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Orono Weekly Tines, Wednesday, May 20, 1998 - 9 "Murier ai Shingle 11111" 1997 most pivotai year in (Part two - Continuedfrom last week) by Richard Jordan Benjamin found Samuel G. in the shingle mill and in the argument that followed, Benjamin challenged him to a fight. When Wilcox refused, Benjamin knocked him to the floor. After a short struggle, both men regained their feet. Wilcox reached out his hand to pick up a nearby length of wood that had been used to poke lumber through the saw. Suddenly, he swung it at Benjamin's head with all his might. The blow connected and the younger man went down. In the heat of the moment, Wilcox hit him several more times about the face and head. When the fight was over, Benjamin Farrow lay uncon- scious and bleeding on the floor of the shingle mill. Friends took him home and someone went to Orono to fetch the doc- tor, but there was nothing to be done. Benjamin lingered for two days before he finally died on Saturday morning. When news of his death got back to Orono, the coroner, Dr. E. L. Herriman summoned a jury for an inquest. They trav- elled to the Jordan's home where the body was examined and some evidence was heard. Dr. Herriman adjourned the inquest until the next Tuesday at the Town Hall in Orono so that Dr. Herbert Renwick and Dr. James Fielding could per- form a post mortem. Samuel G. Wilcox must have been a worried man when the inquest resumed that Tuesday in Orono. If a verdict of murder was retumed by the coroner's jury, he would be on trial for his life. He knew the sentence for murder in the first degree was death by hanging. The post mortem examina- tion revealed that Benjamin Farrow had several severe injuries about the head includ- ing a fractured skull and brain damage which resulted in his death. When the circumstances of the fight were examined, there was testimony about Benjamin's violent nature and the threats he uttered against his employer. The evidence showed that Wilcox did not provoke the fight and couldn't get away from his enraged employee without fighting him off. The jury left to deliberate and a long time passed, indicat- ing they were divided on their decision. When they returned, the verdict was one of justifi- able homicide. Samuel G. Wilcox must have felt great relief, but he was not out of trouble yet. Since the death had occurred in a fight, Wilcox was charged with the lesser offence of manslaughter, and taken into custody. The next Saturday, he was transported to the jail in Cobourg, the county seat, where he raised bail. When you consider the wage a labour- er received, the amount of his bail was enormous -- the pris- oner had to post $2400 himself and two friends (possibly his father and his brother) each posted an additional $1200 to ensure he would show up for his trial, which was set for the Spring Assizes at Cobourg in April. The Assizes were held four times a year in each county seat throughout the province of Ontario and all serious crimes were tried there. That spring, Mr. Justice Morrison was the judge on the Midland Circuit, and he would spend about a week each in Whitby, Napanee, Cobourg, Lindsay, Peterborough, Picton and then Belleville. The Assizes were a week behind schedule when they finally reached Cobourg in mid-April. Before an actual criminal trial, there was a sort of prelim- inary hearing in front of a Grand Jury, composed of 12 to 23 citizens who would vote on whether or not to proceed with the charge, referred to as a "bill". Samuel G. Wilcox and the witnesses from the Coroner's inquest appeared before the Grand Jury that April and the story of the whole tragic affair was told again. Again, the jury deliberated long and hard. And again the jury believed it was a case of self-defence. Their ver- dict was "no bill" of manslaughter. Samuel G. Wilcox's trial would not pro- ceed and he left the courtroom that day a free man. In October 1872, Benjamin's 20-year-old widow, Phebe, married his 17-year-old brother, James Farrow, in a Methodist ceremony in Ordho. In those days, although such a union was accepted by the Methodists, it was forbidden by the Catholic, Anglican and Presbyterian churches - and by the Canadian government, which did not change the law to permit marriage between a woman and her late husband's brother until 1882. As a pre- caution, Phebe used her maiden name, Jordan, on the wedding registration. The couple went to live on the Farrow family farm in Manvers and it is there that we get a glimpse of them in the 1881 Census. They were farm- ing and had 6 children, includ- ing Benjamin Junior and two sons and three daughters of their own. Curiously, they had another son in October 1882 who they named Samuel George. It would be nice to think that the family had made its peace with (or perhaps received compensation from) Samuel G. Wilcox. James Farrow sold the farm in September 1889 and the fam- ily moved on to parts unknown, perhaps to the Canadian West. Benjamin Herbert Farrow stayed to farm in Manvers and married Sarah Jackson on Christmas Day 1889. They had at least two daughters in