North Lanark Historical Society

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1 . North Lanark Historical Society May 2013 From the President s Pen As President of the North Lanark Historical Society I am thrilled and excited with this season s exhibits, programs and coming events at the North Lanark Regional Museum. A grant has been received under the Museum and Technology Fund to produce a Video Tour of items on the lower level of the Museum. Sarah Bennett who has been doing tremendous work at the Museum has been hired as manager of this project. This project will create videos identifying artefacts and giving in-depth descriptions. It will give a better understanding of how these items were used in pioneer times. Our Annual Meeting will be Wednesday, June 5 at 7 pm with Guest Speaker - John McKenty A History of the CCM Bicycle. Mr. KcKenty published Canada Cycle & Motor: The CCM Story in His book traces the history of the company from its beginning in 1899 until its eventual demise in His presentation will look, through words and slides, at the history of the bicycle and the CCM Company including both production lines: bikes in summer and its skates in winter. CCM was an integral part of growing up in Canada. See also - & Your support and participation is essential to preserving the history and heritage of our area. We invite you to take out a membership, visit the museum and enjoy all our events. Ed Wilson, President, North Lanark Historical Society w w w. n o r t h l a n a r k r e g i o n a l m u s e u m. c o m Page 1

2 Events May & June 2013 Museum Hours May 1 to August 31, 10:00am-4:00pm The museum is now open daily from 10:00am to 4:00pm. Please drop by for a visit to check out our new exhibits and activities! We now have a scavenger hunt and colouring station for the kids! This year we are celebrating our pioneering history with the exhibit "Pioneering in Ramsay" which documents some of the tools, techniques and living conditions of the early settlers. We are also commemorating a local tragedy with the exhibit "Remembering the Almonte Train Accident." On Sunday December 27, 1942 tragedy struck Lanark County when a troop train rear ended a passenger train at the Almonte Train Station killing 39 people and injuring many dozen more. For research and genealogy requests please call in advance, Launch: Digitally Preserving the Past for the Future May 19, 2013, 2:00-4:00pm On Sunday May 19 we are celebrating our 2012 project Digitally Preserving the Past for the Future The afternoon will feature a video presentation of artefacts, photos and oral histories collected in Light refreshments will be served. This is a family event. Bring your friends, family, neighbours, children and grandchildren! Annual General Meeting June 5, 2013, 7:00pm The 2012 Annual General Meeting will feature John McKenty presenting A History of the CCM Bicycle. Mr. KcKenty published Canada Cycle & Motor: The CCM Story in His book traces the history of the company from its beginning in 1899 until its eventual demise in His presentation will cover the history of the bicycle and the CCM Company including both production lines: bikes in summer and its skates in winter. CCM was an integral part of growing up in Canada. The NLHS is also looking to update its Constitution and By-Laws. Proposed revisions have been prepared by the Board and will be voted on at the AGM. If you d like to preview the proposed amendments please visit the website at or contact Sarah ( ) for a hardcopy. Strawberry Social June 23, 2013, 1:30-4:00 Tickets $10, (please purchase in advance) The annual Strawberry Social will be on June 23, For only $10 guests will be served fresh strawberries, whipped cream and shortcake and will be entertained by the Perth Citizens Band. This year, Vanessa Lamothe, Miss Teen Lanark County-World 2013, will be volunteering at the event. w w w. n o r t h l a n a r k r e g i o n a l m u s e u m. c o m Page 2

