Captain Charles Houlton Davis

Captain (British Army).

Charles Houlton Davis was born on 29 April 1888 in Gloucester, England. His father, Charles Davis was a clerk in holy orders and his mother's name was Eleanor. Siblings included Amy (born 1878), Edgar (1881), Harold (born 1886), Ethel (born 1893) and Dora (born 1899).

Charles immigrated to Canada arriving in Quebec aboard the Ionian on 11 November 1906. He was a civil engineer and listed Calgary as his destination. Once in Calgary Charles joined the engineering department of the Canadian Pacific Railway. He married Margaret Elizabeth Ostrander in May of 1912 and they settled in Moose Jaw, Saskatchewan.

With WW1 raging in Europe, Charles travelled back to England and enlisted with the Royal Engineers in 1915. He attained the rank of Captain and served in France until 1919.

After the war Charles joined the Minnesota and Ontario Paper Company engineering staff at Fort Frances and was later employed as resident engineer on the transmission line into Fort Frances and in the construction of the Great Lakes Paper Company mill at Fort William. On completion of this work he returned to western Canada to work with a firm of railroad and general contractors.

In June 1932 Charles moved to Kenora, Ontario and, once again, joined the Minnesota Ontario Paper Company and worked there as resident engineer until his retirement. He was also in charge of all stores materials and purchases for the logging division. Charles was a member of the executive board of the Legion and he remained a reserve officer with the Royal Canadian Engineers with the rank of Major.

Charles Houlton Davis died in Kenora on 14 June 1954 and is buried in Lake of the Woods Cemetery.