Rexford LeBaron

[lestree]

My maternal grandfather is my brick wall. My mother knows nothing about him except where he is buried, as he and my grandmother went separate ways when she was a baby. She was born in Montreal, Quebec and returned to Scotland with her older sister and mother in 1932, where her mother died of TB in 1933. She and her sister were brought up by her maternal grandmother. So, here is what I have found, mainly through his Canadian Expeditionary Forces records which themselves contain a minefield of anomalies/fibs

He was born on 2/3/1882 in Liverpool, England or Boston, Massachusetts, USA. I can find no birth certificate for either location.
He joined the C.E.F 236th Battallion on 14th June 1917. reg no 1030704
He was invalided out of the C.E.F in 1919 and went to Newport, Vermont, USA.
He married Marie Alphonsine Prevost on 1st July 1920 in Montreal and had two children, Richard and Mabel. Listed in that document he is listed as son of Joseph Rexford and Elizabeth Bond.

Somewhere between 1925 and 1928 he married my grandmother Catherine Fraser in Montreal, I can find no marriage records. They had two daughters, Anna and Dorothy(my mother).

The last information I have found is him living in St. Lawrence, Montreal in 1953
He died 26/7/1953 and is buried in The Field of Honor, St Claire Cemetery, Montreal

I got the 1920 marriage information from my half cousin (shared grandfather Rexford), I tracked down from a photograph my mother had of a little girl visiting my aunt Anna! But she has little further information, since he left her mother also. A scoundrel I think!!!

Thanks in advance for any ideas.

[Lesley Robertson]

Rexford, I am going to have to remove all those 1920s birth years since you don't say that these people are dead. We don't allow details about potentially living people to be posted on the open forum. I realise that they'd be in their 90s, but we have to be sure.

For info on the potentially living, members can provide it via the personal messaging system.

[lestree]

Hi, Sorry about that. Yes they are both dead. Just re-read my post and picked up a mistake. My name is Lesley and my brick wall person is Rexford LeBaron. ����

[Lesley Robertson]

I see that Ancestry.ca has attestation papers for a man of that name - sadly I only have the UK subcription, so can't see them.

If you let me know what the mistake in your post is, I can edit it.

[Squaredancer]

There's a Border Crossing record (Canada to USA, 1919) on FamilySearch for a Rexford Lebaron who claims to have beein born 1882 in Canada. Any good?

[lestree]

Yes I have that document and it ties in with his army number and when he was discharged from army. It’s just that without birth, death or marriage documents I can’t tie everything together. That birth place is different to his attestation page ??? He also names several women in his army documents as NOK, fiancé, sister aunt and benefactor of his will. But I can find no documents for any of them. None of them have the name Le Baron. He also nominated several occupations!! I’m beginning to see why my mother disliked him so much. Thanks for your time searching.

[Lesley Robertson]

Have you considered that there might be more than one person with this rather unlikely name? Cousins, perhaps?
I realise that your current target seems very unreliable, but you need to rule the possibility out.

[Dundee10]

lestree, can you please transcribe Rexford's 1920 marriage to Marie, or upload it to your Ancestry family tree?

[wimsey]

There's a Border Crossing record (Canada to USA, 1919) on FamilySearch for a Rexford Lebaron who claims to have beein born 1882 in Canada. Any good?

the image of that record shows his name actually spelt Le Baron and occupation "discharged soldier". And other transcribed versions of the same record give his birthplace as Fredericton, New Brunswick.

[Jomot1]

I havent read his CEF file but there was a snippet in the Boston Sunday Post 09 Sep 1917 stating that Rexford Lebaron had taken over the duties of medical corporal of the battalion & stating that his long hospital experience made him suitable to the position. It doesn't say which battalion but surrounding articles mention 'the Kilties'

There is also a Rexford Lebaron in the 1914 city directory for Boston, he was an orderly.

Also in Boston but 1908, LeBarron R, Trav Pass Agent Eastern SS Co