McNee Monuments

Stephenson Memorial Cemetery
280 Muskoka Road 10
Port Sydney, Stephenson Township
Muskoka District



James McNee, husband of Alison Forsyth

Alison Forsyth, Mrs. James McNee

James, Son of James McNee and Alison Forsyth

John, son of James McNee and Alison Forsyth

*

Their daughter, Ellen, probably died in Michigan.

Their daughter Charlotte died in California and is buried

Acacia Memorial Park (Masonic)801 Scenic Drive, Modesto, CA 95350, 209-522-0452.

Hamilton, Charlotte R. - 1873 - Jan 10,1947 - TR 20 GR 153

"In Loving Memory of_____" - Plot owner Bertha Klaus

Mary and Emma Forsyth

Mary Forsyth (Mrs. Harry Mortimer) and Emma Forsyth (Mrs. Tom Peacock)

Mortimer Monuments

St. James Cemetery, Mortimer Point, Township of Muskoka Lakes

Charlotte R. C. McNee Hamilton 1873-1947

On August 1st, 1928, Charlotte R.C. Hamilton, a Grad. Nurse, crossed the Canadian-American border from Canada to Port Huron, Michigan. The hand-written document was prepared in Toronto, and may have been an application for permanent residence in the US.

The record of the border crossing provides the following information. Charlotte was 55 years old, was 5 feet 5 inches tall with grey hair and blue eyes. She was born in Falkenburg, Ontario about 1873 (January 15, 1873). Her last permanent address was Moosejaw, Saskatchewan. The form included this wording, "Seen $6,000.00," probably to prove that she was able to support herself. Another question asked who had purchased her ticket; she had paid for it herself.

Charlotte was travelling to Modesto, California to join Bertha Klaus at 1739 Almond Street, and had been living in the US from 1923 to 1928, the current year and was a permanent US resident. (Modesto is in the interior of California east of San Franscisco. It is in the county of Stanislaus.)

We know that Charlotte lived with her parents and then with her brother and widowed father until her marriage at 41 years of age on June 14, 1916 to William Joseph Hamilton of Watt Township, son of Edward Hamilton and Sarah Taylor.

It seems that between 1916 and 1923, Charlotte studied to be a nurse and also lived in Moosejaw, presumably with her husband.

Charlotte gave her next-of-kin as John McNee, Utterson. Her brother, John was five years older than she was, and Utterson was probably the address of the McNee land which was north of Falkenburg. John was married to Jessie Mina Grant, a school teacher in about 1912. John and Charlotte's father died in 1917.

Charlotte's full name was Charlotte Robina Cockburn (McNee) Hamilton. She appears in the 1930 census for Modesto City, California. She was 57 years old and widowed at that time, and her work was 'Special nurse - general duty.' Charlotte died January 10th, 1947 in Stanislaus, California.

It is not known if Bertha Klaus was a friend or an employer; however, the cemetery plot in which Charlotte was buried was owned by Bertha Klaus. (See July / 2010 post)

John Forsyth, Toronto 1853

I was searching records today and found a note of a John Forsyth who was a teamster in Toronto in 1853. Will investigate this further.


1853, p. 9, 210, John Forsyth (no age) Teamster
Owner of dwelling-John Ritchey
St. Andrew's Ward, Boulton St, Both Sides, City

To see the record, click on the title above.


Original: City of Toronto Archives, City of Toronto Tax Assessment Rolls, Reference: Fonds 200, Series 612, St. Andrew's Ward, 1853, Pg: 9, Sequence Number: 210

Index: Web Site: OntarioRoots.com (http://www.OntarioRoots.com), Transcription of City of Toronto Tax Assessment Rolls, St. Andrew's Ward, 1853, Pg: 9, Sequence Number: 210, Viewed on 11/1/2009 7:24:13 PM

Parkersville, Stephenson Twp, Muskoka

The school and the church are on the left side of the photo. On the right side, there is a boarding house which used to board lumbermen. It would seem that their work was done by the time this photo was taken.

