Charlie Gardiner (ice Hockey) - Personal Life

Personal Life

Gardiner was born in Edinburgh, Scotland, the third son and fourth child of John and Janet Gardiner. Along with his parents, older brothers John and Alexander, older sister Edith and younger sister Christina, he emigrated to Winnipeg, Manitoba at age seven in 1911. The family initially lived in a house on William Avenue before relocating to Alexander Street; both streets were south of the railways, and were full of Scottish-Irish working-class families. John took a job as a rail car repairer, and Gardiner took an early interest in the trains, often waiting up late at night to watch them arrive into the city. He was enrolled at the Albert School, and befriended Wilf Cude, an immigrant child from Wales who would also go on to be a National Hockey League (NHL) goaltender.

When the First World War began in 1914, both of Gardiner's brothers enlisted in the military and were sent overseas. Gardiner's father John also enlisted, but he died May 30, 1916 before he was sent overseas. Both his brothers returned home after the war ended; while Alex was unharmed, John had been involved in a poison gas attack, and was seriously ill. To help provide for the family Gardiner began working for the J.H. Ashdown Hardware Company at the age of twelve. In December 1928 John began to develop an illness as a result of his poison gas attack in the war, and died December 13. Edith had planned to get married on December 31, but wanted to delay the marriage because of John's death, though her family convinced her to continue with the original plan.

Gardiner married Myrtle Brooks August 6, 1927 at Grace United Church in Winnipeg. Their first son, Robert Roy, was born May 20, 1929. They also had a girl on May 7, 1931, but she died the same day.

While working at the hardware store, Gardiner first played organised sports as a member of the store's baseball team. Gardiner quickly started playing ice hockey, with the same passion as the children who were born in Canada. As he didn't learn to skate until he was eight-years-old, he couldn't skate very fast and was forced to play as the goaltender. He had tried to play as a forward and defenceman, but was to slow for either position. Playing on Winnipeg's frozen ponds, Gardiner employed an acrobatic style, instead of the nearly-universal stand-up style played in that era, to avoid having his hands and feet frostbitten. He joined the Victorias, a team in the Winnipeg City League, at the age of 13. He recored a shutout in his first game, but the team was shut out in their following game, so Gardiner was cut. By the age of 14, Gardiner made the intermediate team of the Selkirk Fishermen.

Aside from hockey, Gardiner excelled in rugby, and had joined the Winnipeg Tammany Tigers junior club in 1920. As a defender, Gardiner quickly gained attention for his skill, and helped the Tigers reach the Western Canadian junior rugby championship in Regina, Saskatchewan, though they lost the championship game. The following year he changed positions and played as a right outer wing; the Tigers went through the season undefeated and again played in the Western Canadian championship game; held in Regina like the previous year, the team again lost.

Played in the 13th Grey Cup with the Winnipeg Tammany Tigers, who lost to the Ottawa Senators 24–1.

Gardiner attended church services at Grace United Church in Winnipeg, the same place where he was married. He was also a Freemason, and joined the St. John's Lodge in Winnipeg on April 21, 1926. During the summer of 1933, he was selected as a Shriner at the Lodge; at the age of 29 he was the youngest Shriner in the city.

Outside of hockey, Gardiner enjoyed several different hobbies. During one off-season from the Black Hawks, Gardiner began taking flying lessons from his former teammate Konrad Johannesson. He quickly learned how to fly solo and would buy shares in the Winnipeg Flying Club, which Johannesson had founded. He also enjoyed shooting rifles; in the summer of 1931 he was recognised for this when he was elected Field Secretary of the Winnipeg Gun Club. The following summer Gardiner earned a certificate in business administration and sales from the International Correspondence Schools. He then became a partner in a sporting goods business and travelled across Western Canada in the summer to sell products to sports teams.