Reston Motors - A Once Bustling Spot on Main Street

From Trails Along the Pipestone page 474
Jack Cuthill on the left, Dr. Chapman in the middle, Alf Archer on the right (thanks Helen)

Reston has had many retail and repair businesses since the automobile arrived in town in the Teens.  McMurchy Garage and Waddy’s Auto Service have previously been covered but today I’d like to look at Reston Motors. 

It was located on the lot between the present day library and the Anglican Church - now the home of Scott and Vanessa Bertholet.  The land was sold to a William Raynor in 1905 for $100 by storekeeper G.S. Munro. Raynor sold to the Eaton brothers - Leslie and Melvin - in 1917 to upsize a machine shop they had previously established up the street.  Raynor's speculation in the young town of Reston paid off with a $700 profit on the lot by holding on to it for 12 years!  Leslie Whitmer Eaton had trained as a machinist and would have likely come to Reston with work on the CPR. This occupation repairs machines of all types often by making the parts needed, not ordering them from another manufacturer or distributor. This photo of Leslie with a jaunty pipe was posted by user Jessie_AR  on Ancestry and was taken in about 1912.  

He married Emma Elizabeth Kenspeer in Winnipeg in 1902. The couple had 3 children - Clive, Harry and Violet. Luckily for us historians, Leslie took an interest in photography and the Winnipeg Photo Company (1908-11) is the source for many wonderful street scene postcards that tell the stories in this blog.  Despite its urban name, the company practiced its trade in this corner of Manitoba and just into Saskatchewan with portraits and outdoor scenes. The times were changing and more personal cameras meant less need for a professional photographer but the automobile was flourishing and they needed repair. Melvin Eaton left the partnership and in 1921, Ernest H Edwards became involved in the office side while Leslie Eaton did the mechanics.  (Edwards also served as a bailiff for cases as was discovered while researching the County Court building.)  Machines of all kinds were in their trade - cars, tractors, threshing machines and gasoline engines. Leslie Eaton died in 1923 and Dr. A.B. Chapman and some investors took over the garage. 

In the 20's John Cuthill (1896 - 1965) began working in this building which he would later own. John - known as Jack - was born in Kingskettle, Fife, Scotland.  He served as a member of the Scottish Black Watch Regiment in WW1 and joined his immigrant parents in Canada after the war. On the 1921 Census, he was living on 2-7-27 W1 the eldest son of parents Andrew and Caroline Cuthill (married in Reston, Scotland) with brothers Thomas and Andrew.  Rather than farming this spot between Reston and Pipestone, his future was in machines. He married Mable Marion Pierce in 1932 who was the second daughter of Thomas and Helen Pierce of the Kinloss district. Jack and Mabel had two children Helen (later Buhay) and Allen.  Jack Cuthill and his brother Thomas provided violin music for dances and other social affairs in the area. As a citizen of Reston, Jack was active in the Masons and Legion and was chief of the fire brigade. He also administered vehicle driving tests as one of my readers passed hers with him as the supervisor. If you were his daughter however, the RCMP gave you the test to be sure no one thought you weren’t capable! 😉

Gas pumps were installed out front of Reston Garage and Machine Shop in 1928. In 1937, the business was remodeled and a showroom for new Pontiac cars was added. A variety of lines of passenger vehicles and farm machinery were carried over the decades. The business became known simply as Reston Motors. Reston’s first car wash was another part of the business and it was reportedly a very busy spot on Main Street. 

Ad from Kinloss Cookbook 1959

Lloyd Armstrong was born in Rapid City and was raised by his grandmother Adeline Armstrong, after the death of his mother. They moved to Reston and he served in WW1 from 1917-19. Lloyd worked his was up to the rank of Sergeant using his mechanical skills in the CASC - Canadian Army Service Corps in the Training Depots in England and France. On his return, he was a mechanic in Reston at the Townsley Garage and for Ross McNicol. He married Mary Somerville Guthrie in 1920 and they had a son Murray and two daughters, Clair (later Deacon) and Beth (later Wilby). He became a partner in Reston Motors in 1942 with Jack Cuthill and left in the early 1960’s after many years together. Lloyd was a community man as well, contributing his time to the school board, Masons and Legion.

Jack Cuthill passed away in 1965 and Mabel ran it for another year. In 1966, the business closed and was demolished shortly after.  

Parade heading south on Main Street in 1964 includes Reston Motors to the right of the Esso sign.
Source -  S.J. McKee Archives at Brandon University