This is a photo of the Parkersville Mill. The church is behind. I'm not sure what the 'pole' is in the middle. Seems to be a flaw in the photo. The boarding house (?) is different from the first photo.

The Forsyths attended church in Parkersville which is on the road between the second and third concessions of Stephenson Township. It would have been about a two mile journey from the thirteenth concession of Macaulay. The Forsyth children attended school here as well.

Currently, Parkersville is a left turn off Highway #11 and is located at the railway tracks. The other approach is north on District Road #4. It is a right turn at Beatrice and then several miles to where the railway intersects with the road.

Forsyth Land Documents

1871 Census - Agricultural Information

Muskoka District / Macaulay Township
Reference: C10023 - Roll 136
Enumerated by W. Kirk, April, 1871

p. 41 Entry 158
Forsyth, John........M....... 64, B. Scotland, Presbyterian, Farmer,
Forsyth, Charlotte....... F.........74, B. Scotland, Presbyterian

CONCESSION XII, LOT 9 (19-41 - page number and ?)
Tenant, 100 acres, 10 acres improved, 4 acres pasture, 400 bushels turnips,
1 house, 2 barns or stables, no animals

p. 42 Entry 161
Forsyth, John...............M.....34, B. Scotland, Presbyterian, Farmer
Forsyth, Mary..............F......30, B. Scotland (sic), Presbyterian, English descent
Forsyth, Charlotte.......F.........8, B. Ontario
Forsyth, Diana..............F........6, B. Ontario
Forsyth, Sarah Jane....F.........4, B. Ontario
Forsyth, John Thomas....M....2, B. Ontario
Forsyth, William Charles..M.. 11 mo....b. April

CONCESSION XIII, Lot 9 (10-42 - page number and ?)
Owner, 200 acres, 20 acres improved, 4 acres pasture
2 barns / stables, 3 cars/wagons/sleds, 1 plough
2 oxen, 3 milch cows, 4 sheep, 3 other horned cattle
2 sheep killed or sold for slaughter or export, 250 lbs butter
30 lbs of wool, 12 yards homemade cloth / flannel

1 acre wheat (12 bushels), 10 bushels barley, 100 bushels oats,
25 bushels rye, 15 bushels peas, 1 bushel corn
2 acres potatoes (250 bushels), 8 acres hay (10___?)

Map of Macaulay Township

Click on the title above for further history of the settlement of Muskoka.

History of Falkenburg / Falkenburg Station
"The Muskoka Road was built to North Falls (Bracebridge) in 1861. The survey of the Muskoka Road north of Bracebridge was done in 1860 and the road was built from Bracebridge to the north boundary of Stephenson Township in 1863. The settlers came as the road opened. The continuation of the road to Huntsville was not complete until 1871."

"In 1863 a post office opened (in Falkenburg). There were several hotels, a blacksmith shop, an Anglican Church and a school. In 1885, the railway reached Bracebridge and in 1886 it was extended to Utterson, in Stephenson Township, and on to Huntsville......The Northern and Pacific Junction railway......built its station two miles south, where a new village, Falkenburg Station, grew up. It became the center of the area and Falkenburg became a ghost town."

"There were 2 post offices only a few miles apart at one time. Falkenburg closed in 1894 (with the death of Mathias Moore), and the post office of Falkenburg Station remained opened until January 1, 1970."

Falkenburg Post Office was on Concession X, Lot 2/3, as shown on the 1878 Atlas of Muskoka District. This was the land of Mathias Moore, and it was not Free Grant land and therefore located between 1861-68. This lot is shown in red. Falkenburg Union Cemetery is located on Concession IX, Lot 2 and is also shown in orange. The SS No. 3 Macaulay School was built on Lot 4 of Concession XI in 1870 and is shown in green.

See the article below for more information.
http://www.ghosttownpix.com/ontario/towns/falkenbu.html

Forsyth and Forsyth related land is shown in yellow on the map.
To drive to the XIIIth Concession of Macaulay, turn right onto the Moore Rd (off No. 4 north of the Cemetery) and then immediately left onto the Little Rd. It is a rough dirt road which goes for about a mile and a half.)

