Capt. William McClain

Capt. William McClain is one of those whole-souled men whom it is a pleasure to meet, and there are many connected with the great lakes. As a general rule they are all hearty and upright, and these words well describe the gentleman pictured here. Capt. William McClain is a superannuated customs officer, but he is still hale and active. He was born in the Town of Smithboro, in Ireland, in 1823, and in the year 1827 he was brought to Canada by his parents, landing in Little York in August. His father's name was Samuel McClain, and his first occupation in Canada was farming, upon which he embarked in 1824, in the Township of Essa, in the County of Simcoe, Upper Canada, now Ontario. For three years he labored alone, then he was joined by his wife and family. His life was predestined to be short in his adopted land, for he died in 1832, and Mrs. McClain followed him after an interval of ten years, dying in the year 1842.

Capt. William McClain has only one brother, Mr. John McClain, of Barrie, and both boys received their preliminary education in the Simcoe County schools, and in the common schools of Toronto. When Capt. McClain had reached fourteen years of age he began to attend the Caldecott Academy for Boys, at that time situated on Colborne street, Toronto.Mr. Caldecott was deemed a severe master by several of the boys, one of whom was young William, and that may be said to have been the turning point in the captain's career. Not relishing the harshness of school, he fled from his troublesome lessons and took to sailing on the great lakes, which occupation he followed for nine seasons. Then his health began to fail, and his physician advised him to come off the water. Accordingly, he did so, and began farming, following the avocation of the husbandman for twenty-three years.

Starting his sailing career, Captain McClain went first into the schooner Plow Boy, along with Captain William Goldring, engaged in carrying lumber from Toronto to Niagara and other south shore ports, and also trading along the north shore of Lake Ontario. Leaving the Plow Boy,Captain McClain went with Captain Ross in the schooner Lord Nelson, a vessel which was burnt at Kingston a few years later. After that the Captain went into the big schooner Columbus, of Cleveland; then, in 1843, he bought the schooner Jane, sailed her for some time, and eventually sold her and bought a half-interest in the schooner Clarissa. His best trip in that vessel was bringing a cargo of stone from Cleveland for the St. James Anglican Cathedral, of Toronto, which Messrs. Metcalfe,Wilson & Forbes, the contractors, had then under construction.

Having been advised to give up sailing, Captain McClain disposed of his marine interests and bought a farm of four hundred acres, in the Township of Essa, two hundred of which he leased to a capable tenant. Whilst there Captain McClain became popular, and soon was a prominent man. In the year 1852 he was elected Reeve of the Township of Essa, and held that office for fourteen years.

Time passed along and Captain McClain at length relinquished farming, leased all his land and moved to Toronto in 1872, having been appointed to a position as Waterfront Landing Waiter, in Her Majesty's Customs. This office he filled for twenty-three years, when the Conservative Government, then in power at Ottawa superannuated him, although he was quite capable of performing his duties for many years to come.

There are few men of the great lakes who live their lives single, and Captain McClain is not one of them. He married Miss Jane Dermody in the year 1847. Miss Dermody was a daughter of Mr. George Dermody, the first settler in the Township of Essa. Captain and Mrs. McClain have no children of their own, but they adopted one of their nieces, a daughter of Captain McClain's brother, and Miss McClain still lives with her adopted parents at their comfortable and handsome white brick residence, number 134 Jarvis street, Toronto. Captain McClain purchased the lot upon which the house stands in the year 1881, built the residence in the following year, and has been living in it ever since June 26, 1882. Behind the house he has a neat garden and a number of prolific grapevines.

Splendid luck followed Captain McClain during his years sailing, for he has not one disaster or accident to record. There was a close call for him, nevertheless, in the year 1846, at Toronto, when he fell off Tinning's wharf in the dark, and struck his abdomen heavily against a crib. Dr. Trainor and Dr. Whitmore despaired of his life, although both of them labored incessantly. Dr. Trainor worked with his patient for two days, bleeding and fomenting, and toward the close of the second he gave up all hope. Dr. Whitmore refused to abandon hope until midnight, and he was rewarded for his labors, for Captain McClain showed signs of recovery at 12 o'clock that night, and next day he was able to get up.

Although Captain McClain is a Conservative in politics, yet he always believed, and at present upholds, all measures that are for the good of the country, whether they be introduced by Liberal or Conservative. Whilst he was for so long a time in the Reeveship of Essa he not once used his influence of office to further party ends. When he had appointments to make he put forward as often Liberal as he did Conservative. Notably, when the Government instructed him to name some prominent gentleman for Magistrates, he spoke for as many Liberals as he did for Conservative.

Until the year 1858 Captain McClain was a Presbyterian, and belonged to Cooke's Church in Toronto. After that year, however, he became a Methodist, and attached himself to the Metropolitan Church. He was a business representative of that church for a number of years.

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