Reginald Hooton^[1]

1901 - 1967  (66 years)

• Name	Reginald Hooton
  Born	13 Nov 1901	, Northamptonshire, England   [2, 3]
  Gender	Male
  Occupation	1919	Ayr, North Dumfries Twp., Waterloo Region, Ontario, Canada   [2]
  	machinist
  Eby ID Number	Waterloo-341633
  Died	12 Dec 1967	Ayr, North Dumfries Twp., Waterloo Region, Ontario, Canada   [3]
  Buried	15 Dec 1967	Ayr Cemetery, Ayr, Waterloo Region, Ontario, Canada   [3]
  Person ID	I341633	Generations
  Last Modified	6 Apr 2024

  
  

  Father	Ernest Hooton,   b. 15 Jun 1871, Bozeart, Northamptonshire Co., England ,   d. 16 Jul 1961, London, Middlesex, Ontario, Canada  (Age 90 years)
  Mother	Clara Rebecca Spriggs,   b. 1874, Lavendon, , Buckinghamshire, England ,   d. 4 Nov 1958, Ayr, North Dumfries Twp., Waterloo Region, Ontario, Canada  (Age 84 years)
  Married	CALC 26 Dec 1897	Wollaston, Northampton, England   [1]
  Family ID	F248753	Group Sheet  |  Family Chart

  
  

  Family	Sarah "Sadie" Walton,   b. 1 Nov 1902, Ayr, North Dumfries Twp., Waterloo Region, Ontario, Canada ,   d. 22 May 1975, Kitchener, Waterloo Region, Ontario, Canada  (Age 72 years)
  Married	18 Nov 1919	Galt (Cambridge), Waterloo Region, Ontario, Canada   [2]
  Children	1. Evelyn Patricia "Evie" Hooton,   b. 9 Aug 1923, Ayr, North Dumfries Twp., Waterloo Region, Ontario, Canada ,   d. 8 Apr 1998, Kitchener, Waterloo Region, Ontario, Canada  (Age 74 years)   2. Leonard Albert "Len" Hooton,   b. 1929, Galt (Cambridge), Waterloo Region, Ontario, Canada ,   d. 29 Aug 2004, Paris, Brant County, Ontario, Canada  (Age 75 years)
  Last Modified	7 Apr 2024
  Family ID	F248897	Group Sheet  |  Family Chart

  
  

• Notes

  Reginald Hooton, Prominent Ayr Sportsman Passes Suddenly - The community was shocked on Tuesday by the sudden passing of one of its best known sportsmen, Reginald Hooton, who died of a heart attack during the supper hour. He had returned home from work in Paris in his usual good spirits and was preparing to take his evening meal when he was stricken. Mr. Hooton was in his 67thyear. He was born in Northamptonshire, England, and came to Canada with his parents as a boy. His father, the late Ernest Hooton, was a railroad section man, and before coining to Ayr the family resided at Blandford Station, Woodstock and Toronto. For a number of years Mr. Hooton was employed at the Hecker - H-O Company, until it ceased operations at the outbreak of World War II. He subsequently worked in the carpenter shop of the John Watson Mfg. Co, Ltd. for a lengthy period, and latterly at Penman's in Paris. Mr. Hooton's career in sports was quite remarkable in the fact that at an age when most men are giving up active participation, he was just commencing. His initial undertaking was the organization of a juvenile hockey team here about 1942, which competed as Ayr's first O.M.H.A. entry with clubs from Galt, Hespeler and Preston. As the team grew older, it entered the O.R.H.A. under the traditional name of Ayr Vics, still under Mr. Hooton's management. Its best year was in 1949 when the Vics won the league title, and were eliminated in the O.R.H.A. play downs by Bright, who went on to win the title. Had it been possible for enthusiasm to win for Ayr, Reg's would have taken the championship without difficulty. About the same time Reg, as he was known to every hockey and softball enthusiast in the area, decided to put Ayr on the softball map. Although he had competent hands to help him, Reg's almost sacred devotion to the cause was the major factor in the phenomenal success of the game here in the early '50s. He gathered about him a team of talented youths, drilled them with determination and convinced them (Continued on Page Two) they were the best - and he proved it. But just having a top team was not sufficient for Reg. His next move was the installation of floodlights at Victoria Park ball field, a project which he attacked with a dedicated zeal, along with the rest of the team. The installation was completed in 1950, and the Ayr Vets team began to blossom. With Reg at the helm they won the O.R.S.A. Championship during a period when the calibre of the softball was at its highest peak. Crowds of 800 - 1,000 were not uncommon at important home games is Ayr. But this was not the only world to conquer for the great competitor. In the early 1950's he was one of the organizers of the Tri-County Softball League, which eventually became the Inter City Fastball League. At that time the loop consisted of Ayr, Guelph, Galt, Orangeville and Moorefield. Reg fielded a strong team for the few seasons Ayr entered the loop, and again filled the seats at Victoria Park. Probably the compliment Reg would have appreciated most was that his Ayr Vets were the best in the village history and that the camaraderie and team spirit are still referred to by former members with nostalgia. Besides his team activities he was an ardent fisherman and a pigeon fancier of some note. Surviving besides his wife, the former Sadie Walton, are a daughter, Mrs. Frank Cromwell (Evelyn), RR 3 Bright; a son, Leonard, of Fort Erie; a sister, Mrs. Irwin (Norah) of Ayr; and a brother Sydney Hooton of Brantford. Six grandchildren also survive. Funeral service will be held on Friday at 2: 00 p.m. from the Bruce B. Smith Funeral Home, Paris, conducted by Rev. N. A. Tilford of Christ Anglican Church. Interment will be in Ayr Cemetery. The Ayr News Dec 14 1967 pg 1

  
  

• Sources

  [S2556] News - ON, Waterloo, Ayr - Ayr News (1897- ), Obituary of Clara Rebecca Spriggs - Hooton - 6 Nov 1958, pg 9. [S721] Vit - ON - Marriage Registration, marriage certificate 25527 (1919), Reginald Hooton-Sadie Walton. Reginald Hooton, machinist of Ayr, Birth Place: England Age: 21 Estimated Birth Year: abt 1898 Father Name: Ernest Hooton Mother Name: Clara Spriggs Spouse Name: Sadie Walton, residence Ayr, Spouse's Age: 18 Spouse Birth Place: Ayr Spouse Father Name: Norman Walton Spouse Mother Name: Carrie Holiday Marriage Date: 18 Nov 1919 Marriage Location: Waterloo, Galt [S367] Cemetery - ON, Waterloo, Ayr - Ayr Public CC#4489 Internet Link . Hooton/ In Loving memory of/ Reginald Hooton/ Nov. 13, 1901 - Dec. 12, 1967/ his beloved wife/ Sarah Walton/ Nov. 1, 1902 - May 22, 1975

  
  

• Event Map

  Born - 13 Nov 1901 - , Northamptonshire, England Occupation - machinist - 1919 - AYR, North Dumfries Twp., Waterloo Region, Ontario, Canada Married - 18 Nov 1919 - Galt (Cambridge), Waterloo Region, Ontario, Canada Died - 12 Dec 1967 - AYR, North Dumfries Twp., Waterloo Region, Ontario, Canada Buried - 15 Dec 1967 - Ayr Cemetery, Ayr, Waterloo Region, Ontario, Canada  = Link to Google Earth