Toronto's Great Stork Derby
Charles Millar's Will Included Pranks - One Led to a Baby Race
Charles Vance Millar, a successful Toronto lawyer and student of human nature, had a wry sense of humor. His 1926 will kept Canadians amused during the Great Depression.
During his forty-five years of practicing law in Ontario, Charles Millar became an expert in wills. He also became quite wealthy and gained a reputation as a practical joker. So, following his death on October 31, 1926, having never married and with no close relatives, it was no surprise to learn that his will distributed his wealth in a mischievous way.
Millar's Will
Millar left lucrative shares in the Ontario Jockey Club to a judge and minister who were strong opponents of gambling and other shares to a rival of the club. He gave equal shares in a vacation home to three fellow lawyers. The only problem was, although they were all friends of Millar, they intensely disliked each other. He gave shares of the O’Keefe Brewery Company to every Protestant minister and every Orange Lodge in Ontario, all strong supporters of prohibition. The fact that the company was owned by Catholics only added to the discomfort felt by the “heirs”.
Clause 9
However, it was Clause 9 of the will that drew the most interest. By it, Millar left the remainder of his money to the Toronto woman who could produce the most children, certified by registrations under the Vital Statistics Act, in the ten year period following the date of his death. The offer became even more lucrative after some nearly worthless land owned by the lawyer became extremely valuable after it was chosen to be part of the site for the Windsor-Detroit tunnel.
The Baby Race
Thus began the Great Stork Derby or baby race. Soon Toronto and other city newspapers were running front page stories. Contestants, some of whom became close friends, were quickly identified and became overnight celebrities. Staid Ontario papers began covering topics often verboten in the past – birth control, abortion, illegitimate children, and divorce. The legal system became involved. Over the next few years, the courts, including the Canadian Supreme Court, faced many questions regarding the contest. What constituted “Toronto”? Would stillborn children count? Would illegitimate children count? And, most important, was Clause 9 even legal? Eventually, all questions were resolved.
The Great Stork Derby Ends
On October 31, 1936, the contest officially ended in a tie. Four women, Anna Katherine Smith, Kathleen Ellen Nagle, Lucy Alice Timleck, and Isabel Mary Macclean, had nine children each. They were each awarded $125,000 (US $1,500,000 today). Two other women would have also tied but were eliminated. Pauline Clarke had nine children but admitted that one was by a man not her husband. Lillian Kenney had actually had twelve babies, but several had died and she was unable to prove that they were not stillborn. As a consolation prize, each was given $12,500.
Ironically, but perhaps not surprisingly, many of the contestants were among those who could least afford large families, half the contest years occurring while the Great Depression was at its height. Of the four winners, two of the women had husbands who were unemployed and their families were on welfare. The other two had husbands who worked steadily, but at low paying jobs. Pauline Clarke was going through a divorce. Fortunately, at least for the top winners, everything worked out. By all accounts, their money was used wisely with education for their children being a top priority.
In his will, Charles Millar said that he had no one to whom he could leave his money. As it turned out, the attorney with the quirky sense of humor was wrong.
