Person Record

Metadata

Name

McColl, W. R.

Othernames

William Robert McColl

Born

Sept. 15, 1855

Birthplace

Sarnia, Canada West

Places of residence

Sarnia area
Forest, Ontario
Oshawa, Ontario
Owen Sound, Ontario (32 Hill Street, c. 1901, was at 921 4th Ave. East (c. 1927, was there for more than ten years)
Briefly in Kitchener, Ontario
Resided in a boarding house at 8th Street, Owen Sound, in his last years

Titles & honors

Some of his specimens went to the University of Toronto during his lifetime (c. 1929).
In fern/orchid/moss work, he was considered to be a leading expert in the Dominion of Canada

Father

Ronald McColl (d. 1911)

Mother

Isabella McColl (d. 1911)

Nationality

Canadian

Notes

A street scene photograph at the Grey County Archives, 1994.018.004, includes the storefront of W. R. McColl, along main street in Owen Sound, Ontario. An 1894 source listed "McColl & Lee" as a drygoods business that was established in 1889.

He also was a collector of commercial tokens, and made a catalogue of his collection, which is still useful for present-day collectors.

A fern specimens collection with W. R. McColl's name present (c. 1930) joined the Grey Roots collection in 2017. There is mention in the book A GUIDE TO THE FERNS OF GREY & BRUCE, that in the spring of 1928, an Owen Sound amateur bryologist named Eugene Moxley was asked by a botanist named McColl to collect some Selaginella selaginoides for him (a spikemoss). Moxley went to Sauble Beach and found some, but also found another specimen (see his name record more details).

William Robert McColl was born at Sarnia on September 15, 1855 [the birthdate in the W.R. McCOLL REMEMBERED book has Dec. 6, 1855]. His father was a tailor and partner in the firm Lambert & McCollat at Sarnia. When he was thirteen, W. R. McColl left school and apprenticed in a drygoods store. After 3 years, he moved to further his apprenticeship with Robert Wanless at his grocery shop (also sold glassware & china) in Sarnia. He relocated to Forest, Ontario, to work as a salesman for Duncan McBain (dry goods store owner). When he was 21, W. R. McColl answered an advertisement for a sales position in Oshawa, and worked there for two years as a clerk.
On March 11, 1878, he married Lucy Jane Lee, at Stratford? Lucy had emigrated from England in 1855. The following year after their marriage, William McColl formed a business partnership with his brother-in-law, Wiliam T. Lee, called "McColl & Lee".

On September 12, 1889, the OWEN SOUND ADVERTISER ran their first McColl & Lee advertisement: "a large new drygoods establishment has been opened out next to Parker's Drug Store, Poulett St., by Messrs McCall (sic) & Lee. The have opened out seventy-five cases of new and seasonable goods which the public are respectfully invited to call and inspect." Their business was situated at 143 Poulett St., a main street location in the Parker Block. Three years later, they moved to larger premises at 133-137 Poulett St. Their establishment was called the "The Twin Stores" as the building was set up like two separate stores, but had a middle section that joined them. McColl ran one store, Lee the other. [The Twin Stores later became the Fulford Hardware store location].

In the 1901 census of Owen Sound, William and Lucy resided at 32 Hill Street. He was 45 and described as a Drygoods Merchant. Lucy was 48.

They were also in Owen Sound at the time of the 1891 census.

In 1898, the business partnership of William T. Lee and W. R. McColl dissolved. Mr. McColl fitted up a former post office building along the east side of the main street in Owen Sound with new counters of ash wood, finished in oil, and he also "had a full show window, a novelty of the times". Large lights of "cathedral glass" shone from the window, and the window itself was lighted up with incandescent lights. (see Croft). W. R. McCOLL REMEMBERED says that the old post office building had been formerly owned by McColl's friend George Holmes. McColl had his business there from 1898-1903. In September, 1903, he closed his business. This former post office building in 2017 is the Bleeding Carrot? [confirm address yet]

In March 1903, his business was described as "W. R. McColl / Retail Dealer in General Dry Goods, Ladies' Coats, and Furs."

