Matthew Wilks Keefer

1891 - 1971  (79 years)

• Name	Matthew Wilks Keefer
  Born	19 Jul 1891	Galt (Cambridge), Waterloo Region, Ontario, Canada   [1]
  Gender	Male
  Interesting	wealth, farmer, philanthropy
  Military	WW1  [1]
  Eby ID Number	Waterloo-65648P
  Died	23 Mar 1971	Cambridge, Waterloo Region, Ontario, Canada
  Buried	Trinity Anglican Cemetery, Cambridge, Waterloo Region, Ontario, Canada
  Person ID	I65648	Generations
  Last Modified	7 Nov 2024

  
  

  Father	Dr. William Napier Keefer,   b. 1844, Thorold, Thorold Twp., Welland Co., Ontario ,   d. 27 Dec 1922, Toronto, York Co., Ontario, Canada  (Age 78 years)
  Mother	Alice Eugenia Wilks,   b. 1 Jan 1849, Manhattan, New York, New York, United States ,   d. 13 Jun 1916, Toronto, York Co., Ontario, Canada  (Age 67 years)
  Married	31 Dec 1889	Galt (Cambridge), Waterloo Region, Ontario, Canada
  Family ID	F12254	Group Sheet  |  Family Chart

  
  

  Family	Margaret Sommerbys,   b. 5 Oct 1897, Duffield, , Derbyshire, England ,   d. 11 Sep 1990, Cambridge, Waterloo Region, Ontario, Canada  (Age 92 years)
  Last Modified	12 Nov 2024
  Family ID	F46559	Group Sheet  |  Family Chart

  
  

• Notes

  MATTHEW WILKS KEEFER - 1891-1971 Married: Margaret Scott Hamilton - 1935 Matthew Wilks Keefer was the nephew of Katherine Langdon Wilks and upon her death in 1948 he inherited the Cruickston Park estate that had been built by Matthew Wilks. Mr. Keefer was born in Galt in 1891, the son of William Napier Keefer and Alice Eugenia Wilks, another daughter of Matthew Wilks. Mr. Keefer has been described as a strong-minded and level headed man who studied law at Osgoode Hall in Toronto and then studied finance in England. He served in the Home Guard during World War II and came to Cruickston Park in 1947 to assist Katherine Wilks in the operation of the farm. When he assumed control of the farm in 1948 he phased out the breeding of the horses for which the farm was famous and re-introduced beef cattle as the primary livestock. In addition to building the quality of his own herd, he encouraged and assisted small local farmers in building the quality of their own herds. Mr. Keefer died on March 23, 1971 leaving the farm to the University of Guelph. Cambridge Mosaic, Jim Quantrell, 1998, City of Cambridge

  
  

• Sources

  [S157] Military - Canada - World War I - Attestation papers. Matthew Wilks Keefer Birth Date19 Jul 1891 Birth LocationGalt, Ontario, Canada ResidenceToronto, Canada RelativeNapier Keefer RelationshipFather Regiment Number2365649

  
  

• Event Map

  Born - 19 Jul 1891 - Galt (Cambridge), Waterloo Region, Ontario, Canada Died - 23 Mar 1971 - Cambridge, Waterloo Region, Ontario, Canada Buried - - Trinity Anglican Cemetery, Cambridge, Waterloo Region, Ontario, Canada  = Link to Google Earth