James Neil Currie

[iggie23]

I'm trying to find out what happened to James Neil Currie.  He was born in Glasgow Scotland on March 12, 1878.  He arrived in Canada in 1903 and lived in York (Toronto) Ontario with his wife Julia and their many children.  He deserted his family on multiple occasions to live in the USA.  His wife died in June, 1947.  The last trace I can find of him is a border crossing to the USA at Niagara/Buffalo in 1946.  The document said that he was returning to the USA after visiting his married daughter in Toronto.  I'm trying to find out when and where he died.  He was in trouble several times and served time in prison in Canada.  He gave the name of Mike Cair of Buffalo as his contact.

[AMBLY]

Hi

I see a 1907 Canada to US border crossing  where James was going to friend Mike CAIN in Buffalo NY.

The 1946 Canada to US crossing nearly 40 years later has no name of any person in the US :
James Neil CURRIE,  age 67, b 12 Mar 1878, Glasgow, Scotland
Occupation: Dishwasher,
Last permanent address: 2352 48th St W Washington DC
He gave the name and address in Canada of wife Julia, 684 Balliol St, Toronto
He said he had lived in the US from 1926 onward
He gave the address: 2352 48th St W Washington DC as that of 'nearest relative or friend to join in the US'. Gave address only, gave no name of a person.
Said he had arrived in Quebec in 1901 on the SS Madsion
A note on the back of the card said had a Soc Security Card  & letters of registration

(I'm amazed he was giving Julia's name on the imm 1946 form, all things considered!)

From an earlier posting
http://www.rootschat.com/forum/index.php?action=printpage;topic=676703.0
James was a Stone Cutter

And here he is in 1940 - surely has to be him:
House number: 2352 ----------* Washington, District of Columbia (Washington DC)
Head: James CURRIE 62, b Scotland, Imm: Pa , Stone Cutter at Marble Works
Wife: Hazel CURRIE 39,  b Canada-English, Imm: Alien
Was living in the same place in 1935.
Plus 2 lodgers
(*The street name/cordinates aren't on the page - would have to go back thru many pages to see where the enumerator has first written it....)

Cheers
AMBLY

[AMBLY]

1930: 1108, 22nd Street, Washington DC
Roomer: James CURRIE, 52, married, Stonecutter, b Canada, parents b Canada
Roomer: Hazel CURRIE 29, married (at age 25), b United States, parents b USA
In household of Frank & Hazel GRAHAM (age in their 30's from Maryland & Connecticut)

Cheers
AMBLY

[shellyesq]

Washington, DC city directories

1930 & 1932
Currie, Jas (Hazel) stone cutter, resides 1108 22nd nw

1931
Currie, Jas (Hazel) stone mason, resides 1108 22nd nw

1934
Currie, Jas N (Hazel) stone cutter, resides 1118 22nd nw

1935, 1936, & 1937
Currie, Jas N (Hazel V) stone cutter, home 3621 M nw

1938
Currie, Jas N (Hazel) stone cutter, home 3719 M nw

1939
Currie, Jas N (Hazel) stone cutter, home 2352 48th nw

1948
Currie, Jas  hospital attendant Veterans Administration resides 813 23rd nw (not sure if he's the same guy)

No James or Hazel Currie in the 1954 Washington DC city directory.

[iggie23]

Thanks for all the info.  If James married Hazel when she was 25, the marriage would have been approx. 1926.  This would have been after his release from jail, and the period of time that we can't account for his whereabouts.

On September 28, 1922, James' wife Julia was charged with the murder of her 16 month old daughter Pearl.  James was arrested and charged with incest.  In October 1922, James pleaded guilty and was sentenced to two years in jail plus lashes.  His daughters and sons testified to the horrors at home.  Julia  has no memory of what she had done.  She was in a mental health facility until April, 1925.  Julia went on trial in May, 1925 and was eventually found not guilty by reason of temporary insanity.  The doctors believe that the shock of finding out about what James had done had pushed her over the edge. The judge called the case one of the most tragic in Toronto history.
   
The Toronto Star newspaper covered the story extensively.  The original story and photos can be found on the front page of the September 28, 1922 edition.

James had disappeared many times, only to reappear and terrorize his family. 

At the time of the 1921 Canada census, James took his family from their home on Balliol Street and moved them to George Street (still in Toronto).  He lied on the census and gave their last name as Neis.  I believe he came up with the name by changing the "l" in Neil to an "s".  He came to Canada in 1903 from Scotland.  He lied and said he came to Canada in 1904.  He said his parents were both born in Ireland, but they were really born in Scotland.  I found him by searching for his married daughter.  His daughter and her two children are listed as boarders in his house.  It doesn't make sense that his daughter would return home with her children, knowing the abuse that he inflicted.  Something happened that caused James to go into hiding.  At this point, I wouldn't be shocked at anything that James did.

[AMBLY]

Hi iggie23,

It's a very, very sad story   
That's why I was surprised he was still giving Julia as his wife/contact in the 1946 border crossing.

