Blue plaque unveiled to the Canadian gold-mining millionaire born in Sleaford

Sleaford and District Civic Trust has been researching and installing a series of blue plaques commemorating significant buildings and landmarks around the town and the latest was property occupied by Pygott and Crone estate agents at 19 Southgate.

Born in Sleaford in 1871, William (Bill) Henry Wright started his working life as an apprentice butcher for his mother’s brother at his Westgate shop. His mother had died when he was nine.

Civic Trust member John dale has researched Bill’s history and explained that Bill developed a love of horses and looked after the firm’s horse and cart.

Seeking adventure at the age of 19 he joined as a trooper with the 8th Hussars, spending time in India and Egypt before landing in South Africa when the 2nd Boer War began. Just a few days later he and his comrades were under siege in Ladysmith for 122.

John said: “They were on starvation rations and he was struck down with typhoid and, believed to be dead, was taken to the morgue, fortunately he awoke before he could be put in the coffin!”

Returning to Sleaford he joined his sister Frances in Richmond, London and opened a butchers business with his brother-in-law.

However, he did not stay long and opted to emigrate to Canada in 1907, doing odd jobs until his sister and her husband, Edward came and joined him.

John went on: “In 1911, trying their luck at prospecting, 360 miles north of Toronto at Kirkland Lake, Bill and Edward are out hunting for rabbits for their supper. After becoming separated, Bill hears a pistol shot, in his rush thinking Edward might be in trouble, he stumbles over a rock and finds gold!”

By 1916 Bill was a millionaire but aged 40 he enlisted in the Canadian Infantry and head back to Europe to serve in the First World war, being known as the richest private in the army.

Returning to Canada in 1919 he had become a multi-millionaire and the owner of one of Canada’s biggest gold mines. He eventually moved to Barrie due to a bushfire destroying his town of Haileybury, bought a race track and stables and bred race horses, eventually winning Canada’s Triple Crown.

He also bought two Toronto newspapers and merged them. The Globe became the country’s biggest selling paper and is still in existence.

Towards the end of his life he turned to good works, giving the equivalent of half a million pounds to the Red Cross, financing the construction of Barrie Ice Hockey Stadium and gave £3.6 million to hospitals.

He died in Barrie, Ontario on September 20, 1951 and his headstone notes his birthplace of Sleaford, England.

The Civic Trust managed to track down the owner of the Southgate building where Bill grew up, a Rev Dominic Grant, of Barnet, who was invited to attend the unveiling ceremony on May 8 – the date that Bill emigrated to Canada in 1907 aged 31.

He commented: “I knew nothing of the building’s history and it has been wonderful to find out more. I have come here as an out-of-towner whereas this man left the town and did well in life.”

The plaque was unveiled by three William Alvey School pupils, as Bill was a former pupil.

The Civic Trust held its annual meeting later that day when there was a talk on the subject of William Wright.