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Record #3889

Name :: : William Thomas THORNTON (1898 - 1938)
aka : William Thornton THOMAS
Father: : Thomas Henry Thornton
Mother: : Elizabeth Branson-Slater

BMD and other details

Date of Birth: : 10 Nov 1898
Marriage (1): : 10 Apr 1929 Spouse/Notes : Sadie Jane Nixon - Regina, Saskatchewan
Marriage (2): :
Date of Death: : 30 Mar 1938 Notes : Complications during operation

Abode (1) : Place of BirthEngland, Middlesex, London

Abode (2) : Place of Death / BurialCanada, Ontario, Toronto

Sailing Information

Date of Arrival: : 18 Mar 1910
Country: : Canada
Ship: : Tunisian
Placement Family: :

Homes / Agencys

Institution (GB): :
Agency: : Barnardos

NotesHis grandaughter, Fawn Laffin, related (on Pier 21 - Canada's Immigration Museum {website}pier21.ca/research/collections/the-story-collection/online-story-collection/british-home-children/):

William Thomas Thornton Was born November 10, 1898 in St Mary London in Queen Charlotte Hospital Maryleborn Road, London, England. He was the son of Thomas Henry Thornton and Elizabeth Branson-Slater. William was the third child from his parents. His sister and brothers name were: Lillian Ivy ( Lily) Thornton and Thomas Harold Thornton.

William, for reasons unknown, was put out for foster care at three weeks old. He was put in the care of Mrs. Jane Bave of 58 Rusell Street, Battersea while his family lived at 35 Battersea, St. Wandsworth, England.

His mother would visit him often, but the visits stop altogether and the family disappeared with no trace left to find them after 1905.

William was first enrolled in the Battersea Park Road Infants Department on August 24, 1903, by his father. He then enrolled on August 27, 1908 at the Barnardo School for boys as Mrs. Bave could not mind him anymore as he was turning into a street lad.

Finally Barnardo's admitted William on November 2, 1909, but he was sent to her Majesties Hospital from November 3, 1909 until November 13, 1909. After getting out of Her Majesties Hospital William was then sent to a home in Felixtown Suffold, England, and stayed there until December 15, 1909 when he was then Sent to Clapham's Home for boys.

On March 10, 1910 form Liverpool, England William was sent on the S.S. Tunisian to Canada with the Barnardo' s party. They arrived in Canada on March 19, 1910 in Halifax, Nova Scotia.

William was then sent on a train heading for Winnipeg, Manitoba. He was accompanied by a Mr Rogers. They stopped at the Winnipeg Branch Home for boys, arriving there on March 21, 1910.

In 1913 William was sent to QuAppelle Edgelery in Saskatchewan, Canada to work on the farm of Mr. and Mrs. Garourt. He stayed there for only a year then was sent to a Mr. and Mrs. Stickle to work for them from 1914-1916. After that he worked for his last and finally family, that of a Mr Graigs in 1917.

Finally William was a young man and able to go on his own. You see Barnardo' s was not a nice place back in the 1800s and early 1900s. It was like a slave camp for children and not all children where treated well, as there was abuse going on.

William had great achievements in Saskatchewan, Canada. In 1925 he played on the radio for one hour and was in a newspaper article entitled, "CONCERTS ARE EAST FOR FANS WHO LISTEN IN". Rosson's Trio, Edgeley Quartet and Norwegian Will on CKCK Program. There is a section where he is mentioned and his band. It reads, "Sam Swayze Sings." Then under it, is as follows , "With old time numbers, the Edgeley Quartet went on the air for an hour from 8 to 9 pm. The Quartet consisted of Miss L Tate, Piano; N. Goldwin, Violin; Paul Okerstrom mandolin; William Thornton, accordion. The following are items they gave to fans: Jingle Bells, Yankee Doodle, Hinky Dinkey Parley Voo, When the Clouds are Vanished and Skies are Blue, Turkey in the Straw, Nellie Gray; accordion solo, Over the Waves, Red Wing, Golden Slipper, Peek a Boo, Coming threw the Rye, My Wild Irish Rose, St. Patrick's Day, Mellow Moon, Sally, Show Me the Way."

