Eaton family (Toronto)

Canadian family and department store owners

The Eaton family's mausoleum at Mount Pleasant Cemetery in Toronto, with lions by sculptor Eli Harvey

The Eaton family is a Canadian family of Scottish-Irish Methodist origin. Established in Toronto, the family dynasty began in 1869 when Timothy Eaton (1834–1907) founded Eaton's, which became a national chain of department stores. At its height, the family's net worth was around $2 billion. Although the Eaton's department store chain went bankrupt in 1999, the family still holds considerable wealth.

The Canadian Broadcasting Corporation and author Rod McQueen have dubbed them as "Canada's royal family",^[1] with the CBC describing the Eatons as "homegrown aristocracy", which drew comparisons to the influential Kennedy family.^[2] The Eatons were well known for their lavish lifestyle and occasional philanthropy.

Notable family members

Timothy Eaton in 1903

• John Eaton (1784–1834), m. Margaret Craig (1796–1848)
  • Robert Eaton (1816–1893)
  • Eliza Jane Eaton (1819–1861)
  • Mary Anne Eaton (1821–1841)
  • Margaret Eaton (1824–1900)
  • John Eaton (1827–1895), m. Margaret Herbison (1833–1907)
    • William Herbison Eaton (1873–)
    • (3) Robert Young Eaton (1875–1956),^[3] m. Hazel Ireland (1889–1965)
      • Margaret Craig Eaton (1912—1988),^[4][5] m. John Hubert Dunn (1897–)
      • John Wallace Eaton (1912–1990)^[6] (twin brother of Margaret), m. Phyllis Finlayson (1915–1997)
      • Edith Elisabeth Nora Eaton (1913–2010),^[7] m. Paul Robert van der Stricht (1908–2004)^[8]
      • Erskine Robert Eaton (1915–1942) (died in Dieppe Raid)
      • Alan Young Eaton (1916–2000), m. Diana Fishleigh
  • Nancy Eaton (1829–)
  • Sarah Eaton (1831–)
  • James Eaton (1832–1904)
  • (1) Timothy Eaton (1834–1907),^[9] m. Margaret Wilson Beattie (1841–1933)
    • Josephine Smyth Eaton (1865–1943), m. Thomas David Meldrum Burnside (1835–1900)
      • Iris Margaret Burnside (1894–1915) (died on the RMS Lusitania)
      • Allan Eaton Meldrum Burnside (1898–1937)
    • Margaret Elizabeth Beattie Eaton (1867–1952), m. Charles Eldridge Burden (1863)
      • Margaret Beattie Eaton Burden (1898–), m. Billy Bishop (1894–1956)
      • Henry John Burden (1894–1960)
    • Edward Young Eaton (1871–1900), m. Tillie Robinson (1869–1895)
      • Marjorie Tillie Eaton (1892–1952), m. Harold Simcoe Coulson (1884–1936)
      • Alice Eaton (1894–), m. Edward Browse
        • Edward Eaton, m. Nancy Leigh Gossage (1926–2007)^[10]
          • Nancy Alice Edward Eaton (1961–1985) (murdered)
    • William Fletcher Eaton (1875–1935),^[11] m. Gertrude Nora Cook (1877–)
      • Josephine Norah Eaton (1900–), m. George Edward Leishman (1897–)
      • Noel Beattie Eaton (1910–1996), m. Julia Isabell Fleming (1912–1989)
    • (2) Sir John Craig Eaton (1876–1922),^[12] m. Flora McCrea (1879–1970), formally known as Lady Eaton
      • Timothy Craig Eaton (1903–1986)^{[citation needed]}
      • (4) John David Eaton (1909–1973),^[13] m. Signy Hildur Stefansson (1913–1992)
        • John Craig Eaton II (1937–), m. Catherine Farr
          • John David Eaton (1961–)
          • Signy Eaton (1962–)
          • Henry Craig Eaton (1963–)
        • (5) Fredrik Stefan Eaton (1938–2021),^[14] m. Catherine Martin (1940-2023)
          • Fredrik D'Arcy Eaton
            • Fredrik Gordon Eaton (2007–)
            • William D'Arcy Neil Eaton (2008–)
          • Flora Catherine Eaton Coakley
        • Thor Edgar Eaton (1942–2017),^[15][16] m. Nicole Courtois (1945–)
          • Thor Eaton
          • Cleophée Eaton
        • (6) George Ross Eaton (1945–)^[15][17]
      • Edgar Allison Eaton (1912–1988), m. Mildred Jarvis Page (1915–1968)
      • Gilbert McCrea Eaton (1915–1985), m. Marjorie Ann Maston (1913–1988)
      • Florence Mary Eaton (1919–2012),^[18][19] m. Frank Flavelle McEachren (1918–1995)
      • Evlyn Beatrice Eaton (1919?–1989) (adopted), m. Russell Payton (1915–1976)

