Patrick Gibbons of Central Ontario

Patrick Gibbons of Central Ontario
Index of Descendants Digital Images Related Gibbons? Acknowledgments Links Additions/Corrections Recent Updates Created: November 15, 2001 Last Updated: August 15, 2002 E-mail me Home (Minogue Pages) Main Home	Luke Gibbons, father of Patrick, was born about 1780 in Ireland, probably in County Mayo. He married Ann McDonnell, a local girl, about 1804. Luke and Ann never migrated to Canada. However, three of their sons did. They were Michael, born 1805, Patrick, born 1806, and Anthony, born 1816. Patrick Gibbons left his home in County Mayo, Ireland around 1830. After 8 weeks on the seas, he arrived in Quebec. This was a decade before the great famine, but the Irish countryside was overpopulated as a result of the Napoleonic Wars and poverty was setting in. There was also religious and ethnic hostility between the English who had taken control of Ireland, and the Irish, especially the Roman Catholic Irish. The English and their Protestant Irish and Scottish allies in Ireland had the upper hand, and this created poor prospects for young Irish Catholics who wished to get ahead. As a result young men were lured by advertisements of farmland for as little as four shillings an acre in British North America. Born on the 16^th of March in 1806, Patrick would have been 24 when he migrated to York County, Canada West. He found his first work in the saw mill of William Lloyd in Glenville, Ontario just west of Newmarket. Although his parents remained in Ireland, his brothers Michael and Anthony also settled in Ontario. It is not known if they came at the same time as Patrick, but it appears they might have come later, as the earliest land records we have found for Michael are in the early 1840’s. There were many other Irish Gibbons listed in the 1851 Census of York County, almost all of them in King, East and North Gwillimbury Townships, and the Township of Adjala in the adjoining county now known as Simcoe. Any or all of these latter groups of Gibbons could have been relatives of the three brothers. It appears from the birth of daughter Mary in 1829 that Patrick had married his first wife Bridget Burke before he left Ireland, and that the three came to Canada together. After traveling from Quebec, they settled on Lot 33, Concession 3, in King township in York County. This consisted off 200 acres of Clergy Reserve Land which was acreage leased to farmers to support the Protestant Church (likely the Church of England as other Protestant denominations would not have received such favor). Patrick would have had to clear the land in his spare time, as he continued to work at the sawmill for the next 14 years. Hearing of an Irish settlement a few miles north in Adjala township in Simcoe County, Patrick reportedly bought 50 acres from the Canada Company on the east half of Lot 30, Concession 2 on the 22^nd of January, 1836. He later regretted this move, and returned to King Township, York. There is some uncertainty as to whether Patrick ever went to Adjala - there could have been another Patrick Gibbons, perhaps a cousin. We have found evidence that Bridget and Patrick had at least four children . Mary, who according to her gravestone was born in 1829 and later married Andrew O’Brien. Baptismal and cemetery records of St. John Chrysotom Catholic Church of Newmarket indicate they had at least 11 children. Accounts of her death at an early age are disproven by the fact that Patrick named her as co-executrix in his will, written in the 1870's. Son, Michael’s birth date is not known. He reportedly died at age 16 from a gangrenous broken arm resulting from a fall from a horse. A baptismal record for a second daughter, Honora, states she was baptized in St. Paul’s Mission Church in York County on July 13^th, 1834. A second son, John, born about 1837/8 is my direct ancestor. He migrated west to Wellesley Township, Wellington County before 1861, and helped his uncle Michael on the farm. In the 1860's, he moved to Norwich Township, Oxford County and married Elizabeth O’Callaghan in 1867 at Sacred Heart Church in Ingersoll. They lived there at least until the birth of daughter Mary in 1868. They then moved to Wellington County, first to Fergus, where they lived in 1871. In 1879, they purchased a country store/hotel/post office in the nearby hamlet of Goldstone, Wellington County where children Bridget Elizabeth and John Patrick were born. John and Elizabeth ran the business until John's death of tuberculosis in 1883 at age 45. A