Henry (Chum) McEwan (1874 – 1905)The next child, number six, born to John McEwan and Janet Stevenson was Henry (Chum) McEwan. He was born in Toronto July 11th 1874. Henry was born with a "caul" which is veil of skin that covered his face. According to some this is seen as good luck. It occurs in 1 in 80,000 births, and therefore very rare. A legend developed suggested that the possession of a baby's caul would give its bearer good luck and protect that person from death by drowning. My great-grandparents must have believed somewhat in such legends because this "veil" was folded and placed in a locket made by my great-grandfather that became "Chum's watch fob as a young man. It did not bring luck to Chum however. Chum would become a pitcher for the Toronto All Stars when he was a young man. This was a professional baseball team in Toronto before the American and National Professional Baseball Leagues came into existence. |