I would make a terrible eyewitness. Perhaps two years ago, I briefly walked behind a man who was travelling in the same direction along a Barrie sidewalk. I cannot tell you anything about his appearance because I was absolutely fixated on the handle of a gun that was poking out of the satchel he had draped across his shoulder.
Gun crime may or may not be rising in Barrie, and I have no stats to offer about that. What I can tell you is firearms offences are nothing new in this town.
Indeed, folks out for an evening stroll in the summer of 1897 found themselves diving for cover when a gunfight broke out on the government dock.
On another warm summer night, six years earlier, a trio of drunken men declined to pay for their ice cream purchase at a small shop on Elizabeth Street, and a shootout ensued.
Near misses were plentiful, and accidental shootings were far from uncommon. Deliberate murder by gun has been quite rare in our county but not unheard of. The killing of bank manager John Strathy, on his own front step by a man of unsound mind, came as a tremendous shock to the people of Barrie in 1896.
Unlike the United States, there has never been any right-to-bear-arms provision in Canada. In the early years of this country, many people had guns of some sort. These were required for hunting and for the protection of family and livestock in this vast and then-semi-lawless nation.
The first attempts at gun control came about in response to a couple of rebellions and riots that took place in the mid- to late 1800s. Those controls were put on those who were perceived to be enemies of the fledgling country, which included Irish-Canadians and Indigenous peoples, including Métis, at different times.
Before 1892, there were few restrictions on handguns. Afterward, a new law required anyone wishing to carry a handgun to obtain a permit. There was a giant loophole, though. If a person had reasonable cause to fear assault on themselves or on their property, they could forgo the permit.
In the summer of 1901, a Mary Street man took full advantage of this law. He shot a burglar, and few local people would have questioned his right to do so.
Milton Gray was American, which may have figured somewhat into the equation, but Canadian law in 1901 also allowed for the use of a handgun in this case.
The wealthy lumberman made a short stay in Barrie as he looked after his business interests in Muskoka. His wife, children and household staff travelled with him from Taberg, N.Y.
Gray tended to be home on the weekends, and one Saturday night in early August of 1901, he discovered a burglar helping himself to the contents of Gray’s refrigerator. Gray asked for the thief’s name, which was given as John Patterson, and then he let him go with a stern warning.
“If I find you here again, I will shoot you.”
Three weeks later, Gray was awakened at midnight by the sounds of more refrigerator rummaging. He brought his 38-calibre revolver with him as he investigated and was surprised to find the same burglar unstocking the fridge and, as previously promised, he did not hesitate to shoot.
At first, it appeared he had missed as the thief ran off down the street. Gray realized his bullet had hit its mark when Patterson suddenly fell to the ground.
Gray called for a doctor and a constable after it was discovered the burglar had a leg wound. Patterson, alias Jack Burridge or Budge, was taken to jail, and then to hospital and back again, and he survived.
Patterson was the only person arrested that night. Everyone, other than the wounded thief, would have agreed the shooting was justified.
Interestingly, Gray’s great-grandson, Theodore Milton Gray, died in March of this year at the age of 96. He was a Republican politician, the youngest elected state senator for Ohio and the longest serving. We can only guess at his opinion on gun laws.
Each week, the Barrie Historical Archive provides BarrieToday readers with a glimpse of the city’s past. This unique column features photos and stories from years gone by and is sure to appeal to the historian in each of us.
