One family with ties to Ontario butted heads with submarines and communists

This is a story of bravery and trials of four men – all named Jean Frederic Loba – who often risked their lives but survived war, religious strife and political intrigue.

The adventures of each of these men – grandfather, father, son and grandson – included one being jailed in East Germany after a Cold War incident; another twice being on military ships that sank 4 1/2 months apart; one serving in the terror of the Civil War; and another being chased out of Utah in a religious dispute.

Two of Lobas also spent some of their lives in the quiet of Ontario more than a century ago.

Loba I (it’s tough describing the exploits of four men with identical names) came to Salt Lake City from Switzerland with his young son after the death of his wife. A Mormon, he remarried there but the church stro