Jessie Margaret Dodd

After learning more about our paternal grandmother, I regret that distance prevented us from having her as a constant presence in our childhood. Photographs of her visits to our family home most often show her with one or another of her grandchildren in her arms. After reading her story, I am sure you will agree that she was a remarkable woman one certainly worth knowing. Born on April 21, 1899, Jessie was the daughter of David Adam Dodd and Kathleen McCaskill. David and Kathleen had nine children; Jessie was the third. In addition, David had one child, Mildred, from a previous marriage. Jessies earliest years were likely busy as hers was a farming family and the day would have been filled with hard work, but one hopes that as a child on a farm, there was plenty of opportunity to have fun. If in fact her early years were filled with fun, those days came to an abrupt end on December 9, 1908, when her mother Kathleen, died. On November 20, 1908, Kathleen, pregnant with her ninth child, was kicked by a cow while milking it. As a result she went into labour and had her last child, Kenneth. She however, never recovered and died nineteen days later. It is not known whether she died as a result of the injury itself or from an infection after Kenneths birth. Whatever the case, her untimely death had a profound effect on the family. Her death and the consequences it had on her husband David are included in a document on his life, but for the purposes of telling Jessies story, Ill concentrate on the effect on her life. After Kathleens death, Kenneth, just a couple of weeks old, along with sister Grace, who was 8 at the time, went to live with Kathleens sister, Maggie and her husband, Peter Lothian. With David and his sons tending the farm, the childcare fell to Jessie, 9 and Annie, 11. This must have been an overwhelming task for such young girls, but it seems that Jessie was more than up to the task. Correspondence from Jessies nephew, Clarence Dodd, states that Jessie was like a mother to his father, Samuel and sister, Lillian. Clarence himself had a deep affection and respect for Jessie and has communicated to Bev that she was his favourite aunt. Not only was Jessie helping to raise her younger siblings, there is no doubt that her and Annie would have been responsible for most, if not all, the housework and cooking, sewing and all the things which mothers tend to. One cannot imagine our own children having such enormous strain at such a young age, but given the respect and closeness that Jessies siblings had for her, it would seem that even as a youngster she was an amazing person.

Jessies father, David was also deeply affected by the tragedy of his wifes death and combined with the work of the farm, taking care of his family, and coping with grief; he suffered a physical breakdown and had to be hospitalized for several months. It appears that Kathleens sister, Christina McCaskill went to live at Davids home during this time, as the 1911 Census shows her with the family. This must have given Jessie and Annie some much needed help and rest. Before she turned seventeen years old, Jessie had met and become engaged to Howard Clayton Smith and he was off to war. Thus, Jessie went from being a young girl thrust into a life of childrearing and homemaking, to a teenager dealing with the concern for her fianc fighting on the Western Front in France. What a tremendous load she had on her shoulders! Jessies life did not get much easier as an adult, having to deal with the death of a son at ten months old and the illness and subsequent death of her 11 year old daughter, while Clayton was fighting in WWII. We have all met people who have been battered by life and have become embittered, yet from all accounts the hardships in Jessies life served to make her a strong, gentle, patient and accepting person one who had a way of making anyone comfortable and welcome in her home. Jessie and Clayton had nine children and as stated earlier two of them died in childhood. Jessie also had a stillbirth. They raised their children in Calumet, Quebec. Jessie stayed in her home after Clayton died, she herself living to the good age of 94.