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Patterson , Fran  _^_. 


A  history  of  Tfet.     .iche, 


Tatamagouche 


By 
FRANK  H.  PATTERSON 


COL.  J.  F.  W.  DESBARRES. 

THE  FIRST  LAND  OWNER  AT  TATAMAGOUCHE. 


A  HISTORY 

OF 

TATAMAGOUCHE 

NOVA   SCOTIA 

BY 

FRANK   H.    PATTERSON,    LL.B. 


"To  the  memory  of  conquerors  who  devastate  the  earth,  and  of  politicians  who  vex 
the  life  of  its  denizens  with  their  struggles  for  power  and  place,  we  raise  sumptuous 
monuments:  to  the  memory  of  those  who  by  their  toil  and  endurance  have  made  it 
fruitful  we  can  raise  none.  But  civilization,  while  it  enters  into  the  heritage  which 
the  pioneers  -prepared  for  it,  may  at  least  look  with  gratitude  on  their  lowly  graves."  - 
Goldwin  Smith. 


CORRIGENDA 


Page  vii.  line  38.     "  Historic  "  should  read  Historical. 
Page  22,  line  3.     "  Nancy  "  should  read  Nantes. 
Page  112,  line  25.    "  P.  Mclntosh  "  should  read  J.  P.  Mclntosh. 
Page  136,  line  1.     "complied"  should  read  compiled. 


ROYAL  PRINT  &  LITHO  LIMITED 

HAUFAX,  NOVA  SCOTIA 

J917 


COL.  J.  F.  W.  DESBARRES. 

THE  FIRST  LAND  OWNER  AT  TATAMAGOUCHE. 


A  HISTORY 

OF 

TATAMAGOUCHE 

NOVA   SCOTIA 

BY 

FRANK   H.    PATTERSON,    LL.B. 


"To  the  memory  of  conquerors  who  devastate  the  earth,  and  of  politicians  who  vex 
the  life  of  its  denizens  with  their  struggles  for  power  and  place,  we  raise  sumptuous 
monuments:  to  the  memory  of  those  who  by  their  toil  and  endurance  have  made  it 
fruitful  we  can  raise  none.  But  civilization,  while  it  enters  into  the  heritage  which 
the  pioneers  prepared  for  it,  may  at  least  look  with  gratitude  on  their  lowly  graves."— 
Goldwin  Smith. 


ROYAL  PRINT  &  LITHO  LIMITED 
HAUFAX,  NOVA  SCOTIA 

1917 


HISTORY    OF   TATAMAGOUCHE 


PREFACE 

TT  is  not  without  misgivings  that  the  writer  presents  this 
book  to  the  public.  Its  subject  matter  is  such  that 
to  do  full  justice  to  those  mentioned  therein,  it  should  have 
been  written  at  least  one-half  a  century  ago  and  by  one  who 
was  either  personally  acquainted  with  the  facts  or  had 
received  them  first  hand.  To  endeavour  at  this  late  date 
to  tell  the  story  of  the  trials  and  hardships  of  our  pioneers, 
many  of  whom  have  departed  almost  a  century  ago  is  well 
nigh  an  impossible  task.  That  this  book  will  fall  far  short 
of  rendering  a  true  appreciation  of  their  labours  none  can 
be  more  conscious  than  the  writer.  But  every  year  the 
difficulty  of  obtaining  accurate  information  of  former  years 
becomes  greater,  for  each  year  there  are  slipping  from  our 
midst  men  and  women  whose  minds  were  veritable  store- 
houses of  the  traditions  and  folk-lore  of  the  past.  Much 
of  the  information  contained  in  these  pages,  the  writer  feels 
sure,  could  not  be  obtained  ten  or  twenty  years  hence.  It 
is  better  that  the  effort  be  made  now  and  that  a  record, 
imperfect  as  it  is,  be  rendered  than  that  the  lives  and  deeds 
of  our  early  pioneers  should  never  be  known  to  the  public. 

Then,  too,  the  writer  has  doubts  as  to  the  accuracy 
of  several  statements  contained  in  the  pages  of  this  book. 
Still,  apart  from  minor  detail  he  thinks  that  the  matter  will 
not  be  found  inconsistent  with  fact.  That  errors,  especially 
in  the  genealogical  records,  have  crept  in  inevitably  follows 
from  the  very  nature  of  the  work. 

The  writer  has  experienced  difficulty  in  determining  to 
what  area  of  country  to  confine  his  remarks.  There  is 
no  statutory  district  of  Tatamagouche  and  what  country 
is  to  be  included  under  that  name  is  a  question  to  which 
no  definite  answer  can  be  given.  Dealing  with  the  earlier 
years  when  the  settlers  were  few  and  information  limited 
a  larger  scope  of  country  has  been  included-  During  the 
last  years  references  have  been  confined  almost  entirely  to 
the  village  of  Tatamagouche  itself.  Though  New  Annan 


VI  HISTORY    OF    TATAMAGOUCHE 

and  Earltown  have  not  been  included  in  the  writer's  observa- 
tions, he  has  nevertheless  inserted  some  quotations  from  the 
"History  of  Pictou  County"  regarding  their  settlement. 

The  genealogical  records  the  writer,  as  a  rule,  has  carried 
only  to  the  first  generation.  Of  those  coming  to  Tata- 
magouche  subsequent  to  1850  no  notice  has  been  given 
other  than  to  the  head  of  the  family. 

Four  years  ago  when  this  work  was  begun  there  was 
but  little  known  to  the  public  of  the  early  history  of  this 
place;  what  references  there  were,  being  confined  to  a 
few  pages  in  the  "History  of  Pictou  County"  and  "Memoirs 
of  Dr.  MacGregor"  by  the  late  Dr.  Patterson.  Without  the 
information  there  a  future  history  of  Tatamagouche  could 
have  little  value,  for  in  these  books  and  in  these  books  only, 
is  found  the  material  that  can  form  a  good  foundation 
for  any  historical  work  on  Tatamagouche.  Information 
concerning  the  early  French  period  the  writer  has  obtained 
from  French  documents  contained  in  "Le  Canada  Francais" 
and  also  from  the  two  books  by  Dr.  Patterson  mentioned 
above. 

A  lengthy  letter  by  S.  D.  Scott,  now  editor  of  the  "News- 
Advertiser,"  Vancouver,  and  published  in  the  "Colchester 
Sun"  of  July  31,  1893,  contained  many  interesting  facts 
relating  to  the  days  of  the  DesBarres  estate.  That  papers 
belonging  to  Colonel  DesBarres  and  pertaining  to  his  Tata- 
magouche property  are  extant  there  seems  little  doubt.  The 
contents  of  the4  above  mentioned  letter  show  that  at  the 
time  of  its  publication  such  papers  must  have  been  in  existence 
and  its  author,  Mr.  Scott,  has  informed  the  writer  that  a 
great  deal  of  his  information  was  obtained  from  an  account 
of  the  Tatamagouche  estate  written  for  Col.  DesBarres  in 
1790  by  a  Capt.  McDonald  of  Prince  Edward  Island.  The 
original  manuscript  was  borrowed  by  Mr.  Scott  from  the 
late  Sir  Robert  Wetherbee  but  since  then  it  has  been  lost. 
The  late  Louis  DesBarres  of  Halifax  had,  so  it  is  said,  many 
interesting  papers  of  Colonel  DesBarres  in  his  possession, 
but  what  has  become  of  them  since  his  death  is  not  known. 

For  information  concerning  happenings  of  later  dates, 
the  writer  is  indebted  to  many  people  in  this  community 


HISTORY    OF    TATAMAGOtTCHE  Vll 

who  have  supplied  him  with  old  documents,  family  records, 
etc.  Papers  originally  belonging  to  Wellwood  Waugh, 
Rev.  Hugh  Ross  and  the  Rev.  Robert  Blackwood  may  in 
particular  be  mentioned. 

Knowledge  of  matters  within  living  memory  has  been 
obtained  from  many  of  our  older  inhabitants.  Information 
concerning  the  development  and  decline  of  the  shipbuilding 
industry  has  also  been  obtained  from  the  same  source.  With 
the  compiling  of  the  list  of  vessels  built  at  Tatamagouche 
the  writer  must  publicly  acknowledge  the  assistance  of 
R.  P.  Fraser,  Esq.,  Collector  of  Customs  at  Pictou,  who 
undertook  the  tiring  work  of  making  out  this  list  from  the 
Custom  records  at  that  port.  Records  of  vessels  built  before 
1840  were  obtained  by  the  writer  from  the  Custom  records 
at  Halifax. 

Of  those  at  Tatamagouche  who  have  assisted  the  writer 
in  the  collecting  and  the  arranging  of  the  material  contained 
herein,  the  public  will  pardon  him  when  he  mentions  in 
particular  his  father,  the  late  W.  A.  Patterson.  His  thorough 
knowledge  of  conditions  in  Tatamagouche  for  the  last  fifty 
years — a  knowledge  acquired  from  a  most  intimate  associa- 
tion with  its  people — and  his  retentive  memory,  which 
permitted  him  to  recall  with  accuracy  the  events  of  fifty 
or  sixty  years  ago,  have  made  possible  this  present  work. 
Mention  must  also  be  made  of  James  Bryden  of  the  village 
who  has  gone  to  no  little  trouble  to  assist  the  writer,  par- 
ticularly in  gathering  information  of  matters  relating  to 
the  "forties"  and  "fifties"  and  the  days  of  the  shipbuilding 
industry.  The  writer  may  also  mention  his  friend,  W.  M. 
Nelson,  for  whose  assistance  the  writer  gives  this  public 
acknowledgment.  To  the  various  others  at  Tatamagouche 
who  in  one  way  or  another  have  lent  their  aid  the  writer 
extends  his  thanks. 

Of  those  elsewhere  he  feels  that  he  should  mention 
two.  Major  J.  P.  Edwards  of  Halifax,  although  having 
no  particular  interest  in  Tatamagouche,  has  given  the  writer 
the  greatest  assistance;  his  library,  one  of  the  best  collections  of 
Canadian  Historic  works  in  Canada,  and  which  is  now  owned 
by  Acadia  College,  Wolfville,  was  placed  as  far  as  possible 
at  the  use  of  the  writer.  Information  was  secured  from 


VU1  HISTORY    OF   TATAMAGOUCHE 

Major  Edwards  and  his  library  which  could  not  be  obtained 
elsewhere.  W.  F.  Ganong,  Ph.D.,  of  Smith  College,  North- 
ampton, has  also  assisted  the  writer,  particularly  by  his 
explanation  of  the  local  nomenclature. 

If,  with  all  its  defects  and  errors,  this  work  is  successful 
in  a  small  measure  at  least  in  saving  from  oblivion  the 
records  of  our  past  and  in  stimulating  a  more  lively  interest 
in  the  lives  and  labors  of  our  pioneers — men  and  women 
whose  memory  deserves  our  highest  respect — then  the  writer 
feels  that  he  has  not  labored  in  vain. 

FRANK  H.  PATTERSON. 
Tatamagouche,  N.  S.,  Aug.  29th,  1917. 


''THE  MEETING  OF  THE  RIVERS." 

(TAKUMEdOOCH). 


CHAPTER    I 
NOMENCLATURE 

'"THE  word  Tatamagouche  or  Tatmagoucbe  is  of  Indian 
origin,  and,  according  to  Rand,  the  great  student  of  the 
Micmac  language,  is  a  corruption  of  the  Micmac  Takume- 
gooch.  The  root  of  this  word  is  Takumoog,  which  means 
across  or  lie  down  across.  The  termination  och  (often 
oochk)  is  a  typical  example  of  the  Micmac  locative 
termination  which  gives  the  word  the  meaning  of  place 
where  or  at  the.  Thus,  the  meaning  of  the  whole  word 
taken  literal!}?-  is,  lying  across  place  or  at  the  place  which 
lies  across  (some  other).  The  application  of  the  word  is 
quite  evident.  French  and  Waugh's  rivers  clearly  meet 
at  right  angles,  that  is,  they  lie  across  each  other.  More- 
over, the  rivers  themselves  after  their  junction,  meet  the 
harbour  in  a  similar  manner. 

"For  the  principal  river  to  enter  an  elongated  bay  not  at  its  head  in 
line  with  it,  but  some  distance  from  its  head  and  .at  right  angles  to  its  course, 
is  certainly  an  unusual  geographical  feature,  and  just  such  as  the  Indians 
noticed  and  used  as  distinctive  in  their  purely  descriptive  place  nomenclature."* 

The  only  difficulty  in  the  application  of  the  word  is  to 
decide  whether  it  refers  to  the  meeting  of  the  rivers  or  to 
the  meeting  of  the  rivers  and  harbour.  Local  traditions 
say  that  it  applies  to  the  meeting  of  the  rivers,  but  it  is 
more  than  probable  that  these  two  natural  occurrences  in 
close  vicinity  gave  rise  to  the  word.f 

The  change  from  Takumegooch  to  Tatamagouche  was 
made  by  the  French  who,  according  to  their  custom,  caught 
and  recorded  as  -t-  the  Indian  sound  which  the  English 
catch  as  -k-.  It  was  of  course  from  the  French  that  we 
received  the  word. 

*From  notes  made  by  W.  F.  Ganong,  Ph.  D.,  to  whom  the  writer  is  indebted  for  this 
explanation  of  the  word. 

f  Since  writing  the  above  the  writer  has  had  a  conversation  with  Lone  Ctoud,_  an  intelli- 
gent Micmac  Indian,  who  has  assured  him  that  Tar-me-gooch  (as  he  pronounced  it)  meant 
where  two  rivers  met  and  the  current  of  one  crossed  the  current  of  the  other.  This  should 
remove  all  doubt  as  to  the  meaning  of  the  word — local  tradition  has  been  amply  confirmed. 


2  HISTORY    OF    TATAMAGOUCHE 

Some  say  that  the  word  means  a  large  beaver  dam. 
Traces  of  beavers  have  been  found  in  the  vicinity,  and  so 
at  one  time  a  large  dam  may  have  been  constructed  some- 
where near  this  place  by  these  industrious  animals,  or 
possibly  the  Indians  used  the  word  to  describe  the  large 
body  of  water  partially  enclosed  by  Ross'  and  Weather- 
bie's  points,  which  to  a  certain  extent  resembles  a  large 
dam.* 

When  the  name  was  first  applied  to  this  place  is  unknown.* 
The  earliest  written  record  is  in  the  year  1738,  when  Le 
Loutre  refers  to  it  as  "Tahamigouche".  As  may  be  expect- 
ed, the  early  spelling  of  the  word  is  varied.  No  less  a  per- 
son than  Haliburton  has  shown  that  he  even  did  not  know 
which  was  the  correct  spelling,  for  in  his  history  published  in 
1829,  he  spells  the  word  in  two  ways,  "Tatamagouch"  and 
"Tatmaguish".  On  old  charts  it  is  sometimes  spelled  some- 
thing like  this,  "Patameragouche".  However,  as  years  went 
along  only  two  spellings  namely,  Tatamagouche  and  Tatma- 
gouche,  survived  among  the  educated.  Men  of  authority  as 
late  as  twenty  years  ago,  indicated  by  their  persistent  usage 
that  they  believed  the  latter  spelling  to  be  the  correct  one, 
but  the  former  has  now  been  generally  accepted. 

The  name,  Tatamagouche  did  not  survive  without  a 
struggle.  Col.  Joseph  Frederick  Wallet  DesBarres,  who 
was  the  first  landlord  at  Tatamagouche,  accepted  this  old 
Indian  name,  but  not  so  the  first  Scotch  settler,  Waugh, 
who  in  many  of  his  land  transactions  speaks  of  himself  as 
belonging  to  "Southampton,  district  of  Colchester,  County 
of  Halifax."  In  1794,  in  a  lease  to  James  Langille,  he  des- 
cribes the  lands  as  lying  "on  Point  Brule  on  Southampton 
Harbour".  Waugh,  as  far  as  we  know,  was  the  only  person 
at  Tatamagouche  to  use  this  name,  and  it  is  indeed  difficult  to 
understand  why  he  should  have  attempted  to  affix  it  to  his  new 
abode.  We  should  naturally  have  expected  him  to  endeavour  to 
perpetuate  the  name  of  one  of  the  many  places  in  Scotland 
which  were  dear  to  his  heart.  It  is  interesting  to  notice 
DesBarres  and  Waugh  in  contemporaneous  documents 
persisting  to  call  the  same  place  by  different  names. 
These  men,  like  all  others,  had  many  differences,  but  on 
this  occasion,  fortunately  perhaps,  the  old  warrior  won 

*Froro  the  Indian  Taw-ma-gouche,  signifying  like  a  dam  or  sea  wall.  Geaner'a  "Indus- 
trial Resources  of  Nova  Scotia"  (1849). 


HISTORY    OF    TATAMAGOUCHE 

/ 

out.  Tatamagouche  is  to  be  preferred  to  a  name  borrowed 
from  a  town  in  England,  with  which,  so  far  as  we  know,  there 
was  no  historic  connection.  DesBarres,  while  he  made  no 
attempt  .to  change  the  original  name,  did  make  an  effort 
to  perpetuate  his  name  elsewhere.  Barrachois  Harbour, 
outside  the  Narrows,  he  called  Joseph  Harbour,  while  the 
waters  beyond  Cape  John  and  Malagash  Point,  he  named 
Frederick  Bay.  It  is  doubtful  if  these  names  were  ever 
used  by  any  one  save  DesBarres  himself,  and  they  have 
long  since  sunk  into  oblivion,  and  would  forever  remain 
there  if  it  were  not  for  old  charts  and  deeds.  • 

Another  word  about  which  there  has  been  a  difference 
of  opinion,  is  Gouzar,  a  word  whiph  for  many  years  has 
designated  the  basin  of  water  at  the  head  of  the  bay.  It 
has  always  been  supposed  that  the  Indians  used  the  word 
to  describe  the  place  because  of  the  abundance  of  geese 
which  gathered  there  in  spring  and  fall.  This  explanation 
is  erroneous.  One  of  the  first  settlers  there  was  a  man  by 
the  name  of  Gousar  or  Geeser.  Hence  the  name.  In  1786 
it  is  referred  to  as  Port  Gouza. 

There  are  two  other  local  names  which  need  a  few 
words  of  explanation.  These  are  Brule  and  Barrachois. 
The  former  is  the  French  word  for  burnt  land  and  formerly 
was  applied  only  to  that  long  landscape  that  ever  since 
has  borne  this  name.  Doubtless  at  one  time  it  had  been 
visited  by  a  disastrous  fire  which  left  it  shorn  of  vegetation. 
The  latter  word  is  found  quite  frequently  in  the  Maritime 
Provinces  and  means  either  a  lowland  or  a  sand  bar.  It 
does  not  occur  in  the  French  of  today,  at  least  not  in 
the  modern  French  dictionary,  and  probably  was  first  coined 
by  the  French  Acadians  to  describe  those  tracts  of  low 
land  often  found  in  Nova  Scotia. 


4  HISTORY    OF    TATAMAGOUCHE 

CHAPTER  II 
THE  INDIANS 

T^HERE  is  much  evidence  to  show  that  at  one  time  Tatama- 
gouche  was  a  frequent  rendezvous  for  the  Micmac  Indians. 
The  name  itself  is  almost  conclusive  in  sho  wing  that  it  was 
a  place  well  known  to  these  men  of  the  forest.  The  location 
and  environment  of  the  place  were  peculiarly  suited  to  meet 
the  few  needs  of  the  Red  Man.  The  waters  of  the  rivers  and 
harbours  teemed  with  a  great  number  of  fish,  including 
the  lobster  and  oyster,  while  in  the'  fall  and  spring  these 
waters  and  the  adjacent  marshes  were  the  haunts  of  the  wild 
fowl  which  to  a  great  extent  made  up  the  Indians'  bill  of  fare. 

Traditions  tell  us  that  at  one  time  there  was  an  Indian 
burying-ground  on  Steele's  Island.  This  is  still  generally 
believed  and  is  not  without  good  foundation.*  A  number 
of  years  ago  a  jaw  bone  of  unusual  size  was  found  near  the 
edge  of  the  bank.  The  late  David  Fraser  is  supposed  to  have 
been  the  finder.  It  was  kept  for  a  number  of  years  in  his  shop. 
It  is  true  that  at  present  no  trace  of  mounds  is  to  be  found  on 
the  island,  but  recent  cultivation  would  account  for  their  dis- 
appearance— indeed  it  would  be  extraordinary  if,  after  the 
lapse  of  so  many  years,  there  still  remained  any  indications 
of  this  ancient  burial  place.  Other  stories,  too,  are  current, 
which  tell  of  the  finding  of  rude  Indian  implements  and 
beads  on  the  shores  of  this  island. 

More  certain  evidence!  of  the  Indians  has,  however, 
been  found  on  Ross'  Point  in  what  is  now  the  farm  of 
C.  N.  Cunningham.  When  a  cut  was  being  made  there  at 
the  time  of  the  construction  of  the  railway,  a  number 
of  bones  were  exposed,  many  of  which  had  every  appearance 
of  having  been  broken  before  they  were  interred  in  their 
final  resting  place.  These  bones  were  found  close  to 
the  surface,  which  indicated  that  they  had  either  been 

The  late  Frank  Steele  used  to  relate  that  on  one  occasion,  after  a  heavy  storm,  he 
found  a  large  number  of  bones  on  the  beach.  These  he  carefully  buried  near  the  bank's  edge. 

tOak  or  Stewart's  Island,  across  the  Harbour  on  the  Malagash  shore,  was  another 
favourite  resort  for  these  people.  When  the  first  settlers  arrived,  they  found  immense  quanti- 
ties of  oyster  shells  near  the  beach.  These  they  used  for  fertilizing  their  farms.  Small  quan- 
tities may  yet  be  seen  at  or  near  the  edge  of  the  bank.  According  to  Lone  Cloud,  _Malagash 
in  the  Micmac  language  meant  a  place  where  the  Indians  met  to  play  games,  and  it  may  be 
that  the  word  Malagash  was  first  applied  to  this  small  island.  It  is  to  be  noted,  however, 
that  the  students  of  Micmac  state  that  Malagash  means  "end  of  smooth  water".  It  is  more 
probable  that  the  word  was  first  applied  to  the  Point. 


HISTORY    OF    TATAMAGOUCHE  5 

deposited  in  haste,  or  ait  a  date  previous  to  the  coming  of 
the  Europeans,  when  the  Indians  possessed  no  implements 
other  than  sharpened  sticks  with  which  they  were  unable 
to  dig  a  hole  of  much  depth.  In  the  adjoining  fields  at  various 
times,  spear  heads  and  other  implements  of  war  have  been 
found.  Possibly  what  is  now  a  peaceful  farm,  was  once  the 
scene  of  a  hard  fought  battle. 