newspaper article in 1940 stated that the oldest daughter died in 1838. However, the Commemorative Biographical Record of York County, published in 1907, states that it was Patrick’s wife, Bridget, who died. Since we know that daughter, Mary, lived much longer, we tend to support this idea. It is possible, however, that the daughter Honora, was the one who died. Whether it was Bridget or Honora, it was reported that she died from poisoning by eating blood root mistaking it for krinkle root, an edible root dug up in the forest. This female and son, Michael, were reportedly buried in the Anglican Cemetery in Newmarket. However, no headstones currently exist for any Gibbons in this cemetery. Patrick must have lost Bridget between 1838 and 1844 because in 1844, he married Catherine Banks, born in 1806 in County Sligo, Ireland, the only daughter of James and Catherine McCormick. Patrick got his Canada Company land early, a desirable property in King Township, the east half of Lot 31, Concession 3. He and Catherine spent the rest of their lives there raising 4 children and building a farm. The farm came to be known as “Paddy’s or Gibbon’s Peak” because it was the most prominent landmark for miles around. This homestead was to remain in the family for 102 years. Patrick and Catherine had four children, James (1845-1890), Luke (1846-1941), Catherine (1849-?), and Anne (1850-?). James went out on his own, and became a cattle dealer and drover in Ingersoll, Ontario. He married Mary Cannon, and they had two children. James died of tuberculosis in 1891. Catherine, Anne, and Luke all became teachers. Anne married Dr. William Cannon, a Toronto dentist and brother of Mary Cannon. Catherine never married but taught in the West Indies. Luke returned to the farm after the death of his father and ran it for the rest of his active life. Luke Gibbons was, by all accounts , remarkable individual. He had taught school in Ohio and Michigan. When he returned to operate the farm, the estate grew to some 400 acres under his management. He also served as a justice of the peace, and was appointed Commissioner of the Queen's Bench at Osgoode Hall in Toronto. He wrote and published a novel. He also found time to be very active in civic affairs. He actively promoted the Women's Institute, the temperance movement, government reform to make it more representative, and agricultural improvement. He and his neighbor, Sir William Mulock, were very involved in creating high quality apple orchards. He was commonly referred to as "Squire Gibbons". Luke lived to age 96. The Commemorative Biography states that Patrick was “a man of unusual intellectual powers, well trained in his youth and had many scholarly attainments”. He was also an industrious man. In the early years, he sold timber for firewood and the burning of lime and charcoal added to the family funds. In 1846, he made and sold fifty-five thousand hand made shingles for George Shanks to use on his new farm buildings. For this he received about $140, which he added to the $40 he got from Hewitt and Strachan, contractors who wanted to buy the stones from his land. These stones were eventually used to improve Yonge Street, one of the main thoroughfares in Toronto. For two more years, he continued to make and sell shingles to his neighbors. Lime from his kiln was used to build the King Christian Church and the Kettlby Temperance Hall. From the creek on his farms, millstones were gathered and used for the Glenville flour mill. The stones are preserved today on the grounds of Glenville Public School. Patrick’s prosperity allowed him to buy more land. In 1853, he purchased the east half of Lot 24, Concessions 5 and 7, and in 1854, he bought east half of Lot 31 of the same concessions in King Township. Patrick and Catherine were devout Catholics and Patrick was one of a committee of six who founded and built the first Catholic Church in Newmarket. He never ran for political office but was a Reformer in his political views. The Reform Party of his day was the equivalent of the modern Liberal Party, not to be confused with the Reform Party of the 20th century, an ultra-right wing group. On the 26^th of December, 1876, Patrick died at the age of 70. In his will, (the transcription of the will can be found under Digital Images on this website), Patrick left his assets and land to his wife and children. Catherine lived for four years longer. Both are buried in St. John Chrysotom Catholic Cemetery in Newmarket, along with children, Luke and Mary, and several grandchildren.

