Internet Horology Club 185
CANADIAN Private-Label Watches

This topic can be found at:
https://ihc185.infopop.cc/eve/forums/a/tpc/f/5656047761/m/745103698

May 19, 2011, 18:42
Larry Buchan
CANADIAN Private-Label Watches
DR Dingwall trademark showing Buffalo (Bison)


May 19, 2011, 22:13
Tom Brown
Larry

Great watch as always.

Here is a little more on Mr. Dingwall. He was born Jan 11,1851 near Halkirk, Caithness, Scotland. His full name was Donald Ross Dingwall.

He came to Canada in his youth & apprenticed in the jewellery trade in Lancaster, Ontario. In 1878 he opened his business at Port Hope, Ontario. In 1882 he came to Winnipeg & opened a jewellery business. He was also a Director of the Pacific Coast Fire Insurance Company, National Finance Company & Capital Loan Company, Vice-President of the Ontario & Manitoba Land Company, and the Canadian Finance Company

He was married twice & had 1 son by the 1st wife & 2 sons & 3 daughters by the 2nd.

He died at his Winnipeg home, 52 Roslyn Road, on July 27, 1913 & he is buried in Kildonan Cemetery.

01

May 19, 2011, 22:16
Tom Brown
Here is another image I found of him. Neither of the images were dated.

02

May 19, 2011, 22:34
Tom Brown
Larry

Sorry I repeated some of your information, I read your post two or three times & then after I posted mine I went back & saw you already posted the photo & some of the info. just getting old I guess.

Tom
May 20, 2011, 13:21
Larry Buchan
Hello Tom:

Thanks for your input, I had found basically the same biographical information about him and additional information about his son.

Donald Ross Dingwall (1851-1913)

Born near Halkirk, Caithness, Scotland on 11 January 1851, son of James Dingwall and Jean Ross, he came to Canada in his youth and he apprenticed in the jewelry trade at Lancaster, Ontario. In 1878 he established his own business at Port Hope, Ontario. In 1882 he came to Winnipeg and opened the jewelry business. In 1876 he married Margaret Frazer of Montréal. Their son was David Waverley Dingwall. After her death he married Ann Ross in 1891. They had two sons and three daughters. He was interested in curling and donated the Dingwall trophy, the grand challenge prize in the Manitoba Bonspiel. He was a founding member of the Carleton Club, and also a member of the Manitoba Club. He died at his Winnipeg home, 52 Roslyn Road on 27 July 1913 and was buried in Kildonan Cemetery.

Donald Waverley Dingwall (1881-1935)

Born at Port Hope, Ontario on 4 April 1881, son of Donald Ross Dingwall and Elizabeth Fraser, he came to Manitoba in 1886, and was educated in Winnipeg schools. He started his business career in the Tiffany's store in New York. At the age of 21 he returned to Winnipeg and entered the jewelry business which his father founded in 1882. He stayed on with the firm when it merged with Henry Birks and Sons to become Birks-Dingwall Ltd. of which he was President and manager. He died of a heart attack at his Winnipeg residence, 951 Wellington Crescent on 16 October 1935 and was buried in the Old Kildonan Cemetery.
May 20, 2011, 17:45
Krister Olsson
Tom.
The picture where he is playing bag pipe is in a way dated. The artist signed it Hay Stead 09, suggesting it was made in 1909.
Regards, Krister
May 20, 2011, 20:03
Larry Buchan
I would gather that the caricature of DR Dingwall playing the bagpipes would be related to his interests in curling, and the Manitoba Bonspiel

Larry
November 03, 2011, 20:06
Larry Buchan
I thought I would post a photo of my Waltham 18S Trorey, Vancouver British Columbia dial that I omitted from page 1 of this thread.

Larry


November 04, 2011, 12:14
Larry Buchan
A Rockford 18 size, 17 jewel private-label with the dial marked Bert W. Wright Watchmaker & Jeweler Rosthearn, N.W.T. (North West Territories) that became the province of Saskatchewan in 1905.
Rosthearn is a community in Saskatchewan located halfway between Prince Albert to the north, and Saskatoon to the south. It is located on a branch line of the Canadian National Railways.


November 04, 2011, 12:16
Larry Buchan
Dial close-up.


November 04, 2011, 12:18
Larry Buchan
Movement marked Wright's Special needs a regulator spring.


