 James Alexander McOuat was born in Chatham, Argenteuil County, Lower Canada (Québec), on Jan 17, 1855.He was the youngest son of David McOuat and Christian McGibbon, both of whom were born in Scotland and emigrated to Lower Canada in the early part of the 19th century.As a young boy, Jimmy threw a turnip at an elderly neighbour who cursed at him and said "You'll amount to nothing and die in a shack."