Based on Map by MITIG Forestry Services Ltd, Huntsville. Ontario
Click on the map to enlarge it. There is no Lot 1 in Macaulay Township.

CONCESSION 11

Lot-Acres-Locatee-Location Date

5 100 Thomas Egglefield 25th November, 1870

6 100 William Inch 31st August, 1869

7 100 George H. Appleby 5th October, 1868

8 100 Jacob R. Tabor 3rd September, 1869

9 100 Louis Olimer 6th December, 1871 (1878 Atlas shows John Forsyth on this lot . Could this be an error on the map?)

10 100 David Yearley 29th October, 1872

11 101 Elon Olimer 20th June, 1873

CONCESSION 12

Lot-Acres-Locatee-Location Date

2 120 Thomas Quintten 8th September, 1869

3 100 Thomas Quintten 27th January, 1871

7 100 Samuel Loughead 5th June, 1869

8 100 Samuel Loughead 16th October, 1869

9 100 John Forsyth, Sr. tenant in 1871 Census (John Jr's land) but I have no corresponding land record.

10 105 John Forsyth, Jr. 20th July, 1869 This was Free Grant land which the railway went through in 1885. The Forsyths boarded railway workers.

11 101 William Jones 14th May, 1870

12 101 William Jones 14th May, 1870

CONCESSION 13

Lot-Acres-Locatee-Location Date

2 112 William D. Meggison 21st February, 1870

3 100 William D. Meggison 14th August, 1872

4 100 Michael Shaffer 17th September, 1869

5 100 Michael Shaffer 17th September, 1869

6 --- James McNee (Not on this list therefore located between 1861-68 and not Freegrant)

7 --- John Clarke (Not on this list therefore located between 1861-68 and not Freegrant)

8 100 John Clark 13th February, 1872

9 100 John Forsyth (Not on this list -Located between 1861-68 - Purchase - Deeded 1873)

10 103 John Jones 12th July, 1872

(The above is taken from http://freepages.genealogy.rootsweb.ancestry.com/~wjmartin/macaulay.htm with land purchased between 1861 and 1868 added.)

Photos of Jessie Forsyth 1885-1965

Peacock monument at Kirk Cemetery, Macaulay Twp, Muskoka

1960 - age 75 - Jessie Peacock at the Peacock Family Reunion in Orillia

ca 1905, about age 20 - Jessie Forsyth, probably before marriage

ca. 1900 - about age 15 - A detail of Jessie Forsyth from a photo with Emma and George, her siblings taken before 1905 when George died and before her marriage

ca 1895 - about age 10 - Jessie Forsyth

ca 1890 - about age 5 - Jessie Forsyth, daughter of John and Mary of Macaulay Township

Jessie Forsyth Peacock 1885-1965

Jessie Forsyth was the youngest child of John and Mary Forsyth. She was born in Macaulay Township on November 6th, 1885. She married George Nelson Peacock, son of John Peacock and Mary Ellen Oliver, also of Macaulay Township, on the 9th of August, 1905. Jessie died November 9th, 1965 and is buried in the Kirk Cemetery, Bracebridge.

In the 1911 census, shown below, Mary Dales Forsyth who had been widowed three years, was living with Jessie and George Peacock.



1911 Census - Macaulay Township, Muskoka, Ontario
Peacock, George....... Head..............b. Mar, 1886........age 25
Peacock, Jessie......... Wife...............b. Nov, 1885........age 25
Peacock, Gertrude....F.....................b. Jan, 1906........age...5
Peacock, Hazel.......... F....................b. Jun, 1907.........age..3
Peacock, Marjory..... F.....................b. Dec, 1908.........age..2
Peacock, Clarence.....M....................b. Aug, 1910........age..10/12
Forsyth, Mary, Mother-in-law, W..b. Sep, 1840..........age 70

The family members born after 1911 are:

John Melville b. June, 1912, died June 25, 1912, buried Kirk Cemetery

George Murray b. 1 June, 1913, died 11 June, 1968, buried Kirk Cemetery

Elmore Leroy Willis b. 14 July, 1915, d. 199_, Massena, New York

Eileen Mary b. 15 Sept 1917, d.______ Toronto, Ontario

Kenneth Merle b. 24 Jan 1922, d. May 14, 1987 (of Fenwick) St. Catherines,Ontario

Glenwood Nelson b. 25 Jan 1924, d. _______ Bracebridge,Ontario

Maurice Beatty b. 2 Jan 1926 d. 4 Sept 1927Whooping Cough, Bur. Kirk Cem.

