Plaque in Memory of Teenagers Jean Baxter and Gordon Skimming, 1923
Description
- Media Type
- Image
- Text
- Item Type
- Plaques
- Description
- Family, friends and the congregation of their church, Palermo Methodist, had this plaque prepared to honour these two teenagers. The plaque hung for many years at Palermo United Church and has just recently been given to the Trafalgar Township Historical Society which is taking steps to repair it.
These young people were employed as domestic servants on Trail Farm, Palermo, owned at the time by General Greenley. Jean had just started her employment on May 23 of the same year, while Gordon had been in Canada for just over a year but started work at Trail farm just a few weeks prior.
They died in a motor car accident at the Bronte railroad crossing where a freight train on a siding hid the oncoming "flyer" from Toronto to Hamilton.
Jean's parents were Edgar George Baxter and it was her mother, Annie (Burr) Baxter, housekeeper at Trail Farm, who had to cope with the formalities. She buried her daughter in the Palermo Methodist (now United) church cemetery.
Gordon's parents were Thomas Skimming and Agnes Christerson of Kirkinner, Scotland, living in Toronto at the time. They buried Gordon at Prospect in Toronto. - Notes
- The Milton Canadian Champion newspaper of 19 Jul 1923, p. 3, column 4 has the story.
- Inscriptions
- In memory of Jean Baxter aged 17 years and Gordon Skimming aged 15 years of Trail Farm, Palermo who lost their lives at Bronte Station 17th July 1923 "All is well with the child"
- Date Of Event
- July 17, 1923
- Subject(s)
- Personal Name(s)
- Korene Jean Baxter, b.May 5, 1915 in Christchurch, New Zealand, d.July 17, 1923. Gordon Skimming, b.May 24, 1918 in Wigtown, Scotland, d.July 17, 1923.
- Local identifier
- TTJCB000514
- Collection
- Trafalgar Township Historical Society
- Language of Item
- English
- Geographic Coverage
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Ontario, Canada
Latitude: 43.40011 Longitude: -79.71632
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- Copyright Statement
- Copyright status unknown. Responsibility for determining the copyright status and any use rests exclusively with the user.
- Recommended Citation
- Plaque in Memory of Teenagers Jean Baxter and Gordon Skimming, 1923
- Contact
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Trafalgar Township Historical Society Sponsor: Jeff Knoll, Local & Regional Councillor for Oakville Ward 5 – Town of Oakville/Regional Municipality of Halton