From 1925 - 1926 he played the accordion and drums for dances and was asked to bring others to play with him as well.

William then met a girl by the name of Sadie Jane Nixon and they were married on April 10, 1929 in Regina, Saskatchewan, Canada. They had three children all together, a son that was still born and two daughters, Mabel Pearl born in 1931 and Margaret June Thornton Born in 1935, both girls were born in Regina, Saskatchewan.

The family later moved to Ontario, Canada , and I am sad to say that was William' s final resting place as he died on March 30, 1938 in Toronto, Ontario Canada, do to a complication during an operation.

William didn't like to talk much about his past as he was always being shipped around as a young child, and probably lived an unhappy life as a young child. He was the kind of man that lived for the day, and made his life a happy one. He was a great men and will be sadly missed by those who remember him or knew him.

You can find out more about William Thornton on the Sask Web Page URL:
{website}rootsweb.com/~cansk/surnames/Thornton.html

Edited (from two near identical records dated 2008):15.07.15 alanmack

ContributorsCreated : 2008-07-14 09:50:41 / From original database

Last Updated : 2015-07-15 13:00:25 / alanmack

Family History ResearchersRootsChatters with family connections to William Thomas THORNTON:

Readers Comments

Surnames starting with: A B C D E F G H I J K L M N O P Q R S T U V W X Y Z 53 Entries