A  recorded  reference  which  substantiates  the  former 
statement  that  Tatamagouche  was  a  frequent  rendezvous 
for  the  Indians,  is  found  in  a  report  by  Judge  Morris  in 
1753  on  the  failure  of  the  attempts  of  British  settlement  in 
Nova  Scotia  in  1749-50  and  -53.  It  seems  that  the  chief 
cause  of  the  failure  was  the  hostility  of  the  Indians  who 
were  constantly  making  attacks  upon  the  British  settlors. 
This  is  how  Judge  Morris  explains  the  situation: 

"The  Indians  being  supplied  with  provisions  at  Bay  Verte,  proceed 
along  the  shore  of  the  sea,  till  they  come  to  Tatamagouche,  which  is  navigable 
twenty  miles  for  their  canoes,  where  they  leave  them,  and  taking  their  pro- 
visions travel  about  ten  miles,  which  brings  them  to  Cobequid.  This  takes 
up  two,  sometimes  three  days.  At  Cobequid  they  are  supplied  by  the  French; 
thence  from  there  they  go  down  the  Shubenacadia  River  to  Dartmouth  where 
they  embarrass  the  inhabitants." 

The  Judge  then  goes  on  and  advocates  as  a  remedy  the 
removal  of  the  French  from  Chignecto  and  the  erection 
of  a  fort  on  the  Shubenacadie.  He  says: 

"It  is  quite  evident  that  if  the  inhabitants  were  removed  from  Cobequid 
that  their  (the  Indians)  means  of  support  among  them  would  cease.  They 
would  have  none  to  take  care  of  their  canoes,  and  consequently  must  pass  from 
Tatamagouche  River  by  land  through  the  woods,  which  are  almost  impass- 
able, above  sixty  miles,  and  carry  their  provisions  both  for  their  support 
out  and  home,  which  would  put  them  to  such  difficulties  they  would  be 
induced  seldom,  if  ever,  to  attempt  it." 

Thus  it  would  seem  that  Tatamagouche  was,  to  use  the 
modern  phraseology,  a  "strategic  point"  from  which  the 
Indians  could  carry  out  their  acts  of  depredation. 

Frequently,  when  they  had  succeeded  in  capturing 
a  prisoner  of  note,  the  Indians  would  retire  to  Tatamagouche. 
Iwany  a  poor  captive  has  found  his  way  to  lead  over  the 
rough  trail  from  Cobequid  to  Tatamagouche,  and  thence 
overland  to  Chignecto,  or  by  water  to  Louisbourg  or  to  St. 
John's  Island.  Much  of  our  knowledge  of  the  Tatamagouche 
of  those  early  days  is  gleaned  from  diaries  which  were  kept 
by  several  captives  who  were  brought  here  by  the  Indians. 
One,  by  Capt.  Wm.  Pote,  we  shall  deal  with  later. 


6  HISTORY    OF    TATAMAGOUCHE 

Another  rather  distinguished  captive  whom  the  Indians 
brought  to  Tatamagouche,  was  Anthony  Casteel.  On  17th 
May,  1753,  Casteel  with  several  Englishmen,  was  surprised 
and  captured  by  the  Indians  at  Jeddore.  All  his  comrades 
were  killed,  but  he  escaped  by  calling  himself  a  Frenchman. 
He  was  then  carried  by  the  Indians  down  the  River  Shuben- 
acadie  to  Cobequid,  thence  to  Tatamagouche.  The  party 
left  Cobequid  on  the  24th  of  May,  and  arrived  the  same 
night  at  Tatamagouche,  where  they  lodged.  On  the  folio  wing 
day,  Friday,  "We  crossed,"  he  says,  "a  bay  and  marched  to 
a  place  called  Remsheag  (Wallace)  where  we  found  an 
Indian  encampment."  From  Wallace  he  was  taken  to 
Bay  Verte.  Subsequently  he  was  released. 

There  are  indeed  few,  if  any,  stories  of  difficulties 
between  the  early  settlers  at  Tatamagouche  and  the  Indians, 
and  they  seem  to  have  been  on  excellent  terms,  though 
many  of  our  forefathers  felt  genuine  fear  when  they  heard 
of  the  cruelties  that  were  then  attributed  to  the 
Indians.  In  River  John,  more  trouble  was  experienced, 
and  there  the  first  settlers,  in  self-protection,  prepared 
to  erect  rough  forts.  It  was  there,  too,  that  Frederick, 
the  five  year  old  son  of  George  Patriq^uin  was  stolen,  and 
though  every  search  was  made  for  him,  no  trace  of  the 
missing  boy  could  be  found.  With  good  reason  it  was 
believed  that  the  Indians  alone  could  account  for  his  dis- 
appearance.* 

The  Indians  as  late  as  twenty-five  years  ago  used  to 
visit  Tatamagouche  in  great  numbers.  The  "old  burying- 
ground"  was  their  favourite  meeting  place.  Gradually 
their  numbers  became  fewer  and  finally  they  ceased  to 
visit  as  of  old.  Only  occasionally  do  we  now  see  a  few 
of  this  rapidly  disappearing  race  around  the  place  where 
their  fathers  lived  a  happy,  though  obscure,  life,  or  where, 
when  the  call  came,  they  answered  it  and  fell  in  battle. 

Our  debt  to  them  may  be  small.  They  left  to  our 
fathers  no  cultivated  fields  with  which  to  repay  their  honest 
labours.  Neither  intellectually  nor  morally  have  they  con- 
tributed to  our  civilisation,  unless  in  their  religious  life 

*It  is  recounted  ttiat  >eais  alter,  iatriquin,  as  an  old  man,  returned  to  River  John. 
He  had  been  treated  with  only  kindness  by  the  Indians  and  soon  learned  to  adopt  their  wild 
life,  and  could  never  bring  himself  to  live  in  a  fixed  abode. 


HISTORY    OF    TATAMAGOUCHE  7 

their  simple,  confiding  trust  in  an  Almighty  Power,  whose 
care  they  were,  may  strengthen  ours.  Still  in  the  words 
of  the  poet  we  can  say  of  them: 

"The  memory  of  the  red  man, 
How  can  it  pass  away 
While  their  names  of  music  linger 
On  each  mount  and  stream  and  bay?" 

Their  legacy  to  the  people  of  Tatamagouche  is  a  name 
euphonious  and  full  of  that  mystic,  hidden  meaning  which 
can  alike  arouse  our  imaginations  and  stir  our  emotions. 


HISTORY    OF    TATAMAGOUCHE 

CHAPTER    III 
THE  FRENCH  AT  TATAMAGOUCHE 

the  waters  of  our  harbour  and  rivers  were  first 
ploughed  by  the  rude  sailing  craft  of  some  bold  European, 
or  when  civilized  man,  with  almost  insurmountable  diffi- 
culties, made  his  way  through  the  pathless  forests  to  gaze 
for  the  first  time  upon  this  broad  expanse  of  waters,  is  a 
matter  of  conjecture  only.  Even  tradition  is  unwilling  to 
come  to  our  aid  and  by  silence  refuses  to  throw  light  upon 
these  questions  which  still  remain  shrouded  in  mystery. 

John  Cabot  and  Jacques  Cartier,  in  their  early  voyages, 
missed  our  port.  Indeed,  neither  of  these  entered  the 
Northumberland  Strait  at  all.  In  the  days  of  the  French 
explorers  who  followed  these  two  men,  it  seems  hardly 
conceivable  that  Tatamagouche  was  not  visited.  Records 
which  cannot  be  disputed  show  that  about  the  middle  of 
the  seventeenth  century*  a  small  French  vessel,  engaged 
in  the  work  of  exploration  on  the  north  coasts  of  Acadie, 
sailed  up  the  Harbour,  while  those  on  board  eagerly  scanned 
the  shores  of  a  district  which  to  them  was  nameless  and 
unknown.  The  sturdy  Denys,  whose  name  is  inseparably 
linked  up  with  the  early  exploration  of  this  Province,  parti- 
cularly of  Cape  Breton,  was  in  charge.  He  was  not  only 
a  sea  captain.  He  was  also  a  scholar  of  no  small  merit.  No 
day  of  exploration  passed  without  his  faithfully  and  accurately 
recording  its  events.  The  day  he  sailed  up  Tatamagouche 
Harbour  he  made  no  exception  to  his  accustomed  rule. 
Hence  it  is  that  today  we  have .  a  description  of  Tatama- 
gouche as  it  appeared  to  this  bold  and  adventurous  French- 
man of  two  hundred  and  fifty  years  ago.  After  leaving 
what  is  now  Pictou  Harbour,  he  says: 

"Passing  eight  or  nine  leagues  along,  the  coast  is  high  with  rocks,  [and] 
it  is  necessary  to  keep  a  little  off  shore.  One  finds  here,  nevertheless,  an 
occasional  cove,  where  the  land  is  low;  but  there  is  not  much  shelter  for  boats 
.and  the  sea  breaks  strongly.  Then  there  is  another  river  met  with,  which 
has  abundance  of  rocks  at  its  entrance;  and  a  little  off  shore  towards  the 
eea  is  another  little  island  covered  with  woods  which  is  called  Isle  L'Ormet. 
Before  entering  into  this  river  one  finds  a  large  bay  of  two  good  leagues  of 
depth  and  one  of  breadth.  In  several  places  the  low  land  is  all  covered  with 
beautiful  trees.  In  the  extremity  of  this  bay  one  sees  two  points  of  landf 
which  approach  one  another  and  form  a  strait  and  this  is  the  entrance  of  the 

*1671-2  are  tlie  years  in  which  the  records  were  written. 
fRoss'  and  Weiitiierbie'a. 


HISTORY    OF    TATAMAGOUCHE  9 

river.  It  comes  from  three  or  four  leaguss  inland.  It  is  flat  at  its  entrance 
[and]  boats  cannot  go  far  into  it.  The  land  there  is  rather  fine.  Some  hills 
appear  inland  but  of  moderate  height.  An  abundance  of  oysters  and  shell 
fish  is  also  taken  here." 

Wm.  F.  Ganong,  Ph.D.,  who  translated  and  edited, 
the  record  of  Denys'  voyage,  thinks  that  "Isle  L'Ormet" 
was  what  is  now  known  as  Amet  Island.  This  is  what  he 
says  in  reference  to  it: 

"L'Ormet.  This  is  the  earliest  use  of  the  word.  Its  origin  is  not  known 
though  possibly  it  may  have  been  suggested  by  some  resemblance  to  'armet', 
a  helmet.  The  little  island  is  rapidly  being  washed  away  by  the  sea  and 
is  now  much  smaller  than  when  our  author  saw  it." 

The  rocks  at  the  entrance  of  the  harbour  and  to  which  Denys 
referred,  are  not  in  existence  today  unless,  as  is  probable, 
he  was  referring  either  to  the  Amet  or  to  the  Waugh  shoals. 

The  first  settlers  of  Tatamagouche  were  French  Acadians, 
of  whom,  unfortunately,  there  is  little  known,  history  having 
preserved  the  name  of  one  alone.*  What  few  details  we 
have  of  their  attempt  at  a  settlement,  we  owe  for  the  most 
part  to  observations  which  were  made  by  the  first  Protestant 
settlers  who,  on  their  arrival  here  in  1772,  found  many 
indications  of  a  once  flourishing  community. 

Tatamagouche  was  selected  as  a  settlement  by  the 
French  as  a  point  of  communication  between  their  Annapolis 
and  Cobequid  settlements  and  their  colonies  in  what  is  now 
New  Brunswick,  Prince  Edward  Island  and  .Cape  Breton. 
But  there  were  other  reasons. f  At  that  time  Tatamagouche 
was  remote  from  any  British  settlement  and  possibly  had 
been  represented  to  them  by  the  Indians  as  a  suitable  place 
for  a  settlement,  and  the  French  love  of  the  smell  of  the 
tide  and  the  marsh,  of  which  there  is  plenty  at  Tatamagouche, 
may  have  influenced  them  to  go  there.  They  were  no  friends 
of  rock  and  hill,  but  preferred  the  alluvial  soil  which  is 
found  along  the  shores  of  this  river  and  harbour.  As  one 
writer  has  said: 

"Thither  they  came  with  their  cattle  and  seed  grain  and  dyking  shovel; 
there  they  set  up  their  household  goods,  their  simple  machinery  for  grinding 
corn,  and  their  little  house  of  prayer. "j 

*The  following  quotation  is  taken  from  Le  Canada  Francais,  Vol.  II:  "Famille  de  Pierri 
Boudrot  demeurant  au  village  de  ternest  parvoesse  de  Bangor.  Claude  Boudrot,  ne  a  1'isle 
St.  Jean  eu  mil  sept  heute  six,  Marie  A.  Magdaleine  Oezelit,  fille  de  Jean  Oizilet  soite  de  France 
en  de  -feane  Morse  de  Tatamugouche  de  Cobequick  de  present  aux  iles  Saint  Pierre  et  Miquelon 
avec  leur  farnille." 

fin  those  days  of  continual  warfare,  copper  was  in  constant  demand  and  it  is 
possible  that  the  many  indications  of  it  which  were  then  (and  even  now)  to  be  found  at  Tatama- 
gouche were  a  further  attraction  to  the  French  to  settle  there. 

{Article  "Colchester  Sun,"  July  31,  1893. 


10  HISTORY    OF    TATAMAGOUCHE 

The  date  of  the  first  French  settlement  at  Tatamagouche 
is  unknown.  There  is  a  letter  in  the  Archives  de  La  Marine 
at  Paris,  written  by  PAbbe  de  Loutre*  from  Tatamagouche 
on  the  1st  day  of  October,  1738,  which  translated,  reads  thus- 

"My  mission  is  that  of  Chigabenakadi,  that  is  to  say,  the  Acadian 
Indians,  together  with  the  French  of  TahamiSochef  of  Gobekitck  and  all 
the  French  scattered  and  distant  from  whatever  priests  there  are  in  that 
country.  The  [care  of]  savages  proved  quite  a  burden  to  me,  and  yet  I  have 
also  charge  of  the  French.  It  may  be  too  much  for  me  if  the  Lord  does  not 
lend  his  aid.  Still  I  place  all  my  confidence  in  Him  alone.  I  left  Louisburg 
for  my  mission  on  the  22nd  day  of  September.  On  the  eighth  day,  after 
having  passed  through  high  winds  and  tempests,  I  fortunately  reached  dry 
ground  and  I  take  this  advantage  of  writing  you  and  to  give  you  news  of 
myself.  'TahamiSoche,  this  1st  day  of  October,  1738.'  " 

Thus,  from  this  letter,  it  appears  that  as  early  as  1738, 
the  French  had  not  only  settled  at  Tatamagouche,  but 
they  had  also  established  it  as  part  of  the  Cobequid 
mission.  In  another  letter,  written  nine  years  later,  describ- 
ing the  same  mission,  the  following  quotation  is  found: 

"M.  Girard  is  the  priest  in  charge.  There  is  a  portage  ten  leagues  in 
length  from  Cobequitk  which  leads  to  Takamigoush.  There  is  a  road  through 
the  woods  in  good  shape  and  finely  built.  Cattle,  sheep  and  fowl  pass  over 
it  when  sent  to  Louisbourg.  This  parish  is  under  Cobequitk.  The  number 
of  communicants  is  one  hundred  and  fifty.  "J 

From  maps  made  by  C.  S.  Robert  de  Vaugondy  in  1753 
and  1755,  it  would  appear  that  at  that  time  there  were 
three  French,  settlements  in  the  vicinity  of  the  present 
village  of  Tatamagouche.  One  of  these  was  known  as  Pate- 
magouche  b  which  was  presumably  situated  near  the  site  of 
the  old  burying-ground;  another  was  at  Cape  John  and  a 
third  somewhere  between  Brule  and  River  John.  One  of 
the  last  two  was  designated  as  "Village  des  Sauvages"/i. 
The  road  before  mentioned  in  the  letter  of  Le  Loutre  is 
also  shown  on  the  maps  of  1753. 

When  the  first  permanent  settlers  arrived  in  1771-2, 
they  found  that  considerable  land  had  already  been  cleared 
from  McCully's  Hill  to  the  Presbyterian  Church.  This 
had  also  been  ploughed,  and  put  under  cultivation,  as  was 

*  Loutre  was  a  most  active  instigator  of  the  Indians  and  Acadians  against  British 
rule.  Goldwin  Smith  in  "Canada  and  the  Canadian  question,"  p.  57,  speaking  of  the  expulsion 
of  the  Acadians  says,  "The  blame  rests  on  the  vile  and  murderous  intrigues  of  the  priest  Le- 
Loutre." 

t  8,  a  consonant  equivalent  to  "ou". 

fThis  must  refer  to  the  whole  district  of  Cobequid. 

fcProbably  a  misprint  of  "P"  for  "T".  I 

AIndian  Village(?) 


HISTORY    OF    TATAMAGOUCHE  11 

evidenced  by  the  ridges  still  visible  among  the  fast  growing 
bush.  On  the  hill  back  of  the  old  schoolJioiise  lot  the  French 
had  erected  a  small  chapel,  and  in  the  adjoining  field  they  had 
buried  their  dead.  Crosses  which  bore  silent  witness  that 
the  sleepers  were  of  "The  Faith"  still  were  standing  at  the 
heads  of  the  graves.*  It  was  generally  believed  that  the 
exact  location  of  this  burying-ground  was  directly  adjoining 
the  back  of  the  old  schoolhouse  lot,  and  for  that  reason  the 
late  William  Campbell,  the  subsequent  owner,  regarding 
it  as  sacred,  refused  to  put  the  land  there  under  cultivation. 
Hence  it  remains  till  this  day  grown  up  in  shrubs  and  wild 
bushes.  Mounds  of  earth  which  resemble  graves  can  be 
plainly  seen,  but  it  may  have  been  that  these  were  made  by 
other  than  human  hands,  and  that  the  grave-yard  was  nearer 
the  chapel,  which  was  farther  down  on  the  slope  of  the  hill. 

The  French  had  also  cleared,  to  some  extent,  the  inter- 
vales of  the  French  and  Waugh's  Rivers,  particularly  of  the 
former,  which  ever  since  has  borne  their  name.  On  the  latter 
they  had  begun  the  mining  and  smelting f  of  the  native 
copper  ore  which  was  found  exposed  on  the  banks  of  the 
river  at  various  places,  particularly  at  the  Mine  Hole,  about 
a  mile  above  Murdock's,  where  the  river  takes  a  sharp 
turn  at  the  junction  of  its  two  branches.  The  subsequent 
settlers  believed  that  the  turn  was  an  unnatural  one  caused 
by  the  river's  overflowing  into  the  old  mine,  and  that  the 
stream  covered  the  original  workings.  Acting  on  this 
belief,  an  American  company  took  over  the  property  and 
diverted  the  stream  into  its  natural  course,  but  failed  to 
discover  any  great  bed  of  copper.  The  late  William  Wilson 
many  years  ago,  when  ploughing  the  adjacent  fields,  found  + 
considerable  half-smelted  ore  along  with  the  rude  implements 
with  which  the  French  had  been  carrying  on  their  feeble 
attempts  at  mining  and  smelting. 

Ruins,  or  rather  indications,  of  several  mills  were  still 
to  be  seen.  One  of  these  was  on  a  small  brook  which  crosses 
the  main  highway  a  little  west  of  Mrs.  William  Waugh's. 
Even  today  one  can  see  the  remains  of  their  old  dam,  which ; 

*.»ieaioir  ol  Dr.  Alaei-iregor,  p.  2tM.  i Mere  is  also  a  tradition  wmcn  says  iiiat,  me  .trench 
had  a  burial  ground  on  the  banks  of  Waugh's  River  intervale,  close  by  the  main  road,  near  the 
late  Solomon  Waugh's.  As  late  as  fifty  years  ago,  local  parties  have  dug  there  looking  for  hid- 
den treasure. 

fOnly  a  few  years  ago,  quantities  of  half-smelted  ore  were  unearthed  in  a  field  near 
Fleming  Waueh's. 

JSo  I  have  been  credibly  informed. 


12  HISTORY    OF    TATAMAGOUCHE 

now  grown  over  with  grass,  resembles  a  dyke. 
Another  mill  was  on  the  Blockhouse  Creek  near  the  road 
bridge.  The  third  was  at  Gouzar  and  the  other  two  on 
the  French  River,  one  on  Mill  Brook  and  the  other  on  the 
main  stream.*  The  presence  of  so  many  mills  would  seem 
to  indicate  that  the  little  colony  was  rapidly  growing  and 
that  it  had  every  prospect  of  a  bright  future  when  in  the 
years  to  come,  the  enemies  of  His  Majesty  the  King  of 
France  would  be  vanquished  and  they,  in  peace,  would 
enjoy  the  land  for  which  they  had  made  many  sacrifices. 
Vain  dreams  which  never  were  to  be  realised! 

There  are  also  stories  which  tell  of  the  finding  of  French 
coins  on  Wa-ugh's  River  intervale,  f  Two  muskets  were 
found  in  the  early  days  in  the  field  north  of  the  old  Gass 
house.  These  had  lain  there  so  long  that  the  barrels  were 
rusted  through,  and  when  picked  up  the  wooden  stocks  fell 
away  from  the  barrels.  This  happened  so  long  ago,  that  it 
is  impossible  to  obtain  an  accurate  description  of  the  weapons, 
but  the  finders  and  others  who  saw  them,  expressed  the 
belief  that  they  were  French  muskets.  Then  there  is  the 
prevalent  idea  that  the  willows,  growing  on  the  intervales 
of  Waugh's  River,  were  planted  by  the  French.  Some  say 
this  idea  is  erroneous  and  contend  that  they  were  planted 
by  the  early  Scotch  settlers,  even  though  it  is  true  that 
the  willow  is  a  native  of  France,  and  was  frequently  planted 
by  the  early  French  in  various  places  of  Nova  Scotia  where 
they  had  made  settlements. 

In  Campbell's  History  of  Nova  Scotiaf  there  is  one 
reference  to  a  French  settlement  at  Tatamagouche.  Mr. 
Campbell,  quoting  from  a  report  of  Governor  Hobson  sent 
to  the  Home  Government  in  1752,  says:  "There  are  sixty-five 
families  at  Cobequid,  Rimchigne,  Tatamagouche  and  Cape 
Sable."  This  would  allow  on  an  average  about  fifteen 
families  for  this  place,  and  this  is  further  borne  out  by  a 
report  of  Judge  Morris  in  1755,  in  which  he  estimates  the 
number  of  French  families  at  Tatamagouche  to  be  twelve. 

Some    references  to    the    settlement    and   its    inhabitants 
are  to  be  found  in    the    records    of    the  military    expedition 

"•History  of  Pictou  County,  p.  129. 

tA  deep  pool  in  the  river  below  Archie  Waugh's,  known  to  this  day  as  the  "field  hole" 
received  its  name  from  the  fact  that  when  the  first  settlers  arrived,  they  fouud  that  a  small 
clearing  had  been  made  there  and  that  a  few  apple  trees  were  still  alive  and  growing. 

JPage  111. 


