Memorable Manitobans: Jacobus Petrus “Pete” de Wet (1883-1978)

Journalist, horticulturist, community activist.

Born at Cape Town, South Africa on 3 February 1883, he came to Winnipeg in May 1909. During the First World War, he served in France with the 90th Winnipeg Rifles. After his return from military service, he worked as a reporter for the Winnipeg Free Press and provincial correspondent for the Canadian Mining Journal. He was Secretary of the Manitoba Chamber of Mines and editor of its journal, The Precambrian. During the Second World War, he served with the St. John Ambulance Brigade in Winnipeg. He held honourary life memberships in the Canadian Institute of Mining and Metallurgy, Manitoba Horticultural Association, and St. James Horticultural Society, and was a member of the Canukeena Club, Winnipeg Horticultural Society (President, 1957), Manitoba Association of Prospectors and Developers, and Manitoba Progressive Association. He died at the Deer Lodge Hospital on 27 August 1978.

Sources:

Attestation papers, Canadian Expeditionary Force, Library and Archives Canada.

Obituary, Winnipeg Free Press, 29 August 1978, page 37.

A Century of Horticulture in Manitoba, 1880-1980 by Peter J. Peters, 1988, pages v-vii.

This page was prepared by Gordon Goldsborough.

Page revised: 3 April 2021

Memorable Manitobans

Memorable Manitobans

This is a collection of noteworthy Manitobans from the past, compiled by the Manitoba Historical Society. We acknowledge that the collection contains both reputable and disreputable people. All are worth remembering as a lesson to future generations.

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