My great grandparents Archibald McPhee and Mary St. James met in Smiths Falls. Archie was a member of the Carleton Place Canoe club. Smiths Falls also had a canoe club and recruited Archie to compete with their big war canoes. The St. James brothers enjoyed watching sports but didn’t play. Mary’s brothers brought Archie to the house where he met Mary and as they say the rest is history, Grams corrected me and said the rest is ancient history.
Archie and Mary were married in Smiths Falls June 23, 1908.
Archie and Mary Marriage Certificate
They were married in the morning so they could catch the afternoon train for their honeymoon to Montreal. At the time Uncle Stephen and Aunt Minnie were living in the house. The night before their wedding, Minnie offered to have the wedding breakfast at their house. Mary said no because they had to catch the train! Archie worked for the CPR and as a perk he had a “pass” that provided free transportation on the trains.
Here is a picture of Archie St. James and Mary St. James on their honeymoon in Montreal.
Em's Travel Diary 