(below) To the east of this house; originally constructed by Noah Fried, once stood the village’s first post office. The post office building was eventually moved to what became the Don Gaiser property. The Fried/Guenther house was subsequently demolished to make room for an expansion of the Dashwood Planing Mill. Left to right in the image: William Willis (boarder), Sarah Hooper (Mrs. Guenther’s mother), Laura Emily Guenther, Letta Guenther (the future Mrs. R.H. Taylor), and Charles Guenther. (Rader; pg. 4) Click on image for larger version.

“Charles Frederick Guenther was a son of Tobias & Catherine (Wolf[e]) who came from Wurtemburg, Germany. Charles was born in Pelham, Ontario. He and his family moved to Cowlesville, New York and later returned to Ontario and settled on a Stephen Township farm, south of Dashwood. This is where Charles met and married Laura Emily Hooper in 1895. They bought the first house built in Dashwood, by Noah Fried on Fried Street, and lived there until Charles’ death.

Their first child, Letta Ruth, (1897-1986), a public school teacher, married the village doctor, R. Hobbs Taylor, who was a member of the Ontario Legislature when he died at the age of 54. They had one daughter, Anne Kathryn, who taught internal medicine in Medicine Hat, Alberta and later at Victoria Hospital, London. She died of Hodgkin’s disease at age 34.

Harold Tobias (1899-1986) was married to Madeline Goodhue. They had two sons: Donald Charles, who died at the age of five, and Gerald Arthur, who retired to Port Elgin. Harold (Harry) began his association with Ford of Canada in Walkerville in 1922 as a tool and die maker. He was made supervisor when the three tool and die rooms were consolidated. He was a general foreman in 1927 when the conversion from Model T to Model A took place. At the time, he was a member of the executive. Harold also served as a pilot in R.A.F. during the First World War.

Melvin Willis (1902-1967) married Margaret Simpson and they had three children: Margaret Anne, Glendon Willis and Barbara Joan. After his first wife died, Melvin married Pearla Sanders and they had a son, Karl Melvin. At the time of his death, Melvin was the manager of a large department store in Gary Indiana. His daughter, Margaret, and her husband, both served in air force during the Second World War.

Rose Catherine (1904-1987) married Jack Huffman, who served as a tail gunner in the Royal Canadian Air Force in the Second World War. John (1906-1983) married Lillian Walker and they had two sons: Hobbs Walker and Ronald Charles. He was the head of the detachment when he retired from the R.C.M.P. Musical Ride. After his retirement, John [sic] was chief security guard of the British American Oil Refinery near Toronto.

Edith May (1908) married Sydney Baker, a farmer, who drove the highway snowplow and an Exeter High School bus. They had one son, John Frederick, who died at the age of eleven years.

Florence Jean (1911-1988) married Milton Webb, who was a successful contractor and builder. They had four children: Carole Emily, Milton Edward (Ted), Judith Anne and Robert William.

Ezra Irvin (1913-1988) married Marjorie Towriss. They had two sons: Charles Irvin and John Keith. Irvin was head of Summer Equipment in Toronto and worked on trucks and trailers doing body and equipment changeovers, and overhauling hydraulic equipment. Irvin also served in the armer forces during the Second World War.”

extracted from “Hay Township Highlights: 150 years of Diversified Progress, 1846 – 1996”, published by the Hay Township Book Committee under the auspices of Hay Township Council, Alice Gibb ed.; pg. 438 ISBN : 0-919939-43-0