Smith Ancestry – 3rd Generation: The Story of John Caleb Smith (1852-1940) and Deborah Emmeline Boutilier (1859-1940) – Part 2

About Deborah Emmeline Boutilier (1859-1940)

Deborah Emmeline Boutilier was born on July 7, 1859, in Halifax, Nova Scotia. Her father, Isaac Joseph Boutilier (1831-1918), was 27 and her mother, Louisa Margaret Eisenhauer (1832-1920), was 27. On November 20, 1859, she was baptized at St. Paul’s Anglican Church, French Village, Halifax. As the family tree shows, she was the second oldest of 6 children – 5 girls and 1 boy.

Emmeline Boutilier Family Tree

Emmeline married John Caleb Smith in her hometown, Tantallon, Halifax, Nova Scotia, on October 27, 1881. He was 29 years old and she was 22 years old. They had 8 children in 25 years – 6 boys and 2 girls. The records indicate that all 6 boys enlisted and served in World War 1 (see Smith Ancestry – Remembering the Battle of Vimy Ridge) but only 5 returned!

Emmeline Boutilier at home c1922

Emmeline Boutilier with grandchildren c1922

Deborah Emmeline Boutilier died on May 1, 1940, in Halifax, Nova Scotia, at the age of 80, and was buried at St. Margaret’s Anglican Cemetery, Tantallon, Halifax. The Nova Scotia Death Certificate (#26) indicates that she passed away of an intestinal obstruction (probably carcinoma) at the age of 80 years. Her son Ernest M. Smith signed as informant (Ernest's first-born and only son, Russell Cannon Smith, is the baby in Emmeline's photo above).

Emmeline Boutilier - NS Death Certificate 1940

Emmeline’s Obituary, dated Thursday, May 2, 1940 was posted in the Halifax Chronicle. It read: “MRS JOHN SMITH. The death occurred yesterday at her home at Lower Tantallon, of Mrs. Emeline Deborah Smith, wife of John C. Smith, in her 81st year. Mrs. Smith was a native of Tantallon, and one of the most widely-known residents of the district. She is survived, besides her husband, four sons, Horace in Prince Edward Island; Norman in Ontario; Ernest of Halifax, and Weldon of Tantallon; and two daughters, Mrs. James Boutilier, Tantallon, and Mrs. Willard Carr, Tantallon. The funeral will be held from her late home on Saturday at 2:30 with service conducted by Rev. Mr. Ruderham."

John Caleb Smith and Emmeline Deborah Boutilier - Gravestone 1940

Smith Ancestry – 3rd Generation: The Story of John Caleb Smith (1852-1940) and Deborah Emmeline Boutilier (1859-1940) – Part 1

The 1^st Generation of our Smith Ancestry in Canada is about Russell Cannon Smith (1920-1995) and Margaret Cecilia Mumford (1922-1998). The 2^nd Generation of the family history is about Ernest Milburn Smith (1894-1948) and Bridget “Bessie” Cannon (1891-1982). The following story looks at the 3^rd Generation - John Caleb Smith (1852-1940) and Deborah Emmeline Boutilier (1859-1940).

About John Caleb Smith (1852-1940)

John Caleb Smith was born on February 29, 1852, in Halifax, Nova Scotia. His father, Caleb Nickerson Smith (1811-1893), was 41 and his mother, Mary Catherine Whynacht (1818-1900), was 33. John was baptized June 27, 1852 at St. Paul’s Anglican Church, French Village, Halifax. He was the 8th of 12 children - 7 boys and 5 girls.

John was a lumberman by trade. As his family tree shows, John was married twice and had 10 children of his own. He married Lydia Ann Boutilier and they had 2 children. After Lydia died, he married a second time to Deborah Emmeline Boutilier and they had 8 children together.

John Caleb Smith Family Tree

Lydia Ann was born on September 25, 1854, in Halifax. Her father, Joseph (Josie Joe) Boutilier (1827-1898), was 26 and her mother, Catherine Publicover (1824-1902), was 29. Lydia was one of 5 children – 3 girls and 2 boys. Sadly, her youngest brother and sister both died in 1880.

Lydia Ann Boutilier Family Tree

On April 3, 1877, when he was 25 years old, John married Lydia Ann Boutilier in St. Peter’s Anglican Church, Hackett’s Cove, Halifax. John and Lydia had two children during their brief marriage – Clement Seymour (1879-1926) and Herbert Isaiah (1881-1885), who died as an infant. Lydia Ann Boutilier died as a young mother (at the age of 26) on June 6, 1881, less than 3 months after Herbert was born. Apparently, she committed suicide and was buried in Halifax.

John Caleb Smith married Deborah Emmeline Boutilier in Tantallon, Halifax, Nova Scotia, on October 27, 1881, when he was 29 years old. Emmeline’s story is told in Smith Ancestry – 3^rd Generation: The Story of John Caleb Smith (1852-1940) and Deborah Emmeline Boutilier (1859-1940) – Part 2.

John Caleb Smith died on July 10, 1940, in Halifax, Nova Scotia and was buried at St. Margaret’s Anglican Cemetery in Tantallon, Halifax, Nova Scotia. The Nova Scotia Death Certificate (#28) indicates that he passed away of natural causes at the age of 88 years. His son Weldon Smith signed as informant.

John Caleb Smith - NS Death Certificate 1940