3 Heritage Dinner 2013 The Historical Society is happy to announce another successful Heritage Dinner. The 2013 Dinner took place on Friday February 15 th at the Almonte Legion. Large thanks goes to the Legion Ladies who prepared a wonderful roast beef dinner with pies for dessert. The night included a silent auction, architectural awards and a guest speaker. The silent auction was very successful, boasting over 100 items from handmade rugs to works by local artists. Mississippi Valley Textile Museum AGM On March 27, 2013 Doreen Wilson, Manager of the North Lanark Regional Museum gave a presentation to the Mississippi Valley Textile Museum Members at their Annual General Meeting. Genealogy Workshop Did you miss out on the 2012 NLHS genealogy workshop? Would you like to attend a genealogy workshop? After the very successful workshop conducted by Bob Butler and Almonte Train Accident The NLHS has launched an Almonte Train Accident Research Committee. This committee currently consists of NLHS members and one survivor from the Accident. The News The evening also included Architectural Awards by the Mississippi Mills Heritage Committee. These awards recognize various community projects that have successfully preserved our Heritage. The guest speaker for the night was local Architect Peter Mansfield. Mr. Mansfield spoke about Heritage and Architecture highlighting the importance of combining heritage aspects with modern useable buildings and spaces. He used many local buildings both residential and commercial as examples. Doreen discussed the history of the North Lanark Historical Society and the very successful Digitally Preserving the Past for the Future Project. She discussed how the Museum and Historical Society digitized Brian Tackaberry (NLHS Board Members), in November of 2012, the Historical Society would like to know if there is enough interest to conduct a second workshop. If you are committee is following up on various leads related to the accident and hope to conduct interviews with survivors, witnesses and family members from the event. The Heritage Dinner and Silent Auction are a major fundraiser for the Historical Society. The funds raised help pay for the exhibits, events and projects organized by the Society each year. Thank you to everyone who helped and to those who attended the evening! a large portion of the collection, conducted 12 oral interviews and hosted a very successful 70 th Anniversary Tribute to the Almonte Train Accident. interested in attending a genealogy workshop please contact Sarah at: or appletonmuseum@hotmail.com If you are interested in joining the committee or have any information about the Accident, please contact Sarah at appletonmuseum.com or w w w. n o r t h l a n a r k r e g i o n a l m u s e u m. c o m Page 3

4 Digitally Preserving the Past for the Future The North Lanark Regional Museum is pleased to announce the completion of the Museums & technology Fund Project "Digitally Preserving the Past for the Future." The Project was funded by the Ontario Ministry of Tourism, Culture and Sport. The project included two main components: #1 Digitizing the Collection #2 Oral Interviews Over the course of the project we were able to catalogue 5877 artefacts into our new database. These artefacts are now more accessible for researchers, visitors, volunteers and staff. Some of these objects A Video Tour The NLHS is happy to announce that we have received funding from the Museums & technology Fund for its new project A Video Tour. will be on display in our 2013 summer exhibit. We are also excited to announce that we conducted 12 interviews over the course of the project. The interviews cover a variety of topics including local schools, mills and rural life. Additionally we interviewed two survivors of the Almonte Train Accident and a daughter of a survivor. The oral interviews are available at the museum for onsite viewing. For a description of each interview please visit our website! As part of the project the Museum has also been conducting outreach programs to spread word about the For visitors with mobility issues, the interpretive videos will also be installed on the main level for easier access. project and share our local history and heritage with a larger audience. Presentations have been given to the: Appleton Community Association, Carleton Place and Mississippi Mills Rotary Club, Fairview Manor, Naismith Elementary School, Lanark County Museums Network and the Mississippi Valley Textile Museum. The project will be officially launched May 19, The launch will include a video prepared using objects and interviews collected during 2012! Thank You to everyone who helped make this project a success! project to gather more information. Do you know anyone who should be interviewed? The project will help make our museum more accessible and interactive for all our visitors both onsite and offsite. Interpretive videos will be installed in the lower level exhibit area so that visitors can learn more about the objects on display and in storage. Visitors will also have the option of watching clips from related oral interviews. The interpretive videos will also be used in outreach programs at local schools, day cares and community groups. The outreach programs will incorporate historical information, interpretive videos, artefacts and activities. As part of the project, museum staff and volunteers will be continuing the oral history Are you interested in helping with the project? Would your class, daycare, or community group be interested in the outreach program? Please contact Sarah, Project Manager, at or appletonmuseum@hotmail.com This project is funded by the Ontario Ministry of Tourism, Culture and Sport. w w w. n o r t h l a n a r k r e g i o n a l m u s e u m. c o m Page 4