W. R. McColl was listed in a list of people mentioned in the Dec. 14, 1899 edition of an Owen Sound newspaper.

He had a card printed for him at some point, to identify himself as a "Collector of Rare Canadian Coins / Medals and Communion
Tokens". (he also collected merchant trade tokens and advertising tokens). W.R. McCOLL REMEMBERED shows some metal tokens that he had made that advertised himself (his friend George Holmes also had a token).

In June of 1903, McColl's entire token collection was purchased by a collector for $1,400. In September, 1903, he closed his drygoods business. The building was sold to John Parson, and McColl moved his stock to Berlin, Ontario, to start up a business there. It was brief. From 1904-1912 he next worked as a travelling salesman. He also wrote articles about horticulture and store window dressing.

He and Lucy were members of Knox Presbyterian Church at Owen Sound. Mr. McColl was an Elder of the church (along with George Holmes), in 1896 and until 1902. Lucy was a member of Knox Church until the formation of St. Andrew's Presbyterian Church and then she attended there for a year and a half before she died. She had previously been involved in the Ladies' Aid of Knox Church for many years.

He was a Town Assessor (Mr. J. C. Read (John Reid) was as well, Croft mentioned this on p. 312 of GROWTH OF A COUNTY TOWN). McColl was appointed Town Assessor in January, 1918. It paid a salary of $500.

The 1917 Owen Sound telephone directory listed W. R. McColl, "Real Estate", at 908 2nd Ave. East (a main street business). Croft had noted that in 1916, McColl had taken over the former insurance business of R. R. Goldsmith (GROWTH OF A COUNTY TOWN, p. 226).

There is an image of a McColl storefront shown in Melba Croft's book, A PORT OF SOME IMPORTANCE, p. 68. The caption for it says it was located along 10th Street.

Mr. McColl was mentioned in THE OWEN SOUND DAILY SUN TIMES of March 5, 1925. He wrote articles for a publication called the "Fern Journal."

Lucy died of asthma at the age of 74 on March 31, 1927. W. R. McColl died on Feb. 7, 1933, age 77. They are buried at Owen Sound's Greenwood Cemetery. His death record stated that he had been a resident of Owen Sound for forty years (his nephew Charles Lee likely just guessed at this, as the McColls are present in the 1891 census).

In 1929, a newspaper article mentioned that Mr. McColl "has his hobbies and one of these is the collection of ferns of which he has over two thousand specimens all correctly described by both their botanical and common names, together with over four hundred specimens of mosses. He has six hundred mineral specimens and fifteen hundred boxes of shells and a fine collection of micas..."

He became an expert on ferns and orchids. He transplanted some rare Ram's Head orchids from the Bruce Peninsula to his home garden, and then would exchange them with other collectors in the United States. He also loved ferns so much that he learned how to propagate "certain rare ferns in captivity and then grow them to previously unknown size".

Circa 1925, McColl sold his insurance and real estate business to Austin Scully. He then founded McColl's Fair and Gift Shop along 2nd Ave. East (the main street).

There is an obituary for W. R. McColl, that was published in the OWEN SOUND DAILY SUN TIMES on Feb. 8, 1933:
"W. R. McCOLL PASSES AWAY TUESDAY / Well-known Merchant Collapses on Returning from Store / DEATH IMMEDIATE / First Started in Business Here Forty-two Years Ago
One of Owen Sound's most widely-know merchants passed away on Tuesday eenin with startling suddenness in the person of William R. McColl. Mr. McColl had closed his store for the night and proceeded to his boarding house on 8th Street. He sat down in a chair on his arrival and collapsed very suddenly, passing away almost immediately. The long walk through the heavy blizzard which was raging at the time had, undoubtedly, overtaxed his heart to such an extent that the collapse followed.
Mr. W. R. McColl was perhaps better known to a past generation although his store, known as McColl's Fair and Gift Shop, had been operated here for the past seven or eight years. He first went into the dry-goods business in Oshawa with the late William T. Lee, but moved to Owen Sound about forty-two years ago and continued in business for some 17 years (Some 25 years ago the partnership was dissolved and Mr. McColl went into business for himself, a business wich he conducted successfully for a number of years before going to Kitchener. On his return from that city he was engaged for a time in the insurance business but about seven years ago he opened the store on 2nd avenue east which he operated until his death last night.
In addition to his business enterprises, he was something of a hobbyist and his collections of ferns and coins were well-known in this city. His large collection of ferns, on which he spent considerable time and attention, was considered the finest in Canada and was disposed of to the University of Toront a few years ago. He was also a collector of coins and his collection was said to be the second finest in Canada.
The late William R. McColl was born in Sarnia, Ont., and was in his 78th year. He was married to Miss Lucy Lee of Stratford who predeceased him a number of years ago. They had no children but he leaves to mourn his loss a sister and two brothers, Margaret McColl of Sarnia, Joseph in Buffalo, N.Y., and Jack in St. Louis, Mo.
Messrs. Charles and Percy Lee, sons of the late William T. Lee with whom the late Mr. McColl was associated in business, are nephews.
The death of Mr. McColl will be greatly regreted by the business men of Owen Sound especially the merchants with whom he was so well-acquainted as wel as by the hundreds who knew him personally.
The funeral will take place from the Breckinridge Undertaking rooms on Thursday afternoon, the service to be held at 2:30 o'clock."

