- John Deighton
John Deighton (November 1830 –
May 29 1875 ), generally known as "Gassy Jack", was a Canadian bar owner who was born in Hull,England .TheGastown neighbourhood ofVancouver, British Columbia is named for him.John started out as a Steamship operator for many years of his early life. However he was eventually forced to pursue other lines of work once he developed health problems (swelling of the legs and feet). [ [http://www.discovervancouver.com/GVB/gasyjack.asp Gassy Jack] ]
Between 1862 and 1867 John Deighton ran a bar in New Westminster,
British Columbia . It was quite prosperous due to theCariboo Gold Rush of 1862, however by 1867 business slowed down and he had to close it down.He later opened a bar on the south side of
Burrard Inlet at the behest of his old friend, CaptainEdward Stamp , the owner of theHastings Mill . He later named it the Globe Saloon. He came to the area with little more than 6 dollars to his name, a few simple pieces of furniture, his Native wife whose name has been lost to the years and a yellow dog. The bar was built by idle sawmill workers in exchange for all the whiskey they could drink in one sitting (the nearest drinking hole was 25 miles away). [ [http://www.discovervancouver.com/GVB/vancouver-crime.asp Greg Middleton, Vancouver Crime]] His patrons were mainly sailors and workers from the nearby sawmill. This bar was demolished when the townsite of Granville was established and was afterwards rebuilt as Deighton House. Jack's native wife died, but he remarried to her 12-year-old niece Quahail-ya, also known as Madeline or Matrine. Brother Tom Deighton and his wife took over the business in 1874 and John began working the steamship that plied the
Fraser River . However after a family quarrel a few months later John resumed management of the saloon and operated it until he had gotten ill and died at the age of 44 onMay 23 ,1875 .Deighton was known as Gassy Jack because of his talkative nature and his penchant for storytelling. The name stuck and the area around his bar is now known as
Gastown .He was succeeded by his son with Quahail-ya, Richard, whom was derisively nicknamed the "Earl of Granville". Unfortunately, Richard was born Simple-minded, Qua-hail-ya was disinherited, and Richard died before Jack's meagre estate (about $300) was probated.
He is interred at the Fraser Cemetery in New Westminster, British Columbia. The location of the monument is N49 13.322 W122 53.815 (
WGS84 ).External links
* [http://www.biographi.ca/009004-119.01-e.php?&id_nbr=4934 Biography at the "Dictionary of Canadian Biography Online"]
* [http://www.discovervancouver.com/GVB/gasyjack.asp Better Bio from the Greater Vancouver Website]References
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