5 The Cannon Family of Ramsay Township By R.E. Butler This article is a brief review of the Cannon family, who came to Canada and settled in Ramsay Township in the 1830 s. A more detailed version, including later generations, is available in the report: The Descendants of Dr. William Cannon and Margaret (King) Cannon By R.E. Butler, 17 Oct, 2011, available at the North Lanark Regional Museum. A more complete genealogy with documented sources, scanned images, and a few photographs is included in the Butler Family Tree on Ancestry.ca. First Generation Dr. William Cannon was a surgeon in the Royal Navy during the Napoleonic wars, and subsequently served in China and the East and West Indies. He and his wife, Margaret (King) Cannon, had a family of 5 boys and 3 girls, born in different locations in Scotland and England, depending on William s postings. The family is listed below. Family of Dr. William Cannon and Margaret (King) Cannon Birth Location Death Location William Cannon ~ 1790 Ireland 1841 Ramsay Margaret King ~1788 Scotland 1870 Beachburg Children Birth Death Spouse William 1816 Scotland 1893 Almonte Catherine Carswell John 1818 Scotland 1879 Almonte Harriet Carswell Margaret Dilkes 1820 England 1857 Quebec John Cobb Janet 1822 England 1895 Beachburg John Alexander Gemmill James King 1824 England 1825 Mary 1827 England 1910 Ohio Andrew Irving Gilbert 1829 Scotland 1899 Pembroke Susanna Leckie Andrew 1832 Scotland 1836 Ramsay James King Cannon died young, but the rest of the family emigrated to Canada in 1833 or Andrew died shortly after the family arrived in Ramsay, and was the first person buried in the Auld Kirk Cemetery in Almonte. William received a land grant from the Crown, which was probably Concession V Lot 1, and Concession VI, Lot 1, in Belmont Township, Northumberland county, (now Peterborough county), not far from Havelock, Ontario. In 1839 and 1840 William bought the West and East halves of Ramsay Concession VII Lot 12. A day after completing the purchases, he sold the North and South halves to his adult sons, William, 23, & John 21. (The land may have been divided into North and South halves so that each half would be watered by Wolf Grove Creek.) His third surviving son Gilbert was only 10 at the time. William was the first resident doctor in Ramsay. Dr. William Cannon died in June Margaret had moved to Westmeath Township, Renfrew County by 1852, and died in 1870 in Beachburg. Both William and Margaret were buried in the Auld Kirk Cemetery near Almonte. w w w. n o r t h l a n a r k r e g i o n a l m u s e u m. c o m Page 5