HISTORY    OF    TATAMAGOUCHE  13 

of  de  Ramezay  in  1747,  which  culminated  in  what  is  generally 
known  as  the  "massacre  of  Grand  Pre".  At  that  time 
the  French  had  a  fort  at  Chignecto  and  from  that  point 
they  fitted  out  a  strong  expedition  to  surprise  and  defeat 
the  British  Colonial  forces  which  early  in  the  winter  of  1746-7, 
had  arrived  at  Grand  Pre  with  the  intention  of  pushing 
forward  and  capturing  Chignecto.  Among  the  officers  of 
the  French  forces  which  set  out  from  Chignecto  on  the  21st 
of  January,  1747,  were  de  Villiers,  who  afterwards  defeated 
Washington  at  Fort  Necessity,  the  Chevalier  de  la  Corne, 
and  others  who  subsequently  were  to  play  important  parts 
in  the  struggle  which,  twelve  years  later,  resulted  in  victory 
for  the  British  on  the  Plains  of  Abraham.  Diaries  of  their 
expedition  were  kept  by  Beaujeur  and  La  Corne.  These  officers 
relate  that  on  the  morning  of  January  27,  1747,  they  stopped 
at  the  village  of  Tatamagouche,  where  they  were  joined  by 
a  number  of  Acadians.*  Here  they  mended  their  broken 
sledges.  Resuming  their  journey,  they  at  five  o'clock  in  the 
afternoon  arrived  at  a  place  called  Bacouel,  at  the  beginning 
of  a  p'ortage  which  led  some  twenty-five  miles  across  country 
to  Cobequid,  now  Truro.  The  location  of  this  place,  Bacouel, 
is  not  known,  but  apparently  it  was  somewhere  on  the 
French  River,  and  the  expedition  probably  went  by  a  trail 
following  the  course  of  the  river,  or  possibly  by  the  river  itself, 
which  at  that  time  of  the  year  would  be  mostly  frozen  over. 
At  Bacouel  they  were  met  by  Girard,  priest  of  Cobequid, 
who  seemed  unwilling  to  assist  the  French,  fearing  trouble 
with  the  English  authorities.  They  spent  the  morning. of 
the  28th  mending  their  sledges,  and  in  the  afternoon  were 
joined  by  another  party  of  Acadians  and  Indians,  whereupon 
they  again  set  out  and  towards  evening  reached  a  village 
near  Cobequid.  From  the  rapid  progress  made  by  the 
expedition  and  the  information  received  at  various  points 
concerning  the  numbers  and  equipment  of  the  British,  it 
seems  clear  that  convenient  lines  of  communication  in  the 
nature  of  a  highway,  extended  from  the  French  settlements 
of  Chignecto  to  those  in  the  Annapolis  Valley;  and  the 
journals  indicate  that  a  number  of  Acadiansf  were  at  that 

*These,  the  diary  states,  came  from  Cape  Jeanne  (Cape  John),  where  the  Acadians 
had  made  a  settlement 

fin  1743,  "Father  Germain  reported  at  Quebec  that  certain  French  Refugees  in  the 
vicinity  of  Tatamigouche,  who  had  come  from  the  Island  of  Cape  Breton,  designed  to  go  to 
that  island  to  make  some  devastation  there."  Murdock,  Vol.  2,  p.  120. 


14  IISTORY    OF    TATAMAGOUCHE 

time  settled  at  Tatamagouche  and  in  the  country  now 
making  up  the  northern  part  of  the  County  of  Colchester. 

In  the  journal  of  Captain  William  Pote,*  who  was 
brought  by  the  French  as  a  captive  to  Tatamagouche,  there 
is  given  not  only  an  account  of  his  journey  from  Annapolis, 
but  as  well  an  interesting  narrative  of  an  encounter  in  the 
Harbour  between  several  British  vessels  and  a  number 
of  Indians,  assisted  by  the  French. 

Pote  had  been  in  command  of  the  schooner  "Montague" 
which  was  engaged  in  carrying  supplies  to  Annapolis,  f  and 
on  May  17th,  1745  was  captured  at  that  place  by  the  French 
and  Indians.  On  the  9th  of  June,  he  arrived  in  their  custody 
at  Cobequid,  from  whence  all  proceeded  overland  to  Tata- 
magouche, having  Louisbourg  as  their  prospective  destination. 

According  to  Pote,  the  party  set  out  from  Cobequid  at 
5  a.  m.  of  Monday,  the  10th  and  arrived  here  a  little  before 
sunset  of  the  same  day.  The  journey,  he  says,  being  "over 
high  mountains  and  low  valleys"  was  very  tiring,  and 
"Verey  much  fatigued  both  Indians  and  English,  with  Ye 
Extream  heat  and  Ye  sun,  yt  Beat  upon  us  with  So  much 
Vehemency.  Some  of  ye  Indians  yt  carried  Connews,  was 
almost  melted  and  obliged  to  Gave  out  before  the  Night." 

About  the  settlement  itself,  Pote  has  only  the  following 
remark : 

"At  this  place  (Tatamagouche)  there  Livd  an  old  Gentleman  ,yt  had 
been  a  prisoner  in  queen  Annete  War  in  boston,  and  Spoke  Verey  Good  English, 
ye  old  Gentleman  Saemed  Very  Kind  to  me,  and  Gave  me  a  piece  of  Bread 
and  told  me  he  was  Verey  Sorrey  for  our  Misfortune  and  wished  it  was  in 
his  power  to  Contribute  any  thing  to  our  Consolation." 

On  the  following  day,  while  they  remained  here,  many 
of  the  Indians  went  into  the  woods,  where  they  busied  them- 
selves in  making  canoes  and  providing  food  for  their  voyage 
to  Louisbourg. 

Describing  their  method  of  curing  meat,  Pote  says: 
"there  manner  of  curing  meate  that  they  Design  to  keep  any  considerable 
time  is  to  Cut  it  in  Large  fletchers,  and  Lay  it  over  ye  fire,  till  it  is  so  Smoake- 

*Pote  belonged  to  Portland  Maine.  "He  was  skilful  in  both  surveys  and  seamanship 
and  his  capture  was  a  serious  loss  to  the  English  cause  in  Canada."  Whilst  in  captivity,  he 
kept  a  diary  of  each  day's  events.  In  1890,  John  Fletcher  Hurst,  an  American,  discovered 
the  original  manuscript  in  Switzerland.  Returning  to  America  he  had  it  edited  and  published. 
It  is  a  book  of  the  greatest  interest  to  all  students  of  Nova  Scotian  history. 

t  Annapolis  was  then  being  besieged  by  a  mixed  force  of  French  and  Indians  under  the 
command  of  Lieut.  Marin.  Failing  to  make  any  impression  upon  the  fort,  Marin,  with  Pote 
and  nine  other  F.nglishmen  as  captives,  retired  to  Minas.  There  he  received  word  from  Du- 
chambou,  the  new  Governor  of  Cape  Breton,  that  Louisbourg,  which  had  been  invested  by  the 
New  F.tiglanders,  was  in  a  most  precarious  condition.  Marin  with  as  many  men  as  he  could 
collect,  prepared  at  once  to  hurry  to  its  assistance. 


HISTORY  OF  TATAMAGOUCHE  15 

dryed,  and  Rested,  yt  one  Cannot  perceive  any  manner  of  moisture  in  it 
more  then  in  a  chip,  this  ye  Custom  of  both  french  and  Indians,  when  they 
Design  to  Carrey  their  provisions  any  considerable  Distance." 

On  the  next  day,  Wednesday,  the  French  officers  from 
Louisbourg  heard  further  news  which  caused  them  the  greatest 
concern.*  The  truth  they  carefully  concealed  from  the 
Indians,  who  believed  that  nothing  was  amiss. 

On  Thursday,  the  13th,  preparations  for  the  voyage  to 
Louisbourg  were  continued. 

"Ye  Indians  Imployed  in  making  Connews  and  paddles,  and  ye  French 
in  Transporting  of  their  Bagage  and  all  yt  was  heavey  Carrige  on  board  of 
the  Vessels,  this  Day  there  Came  many  horses  Loaden  with  Provisions 
from  Quebecet  [Cobequid]  Viz.  meal,  flower,  meat  and  Biskett  and  Liquor, 
the  french  officers  Seemed  Exceeding  Urgent  to  make  all  possible  Dispatch." 

On  the  next  day  (Friday)  the  party  took  its  departure. 
The  Indians  proceeded  ahead  in  canoes  which  were 

"so  large  yt  Sum  of  them  would  carrey  Very  Comfortably  fourteen 
men,  and  their  Bagage  So  yt  all  of  them  Could  Com-paddle,  or  Row,  without 
Discommoding  Each  other,  In  ye  Leaste." 

The  French  and  their  officers  embarked  on  two  vessels  which 
it  seems  had  been  sent  to  Tatamagouche  to  be  at  their  dis- 
posal. Pote  was  taken  into  a  canoe  with  the  Indians.  In 
his  narrative  he  gives  nohint  as  to  the  exact  place  of  embark- 
ation; he  merely  says,  "We  took  our  Departure  from 
Togmiguish". 

After  the  Indians  had  proceeded  two  or  three  leagues 
(which  in  any  case  would  take  them  well  out  into  the  Harbour) 
they  learned  that  the  vessels  bearing  the  French  had  grounded. 
Therefore  they  concluded  it  was  best  "to  Go  on  Shore  and 
Stop  for  ye  General."!  (who  was  on  one  of  the  French  vessels). 
They  therefore  landed  "in  a  sandy  cove,  Behind  a  Point  of 
Land  yt  sheltered  it  from  Ye  Sea."  If  they  embarked  on 
the  river  anywhere  near  the  site  of  the  present  village,  this 
landing  was  in  all  probability  somewhere  on  the  Mala- 
gash  shore  which  is  well  sheltered,  and  has,  for  the  most  part, 
a  sandy  beach,  but  from  the  few  details  given,  no  definite 
conclusion  regarding  this  and  their  subsequent  movements 
can  be  safely  arrived  at. 

Next  morning,  as  they  sailed  out  and  turned  round  the 
point,  they  saw  but  a  short  distance  from  them  three  sloops 

*The  messenger  urged  Marin  to  make  all  possible  haste  to  relieve  Louisbourg.  He  report- 
ed that  the  Fn'ilish  had  made  much  progress. 

fLieut.  Mai  in. 


16  HISTORY    OP    TATAMAGOUCHE 

which  at  once  began  to  bear  directly  down  upon  them.  Great 
speculation  then  arose  among  the  Indians  as  to  the  nationality 
of  the  approaching  craft.  Some  fe  red  that  they  were 
English,  while  others  believed  them  to  be  French  vessels 
bearing  supplies  for  Louisbourg.  The  Indians,  who  numbered 
two  hundred  or  more,  kept  a  course  close  to  shore  which 
"brought  ye  Sloops  to  Bear  almost  a  Stern"  of  them  and  at 
a  distance  of  six  miles.  The  sloops  gradually  began  to 
overhaul  the  Indians  who,  for  the  first  time,  discerned  the 
French  colours  flying  on  the  nearest  craft.  They  were  now 
firmly  convinced  that  it  was  a  French  ship  and  consequently 
were  in  a  state  of  great  elation,  but  Pote  says  he  was 
"firmly  perswaeded  to  ye  Contrary." 

In  going  round  a  large  cove  one  of  the  sloops  suddenly 
shot  ahead  and  sailed  directly  in  the  course  of  the  canoes. 
The  Indians,  whose  suspicions  were  again  aroused,  decided 
to  land  on  the  beach,  but  before  they  could  do  so  they  were 
overhauled  by  the  sloops.  And  as  they  drew  near, 

"Down  Comes  ye  French  colors  on  the  one  Side  and  up  ye  English  on 
ye  other  and  knocked  open  their  portes  and  almost  in  the  Twinkling  of  an  Eye," 

they  fired  three  of  their  cannon.  Among  the  savages  a  great 
confusion  followed,  and  as  Pote  rather  quaintly  expresses  it, 
"he  was  ye  Best  Man  yt  could  Get  on  Shore  first."  Accord- 
ing to  his  narrative  all  safely  escaped  on  shore  and  when 
they  had  drawn  their  canoes  out  of  the  water  they  sought 
safety  behind  what  he  terms  a  "seawall".  He  describes  the 
encounter  as  follows: 

"Ye  Bullets  Continued  flying  amongst  us,  but  by  bad  Fortune  they  all 
Escaped  Safe  on  Shore,  and  Never  a  man  hurt,  we  hailed  our  Connews  up 
behind  a  Sea  Wall.  Ye  Sloops  Stood  Near  ye  Shore  and  Came  to  anker, 
and  fiered  Verey  Briskly  upon  us,  But  we  being  Behind  ye  Sea  Wall  it  was 
to  no  purpose,  for  as  Soon  as  they  Saw  ye  Flash  of  A  Cannon  they  Tumbled 
as  quick  as  though  they  had  been  Shoot  Down,  ye  Indians  Lay  Scatered 
along  Shore  Some  Considerable  Distance  and  to  Shew  there  Great  Courage, 
would  Sometimes  Crawl  from  behind  ye  Sea  Wall,  and  hoop  and  Yell,  and 
make  ye  most  hellish  Noise  that  is  possible  to  proceed  from  humain  Creatures 
at  Length  there  Came  a  ball,  that  passed  through  one  of  their  Bodys  and 
Carried  part  of  his  powder  horn,  that  hung  by  his  Side  with  it.  the  Sloop 
yt  Stood  back  for  ye  General,  and  those  that  was  behind  us,  began  to  fire 
Verey  briskly  ye  Indians  began  to  [be]  much  Concerned  for  ye  General,  and 
Sent  Messengers  Back  by  Land  to  Inspect  how  affairs  Stood,  who  Returned 
in  a  Very  Short  time,  and  gave  Intelligence,  that  they  would  Soon  Take  ye 
privatear,  if  they  had  a  few  Cannon  But  Nevertheless  if  it  Continued  Callm, 
they  would  Soon  take  her  with  Small  armes,  for  they  was  then  In  Chase  of 
her  with  all  four  of  their  Vessells,  and  Intend  to  board  her.  ye  two  Sloops 
that  was  with  us,  hearing  ye  Continual  fireing  come  to  Sail,  and  made  all 


HISTORY    OF    TATAMAGOUCHE  17 

possible  Expectation  to  ye  others  assistance,  as  Soon  as  they  Saw  ye  Sloops 
make  towards  ye  General,  ye  French  officers  that  was  with  us,  and  Likewise 
ye  Indians  Changed  their  Countenances  and  Exactly  Imetated  Belteshazer 
ye  Great  King  of  Babylon  and  Said  one  to  another,  that  they  was  verey  much 
Concerned  at  what  they  feared  would  be  ye  Event,  for  they  was  Sensible; 
there  would  be  much  Blood  Shed,  if  they  was  not  all  Destroyed,  as  Soon  as 
ye  French  General  Saw  ye  other  two  Sloops,  he  Gave  orders  to  make  for  ye 
Shore  with  all  possible  Expedition,  the  Sloops  gave  Chase  and  followed  them, 
Verey  Clost  but  by  ye  help  of  their  Oars  they  made  their  Escape,  and  arrived 
Safe  Into  their  Lurking  place,  a  Small  Crick  where  ye  Sloops  could  not  follow, 
ye  Sloops  followed  Clost  in  to  ye  mouth  of  ye  Crick,  and  Came  to  anker, 
So  that  they  Could  by  no  means  Come  out.  When  we  Saw  ye  Course  was 
Clear  we  Embarqued  In  our  Connews.  In  order  to  Return  to  Togmiguish. 
In  Expectation  ye  General  and  all  yt  was  with  him,  was  Either  Taken  or 
killed,  when  we  Came  in  Sight  of  ye  Harbour,  we  found  ye  Three  Sail  of 
Privetears,  where  Come  to  anker  in  ye  Entrance,  and  we  Could  not  by  any 
means  pass,  without  being  Exposed  to  ye  danger  of  their  Cannon,  and  we  was 
obliged  to  Go  Round  to  another  place  and  Transport  our  Connews  by  Land 
Into  ye  harbour,  this  Night  we  Incamped  at  ye  Head  of  a  Small  Crick,  and 
Could  not  arrive  to  Togmeguish,  nor  hear  any  News  from  ye  General,  this 
Night  I  sought  for  an  opportunity  to  make  my  Escape,  but  ye  Indians  kept 
So  Good  a  watch,  I  found  it  would  be  but  Imprudent  to  make  ye  attempt." 

It  is  probable  that  the  place  of  retreat  for  the 
French  vessels  was  Gouzar  an.l  that  the  creek  referred 
to  was  Dewar's  River.  The  British  ships  to  watch  them 
would  anchor  near  the  bar  which  Pote  correctly  terms  the 
"entrance." 

The  English  captain,  David  Donahew,  however,  gives 
a  rather  different  version  of  this  affair.  It  reads  thus: 

"On  the  1.5th  Instant  [June,  1745]  in  Askmacouse  Harbour,  up  the  Bay 
[Tatamagouche  Bay],  my  Luck  was  to  meet  with  two  sloops  and  two  schooners 
and  an  unaccountable  number  of  Indian  Canoes.  At  six  the  same  morning 
the  Captains  Becket  [or  Beckwith]  and  Fones  [Daniel  Fones]  who  were  con- 
sorted with  me,  being  to  Leeward  saw  some  smoke  which  they  pursued, 
and  soon  lost  sight  of  me.  I  pursued  my  Chase,  and  at  Ten  o'clock  came 
up  with,  and  fired  at  them,  they  strove  to  decoy  me  and  catch  me  in  shoal 
water,  which  1  soon  perceived  and  I  accordingly  stood  away  from  the  Shore, 
they  being  a  Thousand  in  number  and  1  but  Forty  odd.  We  spoke  to  Each 
other  for  two  hours  and  a  half;  they  knowing  my  name  they  desired  me  to 
make  ready  my  Fast  for  them  and  I  telling  the  cowards  they  were  afraid  to 
row  up;  the  weather  start  calm;  as  they  come  to  Hand  I  killed  but  the  number 
I  know  not.  I  fired  two  hundred  four  Pounders  double  round  and  Partridge 
fifty-three  Pounders,  my  swivel  and  small  Arms  continually  playing  on 
them.  My  stern  by  force  of  firing  is  down  to  the  water  edge.  Round  House 
all  to  pieces  but,  bold  hearted;  had  it  not  been  so  calm  I  should  have  done  as 
I  would,  but  not  one  Breath  of  Wind,  and  they  rowing  all  round  me,  both 
Head  and  Stern;  but  Capt.  Becket  and  Capt.  Fones  appearing  in  Sight  they 
retreated  and  run  into  shoal  water.  I  followed  them  within  pistol  shot  till 
I  ran  aground;  but  blessed  be  G.xl,  have  got  safe  off.  This  was  the  army 
that  besieged  Annapolis  and  was  ordered  to  assist  Louisbourg  but  their  Design 
is  prevented." 

Next  morning  the  Indians  joined  the  French  where  "they 
2 


18  HISTORY    OF    TATAMAGOUCHE 

had  hauled  all  four  of  their  Vessells  ashore  in  a  Crick  and 
incamped  by  them." 

On  Monday,  the  17th  another  English  ship  arrived  and 
anchored  in  the  harbour. 

On  Tuesday,  Pote  writes  as  follows: 

"This  Day  ye  French  and  Indians  Imployed  In  falling  Trees  Round  their 
Camps.  In  Expectation  of  ye  English  Comming  to  attack  ym  on  Shore,  there 
was  also  Spies  from  our  Camps,  continually  passing  and  repassing,  to  Inspect 
weither  there  was  any  Danger  of  their  Landing,  to  attack  ym  which  the  French 
and  Indians  told  me  they  wished  they  would  attempt  &  I  Should  Soon  have 
more  of  my  Countrymen  In  there  Camps  with  me  for  Company." 

A  conference  of  the  Indians  and  French  was  held  on 
Thursday.  At  this  meeting  Marin  proposed  a  scheme 
whereby  they  could  steal  past  the  English  ships  and  thus 
bring  relief  to  the  hard  pressed  Louisbourg,  but  the  Indians 
had  had  enough  of  fighting  and  insisted  on  proceeding  by 
land  to  Canada.  The  next  day  they  began  the  journey 
and  in  due  time  reached  Quebec. 

This  incident  which  we  have  just  noted  can  claim  more 
than  local  significance.  It  deserves  mention  in  any 
provincial  history,  for  in  no  small  measure  it  contributed 
to  the  fall  of  Louisbourg.  Had  the  French  ships  succeeded 
in  escaping  from  the  harbour  and  bringing  relief  the  result 
of  the  New  Englanders'  expedition  to  Louisbourg  might  have 
been  entirely  different.  As  the  author  of  "Pote's  Journal" 
says: 

"This  exploit  of  Captain  Donahew  contributed  very  materially  toward 
the  capture  of  Louisbourg.  For  had  Marin  arrived  during  the  siege,  he 
would  have  harassed  the  New  England  troops  not  a  little,  and  Duchambou* 
distinctly  stated  that  Marin's  failure  to  appear  proved  disastrous  to  him 
at  a  time  when  succour  would  have  meant  victory." 

Historians,  as  a  rule,  have  been  mistaken  as  to  the 
place  of  the  engagement.  Murdock  in  his  history  of  Nova 
Scotia  states  that  the  engagement  took  place  off  of  Cape 
Sable.  "Douglass  calls  the  place  'Asmacouse'  and  Donahew 
'Askamacouse  Harbour'  "f  But  the  publication  of  "Pote's 
Journal"  removes  all  doubt  as  to  the  place  and  significance 
of  the  engagement,  and  we  trust  that  future  historians  of 
Nova  Scotia  will  not  fail  to  give  it  the  mention  which  it 
deserves. 

There  is  another  interesting  letter  written  from  Tata- 
magouche  during  this  period  and  which  is  still  preserved 

*The  Governor  of  Louisburg,  during  the  siege. 
1From  foot  note  page  40  "Pote's  Journal" 


HISTORY    OF    TATAMAGOUCHE  19 

in  the  French  archives.  The  author  was  apparently  an  agent 
of  the  French  government  who  had  gone  to  Tatamagouche 
for  the  purpose  of  inciting  the  French  and  Indians  against 
the  British  authorities.  Late  in  December  he  ventured 
to  Tatamagouche  without  being  molested.  He  found  "that 
the  villagers  were  engaged  in  celebrating  the  festival  of 
Christmas.  It  had  assumed  an  orgy  of  great  dimensions. 
They  had  several  great  casks  of  rum  [fire  water,  cognac] 
from  the  Carribean  Islands  and  the  people,  freed  from  the 
labours  of  the  harvest,  had  abandoned  themselves  to  the 
enjoyment  of  the  feast."  He  admonished  them  severely 
but  to  no  avail.  He  found  it  impossible  to  expect  any 
help  from  them  in  his  projected  enterprise,  and  was  obliged 
to  return  home  without  having  accomplished  the  object  of 
his  visit.  Later  on  the  Indians  bitterly  complained  to 
him  of  the  treatment  of  their  squaws  by  the  French. 

In  1754  the  French  settlers  at  Tatamagouche  were  joined 
by  a  number  of  Acadians  from  Cobequid,  who,  evidently 
fearing  that  they  soon  would  be  molested  by  the  British, 
burned  all  their  buildings  and  retired  to  Tatamagouche, 
Ramsheg  (Wallace)  and  other  places  on  the  north  shore. 