Patrick Gibbons of Central Ontario

Index of Descendants

Digital Images

Related Gibbons?

Acknowledgments

Links

Additions/Corrections

Recent Updates

Created: November 15, 2001

Last Updated: August 15, 2002

E-mail me

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Luke Gibbons, father of Patrick, was born about 1780 in Ireland, probably in County Mayo. He married Ann McDonnell, a local girl, about 1804. Luke and Ann never migrated to Canada. However, three of their sons did. They were Michael, born 1805, Patrick, born 1806, and Anthony, born 1816.

Patrick Gibbons left his home in County Mayo, Ireland around 1830. After 8 weeks on the seas, he arrived in Quebec. This was a decade before the great famine, but the Irish countryside was overpopulated as a result of the Napoleonic Wars and poverty was setting in. There was also religious and ethnic hostility between the English who had taken control of Ireland, and the Irish, especially the Roman Catholic Irish. The English and their Protestant Irish and Scottish allies in Ireland had the upper hand, and this created poor prospects for young Irish Catholics who wished to get ahead.

As a result young men were lured by advertisements of farmland for as little as four shillings an acre in British North America.

Born on the 16^th of March in 1806, Patrick would have been 24 when he migrated to York County, Canada West. He found his first work in the saw mill of William Lloyd in Glenville, Ontario just west of Newmarket.

Although his parents remained in Ireland, his brothers Michael and Anthony also settled in Ontario. It is not known if they came at the same time as Patrick, but it appears they might have come later, as the earliest land records we have found for Michael are in the early 1840’s. There were many other Irish Gibbons listed in the 1851 Census of York County, almost all of them in King, East and North Gwillimbury Townships, and the Township of Adjala in the adjoining county now known as Simcoe. Any or all of these latter groups of Gibbons could have been relatives of the three brothers.

It appears from the birth of daughter Mary in 1829 that Patrick had married his first wife Bridget Burke before he left Ireland, and that the three came to Canada together. After traveling from Quebec, they settled on Lot 33, Concession 3, in King township in York County. This consisted off 200 acres of Clergy Reserve Land which was acreage leased to farmers to support the Protestant Church (likely the Church of England as other Protestant denominations would not have received such favor).

Patrick would have had to clear the land in his spare time, as he continued to work at the sawmill for the next 14 years.

Hearing of an Irish settlement a few miles north in Adjala township in Simcoe County, Patrick reportedly bought 50 acres from the Canada Company on the east half of Lot 30, Concession 2 on the 22^nd of January, 1836. He later regretted this move, and returned to King Township, York. There is some uncertainty as to whether Patrick ever went to Adjala - there could have been another Patrick Gibbons, perhaps a cousin.

We have found evidence that Bridget and Patrick had at least four children .

Mary, who according to her gravestone was born in 1829 and later married Andrew O’Brien. Baptismal and cemetery records of St. John Chrysotom Catholic Church of Newmarket indicate they had at least 11 children. Accounts of her death at an early age are disproven by the fact that Patrick named her as co-executrix in his will, written in the 1870's.

Son, Michael’s birth date is not known. He reportedly died at age 16 from a gangrenous broken arm resulting from a fall from a horse.

A baptismal record for a second daughter, Honora, states she was baptized in St. Paul’s Mission Church in York County on July 13^th, 1834.

A second son, John, born about 1837/8 is my direct ancestor. He migrated west to Wellesley Township, Wellington County before 1861, and helped his uncle Michael on the farm. In the 1860's, he moved to Norwich Township, Oxford County and married Elizabeth O’Callaghan in 1867 at Sacred Heart Church in Ingersoll. They lived there at least until the birth of daughter Mary in 1868. They then moved to Wellington County, first to Fergus, where they lived in 1871. In 1879, they purchased a country store/hotel/post office in the nearby hamlet of Goldstone, Wellington County where children Bridget Elizabeth and John Patrick were born. John and Elizabeth ran the business until John's death of tuberculosis in 1883 at age 45.

