Latta Ancestry – Four Generations in Canada (Part 2)

Walter James Latta (1873-1932) and Sadie Elizabeth Coulson (1881-1941)

Walter James Latta was born on August 12, 1873 in Hungerford, Hastings East, Ontario, Canada. His father, James Gilbert Latta (1852-1938), was 21 and his mother, Julia Ann Latta (1856-1946) was 17. Walter was the first-born son and first of nine children. He became a cheesemaker (chaumber) by trade.

Walter James Latta - Family Tree

Walter James Latta and Sadie Elizabeth Coulson

On October 19, 1898, Walter James Latta married Sadie Elizabeth Coulson in his hometown (a copy of the Ontario Marriage Registration is provided below) . They had two children. The Ontario Birth Records indicate that James Cyril Latta was born on March 18, 1901 in Thurlow, Northumberland, Ontario. Marjorie Uldean Latta was born in Toronto, Ontario on April 28, 1905.

Sadie Elizabeth Coulson, c.1898

Sadie Elizabeth Coulson was born on June 30, 1881, in Hungerford, Hastings East, Ontario, Canada. Her mother Harriet Ann Sexsmith (1853-1923) was 28, and her father Richard Coulson (1847-1928), who came from Ireland as a baby in 1847, was 33 years old. 

The family photograph taken about 1891 shows they had 9 children at that time. The photograph was taken at Thomasburg, Tweed, Ontario Canada (Back Row: Sadie (Sarah), Mary Mabel, Ellen, Jennie (Jane), Annie May. Middle row: Richard, Thomas and Harriet Front row: Hattie Gertrude, Alice, John Earl).

Richard Coulson, Harriet Ann Sexsmith and Family

According to the Ontario Death Certificate (see below), Walter James Latta died on April 3, 1932 at the age of 58 in Healy Falls, Northumberland, Ontario. He was suffering from acute myocarditis (inflammation of the heart muscle). His son, James Cyril Latta signed as the informant.

Walter James Latta - Ontario Death Certificate 1932 

According to the Florida Death Index, Sadie Elizabeth Coulson died in 1941 at the age of 59, in Osceola, Florida, United States.

Latta Ancestry – Four Generations in Canada (Part 1)

Four Generations of Latta Men in Canada, c.1906

The Latta family emigrated from Ireland to the United States in 1768 and then came to Canada in 1833 (refer to the previous post about the Latta Ancestry – Ireland to Canada). In the above photograph, four generations of our direct Latta lineage in Canada are gathered together:

1.          Gilbert James Latta (1822-1906),seated
2.          James Gilbert Latta (1852-1938), left rear
3.          Walter James Latta (1873-1932),right rear
4.          James Cyril Latta (1901–1986) at 5 years of age. 

The stories of these four generations of Latta men are based on family history and Ontario vital records (birth, marriage and death).

James Cyril Latta (1901–1986) and Jane Evelyn Sexsmith (1902-1996)

The Ontario Birth Records indicate that James Cyril Latta was born on March 18, 1901 in Thurlow, Ontario. He was the first-born and only son of Walter James Latta (1873-1932) and Sadie Elizabeth Coulson (1881-1941). Cyril had only one sister, Marjorie Uldean Latta, who was born in Toronto, Ontario on April 28, 1905.

James Cyril Latta Family Tree

On September 7, 1931, James Cyril Latta (1901–1986) married Jane Evelyn Sexsmith (1902-1996), who was known as Jennie. The Ontario Birth Records also show that Jennie Sexsmith was born on September 26, 1902, the daughter of Henry Sexsmith (1866-1940) and Minnie Brown. Cyril and Jennie had one son, Wayne, in 1935.

As the following ancestry chart shows, Jennie and Cyril were both related to Jane Rath (1823-1917) who was born in Enniscorthy, Ireland. Jennie was the great-granddaughter and Cyril was the great-grandson. For more information on the Rath family history, refer to the Genealogy Report – Descendants of Henry Rath prepared by Dave and Lucille Wright, November 2004.

James Cyril Latta - Ancestry

Cyril and Jennie were both graduates of the Ontario Business College in Belleville, Ontario. Jennie worked at the Tweed Theatre and the Tweed News Office. Cyril was a salesman for WearEver Aluminum cookware throughout Ontario. He would put on a home demonstration-cooking the whole meal-on top of the stove using WearEver pots. Included in the meal was roast beef, vegetables, and a wonderful chocolate cake “baked” in a frying pan on top of the stove. The cookware was “waterless cooking.”

During the second World War, Cyril and Jennie worked at the Battawa factory making war materials. He returned to aluminum sales after the war. In his later years, he worked at the “new” liquor store in Tweed and was the Bailiff for Central Hastings. Cyril loved to hunt, fish and sell!

Cyril Latta died on June 19, 1986 at the age of 85. Jennie Sexsmith died on December 9, 1996 in Picton, Ontario at the age of 94.

Cyril Latta and Jennie Sexsmith Headstone