It  was  in  1755  that  the  British  Government  decided 
to  expel  the  Acadians  and  in  July  31st  of  that  year,  we  find 
Governor  Lawrence  writing  as  follows  to  Col.  Monckton: 

".  .  .  but  I  am  informed  those*  will  fall  upon  ways  and  means  in 
spite  of  all  our  vigilance  to  send  off  their  cattle  to  the  Island  of  St.  John  and 
Louisbourg  (which  is  now  in  a  starving  condition;  by  way  of  Tatamagouche. 
I  would,  therefore,  have  you  without  loss  of  time,  send  thither  a1  pretty  strong 
detachment  to  beat  up  that  quarter  and  to  prevent  them.  You  cannot  want 
A  guide  for  conducting  the  party,  as  there  is  not  a  Frenchman  at  Chignecto 
but  must  perfectly  know  the  road.  .  .  I  would  have  you  give  orders  to 
the  detachment  you  send  to  Tatamagouche  to  demolish  all  the  houses  which 
they  find  there,  together  with  all  the  shallops,  boats,  canoes  or  vessel  of  any 
kind  which  may  be  lying  ready  for  carrying  off  the  inhabitants  and  their 
cattle,  and  by  this  means  the  pernicious  intercourse  and  intelligence  between 
St.  John  Island  and  Louisbourg  and  the  inhabitants  of  the  interior  part  of 
the  country  will  be  in  a  great  measure  prevented." 

There  is  no  official  record  that  this  order  was  ever 
carried  out,  but  the  first  settlers  related  that  from  observations- 
which  they  were  able  to  make,  they  believed  that  the  depar- 
ture of  the  previous  inhabitants  had  been  made  in  haste. 
When  forced  to  leave  Tatamagouche,  the  French  joined  many 
of  their  compatriots  who  had  previously  settled  at  Arichat, 

*The  Acadians. 


20  HISTORY    OF    TATAMAGOUCHE 

Harbor  au  Bouche  and  other  places  in  the  eastern  part  of 
the  province,   where  their   descendants  still   live. 

After  expelling  the  French  from  Tatamagouche,  the 
British,  in  order  to  frustrate  any  future  attempt  on  the 
part  of  the  French  to  re-occupy  it,  erected  a  small  fort 
on  that  point  of  land  at  the  head  of  the  bay  which  is 
still  known  as  the  "Blockhouse".  It  was  Governor  Shirley 
of  Massachusetts  who  suggested  that  this  fort  should  be 
erected.  In  a  letter  written  by  him  to  Governor  Lawrence, 
and  dated  at  Boston,  March  13th,  1756,  he  says: 

"I  would  prooose  for  your  consideration  whether  taking  possession  of 
the  harbour  of  Tatamagouche  and  erecting  a  small  fort  there,  to  be  garrisoned 
with  one  hundred  and  fifty  men,  may  not  be  necessary." 

There  is  no  record  that  this  suggestion  of  Shirley's  was 
ever  acted  upon,  but  even  today,  an  examination  of  the 
ground  at  this  point  of  land  clearly  shows  that  some  kind 
of  fortification  was  once  there.  Mounds  of  earth,  and 
remains  of  excavations  are  still  plainly  seen.  It  would 
thus  appear  that  this  suggestion  of  Shirley's  met  with  the 
approval  of  the  Government,  and  that  a  fort  was  duly 
erected*. 

The  strategic  importance  of  a  fort  at  Tatamagouche 
at  that  period  can  be  easily  understood.  It  guarded  the 
terminus  of  the  road  leading  from  Cobequid  over  the  moun- 
tain, a  road  which  as  early  as  1747  had  been  opened  by  the 
French.  Had  there  been  any  endeavour  on  their  part 
to  re-occupy  this  province,  nothing  would  have  been  more 
probable  than  that  an  expedition  equipped  at  Quebec  or  Louis- 
bourg,  would  disembark  at  Tatamagouche  and  then  proceed 
over  this  road  to  Cobequid,  just  as  de  Ramezay's  expedition 
had  done  a  few  years  previously.  It  was  to  meet  such 
an  emergency  that  this  fort  was  erected.  It  is  to  be  re- 
membered, too,  that  at  that  time  Prince  Edward  Island  and 
Cape  Breton  were  still  in  the  possession  of  the  French,  and 
a  fort  at  Tatamagouche  would  tend  to  prevent  all  communica- 
tion between  those  colonies  and  any  Acadians  who  remained, 
or  who  might  return  to  the  mainland.  With  the  capture 

*  *There  is  no  documentary  evidence  to  show  that  a  blockhouse  was  erected  durin?  this 
period  by  the  British  at  Tatamagouche.  But  that  a  fort  was  at  one  time  erected  on 
that  point  known  still  by  its  name,  there  can  be  no  doubt.  It  was  surely  not  by  the  French. 
Pote  does  not  mention  it,  nor  is  there  any  reference  to  it  in  "I.e  Canada  Francais".  It  was 
not  built  nor  occupied  during  the  days  of  the  early  Protestant  settlers,  otherwise  we  should 
have  more  knowledge  of  it.  There  can  only  be  one  conclusion.  It  must  have  been  erected 
after  the  expulsion  of  the  French  and  before  the  permanent  settlement  of  this  place  had  begun. 


HISTORY    OF    TATAMAGOUCHE  21 

of  Prince  Edward  Island  and  Louisbourg,  and  final  surrender 
of  the  French  forces  in  Canada  in  1760,  all  further  need  of 
a  fort  at  Tatamagouche  was  at  an  end,  and  consequently 
it  was  allowed  to  fall  into  ruin. 

The  attempt  to  settle  this  place  by  the  French  resulted 
in  failure— a  failure  not  due  to  any  want  of  industry  or 
forbearance  on  the  part  of  the  Colonists,  but  entirely  to 
the  inability  of  the  King  of  France  to  recapture  and  hold 
Nova  Scotia  as  a  French  Province.  Nothing  was  accomplish- 
ed except  the  clearing  of  a  few  scattered  acres,  the  erection  of 
several  small  water-mills,  a  little  fur  trading,  and  the  cutting 
of  timber  and  masts  for  the  Navy  of  France. 

"They  departed  and  others  entered  into  the  reward  of  their  labours. 
The  land  was  taken  from  them  and  given  to  another  who,*  while  speaking 
the  same  language,  worshipped  at  a  different  altar,  and  honoured  another 
king."f  » 


*Colonel  DesBarres. 

fArticle  in  "Colchester  Sun",  July  31,  1893. 


22  HISTORY    OF    TATAMAGOUCHE 

CHAPTER    IV 
THE  FIRST  PERMANENT  SETTLERS 

TN  1598,  the  Edict  of  Nantes, which  assured  more  religious 
freedom  to  the  Calvinists  of  those  days,  was  drawn 
up  at  Nancy  in  France.  This  measure  was  ahead  of  the 
spirit  of  its  times,  and  was  particularly  disliked  by  all  devout 
Catholics  who  considered  it  nothing  short  of  an  insult  to 
the  divine  power  of  the  Church.  On  every  occasion  during 
the  following  years  prelates  and  priests  strove  to  excel  one 
another  in  the  breaking  of  the  spirit,  if  not  the  letter,  of 
this  law,  while  at  the  same  time,  they  kept  up  a  constant 
agitation  to  have  its  fair  and  wise  provisions  repealed.  When 
Louis  XIV,  who  was  an  ardent  Catholic,  became  King  of 
France,  the  Catholics  redoubled  their  efforts  and  finally 
in  1685,  that  monarch  signed  its  revocation.  In  the  following 
years  the  French  Protestants,  as  well  as  those  of  other  coun- 
tries, suffered  intolerably  at  the  hands  of  Church  and  State. 
Previous  to  the  Revocation,  the  Reformed  Church  had  made 
progress  in  a  disputed  territory  between  France  and  the 
Duchy  of  Wurtemburg.  This  district  was  finally,  with 
its  Protestant  population  annexed  to  France,  but  in  the 
annexation  treaty,  full  freedom  was  allowed  to  the  Protestants 
living  within  its  borders. 

As  it  had  been  especially  provided  that  the  Revocation 
should  not  apply  to  this  district,  its  inhabitants,  in  marked 
contrast  to  their  more  unfortunate  neighbours,  suffered  no 
molestation  in  their  worship.  In  time,  however,  on  the 
slightest  pretence,  this  provision  of  the  Revocation  was 
broken,  and  here,  as  elsewhere,  the  Reformists  were  forced 
to  bear  the  full  burdens  of  a  religious  persecution.  Orders 
were  given  that  all  the  children  should  be  baptized  in  the 
Catholic  Faith,  and  finally,  to  stunt  the  growth  of  the 
Reformation,  all  the  Protestant  churches  were  ordered  to 
be  destroyed.  One  of  these  churches  was  at  the  town  of 
Montbeliard.  This  old  town  is  one  of  the  connecting  links 
between  this  rather  ancient  history  and  the  present  village 
of  Tatamagouche.  We  shall  repeat  the  following  incident 
which  occurred  there,  as  it  is  told  in  Patterson's  "History 
of  Pictou  County:" 


HISTORY    OF    TATAMAGOUCHE  23 

"Orders  were  given  that  one  of  their*  chapels  should  be  taken  from 
them  and  handed  over  to  the  Romanists.  Fifty  young  men,  among  them 
George  Tattrie  and  Peter  Millard,  assembled  at  it,  armed  only  with  stones, 
prepared  to  resist.  A  detachment  of  troops  was  sent  against  them,  with  a 
priest  at  their  head.  He  warned  the  party  gathered  of  the  uselessness  of 
their  resistance.  They,  however,  refused  to  yield,  when  a  section  of  the  troops 
were  ordered  to  fire,  which  they  did,  killing  two  and  wounding  others,  among 
them  George  Tattrie,  who  received  a  ball  in  the  fleshy  part  of  the  leg.  The 
order  to  fire  was  answered  by  a  volley  of  stones,  by  which  some  of  the  soldiers 
were  badly  injured,  and  it  is  said,  one  killed.  The  Protestants  were  again 
summoned  to  surrender,  but  refused,  until  the  priest  called  on  the  whole 
detachment  to  fire,  when  they  submitted  and  saw  the  house  where  their 
fathers  had  worshiped  given  to  their  enemies."! 

The  above  story  was  told  on  two  occasions  to  Dr.  Patter- 
son by  George  Tattrie,  a  son  of  the  George  Tattrie  mentioned 
therein  and  the  father  of  George  Tattrie  (spar  maker).  The 
last  time  was  in  the  year  1873  when  Tattrie  was  over  ninety 
years  of  age. 

After  this  incident,  the  persecuted,  having  decided  to 
leave  the  land  of  their  nativity,  gladly  welcomed  and  accepted 
the  offers  which  the  British  Government  was  then  making 
to  those  who  wished  to  settle  in  the  New  World.  Tattrie 
and  Millard,  who  were  old  soldiers,  both  having  fought  at 
the  battle  of  Fontenoy,  in  1745,  joined  the  expedition.  In 
1752  they  had  made  full  preparation,  and  putting  what 
few  goods  they  possessed  on  rafts,  drifted  down  the  Rhine 
until  they  at  length  reached  Rotterdam.  Here  they  took 
ship  for  England  but  their  troubles,  though  many,  were 
not  over.  The  Government  had  promised  to  provide  them 
with  passage  and  supplies,  but  failed  to  do  so  and  the  whole 
party  was  left  without  means  of  support  at  Portsmouth. 
Finally  the  Government  was  induced  to  act,  and  in  the  follow- 
ing spring  four  vessels  were  sent  to  remove  them  to  America, 
two  of  which  sailed  for  Halifax  and  the  others  to  South 
Carolina.  In  the  Halifax  vessels  were  two  hundred  and 
twenty-four  immigrants  who  were  first  landed  at  George's 
Island  but  shortly  afterwards  moved  to  Lunenburg.  , 

One  of  their  Pastors  in  the  old  land  was  one  DesBarres. 
He  had  a  son,  Joseph  Frederick  Wallet,  who  inherited  that 
spirit  of  independence  which  his  father  so  fervently  preached. 
He,  however,  preferred  to  show  this  spirit  in  a  more  militant 
manner,  and  so  at  an  early  age  joined  the  armies  which  were 
then  opposing  the  King  of  France. 

*  Reformists. 

•(•History  of  Pictou  County,  page  127. 


24  HISTORY    OF    TATAMAGOUCHE 

In  1756,  he  sailed  as  a  lieutenant  for  America,  where  he 
raised  and,  for  a  time,  commanded  a  corps  of  artillery. 
He  was  present  at  the  siege  of  Quebec,  and  it  was  in  his 
arms,  so  the  story  goes,  that  Wolfe  fell  when  he  received 
his  mortal  wound.*  The  next  year  saw  the  final  defeat  of 
the  French  in  America,  and  in  1763  the  Treaty  of  Paris 
brought  the  conflict  to  a  close.  The  many  wars  that  the 
British  Government  had  waged,  while  they  left  its  treasury 
empty,  added  millions  of  acres  to  its  already  vast  domains. 
A  great  deal  of  these  lands  was  at  once  granted  to  those  who 
had  aided  in  their  conquest.  DesBarres  presented  his 
claim  and,  so  highly  successful  was  he,  that  at  one  time  he 
owned  a  good  part  of  Falmouth,  the  whole  of  Minudie,  the 
best  portions  of  Maocan  and  Nappan,  and  twenty  thousand 
acres  at  Tatamagouche.  The  Tatamagouche  grant  bears  date 
August  25,  1765.  A  copy  of  it  will  be  found  in  Appendix  A. 

After  the  war,  DesBarres  was  engaged  in  making  charts 
of  the  Nova  Scotian  coast  and,  while  at  Louisbourg,  heard 
of  the  condition  of  his  compatriots  at  Lunenburg.  They 
were  anything  but  satisfied.  He  at  once  offered  to  let  them 
land  from  his  estate  at  Tatamagouche.  In  this  he 
was  actuated  by  selfish  as  well  as  unselfish  motives.  The 
land  as  it  then  stood  was  practically  of  no  value  to  the 
owner  who  was  continually  in  need  of  money  to  defray  his 
various  expenses,  f  At  the  same  time  it  cannot  be  doubted 
that  DesBarres  had  a  genuine  interest  in  his  old  countrymen, 
and  considered  that  he  was  aiding  them  as  well  as  replenishing 
his  own  coffers.  DesBarres'  scheme,  while  a  good  one  for 
himself,  was  clearly  impracticable.  Men  were  not  willing 
to  pay  rent  when  equally  good  land  all  around  them  was 
theirs  for  the  asking.  However,  these  men  at  Lunenburg 
seemed  in  such  a  dissatisfied  condition  that  a  number  gladly 
accepted  his  offer.  Each  family  was  to  have  one  lot  con- 
taining eighty  acres  or  less;  for  six  years  no  rent  was  to  be 
paid;  in  the  seventh  year  the  tenants  were  to  pay  five  shillings 
for  a  lot;  on  the  eighth,  ten  shillings,  and  on  the  ninth,  one 
pound,  which  would  be  the  fixed  rate  thereafter.  The  land- 
lord also  provided  cattle,  the  tenants  agreeing  to  give  him 

*Ttiere  has  been  considerable  controversy  on  this  point. 

•(•There  was  another  reason — a  provision  in  the  grant  called  for  the  settling  of  a  number 
of  Protestant  colonists  within  ten  years. 


HISTORY    OF    TATAMAGOUCHE  25 

half  the  increase.  Later  on  we  shall  see  how  this  last  condition 
on  one  occasion  brought  rather  disastrous  results  to  the 
first  tenants. 

In  the  year  1771  or  1772,  about  eleven  settlers  arrived 
at  Tatamagouche  from  Lunenburg.  They  were  George  Tattrie, 
who  settled  on  what  is  now  the  Donaldson  farm;  George 
Gratto;  David  Langille,  who  settled  a  little  nearer  the  village 
on  the  Lombard  place;  his  son  James,  who  took  a  farm 
near  him  on  the  French  River;  George  Matatall  and  Matthew 
Langille,  who  settled  where  the  village  now  stands;  and  James 
Bigney,  who  had  his  house  on  the  bank  of  the  French  River, 
close  to  where  the  late  Miss  Margaret  Campbell  resided. 
Either  at  this  time  or  a  little  later  came  Peter  and  John 
Millard  who  took  up  lots  between  French  River  and  the  Block 
House.  There  were  also  three  other  settlers  who  did  not 
remain:  Ledurney,  who  settled  on  Waugh's  River;  John 
Lowe  and  John  Buckler.  Some  time  afterwards,  there 
came  from  the  same  place  or  quite  near  it,  John  Frederick 
and  John  George  Patriquin.  Their  stay  was  short,  as  they 
soon  removed  to  River  John. 

Twenty  years  had  elapsed  from  the  time  of  the  departure 
from  their  old  home  until  their  arrival  at  their  new  one 
at  Tatamagouche.  Like  ^Eneas  of  old,  they  had  been  "much 
tossed  about  on  land  and  on  sea."  Many  of  them  who 
had  left  in  the  full  strength  of  manhood  found  that  they 
no  longer  were  young,  while  their  greatest  task  yet  remained 
before  them.  They  must  indeed  have  been  discouraged  when 
for  the  first  time,  they  viewed  their  long  sought  after  home. 
The  primeval  forest  extended  to  the  water's  edge,  save  on 
a  few  places  where  the  French  had  made  clearings,  which 
were  of  great  assistance  to  them,  the  more  so  because  of 
the  non-arrival  of  the  promised  vessel  load  of  farm  imple- 
ments. Within  thirty  miles  there  was  not  a  house  or  shelter 
of  any  kind,  not  a  living  creature  except  Indians  and  wild 
animals,  and  to  the  newcomers  neither  of  these  was  a  very 
welcome  sight. 

Whatever  their  feelings  may  have  been,  they  lost  no 
time  in  getting  to  work,  first  to  erect  slight  shelter  for  them- 
selves and  then  to  put  in  as  best  they  could  their  crop  for 
the  first  year  which,  in  the  Absence  of  any  implements, 
was  a  small  one.  The  first  year  they  suffered  greatly. 


26  HISTORY    OF    TATAMAGOUCHE 

• 

What  few  provisions  were  absolutely  necessary  they  obtained 
from  Truro,  paying  as  much  as  twelve  shillings  a  bushel 
for  wheat.  These  they  carried  on  their  backs  to  Tatama- 
gouche,  over  thirty  miles  through  the  woods.  It  is  said 
that  they  would  have  starved  to  death  if  it  had  not  been 
for  some  greens  which  they  found  growing  on  the  marshes. 
These  they  boiled  and  used  continually  as  their  principal 
food.  This,  along  with  fish  and  game,  gave  them  a  bare 
existence  and  kept  starvation  away. 

We  may  now  give  the  history  of  the  various  families 
as  it  has  been  given  to  us.  George  Tattrie  was  the  one  already 
mentioned  in  connection  with  the  fight  around  the  old 
church.  He  had  three  sons,  Louis,  David  and  George. 
The  first,  born  in  1785,  obtained  in  1812  a  tract  of  land 
at  Louisville,  near  River  John,  where  he  had  settled  eight 
years  previously.  David,  the  second  son  settled  on  the 
French  River  near  where  Robert  Tattrie  now  lives.  His 
children  were  George,  John,  Ephraim  and  Edward.  George, 
the  third  son,  who  died  sometime  in  the  "seventies",  married 
a  Matatall,  and  had  several  children,  all,  or  nearly  all,  of 
whom  settled  on  the  French  River.  Among  them  were 
George  (spar  maker),  Annie,  who  married  a  Patriquin,  James, 
Levi  and  David. 

David  Langille  was  twice  married  before  he  left  his 
native  land.  By  his  first  marriage  he  had  one  son,  John 
James,  whom  we  have  already  seen  settled  with  him  on 
the  French  River.  By  his  second  marriage  he  had  no  children. 
While  he  was  sailing  down  the  Rhine  he  fell  in  love  with  and 
married  the  widow  of  a  Spanish  soldier.*  She,  by  her 
former  marriage,  had  one  son  who  took  the  name  of  Langille 
and,  after  his  arrival  here,  settled  at  Point  Brule.  By  his 
third  marriage,  David  Langille  had  five  sons:  Nicholas,  who 
went  away  to  the  United  States  and  wras  not  heard  of  after- 
wards; John  David,  John  George,  John  Frederick,  and 
John  Louis.  The  last  four,  about  1792,  took  up  land  at 
Louisville  between  Tatamagouche  and  River  John.  John 
George  became  an  elder  of  the  Presbyterian  Church  at 
River  John  in  which  office  he  was  succeeded  in  turn  by  his 
son  and  grandson,  who  each  bore  the  name  Ephraim.  John 
Louis  had  also  one  son,  David,  who  was  an  elder  of  the 
same  church  in  River  John. 

*See  "River  John  and  Its  People,"  by  Rev.  G.  Lawson  Gordon. 


HISTORY    OF    TATAMAGOUCHE  27 

John  James  Langille,  only  son  of  David  by  his  first 
marriage,  had  five  sons:  George,  David,  James,  Joseph  and 
Frederick.  George  removed  to  River  John  but  finally  settled 
in  New  Annan.  Frederick  removed  to  the  United  States 
and  the  other  three  settled  in  River  John. 

Matthew  Langille  had  one  son,  George,  who,  in  1790, 
removed  to  River  John.  His  father  joined  him  there  in 
the  course  of  a  few  years,  where  he  died  in  1800  at  the  age 
of  seventy-six.  He  was  the  first  person  to  be  buried  in  the 
old  grave  yard  at  that  place. 

With  George  Matatall  came  also  his  mother,  old  Mrs. 
Matatall,  who  had  formerly  been  a  nurse  to  Colonel  Des- 
Barres  in  his  boyhood  days.  On  one  occasion,  when  he 
was  Governor  of  Prince  Edward  Island,  she  paid  him  a  visit. 
He  took  her  to  Government  House  and  showed  her  every 
kindness.  There  were  two  George  Matatalls,  who  were 
brothers.  George  the  elder  had  been  a  soldier,  and,  after 
being  long  absent  in  the  wars,  was  given  up  for  lost  and,  on 
his  return,  he  found  another  member  of  the  family,  born 
after  his  departure,  who  bore  the  same  name.  George,  the 
younger, owned  lot  30  West  sidef  the  site  of  the  present  village. 
In  1790,  one  George  Matatallf  removed  to  River  John. 

James  Bigney  came  from  near  Lake  Geneva,  Switzer- 
land. He  removed  with  his  family  to  River  John.  His 
grandson,  John  George,  was  a  Methodist  minister. 

In  1785  the  Patriquins,  John  and  George,  removed  to 
River  John  but,  in  1790,  John  returned  to  Tatamagouche, 
exchanging  places  with  Matthew  Langille's  son  George. 
George  Patriquin  had  four  sons:  James,  who  removed  to 
New  Annan.  David  and  George,  who  settled  on  the  road 
from  River  J'ohn  to  Earltown,  and  Frederick,  who,  as  we 
have  already  noticed,  was  presumably  stolen  by  the  Indians. 
He  had  also  one  daughter,  Phoebe,  who  was  afterwards 
married  to  Joseph  Langille,  River  John.  She  was  the'  first 
white  child  to  be  born  in  that  place. 

These  first  settlers  were  of  Swiss  origin  but,  having  lived 
in  a  small  country  whose  borders  were  constantly  being 
changed  according  to  the  varying  fortunes  of  the  powerful 
nations  which  surrounded  it,  they  had,  to  a  certain 

*Near  where  James  Kamsey  now  resides. 
fThe  elder. 