Manvers. The Wilcox Shingle Mill prospered and although the steam mill burned in October 1872, it was soon rebuilt on a larger scale. il can be seen in Belden's county atlas of 1878. And today the road that leads through Lot 19, Concession 9 is known as Wilcox Road. About Richard Jordan Jordan is no stranger to his- tory, or a good story. Richard Jordan is a former president of the Etobicoke 1-listorical society and wrote a local history col- umn and feature articles for the Toronto Star for seven years. For the past four years, the 45-year-old father of two has been finding his family's roots in the Clarington area by searching diligently through Census records, birth, marriage and death registrations and local newspapers including the Orono Sun and the Orono Times. Now he would like to hear from his distant cousins. In Clarke Township, the couples Jordan has been researching include: Johnston Jordan and Mary Ann Couch, Charles Barrett and Margaret Jordan, William Jordan and Caroline Andrew, Sarah Jordan and John Feeney, Phebe Jane Jordan and James Farrow, Benjamin Herbert Farrow and Sarah Jackson, David John Jordan and Margaret Jane Dodd and Sarah and John Rutherford. In Port Hope, the people being researched include: William H. Jordan (a labourer), shoemaker Johnson Jordan and his wife Agnes Little, Matilda Jordan and her husband veteri- narian William Alfred Turner. In Darlington, the couples being researched include: Mary Francis and Joseph Woolner, William Francis and Catherine Anderson, John Wesley Francis and Emma Wilcox and Suzanna Francis and Donald Patton Yellowlees. Jordan would like to hear from the descendants of any of the above mentioned couples, all of whom were married between 1860 and 1890. Richard Jordan can be contact- ed at 3620 Chiplow Road, Mississauga, Ontario, L4X 2P9. Clarington Fire Calls The Clarington Fire Department responded to the following fire calls during the period of May 11 to May 19: 2 vehicle fires; 1 grass fire; 3 fires; 4 motor vehicle acci- dents; 14 medical assistance calls; 1 assist call; 9 alarm activation calls and 17 check- out calls. Ontario Hydro's history Last year was one of the most eventful years in Ontario Hydro's history, and will ultimately be viewed as the most pivotal in the com- pany's future, said Hydro's Chairman William Farlinger in an interview published in the company's 1997 Annual Report. "How we respond over the years to what happened in 1997 will profoundly shape our future," lie explained. Farlinger pinpointed spe- cific events and actions that represent major watersheds in the evolution of the comi pany. These include the Independent Integrated Performance Assessment (IIPA) Report on Hydro's nuclear operations that underscored the need for immediate and decisive actions to improve nuclear performance, and subsequent Nuclear Asset Optimization Plan (NAOP) that addresses issues identified in the IIPA Report. As a result of NAOP, Hydro expects to raise its nuclear performance to with- in the top quartile among nuclear operators by 2000. Another major event last year was release of the gov- ernment's White Paper, Direction for Change which sets out a broad framework for introduction of competi- tion in the Ontario electricity supply industry. "Our num- ber one challenge Is to ensure that we are truly competitive when the marketplace opens up in 2000," said Farlinger. "The most important aspect of competitive behaviour is actually being able to effi- ciently deliver the products and services our customers demand. We need to have the right people in the right place at the right time. We need the ability to be far more flexible in assigning staff to where they are needed most." Farlinger Is optimistic about Hydro's ability to com- pete in an open market. "Because of our unique gen- eration mix, we have very low marginal costs compared to our U.S. competition, so we will be able to compete very effectively on price," he explained. "On our service side, we have a mature and highly reliable transmission and distribution infrastruc- ture; in fact our reliability has long been the envy of the util- ity Industry. Maintaining these wires networks will be a competitive business in Itself and we will do very well at it." Tickets - Stardust Circus On the evening of Tuesday, May 26th In the historic Orono Town Hall Smiles Theatre presents their new musical Stardust Circus. The hour and a half show Is sponsored by the Clarington Older Adults. Of course the show is a throw- back to the Circus of yesterday and designed for senior entertainment. Tickets available in Orono at Rolph Hardware and at the Orono Weekly Times. MORRIS FUNERAL CHAPEL SERVING DURHAM REGION SINCE 1841 FUNERAL SERVICES PRE-ARRANGED & PREPAID Wlere Trofessiona('Etiquette is Important Funerai Directors Paul R. Morris Robert E. Williams Gary M. Conway Doug R. Rutherford ANSWERING YOUR CALL 24 HOURS 623-5480 4 Dvlson St. Bowmanvlle Wedding Cakes Cakesfor all Occasions Pastries - Donuts - Pies Bread & Buns &Tea983-9779 Proprietors: Gary & Carol Vreeker CoeSny& nd Main Steet, Orono Close t Sunday & Monday )-- ( 1 llïëbUCE-- '"' MlN,ý