16 Mar 1968
Frank MacDonald, among the last of the district pioneers, died at his home on Saturday afternoon, March 16, 1968. He was 88. Born November 2, 1879, to Mr. and Mrs. Donald Rory MacDonald of Antigonish, Nova Scotia, he was the eldest in a family of 10 children. He was educated in his home town and at the age of 18, left home to work his way westward. In 1902, Mr. MacDonald arrived in Phoenix where he gained employment in the mines with the Granby Mining Company. Later he became a carpentry foreman with the company, which position he held for 15 years, during this time also erecting buildings and homes in the copper mining centre. He was married in Nelson on August 13, 1908, taking as his bride, Cassie MacDonald, daughter of Mr. and Mrs. John MacDonald of Antigonish, N.S. Mr. and Mrs. Frank MacDonald were to have celebrated their 60th wedding anniversary this summer. Following closure of the smelter in Grand Forks, Mr. MacDonald moved here in 1917 and stayed for a year helping to dismantle the smelter. When Phoenix became a ghost town, Mr. and Mrs. MacDonald were the last family to move out of that city in 1920. For some 13 years following this, he was engaged in carpentry work with the Granby Mining Company at Cassidy, Vancouver Island. In 1932 he and his wife returned to Grand Forks and have made their home here since then. Until his retirement in 1954, Mr. MacDonald continued to practice his profession as a carpenter. Mr. MacDonald, who once served as an alderman for the City of Phoenix, wsa throughout his lifetime, an avid collector of historical facts about Phoenix. In Grand Forks he served for some years as city building inspector. He is survived by his wife Cassie; three brothers, Alfred, Archie and Johnny, all of Antigonish, N.S.; and one sister Mrs. Stella Crews of Los Angeles, California. Prayers were held Monday, March 18 at 7:00 p.m., from Manly Funeral Home. Mass was sung at 10:00 a.m., Tuesday, March 19, from Sacred Heart Catholic Church, Grand Forks, with interment following in Evergreen Cemetery. Pallbearers were Carl Zak, Adolph Talarico, Albert Talarico, all of Grand Forks; Val McDonald of Greenwood; Joe MacDonald of Kamloops; and A.F. Brown of Penticton.