28  HISTORY    OF    TATAMAGOUCHE 

extent,  adopted  the  language  and  characteristics  of  these 
nations.  They  understood  and  could  speak  the  French 
language,  their  Bibles  and  other  books  being  in  that  language. 
One  of  their  descendants,  now  a  lady  of  some  sixty  years, 
says  that  she  can  remember  her  father  speak  French,  but 
"only  once  in  a  while".  They  resembled  the  Swiss  people 
in  that  they  were  industrious,  sober  and  practical.  They 
were  good  settlers  and  in  a  remarkably  short  time  were 
making  a  comfortable  living.  As  may  be  expected  from 
people  who  gave  up  their  old  homes  for  the  sake  of  their 
faith,  they  were  devoutly  religious.  In  the  old  land  they 
were  Lutherans  but  here  most  of  them  first  allied  themselves 
with  the  Presbyterian  Church,  as  it  was  the  first  Protestant 
Church  to  send  a  minister  to  Tatamagouche. 

These  people,  as  a  rule,  showed  good  judgment  in  the 
selection  of  their  farms,  taking  advantage  of  the  clearings 
that  had  been  made  by  the  French.  They  may  have  made 
a  little  money  from  lumbering,  but  it  was  not  for  a  good 
many  years  after  their  arrival  that  lumbering  or  shipbuilding 
afforded  any  real  means  of  making  a  living.  By  1775  the 
little  colony  was  apparently  self-supporting,  as  in  that  year 
they  were  able  to  supply  the  Dumfriesshire  settlers  at  George- 
town with  potatoes. 

In  subsequent  years  they  were  joined  by  more  of 
their  countrymen.  George  Joudry  was  one  of  the  earliest 
to  come  out.  In  1790  he  removed  to  River  John.  In  1809 
came  the  three  Mingoe  brothers,  David,  John  and  George, 
along  with  their  father  who  had  been  an  old  soldier*.  They 
came  to  Tatamagouche  from  Philadelphia  and  finally  settled 
on  the  "Back  Road"  to  River  John.  They  were  the  first 
settlers  at  that  place.  Their  descendants  now  occupy  the  fine 
land  where  the  original  members  of  the  family  erected  their 
first  cabins  among  the  stumps.  These  brothers  were  largely 
instrumental  in  the  establishing  of  an  Episcopal  church 
at  River  John. 

The  old  burying-ground  of  these  pioneers  was  along  the 
shore  a  little  below  the  junction  of  French  and  Waugh's 
Rivers. 

"There  on  that  beautiful  wooded  point  silently  sleep  the 

*In  Switzerland. 


HISTORY    OF    TATAMAGOUCHE  29 

heroes  of  the  fight  around  old  Montbeliard."*  "Time  and 
tide,  working  incessantly,  have  carried  away  over  half  of  this 
historic  spotf  where  forever  the  "rude  forefathers  of  the  hamlet 
sleep."  , 

Once  again  the  war  clouds  hang  dark  around  old  Mont- 
beliard where,  one  hundred  and  fifty  years  ago,  these  men 
bravely  prepared  to  die.  There,  where  they,  unarmed, 
bade  defiance  to  Church  and  State,  some  of  their  descendants 
today  are  bravely  fighting  to  preserve  that  liberty  handed 
down  to  them  by  these  men  of  old.  But  they  heed  it  not — 
over  their  quiet,  secluded  graves  the  rugged  spruces  are 
keeping  silent  watch;  trees  which  saw  them  when  they  first 
touched  our  shores,  watched  them  as  they  struggled  on, 
and  finally,  when  life's  work  was  done,  saw  their  bodies 
"returned  to  the  earth  from  whence  they  came".  If  today 
these  primeval  giants  of  the  forest  could  speak,  what  a  story 
they  would  tell! 


*Article  in  "Colchester  Sun",  July  31,   1893. 

•(The  graves  had  nearly  all  been  marked  stones,  but  on  all  but  two  the  epitaphs  have 
become  obliterated.     One  is  still  legible  and  reads  as  follows: 

IN  MEMORY  OF  JAMES  McKAY 

A  most  promising  Youth  of  Pictou 
Who  departed  this  life  on  the  9th  of  April,  1823 

Aired  ?9  years. 

!t  is  said  that  Mr.  McKay  was  drowned  while  endeavouring  to  cross  the  ice  from  Weather- 
bie's  Point  in  the  si>ring  of  the  year  when  the  ice  was  thin.  He  was  carrying  a  heavy  chain 
the  wcitrht  of  which  carried  him  at  once  to  the  bottom.  He  ivas  doubtless  about  the  lust 
one  buried  there,  as  some  time  after  this  A.  W.  DesBarres  (son  of  Col.  DesBarres'  gave  the 
present  cemetery  to  the  trustees  of  the  Presbyterian  Church,  but  it  was  to  be  open  for 
the  burial  of  all  denominations. 


30  HISTORY    OF    TATAMAGOUCHE 

CHAPTER  V 

FROM  THE  ARRIVAL  OF  THE  FIRST  SCOTCH  SETTLERS  UNTIL 
THE  END  OF  THE  EIGHTEENTH  CENTURY 

T\7"E  now  come  to  one  of  the  most  interesting  events  in  the 
history  of  Tatamagouche — the  arrival,  in  or  about  the 
year  1777,  of  the  first  Scotch  settler,  Wellwood  Waugh. 

Waugh  was  a  native  of  Lockerby,  Parish  of  Lockerton, 
in  the  County  of  Dumfries,  which  is  situated  in  the  south 
of  Scotland,  bordering  on  England  and  the  Solway  Firth. 
Lockerby  was  about  fifteen  miles  inland;  nearer  the  Firth 
by  some  ten  or  twelve  miles  was  Annan.  It  was  about 
this  time  that  there  commenced  an  emigration  of  many  of 
the  inhabitants  of  these  places  to  the  New  World,  some  of 
whom,  as  we  shall  presently  see,  followed  Waugh's  lead, 
and  came  to  Tatamagouche  and  its  vicinity. 

Waugh  has  left  several  invaluable  writings  from  which 
we  have  been  able  to  obtain  information  concerning  the 
Waugh  family.  This  is  what  he  says  in  one: 

"This  narrative,  relative  to  the  name  of  Waugh,  is  traditionary.  They 
were  originally  from  the  Highlands  of  Scotland.  When  they  loft  that  place, 
the  chieftan  of  their  clan,  enquiring  for  a  certain  person,  was  answered  accord- 
ing to  the  native  idiom  of  speech,  'He's  awa,'  from  which  the  name  Waugh 
has  been  considered  to  have  originated.  James  Waugh,  of  the  Brown  Hill 
of  Dunscore,  being  one  of  the  lineage  of  the  Waughs  of  the  Kere,  and  his  wife, 
Mary  McKeg,  lived  both  to  a  very  great  old  age,  died  at  the  same  time, 
and  were  interred  in  the  same  grave,  leaving  four  sons  and  two  daughters. 
The  youngest  son,  Alexander,  was  married  to  Catherine  Calvin*  in  the  Parish 
of  Lockerton  in  the  year  1739;  their  eldest  son,  Wellwood,  was  born  there 
on  the  loth  day  of  February,  1741,  married  Nellie  Henderson  in  the  year 
1760." 

Again  he  writes: 

"In  the  year  1772  he  (Wellwood  Waugh)  with  his  family  left  Lockerby 
the  place  of  their  nativity,  and  embarked  on  board  a  vessel  bound  for  Nova 
Scotia,  where  they  anived  and  began  to  settle  in  Prince  Edward  Island,  but, 
various  emergencies  arising,  they  were  able  to  remove  to  Pictou,  where  they 
continued  for  a  short  space  of  time,  and  then  proceeded  to  Tatamagouche." 

In  the  "History  of  Pictou  County", f  there  is  given  a  descrip- 
tion of  Waugh's  difficulties  while  at  Georgetown,  for  it  was 
there  that  he  and  his  countrymen  settled  when  in  Prince 

*<Jatherine  Calvin,  after  the  death  of  her  husband,  Alex.  Waugh,  married  a  Campbell 
who  died,  leaving  one  son,  William,  who  took  a  farm  in  Pictou  which  remains  until  this  day 
the  Campbell  homestead.  Mrs.  Campbell  came  and  lived  with  her  son,  Wellwood,  at  hU 
home  in  Tatamagouche. 

fPage  95. 


HISTORY    OF    TATAMAGOUCHE  31 

Edward  Island.  In  addition  to  suffering  all  the  hardships 
experienced  by  the  early  settlers,  they  were  visited  by  a  plague 
of  field  mice.  What  crops  they  expected  were  devoured,  and 
they  found  themselves  on  the  verge  of  starvation.  For  three 
years  they  struggled  on,  practically  their  only  food  being 
lobsters  and  shell  fish.*  To  add  further  to  their  already 
almost  insurmountable  difficulties,  they  lost  what  little 
merchandise  they  possessed.  Waugh  had  handed  over 
his  goods  to  a  man  by  the  name  of  Brine,  who  was  running 
a  small  store,  trading  with  fishermen  from  the  United  States. 
These  fishermen,  in  anticipation  of  the  American  Revolution, 
seized  and  either  carried  away  or  destroyed  Brine's  property, 
leaving  the  little  colony  in  the  most  wretched  state  imagin- 
able. The  following  winter  was  the  worst  in  their  experience; 
strong  men  though  they  were,  they  found  themselves  so 
weak  that  they  could  scarcely  carry  food  to  their  children. 
For  three  months  they  lived  on  shell  fish  and  boiled  beech 
leaves.  Some  iron  pots  which  they  had  brought  out  from 
Scotland  they  allowed  to  stand  full  of  water  through  a  cold 
winter  night.  The  next  morning,  owing  to  the  heavy  frost, 
they  were  all  broken.  In  1776,  discouraged  with  their 
outlook  in  Georgetown,  they  removed  to  Pictou.  Waugh 
used  to  relate  that  the  only  food  he  had  for  himself  and 
family  during  the  journey  was  a  bucket  of  clams.  Haliburton 
says  of  them: 

"They  made  their  escape  to  Pictou  in  the  greatest  poverty  and  must 
inevitably  have  perished  had  it  not  been  for  the  kindness  of  the  Highlanders 
who  supported  them  until  they  could  provide  for  themselves." 

This,  in  Waugh's  case,  was  not  long,  for  on  the  very  next 
day  after  his  arrival  he  went  to  work  in  the  woods  making 
staves  and  from  that  time  on  was  able  to  make  a  comfortable 
living  for  himself  and  family.  He  took  up  a  farm  almost 
in  the  centre  of  the  present  town. 

Waugh's  future  was  bright  with  promise  but  the  Ameri- 
can Revolution  was  now  at  its  height  and  Waugh,  who  was 
an  old  Scotch  Covenanter,  refused,  for  a  time,  to  take  the 
oath  of  allegiance  to  the  British  Crown.  This  fact  seems 
to  have  caused  suspicion  that  he  was  secretly  in  sympathy 
with  the  revolting  Colonies.  In  1777  a  number  of  American 
sympathisers  in  Pictou  had  planned  to  capture  a  British 
vessel  under  the  command  of  Captain  Lowden.  They  were 

There  is  also  a  reference  to  their  having  obtained  potatoes  from  Tatamagouohe. 


32  HISTORY    OF    TATAMAGOUfcHE 

successful  and  Lowden  himself  was  taken  prisoner.  Whether 
Waugh  actually  took  part  in  this  seizure  is  extremely  doubt- 
ful, but  so  strong  was  the  feeling  against  him,  that  so  the 
story  goes,  he  was  forced  to  leave  Pictou  and  settle  in 
Tatamagouche.  It  was  further  said  that  all  his  property 
was  seized.  If  this  be  so,  fortune  was  truly  unkind  to  him; 
his  property  being  twice  confiscated,  first  by  the  Amei leans 
at  Georgetown,  and  then,  on  this  occasion,  by  the  Royalists. 
We  may  add,  however,  that  whatever  mistrust  he  had 
of  the  British  Government  soon  disappeared  when,  after 
residing  a  few  years  under  its  power  in  the  New  World. 
he,  too,  appreciated  what  it  meant  to  enjoy  all  the  rights  and 
privileges  of  a  British  subject  and  hence  he  soon  became 
a  loyal  subject  of  George  the  Third.  His  loyalty  is  shown 
by  an  interesting  document  bearing  date  November  3rd. 
1795,  in  which  one  Patrick  Martin  deposes  that  though  he 
had  long  been  in  the  service  of  Waugh  at  Tatamagouche,  he 
had  never  heard  him  "disclaim  or  say  anything  disrespectful 
against  His  Majesty  King  George  the  Third,  or  against 
his  Crown  or  dignity — and  further  saith  that  the  said 
Waugh  always  behaved  as  an  honest  and  good  employer 
and  master  to  him  and  others." 

Some  time  after  his  arrival  at  Tatamagouche,  Waugh 
became  a  servant  of  the  Government,  acting  as  courier  between 
Truro  and  Tatamagouche.  When  Prince  Edward  visited 
Charlottetown,  Waugh  escorted  him  on  that  part  of  the 
journey.*  Some  say  that  he  went  with  him  to  that  city. 
The  Prince,  in  recognition  of  his  services,  presented  him 
with  a  handsome  silk  scarf,  which  is  now  in  the  possession 
of  Waugh's  great-great-grand-daughter,  Mrs.  Abram  Currie. 

With  him  in  1777  or  1778  came  also  his  wife,  Nelly  or 
Helen  Henderson;  his  mother,  Mrs.  Campbell;  and  his 
children,  Thomaf,  Alexander,  William,  Catherine,  Wellwood 
and  Mary.  He  at  once  settled  on  the  intervales  of  that 
river  which  ever  since  has  borne  his  name.  His  first  log 
house  was  erected  close  by  the  present  farm  house  of  Fleming 
W^augh.  At  the  time  of  his  arrival  the  whole  countryside 
was  still  an  unbroken  forest,  save  the  few  clearings  made 
by  the  Acadian  French  and  the  Swiss.  There  was  a 
trail  to  Truro,  but  no  road  of  any  kind  to  Pictou. 

*Fhe  Prince's  destination  must  have  been  elsewhere.  Campbell,  in  his  History  oJ 
Princ  Edward  Island,  states  that  the  Prince  never  visited  the  Island. 


HISTORY    OF    TATAMAGOUCHE  33 

Waugh  had  a  good  eye  for  farm  land  and  was  far-sighted 
enough  to  get  possession,  at  first  by  lease,  of  1600  acres  of 
land,  a  great  portion  of  which  was  intervale.  DesBarres  was 
not  long  in  turning  over  the  management  of  his  vast  estate 
to  his  new  tenant  and,  in  1785,  he  gave  Waugh  full  power 
of  attorney  over  his  Tatamagouche  lands.  At  this  time 
Waugh,  with  his  sons,  was  paying  £15  annual  rental.  Dif- 
ficulties soon  began  to  arise  between  DesBarres  and  his 
leading  tenant,  and  finally  the  landlord  questioned  Waugh's 
title.  Litigation  resulted  but  Waugh,  who  had  retained 
S.  G.  W.  Archibald,  was  successful.  Then  the  case  was 
appealed  to  the  higher  courts  but  no  final  decision  was  ever 
given.  In  the  mean  time,  Waugh  held  by  possession.* 

During  the  meanwhile,  DesBarres,  who  had  been  appointed 
Governor  of  Prince  Edward  Island,  was  living  beyond  his 
means  and  his  creditors,  to  protect  themselves,  did  not 
hesitate  to  seize  the  goods  of  his  defenceless  tenants.  We 
have  already  noticed  how,  by  the  agreement,  DesBarres 
was  to  get  half  the  increase  in  the  cattle;  thus  his  share 
would  be  liable  to  seizure  by  his  creditors.  We  shall  now 
repeat  one  incident  which  appeared  in  print  a  number  of  years 
ago.f 

"Once,  when  an  attachment  was  issued,  Waugh  went  among  the  tenants, 
collected  all  the  rents  in  notes  and  money  and  sent  it  to  DesBarres'  agent, 
then  he  drove  all  the  cattle  belonging  to  DesBarres'  share  back  into  the  woods. 
These  cattle  were  afterwards  hurried  through  the  forest  to  the  DesBarres 
estate  at  Minudie.  When  the  officers  came  with  their  writs,  it  was  explained 
that  the  Governor  had  no  cattle  there,  and  that  the  tenants  had  paid  their 
rents,  and  owed  the  estate  nothing.  The  officers  and  bailiff  listened  with 
patience  to  them  and  as  the  story  goes,  drew  their  swords  to  keep  off  the  people, 
while  they  gathered  all  the  cattle  and  horses,  which  they  drove  through  the 
woods  to  Truro,  to  be  sold  at  ruinously  low  prices,  while  the  tenants,  like  Lord 
Ullin,  were  'left  lamenting'." 

After  this  many  of  the  tenants  decided  to  leave  and 
take  up  land  which  they  themselves  could  own.  This  was 
the  cause  of  many  of  the  young  men,  as  we  have  already 
noticed,  taking  up  land  at  River  John,  since  at  that  place  the 
Philadelphia  Company  were  giving  free  freehold  grants.  The 
old  people  stayed  because  they  could  not  well  remove.  In 
addition  to  those  who  had  already  gone,  we  may  mention 

*It  may  be  noted  that  ajruin  in  180S  Desl'.arres  uppculed  to  the  Courts  for  justice, 
and  this  time  w:ts  nueressl'iil  in  obtaining  an  injunction  restraining  Waugh,  along  with  most 
of  the  other  inhahita'itt-  <>t  Taiamajiouche,  from  "any  further  falling  or  carrying  away  any  tim- 
ber of  other  trees  M;milin<r.  ^rowiiiK  or  being  in  or  upori  the  premises  in  question." 

•(•"Colchester  Sun  '    .luly  :ilst,  1*M. 


34  HISTORY    OF    TATAMAGOUCHB 

James  Gratto  and  James  Bigney.  However,  after  a  while, 
conditions  improved  as  DesBarres  began  to  give  some 
freehold  deeds.  This  removed  the  greatest  obstacle  to 
settlement. 

In  1795  Waugh's  wife,  Nellie  Henderson,  died  at  the 
age  of  sixty-one.  This  is  what  he  says  of  her  in  his  diary: 

"In  the  relation  of  wife,  friend  and  parent,  she  was  in  a  high  degree 
exemplary,  in  her  life  esteemed  and  beloved,  in  her  death  much  regretted. 
She  left  a  numerous  offspring,  whose  number  at  this  period  of  time  amounts 
to  nearly  sixty.  He  who  was  her  partner  in  life  is  still  alive  and  now  at  the 
advanced  age  of  eighty."* 

Her  sorrowing  husband  erected  over  her  grave  a  large 
horizontal  table  with  a  lengthy  inscription,  which  he  com- 
posed. It  reads  something  like  this: 

"Thirty  and  six  years  are  past  and  gone 
Love  and  unity  did  still  abound 
She  was  the  mother  of  my  tribe 
The  dusty  parts  shall  near  my  dwelling  bide. 
Before  my  door  that  I  may  see 
The  place  she  lies  I'll  shortly  be 
She  was  zealous  for  Christ's  cause, 
Agreeable  to  Scotland's  covenanted  laws. 
Now  Nellie  is  dressed  like  a  bride 
In  garments  that  are  white  and  side 
That  was  dear  bought  by  Christ  for  thoe 
While  he  was  hanging  on  the  tree. 
Thy  soul  in  Heaven  now  sings  praises  high 
Although  thy  body  mouldering  in  dust  does  lie. 
At  the  dreadful  trumpet's  sound 
Both  heaven  and  earth  will  then  resound. 
The  next  Voice  that  thou  shalt  hear 
It  shall  be  sweet  unto  thy  ear 
The  Judge  sa}^  'Ye  righteous  come  to  me 
And  have  pleasure  through  eternity'." 

% 

Perhaps  it  may  be  well  at  this  stage  to  take  further 
notice  of  Waugh's  family.  The  eldest  son,  Thomas, 
had  as  his  share  of  his  father's  estate  what  is  now  the  Embree 
farm.  He  was  born  in  1763  and  married  Mary  Brown,  who 
was  the  daughter  of  a  captain  in  the  United  States  army. 
For  a  number  of  years  he  followed  the  sea.  On  one  voyage 
he  brought  back  with  him  a  number  of  apple  trees,  which 
he  planted.  A  few  of  these,  now  a  hundred  years  old,  can 
still  be  seen  in  the  orchard  of  Fleming  Waugh.  Wellwood, 
Donald,  Murray  and  George  Waugh  were  his  sons. 

*  \\augh  did  not  write  the  above  till  1821. 


HISTORY    OF    TATAMAGOUCHE  35 

Waugh's  second  son  was  Alexander,  commonly  called 
"Big  Sandy"  who  lived  on  the  Murdock  farm.  He  was 
the  first  Justice  of  the  Peace  in  North  Colchester.  He 
married  Hannah  Wilson  and  had  three  children:  William; 
Wellwood,  who  married  a  sister  of  John  Currie's;  and  Eleanor. 
He  died  in  1804  at  the  early  age  of  thirty-eight.  The  rustic 
moralist  wrote  upon  his  tomb  this  simple  couplet: 

"Death  is  a  debt  to  nature  due 
Which  I  have  paid,  and  so  must  you." 

The  third  son  was  William  who  was  born  in  1768  and 
died  in  1857.  He  married  Elizabeth  Rood  They  had 
a  large  family  of  six  sons:  Samuel*,  William,  Wellwood,  John, 
Solomon  and  Alex.,  and  four  daughters.  His  farm  was  the 
one  now  owned  by  Mrs.  William  Waugh, 

The  fourth  and  youngest  son  was  Wellwood,  who  was 
born  in  1773,  and  inherited  the  old  homestead  at  the  Willow 
Church.  He  married  Lucy  Rood,  and  had  four  sons:  Solomon, 
Wellwood,  James  and  William,  and  four  daughters. 

Waugh's  two  daughters  were  both  married,  Catherine 
to  Alex.  McNab  of  Wallace,  and  Mary  to  Samuel  Wilson. 
Two  other  children  died  as  infants,  f 

Waugh's  mother,  Mrs.  Campbell,  died  in  1809  at  the 
advanced  age  of  ninety  years.  As  we  have  already  noted, 
she  had  by  her  second  husband  one  son,  William,  who  settled 
in  Pictou  and  married  Martha  Henderson.  Three  of  their 
sons,  Alexander,  William  and  James,  as  we  shall  see  later, 
settled  in  Tatamagouche.  The  two  others,  George  and 
Thomas,  remained  in  Pictou.  The  two  daughters,  Margaret 
and  Hannah,  were  married  to  Andrew  MillerJ  and  James 
Hepburn  respectively.  We  can  pay  no  more  fitting  tribute 
to  this  splendid  old  lady  than  to  quote  the  following  in- 
scription from  her  tombstone. 

''Catherine,  mother  of  W.  Waugh  and  William  Campbell,  who  departed 
this  lii'e  in  the  year  1809  at  the  advanced  age  of  ninety  years.  She  was 
a  descendant  of  old  Scottish  worthies,  who,  in  defence  of  the  testimonies  of 
Jesus  and  of  civil  liberties  of  their  country,  loved  not  their  lives  unto  the 
death,  and  who  under  Providence  were  the  means  of  securing  to  their  offspring 

*Died  IS!  4.  atzcd  one  hundred  years;  was  a  Justice  of  the  Peace  and  for  ;\  time  a^ent 
of  t.lie  DesR:irres  estate. 

fFor  the  genealogy  of  Waugh  family,  as  well  as  for  many  other  items  of  interest,  the 
writer  is  indebted  to  George  Waugh  who  is  always  interested  in  matters  of  local  history  and 
who  is  one  of  its  best  authorities  at  Tatamagouche. 

t  Father  of  Col.  John  Miller. 