Terrance Morley b. 9 April 1927, Sturgeon Fallsd.19_____Bracebridge

Helen Yvonne b. __ Dec 1935, d. 2009, Bracebridge, Ontario

The following was written by Jessie:

"In the fall of 1908, we were living in Falkenburg and heard a farm was for sale - lot 12 on the 4th and 5th concession of Macaulay. George Peacock and his father went over to look things over and came back home, and George said he was going to see the man who had it for sale.

"We bought the farm in December, 1908 and moved over there in January, 1909. We had three children, 3 girls (including) a baby born on December 14th , 1908. There was no house on the farm, only a barn and two log cabins down by the creek where someone had a camp one time. George fixed the smaller one up for us to live in till we got a house built. It was fixed up warmer than the other one. We moved there in January on a very cold day.

"The flat road ran through our place in the winter when the men drew logs, bark and wood to town. George’s brother was cutting logs on the farm and the men were boarding at our place and sleeping in the other cabin. They had a box stove in the cabin to keep warm. The men went home to Bracebridge on Saturday nights. It came an awful cold night. We couldn’t get our cabin warm and George went into the other cabin and picked the box stove up in his arms and carried it into our cabin (it still had fire in it) and attached it up to our cook stove.

"In the spring, we built the first part of our house and worked at it in our spare time. We had one cow and one horse. We had a very good garden that year which helped out. We also had lots of raspberries to pick.

"The next year (1910) our first boy was born. Unfortunately he was drowned at Maplehurst in 1930. My husband passed away in 1948 and I have lived on this farm ever since (January 1909), elsewhere only when I visit my family. My son Murray and his son Keith do the farming now, but the farm is the only place that is like home to me."

-Written by Jessie Forsyth Peacock

Clara Emma Forsyth Peacock 1883-1949

Clara Emma Forsyth was born January 8th, 1883. She married Thomas Peacock on the 1st of June, 1904 . He was the son of John Peacock and Mary Ellen Oliver of Macaulay Township. Emma died July 28th, 1949 and is buried in St. Thomas' Anglican Cemetery in Bracebridge. It is located on District Rd #4 north of the town.

The monument reads:
Thomas Peacock, b. 1882 d. 1950
Clara (Forsyth) b. 1883 d. 1949


1911 Census - Monck Twp., Muskoka
Con. A lot 15 – This is the same lot and concession as William Brown and Robert Peaock’s land. William Brown was married to Catherine Peacock. Robert was Catherine's brother. Perhaps John Peacock, the brother of Catherine, bought Wm Brown Sr.'s land after he was widowed. Or he bought Robert Peacock's land after the death of Robert in 1899. The Thomas below is the 4th son of John Peacock and Mary Ellen Oliver. )

9/12
Peacock Thomas, Head, Sep, 1882, 28
Peacock Clara E., Wife, Jan, 1883, 28
Peacock Gladys M., F, Feb, 1906, 5
Peacock Elissa A. (Alma) F, Feb, 1908, 3
Peacock Aleen O. (Orma) F,b. Aug, 1910, 9/12

Marriage: Earle Clyde BARNES, 22, mechanic, Bracebridge, Bala, s/o Charles BARNES (b. London England) & Anna Katherine GILBERT, married Gladys May PEACOCK, 18, clerk, Falkenburg Monck Tp., Bracebridge, d/o Thomas PEACOCK (b. Muskoka) & Clara Emma FORSYTH, witn: Thomas PEACOCK & Douglas FRASER both of Bracebridge on Feb. 4, 1925 at Bracebridge