Henry James Gingrich Raegele - Labourer
124 Cambria Street
Stratford, ON
1915

By 1871 there was a house built on the east part of Lot 275 on Cambria Street, what is now number 124. This house was occupied by Henry Baker Jr. and his family of seven.  Henry Raegele was living in the house as of the 1907 assessment records.  In 1915 a new house, the current structure, was built on the property.

Henry was  born in Gadshill, Ontario on October 5, 1879 to Frederick Wolf, born in Germany in 1846, and Magdalena Helena Gingrich, born in 1857 in Gadshill.   Henry had two brothers and three sisters.  He married Florence Mae Corbett on June 3, 1909 in Downie Township.  Florence was born in April of 1880 in Downie Township. Henry and Florence had four children: Frederick John, born October 27, 1904; Ida Mae March 25, 1907; Allan Alexander Nelson, January 30, 1909; and  Henry “James” Fraser, December 27, 1910. All the children were born in Stratford.  They continued to live at 124 Cambria Street until 1919 when the family moved to 85 Dufferin Street. 

 Henry was a labourer/carpenter at Pfeffer & Co., located at 275-295 Front Street.  Conrad F. Pfeffer formed the company in Stratford after leaving a partnership with Tavistock Coal & Lumber & Supply Company in 1907.  Pfeffer & Company is listed in the 1924 Stratford city directory as a lumber/coal company and manufacturers of cement, coal, lumber, hardwall, lime, lath, shingles, sash, doors and house furnishings and high class planning mill work.  Both the planning mill and yard office were located on Front Street. Henry worked at Pfeffer’s from 1906 to 1950. 

Henry’s wife, Florence, died on September 2, 1950, and there is no listing for Henry in the 1951 Stratford city directory.  Henry was living in Parkdale (Toronto), Ontario by 1958, as he is listed in the voters list as retired.   His son, Henry “James” and his wife Eleanor are listed as living in Toronto in the 1949 voters list, so maybe Henry moved to be closer to them.  James died on January 15, 1996 in Toronto. His daughter, Ida, married Jack Whitney McCully and resided in Stratford. She died on May 25, 2007 at Hillside Manor, Seebach Hill. Frederick married Irene Miller and died on March 21, 1991 in Guelph. Allan married Mabel Evangeline Clemens and died in Hamilton on October 13, 1934.

 Henry died in Toronto on August 6, 1964 of cancer and is buried in Avondale Cemetery alongside Florence.