A newspaper article in 1940 stated that the oldest daughter died in 1838. However, the Commemorative Biographical Record of York County, published in 1907, states that it was Patrick’s wife, Bridget, who died. Since we know that daughter, Mary, lived much longer, we tend to support this idea. It is possible, however, that the daughter Honora, was the one who died. Whether it was Bridget or Honora, it was reported that she died from poisoning by eating blood root mistaking it for krinkle root, an edible root dug up in the forest. This female and son, Michael, were reportedly buried in the Anglican Cemetery in Newmarket. However, no headstones currently exist for any Gibbons in this cemetery. Patrick must have lost Bridget between 1838 and 1844 because in 1844, he married Catherine Banks, born in 1806 in County Sligo, Ireland, the only daughter of James and Catherine McCormick.

Patrick got his Canada Company land early, a desirable property in King Township, the east half of Lot 31, Concession 3. He and Catherine spent the rest of their lives there raising 4 children and building a farm. The farm came to be known as “Paddy’s or Gibbon’s Peak” because it was the most prominent landmark for miles around. This homestead was to remain in the family for 102 years.

Patrick and Catherine had four children, James (1845-1890), Luke (1846-1941), Catherine (1849-?), and Anne (1850-?). James went out on his own, and became a cattle dealer and drover in Ingersoll, Ontario. He married Mary Cannon, and they had two children. James died of tuberculosis in 1891. Catherine, Anne, and Luke all became teachers. Anne married Dr. William Cannon, a Toronto dentist and brother of Mary Cannon. Catherine never married but taught in the West Indies. Luke returned to the farm after the death of his father and ran it for the rest of his active life.

Luke Gibbons was, by all accounts , remarkable individual. He had taught school in Ohio and Michigan. When he returned to operate the farm, the estate grew to some 400 acres under his management. He also served as a justice of the peace, and was appointed Commissioner of the Queen's Bench at Osgoode Hall in Toronto. He wrote and published a novel. He also found time to be very active in civic affairs. He actively promoted the Women's Institute, the temperance movement, government reform to make it more representative, and agricultural improvement. He and his neighbor, Sir William Mulock, were very involved in creating high quality apple orchards. He was commonly referred to as "Squire Gibbons". Luke lived to age 96.

The Commemorative Biography states that Patrick was “a man of unusual intellectual powers, well trained in his youth and had many scholarly attainments”.

He was also an industrious man. In the early years, he sold timber for firewood and the burning of lime and charcoal added to the family funds. In 1846, he made and sold fifty-five thousand hand made shingles for George Shanks to use on his new farm buildings. For this he received about $140, which he added to the $40 he got from Hewitt and Strachan, contractors who wanted to buy the stones from his land. These stones were eventually used to improve Yonge Street, one of the main thoroughfares in Toronto. For two more years, he continued to make and sell shingles to his neighbors. Lime from his kiln was used to build the King Christian Church and the Kettlby Temperance Hall. From the creek on his farms, millstones were gathered and used for the Glenville flour mill. The stones are preserved today on the grounds of Glenville Public School.

Patrick’s prosperity allowed him to buy more land. In 1853, he purchased the east half of Lot 24, Concessions 5 and 7, and in 1854, he bought east half of Lot 31 of the same concessions in King Township.

Patrick and Catherine were devout Catholics and Patrick was one of a committee of six who founded and built the first Catholic Church in Newmarket. He never ran for political office but was a Reformer in his political views. The Reform Party of his day was the equivalent of the modern Liberal Party, not to be confused with the Reform Party of the 20th century, an ultra-right wing group.

On the 26^th of December, 1876, Patrick died at the age of 70. In his will, (the transcription of the will can be found under Digital Images on this website), Patrick left his assets and land to his wife and children. Catherine lived for four years longer. Both are buried in St. John Chrysotom Catholic Cemetery in Newmarket, along with children, Luke and Mary, and several grandchildren.