November 04, 2011, 17:57
Tom Brown
Nice watch as usual Larry!

I was looking for information on Bert W. Wright & perhaps you already have this information.

In the 1901 Canada Census he is shown as living in Rosthern and is listed as a jeweler but also as an inmate. I can't find where it identifies what sort of institution is located there and I was wondering if you knew.

It shows he was born April 9, 1877 in Ontario & he was 23 at the time.

In 1906 he is still listed in Rosthern but is now married to a Chrissie (dob abt 1882) & they have a son Clifford J. (dob abt 1904), apparently occupations were not listed that year.

In 1911 they are listed in Medicine Hat, Alberta. He is listed as a jeweler, same wife & son but now a Bert William Jr. (dob abt 01/1907) and a daughter Grace (dob abt 10/1908)

In 1916 they are in Lethbridge, Alberta. He is listed as a jeweler, same wife, children are listed as Clifford Robert, Bertie, Jennie (dob abt 1912)

Tom
November 04, 2011, 18:39
Tom Brown
Doing a little more digging it looks like Bert Wright might of been the brother to another jeweler that you had posted a watch of, R.A. Wright of Lethbridge;
https://ihc185.infopop.cc/eve/f...571082603#9571082603

I found a newspaper article from The Lethbridge Herald dated 05/23/1929. The article was about R.A. Wright's death from an auto accident. In the article it mentions his family including his parents & a brother Bert Wright living in Medicine Hat.

Larry if you are interested in this article I can email it to you, it is too large to post here and be readable.

Tom
November 04, 2011, 19:31
Larry Buchan
Hello Tom:

Thank you for the information on Bert W. Wright, I struck out trying to find any thing on him. I was thinking in the back of my head about my R.W. Wright, from Lethbridge, Alberta, it's great to know that they were related, Medicine Hat is the next divisional point east for CPR's Southern tier through British Columbia and is about 150 miles away. As far as him being listed as a jeweler, and inmate I have no idea what that means, the community is quite small about 1300 people today, but will look around to see if I can find any other information.

Larry
November 04, 2011, 19:44
Tom Brown
The only thing I could find is a youth farm located near Rosthern, but it opened in 1943, unless it was something else prior to that.

Looking at the census it has a mixture of people listed as inmates & head of households & domestic servants, on the page he is on there are a total of 12 people listed as inmates & they range in age from 18 to 57. The previous page of the census is the same, a list of head of family, spouses, children & domestics but then inmates thrown in to the mix.

I never know if you want this info or not, or perhaps you already have it. As you know I like looking for this stuff & there are not many requests for info. as there use to be.

Tom
November 10, 2011, 18:21
Larry Buchan
Here is a nice Swiss Brandt private label, that member Lorne Wasylishen acquired recently it is a 16 size, 23 jewel, Grade DDR


November 10, 2011, 18:22
Larry Buchan
Movement


November 10, 2011, 18:23
Larry Buchan
Movement close-up


November 10, 2011, 18:25
Larry Buchan
Double Sunk Roman Numeral 24 hour dial marked Porte & Markle Winnipeg

Thomas Jeffares Porte (1867-1934)

Born at Picton, Ontario on August 7, 1867, son of William James Porte and Sarah Hicks, he was educated at Pickton Public School, and the Collegiate Institute. He started in the jewelry trade in his father's store at 15 years of age. He came to Winnipeg in 1897, being President of Porte and Markle Ltd., which business was incorporated with Henry Birks & Sons in 1913.

George W. Markle (1879-1957)

Born in Ontario on July 4, 1879, 18 to Winnipeg about 1901 and worked as an optician. He worked with jeweler T.J. Porte, later becoming a partner in the firm of Porte and Markle. In 1914 when Birks Dingwall took over the firm, Porte and Markle became joint managers. He later retired to Los Angeles, California where he died in 1957.


November 12, 2011, 18:43
Larry Buchan
Illinois Double Sunk Gothic 24-Hour private-label dial marked Henry Birks & Sons Limited


November 12, 2011, 18:48
Larry Buchan
Dial has chip near 10 o'clock position.


November 12, 2011, 18:50
Larry Buchan
Illinois 18 size, 21 jewel, Model 6, Grade Bunn Special, Serial No. 2041896 manufactured 1908.