The early part of his life was spent in Depauville.  When he was a young man, John Clinton worked on freighters that sailed the Great Lakes and became a chief engineer for a steamship line.  He and Elizabeth were married in 1907 and they resided for a time in Depauville and LaFargeville before moving to Watertown in 1909 when they bought the Morrison Street home.  He left sailing at that time and was employed in various industrial plants in Watertown.  In his early years, he worked at H. H. Babcock Carriage Manufacturing Company and the old Portable plant.  Later, he was an employee of the Dexter Sulphite, Pulp & Paper Company mill in Dexter.  In 1929, he went to work for the old Northern New York Utilities, Inc. which was the electric and natural gas utility company in the northern New York area at that time.  This later became the Niagara Mohawk Power Corporation and  is now National Grid.  He worked there for 21 years until his retirement in 1950.  The photo at the right shows him as a young man.

John and Elizabeth lived most of their adult life in the old family homestead at 742 Morrison Street in Watertown, New York.  They bought the home in 1908 and lived there over 50 years.  When John and Elizabeth both died in 1959, the home was left to their three children.  Since their son John Howard and daughter Mary lived there, their brother Donald signed his share over to them.  The home was sold in 2003 when Mary needed full-time medical care and could no longer live there alone.  The home was in the family 95 years.

John Clinton had a stroke in July 1955 which left him a semi-invalid.  He suffered a heart attack on September 28, 1959.  He died at the family home on 30 September 1959 after a second heart attack.  His obituary appeared in the Thursday, October 1, 1959 edition of the Watertown Daily Times and his funeral was held at the Reed & Benoit Funeral Home in Watertown on Saturday, October 3.  He is buried with his wife in the North Watertown (NY) Cemetery.

John and Elizabeth's headstone in the North Watertown Cemetery.  They share their grave with Carlotta "May" Stocker, a very close friend.

 According to the 1910 census, John's list includes Liz and Howard.  Donald and Mary were born later.  It also included Jacob Knutty, his father-in-law, age 57, and Susan Vogt, his aunt, age 64.

This photo is identified as "Outdoor dinner at Mrs. Powell's, Houseville, NY.  Mrs. Powell, old lady at end of table.  Our old Ford in background.  About 1928?"  Houseville is in Lewis County, near Turin.  We have no idea who Mrs. Powell was but we can identify some of the people here.  The man in  the hat at the front is unknown.  Going clockwise from him, the next lady is unknown.  We believe the next young men are Howard and Donald, then their father, John.  Mrs. Powell is on the far end.  Leaning forward and looking at the camera is Mary with her mother, Lizzie, behind her.  The other two ladies are unknown.

An old picture found in family records is labeled, in Lizzie's handwriting, "Flowers by our barn Aug 10, 1927"  This would be the barn at 742 Morrison Street, in the city of Watertown NY.

Elizabeth Mary Knutty was born in Lee Center, New York on August 20, 1878.  Lee Center is in Oneida County, just north of Rome, New York.   She was the second and final child and only daughter of Jacob M. and Elisa Hildebrand Knutty.

The family moved to Depauville in Jefferson County when she was a child.  She was a wife, mother and homemaker the rest of her life.  The photo at the right shows her in her younger years.

She took ill with a heart condition on April 13, 1959.  She died in her sleep at home at about 4:30 on the afternoon of Monday, April 27.  The funeral was held at 2 PM on Wednesday, April 29 at the Reed & Benoit Funeral Home.  She is buried in the North Watertown (NY) Cemetery.

In 1939, the family bought a parcel of land on Pillar Point, just west of Watertown, on the shores of Lake Ontario.  Between then and 1941 or so, John built a cabin which became known in the family as "the cottage".  This cabin remained a rustic get-away for family and friends for almost four decades.

In the late 1970's, John's grandson, David and his wife, Marcia and their children regularly used the cottage during the summer for the next six years or so.  Following this, the property sat, for the most part, unused for the next 19 years.  On August 24, 2004, papers were signed and the cottage became the property of David and Marcia Schryver.  The cottage has now been totally renovated.  If John and Elizabeth were to return today, they wouldn't even recognize the place.  The cottage is now being enjoyed by David and Marcia, their children and grandchildren.  Five generations of the Schryver family can call it home.

This picture of John and Elizabeth was found in an old family album after the death of their daughter, Mary.  The album had been found at the old family homestead and given to John and Lizzie's grandson, David, in 2008.

This picture was taken at the cottage and, according to handwriting on the back, it was taken on June 6, 1944.  John would have been 69 years old at the time and Elizabeth just shy of her 66th birthday.