Notes

• Not exhaustive – listing is generally restricted to siblings of Timothy Eaton, his children, their spouses, and significant descendants.
• (#) – order of succession as the head of Eaton's.

Eaton properties and monuments

• 
  Ardwold, Toronto (1910)
• 
  Eaton Hall, King Township (1940)
• 
  Eaton Mausoleum, Mount Pleasant Cemetery, Toronto (1924)
• 
  Timothy Eaton Memorial Church, Toronto (1910s)

See also

• Timothy Eaton statue
• Telegram Corporation

References

1. Rod McQueen (1998). The Eatons: The rise and fall of Canada's royal family. Toronto: Stoddart. pp. 320. ISBN 0-7737-3120-2.
2. "Eaton's: Canadian royalty". CBC Digital Archives.
3. President of Eaton's, 1922–1942
4. (Director-General, Canadian Women's Army Corps, 1944–1945) Barbara Dundas and Dr. Serge Durflinger. "The Canadian Women's Army Corps, 1941-1946". Canadian War Museum. Retrieved 11 February 2013.
5. Henry B. M. Best (2003). Margaret and Charley: The Personal Story of Dr. Charles Best, the Co-Discoverer of Insulin. Toronto: Dundurn Press. p. 260. ISBN 1-55002-399-3.
6. worked at Eaton's; managed Montreal store
7. "van der Stricht, Edith Elisabeth Nora Eaton". The Globe and Mail. 7 August 2010. Retrieved 11 February 2013.
8. "Paul Robert van der Stricht". The New York Times. 14 August 2004. Retrieved 13 February 2013.
9. President of Eaton's, 1870–1907
10. "EATON, Nancy Leigh (Snubby) (nee Gossage)". The Globe and Mail. 27 August 2007. Retrieved 14 February 2013.
11. worked at Eaton's; managed textile manufacturing plant (Oshawa 1903–1916)
12. President of Eaton's, 1907–1922
13. President of Eaton's, 1942–1973
14. President of Eaton's, 1977–1988; High Commissioner of Canada to the United Kingdom, 1991–1994
15. promoter of the Festival Express in 1970, as depicted in the 2003 film.
16. Langan, Fred (April 20, 2017). "Eaton's department store heir Thor Eaton loved horses and rock music". The Globe and Mail.
17. President of Eaton's, 1988–1997
18. "McEACHREN, Florence Mary (nee Eaton)". The Globe and Mail. 26 April 2012. Retrieved 13 February 2013.
19. Rod McQueen (27 April 2012). "Florence Mary Eaton McEachren 1919-2012". Retrieved 11 February 2013.

Further reading

• Joy L. Santink (1994). "Eaton, Timothy". In Cook, Ramsay; Hamelin, Jean (eds.). Dictionary of Canadian Biography. Vol. XIII (1901–1910) (online ed.). University of Toronto Press.
• Joy L. Santink (2005). "Eaton, Sir John Craig". In Cook, Ramsay; Bélanger, Réal (eds.). Dictionary of Canadian Biography. Vol. XV (1921–1930) (online ed.). University of Toronto Press.

External links

• Ardwold mansion, Toronto – lostrivers.ca