Thomas Orchard
We know that many people leave their
homelands for a variety of reasons and
Thomas Orchard is no exception. This
article came about quite by accident
when a lady in Canada contacted her
cousin in the U.K. to ask about the
possibility of obtaining some
information about Bude, in Cornwall, as
she had information about a 'Thomas
Orchard' and his family who had left
their home village of Week St. Mary,
just outside Bude, to find 'lands anew'.
He contacted a local Orchard family and
this information was passed onto me
allowing me to make direct contact with
the lady in Canada. She was so surprised
to receive my initial email; she replied
almost instantly, the forerunner of many
more emails, each containing more
information about the origins of the
Orchards! This is Marguerite Caldwell's
story...
From the Old World to the New
So many pioneer families made a
great contribution to the Canadian
landscape. One such family named
Orchard, came to the area of Grey
County, Ontario, in late 1841. Their
story is not without many hardships.
Thomas & Betsy (Wilton) Orchard decided
to leave Week St. Mary seeking a new
life in the new land. They had ten
children ranging in ages from 6-26
years. Possibly they thought of finding
better opportunities for their family.
Thomas Orchard was 53 years of age,
while his wife was 43. It took between
two and three months for them to cross
the Atlantic Ocean, and it is thought
they landed at New York. Father was not
well when they landed, however,
travelling from New York to Cleveland by
stagecoach. Thomas Orchard passed away
at Cleveland and was buried there just
two weeks after their arrival.
This must have been a shock to the
family, but, determined to gain a
foothold in the new land, they pressed
on to Toronto.
John Orchard, the eldest son who had
been a war veteran, made arrangements
here to receive a land grant. With this
grant of 100 acres there was a
stipulation that he should build an inn
or hotel about half way between Mount
Forest and Durham, then known as the
Maitland Hills and Bentick settlement.
Elizabeth Orchard (Betsy) the widowed
mother also claimed her lots, divison l
of Lot 14 Concession 1 Egremont.
A settler was required to build a cabin
or log house and make certain noticeable
improvements such as clearing the land
for a period of five years before
receiving the patent or Crown Deed.
Thus sprang up the community of
Orchardville. It was situated on the old
Garafraxa trail, being the boundary line
between the Townships of Egremont and
Normanby.
Charles Rankin was instructed to survey
a line from the Fergus settlement to
Owen Sound then known as Sydenham
Settlement. The survey was temporarily
stopped with the outbreak of the
Mackenzie Rebellion in 1837. Then the
Government thought that Rankin's survey
was too crooked and too long, so sent
John McDonald to re-survey it in 1841.
About the only difference made in this
area was that instead of going West of
the 40 mile long swamp as Rankin had
done, McDonald came through the centre
of it. McDonald also surveyed farm lots
on both sides of the Garafraxa trail.
Each Lot was comprised of three
divisions of 50 acres. Settlers who came
into this area immediately after the
survey had the choice of one 50 acre
division. The one beside the 50 acre was
held in reserve for a few years. These
first lots were soon claimed. It was
noted that John was the only one to
receive two fifty-acre lots side by
side. He acquired the crown deeds to the
same in 1846 and 1847.
After receiving the lots, they then
travelled back to Hamilton and north to
Guelph by stagecoach. They were known to
have friends in Eramosa Township. As
autumn was fast approaching, it is
assumed that once Elizabeth and her two
older sons had laid claim to their land,
that they would have travelled back to
the Guelph area for the winter. The
whole family then moved to the area in
the Spring of 1842.
John Orchard claimed another 50 acres
between his original and his mother's in
1842. He lived in Eramosa Township from
1843 to 1856 and married Sarah
Parkinson. John had a village site
surveyed off the front of Div. 2, lot
13, con.1 Egremont in 1858, consisting
of 12 quarter-acre lots and two streets
that he named after his sons, John and
Thomas. A two-acre lot was also set
aside then, for a fair ground on the
north-west corner of div. 3 lot12. Eight
more lots were surveyed off the front of
Div. 3 in 1876.
A Post office was established in 1847.
At first the name was Normanby but later
changed to Orchardville but that name
was too long for the stamping hammer so
was changed to Orchard, July 1st, 1862.
This name still exists in 2007. John
passed away in 1872, age 65 years.
School was the next priority. A school
property was taken off the mother's
farm. It was called U.S.S. #2, Egremont
and Normanby, otherwise known as the
Orchard school. In 1849, Simon, as one
of the trustees, beseeched the
government for funds to pay a Teacher.
