William Watson Ogilvie

Captain William Watson Ogilvie (15 February 1835 – 12 January 1900), commanded a division of the Royal Montreal Cavalry during the Fenian Raids. He and his two brothers, Alexander and John, are remembered for their pioneering work in the Canadian milling trade and as pioneers and believers in the success of the Canadian West. Early years William Watson Ogilvie was born at his father's farm at Cote St. Michel, near Montreal. He was the third son of Alexander Ogilvie (1779–1858), founder of the Ogilvie Flour Mills, and his wife Helen (1793–1863), daughter of John Watson, a businessman engaged in the flour industry at Montreal, and Helen Walker. The Ogilvies and the Watsons had known one another in Scotland. William's grandfather, Archibald Ogilvie (1750–1820), had been a prosperous farmer at Arnieve, near Gargunnock on the River Forth, but seeing little future for his children in Scotland sold his farms and with £2,000 took his family to Quebec. Arriving there in 1800, he purchased a large property at Howick on the Chateauguay River. William was educated privately at the High School of Montreal and afterwards served an apprenticeship in the family's milling business. Like his two brothers, he joined the Royal Montreal Cavalry in 1857. By 1866, he had assumed command of the regiment and defended Canada in the Fenian Raids. Ogilvie Flour Mills