Kenneth Seymour Barnes was born on June 19, 1893, in St John, New Brunswick.

He was a prominent businessman in Montreal. After receiving his education in the Maritimes, Barnes began his career at the Royal Bank of Canada, where he worked from 1904 to 1914. He then held positions at the Royal Securities Corporation in 1915 and at Nesbitt-Thomson Company from 1919 to 1926. In 1926, he joined Flood, Barnes and Company Limited, which later became Flood, Potter and Company.

Throughout his career, Barnes served in several notable roles, including President of Securities and Money Transport, Inc., Chairman of the Executive Committee of Canadian Breweries Ltd., and a Director at Carling Breweries Ltd., Charles Gurd and Co. Ltd., Canadian Industrial Investments Ltd., and Orange Crush Ltd. He was also the Honorary Secretary-Treasurer of the Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals (S.P.C.A.) in Toronto.

In 1921, he married Dorothy Louise Locke (1887–1976). He died on December 26, 1944, in Toronto, Ontario.

Rev. William Sullivan Barnes was born on June 16, 1841, in Boston, Massachusetts.

He was a Unitarian minister who transitioned from the business world to theology by studying at Newton Theological Seminary. In 1864, he was ordained into the Baptist ministry in Melrose, Massachusetts. However, in 1868, due to his increasingly liberal theology and his advocacy for open communion, he left the Melrose church and withdrew from Baptist fellowship. He then accepted a position with the Church of the Messiah (Unitarian) in Montreal, Quebec, where he quickly gained recognition as an outstanding orator. Despite being hampered by shyness and physical frailty, including suffering from asthma—which sometimes necessitated finding a substitute for him on short notice—his personal magnetism drew people to his sermons. He embraced Darwinian evolution, various new scientific theories, and higher criticism of the Bible. His ministry focused heavily on culture and the visual arts, which contributed to his reputation. In 1909, he was awarded an honorary LL.D from McGill University.

However, Barnes was perceived as weak in promoting denominational interests, and the congregation diminished during his tenure.

The archives of the Unitarian Church of Montreal contain the minute books of the Church of the Messiah, a scrapbook with newspaper clippings about Barnes, transcriptions of several of his sermons, and manuscript histories of the congregation. Additionally, there are a few letters in the archives of the Unitarian Universalist Association in Boston, Massachusetts. Barnes also wrote the article on Unitarianism in Canada for "An Encyclopedia of the Country" in 1898.

In 1864, he married Mary Alice Turner (1843-1920). He died on April 2, 1912, in Montreal, Quebec.

Ben Barnett was born about 1873.

He was a well-known newspaperman, songwriter, and playwright. His career spanned over fifty years, including positions at the old New York Star, the New York Sun, The New York Journal American, The Vaudeville News, and The Billboard. In addition, he worked as a booking scout and artists' manager in New York City. He held a membership card with the American Newspaper Guild and was an active member of the American Society of Composers, Authors, and Publishers, as well as the American Guild of Variety Artists.

He died on March 31, 1951, in New York City.

George Barnston was born about 1800 in Edinburg, Scotland.

He was an HBC fur-trader and naturalist. He was educated as a surveyor and army engineer. He joined the North West Company in 1820 and was retained by the Hudson’s Bay Company after the 1821 amalgamation. He began his HBC career at York Factory (Manitoba) and from there, he helped outfit two forts in the south; Lower Fort Garry and Fort du Bas de la Rivière at the mouth of the Winnipeg River. From 1826-1832, his postings took him to various posts on the Pacific coast and subsequently to Fort Albany, Ontario. During his time with the HBC, Barnston was a student of the natural history of the various areas and his specimens are in the Smithsonian Institution, the British Museum, and the Redpath Museum at McGill University. He wrote regularly for the Canadian Naturalist and for the Ibis. In 1882, he became a fellow of the Royal Society of Canada.

He died on March 14, 1883, in Montreal, Quebec.

John George Barnston was born on April 17, 1835, in Red River, British Columbia.

He was a lawyer and a politician who represented Cariboo in the Legislative Assembly of British Columbia from 1872 to 1875. He studied law at McGill University and completed his articles under Sir John Rose, being called to the Lower Canada Bar in 1856. In 1858, he moved to British Columbia. Barnston was elected to the assembly in a by-election in 1872 that followed Cornelius Booth’s appointment to the bench. He chose not to seek a second term in the 1875 provincial election. Later in life, he resided in Nanaimo.

He died on December 22, 1883, in Victoria, British Columbia.

William McTavish Stuart Barnston was born c. 1856 in North West Territories, Canada, where his father George Barnston (c.1800-1883) was an HBC fur-trader and naturalist. His brother James Barnston (1831-1858) was a physician and botanist.

He married in 1875 in Trois-Rivières, Quebec, and had three daughters and three sons. He died on November 25, 1891. in New York, New York, and is buried in Montreal, Quebec.