Submitted by Margie (O'Connor) Royle

The White Bear Hotel,  also known as O'Connor House,  was built opposite the  original position of the Wolfe train station on Madoc St,  established by Michael O'Connor & Elizabeth Wolfe. 

Michael was also listed in the 1888 Deloro Business directory as running a sawmill. He is also credited with installing an electric light plant in the Pierce mills at the turn of the century.

Michael & Elizabeth moved to town  into the house at 69 Forsyth Street,   pictured above. 

We think that Grampa Ed may have taken over the business as a young man, perhaps after he married Agnes Murray in 1918. We do know that Grampa Ed  was a graduate from Belleville's OBC, Ontario Business College, in 1902.

When the "local options" came in, ( I understand that to mean alcohol could be served only in certain places)   alcohol  could no longer be served at The White Bear as it was located  in the Township,   but could be served at the hotel in town. So everyone who came in on the train, chose to take the buggy ride to town. So, a flourishing business at the White Bear came to a halt! 

Grampa Ed O'Connor stayed on there. He was raising his daughter Mary, and farmed. He married Maude Hogan on November 22, 1918 and they raised their family there:-  Margaret, Breen, Joan, and Michael, and continued with the farming. Maude and Ed moved to 16 McGill street around 1947.  My father, Breen, continued to live in the O'Connor Hotel at the time and he and Mom (Lillian)  raised their family until fire destroyed the place on a cold and frosty February morning, Feb 2, 1961.

Fire at Marmora Station

Marmora station narrowly escaped being destroyed by fire last Thursday evening, as the result of the C. N. R. telegraph wires becoming heavily charged from the Hydro-Electric line. Fortunately the fire was discovered by Mr. E. D. O'Connor before it made much headway. He telephoned Mr. Bell, who gave an alarm in the village and then hurried to the station. Accompanied by a number of others, and a few minutes hard work, extinguished the blaze. On behalf of the railway company, Mr. Bell wishes to thank all who assisted in anyway in saving the station. The stations at Eldorado and Anson also caught fire from the same cause, but the damage to both was small.

Marmora Herald June 21, 1917

Children of Breen & Lillian

• Leo,

• Ellen Anne McKee,

• Margie Royle,

• Dennis,

• Breen,

                    The O'Connor Gallery

Corporal Leo O'Connor - the son of Richard (d.16 Nov. 1942) and Rose Ann (d. 7 May 1941)   O’Connor of Marmora, Ontario. Corporal Leo O’Connor of the Princess Patricia’s Canadian Light Infantry was killed in action on 27 August 1944 and is buried at the Montecchio War Cemetery, Italy.  His next of kin was listed as his sister Mrs. Anna Evangeline Meehan of Marmora, Ontario.  He was the brother of Earl O’Connor of Marmora, Charles O’Connor of Coppercliff, Ontario, Crawford O’Connor of Florence, Ontario, Hugh O’Connor of Coppercliff, Pat O’Connor of Marmora, Tom O’Connor who was serving in the army overseas and Mrs. Veronica Elizabeth Forestell of Marmora, Ontario.

From Facebook:

You know you're from Marmora if you went to school with an O'Connor...Breen, Dennis, Anne, Leo, Donnie, Margie, Paul, Lillian, Eddie, Patty, Kate, Colleen, Janet or Maureen.

Replies:

Celia Murray:  Lillian (Jr.) was MY O'Connor!...and my Aunt Mary Murray always took credit for introducing Lillian and Breen

Laurie Hainle:  Went to school with Colleen Janet and Maureen

Mariette Marsh:  Went to school with Kate Colleen

Betty Demorest Truax:   Went to school with Eddie.

Sharon Tandy-Pollock:   Yep...Nursing school with Lillian!

Dennis O'Connor:   Marmora Historical Foundation: you're the best

Wendy Kennedy:   Uncle Breen used to use the expression "Beans!" as a gentle expression of disbelief.

Laurie Hainle:   Margie taught me she was one of the best sorry I mean Mrs O'Connors in my day she was so cool

Pat La Londe:  My cousins

Roxanna Keller-Mollohan: Lillian at Centre Hastings

Kelli Hewitt:   Ellen Anne O'Connor

Michael O'Connor and Elizabeth Wolfe had nine children, one of whom was Grandpa Ed O'Connor

Hannah married an Auger

Michael

Richard was known as Rit. He was Tom O'Connor's father.

Matt was known as "Big Matt". He was married but no children.

Mary married James McGrath and they were the owners of Tipperary House for many years (Their son, Jim,  married to Jean Gauthier, was the owner when I was a child. )

Margaret was married to Ed Keating, they had no children. Aunt Margaret moved back to Marmora to retire after her husband died.   She lived in what is now the Limestone B&B. 

Michael O'Connor, at age 75,  was on the committee petitioning for a separate school in Marmora:

Marmora Herald June 10, 1915 - The Roman Catholics of Marmora have decided to establish a Separate School in the Village and a notice has been forwarded to the chairman of the Public School Board and signed by Reverend Thomas Murtagh (1863-1920), Captain John O'Neill (1833-1919), Michael O'Connor (1838-1917), William Flynn, (1865-1942), Patrick Marrin (1845-1926) and John McCullough.

About those Centennial Celebrations.........

CHILDREN OF RICHARD O'CONNOR AND ROSE ANN

• Corporal Leo O'Connor

• Anne Evangeline O'Connor Meehan

• Earl O'Connor

• Charles O'Connor

• Crawford O'Connor

• Hugh O'Connor

• Veronica Elizabeth O'Connor Forestell

• Pat O'Connor

• Tom O'Connor - married Mary Quinlan. See Minihane, Rohan Quinlan

" The Agricultural grounds are off my father's place. Approximately 90 years ago the Agricultural Society bought ten acres of land from my father. Because we lived so close to the grounds, we used to go over to the fair when we were young. The oldest would go and check things out and then tell us about things to see. Lots of times I went over the line fence between our property and the fair. You'd hear music from the midway right up on our veranda (our house was the one located behind Marmora Senior School now) and we'd be all keyed up, ready to go. All I'd have to do is sit in our field to watch the horse races, because it was open pasture land them. And the great thing about being so close was that if you bought a watermelon or something you could go home to eat it, and go home for supper and come back while a lot of the kids couldn't come back after they left for home.
One year I didn't go to school and stayed at the fair. Some other kids took time off to skip to the fair for awhile and went back and got a licking for being absent. I stayed the whole morning and they never missed me.              Tom O'Connor 1990

Toby Yull:   Is that a necklace of string beans??

Janet O'Connor:  Sure is. Fondly crafted by Aunt Jo - inspired by Dad's frequently used expression of, 'Beans' - a euphemism for bs I guess.