Charles A. Dewey
From the Renfrew Mercury
06 February 1925
A member of Renfrew’s “ginger group” is Mr. Charles A. Dewey – pusher, optimist, enthusiast, and the embodiment of that quality known in these times as “pep”. For about a quarter of a century he has resided in Renfrew ranking almost from the first as one of this community’s best known and most popular residents. He came here from Kingston, but the place of his birth was Colborne, a Northumberland county community on the shores of Lake Ontario. Mr. Dewey early acquired that breadth of view which has ever since characterized him.
He came to Renfrew to take a position in the departmental store of Mackay Bros. then the town’s biggest mercantile establishment. For twelve years he remained with that firm.
Fire and life insurance next engaged his attention, to which lines were added real estate and a railway and steamship ticket agency, plus the role of auctioneer. In this work Mr. Dewey has been a conspicuous success, drawing a patronage from a wide territory and always sending people away satisfied.
When Mr. Dewey first came to Renfrew he took an active part in athletics – in their promotion. Especially did he push hockey, acting in conjunction with men such as the late William Jamieson, in which direction he remained a pusher until about fifteen years ago. He was a warm supporter of other games as well, and in the matter of cricket was a player. A player he is still, in the matter of curling, and a certain shot made by him in Pembroke on the evening of the 29th has been the talk of two towns.
Mr. Dewey’s hobby has always been horses. For a long while the harness horse was his preference; now he prefers the saddle horse, and is often in the saddle, thinking it the best and most exhilarating form of exercise open to man. His fondness for horseback riding has spread to a number of others in Renfrew, resulting in something like a riding club being formed.
Though never serving as a Town Councillor nor as a member of the Board of Education, Mr. Dewey has given of his time and talents and abounding energy to the Board of Trade, one of whose executive members he is. Always a “booster” for Renfrew, his connection with the Board of Trade is inevitable.
He is vice president of the Renfrew Rotary Club, one whose presence tends to give zest to meetings. His address upon insurance before that body a few months ago formed one of the most illuminating messages, the club has so far heard. For a number of years he has filled the office of Secretary-treasurer of the South Renfrew Agricultural Society, and it is due to him as much as to any other person that the Renfrew fair goes on from strength to strength. This week he is in Toronto as a delegate to the annual convention on the Fairs and Exhibitions Associations, whereby many a man will hear something of Renfrew town and Renfrew fair from one able to make himself heard in any gathering.
For the development of a bigger and better Renfrew, Mr. Dewey would have a closer and stronger relationship between the outlying districts and the town. He would have the town get into more intimate touch with the farmers, showing the farmers that it is in their best interests to buy their dry goods, groceries and other goods here, not only because they can do it just as well, if not much better, but because in doing so they are helping to build up a larger town and better market. And, he would urge residents of the town to patronize only the home industries, in which the main one he says, is our mercantile industry. He feels that the town must be developed from within; that instead of looking for additions in the form of new concerns, we should aim to have existing ones expand.