INTRODUCTION

In June, 2015 the Sarnia Historical Society received a request for assistance from a Mr. Anthony Grant of London, England.

Mr. Grant was inquiring about the late Derrick Wilfred Haney of Sarnia who perhaps was the father Grant never met.  The correspondent was hoping that the S.H.S. might be able to uncover information which would shed light on or even confirm this paternity.

The Society sent out a memo to some of its members.  Randy Evans took up the challenge.

With his express permission the Society is pleased to present the following letter of thanks and historical postscript telling what transpired in this part of Mr. Grant’s journey.

Thank You!

Since 1996, the year my mother died, I had been googling whatever information I could find about my later father, Derrick Haney, whom I never met. The search was really typing his name and hoping for something new.

In February 2015 I came across by chance an article by Greg Scharf in the Sarnia Observer about the actor Jamaes Doohan, who played Scotty in Star Trek. The article mentioned that Mr Doohan was friends with my late father, who was also an actor whose stage name was Ryck Rydon.

I contacted Mr Scharf to enquire if he knew anything else about my father, in particular the cause of his death in 1980 aged fifty seven. Greg kindly replied to my email, shared a memory from his childhood about my father, and offered to write an article in the hope that that there might be at least someone out there who had some recollections of my father.

Further emails exchanged between myself and Greg, and I learned from Greg that my grandfather on my father’s side was Wilfred Smith Haney, a noted barrister from Sarnia who had served in both wars. Greg was also able to confirm where my father had died, which enabled me to find out the cause of my father’s death.

Frankly, I was more than happy with what I got from Greg. It was far more than I had expected or hoped for. I thought this was as good as it was going to get after twenty years of dead-ends, and I had resigned myself to never being able to correspond or speak with anyone who knew my father.

Late last year, however, Greg suggested that I contact The Sarnia Historical Society to find out if there was anything about my father’s family’s background. I did as Greg suggested, and thought nothing more about it.

To my surprise, I received an email from Ron Smith that Randy Evans was on the case and that I would be contacted again in due course. Ron was true to his word.

In short, Randy Evans has completed a life-long puzzle. He has closed a chapter in my life, and opened a new one; and he has enabled an understanding of my father that has left me stunned even at my age. In addition, through Randy’s meticulous research, emails, old newspaper clippings which he posted to me, and not least his incredible generosity with his time, I have learned that my father stowed away at seventeen to join the war, and later the First Special Services Force; furthermore, Randy has been able to unearth some fascinating information about my father’s parents.

There remained however a window of doubt which I shared with Randy because my mother never spoke about my father’s war record (perhaps my father never did), and it was this:  was Ryck Rydon the actor (whose birth-name was Derrick Haney) and the seventeen year old stowaway Derrick Haney from Sarnia, one and the same person?

I felt awkward in sharing my doubt with Randy because I didn’t want to appear ungrateful for all that he had done. I needn’t have worried. Straightaway, Randy replied that he was planning on doing some more research; and soon afterwards I received a second batch of newspaper clippings and observations from Randy, including my father’s obituary which included the name of a relative which Randy had highlighted.

I then took a long shot and googled the name of my late father’s relative, and since December 2015 we have been corresponding about my late father. I am still in a daze that this has happened. From my conversation with the relative there is information about my late father which is confidential, however what I can say is that were it not for Randy Evans I would never have learned about the character of my father, including an aspect of him which my late Mother never spoke of, and how he lived the last years of his life which was and is so important to me. Equally important, Randy has enabled me to connect with my father’s relative, a kind, generous, and remarkable man who has completed the picture of the father I never knew. It has been a rollercoaster.

Randy, I have thanked you from the get-go for all that you have done, and I take this opportunity to thank you also for your empathy, tact and discretion throughout. Your emails and clippings are an integral part of my family album.

Thank you also, and not least to Ron Smith for responding so quickly and enthusiastically to my initial email, and without whose involvement none of this would have been possible.  And, of course, Greg Scharf of the Sarnia Observer who, like Randy and Ron, has overwhelmed me with his generosity that I cannot do justice to in words.

For the first time in my life I feel that I really know my father, and that is why saying thank you will never feel enough.

Anthony Grant
United Kingdom

GRANT / HANEY POSTSCRIPT

The Anthony Grant story started off quite modestly.

Initially Mr. Grant of London, England had only one question about two memorials in Lakeview Cemetery.  The first was the Canadian military headstone of Captain Wilfred S. Haney (1899-1947). The second was the memorial plaque of Derrick Wilfred Haney (1923-1980) located immediately beside the resting place of Captain Haney.

The sole inquiry was: Were the two Haney’s related?

A check of Captain Haney’s obituary confirmed that he was the father of Derrick Wilfred Haney.  Question answered and reported back to England.  The report did pose one point however: Why the interest in the deceased Haney men?

It was at this point that Grant advised on the reason for his inquiry – namely that he possibly was the son of the late Derrick Haney, with whom he was never acquainted.

The search was then on and a unique London, England -Sarnia story began to unfold.

Wilfred Haney – Mr. Grant’s possible grandfather – was born in Sarnia in 1898 to veterinarian Dr. Wilfred Haney and Emma Haney of 276 George St., Sarnia.  Later, as with so many of his generation, Haney’s completion of high school coincided with Canada’s involvement in World War One. Wilfred’s March 16, 1916 enlistment in Sarnia followed.

