Archibald, Donald “Don”

Don Archibald was born on December 17, 1916, in Princeton, BC. He married Elsie Baird on August 12, 1939, in West Summerland, BC. At the time of their marriage, both were living in Princeton, BC. He died on June 16, 1983, at the Kelowna General Hospital.

At time of his death, he had been working as a millwright at Crown Zellerbach and living in Peachland, BC.

In December 1931, he was a member of the Princeton Conservative Association. 

Don Archibald was considered an champion marksman. He won local shooting competitions in 1934 and 1935 and came in 2^nd in 1936. The competition was fierce. Ahead of the 1936 Dominion Day shoot, his main competitor, Dr. John Butler, created a bit of a diversion with the game warden. Story here. 

It seems the Archibald’s (Dave, Jim, and Don) were keen participants in the Dominion Day celebrations. All competed in the shooting competitions and, in 1938, Dave and Don Archibald won the log sawing contest as well as were on the winning team (Dave Archibald, C. Hansen, Ronald Cam, Don Archibald, L. Stewart) in the Tug of War competition. 

Jim and Dave Archibald and their families moved to Clearwater around 1938, but Don and Elsie remained in Princeton. In October of 1940, he donated 1.00 to the Canadian Red Cross and, in July 1942, the couple threw a  goodbye party for Bud Baird, who was leaving for Vancouver.

In September 1943, his mother, Addie Rudin, was admitted to Princeton General Hospital and he “delayed responding to his army call because of his mother’s sickness.”

Don Archibald enlisted as a private. He wrote thank you letters to the organizers of the Elk’s Smoke Fund in March 1945 and again in July 1945.