_ ____
There also was a Donald B. McColl (b. 1870) and Miss Flora McColl (b. 1876) who were residents of Owen Sound in the 1901 census. Any connection to W. R. McColl?

Occupation

Drygoods Store / Merchant / Businessman / Real Estate / Insurance / Gift Shop
Town Assessor (along with J. C. Read)
Botany / Amateur Botanist? (Hobbyist) Moss and Fern Specimen Collector (c. 1917-1925) / Exchange Herbarium (at Owen Sound). Also collected shells.
Numismatic Collection (Coin Collector, Stamp Collector)
Member of American Numismatic Association (joined in 1901)
McColl Fair and Gift Shop
Writer for the "Fern Journal"

Publications

-A GUIDE TO THE FERNS OF GREY & BRUCE: INCLUDES MOST ONTARIO FERNS, 1999, p. 108-109 (mentions W. R. McColl, 1920s)
-"W. R. McColl Passes Away Tuesday", OWEN SOUND DAILY SUN-TIMES, Wednesday, February 8, 1933, p. 1
-Ontario Death Record 016259 (William R. McColl, Feb.7, 1933)
-THE LEGAL AND COMMERCIAL EXCHANCE (MERCANTILE AGENCY) OF CANADA, Jan. 1894 (Owen Sound section)
-Croft, Melba Morris, FOURTH ENTRANCE TO HURONIA and GROWTH OF A COUNTY TOWN (see the indexes)
-Croft, Melba Morris, A PORT OF SOME IMPORTANCE, p. 68 (image of one of McColl's storefronts)
-W.R. McCOLL REMEMBERED, by Len M. Buth & Scott E. Douglas, 2003 (see the copy at the Grey County Archives), includes an image of him
-"Owen Sounder has a very Fine Collection of Ferns", OWEN SOUND SUN, 28 August 1917
"Beautiful Orchids are Found Here: Long Swamp on the Shallow Lake Road a Source of Supply", 2 July 1918
-McColl, W. R., "List of Canadian, British, United Sates and Foreign Coins and Pattern Pieces, Paper Money, etc. Offered at Private Sale by W. R. McColl, Owen Sound, Ont. (printed by The McCallum Co., Printers, Owen Sound", 1903
-Croft, Melba Morris, RENEWAL OFA CANADIAN PORT (OWEN SOUND ON GEORGIAN BAY), page 315, she mentions she found an article about W. R. McColl in the March 5, 1925 edition of THE OWEN SOUND DAILY SUN-TIMES (and provided an excerpt)

Relationships

Brother-in-law & former business partner: William T. Lee (d. Dec. 21, 1926)
Friend: George Holmes of Owen Sound
Nephew: Charles Lee of Owen Sound (he reported W. R. McColl's death)
Nephew: Percy Lee (shared his love of horticulture, orchids and ferns)
Sister: Margaret McColl of Sarnia, Ont.
Brother: Joseph McColl (Buffalo, New York)
Brother: Jack McColl (St. Louis, Missouri)