The brick school one sees on Highway #6
was built in 1902.
Another daughter, Mary-Ann, married
Samuel Rowe, from a neighbouring farm.
He had come out from Truro, Devon.
Later, in 1851, these two families,
Simon Orchard and Samuel Rowe became the
first settlers to establish Paisley.
When the two families left the area of
Orchard, Simon sold his farm of Div. 3,
lot 14, con.1 Egremont. Samuel rented
out his land, across the road in
Normanby.
Simon had been born July 26, 1823, at
Kitsham, Week St. Mary. He was about 18
when he had left England. He had married
Lily-Ann born July 20th, 1823 in
Scotland. It is stated that he was a
'Yeoman'.
Simon & Lily's first child was born in
1847, named Eliza Jane. A second child
was also born in Egremont, initials
M.A., in1850. We wonder why Simon and
Samuel made the decision to come down
the Saugeen River back in 1851, to seek
new lands. However, the land in Bruce
County was just being opened up. Perhaps
it was the sense of a new adventure.
Maybe it was the stories of the fertile
land in this area of the Bruce. However,
the men took their belongings over in
the winter of 1851, to Walkerton. They
brought their families in the early
Spring and then prepared to set sail on
rafts down the river once the ice was
gone.
Before the Surveyors Ever Ran Their Line
Standing upon the Main Street Bridge in
Paisley, Ontario, Canada, it is very
fascinating to watch the fast flowing
swollen waters of the Saugeen River in
springtime. That must have been some
trip coming down the river on a raft
from Walkerton back on April 18th, 1851!
What a brave family to attempt this
journey into the wilderness of the
Queen's Bush. The Orchard family had
left their home in Orchardville, just
nine miles or so, south of Durham, in
Egremont, Grey County. Their belongings
had been taken by sleigh that winter to
Walkerton. They had come over later in
the Spring preparing to navigate this
large River in hope of finding better
land. A large 30ft x 15ft. cedar log
raft was built by some French Canadian
loggers in the area.
With their possessions stored in trunks,
a meagre amount of furniture, a Family
Bible, and provisions of food purchased
at Walkerton were all stacked on the
raft. As well, there were the few
necessary tools given to early settlers
by the Canadian government in order to
make a start on the land and to build a
home.
As night was descending, they watched
anxiously for a place to rest for the
night. No wonderful motels in this land!
Eventually, they saw a large elm tree at
a bend in the river, which just seemed
to beckon them. They drifted to the
north bank, tied up their raft, and
climbed ashore. The big tree later
became known as the Tidings Tree only
dying in recent times (1968). The
location was also near by the present
day Baptist church. They had brought a
few planks from Walkerton and thus set
about to make a lean-to for the night.
This may have been an adventure for the
family but after having left the few
comforts of a log cabin, this must have
seemed very primitive! Simon and Lily
Ann, his wife, and small child made the
best of the situation. Upon rising the
next morning and seeing the beautiful
trees and flat valley he decided that
the area was a desirable place, at the
confluence of the two rivers. Simon
decided to make this their destination,
to begin life anew. As you now know,
this was the beginning of Paisley.
A few days later, along came some
surveyors, led by Alex Videl, who were
blazing a new road from the Durham Road,
north to Southampton. This later became
known as the Elora Road, and today as
Bruce County Road #3.
“Sure we will give you a hand to build
you a cabin. We see you have been busy
chopping logs in readiness,” Vidal told
Simon.
Yes, Simon was so thankful to find this
location, a place of which he had
dreamed! “For sure, my brother John is
happy with his grant of 100 acres, but
look what I have, fresh water, an
abundance of fish, good soil, large
trees, and NO stones! I even beat the
surveyors as well!”
Paisley's Second Settler
“Well, my dear Mary-Ann, it is
already May 9th 1851. Time to leave
Walkerton. I know it is sad to leave
behind the precious memories of our
beloved wee son. We did all we could to
help him here. Cousin Jasper's two-story
log home has been set up. He has in turn
helped us to build our large rafts for
this journey. The cattle are being
loaded on one.
Your brother Simon will be wondering
when we are coming. It has been three
weeks since we saw him leave. Word has
been received that it will take most of
the day to make the trip to where Simon
and family have chosen to settle. I am
counting on his good judgement that he
has found the best land. However, I have
only rented my farm back in Normanby, so
if we choose, we could go back.” Those
were the words spoken by Samuel Rowe as
he and his young family prepared for
this perilous journey down the Saugeen
River.
