Clementina Trenholme

Clementina Trenholme Fessenden, (4 May 1843 – 14 September 1918), was born at the village of Trenholm, Canada East and died at Hamilton, Ontario, author, social organiser. Also, mother of Reginald Fessenden, the radio pioneer. Buried in St John's Anglican cemetery, Ancaster, Ontario.^[1]

Biography

Educated in Montreal schools, she grew up in a home where loyalism and devotion to British traditions were strong. At twenty-one she married the Reverend Joseph Elisha Fessenden, a Canadian-born Church of England clergyman. The family moved to Fergus, Ontario, and later to Chippewa, Ontario, on the banks of the Niagara River. There, she honed her writing skills as one of the first editors of the Niagara Women's Auxiliary Leaflet. Joseph accepted the position of rector at St John's Anglican Church in Ancaster, Ontario in 1893. Always trying to find ways to strengthen Canada's links to the British Empire, she identified herself both physically and spiritually with Queen Victoria. She dressed in mourning black like the widowed Queen after her own husband died in 1896. She was responsible for introducing Empire Day in Canadian schools, first in Dundas, Ontario in 1898 on the last school day before May 24, Queen Victoria's birthday. It was then celebrated more each year and then instituted in England in 1904 by Lord Meath. A typical Empire Day in Hamilton schools occupied the entire day and included inspirational speeches by trustees and songs such as The Maple Leaf and Just Before the Battle.

A bronze plaque was installed in her memory on the wall of St John's Anglican Church.

Tribute

She had two neighbourhoods named after her, Fessenden and Trenholme, both on Hamilton Mountain, Ontario.

The first neighbourhood, Fessenden, on the West Mountain, is bounded by Upper Paradise Road on the east, Mohawk Road West on the north and west. This road for the most part runs on a west-east route on the Hamilton Mountain, but on the western end, where this neighbourhood is situated, the road turns south and crosses the Lincoln M. Alexander Parkway, the southern boundary of this neighbourhood. Landmarks in this neighbourhood include Sir Allan MacNab High School and Regina Mundi Church.43°14′35″N 79°53′46″W / 43.243°N 79.896°W / 43.243; -79.896 ("Fessenden")

The second neighbourhood, Trenholme, on the East Mountain, is bounded by Limeridge Road East on the north, Pritchard Road on the east, the Lincoln M. Alexander Parkway on the south, and Upper Ottawa Street on the west. Landmarks in this neighbourhood include Albion Falls Park and Trenholme Park, which is also named after her.43°12′50″N 79°51′47″W / 43.214°N 79.863°W / 43.214; -79.863 ("Trenholme")

References

1. ^ Bailey, Thomas Melville (1991). Dictionary of Hamilton Biography (Vol II, 1876–1924). W.L. Griffin Ltd. 

• MapArt Golden Horseshoe Atlas — Page 658 — Grids M17, M18
• MapArt Golden Horseshoe Atlas — Page 656 — Grids L8, M8/ Page 657 — Grids L9, M9

External links

• Biography at the Dictionary of Canadian Biography Online

Persondata
Name	Trenholme, Clementina
Alternative names
Short description
Date of birth	4 May 1843
Place of birth
Date of death	14 September 1918
Place of death