Ontario Hockey Association pioneer, Judge John Barron
John Barron, with the hockey sticks around his head, was part of the first ice hockey team in Canada, the Rideau Hall Rebels. James Creighton is seated third from his left. Arthur Stanley is standing second from left and his brother Edward Stanley far right. Sources: Wikipedia
Barron Street is named for Judge John Augustus Barron, the sixth Judge of Perth County, from 1898 to 1925.
The judge lived on the northeast corner of John and Norman streets in a large white brick house. His father, a graduate of Cambridge College University in England, came to Canada as principal of Upper Canada College. He also lived at 159 Douglas Street. (see Douglas Street).
John Barron was admitted to the bar in 1873.
In Canada he was elected to the House of Commons in 1887 as a member of the Liberal Party in the riding of Victoria North. He was re-elected in 1891, but unseated by petition and lost in the riding byelection on Feb. 11, 1892. Prior to his federal experience, he was reeve of Lindsay, Ont., for eight years. He also participated in the Fenian Raids between 1866 and 1871.
In addition, he authored numerous books. See below.
Barron was one of the early pioneering forces in the creation of organized competitive hockey in Canada. While in Ottawa he was a member of the Rideau Hall Rebels hockey team, which toured western Ontario and played exhibition games to stimulate interest in the game.
But he was more than a player. In 1890-1891, the first two years of the Ontario Hockey Association (OHA), Barron was a vice-president of the league.
When Barron became the sixth county judge in 1898, he succeeded Peter Wood. On Christmas Eve in 1897, the Victoria Warder newspaper of Lindsay noted his appointment with the following comment: "While differing with Mr. Barron in politics, and while we have had strong political fights, we commend the appointment as one the recipient well deserves, for the work he has done in the past for his party, as well as from his legal attainments being well-fitted for the position." From Nancy Musselman posting on If You Grew Up in Stratford . . . FB.
118 Norman St.
On Feb. 1, 1901, Judge Barron's son, Frederic (Fritz), died while playing hockey in the Auditorium Rink in Winnipeg with his Dominion Bank team He was 22 years old. His physician said cause of death was due to his weak heart condition, coupled with participation in the game that was to vigorous.
As the Perth County judge, Barron served for almost 28 years. He retired in 1925 to enjoy his house at 118 Norman St. Stanford Dingman and Wikipedia
This poem, about Judge Barron, was written in the 1920s by Jack Riley of Stratford. It was discovered in the pages of the diary of Jessie Gurd Barron, wife of Judge Barron, by their granddaughter, Jessie G. Griffith of Sarnia, and posted on If You Grew Up in Stratford . . . FB.
Judge John Barron, KC. 1905. Photo posted by Bill Donaldson on FB.