G8: Shiels, James Charles (1903-1960) & Marjorie “Min” Coe
James Charles Shiels was born Feb 13, 1903 in Keppel, Ontario, near Brussels. He was the only child of William Shiels & Mary McKenzie.
He moved with his parents to Burnaby, British Columbia and finished his schooling there. As a young man, he acquired work in the sawmills as an apprentice millwright.
James met Marjorie Clara Coe in 1923. They were married Dec 12, 1923 in Vancouver. Margaret was the daughter of a local merchant in Vancouver and was always called “Min”. They raised three children, all born in British Columbia.
Sawmills & Mining
James worked on a number of Sawmills all over BC. In 1940, he started his own sawmill in the St. Mary’s Lake area with his son William.
James also worked in Mining when work was slow with the mills. He also learned to make violins and that turned out to become a passion of his.They moved from town to town over the years and finally settled in Quesnel, BC. Min stayed there the rest of her life and James travelled for work as required.
Discovering This Branch
In 1982, Dan & Judy Shiels had visited his grandfather’s sister, Lottie Shiels Burdett. Until this time, all we knew about Thomas’s brother William was that he married, had a son James and they went west. When Dan asked Lottie if they had ever visited, she said that James cames to visit once in the 1930’s and that they lived in Quesnel, BC at the time.
When Dan & Judy arrived home, they called directory assistance for Quesnel, BC and discovered a “Shiels, M”.When they called the number, Dan asked if this was Mrs Mary Shiels and the lady said “No, that was my Mother-in-law, my name is Min and my husband was James Shiels”. How wonderful that was!
Dan & Min talked for a few minutes and Dan agreed to send her a letter with all the details that he knew. On the next call, Min said that her grandson was going to bible college just outside of Winnipeg so Dan & Judy went to meet them. That is how another branch of this wonderful tree was discovered.
Their Family
James had a fatal heart attack in 1960. Min continued to live in Quesnel till one before her 102nd birthday! James and Min had three children.
Isabel Arletta Shiels (1924-1998) & John Kaye
Isabel Arletta Shiels was born in 1924 at Vancouver, BC. She married John Kaye in 1943 and John went off to fight in WWII with the RCAF.
When John returned, he worked in a number of jobs before he became a Customs and Excise Officer. He remained there in various capacities until he retired. Isabel was always known as “Bubbles”.
Isabel and John retired in 1986 and took up genealogy as a hobby. They celebrated their 50th wedding anniversary in 1993 and continue to live in their dream home at Creston, BC and enjoy the balmy winters and bountiful summers in “Lotusland”. They had four daughters.
Donald James Shiels (1925-1970) & Nelline Marie Schug
Donald James Shiels, or Bud as he was known, was born in 1925 at Burnaby, BC. He completed his schooling and entered the forest industry with his father. Donald was a promising young golfer and was seriously considering entering the professional tournament circuits, however he decided instead to work with his father. He became very proficient and was in demand as an excellent sawyer and scaler.
Bud & Nellie had six children. Bud always had heart problems and died in 1970 at only 44 years of age.
William George Shiels (1930-2019) & Veronica Gassoff
William George Shiels was born in 1930 at Cranbrook, BC. Bill married Veronica Gassoff in Barkersville, BC in 1949. They had seven children.
Bill worked for two years at the Department of Highways and one year for his father. He then went on to work for Weldwood of Canada at Quesnel. After 16 years, William was transferred to the Williams Lake Weldwood operation in 1977 and worked there until his retirement in 1989. During this period, he was sent by the Company to Japan on a business trip. After his retirement from Weldwood, William ran his own consulting business from 1989 to 1999. He travelled extensively throughout the US, as far south as Brazil and to Japan.
In his retirement, William and Vera continue to reside at Williams Lake, BC before moving to Swift Current, Saskatchewan in Jul 2016 when they were forced out of their home by wildfires.
Discover More in the Shiels Family History Book
It’s especially interesting that onlythe oldest and the youngest of John Shiels and Janet McNair’s children would marry. What is even more interesting was that they both headed west!
More detailed family records — including additional descendants, marriages, dates and places — can be found in the book Shiels Family History, available on Amazon. The book follows these families in greater depth and preserves the genealogical information gathered during many years of research.