The Clingan family were prominent Virden citizens and very active in the community. One of the first Clingan most people know is Ida, as she wrote the book “The Virden Story” in 1957. Ruth Mary Ida Thompson (1874-1967) was active in the Imperial Order Daughters of the Empire (I. O. D. E.), the Virden Hospital, and the Dramatic Society. After the death of her husband, she would leave Virden to live with her daughter, Dorothy Mary Hobson, in Powell River, British Columbia. Dorothy was one of the first Kindergarten students in Virden.

 

Her husband and the father of her child was Dr. George Clingan. Dr. George Clingan (1868-1953) was trained at the Toronto Medical College and worked at the Toronto Hospital for Sick Children. He came to Virden in 1898 and continued to work as a doctor. Outside his doctoral duties, Dr. Clingan was also the mayor from 1908 to 1909 and was known to have brought Virden a better sanitary system. He also represented Virden at the Manitoba Legislative Assembly from 1914 to 1922. During The First War, Dr. Clingan commanded the 12th Manitoba Dragoons, the 79th Overseas Battalion, and the Royal Army Medical Corps. He even received the rank of Major and Lieutenant-Colonel. Dr. Clingan was also a founding member of the Manitoba Medical Association and active with the Canadian Medical Association.

 

His brother, Fleming Wesley Clingan (1866-1953) was also a prominent Virden citizen. Fleming Wesley operated various general stores in Virden and Elkhorn and worked with business partners Wilcox, Scales, and Ramsey. These stores were known for their wide selection and where one could find any goods they needed. He was married to Susan Wilcox (1868-1938) in Virden and had at least two children; Marion and George Francis. He moved to British Columbia in 1910 and moved to Salmon Arm. While there, Fleming Wesley became a fruit farmer and was even the mayor of Salmon Arm. Fleming Wesley also worked for the Dominion Fruit Branch and worked on the Wealthy Apple Deal. He was an active member of the Western Retail Association and a founding member of the Salmon Arm and Elkhorn Boards of Trade. His son George Francis was also in the military like his namesake uncle. He was part of the 12th Dragoons, 79th Overseas Battalion, and the Rocky Mountain Rangers. George Francis received the rank of Lieutenant and Major. After the war, George married Lella Margaret Galt and worked as a farmer in British Columbia. Marion also moved to British Columbia, where she worked as a schoolteacher and married William Spencer Rawson Dee on her father’s estate.