by King George V for his work.

Sid continued as manager of Saskatoon Commission Co until 1923 when his long running relationship with the Saskatoon Industrial Exhibition began. For twenty years, Sid was the secretary and manager and became known as the face of the exhibition. When he died on 31 October 1943 after a long illness, the Star-Phoenix newspaper gave over its inside page to tributes from “citizens of Saskatoon and district”. Mayor S N MacEachern led the appreciations supported by contributions from J O Hettle, chairman of the racing committee of the Saskatoon Exhibition, Prof. Grant MacEwan, president of the Exhibition, Andrew Leslie, City Commissioner, Robert Thomas, president of the Livestock Board, Robert Shannon, pioneer farmer, Mrs B J Tupman, regent of the municipal chapter of IODE, A M Blue, president of Saskatoon branch of Red Cross Society.See Star-Phoenix 1 November 1943.

In 1942, the people of Dundurn Indian Reserve led by Chief Harry Little Crow had bestowed on Sid tribal brotherhood and the title, Chief Fine Weather. Over a thousand people attended Sid’s funeral at St John’s Cathedral in Saskatoon. A lengthy appreciation was printed in Billboard Magazine on 20 November 1943; you can see the article here.

Edna had died in Saskatoon on 12 August 1937. Both Sid and Edna are buried in Woodlawn Cemetery, Sasktoon.

A tree on Ancestry has been created for this family under the title 3rd Ave Johns Tree.

Sid Johns(1877-1943)
Courtesy of Star-Phoenix