For what it's worth - and I'm not trying to lessen or diminish  what was clearly an unhappy and fearful home for the  wife and children… but:

I don't think the name is 1921 is meant to be NEIS - I think it is NEIL. The enumerator's actual "s" in other words is quite different and she does have a habit of making a bit of a flourish on the end letter of words in some cases - eg: look how Scotland is written… As for the absence of the CURRIE - you would need to see the actual Household Card to see if the omission of CURRIE in the Enumerator's book was deliberate on the part of James or a mistake by the enumerator when she transferred the data from Card to Book.

I wouldn't read much into James declaring  his immigration year as 1904, rather than 1903.   And maybe he didn't actually  fill in the Census form! Maybe Julia did, may one of the older daughters did - they could easily have been mistaken on a point or two.

He did say  he immigrated in 1901 on at least 2 other occasions on travel cards, again this kind of 'error' or mistake wasn't uncommon for even the most honest of folk to make.

The 1921 Census says he was born Scotland and that his father was born Ireland, mother born Scotland.   It doesn't say both parents b Ireland - that's an error on the  transcript index.

I think his 1921 address at George St, Toronto wasn't terribly far from the Balliol St, Toronto address  they lived at before and after 1921? If he was hiding in 1921, it was  "hiding in plain sight"  -  at least from a Census point of view. His wife, his children, ages, his occupation - these are not false.  Did they move back to the same Balliol address later on , or to a different house? Perhaps they were forced to move because they were evicted for causing nuisance or didn't pay the rent or some such. Or he'd done a bunk and forced Julia to make arrangements to live elsewhere.  With  the married daughter lodging in the household in 1921 - there could be a myriad of reasons -  was she there to 'look out' for mother? Was the daughter only there on Census night, not really a lodger?  Was James really living there but they (Julia) wrote down the official head of the household as her absent husband?  Had he recently arrived back from the US?

June 1, 1921, was the official date for the 1921 census.  When he crossed over to US in 1926 - the card said he had lived from May to July 1921 in Los Angeles. Note, this card puts Hazel in the picture too  :

13 Apr 1926, Port of Buffalo, Canada to US crossing
James-Neil CURRIE 47, Stonecutter, b Glasgow, Scotland
Bate of Birth 12 May 1879
Last Permanent Address: Toronto, Canada
Destination: Buffalo, NY
Previously in US: May 1921-July 1921, Los Angeles Cal.
Going to reside permanently in US
Relative or Friend in Canada*: Julia, 128 Balliol St Toronto
*Was first written "Wife, Hazel" but this was crossed out and "Julia" written instead
It said he had arrived in Canada in 1901

I would be inclined to doubt  he was really married to Hazel (unless it was bigamous), unless you know for sure he and Julia were divorced at some point? He certainly appears to have been involved  with Hazel @ mid  1926 at least.

Cheers
AMBLY

[shellyesq]

1929 Washington, DC city directory
Curry, Jas. (Hazel) stonecutter, resides 1009 23rd nw

I don't see them in 1926, 1927, or 1928 under Currie, Curry, or Currey.

[shellyesq]

In the Washington Post from 17 Feb. 1955, there is a death notice for James Currie of 3420 M St. nw who died on 14 Feb.  Services at Chambers Funeral Home, 3072 M St. nw on Sat. Feb. 19 at 9:30 pm.  Internment Washington National.

I'm not sure if he's your guy, but I haven't been able to link it to any other James Currie as of yet.

[iggie23]

Hi Ambly

I've been looking at everything for so long, it's helpful to have a new perspective.  Thank you.

I agree that Neis is probably Neil.  You are correct that his mother's birthplace is given as Scotland, and his father's birthplace is given as Ireland.  His father was in fact born in Scotland.

The family eventually moved back to the family home.  The youngest daughter Ruby never married and she lived in the family home at 684 Balliol Street until her death in 1997.

As for the daughter Julia Saunders, when she moved back, she brought her two young children with her.  I can't find any info on what happened to her husband Cecil Saunders (Sanders).  She too eventually moved back to the family home at 684 Balliol Street.  She was living with them at the time of the murder in 1922.

After Julia Currie's release from jail, she worked in a fish and chip store on Dundas Avenue, and she lived above it.  She eventually returned to her home on Balliol Street.  I remember visiting that house as a child/teenager but my memories of it have faded.  I remember it had a huge yard, and the house seemed to be divided.  I don't mean like two apartments, but it was somehow "blocked off."  It was very odd, and I don't really know how better to describe the set up. 

I realize that immigration dates can be off, but in James' case they have varied greatly, sometimes by several years and he has given different ship names for his voyage to Canada. 

My grandmother told me that one of James' sons took the blame for something his father did, but she didn't tell me what happened.  I've often wondered if that was a reason for one of his disappearances.

Family members didn't want to talk about James.  I remember one relative trying to talk about James and everyone getting very upset and angry.  The trouble that James got into went far beyond the incest, and physical abuse at home.