ID	Name	DOB	Place of birth	Arrivals & Ships	Dest.	Agency	Family links
26090	THOMAS, A E	1894	ENG,	Mar 1903 : Canada	CAN	Barnardos
24669	THOMAS, Algernon	1895		Jun 1906 : Dominion	CAN	Barnardos
10553	THOMAS, Allen	1916	ENG, , Charlton Kings	Oct 1927 : Montclare	CAN	Barnardos
21707	THOMAS, Bernard	1886	ENG,	May 1895 : Labrador	CAN	Fegan Homes for Boys
14562	THOMAS, Bernice	1907	ENG,	Mar 1920 : Sicilian	CAN	Barnardos
11122	THOMAS, Charles	1895	ENG,	May 1907 : Empress of Britain	CAN	Fegan Homes for Boys
22700	THOMAS, Charles	1889	ENG,	May 1905 : Southwark	CAN	Fegan Homes for Boys
14345	THOMAS, David	1888	ENG,	Jul 1901 : Numidian	CAN	Barnardos
26415	THOMAS, Dorothy	1920		Jul 1931 : Oronsay	AUS	Fairbridge Homes
4286	THOMAS, Eleanor	1888	ENG,	Jul 1902 : New England	CAN	Barnardos
8958	THOMAS, Enoch	1885	ENG,	Jul 1902 : New England	CAN	Barnardos
22970	THOMAS, Ernest	1890	ENG,	May 1906 : Empress of Britain	CAN	Fegan Homes for Boys
8174	THOMAS, Ernest P	1913	ENG, , Cambridge	Sep 1928 : Antonia	CAN	National Childrens Home
21806	THOMAS, Ernest William	1897	ENG,	Aug 1906 : Dominion	CAN	Barnardos
13236	THOMAS, Florence	1882	ENG,	Sep 1895 : Sardinian	CAN	Barnardos
8957	THOMAS, Florence Elizabeth	1888	ENG, KEN, Sheppey	1903 : - Unknown -	CAN	Unknown
16559	THOMAS, Frank	1885	ENG,	Sep 1901 : Tunisian	CAN	Barnardos
16560	THOMAS, Frank	1892	ENG,	Sep 1905 : Bavarian	CAN	MacPherson Homes
6202	THOMAS, Frederick	1892	ENG,	Jul 1905 : Lake Champlain	CAN	Bristol Emigration Society
2818	THOMAS, George	1869	ENG,	Apr 1885 : Sardinian	CAN	Bristol Emigration Society
27879	THOMAS, George Henry	1877	ENG, WAR, Birmingham	Jun 1891 : Parisian	CAN	Middlemore
11590	THOMAS, George Llewellyn	1909	WAL, GLA, Cardiff	Jun 1920 : Scotian	CAN	Barnardos	Woodsblack
8013	THOMAS, Hanna	1852	ENG,	Jun 1869 : Austrian	CAN	Maria Rye
3418	THOMAS, Henry	1900	ENG,	Oct 1910 : Sicilian	CAN	Barnardos
16166	THOMAS, Henry	1879	ENG,	Jul 1893 : Sardinian	CAN	Catholic Protection Society
21736	THOMAS, Herbert	1884	ENG,	May 1895 : Labrador	CAN	Fegan Homes for Boys
16993	THOMAS, Isaac James Frances Ballin	1901	ENG, LND	Aug 1910 : Tunisian	CAN	Barnardos
18206	THOMAS, James	1874	ENG,	Jun 1889 : Circassian	CAN	Waifs & Strays
8959	THOMAS, James Edgar	1896	ENG, KEN, Sheppey	1903 : - Unknown -	CAN	Unknown
14927	THOMAS, John	1886	ENG,	Aug 1898 : Laurentian	CAN	Southwark Catholic Emigration Society
18872	THOMAS, John	1887	ENG,	Sep 1899 : Arawa	CAN	Barnardos
23841	THOMAS, John	1909	ENG,	May 1924 : Doric	CAN	Waifs & Strays
26899	THOMAS, John	1903	WAL,	Jul 1913 : Belgic	AUS	Fairbridge Homes
7143	THOMAS, Joseph W.	1861	ENG,	Aug 1871 : Prussian	CAN	MacPherson Homes
21900	THOMAS, Leslie John	1901	ENG, ESS, Barking	Sep 1915 : Sicilian	CAN	Barnardos
24532	THOMAS, Lizzie	1891		Jun 1906 : Dominion	CAN	Barnardos
22279	THOMAS, Percy	1888	ENG,	May 1903 : Kensington	CAN	Fegan Homes for Boys
19358	THOMAS, Rainey	1906	ENG,	Sep 1912 : Sicilian	CAN	Barnardos
21901	THOMAS, Reginald Stanley	1907	ENG, , Wimbledon	Sep 1915 : Sicilian	CAN	Barnardos
9887	THOMAS, Richard	1888	ENG,	Apr 1902 : Dominion	CAN	Barnardos
14543	THOMAS, Rowena	1910	ENG,	Oct 1927 : Montclare	CAN	Crusade of Rescue
22041	THOMAS, S.	1884	ENG,	Apr 1897 : Labrador	CAN	Barnardos
18893	THOMAS, Samuel	1889	ENG,	Sep 1899 : Arawa	CAN	Barnardos
24593	THOMAS, Samuel	1896		Jun 1906 : Dominion	CAN	Barnardos
9548	THOMAS, Sidney	1889	ENG,	Mar 1903 : Canada	CAN	Barnardos
11112	THOMAS, Sydney	1896	ENG,	May 1907 : Empress of Britain	CAN	Fegan Homes for Boys
3602	THOMAS, Walter Robert	1899	ENG, MDX, Fulham, London	Mar 1908 : Dominion	CAN	Barnardos
6205	THOMAS, William	1897	ENG,	Jul 1905 : Lake Champlain	CAN	Bristol Emigration Society
23134	THOMAS, William J.	1897	ENG,	Apr 1912 : Empress of Ireland	CAN	Fegan Homes for Boys
25033	THOMAS, William S.	1896		Mar 1910 : Tunisian	CAN	Barnardos
4788	THOMAS, Winifred		ENG, WAR, Birmingham	May 1925 : Montclare	CAN	Catholic Emigration Association
8063	THOMAS, Winifred	1854	ENG,	Jun 1869 : Austrian	CAN	Maria Rye
3889	THORNTON, William Thomas	1898	ENG, MDX, London	Mar 1910 : Tunisian	CAN	Barnardos
ID	Name	DOB	Place of birth	Arrivals & Ships	Dest.	Agency	Family links

Surnames starting with: A B C D E F G H I J K L M N O P Q R S T U V W X Y Z 53 Entries

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