Identity area
Type of entity
Authorized form of name
Parallel form(s) of name
Standardized form(s) of name according to other rules
Other form(s) of name
Identifiers for corporate bodies
Description area
Dates of existence
History
Harold C. Adkins was the last reeve of the Township of Nelson, Ontario. He was first elected in 1952 and served until Nelson Township was annexed by the new City of Burlington in 1957. The township was perhaps most notable for its attempt to annex Burlington rather than allow itself to be annexed by that city. Harold Adkins, affectionately known as “Bud” or “Charlie”, was born on May 11, 1911 at Dresden, Ontario, to Elton James Adkin(s) and Martha Melissa Babcock Adkins. In 1944, he married Ida Constance Friars and the couple had five children: Marie Gale, Suzanne, Judy Anne and Thomas. As an adult he moved to Windsor where he worked as a sales manager for Ford of Canada. During the war he was in charge of shipping tanks overseas. After the war, he again relocated, this time to Cornwall, Ontario where he took on a Ford-Monarch dealership. Ida’s severe reaction to the polluted air there led the family to again relocate, this time to West Hamilton, and then to Burlington, Ontario. At this time, Harold obtained a real estate and insurance brokerage license and opened an office (Harold Adkins Real Estate and Insurance Broker) at the corner of Caroline and Brant Streets. Both Harold and his brother, Lawrence, were Free Masons with Brant Lodge. He entered politics in 1952 and served on city council for several years. He was reeve of Nelson Township in 1957 when it was annexed by Burlington. Adkins died at Joseph Brant Memorial Hospital, Burlington, Ontario on September 30, 1995, following a stroke