6 Second Generation William Cannon ( ) In 1848, William sold his half of the Ramsay farm to his brother John and moved to Westmeath. In the 1852 census, William was living with his mother Margaret, his siblings, Janet (Cannon) Gemmill, Mary & Gilbert, his nephew John Gemmill and his niece Marian Cobb. Gilbert was listed as a farmer. No occupation was given for William. In 1866, at the age of 50, William married Catherine Carswell who was 55. They had no children. William and Catherine moved to Beachburg where he was the Westmeath township clerk. Catherine died in William began to be paralyzed around He moved to Almonte to live with his sister Janet Gemmill, and was listed with her in the 1881 and 1891 census. He died in 1893 in Almonte, and was buried in the Auld Kirk. John Cannon ( ) John married Harriet Carswell (1818), the sister of William s wife Catherine, likely around John and Harriet had 6 sons and 1 daughter between 1848 and 1861: William (1848), John (1850), David Muir (1851), Gilbert (1854) James Leckie (1857), Harriet (1858), and Allan C (1861). John (1818) was listed as a farmer in the 1861 and 1871 census, and his death record in He left his personal effects and farm to his wife Harriet for her to distribute to their children as she saw fit. Harriet (1818) was still living on the Ramsay farm when she died in Margaret Dilkes Cannon ( ) The eldest daughter Margaret Dilkes Cannon married John Cobb (1815), farmer, in 1840 and moved to Litchfield, and later Fort-Coulonge Quebec. They had 4 children John (1841), Margaret King (1844), William (1846) & Marion ( Minnie 1849). Even though they lived in Quebec, Margaret came back to her mother s home in Ramsay to have her first 2 children. John Cobb (1841) lived with his relatives for a while in Ramsay, to attend school. Margaret Dilkes was afflicted with a creeping paralysis that started in her finger around 1849 and eventually led to an early death. In 1856 she went to Glenhaven New York, and lived there for a year attempting a cure. Margaret came home in 1857 and died a few weeks later Janet Cannon ( ) In 1845 Janet married John Alexander Gemmill (1816), Merchant, of Carleton Place. They had 1 child, John Alexander Gemmill in Janet and John Jr. were living with her mother Margaret and several of her siblings in Westmeath in John Junior was sent to Scotland for his education, and became a prominent lawyer in Ottawa. Janet was living with her husband in Pakenham, then a Notary Public, in 1861 and He died in She was living in Almonte, looking after her brother William, in 1881 and 1891 After William died in 1893, Janet went to Beachburg and died there in She may have been living in William s home in Beachburg, but there is no evidence she was living with any relatives. She and her husband are buried in the Auld Kirk. John Jr. is memorialized in the Auld Kirk with his parents, but was actually buried in Beechwood cemetery in Ottawa. Mary Cannon ( ) Mary Cannon taught school in the early 1850 s in Bryson, Quebec. She went with her sister Margaret Dilkes (Cannon) Cobb to New York for a year in , to tend to Margaret as she attempted a cure for her paralysis. w w w. n o r t h l a n a r k r e g i o n a l m u s e u m. c o m Page 6

7 In 1860, Mary married Andrew Irving (1821), Renfrew county registrar, and moved to Pembroke. Andrew already had 2 children from a previous marriage. Mary and Andrew had 5 children: William Cannon Irving (1861), Lennox (1863), Annie Edna (1866), Edward (1869), and Mary Maud (1872). Mary Maud died in In 1871, Mary s niece Margaret King Cobb (1844) and her nephew Gilbert Cannon (1854) were also living with the family. Andrew Irving died in Mary s brother Gilbert moved to Pembroke to live with her a few months before his death in Mary was still living with sons Lennox and Edward in After that, she moved to Cleveland to be with or near her daughter Annie Edna, and died there in Gilbert Cannon ( ) Gilbert moved to Westmeath with his mother, brother William, and sisters Janet and Mary around In the 1852 census he was listed as a farmer age 22. By 1861 he was back in Almonte, and married Susannah Leckie (1828) probably in the early 1860 s. They had no children. The 1863 Wallings map of Almonte shows their home on the south east end of Martin St., on the river. It has since been listed as a historical home. Gilbert was prominent woolen manufacturer in Almonte for several years, and owned and operated his own mills. Susanna died in 1893 in Almonte. Gilbert was living with his sister Mary in Pembroke when he died in Both Susanna and Gilbert are buried in the Auld Kirk. Gilbert s will names his sister Mary (Cannon) Irving as his prime beneficiary, and also leaves a vacant lot in Almonte to his sister in law Mrs. Thomas Leckie in Detroit. Lennox Irving, Mary s son, was Gilbert s beneficiary. General Observations about the Cannon Family It is apparent that the family was well educated and industrious. They did remarkably well at staying connected and looking after each other. Several examples are given in the more detailed history. Sources The main sources of information are A Genealogical Account of the Family of Gemmill written in 1898 by J.A. Gemmill grandson of Dr. William and Margaret Cannon, transcriptions from a family bible and family tree charts provided by a descendant William Schnarr, and BMD records (Birth Marriage & Death), death notices & obituaries, gravestone transcriptions, and Land transfer records, from public sources. The author would be very pleased to receive any comments at rebutler@storm.ca Thank you Bob for preparing this great article! If any NLHS members are interested in writing an article for the newsletter please contact Sarah at: or appletonmuseum@hotmail.com w w w. n o r t h l a n a r k r e g i o n a l m u s e u m. c o m Page 7