They had two experienced hardy river
drivers from the Ottawa Valley to help
with the rafting. The river was high. It
almost proved too much for these
drivers. However, the important cargo of
travellers, with provisions, including
flour and salt pork, along with their
cattle, survived the hazardous journey.
The day was overcast, cold and dreary.
How grateful they were to see Simon and
family waving to them as they rounded
another and final bend. A warm cheery
fire awaited them in Simon's cabin. They
agreed that Samuel would set up
house-keeping on the south shore.
Yes, Simon had made a good choice. This
did indeed seem a worthy site. With the
help of oxen, a log shanty was built
where the Paisley Inn now stands.
Although the families were separated by
the Mud River (later called the
Teeswater River) and the Saugeen River,
the men undertook to build a
foot-bridge. When it washed out the
following Spring, a dog called Danger
was trained to swim across, to carry
small items from one shanty to another.
Samuel and Simon knew they had to get
official permission to own the land
where they had settled. They saw the
possibilities of setting up a town here.
In desiring to secure a patent from the
Crown they paid early into the hands of
the Crown Land Agent the required
amount. It seems that others in the
political field thought the same thing.
Were they speculating? The Crown patent
remained un-issued year after year. Mr.
Rowe made repeated visits to the Crown
Land Department at Quebec and Toronto.
Finally in 1856, Francis Kerr, P.L.S.
decided to have a town plot laid out and
made the necessary survey. Rowe's and
Orchard's rights were respected. Thus,
patent after patent in their names were
issued September 17th, 1856, creating
village and parking lots which were
entered in the books of the Registry
Office.
Let's Build Us a Village
Exciting times lay ahead for Simon
Orchard and Samuel Rowe. First Samuel
Rowe erected a log building, called
Rowe's Tavern, near to the present day
site of the Paisley Inn.
During the Land Sale at Southampton in
1854, Mrs. Rowe was said to have cooked
a whole ox along with potatoes. In two
days it was all gone, as so many people
had passed through on their way to
Southampton.
In 1853, Thomas Orchard (born:1830;
married: Christina Brown in 1850),
Simon's younger brother, moved from
Orchard in Grey County to Paisley and
established the first store, supplying
hardware, dry goods and groceries etc.
Thomas Orchard also opened the first
Post Office, becoming the first
Postmaster. Many names were suggested
for naming of this new village, but the
Government selected “Paisley” after a
town in Scotland. During this time in
Paisley he was the 1st Postmaster,
Justice of the Peace, and also served on
the Council. He lived 16 years in
Paisley before moving to Carrollton,
Missouri USA in 1869.
The first municipal council of Elderslie
township, of which Paisley was a part,
met on January 22,1856 in Rowe's Tavern,
Paisley. Samuel T. Rowe was elected as
first Reeve. Streets were named after
the battles of the Crimean War, being
the war was just over. Balaclava,
Inkerman and Alma being some of the
names used.
Later Paisley was organized as an urban
Municipality on January 19th, 1874. The
Town Hall, built to hold the Municipal
offices, was opened in 1876.
Samuel Rowe donated land for the
erection of the Anglican church which
opened in 1864. You can see a plaque
inside the church on the wall
remembering the Rowe Family. He also
donated land for the Agricultural Park
where the Fair is held each year.
There are a few homes in Paisley that
Samuel Rowe built, that still stands
today. One is a Bridal home on Albert
St. that he built as a wedding gift for
daughter Julia.
Simon Orchard was known as a builder of
bridges and of laying out roads in all
directions from Paisley. Simon also
established a trail to Port Elgin in the
very early times. He was paid to help
chop the trees on roads leading to
Paisley.
These men worked hard to make this
settlement in the wilderness become what
it is today. Simon passed away in 1873
at the age of 50. He had lived to see
the first train come to Paisley in 1872.
This would have truly been a big event
in his life.
Samuel, who was born in Truro lived to
be a ripe old age of 85, passing away in
1904. Both men were considered to be
very kindly and helpful to the early
settlers.
Today (2007), there are plaques to
honour these first settlers in front of
the Paisley Library. You can also see
their tombstones in the Paisley
Cemetery, where details of their life
are found inscribed upon the granite or
limestone.
They are not to be
forgotten, no matter how far from home
they roamed! |
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