Walter Henry

A photo of Walter Henry that was taken in Moose Jaw N.W.T (Saskatchewan) in the early 1900s.
Walter Henry is not his real name, it was one he adopted from names two employers gave him.

Walter Henry had a very large correspondence circle which included my grandmother, Lucy Myrtle Hannah. I have letters from him to her from 1910-1915. He paints himself as a humble lonely man who wore his heart on his sleeve. In a letter to my grandmother he tells of his origins, and claims that he only told one other person these things. His great grandfather was a Scottish Sea Captain and his mother was a native of one of any number of small islands on his trade route. Walter describes his father as an "octoroon" and his mother as a "Jewess". They had five children. Walter was the only one who did not pass for white as he had inherited his great grandmothers genes. As a result of his dark skin, his maternal grandmother hated him and made his life miserable. His father died shortly before his mother gave birth to her last child. Because the atmosphere at home had become so hostile, his mother fled by train to find a safe place for her and Walter to live. She became ill and had to leave the train and was found by a farmer who took her to his home where she died from childbirth complications. Before she died she asked the farmer to find Walter and get him to safety, which he did. Walter lived with the farmers family till he was old enough to make his one way. He became a laborer and eventually landed in Saskatchewan where he was apparently well regarded for skills he had acquired along the way.
He says in his letters that he got the name Walter Henry from two jobs he worked in the States. He said his original name was unpronounceable and the foreman changed it to Walter. Than on another job he was given that last name of Henry for paycheck purposes. He kept the name for expedience sake but never says what his real name was.
If anyone has information about Walter Henry, it would be greatly appreciated if you would pass it on. He was not a member of our family but he had an important relationship with my grandmother and I'd like to know more about him.

People in photo include: Walter Henry