8 The North Lanark Regional Museum is hosting two summer camps in The first camp will run July 8 to July 12 and the second camp will run August 12 to August 16. Please register your children or grandchildren today! Spaces are filling up quickly! The August camp is more than half full! To register please visit our website and fill out the registration form: um.com/nlrm_summer_camp.html Or contact Sarah at or appletonmuseum@hotmail.com w w w. n o r t h l a n a r k r e g i o n a l m u s e u m. c o m Page 8

9 Events for 2013 Mark Your Calendar! May 19, 2013 June 5, 2013 June 23, 2013 July 8-12, 2013 August 12-16, 2013 September 29, 2013 November 3, 2013 Launch: Digitally Preserving the Past for the Future 2-4pm NLHS Annual General Meeting 7pm Strawberry Social 2-4pm Museum Adventures Camp Museum Adventures Camp Apple Pie Social 2-4pm Official Military Exhibit Opening Dates to be determined: Launch of the Virtual Exhibit The Mills of Appleton. Museum Hours May 1 st through August 31 Open Daily 10:00 to 4:00 For genealogy or research requests please call in advance appletonmuseum@hotmail.com The North Lanark Historical Society and Museum would like to thank several people and organizations for their continued support: Thank you Bob Butler for giving a genealogy presentation to the Carleton Place and Mississippi Mills Rotary Club on behalf of the NLHS. Thank you to those who are participating in our 2013 oral history project Thank you Mayor Levi and councillors of the Town of Mississippi Mills for your continued financial support. Thank you to the Government of Ontario through the Programs and Services Branch of the Ministry of Tourism and Culture for funding our project, Digitally Preserving the Past for the Future and our project A Video Tour Thank you Jennifer Armstrong for organizing the Heritage Dinner Silent Auction Thank you to all the NLHS Volunteers who helped organize the Heritage Dinner Thank you to everyone who attends our events and makes it all worthwhile And to anyone we may have missed, thank you for your continued support! Volunteer Week: April 21 to 27 was Volunteer Week. The North Lanark Historical Society and the North Lanark Regional Museum would like to thank all the volunteers who made 2012 such a success! Your hard work, dedication, and motivation are greatly appreciated! w w w. n o r t h l a n a r k r e g i o n a l m u s e u m. c o m Page 9

10 WE NEED YOUR HELP!!! The North Lanark Historical Society Membership and Donation Form By becoming a member, renewing your membership or by making a donation to the Society you make it possible for us to meet our many goals. In return you will receive our newsletters which give notice of all our upcoming events. Please complete the form below and then mail it or drop it off at the museum. We thank you for your support in the past, in 2013 and in the future. Membership and Donation Form 2013 North Lanark Historical Society P.O. Box 218 Almonte ON K0A 1A0 (mailing) 647 River Rd, Appleton On, K0A1A0 (museum- drop off in person) Annual Membership: Individual $10.00 Family $25.00 Donation: $10.00 $30.00 $50.00 Other: TOTAL AMOUNT: (Please make cheques payable to the North Lanark Historical Society) Name: Phone #: Address: Membership and Donations may be combined and are eligible for tax deductible charitable receipts. Thank You for your Support! w w w. n o r t h l a n a r k r e g i o n a l m u s e u m. c o m Page 10