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John Alexander McDonald
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Businessman.
Born at St. Helens, Ontario on 24 November 1864, he came to Manitoba and taught school at Selkirk for a time. In 1882, he moved to Brandon where he worked in a general store operated by Whitehead and Whitelaw. He was later a bookkeeper for pharmacist John William Fleming then, in 1896, he went into partnership in a men's clothing store with Frank Calvert. He bought out his partner in 1911 and took his eldest son into the business around 1926.
He and wife Helen Jessie Gordon (1865-1931) had six children: Angus Kennedy McDonald (1891-1980), Jean Brand McDonald (1893-?, wife of Harry Earle Drope), Helen Jessie McDonald (1895-1975, wife of Robert Parker Cromarty), Mary Adelena McDonald (1896-1976), Elizabeth Donalda McDonald (1902-1952, wife of Hubert Fenwick Morris), and John Alexander Keith McDonald (1906-1961). The family lived at 318 Eleventh Street (c1912-1932). He served on the Brandon School Board (?-?) and Brandon City Council (1913-1914), and was a member of the Odd Fellows and First Presbyterian Church.
He died at the Brandon General Hospital on 1 December 1945 and was buried in the Brandon Cemetery.
See also:
Historic Sites of Manitoba: McDonald Block (841 Rosser Avenue, Brandon)
Historic Sites of Manitoba: McDonald House (318 Eleventh Street, Brandon)
Birth registrations [Angus Kennedy McDonald, Jean Brand McDonald, Helen Jessie McDonald, Mary McDonald, Elizabeth Donald McDonald, John Alexander Keith McDonald], Manitoba Vital Statistics.
1911 Canada census, Automated Genealogy.
“Calvert sold to M'Donald,” Brandon Weekly Sun, 17 August 1911, page 12.
Marriage registration [Helen Jessie McDonald, Robert Parker Cromarty], Manitoba Vital Statistics.
Death registrations [Helen Jessie McDonald, John Alexander McDonald], Manitoba Vital Statistics.
“Mrs. John A. McDonald laid to rest,” Brandon Daily Sun, 25 November 1931, page 5.
“John A. McDonald pioneer to merchant died in hospital,” Brandon Daily Sun, 3 December 1945, page 5.
Death registration [Elizabeth Donalda Morris], British Columbia Vital Statistics.
This page was prepared by Gordon Goldsborough.
Page revised: 1 November 2026
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