William Leonard Jukes, British home Child

“It isn’t a keep it’s a linger.”  Those are the words that Annie Jukes spoke on August 28, 1901, to sum up her decision to part with two of her children William Leonard Jukes, 10 and Clifford Henry age 7.

  In describing her family’s plight Annie Jukes explained “I just can not keep them in food and clothes or I would not part with them.”  Annie’s remarks are recorded along with other family information in Case No. 2236 of the Middlemore Homes.[1]   Annie’s husband, William Jukes had died five years before and with 5 children to support, the boys were forced into running errands for neighbours for food.

Annie’s request was granted on May 24, 1902, when both Leonard and Clifford departed from Liverpool on the SS Siberian.  They arrived in Halifax in June of that year.   Leonard soon found himself in Stanley, New Brunswick where he lived along with his brother Clifford, with the Davidson Family and worked on their Farm.

By 1907, at the age of 16, Leonard met Nancy Edna Mills, who lived at Claremont, which is part of present-day Douglas.  Nancy was the daughter of William Alfred Mills and Nancy Francis Hanson.  The two courted for 7 years with Leonard making trips by horse and wagon between Stanley and Claremont on Sundays, his day off. Nancy would not marry because her mother was ill and she took care of her.

Leonard Jukes and his wife Nancy Mills

Leonard and Nancy were married on April 14, 1914. By 1917 the family lived in Plaster Rock where Leonard worked for Fraser Mill.  By 1927 Leonard was working for the Fraser Dairy in Edmundston, delivering milk by horse and cart.

The family eventually settled in Traceyville in the 1930s where they farmed, logged, and traded horses until 1947, when the family moved to Nashwaaksis where Leonard worked on the John Wilkins Farm for a time.  Leonard worked hard all of his life; his last job was at the York Municipal Home when he was in his seventies.  An avid horseman he spent many a day at the Fredericton Race Track at the barns or placing the odd wager on a horse.

Our memories of our grandfather are a mix of sounds and smells.   He always carried peppermints for the horses and when he came home from the barn we would beg him for a peppermint.  I can still remember his laugh and the smell of the barn mingled with the strong taste of the peppermints.  I remember his voice when he would sing some old English hymn and when he would try to teach us how to count to 10 in Welsh, which we never mastered.  Grampy died on May 20, 1973, at the age of 82.  He left behind, 6 children, 21 grandchildren, and many great children, quite a legacy for an 11-year-old boy who found himself alone in a country he didn’t know.  More details about their life in New Brunswick can be found in the post: Nancy Mills: Raising a Family in New Brunswick.