36  HISTORY    OF    TATAMAGOUCHE 

those  civil  and  religious  privileges  which  now  constitute  the  best  ornaments 
of  Scotland.  Duiing  the  whole  period  of  her  life  she  was  a  careful  and  success- 
ful traveller  in  the  blessed  path  of  her  progenitors,  and  at  last  completed  her 
protracted  pilgrimage  in  the  firm  belief  of  the  truth  of  the  divine  promises 
and  in  the  animating  hope  of  an  entrance  into  that  Rest  which  remains  for 
the  people  of  God.  In  memory  of  so  much  goodness  and  of  a  parent  deservedly 
dear,  this  stone  has  been  erected  by  her  sons.  'The  Righteous  shall  be  held 
in  everlasting  remembrance.'  " 

Some  time  after  the  death  of  his  wife,  Waugh  returned 
to  Scotland,  and  began  to  learn  the  watch-making  trade.* 
He  was  now  a  man  of  fifty  years,  and  in  a  letter  to  a 
friend,  dated  at  Lockerby  in  January,  1802,  he  says:  "I 
am  coming  on  very  well  and  am  to  tell  you  further,  I  am  the 
oldest  tradesman  and  the  youngest  apprentice."  On  the 
outside  of  this  letter  there  is  written  by  an  unknown  hand 
that  Waugh,  when  he  went  to  Scotland,  left  his  mother  with 
John  Bell  at  the  Willow  Church  farm.  This  cannot 
be  correct,  as  1806  is  the  date  given  for  the  arrival  of  John 
Bell  at  Tatamagouche.  It  may  have  been  that  Waugh 
remained  in  Scotland  after  1806,  but  not  for  long,  as  we 
know  from  documents  that  he  was  back  in  1809. 

In  1824  this  sturdy  pioneer  paid  the  debt  we  all  must 
pay  and  passed  away  at  the  advanced  age  of  eighty-three. 
Waugh  was  an  ideal  settler,  possessing  the  great  faculty 
of  being  able,  in  a  great  measure,  to  adapt  himself  to  any 
situation  and  to  become  master  of  any  circumstances.  The 
difficulties  that  he  encountered  in  Georgetown  and  Pictou 
might  well  have  discouraged  many  a  strong  man,  but  they 
seemed  only  to  have  aroused  in  him  greater  determination 
to  carry  out  his  purpose  of  having  for  himself  and  his  pos- 
terity a  home  in  which  they  could  live  and  enjoy  a  greater 
degree  of  religious  and  political  freedom.  Yet  there  remained 
throughout  his  struggles  a  tull  devotion  to  Scotland  and 
the  old  home,  and  we  find  him  on  the  first  occasion  returning 
there.  Amid  the  strenuous  activities  of  a  pioneer  life,  he 
found  time  to  continue  corresponding  with  many  of  his  old 
friends.  Some  of  their  letters  are  extant. 

An  old  Covenanter  through  and  through,  he  was  a  true- 
blue  Presbyterian,  and  very  religious.  Possibly  in  this 
age  there  may  be  a  tendency  to  scoff  at  his  religion  which 
had  so  much  of  fear  and  reverence.  All  his  letters  show  a 
deep  gratitude  to  the  Almighty  who  had  safely  brought  him 

*A  "grandfather's"  clock,  which  he  made,  is  still  in  possession  ot  his  descendants. 


HISTORY    OF    TATAMAGOUCHE  37 

through  so  many  perils,  and  a  confiding  trust  that  he  too 
would  be  led  "safe  home  at  last".  With  his  activities  in 
the  establishment  and  erection  of  a  place  of  worship,  we 
shall  deal  later  on.  Suffice  it  to  say  that  he  was  ever  the 
ministers'  .friend;  his  heart  and  purse  were  always  open  to 
aid  these  men  as  they  strove  to  administer  to  the  spiritual 
needs  of  the  far  distant  and  scattered  communities. 

In  some  respects  his  education  was  above  that  of 
an  average  person,  even  of  today.  With  foresight  he 
kept  an  accurate  diary  of  some  of  the  events  of  his  life, 
family  records,  and  the  more  important  business  transac- 
tions. There  is  really  very  little  difficulty  in  reading  his 
hand-writing,  some  of  which  is  now  over  a  century  old. 
He  was  possessed  of  the  usual  amount  of  Scotch 
cunning,  which  he  used  with  varying  success,  on  one  occasion 
outwitting  DesBarres  and  securing  for  himself  and  his  chil- 
dren that  large  and  valuable  tract  of  land  which  is  still 
owned  by  his  descendants.  As  soon  as  he  arrived  at  Tata- 
magouche,  he  became  the  leading  man  in  the  community, 
the  representative  of  the  Government  and  agent  of  the 
landlord.  In  the  struggle  for  "better  terms"  from  DesBarres 
he  was  the  leader. 

Blazing  the  trail  for  the  men  of  Dumfries,  Inverness, 
Rosshire  and  other  places  of  Scotland,  he  was  the  forerunner 
of  the  sturdy  Scotch  pioneers,  men  who,  because  of  their 
splendid  character  and  habits,  were  pre-eminently  suited 
to  endure  the  hardships  of  a  pioneer  life  and  to  lay  a  firm 
foundation  on  which  succeeding  generations  were  to  build 
a  mighty  country. 

In  the  old  churchyard,  close  by  the  scenes  of  his  earthly 
labours  and  anxieties  he  sleeps  today.  It  was  in  summer 
last  we  visited  his  grave.  From  the  abounding  intervales 
came  the  smell  of  fresh  mown  hay,  while  under  the  over- 
shadowing willows,  the  lilies  were  growing  about  his  grave. 
Our  feelings  were  transported  back  a  hundred  years,  and  in 
imagination  we  could  see  him  when,  in  his  old  homespun 
clothes,  he  trod  those  fields,  reclaiming  them  from  wilderness, 
or  when,  in  the  cold  of  winter,  with  axe  in  hand,  he  felled 
the  trees  beneath  his  "sturdy  stroke".  As  we  surveyed 
the  beautiful  farms,  many  of  which  were  owned  by  those' 
who  bore  his  name,  and  many  more  by  those  who  were 


38  HISTORY    OF    TATAMAGOUCHE 

proud  to  claim  him  as  their  progenitor,  we  felt  that  he  had 
not  lived  and  struggled  in  vain. 

In  priority  of  arrival,  William  Hayman  comes  second 
among  the  early  Scotch  immigrants.  He  was  a  native  of 
Inverness,  but  in  1779  joined  an  expedition  which  the 
British  Government  was  sending  to  America  in  its  endeav- 
our to  subdue  the  revolting  colonies.  He  served  for  four 
years  in  the  Eoyal  North  Carolina  Regiment,  and  at  the 
conclusion  of  the  war,  received  his  honourable  discharge 
from  John  Hamilton,  the  Lieutenant  commanding  that 
Regiment.  He  then  came  to  Nova  Scotia  and,  in  some  way, 
was  attracted  to  Tatamagouche  and  settled  on  what  is  now 
the  McKeen  farm.  His  house,  of  course  a  log  one,  would 
be  one  of  the  first  in  the  village.  He  died  in  1829  and  was  the 
first  to  be  buried  in  the  cemetery  at  the  Presbyterian  Church, 
Tatamagouche.  He  had  twelve  children:  David,  who  first  settled 
on  the  Lockerbie  farm  and  then  moved  to  River  Philip;  Mrs. 
Murphy;  Mrs.  Smith;  Mrs.  Simon  Cameron;  Mrs.  Donald 
Cameron,  Mrs.  Matatall;  Donald,  William  and  John,  all  of  who 
lived  on  Waugh's  River;  Mrs.  John  Langille,  New  Annan; 
and  Frederick,  who  at  first  lived  where  Abe  Currie  now 
resides.  Mrs.  Nelson,  another  daughter,  was  the  mother 
of  Ex- Warden  David  Nelson,  and  was  born  at  the  McKeen 
farm  in  1799.  Frederick  was  killed  by  a  falling  tree  in 
1837.  He  and  another  young  man  were  engaged  in  cutting 
timber  on  the  George  Baillie  farm  near  The  Falls,  to  which 
place  he  had  recently  moved,  and  a  large  hemlpck  four  feet 
in  diameter  fell  on  him,  causing  instant  death.  He  was 
buried  at  Tatamagouche.  His  tombstone  is  the  oldest 
one  now  standing  in  that  cemetery. 

Hayman  was  a  thrifty  Scot  and  made  a  good  settler. 
At  his  death  he  owned  some  fine  farm  land  which  is  now 
the  property  of  his  descendants.  Though  it  is  many  years 
since  he  passed  away,  his  spirit  continues  to  live  after  him. 
Among  the  many  Canadian  heroes  who  won  immortal  fame 
at  the  battle  of  St.  Julien  in  April,  1915,  were  two  of  his 
great-grandsons,  Thomas  Hayman,  a  son  of  Frederick 
Hayman,  Balmoral  Mills,  and  Herbert  Cameron1,  of  Den- 
mark.* 

*8ince  the  above  has  been  written,  Private  liben  Langille,  another  descendant,  ha» 
given  up  his  life  on  the  field  ot  battle. 


HISTORY    OF    TATAMAGOUCHE  39 

About  the  close  of  this  century  came  John  Richards. 
Of  English  descent,  he  was  born  in  Newfoundland.  As  a 
young  man  he  was  pressed  into  military  service  and  was 
maltreated  at  Halifax  where,  on  one  occasion,  he  received 
on  the  bare  back  an  unusually  large  number  of  stripes  the 
marks  of  which  he  carried  to  his  grave.  He  was  a  man  of 
remarkable  physique  and,  though  by  no  means  quarrelsome 
he  would  not  hesitate  when  challenged  to  defend  his 
fame  as  a  pugilist.  He  lived  first  on  the  French  River  but 
shortly  after  removed  to  the  Head  of  the  Bay,  and  settled 
on  what  is  now  the  farm  of  his  grandson,  Joseph  Roberts. 
While  living  there  he  had  a  quarrel  with  an  Indian — an 
incident  well  worth  relating.  Some  Indians,  along  with 
a  number  of  whites,  including  Richards  himself,  had  been 
holding  a  frolic  on  Oak  or  Stewart's  Island*  just  across 
from  his  farm.  Rum  was  freely  passed  around  and  one  In^ 
dian,  who  was  noted  among  his  fellows  for  his  pugilistic 
powers,  endeavoring  to  provoke  a  quarrel  between  himself 
and  Richards,  challenged  the  former  to  "twist  necks". 
Richards  refused  to  do  so  and  to  keep  the  peace,  suggested 
that  they  both  leave,  and  offered  to  take  him  across 
on  a  raft  to  what  is  now  known  as  Clark's  Point. 
While  crossing,  the  Indian  still  persisted  in  quarreling,  so 
when  they  reached  the  shore,  Richards  consented  to 
meet  him  in  combat.  The  struggle  was  indeed  short; 
one  blow  from  Richards  was  enough,  and  the  fight  ended 
disastrously  for  the  Indian.  The  Indians  never  forgot  the 
defeat  administered  to  their  champion,  and  on  various 
occasions  showed  their  dislike  to  Richards,  and  openly 
boasted  that  they  would  have  revenge.  Richards  used  to 
relate  that  on  only  one  occasion  was  he  ever  really  afraid 
of  them.  One  dark  night,  when  returning  to  his  home  from 
the  Blockhouse,  he  was  attacked  by  six  Indians  armed 
with  muskets.  In  this  case  discretion  again  proved  the 
better  part  of  valour  and  Richards  fled  to  find  refuge  in 

his  own  house.     He  was  married  to Henderson  and 

had  a  family  of  seven  daughters:  Mrs.  William  Dumphy, 
Mrs.  Henderson,  Mrs.  Thomas  Roberts,  Mrs.  W.  M.  Rob- 
erts, Mrs.  David  Langille,  Mrs.  Alexander  Langille,  and  Mrs. 

*This  Island  is  known  by  various  names.  On  charts  it  IB  called  "War  Island".  In 
•bfybuilding  days  it  took  the  name  of  "Shipyard  Island".  Because  of  the  abundance  of  oak, 
which  grew  there,  it  is  sometimes  known  as  "Oak  Island". 


40  HISTORY    OF    TATAMAGOUCHE 

Brammer.     His  two  sons  died  as  children.     Richards    died 
in  or  about  the  year  1870,  aged  ninety-five  years. 

At  the  same  time  John  Johnson  came  with  Richards. 
They  had  originally  belonged  to  the  same  regiment  and 
were  for  some  time  employed  in  making  "Citadel  Hill", 
Halifax.  They,  however,  soon  grew  weary  of  their  restric- 
tions so  taking  a  northerly  course  through  the  unbroken 
forest,  they  walked  till  they  reached  the  Northumberland 
Strait  at  Tatamagouche.  Johnson  settled  on  a  large  grant 
of  wilderness  land  where  his  grandson,  the  late  John  Johnson 
subsequently  lived.  Here  he  built  a  log  house,  married  and 
settled  down.  He  died  in  1841.  He  had  three  sons,  James, 
George  and  Wellwood.  The  first  remained  on  the  old  home- 
stead. The  late  Dr.  D.  M.  Johnson  of  the  village  was  his 
son  and  another  son  also  entered  the  medical  profession. 
The  second  son,  George  settled  on  his  part  of  the  original 
grant.  Of  his  eight  boys,  three  became  ministers  of  the 
Methodist  Church  and  the  youngest,  Dr.  J.  R.  Johnson,  is 
a  physician  in  Syracuse,  N.  Y.  James  Johnson  of  Bayhead 
is  another  son.  The  third  son,  Wellwood,  also  settled  at 
Bayhead.  He  had  no  family. 

Besides  these  permanent  settlers  already  mentioned, 
there  were  several  who  had  come  out  previously  but  for  some 
reason  did  not  remain  for  any  great  length  of  time.  Most 
of  these  were  merely  "squatters"  and  rather  than  pay  rent 
into  the  coffers  of  DesBarres,  they  moved  away.  We 
have  already  mentioned  Geezar,  who  lived  at  the  Head  of 
the  Bay.  After  his  departure  his  farm  was  occupied  by 
one  McGrath,  but  he,  like  his  predecessors  obtained  no 
title.  In  1786,  the  whole  of  this  property,  comprising  280 
acres  was  deeded  to  Robert  Adam  of  Wallace. 

Doubtless  there  were  others  who,  like  these,  remained 
only  for  a  short  time,  but  these  are  the  only  names  that 
are  on  record,  excepting  Patrick  Martin  who,  for  a  time, 
was  a  servant  to  Waugh. 


HISTORY    OF    TATAMAGOUCHE  41 

CHAPTER    VI 

FROM   THE   CLOSE   OF   THE   EIGHTEENTH    CENTURY   TO   THE 
BEGINNING  OF  THE  SHIPBUILDING  INDUSTRY 

HPHE  opening    years    of     the    nineteenth   century  brought 

with  them  a  large  increase  in  the  number  of  immigrants 
to  Nova  Scotia,  particularly  from  Scotland  where,  at  that 
time,  many  of  the  landlords  were  turning  their  estates  into 
sheep  ranches  and,  in  so  doing,  did  not  hesitate  to  eject 
their  tenants  who  were  then  from  necessity  forced  to  emigrate 
tb  the  New  World.  Many  came  to  settle  at  Pictou  and 
other  places  in  eastern  Nova  Scotia  and  of  these  Tatama- 
gouche  received  its  share. 

In  1804,  DesBarres  leased  the  Blockhouse  farm  to 
one  Patrick  Carrol.  This  lease  is  interesting  as  it  states, 
"Only  reserving  what  was  formerly  reserved  for  His  Majesty's 
use  :.s  a  fort".  Nothing  further  of  this  Carrol  is  known, 
and  his  stay  at  Tatamagouche  must  have  been  short,  as 
this  property  was  Soon  occupied  by  others.  Several  of 
the  old  people  can  recall  his  name,  but  know  nothing  of  him. 

One  of  the  earliest  arrivals  of  the  nineteenth  century 
was  Robert  Chambers  who,  in  1806,  received  from  DesBarres 
a  deed  of  that  point  of  land  which  has  ever  since  borne  his 
name.  It  may  be  noted  that  Chambers  was  the  first 
person  at  Tatamagouche  to  receive  a  freehold  title  from 
DesBarres,  the  others  only  having  leases  of  their  property. 
He  was  a  Scotchman  and  an  old  soldier,  which  is  all  that  is 
known  of  him  before  he  came  to  this  country.  He  had 
two  sons:  Samuel  and  James.  The  former  was  a  farmer 
and  lived  for  a  while  on  the  Blockhouse  farm,  but  receiv- 
ing his  father's  farm  as  an  inheritance,  removed  there. 
He  had  six  sons:  James,  John,  Robert,  Samuel,  Edward 
and  Thomas.  James,  the  other  son  of  Robert,  removed  to 
New  Brunswick,  where  he  died  unmarried. 

Another  early  settler  of  this  period  was  William  Lombard. 
He  was  a  native  of  the  North  of  Ireland,  but  as  early  as  1809* 
was  settled  at  Tatamagouche.  Two  other  brothers  also 

*Since  the  above  has  been  written,  the  writer  ha-*  been  informed  that  Lombard  came 
to  Tatamagouche  the  same  ,  iine  as  Richards,  who,  as  far  aa  can  be  ascertained,  had  settled  at 
Tatamagouche  previous  to  1800.  If  this  information  is  correct,  Lombard  should  be  classed  as 
a  -citlcr  of  the  eighteenth  century,  but.  aa  there  is  also  uncertainty  at*  to  the  time  of  Richards' 
arrival,  the  writer  has  thought  it  better  to  add  thi-  explanatory  note  than  to  make  any  other 
changes. 


42  HISTORY    OF    TATAMAGOUCHE 

came  with  him  to  this  country,  but  on  landing  at  Halifax 
they  left  him  and  nothing  further  was  ever  heard  of  them. 
William  Lombard  settled  on  the  farm  now  owned  by  William 
Bonyman,  near  Cooper's.  He  died  in  1854.  In  his  family 
were  three  sons:  George,  John,  and  Danford.  The  first 
settled  on  the  farm  now  owned  by  his  son,  George.  John 
was  a  clerk  for  Hon.  Alex.  Campbell  and  lived  near  the  main 
road,  a  little  west  from  Mrs.  Crowe's.  For  a  time  he  was 
village  postmaster  Danford  lived  with  his  brother,  George. 

The  third  Scotch  settler  was  John  Bell.  He  was  a 
native  of  Annan,  or  Annandale,  Dumfries.  In  1806  he 
emigrated  and  came  to  Tatamagouche  where  he  lived  with 
Waugh  at  the  Willow  Church  farm.  Lonely  as  the  life  at 
Tatamagouche  was,  he  preferred  to  retire  still  further 
into  the  wilderness  and,  in  1815,  removed  seven  miles  inland 
to  form  a  settlement  which,  after  his  old  home  in  Scotland, 
he  called  New  Annan.  His  farm  was  the  one  (still  owned  by 
his  descendants)  on  the  brook  just  above  Byers'  store.  There 
for  six  years  he  dwelt  alone.  The  reason  why  Bell  removed  so 
far,  six  miles  from  his  nearest  neighbour,  is  evident.  His  new 
farm  was  off  of  the  DesBarres  grant,  and  he  was  thus  freed 
from  the  burden  of  paying  rent.  He  opened  a  road  from 
Waugh's  to  his  new  home.  Traces  of  it  may  still  be  seen 
as  it  joins  the  old  Truro  road  near  the  top  of  the  Willow 
Church  Hill.  His  sons — Irvine,  William,  Gavin,  James 
and  Robert — all  settled  in  the  district  known  as  West 
New  Annan. 

In  1822,  James  Me  George,  Wm.  Scott,  Thomas  Swan 
and  Mr.  Byers,  all  from  the  same  district  in  Scotland,  and 
James  Munroe,  took  up  farms  adjacent  to  Bell's.  The  history 
of  New  Annan  is  most  interesting  and  only  lack  of  time 
and  space  have  prevented  the  writer  from  including  it  in 
this  present  work,  and  forced  him  to  make  his  remarks  on 
it  so  brief. 

Earltown  has  not  been  included  within  the  scope  of 
this  small  history,  but  a  few  notes  taken  from  the  "History 
of  Pictou  County"*,  concerning  its  early  settlement  may 
not  be  out  of  place. 

"It  was  firet  surveyed  in  1817,  by  Alexander  Miller,  who  gave  it  its 
name,  in  compliment  to  the  Earl  of  Dalhousie,  then  Governor  of  the  Province. 
The  first  settlers  were  Donald  Mclntosh  and  Angus  Sutherland,  who  took 

*Page  277. 


HISTORY    OF    TATAMAGOUCHE  43 

up  their  residence  in  the  unbroken  forests  in  the  year  1813.  The  next  to  join 
them  was  Alexander  McKay  (tailor).  Others  soon  followed  after,  among 
whom  mav  be  mentioned  George  Ross,  Robert  Murray,  John  Sutherland 
(father  of  Rev.  Alex.  Sutherland)  who  afterwards  removed  to  Roger's  Hill, 
Paul  McDonald,  John  McKay,  Peter  Murray,  John  McKay  (miller,  father 
of  Rev.  Neil  McKay)  William  Murray  (father  of  Rev.  Wm.  and  Robert 
Murray),  R.  Murray  (tailor),  William  McKay,  etc." 

Nearly  all  these  settlers  came  from  Sutherlandshire*,  chiefly 
from  the  Parishes  of  Bogart,  Lairg  and  Clyne. 

"There  were  families  from  Inverness,  two  or  three  from  Ross  and  three 
or  four  from  Caithness.  All  the  original  settlers  spoke  the  Gaelic  language." 

"Like  all  who  take  up  their  abode  in  the  woods,  the  first  settlers  had  many 
difficulties  to  encounter.  They  were  for  years  without  a  grist  mill.  During 
that  time,  they  got  their  grain  ground  partly  by  hand  mill  and  partly  at 
a  grist  mill  at  the  West  Branch,  River  John.  As  there  were  no  roads  to 
the  West  Branch,  and  they  had  no  horses,  they  were  compelled  to  carry  their 
grain  on  their  backs  to  and  from  the  mill  over  a  rough  track.  John  McKay, 
known  as  the  miller,  put  up  the  first  grist  mill,  at  a  fall  fifty  feet  high,  resembling 
the  Falls  of  Foyers  in  Scotland.  The  mill-stones  that  were  used  in  it  were 
taken  from  the  West  Branch,  a  distance  of.  fourteen  miles,  on  a  dray  hauled 
by  thirty-six  sturdy  Highlanders.  McKay,  we  may  here  observe,  wa.s  pro- 
verbial for  his  kindness  to  the  new  settlers,  and  his  hospitality  was  shared 
by  many  a  stranger." 

