LEST WE FORGET 229 LENTON, Wilfrid WWI Wilfrid Lenton, Henry and Lucy’s second child, was born on October 15, 1878, in Oundle, Northamptonshire, England. He attended Thrapston High School, attaining first place in his exams in 1896, his last year there. From 1896 to 1898, he was a pupil-teacher at the Rockingham Road Board School where he worked for his Teacher’s Certificate, excelling in his studies. When war broke out in South Africa, he left his books, enlisted as a Trooper and sailed for the Table Bay in early 1899. After serving as a Trooper and acting noncommissioned officer under various generals, he received a commission as First Lieutenant and went to Johannesburg. Wilfrid immigrated to Canada about six months after the war ended and entered the Ontario Veterinary College, graduating in 1905 with a gold medal for best general examination, first prizes in pathology and physiology, second in anatomy, third in disease and treatment and honours in three other subjects. He practiced as a veterinarian in Belmont until July 1906 when he was offered the position of assistant veterinarian at the Agricultural Experiment Station at the University of Arkansas. In July 1907, he was made veterinarian to that institution and assistant in animal pathology. Later, he took charge of the Department of Veterinary Science. He was also a member of several boards. Known at the University as Professor Lenton, he drew up a bill covering all points of animal sanitation which the legislature of 1907-08 enacted into a law. It was around that time that he started courting Gertrude Eva Besso, adopted daughter of Charles and Alena Drummond-Hay. No records of a formal adoption were found and Gertrude kept her birth surname until she married. Wilfrid and Eva were married in the Parish Church in Belmont, Manitoba on October 9, 1907. They had five children: Wilfrid Drummond (August 23, 1908), Ethel Rebecca (April 24, 1910), Richard Roderick (September 23, 1911), Eric Kenneth (June 8, 1913), and Lucy Gertrude (February 6, 1915). Wilfrid and Eva took up residence in Fayetville, Arkansas where Wilfrid worked at the University of Arkansas for a wage of $1500 per annum. Their first two children, Wilfrid and Ethel, were born there. They returned to Canada after Ethel was born, settling in Junor, Saskatchewan where the other children, Richard, Eric, and Lucy, were born. The family lived in a log house valued at $300 in 1910 and $800 in 1921. A family story is that the roof leaked and Wilfrid, Ethel and a bag of flour were put under the table to keep them dry when it rained. Wilfrid joined the Veterinary Corp of the Canadian Overseas Expeditionary Force in December 1914 and was sent to France in 1915. He received the commission of Captain and was awarded the Military Cross. Eva and the children went to Belmont and remained there until after the war. Veterinary units and over seven thousand horses sailed with Canada’s First Contingent to England in October 1914. At its greatest strength, the Canadian Corps had more than 23, 500 horses (from Library and Archived Canada). The family returned to Saskatchewan in 1919. He farmed and raised cattle. In 1927, Wilfrid purchased two acres of land in Medstead and built a two-storey house there. The front gate was a popular place for picture taking in the years that followed. Wilfrid started working for the Rural Municipality of Medstead, a position he held for about fourteen years. He was well-known in the Medstead district, sat on various committees, was a devoted church member and a member of the Masonic Lodge. He passed away on September 6, 1943, at the age of 65. Eva was also active in her community, especially the church, and was a devoted mother and grandmother. She passed away on June 22, 1948, at the age of 61.
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