George Shiels was born in 1871 and was the seventh child of George Shiels & Susannah Wortley. He was a seventh generation descendant of Micheal Shiels and his lineage is as follows:
- G1: Micheal Shiels 1671 & Bessie Brown
- G2: Daniel Shiels 1719 & Jessie Scott
- G3: James Shiels 1750 & Janet Younger
- G4: Robert Shiels 1769-1845 & Annie Dickson
- G5: Thomas Shiels 1795-1839 & Barbara Jean Cranston
- G6: George Shiels 1828-1906 & Susannah Wortley
- G7: George Shiels Jr 1871-1904 & Frances Mary Combs
- G8: Edna Shiels 1898-1991 & Wilford Johnston
- G9: Carson Johnston 1918-1994
- G9: Milton Johnston 1920-1986 & Connie Rainsberry
- G9: Edna Frances Johnston 1921-1988 & Henry Shantry
- G9: Eleanor Wayne Johnston 1924-1982 & Don Fisher
- G9: Dorothy Louise Johnston 1930 & Bruce Larmon
- G8: Edna Shiels 1898-1991 & Wilford Johnston
G7: George Shiels Jr 1871-1904 & Frances Mary Combs
George Shiels Jr was born October 18, 1871. He was the seventh child of George and Susannah Shiels.
He worked on the home farm and also for others as a bricklayer and stonemason. The “Brussels Post” of May 28, 1886 reports that George Shiels Sr. was raising his barn and putting a stone stable underneath. George Jr. undoubtedly had a hand in that, as did his brother Robert. The “Post” of August 6 the same year reports that Robert Shiels was injured by a large stone he was putting in his father’s basement. It is fairly certain that Robert, Thomas, and George Jr. worked with their father in building the large frame house on the home farm. George’s father gave him lot 21 con 17 Grey Twp.
George Jr married Frances Mary Combs on July 29, 1896. After the wedding, George’s father gave him lot 21 con 17 Grey Twp. George and Frances never built or lived on the farm. It was a swampy, low lying lot only suitable for pasture land. They lived in Brussels where George plied his stonemason and bricklaying trade.
George did dig a well on his land and developed respiratory problems as a result, which eventually caused his death on Mar 13, 1904. George and Frances had one daughter, Edna,
Following George’s death, Frances was married to Andrew Joynt of Seaforth. Frances and Andrew had two daughters, Bernice and Jeanette. Following Andrew’s death in 1920, Frances and her daughters remained in Seaforth, Ontario until Frances married Thomas E. Shiels in 1928. Thomas was an older brother of her first husband, George Shiels. His first wife, Jessie Anderson, had died in 1927. Frances and her daughters Bernice and Jeanette came to Detroit to live in Thomas’ home. Thomas E. Shiels died September 23, 1936 and is buried at Detroit. Frances Mary Combs (Shiels) (Joynt) (Shiels) died August 28, 1970 and is buried at Brussels, Ontario, beside her first husband, George Shiels Jr.
G8: Edna Shiels 1898-1991 & Wilford Johnston
Edna Shiels was born June 14, 1898 and attended school in Brussels. She was the only child of George and Frances Mary Shiels.
At age 17, Edna married Wilford Johnston on May 10, 1916. Wilford was a plumber by trade. They lived in Detroit, Michigan, then Owen Sound, Ontario, and finally settled in Smithville, Ontario where they lived out their lives.
Edna and Wilford had five children, Carson born July 29, 1918; Milton born March 15, 1920; Edna Frances born November 20, 1921; Eleanor Wayne born March 7, 1924 and Dorothy Louise born August 27, 1930.
Wilford died on April 8, 1984 at the age of 88. Edna died on August 18, 1991, in Smithville, Ontario, at the age of 93.
G9: Carson Johnston 1918-1994
Carson was born July 29, 1918 in Seaforth, Ontario to Edna Shiels and Wilford Johnston. He contracted polio at a young age and was permanently handicapped. Carson never married and died on December 12, 1994, in Smithville, Ontario, at the age of 76.G9: Milton Johnston 1920-1986 & Connie Rainsberry
Milton was born March 15, 1920 in Seaforth, Ontario to Edna Shiels and Wilford Johnston. He married Connie Rainsberry in July, 1945. They had four children, Fred, Carol, Dorothy and William. Milton died on June 26, 1986, in Hamilton City, California, USA, at the age of 66. Connie died on September 5, 2004, in Sarnia, Ontario, at the age of 77.G9: Edna Frances Johnston 1921-1988 & Henry Shantry
Edna Frances was born November 20, 1921 in Seaforth, Ontario to Edna Shiels and Wilford Johnston. She married Henry Shantry on September 27, 1947. They had no children. Henry died in 1988 in Ontario at the age of 67. Edna died in 2009 in Smithville, Ontario, at the age of 88.G9: Eleanor Wayne Johnston 1924-1982 & Don Fisher
Eleanor Wayne Johnston was born on March 7, 1924 in Seaforth, Ontario to Edna Shiels and Wilford Johnston.
She married Don Fisher on June 25, 1944. They had two children during their marriage, William David Fisher and Twila Ann Fisher born Jul 10, 1947.
Eleanor died on April 1, 1982, at the age of 58.