Born: February 1848, Amaranth Township, Dufferin County, Ontario, Canada Died: 1922, Minneapolis, Hennepin County, Minnesota Burial: St. Mary’s Catholic Cemetery, Minneapolis Religion: Born Presbyterian; later associated with Catholic family through marriage
Father: James Crombie (1805–1891) Scottish-born; emigrated to Ontario; farmer in Amaranth Township; married three times.
Mother: Sarah Susan Brown (1820–1858) Ontario-born; first wife of James; mother of William and several siblings.
William grew up in rural Dufferin County, Ontario, in a large Scottish‑Canadian farming family. After his mother’s early death, he was raised in a blended Crombie household typical of mid‑19th‑century Ontario.
William left Ontario in the early 1870s, first settling in St. Louis, Missouri, where he worked in the hospitality trade. This is where his first marriage occurred and where his first child was born.
He later moved north to Minneapolis, where he spent the remainder of his life.
Likely married in St. Louis around 1872–1873
Mother of his first child
Appears in records connected to St. Louis Catholic communities
Not found in Minneapolis records, confirming the marriage ended before William’s move north
Charles Edward Crombie
Born: 9 February 1874, St. Louis, Missouri
Died: 1922
Find A Grave ID: 233904108
Mother listed as Elizabeth Connelly
This is the definitive evidence linking William’s first marriage to St. Louis
This child does not appear in Minneapolis household records because he remained connected to Missouri.
Married in Minneapolis in 1891. Mother of his Minneapolis‑born children.
Beatrice Crombie
Raymond Harold Crombie
William E. Crombie
These children form the Minneapolis Crombie line that connects directly into your Nolan branch.
William worked in the hospitality industry throughout his life. His career path follows a typical immigrant progression:
Cook / steward in St. Louis and early Minneapolis
Restaurant proprietor by the early 1900s
This aligns with Minneapolis city directory entries.
William lived the rest of his life in Minneapolis, active in the restaurant trade and in the extended Crombie–Nolan family network. He died in 1922 and is buried at St. Mary’s Catholic Cemetery, confirming his identity as the Canadian‑born Crombie and not the unrelated Lakewood‑buried William (1850–1886).
William Crombie (1848–1922) was:
A Canadian‑born son of Scottish settlers
First married in St. Louis to Elizabeth Connelly, producing Charles Edward Crombie (1874–1922)
Later married Katherine Wagner in Minneapolis
Father of two distinct family branches:
Missouri branch (Charles Edward)
Minneapolis branch (Beatrice, Raymond, William E.)
A lifelong hospitality worker and restaurant proprietor
Buried at St. Mary’s Catholic Cemetery
This profile now reflects the correct, evidence‑supported, two‑marriage life of your great‑grandfather.