Version 6.01

02 January 2023

David March © 2014

LAWRENCE ELDRED (LORNE) KIRK and FLORA KIRK née STRACHAN

Lawrence Eldred (Lorne) Kirk was born on 27 May 1886 in Bracebridge, Macauley, Victoria, Ontario to David Kirk (1855-1939) and Elizabeth Speer (1857-1941). His siblings were: Myrtle Edna (b 1889) and Melvin "Medford" (b 1894). In 1891 the Kirk family was living in Toronto, Ontario and in 1901, Argyle, Manitoba.

Lorne Kirk came west to Saskatoon 59 years before his death which would mean he was in Saskatoon in 1910 (This is based on his obituary). Lorne first appeared in Saskatoon Henderson Directories in 1916. He was a student assistant in field husbandry at the University of Saskatchewan and was living at 635 University Drive. At the time of the 1916 census, he was married to Flora Strachan, so it is likely they were married circa 1916. Flora was born on 20 April 1887 in Brussels, Huron, Ontario to Dugald Strachan (1858-1933) and Annie Hislop (1862-1892). Her siblings were: Jenny (1885-1969) and Margaret Syrea (Maggie) (b 1889). All of her siblings were born in Brussels where their father was a merchant. The family was living in Saskatchewan at the time of the 1891 census. Her mother died on 11 May 1892 and was buried in West Carlyle Cemetery, Carlyle, Saskatchewan. Her father received a homestead grant on SW-34-08-04-W2 in the RM of Brock on 21 March 1900 and the family was enumerated in Clare, Saskatchewan in 1901 and Arcola, Saskatchewan in 1906.

By 1911 Dugald was living with his daughter, Jenny Caskey and it would appear that he lived with various daughters for the rest of his life as he was enumerated with the Kirks in 1921 and died in the same Vancouver, British Columbia residence as his daughter, Maggie, on 9 April 1933.

Flora and Lorne had two sons: David Lawrence (1920-2003) and Donald William (1923-2011). The Kirk family was living at 621 McPherson Ave in Saskatoon in 1921 and Lorne and Flora were still living there in 1969. The following information is taken from Lorne's obituary.

He received his Bachelor of Arts and a Master of Science in Agriculture from the University of Saskatchewan and a doctorate in plant breeding and plant physiology form the University of Minnesota. He served as professor of field husbandry at the U of S from 1917 to 1931 when he was appointed Dominion Agrostologist at Ottawa, Ontario. He returned to Saskatoon as Dean of Agriculture in 1937. In 1947 he was chosen to head the plant production division of the United Nations Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO) and in 1955 he accepted a temporary posting in India with the FAO to conduct a plant breeding school. Dr Kirk was conferred with an honorary Doctor of Laws from the University of Saskatchewan in 1949 and in 1968 he received the Order of Canada Service Medal. He was a member of the University Board of Governors for six years and served as Board chairman 1964-65. He was a fellow of the Royal Society of Canada, the American Association for the Advancement of Science and the Agriculture Institute of Canada. He was a past president of the American Society of Agronomy, the Canadian Society of Technical Agriculturists and the Western Canadian Society of Agronomy.

Star Phoenix 1 Dec 1969, page 20

See also Saskatchewan Archival Information Network.

Lorne died on 27 November 1969 in Saskatoon and Flora on 13 November 1976 in Ottawa. They were both buried in Woodlawn Cemetery in Saskatoon.

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

Lawrence Eldred (Lorne) Kirk