Norfolk Street Choir 1897
Maud Stevenson is sixth from the left in the front row

Before the turn of the century a talented singer who was known to audiences across the continent, Maud Stevenson is all but forgotten today. A daughter of one of Guelph's early mayors, William Stevenson, she belonged to a family that exemplified the spirit of their times with strong ties and devotion to each other.

Miss Stevenson was a handsome girl and the youngest of six daughters named Miriam, Belva, Laura, Carrie and Clara. There was one brother, the Rev. Ephraim B. Stevenson.

Their home was "Maplebank", an attractive house that still stands on the north-west corner of Grange and Stevenson Streets, the latter street getting its name from this outstanding family.

The girls were all musical and the family were at different times conected with Norfolk Street Methodist Church, Dublin Street Methodist Church, Knox and St. Andrews Presbyterian Churches, singing in the choirs at different times. She would at some time have sung with Edward Johnson when he was a boy soprano at Norfolk St Church.

The Toronto Globe of November 4, 1899, carries an account of Miss Stevenson and mentions that she is known from coast to coast across Canada for her concert work. Also in London, England, she received flattering comments on the tone and quality of her voice as well as the keen dramatic instinct she possessed. She was, it said, able to sing with equal ease, the most difficult classical selections and Scottich ballads. Her soprano voice had a magnificent range and sweetness. She was called "Guelph's sweet-voiced singer".

All the Stevenson daughters were married from the family home "Maplebank". When one sister, Clara, was married, Maud Stevenson played the wedding march and their brother the Rev. Ephraim B. Stevenson performed the ceremony making it strictly a family affair.

An old newspaper clipping bearing no date, features a sketch of Miss Stevenson after she had long been married and was Mrs. William Michner Pentelow. She was the "Personality of the Week" for in her later years she took a great interest in the work of the humane society in Guelph. She brought in, so the account reads, the most "signed" membership cards. Each year her cards numbered hundreds. It was impossible, so the piece reads, "to gauge the number of miles Mrs. Pentelow walked or the number of hours she has given to accomplish her task."

In 1956, a photograph hangs in the office of the humane society in Guelph, a small but significant honor.

Mrs. Pentelow's last home was at 11 Stewart St. where she died in 1949, leaving one son. She was buried in Woodlawn Cemetery in Guelph.