(8 Aug.1860- 6 Oct. 1947), businessman. (James Cluff, J.A. Cluff, James A. Cluff, Jim Cluff) Born at St-Anicet, Que. The place of birth has also been stated as Bainsville, Que., but it may be noted that Bainsville, Ont., is almost directly across the river from St-Anicet). Parents: Andrew Cluff and his wife Elizabeth McBain. James A. Cluff operated a sawmill in Maxville, which he had bought in the spring of 1912 from Duncan Robertson. This mill was destroyed in a fire June 1914, but Cluff rebuilt it, and had it in full operating order by the summer of 1916 at the latest. He then sold the Maxville sawmill about the beginning of 1920 to A.J. MacEwen. Afterwards James A. Cluff lived in the Laurentians, where he had acquired the Addington Lumber Company. He sold his mill there in 1935 and returned to Maxville, now an elderly man. His Maxville business included a sash and door factory, and at some stage he operated a sawmill at Greenfield. According to his obituary in the Standard Freeholder he “was prominent in the lumber business in both Ontario and Quebec for many years” and had lived for 36 years in Maxville (the total of years is meant). He was an honorary president of the Kenyon Agricultural Society. He died at Cornwall General Hospital. He was a Presbyterian.

     James A. Cluff was married at Greenfield, Ont., in May 1899 to Mary Elizabeth Edwards (1878-1947), who died 2 months after her husband. Their six children included Mrs John Denovan, and (1) Andrew Cameron Cluff, an engineer who graduated from Queen’s University. He remained in the Canadian Army after WWII and obtained the rank of lt.-col. Following retirement he had a second career as a high school teacher. (2) Gladys Kerr Cluff (Mrs Arthur Charlton ). She was also a teacher. Her article on the Glengarry Highland Games was published in an American magazine called Instructor which had a readership of over 600,000. (3) Christine Elizabeth Cluff (1910-12 June 2001) (Mrs Reginald Gardiner). A Queen’s graduate (B. A., 1931) who once taught in Maxville High School, she operated the Cobourg Book Store, of Cobourg, Ont., for over 35 years.

Standard Freeholder 7 & 11 Oct. 1947 * obituary and report on the funeral of his wife, SFH 12 & 16 Dec. 1947, Glengarry News 19 Dec. 1947 * private information * gravestone, Maxville cemetery * Maxville sawmill: GN 17 May 1912, 19 June 1914, 14 July 1916, 30 Jan. 1920 * Maxville (1991) 125, 483, 511-512, 801, 889 * MacGillivray & Ross 462 * KAS 21, 39 * obituaries of Lt. Col. Cameron Cluff, GN 27 Nov. 1985, and his sisters Mrs Charlton, GN 15 March 1978, and Mrs Gardiner, QAR Fall 2001