Brief Biography of Raymond Alexander McKinnon (Pa McKinnon). Written by his grandson Rick Atkinson in June 2002

Pa was one of 13 children born to Felix McKinnon and Ann McDonald in Brae, Prince Edward Island.

Pa was a devout Catholic and my mom said that he never swore in his life. The worst thing that he ever said was that someone was a darn scoundrel. He was a true gentleman, almost always wearing a white shirt and tie.

Pa was a builder of many buildings and homes in Massachusetts and Connecticut including some landmarks in downtown Boston and the barracks at camp Edwards and Camp Devans. Pa also owned the Bus line (or Street Railway) in Hartford CT.

Pa had an amazing memory, recalling history of PEI and his extended family and friends.

The McKinnon family had houses in Brookline (they lived next store to Joseph P. Kennedy who Pa considered a scoundrel - it is ironic that my daughter Shae is going to marry a Kennedy!), and family homes in West Roxbury, Dorchester, farms in Dedham and Connecticut, and family homes in Belmont and Brighton.

The family suffered serious financial losses in the 1929 stock market crash and faced really hard times in the 30’s according to my mom. The lost many houses that were being built in Belmont, couldn’t even sell them for $300.

Pa worked the stock market and sold mutual funds and outlived 17 company presidents. He was a top sales man in his 80’s. He joked to my mom that he had to continue to work to support his kids (Ray and Al lived with him at Brighton).

Pa almost ran over a child while driving when he was 65 and immediately gave up his license saying he was too old - and he lived to be almost 100.

Mom said that there was never a time that there wasn’t a still with a batch brewing at the McKinnon household. The whiskey was at least 190 proof, made form either corn or potato mash -- sometimes rye or barley, just depended on what they had for a crop. My dad said that during the war, a quart of this “kickapoo joy juice” would wipe out a barracks. I don't know if they made beer but being McKinnons, they must have! I brought some real moonshine back from Mississippi once. All of my brothers (and myself then) have been known to take a drink or two. This stuff was pure white lightening, burned from the tip of the tongue to the pit of the stomach and made your eyes cross and your head hurt! I think I actually saw vapors rise from the bottle when we unscrewed the cap. We had a hard time with a taking down a shot. Mon took a shot it right down and said "Tastes just like Pa used to make" – and didn't bat an eyelash while we were choking.

Being a McKinnon, Pa liked to play the ponies. Well into his 90's he would take the subway to Suffolk Downs and after that racetrack closed for the day, he would take the bus to Rockingham NH

When he was about 95, I visited him at Brighton. When I entered into the house I heard the dining room table drawer close (Pa wore reading glasses and used a magnifying glass - but he was a very proud man and no one ever him use them). He was reading the Wall Street journal and said matter of factly “Ricky, I just bought 100 shares of this penny stock - in 10 years it ought to be worth something - he was 95! When I kind of chuckled and reminded him he was 95, he asked me very matter of factly “Don’t you think I’m going to be alive in 10 years? I do!” Talk about positive thinking. Unfortunately, Pa died from complications of botched surgery just before his 99^th birthday.