His war service overseas was extensive and far reaching. Reports placed him with the Canadian infantry and Royal Air Force in the combat zones of France, the Aegean, the Dardanelles and, after the War, in South Russia with the White Army.

With the blessing of Armistice, Wilfred Haney was discharged in 1919, at which time he returned to Ontario.  Thereafter he married Joan Cheney of England in 1920 and attended The Law Society of Upper Canada as a student at law.  After his call to the bar, he returned to Sarnia to practice law.

Haney’s initial foray into the legal business proved to be short lived; in May, 1923, he rose to public prominence as the Conservative nominee in the upcoming provincial election. Being victorious in the election at the age of only 24 years, the now West Lambton M.P.P. became as of then the youngest person ever to be elected to the Provincial Parliament.

It was during this political time that Derrick Wilfred Haney – Mr. Grant’s possible father – was born in July, 1923.

After leaving political office in 1929 Haney returned to Sarnia.  Two years later he was appointed Crown Attorney for Lambton County a position he would hold for four years.  In May, 1935 the Attorney General of Ontario reportedly would be relieving Wilfred Haney of his duties.

Haney did not however leave the office of Crown Attorney lightly.  In a front page quote in The Sarnia Observer he defied his political boss with the following words: “If the Attorney General has an axe handy it is his function to use it, but let him beware if he fails to make a nice clean blow. “ Not surprisingly the political boss prevailed and Wilfred Haney got the chop.

Interestingly, The Sarnia Observer attributed this turn of events to the lawyer’s successful prosecution of one Clifford Lannin.   Having been convicted of running a gaming house, Lannin just happened to be the son of Sarnia’s then Chief of Police.

Having lost the Crown Attorney’s job, Haney went into private practice in Toronto and remained there until the outbreak of the Second World War. In 1940 he re-enlisted as an officer in the Canadian armed forces.   In this his second war, postings would place him in England, North Africa and Italy.

By 1940 Derrick Haney had already been in the Canadian military.  He was then stationed with an artillery unit still training on home soil.

To say the least, the younger Haney tired of this training, so much so that in July, 1940 he stowed away on a ship to England.  On arrival, he intended to enlist in the British forces and get right into the fight.

The Observer picked up on the story and its headline read: ‘Wanted to Get to War Quickly.  Sarnia Lad Went as Stowaway.”   The report continued:  “The spirit of youth is as adventurous as ever the war is proving and the case of a Sarnia youngster has illustrated that it is not always tempered with patience.”

When asked about his son’s unique adventure, the World War One veteran Haney Sr. remarked “it was quite impossible to quarrel with his son’s impetuosity.”

On landing in England, Derrick became a member of The First Special Forces Unit of the Scottish Black Watch.  He got his wish for combat.

The Haney men survived the war.  By 1945 both men were back in Canada.

It was at this time that Joan Haney- Mr. Grant’s possible grandmother – made her well publicized mark on Sarnia history, for in that year, she threw her hat into the ring for Sarnia City Council.  Being successful, she became the first woman ever to be elected to that group.

During Mrs. Haney’s term as an Alderwoman, Wilfred Haney unfortunately continued to suffer from the general ill health which arose while overseas. As a consequence, he was admitted into the Veteran’s Hospital in London where he died on December 16, 1947.

With the advent of the Captain’s death, the Haney family was again front page news in Sarnia.

Three years passed on before the family again came into the public view.  This time the reports concerned Mrs. Haney‘s 1950 appointment to The Mothers Allowance Commission of Ontario.

After this account of Mrs. Haney’s continuing advancements, the family disappeared from local view.  Surprisingly so.

Following his military discharge and after briefly returning to Sarnia, Derrick set out to find his fame and fortune as an actor. In this regard it is noteworthy that both his parents had been active in Sarnia theatre over the years.  Of further note it was also at this time that his friend James Doohan began pursuing his own acting career.

Having adopted the stage name of Ryck Rydon, Haney’s acting career took him to engagements in England, the United States and Canada – primarily Vancouver.

It was while in England that he met Mr. Grant’s mother.

His career on stage and in movies was of modest success.  His credits included a supporting role in the 1965 Elvis Pressley movie “Harum Scarum.”  His last credit is recorded in 1967.  Although his accomplishments were not of the highest, it is somewhat telling that no local reports of Derrick Haney’s acting career could be found.

By the time of Derrick’s 1980 death in Vancouver, the surviving family had already left Sarnia for Toronto.

During the course of research, the paternity question still called out for confirmation.  Although confidentiality prevents disclosure of the same, one piece of significant evidence was uncovered which led to the solving of the overriding question.

Indeed, Mr. Anthony Grant is the son of Derrick Wilfred Haney and the grandson of Wilfred Smith Haney and Joan Haney.

Separate and apart from that momentous and overriding conclusion, had it not been for Mr. Grant’s inquiry to the Sarnia Historical Society the story of the Haney family would probably never have came to light.

That would have been unfortunate for, often with great colour and flair,   that family’s accomplishments deserve a place of note in Sarnia history.

Thank you Anthony.

Randy Evans

January, 2016