Waugh  and  Bell  were  soon  followed  to  the  New  World 
by  many  of  their  Dumfries  countrymen,  who  came  out  in 
1809-20  and  the  subsequent  years.  It  is  probable  that 
the  Currie  family  of  Annandale  was  the  first  to  follow  Bell, 
William  Currie,  the  second  son,  being  out  as  early  as  1809. 
Shortly  after  his  arrival  he  married  the  widow  of  Alex.  Waugh. 
They  continued  to  live  on  the  old  farm  at  Murdock's  where, 
in  addition  to  farming,  they  kept  an  inn.  One  of  the  first 
meetings  of  the  Presbytery  was  at  their  home.  After  the 
/various  ministers  and  elders  had  assembled,  Mrs.  Currie  to 
her  great  consternation  discovered  that  there  was  no  tea 
in  the  house.  Tea,  in  those  days,  was  used  only  on  special 
occasions,  and  none  was  for  sale  or  to  be  had  nearer  than 
Pictou.  Old  Jimmie  Johnson,  who  was  then  a  young  man, 
saved  the  situation  for  the  dismayed  housewife.  He  started 
in  the  afternoon  and,  walking  along  the  shore,  f  reached 
Pictou,  and,  purchasing  the  tea,  returned  in  time  for  it  to 
be  served  for  the  morning  meal.  William  Currie  died  in 
1869,  aged  eighty-four.  His  wife  died  four  years  previous, 
aged  ninety-five.  He  had  one  son,  Alexander,  whose  son, 

*Later  on  the  Duke  of  Sutherland  sent  out  a-  number  of  Gaelic  Testaments  to  Hon. 
Alex  Campbell  who  distributed  them  among  the  Earltown  settlers. 

tAt  this  time  there  was  a  rough  track  as  far  as  River  John  but  it  may  have  been  that 
on  foot,  better  progress  could  be  made  by  going  along  the  shore. 


44  HISTORY    OF    TATAMAGOUCHE 

William,    though    of    good    Covenanter    stock,    became    an 
Espiscopal  minister. 

The  fourth  brother,  Gavin*,  did  not  come  out  to  this 
country  for  some  years  after  William.  It  was  probably  iv  the 
early  "twenties"  that  he  settled  at  Tatamagouche.  Previous 
to  his  leaving  Scotland,  he  had  served  as  a  mate  on  a  vessel 
sailing  out  of  Liverpool.  When  he  was  coming  out  as  a 
passenger,  the  ship  encountered  heavy  storms  off  the  coast 
of  Newfoundland.  It  being  the  captain's  maiden  voyage 
across  the  Atlantic,  he  was  greatly  perplexed  and  asked  Currie, 
who  had  made  several  voyages  to  America  and  was 
familiar  with  the  navigation  in  this  part  of  the  Atlantic, 
to  take  charge  of  the  ship.  This  he  did  and  brought  her 
safely  into  port  at  Pictou.  All  the  passengers,  were 
deeply  grateful  to  him  for  his  timely  assistance.  As 
they  were  leaving  the  ship,  two  ladies  who  had  been 
passengers  were  discussing  the  perils  of  the  past  voyage, 
and  one  made  the  remark  that  she  never  hoped  to  go 
through  such  an  experience  again,  to  which  the  other  replied, 
"I  wouldn't  mind,  provided  Gavin  was  on  board."  Currie 
at  first  settled  at  Balfron  where  the  mills  were  afterwards 
built.  Here  he  erected  his  first  house,  part  of  which  still 
exists  but  as  the  waggon  shed  of  Wm.  McKay.  Subse- 
quently he  bought  and  moved  down  to  what  is  now  the 
McCullough  farm.  He  died  in  1869  at  the  age  of  sixty-nine. 
His  wife,  Hanna,h  Wilson,  died  in  1902,  at  the  advanced 
age  of  ninety-two.  She  lived  the  last  years  of  her  life  with 
her  son  James,  who  passed  away  a  few  years  ago.  Their 
other  children  were  Mrs.  James  Campbell,  Mrs.  John 
Douglas,  Mrs.  James  Waugh,  John  and  Thomas  of  the 
village. 

The  stay  of  the  eldest  son,  James,  was  brief.  He  was 
a  gardener,  and  was  absent  for  a  number  of  years  in  the 
United  States.  Two  of  his  sons  still  survive  him  in  the 
old  land. 

The  third  brother  was  John,  who  came  out  about  the 
same  time  as  Gavin,  if  anything  a  little  earlier.  He  had 
received  a  good  education  in  the  old  land  and  at  once  took 

*He  had  been  ca'led  after  his  Uncle,  Gavin  Irvjng.  Irving,  a  few  years  before  Currie's 
birth,  had  been  seized  by  a  press  gang  and  taken  on  board  a  vessel  which  was  anchored  a  short 
distance  off  in  the  stream.  In  the  evening  he  escaped  from  his  guards  and,  jumping  ovenr 
board,  swam  for  the  shore.  His  esc.. ^0  was  at  once  noticed  and  the  guards  fireJ  several  shots, 
one  of  which  found  its  mark,  killing  him  instantly. 


HISTORY    OF    TATAMAGOUCHE  45 

up  his  profession  of  teaching.  He  lived  first  on  the  farm 
now  owned  by  his  son,  Wellwood.  There,  on  that  picturesque 
spot  where  the  tall  trees  bend  over  the  winding  river,  he 
built  his  first  log  cabin  which  remained  until  recent  years. 
Afterwards,  in  order  to  be  nearer  the  scene  of  his  labour, 
he  moved  down  to  where  Abe  Currie  now  lives.  It  is  indeed 
difficult  to  over  estimate  the  value  of  this  man  to  the  com- 
munity. There  were  at  that  time,  including  the  whole 
countryside,  probably  from  two  to  three  hundred  people. 
The  education  of  the  young  was  sadly  neglected.  John 
Ourrie  filled  the  ever  increasing  need.  Year  after  year,  in 
his  little  log  schoolhouse,  near  McCully's  Hill,  he  laboured 
on.  Sternly,  yet  kindly,  he  led  the  young  and  rising  genera- 
tion along  "the  flowery  path  of  knowledge."  The  troubles 
of  a  school  teacher  even  today  are  many.  What  must 
they  have  been  in  those  days  before  the  blessed  era  of  free 
schools?  John  Currie  surmounted  every  difficulty,  and 
successfully  developed  in  a  growing  community  the  intellectual 
side  of  life.  His  influence  was  not  confined  to  the  school- 
room; working  zealously  for  the  welfare  of  the  community, 
he  was  ever  a  patriotic  citizen.  In  the  church  too,  he  took 
an  active  and  leading  part,  being  for  many  years  an  elder 
and  the  clerk  of  the  Session.  He  died  in  1869  at  the  age 
of  seventy-three.  "No  man  liveth  to  himself,"  so  says 
Scripture.  John  Currie,  in  his  life  and  service,  highly 
exemplified  this  simple  truth.  How  many  men  and  women 
through  him  were  saved  from  illiteracy  and  spared  the 
humiliation  of  confessing  before  the  world  that  they  could 
neither  read  nor  write! 

His  son  Wellwood  still  resides  on  the  old  farm  and  is 
now  one  of  the  patriarchs  of  Waugh's  River.  Another 
son  was  John  Currie,  Professor  of  Hebrew  at  the  Presby- 
terian College  at  Halifax.  John  Currie  had  also  two  other 
sons,  Murray,  and  Tom,  who  lived  where  his  (Tom's)  son, 
Abram  now  lives. 

We  have  already  noticed  that  James  Currie  was  absent 
from  home  many  years.  When  he  did  return,  he  found  that 
his  parents  had  given  him  up  for  dead,  and  that  a  brother 
born  since  his  departure  now  bore  his  name.  Thus  it  came 
to  pass  that  there  were  two  James  Curries  of  the  same  family. 
James,  the  younger,  was  the  last  of  the  Currie  family  to 


46  HISTORY    OF    TATAMAGOUCHE 

come   to    America.*     He    died   at   the   early   age   of   thirty. 

In  the  Currie  family  there  were  also  three  daughters: 
Henrietta  (Mrs.  Wellwood  Waugh),  Margaret  (Mrs.  Samuel 
Waugh),  and  Mary  (Mrs.  John  Shannon). 

In  June,  1816,  came  William  Cole,  who  was  a  native 
of  Poole,  England.  Like  many  other  of  the  young  men  of 
that  day  he  had  been  pressed  into  service  and  for  some 
years  had  served  on  board  a  man-of-war.  Having  lost 
the  sight  of  an  eye  by  being  struck  by  a  knotted  rope,  he 
received  his  discharge  and  came  to  Nova  Scotia.  He  at 
first  worked  for  MacNab  at  Malagash,  but  in  a  year  or 
so  settled  on  the  farm  now  owned  by  Thomas  Roberts. 
Cole  was  known  throughout  the  whole  countryside  as  the 
owner  of  a  cow  which  on  one  occasion  gave  birth  to  six 
calves.  These  he  had  stuffed  and  travelled  through  the 
country,  exhibiting  them.  On  his  return  he  found  that 
his  farm  had  been  occupied  by  others,  and  he  then  obtained 
a  lease  of  the  Blockhouse  property.  He  had  three  sons: 
William,  Absalom,  and  James,  and  several  daughters,  one 
of  whom,  Mrs.  Isaac  Matatall,  is  still  alive  at  the  advanced 
age  of  ninety-fourf.  Though  an  invalid  for  many  years,  her 
faculties  are  wonderfully  preserved  and  it  was  from  her 
that  the  writer  obtained  the  above  information.  She  also 
relates  that,  when  difficulties  arose  over  the  Blockhouse 
lease,  first  her  father  and  after  his  death,  her  mother,  journeyed 
to  Halifax  to  interview  Augustus  DesBarres,  who  had  suc- 
ceeded to  his  father's  estate. 

In  the  year  following  his  arrival,  Cole  was  joined  by  a 
number  of  families  from  Argyle,  Yarmouth  County,  who 
took  up  farms  along  the  fertile  slope  at  the  head  of  the  bay. 
These  families  were  all  of  Royalist  stock,  and  had  come 
from  Rhode  Island  to  Nova  Scotia  at  the  close  of  the  Revolu- 
tion. Jacob  Spinney  settled  on  the  farm  now  owned  by 
the  grandson,  James  Spinney;  and  Joseph,  his  brother,  on 
the  one  next  below  Joseph  Roberts.  Jacob  had  a  family 
of  three  sons:  Morris,  who  lived  on  the  old  place;  Aaron, 
who  moved  away  to  the  States;  and  James;  and  five  daughters. 

*He  had  r.tther  an  artistic  turn  and  at  a  moment's  notice  could  sketch  a  likeness  of  a 
passer-by.  He  would  thus,  on  various  occasions,  furnish  no  small  amount  of  amusement, 
particularly  if  nature  had  endowed  his  victim  with  any  peculiar  features.  He  also  did  en- 
graving. The  inscription  on  Mrs.  Wauijh's  tombstone  was  done  by  him,  and  the  fact  that 
it  is  still  perfectlv  legible  speaks  for  itself,  that  the  work  was  well  done.  , 

fLast  winter  (1917)  Mrs.  Matatall  donated  to  the  Red  Cross  a  large  quilt  which  she  made 
entirely  herself. 


HISTORY    OF    TATAMAGOUCHE  47 

Joseph  had  two  sons:  Joseph,  who  lived  in  the  village,  where 
he  died  in  the  winter  of  1912,  and  Stillman,  who  settled  on 
his  father's  place;  and  four  daughters,  one  of  whom,  Joan, 
is  still  living  in  Pugwash. 

Daniel  Goodwin  settled  on  what  is  now  the  farm  of 
David  Roberts.  He  had  no  family. 

Henry  Roberts  settled  on  part  of  the  same  farm.  He 
had  several  children:  William,  Eunice,  Samuel  (who  was 
killed  in  California),  Lizzie  (Mrs.  David  Langille),  Deborah 
(Mrs.  Holmes),  Jane  (Mrs.  Kennedy),  Patience  (Mrs.  Wm. 
Matatall),  Capt.  Jacob,  and  Thomas. 

One  of  the  Spinney  brothers  was  the  first  to  visit  Tata- 
magouche  and  he  returned  to  tell  the  others  of  a  place  so 
peculiarly  suited  for  fishing  and  shipbuilding.  Roberts  and 
his  sons,  in  the  subsequent  years,  built  a  few  vessels  along 
the  beach  below  their  farm.  One  of  them,  the  ''Elizabeth", 
was  burned  on  the  stocks  the  day  before  she  was  to  be 
launched.  The  loss,  representing  as  it  did  the  savings  of 
years,  was  a  disastrous  one  to  the  owners. 

Before  the  arrivals  of  these  families,  there  were  four 
other  settlers  in  this  district:  Richards,  Johnson,  and  Cole, 
whom  we  have  already  noted,  and  John(?)  Henderson,  who 
settled  on  the  Upham  farm.  He  met  his  death  by  being 
drowned  in  the  creek  which  ran  through  his  farm.  He  had 
one  son,  John,  who  continued  to  live  upon  his  father's  farm. 
A  daughter  was  the  wife  of  John  Richards.  John  Hen- 
derson, Jr.,  was  married  to  -  -  Johnson  of  River  Philip, 
and  had  four  sons:  Thomas,  Matthew,  George,  and  William. 

In  1820,  William  Dumphy  settled  on  the  farm  now 
owned  by  his  grandson  Harvey.  He  was  a  native  of  Clear- 
kenny  County,  Ireland.  He  was  married  to  another  daughter 
of  John  Richards.  Among  his  children  are  William,  Mrs.' 
Wm.  Hall,  Mrs.  James  Patriquin,  all  of  the  village.* 

It  was  in  or  about  the  year  1817,  that  Francis  Wilson 
came  from  Halifax  and  settled  on  what  is  now  the  David 
Hayman  farm.  He  was  a  native  of  Scotland,  being  born 
in  or  near  Edinburgh.  While  at  Halifax  he  ran  a  small  inn 
and  when  he  left  for  Tatamagouche  was  said  to  have  had 

*.Subsequetit,  settlers  of  this  district  were:  Uavid  Cunningham,  who  came  from  .Scot- 
land and  settled  where  his  grandson  Joseph  now  lives;  Wm.  Dobson  and  Robt.  N  orris,  both 
Hi  Halifax.  Lack  of  space  has  prevented  the  writer  from  giving  the  settlers  of  Bay-head  the 
f':ll  mention  they  deserve.  As  it  is,  he  has  already  been  forced  to  eliminate  considerable 
material. 


48  HISTORY    OF    TATAMAGOUCHE 

"barrels  of  money".  This  was  literally  true  for,  having  sold 
all  his  earthly  possessions,  he  had  the  proceeds  changed 
into  large-  copper  coins  which  filled  a  barrel  or  more.  After 
coming  to  Tatamagouche  he  conducted  a  small  school. 
At  one  end  of  his  school  room  was  a  large  open  fire  place 
before  which,  in  later  years,  he  often  fell  fast  asleep. 
On  one  occasion,  while  thus  asleep,  one  of  his  shoes  fell  from 
his  foot,  but  not  unnoticed  by  a  youthful  pupil,  who  at 
once  sei/ed  the  opportunity  and  quietly  stealing  to  the 
hearth,  took  a  live  coal  from  the  embers  and  put  it  in 
the  heel  of  the  shoe.  A  moment  later  a  premeditated  dis- 
turbance awoke  the  master,  who  immediately  slipped  his 
foot  into  the  shoe,  with  a  result  which  is  most  easily 
imagined.  In  his  later  years  he  moved  down  and  ran  a 
small  shop,  a  little  this  side  of  George  Waugh's.  In  his 
family  were  Hannah  (Mrs.  Gavin  Currie),  James,  who 
removed  to  Pugwash;  John  and  William,  who  settled  on 
Waugh's  River,  and  Alexander. 

It  was  sometime  about  the  close  of  this  period  that  a 
number  of  families  settled  on  Sand  Point.  John  and  James 
Hingley  came  from  Salmon  River,  Colchester  County. 
They  settled  on  the  farm  now  owned  by  John  T.  Matatall. 
James  Hingley  was  an  elder  in  the  Tatamagouche  Presby- 
terian congregation.  In  his  family  were  six  sons:  Hugh, 
Neil,  Alex.,  John,  Robert,  and  Samuel.  There  also  were 
two  daughters.  All  are  now  dead  save  the  last,  and  one  sister 
who  lives  in  the  States.  John  Hingley  had  only  one  son, 
who  removed  to  the  States. 

Samuel  Weatherbie  was  another  pioneer  settler  of  this 
district.  He  settled  on  that  point  of  land  which  is  now 
Jtnown  by  his  name.  The  Weatherbies  were  of  Royalist 
stock,  and  came  from  the  States  to  Truro  or  somewhere  in 
that  vicinity.  Samuel  Weatherbie  had  six  sons:  David, 
William,  Duncan,  Nathan,  James,  who  remained  on  his 
father's  farm,  and  Peter,  who  took  up  a  lot  near  the  Block-* 
house. 

Robert  McBurnie  was  another  Scotch  settler  of  this 
period.  He  took  up  the  farm  now  occupied  by  Robert  Bell 
at  Waldegrave.  On  coming  to  this  country,  he  at  first  settled 
at  Truro,  but,  having  had  his  property  destroyed  by  a  flood, 
he  came  to  Tatamagouche.  In  the  old  land  he  had  received 


HISTORY    OF    TATAMAGOUCHE  49 

a  good  education  and  for  a  number  of  years  after  settling 
here  he  conducted  a  small  school  at  what  is  now  known  as 
Waldegrave.  Robert  and  Daniel  McBurnie  of  the  village  are 
grandsons. 

About  1820,  William  Buckler  settled  near  what  is  now 
the  farm  of  Robert  Bell  at  Waldegrave.  He  was  the  son 
of  a  boot  manufacturer  in  Devonshire,  but  at  an  early  age 
went  to  sea.  He  came  to  Tatamagouche  in  an  English  vessel 
and  here  forsook  the  sea  for  the  land.  Two  of  his  sons, 
Samuel  and  William,  settled  on  their  father's  farm.  Sub- 
sequently, William  came  to  the  village  to  live. 

At  this  time,  or  perhaps  a  little  later,  all  the  lots  along 
the  east  side  of  the  river  from  Lockerbie's  to  Wetherbie's 
were  taken  up.  David  Hayman,  the  son  of  old  William 
Hayman,  was  on  lot  61,  the  Lockerbie  farm;  lot  62  was 
vacant;  lot  63,  across  from  Campbell's  Point  was  settled 
by  George  Millard;  the  one  next  below,  64,  by  Simon  Matatall. 
On  65  was  John  Steele,  who  came  here  from  Green  Hill.  He 
had  three  sons:  Frank,  Alexander,  and  James.  The  first 
lived  on  the  old  place,  where  he  died  a  few  years  ago,  the  other 
two  moved  away.  On  the  lot  next  below  Steele  was  Mark 
Matatall. 

The  year  1815  was  a  hard  one  for  the  people  of  Tata- 
magouche, for  it  was  in  that  year  that  this  community, 
in  company  with  the  other  rural  districts  of  Pictou, 
Colchester  and  Antigonish,  was  overrun  by  hoards  of  field 
mice.  We  take  the  following  description  of  this  interesting 
but  unwelcome  visitation  from  the  "History  of  Pictou  Coun- 
ty" by  Dr.  Patterson: 

"This  was  a  most  destructive  visitation,  from  which  this  portion  of  the 
country  suffered  from  these  seemingly  insignificant  animals.  During  the 
previous  season  they  did  not  appear  in  any  unusual  numbers.  But  at  the 
end  ofrWintcr,  they  were  so  numerous  as  to  trouble  the  sugar  makers  by  fouling 
their  troughs  for  gathering  sap,  and  before  planting  was  over,  the  woods  and 
fields  alike  swarmed  with  them.  They  were  of  the  large  species  of  field 
mouse,  still  sometimes  seen  in  the  country,  but  which  has  never  since  been 
very  numerous. 

"They  were  very  destructive  and  actually  fierce.  If  pursued,  when 
hard  pressed,  they  would  stand  at  bay,  rising  upon  their  hind  legs,  setting 
their  teeth  and  squealing  fiercely.  A  farmer  on  whom  I  could  rely  told  me, 
that  having,  after  planting,  spread  out  some  barley  to  dry  in  the  sun  before 
the  door,  in  a  little  while  he  saw  it  covered  with  them.  He  let  the  cat  out 
among  them,  but  they  actually  turned  upon  her  and  fought  her. 

4 


50  HISTORY    OF    TATAMAGOUCHE 

The  late  sown  grain  and  the  seed  potatoes  suffered  from  them;*  but  it 
was  when  the  grain  began  to  ripen,  that  their  destructiveness  besame  especially 
manifest.  They  then  attacked  it  in  such  numbers,  that  all  means  were  unavail- 
ing to  arrest  their  raA  a?es.  They  have  bet  n  known  to  cut  down  an  acre 
in  three  days,  so  that  whole  fields  were  d  st  oyed  in  a  si  ort  time.  One  would 
nip  a  stalk  off  a  little  above  the  ground  and,  if  instead  of  falling  over,  the 
end  sank  to  the  ground,  leaving  it  still  upright,  he  would  bite  it  off  farther  up 
until  it  either  fell,  or  the  ear  came  within  his  rt  ach,  when  he  would  devour  all  the 
grain.  Over  acres  and  acres,  they  left  not  a  stalk  standing,  nor  a  grain 
of  wheat,  to  reward  the  labours  of  the  farmer.  They  tmrrowed  in  the  ground 
and  consumed  the  potatoes.  Cats,  dogs,  and  martens  gorged  themselves  to 
repletion  upon  them,  but  with  little  seeming  diminution  of  their  numbers. 
Trenches  were  dug  and  filled  with  water,  but  they  formed  but  a  slight  barrier 
to  their  progress. 

"They  passed  away  as  rapidly  as  they  came.  In  the  Autumn,  as  the 
weather  became  colder,  they  became  languid,  scarcely  able  to  crawl.  One 
could  trample  them  under  his  feet  and  finally  they  died  in  hundreds,  so  that 
they  could  be  gathered  in  heaps,  and  their  putrefying  carcasses  might  be  found 
in  some  places  in  such  numbers  as  to  taint  the  air.  At  Cape  George  they 
went  to  the  water,  and  there  died,  forming  a  ridge  like  seaweed  along  the 
edge  of  the  sea,  and  codfish  were  caught  off  the  coast  with  carcasses  in  their 
maws." 

The  conditions  as  stated  in  the  above  quotation  were  doubt- 
less identical  with  conditions  as  existing  during  that  year  at 
Tatamagouche.  Though  "the  year  of  the  mice"  is  now 
beyond  living  memory,  it  still  lives  in  tradition  and 
frequently  we  hear  some  of  the  people  tell  of  incidents  that 
they  have  heard  their  parents  relate.  It  is  said  that  in  this 
community  it  was  the  potato  crop  in  particular  which 
suffered.  The  farmers  on  the  intervales  found  an  effective 
method  to  exterminate  the  mice.  They  would  drive  them 
along  the  furrows  till  they  came  to  the  edge  of  the  river  and 
then  with  sticks  drive  them  into  the  water. 

Severe  and  disastrous  as  were  the  results  of  the  "year 
of  the  mice",  the  next  year  was  to  prove  equally  as  dis- 
couraging. It  was  what  is  still  known  as  the  "year  of  the 
frost". 

"The  year  1816  was  known  throughout  the  northern  parts  of  this  Con- 
tinent, and  also  in  Europe,  as  "the  year  without  a  Summer".  In  the  noithern 
States,  frobt,  ice,  and  snow  were  con  men  in  June.  Snow  fell  to  the  depth  of 
ten  inches  in  Vermont,  seven  in  Maine,  and  three  in  Central  New  York. 
On  the  5th  -luly,  ice  \\as  forrrcd  cf  tie  thickness  cf  pomnr.cn  window  glass 
throughput  New  England,  Jvew  York  and  son  e  parts  of  Pennsylvania.  In 
August  ice  was  formed  half  an  inch  thick.  Indian  Corn  was  so  frozen  that 
the  greater  part  was  cut  down  for  fodder.  Indeed,  almost  every  green  thing 
was  destroyed.  A  similar  state  of  thinps  e>isted  in  England.  During  the 
whole  season  the  sun's  rays  seerm  d  to  be  destitute  of  heat.  All  nature  seemed 

*"A  man  in  Meripomish  had  made  a  clearing  out  at  Piedmont  in  the  woods.  He  carried 
out  four  bushels  of  oats  to  sow.  On  commencing,  they  came  in  swarms  eating  the  grain  as 
he  sowed  it.  After  continuing  a  while,  he  threw  the  whole  to  them  in  disgust,  and  returned 
home." 


HISTORY    OF    TATAMAGOUCHE  51 

to  be  clad  in  sable  hue.  The  average  wholesale  price  of  flour  during  that  year 
in  Philadelphia,  was  $13  per  barrel.  The  average  price  of  wheat  in  England 
was  97s.  per  quarter. 

"Here  the  frost  was  hard  in  the  woods  in  the  month  of  June,  provisions 
were  high  and  from  the  destruction  of  crops  the  previous  year  by  mice,  many 
were  suffering  and  nearly  all  the  farmers  were  put  to  some  inconvenience 
for  want  of  food  of  their  families."* 

No  history  of  these  years  is  complete  without  some 
reference  to  the  old  Nova  Scotia  Militia  to  which  every 
Nova  Scotian  of  military  age  by  law  belonged.  From  almost 
the  beginning  of  British  rule  in  Nova  Scotia,  military  drill  was 
compulsory,  and  we  have  no  doubt  but  that  the  young  men 
of  Tatamagouche  from  the  earliest  years  were  thus  obliged  to 
perform  what  they  considered  an  onerous  duty.  In  addition 
to  drill  as  a  further  measure  of  protection,  army  muskets 
were  distributed  among  the  settlers  who  would  thus  become 
acquainted  with  their  use.  In  return  a  bond  was  given, 
guaranteeing  their  safe  return  to  the  crown.  The  settlers 
at  Tatamagouche  appeared  to  avail  themselves  of  the  oppor- 
tunity of  thus  obtaining  a  free  use  of  the  King's  muskets  and 
we  have  no  doubt  but  that  the  woods  frequently  rang  with 
the  echo  of  these  old  flint-locks.  We  produce  here  a  copy 
of  one  of  the  bonds,  which  is  of  local  interest. 

"Know  all  men  by  these  present  that  we  Samuel  McBurnie  and  Jas. 
Chambers  are  held  and  firmly  bound  to  our  Sovereign  Lord,  the  King,  in 
the  penal  sum  of  five  pounds  to  be  paid  to  our  Sovereign  Lord,  the  King,  his 
Heirs,  or  successors,  for  which  payment  well  and  truly  to  be  made  we  bind 
ourselves  and  either  of  us  for  himself  or  each  of  our  heirs,  executors  and  admin- 
istrators, firmly  with  these  presents. 

"Sealed  with  our  seals  and  dated  at  Tatamagouche  this  14th  day  of 
July,  in  the  year  of  our  Lord,  One  thousand  eight  hundred  and  nine. 

"The  condition  of  the  above  obligation  is  that  the  said  Samuel  McBurnie 
shall  at  all  times  hereafter  safely  keep  in  good  and  serviceable  order  and  have 
ready  to  return  when  called  for  one  King's  musket,  bayonet,  scabbard  and 
belt,  one  pouch  and  belt,  and  one  gun  sling  which  have  been  issued  to  him 
under  an  act  entitled,  'An  act  to  provide  for  the  better  security  of  this  province 
by  a  better  regulation  of  the  militia  and  to  repeal  the  militia  law  now  in  force' 
and  shall  in  all  things  well  and  truly  perform  the  provisions  of  the  said  act 
touching  the  same;  then  this  obligation  to  be  void,  otherwise  to  be  in  and 
remain  in  full  force  and  effect. 

(Sgnd)     SAMUEL  McBURNIE 
JAMES  CHAMBERS. 
Signed,  sealed  and  delivered  in  the  presence  of 

WILLIAM  LOMBARD." 


*History  of  Pictou  County,  page  2'»5. 


52  HISTORY    OF    TATAMAGOUCHE 

In  this  year,  1809,  there  were  given  a  number  of  other 
bonds  of  a  similar  nature.  On  these  we  have  noticed  the 
following  names:  George  Jollimore  ST.,  Geo.  Jollimore,  Wm. 
Curri,e,  George  Halliard,  David  Matatall,  Samuel  Chambers, 
John  Peter  Matatall,  John  Pierce,  James  Chambers,  Michael 
Otis  (or  Oares)  and  John  Dunn. 

Some  time  about  1808  there  was  formed  throughout 
what  is  now  Colchester  County,  the  7th  Battalion  Nova 
Scotia  Militia.  The  only  officer  from  the  northern  part 
of  the  County  was  William  Waugh,  (son  of  old  Wellwood 
Waugh,)  who,  in  September  of  that  year,  was  granted  a 
Commission  as  Captain.  In  1817,  Wm.  Waugh  was  made 
first  Lieutenant  and  E.  Matatall  second  Lieutenant. 

At  the  time  of  the  war  of  1812-14,  a  number  of  the 
young  men  of  Tatamagouche  walked  to  Halifax,  where  they 
drilled  for  some  time.  Among  those  who  went  was  the  late 
Samuel  Waugh,  Esq.,  who  was  then  a  young  man  of  eighteen 
or  nineteen.  During  the  "seventies",  the  government  granted 
a  bounty  to  all  those  who  had  offered  their  services. 

Before  concluding  this  chapter  we  may  add  a  few 
remarks  upon  the  general  customs,  habits  and  mode  of 
living  of  the  settlers  of  these  early  days. 

The  hardships  that  they  suffered  and  the  privations 
that  were  endured,  were  the  same  as  those  suffered  and 
endured  in  the  settlement  of  practically  every  community 
of  Nova  Scotia.  To  understand  the  conditions  as  they 
existed  in  Tatamagouche  a  century  ago,  it  is  only  necessary 
to  read  the  "History  of  Pictou  County,"  or  any  of  the  County 
Histories  of  Nova  Scotia. 

The  habitation  was  of  course  the  log  cabin.  Up  until 
this  date  (1825)  it  is  most  improbable  that  there  was  a  single 
frame  house  in  the  community.  Certainly  there  were  not 
more  than  three  or  four.  The  log  cabin  was  not, 
however,  so  despised  a  home  as  we  in  these  days  may 
imagine.  It  was  small,  of  one  story  with  an  attic  above 
and  in  some  cases  a  "dug  out"  resembling  a  cellar  beneath. 
The  ceiling  was  low  and  as  a  rule  the  windows  were  small 
and  placed  almost  as  high  as  the  eaves.  The  beds  or  bunks 
were  generally  placed  in  the  corners  in  tiers  of  three  or  four. 
The  first  cabins  as  a  rule  consisted  of  one  room  only,  but 
later  on  some  had  two  or  three  rooms  with  attics  and  a  "lean 


HISTORY    OF    TATAMAGOUCHE  53 

to".  But  they  were  warm.  The  spaces  between  the  logs 
were  carefully  packed  with  moss  which  was  obtained  from 
the  swamps  and  woods.  The  open  fire  place  was  in  itself 
a  splendid  system  of  ventilation.  In  some  respects  the 
log  cabins  might  be  said  to  be  superior  to  the  first  frame 
houses  which  succeeded  them. 

The  open  fire  place  with  all  its  inconveniences  was 
the  great  charm  of  every  log  cabin  and  the  first  frame  houses. 
The  bottom  of  the  fire  place  was  built  of  large  flat  stones 
and  the  sides  of  boulders  and  field  stones  and  in  later  years 
of  bricks.  The  chimney  was  large  and  square.  Swinging 
from  the  sides  were  the  iron  cranes  from  which  hung  tea 
kettle,  porridge  and  other  pots.  The  bake  kettle  was  a 
round  and  shallow  dish  about  six  inches  in  depth  and 
had  a  close  fitting  cover.  When  baking,  the  kettle  was 
placed  in  the  fire  place  and  covered  over  with  coals  and 
ashes.  Before  these  fires  from  night  to  night  the  people 
of  the  home  would  meet  and  converse  with  their  neighbors. 
Few  and  simple  were  the  joys  that  they  experienced,  but 
together  before  the  blazing  hearth  to  hear  tales  of  the  forest 
and  stream,  of  the  Indians,  and  especially,  the  tales  of 
the  Old  Country  and  of  cities  and  towns,  which  were  yet 
to  be  disclosed  to  the  growing  youth — this  was  the  greatest 
joy  of  all. 

The  people  of  those  days  made  all  their  own  clothes. 
Even  as  late  as  fifty  years  ago  large  quantities  of  flax  were 
grown  from  which  they  made  their  linen.  Every  housewife 
could  spin  and  card — arts  soon  to  be  forgotten.  The  majority 
of  men  never  wore  clothes  except  those  which  were  made 
for  them  by  the  women  of  the  family.  Sheep's  wool  was 
deftly  turned  into  the  homespun  clothes.  These,  if  they 
were  lacking  in  style,  were  nevertheless  most  durable.  Many 
a  man,  after  a  good,  long  married  life,  has  been  buried  in  the 
same  suit  which  he  wore  on  his  wedding  day.  During  the 
summer  months,  all  went  bare  foot  and  children  as  old 
as  eight  years  never  had  a  pair  of  boots  on  their  feet. 
Through  the  cold  days  of  winter  they  remained  indoors. 
The  first  foot  gear  was,  in  all  probability,  the  rough 
cow  or  moose  hide,  but  as  small  tanneries  were  built  over 
the  country,  local  shoemakers  made  their  debut.  Boots 
and  shoes  were  made  entirely  by  order.  It  was  a  great 


54  HISTORY    OF    TATAMAGOUCHE 

event  when  the  shoemaker  visited  the  house  to  take  measure- 
ments and  to  fit  members  of  the  family  with  boots. 

Their  farm  implements  were  of  the  simplest  kind. 
A  triangular  wooden  harrow  with  wooden  spikes  was  the 
first  form  of  a  harrow.  Later  on,  with  the  coming  of  the 
ship  blacksmiths,  iron  harrows  were  introduced.  The  plows 
were  wooden  with  a  steel  coulter  and  shear.  The  hay  was 
all  cut  by  scythes  and  racked  by  hand.  The  first  mowing 
machines  did  not  make  their  appearance  till  some  twenty- 
five  years  later.  The  grain  was  threshed  on  the  barn  floor 
by  the  old  fashioned  flail  which  has  not  yet  entirely  dis- 
appeared. The  grain  was  cleaned  and  separated  in  a  rather 
novel  method.  The  farmers  waited  till  there  was  a  moderate 
but  steady  breeze.  The  grain  and  chaff  were  allowed  to 
fall  to  the  ground  from  a  shovel  held  to  the  height  of  a  man's 
shoulder.  The  wind  would  carry  away  all  the  chaff,  small 
seeds  and  dirt,  leaving  the  grain  to  be  caught  on  a  quilt 
or  sail  spread  \m  the  ground.* 

The  first  settlers  ground  their  grain  by  hand  mills  but 
Wellwood  Waugh,  who  seems  to  have  been  the  leader  of  the 
community  in  the  ways  of  the  progress,  built  about  or  before 
1790  a  little  grist  mill.  The  water  power  he  obtained  by  dam- 
ming a  small  brook  which  ran  back  of  the  Willow  Church  and 
turning  the  course  of  the  water  across  the  road  he  had  another 
dam  and  the  mill  in  what  is  now  the  orchard  of  Fleming 
Waugh.  Even  today  the  course  of  the  mill  race  can  be 
distinctly  seen. 

The  settlers  depended  for  physical  subsistence  upon 
many  sources.  Venison  of  the  forest  and  farm  was  the 
main  item.  The  newly  cleared  farms  yielded,  for  the 
first  few  years  in  particular  before  the  fertility  of  the  decayed 
vegetation  was  exhausted,  excellent  returns.  Potatoes  and 
all  other  vegetables  were  raised  in  abundance.  Later  on 
oat  meal  became  the  one  great  article  of  food.  Many  of 
the  settlers  being  of  Scotch  descent  took  naturally  to  it. 
It  was  easily  raised  and  prepared  and  was  both  substantial 
and  cheap.  Many  a  pioneer  with  a  hundred  weight  of  oat 
meal  has  confidently  faced  the  future.  Fish,  too,  in  those 
days,  were  caught  in  greater  numbers  than  today.  The 

*Later  on,  fanning  mills  came  into  use.  They  were  followed  by  the  stationary  tread 
mill  and  then  by  the  old  eight  horse  power.  As  horses  were  not  at  all  numerous,  it  was  not 
••  infrequent  sight  to  see  several  oxen  hitched  to  the  arms  of  the  old  eight  horse  power. 


HISTORY    OP    TATAMAGOUCHE  55 

late  Samuel  Waugh,  Esq.,  who  was  a  young  man  about 
this  time  used  to  relate  that  salmon  were  so  plentiful  that 
they  at  times,  almost  covered  the  bottom  of  the  larger  holes 
in  the  rivers.  Wildfowl,  too,  were  not  only  more  numerous, 
but  more  easily  taken.  Mr.  Waugh  had  another  story.  One  day 
in  the  spring,  after  the  geese  had  arrived,  the  country  was 
visited  by  an  exceptionally  heavy  rain  and  sleet  storm. 
Turning  colder,  the  sleet  stuck  to  the  wings  of  the  geese 
which  then  became  unable  to  fly  and  large  numbers,  thus 
rendered  helpless,  the  men  killed  with  sticks  and  stones. 

Of  social  life,  the  community  had  but  little.  The  "barn 
raising"  and  other  similar  frolics  were  about  the  only  social 
events  which  broke  the  monotony  of  their  simple  life.  All 
were  proverbial  for  their  hospitality  nor  was  this  hospitality 
without  its  reward.  In  those  days  of  few  newspapers  and 
of  little  intercourse  with  the  outside  world  we  can  well  under- 
stand what  it  meant  for  a  family  to  have  as  a  guest  some 
traveller  from  other  places  or  an  old  friend  of  former  days. 

The  Scotch  settlers  brought  with  them  the  inseparable 
friends  of  the  Scot — the  bagpipes  and  the  violin.  The  Swiss 
portion  of  the  population  seems  to  have  had  a  particular 
adaptability  for  music  so  that  wherever  there  was  a  gathering, 
there  was  music  also.  Later  on,  music  teachers  came  to 
the  community  and  singing  schools  nourished.  But  the 
majority  of  the  musicians  of  that  day  played  entirely  "by 
ear".  Every  frolic  invariably  ended  with  a  dance,  when 
to  the  tune  of  "Lord  McDonald"  and  "Soldier's  Joy"  and 
others,  the  gay  and  flourishing  youth  sought  "by  holding 
out  to  tire  each  other  down." 

In  those  early  days,  many  misfortunes  were  attributed 
to  the  power  of  witches,  indeed  any  evil  occurrence  vhich 
was  beyond  human  explanation  was  "allowed"  to  be  the 
act  of  some  such  mysterious  personages.  In  the  community 
from  time  to  time  there  have  been  various  old  women  who 
have  been  accused  of  possessing  and  exercising  the  powers 
of  witchcraft.  Though  belief  in  witches  has  long  since 
passed  from  our  midst,  there  still  remain  many  amusing 
witch  stories.  It  may  be  of  interest  to  repeat  two. 

Once  there  lived  only  a  few  miles  from  the  present  village 
of  Tatamagouche,  an  old  lady,  Mrs.  Mac.,  who  was  com- 
monly believed  to  be  a  witch.  One  day  in  spring  she  visited 


56  HISTORY    OF    TATAMAGOUCHE 

her  neighbor  Mrs.  M.  for  tjhe  purpose  of  purchasing  two 
spring  pigs,  but  as  they  had  all  been  sold,  Mrs.  M.  was 
unable  to  promise  her  any.  This  highly  displeased  Mrs.  Mac. 
and  was  also  a  source  of  worry  to  Mrs.  M.  lest  she  would  be 
the  victim  of  Mrs.  Mac's  witchcraft.  That  nighj,  when 
Mrs.  M.  went  to  milk  her  cow,  she  found  that  the  creature 
had  suddenly  fallen  away  in  its  milk  and  though  several 
times  during  the  next  few  days  she  endeavored  to  milk  the 
cow  she  did  not  succeed  in  obtaining  more  than  half  a  cupful. 
Mrs.  M.  at  once  knew  that  this  was  the  result  of  Mrs.  Mac's 
witchcraft,  who,  to  show  her  displeasure,  had  wished  this 
spell  upon  the  cow.  But,  fortunately,  a  spell  which  can 
be  wished  can  also  be  broken.  For,  just  as  nature  itself 
produces  remedies  for  the  diseases  which  flourish  in  its 
midst,  so  too  does  every  community  produce  remedies  to 
combat  the  evil  desires  of  all  witches  who  live  within  its 
confines.  Thus  it  is  that  no  community  is  ever  left  power- 
less in  the  grasp  of  an  evil  mind.  Mrs.  M.  was  equal  to 
the  occasion.  Next  morning  early  she  turned  her  cow  out 
and  watching  where  the  animal  took  the  first  bite 
of  grass,  she  removed  the  sod,  took  it  into  the  house 
and  boiled  it  in  a  pot  with  the  little  milk  which  the  cow  had 
given  on  the  previous  day.  While  it  was  boiling  she  con- 
tinued to  stir  it  with  pins,  several  of  which  she  stuck  in 
the  sod.  This  proved  an  effective  remedy  and  that  evening 
the  cow  gave  her  accustomed  flow  of  milk.  Mrs.  M.  saved 
the  pins  and  for  a  time  she  kept  several  in  the  cuff  of  her 
sleeve.  With  them  about  her  person  she  felt  no  fear  and 
hw  one  desire  was  to  meet  the  witch  face  to  face, 
but  this  wish  was  not  gratified.  Several  days  afterwards 
other  neighbors  visited  Mrs.  Mac.  She  stated  that  she 
had  accidentally  burned  her  feet,  which  were  all  blistered. 
But  such  an  improbable  story  found  little  credence  in  the 
doubting  minds  of  the  honest  neighbors.  They  had  heard 
not  only  of  her  spell  on  the  cow,  but  as  well  of  the  triumph 
of  Mrs.  M.,  which  has  been  told  and  retold  in  every 
home  in  the  community.  They  "allowed"  that  her  story 
of  having  burned  her  feet  was  a  mere  fabrication,  and 
that  the  blisters  were  caused  by  the  evil  wish  which,  when 
forced  to  leave  the  cow  and  find  another  resting  place,  finally 
settled  in  the  feet  of  the  witch  herself.  After  this,  Mrs. 


HISTORY    OF    TATAMAGOUCHE  57 

Mac's  reputation  as  a  witch  suffered  a  great  loss  of  prestige 
and  soon  the  "wicked  ceased  from  troubling"  to  pass  the 
last  of  her  days  in  peace  with  all  her  neighbors. 

Here  is  another  story.  About  the  same  time  there  lived 
at  Tatamagouche  an  old  sea  captain  who  sailed  his  little  shallop 
between  here  and  "the  Island".  One  day  he  was  sailing 
there  under  a  steady  and  favorable  breeze  when  suddenly 
in  the  Strait,  far  from  land  and  in  deep  water,  his  vessel, 
without  any  reason  whatever  suddenly  stopped.  An  ordi- 
nary mariner  would  have  been  at  a  loss  to  understand  so 
strange  a  phenomenon  but  this  old  salt  was  not  only  a  master 
of  the  waters  of  Harbour  and  Gulf,  he  was  a  master  of  witch- 
craft as  well.  He  knew  that  this  plight  had  been  wished 
upon  him  by  hite  enemy,  the  witch.  His  fingers  ran  through 
his  long,  white,  grizzly  beard,  and  across  his  weather  beaten 
features  came  a  cunning,  confident  smile.  He  lashed  the 
wheel  and  then  disappeared  in  the  cabin.  In  a  moment  he 
re-appeared,  carrying  in  one  hand  an  old  musket  which 
many  times  had  broken  the  quietness  of  Gouzar  and  brought 
death  to  the  wildfowl  that  ever  frequent  there;  in  the 
other  a  rough  slab  on  which  he  sketched  the  likeness  of  his 
enemy  the  witch.  Placing  the  slab  by  the  mast  he  shot 
at  it  "five  fingers"  out  of  his  old  "muzzle-loader".  Scarcely 
had  the  report  died  away  when  the  vessel  began  to  move 
and  soon  the  spray  was  flying  from  beneath  her  clumsy 
bow  and  at  the  stern  a  happy  sea  captain  wore  upon  his 
face  a  smile  that  would  not  wear  off.  That  night  the  little 
shallop  with  its  cargo  of  lumber  lay  at  the  wharf  at  Char- 
lottetown,  and  in  the  impregnable  fortress  of  his  little  cabin, 
the  captain,  safe  from  all  witchery,  slept  and  snored. 
****************** 

Morally  and  intellectually  we  believe  that  the  settlers 
of  Tatamagouche  compare  favourably  to  the  settlers 
of  the  various  other  communities  of  Nova  Scotia.  We 
would  not  endeavour  to  canonize  them.  They  had  their 
faults  and  in  all  probability  even  more  than  has  the  present 
generation.  Unity  did  not  always  rest  in  their  midst  and 
often  might  rather  than  right  ruled  among  them. 
Apart  from  the  use  of  liquor,  they  could  not  be  said  to  be 
the  subject  of  any  vice.  We  should,  however,  remember 
that  then  the  sale  of  liquor  was  legitimate  and  its 


58  HISTORY    OF    TATAMAGOUCHE 

use,  unless  to  excess,  was  not  disapproved  of  by  the  Church. 
Taking  them  all  in  all,  they  were  first  class  settlers.  The 
great  majority  were  farmers  or  artisans  before  coming  to 
this  country.  Although  farming  in  the  well  cultivated 
field  of  Scotland  was  a  very  different  matter  compared  with 
the  farming  in  the  New  World  and  although  many  costly 
and  amusing  mistakes  were  made,  still  a  farmer's  a  farmer 
where  ever  he  is  and  those  who  followed  agriculture  previous 
to  coming  to  America  were  bound  to  make  the  best  settlers. 
The  poorest  class  of  the  settlers  who  came  to  Nova  Scotia  were 
the  old  soldiers.  After  years  of  wandering  over  the  face 
of  the  earth  they  naturally  were  loath  to  settle  in  a  fixed 
abode.  They  were  given  free  grants  of  land  and  many 
came  to  Nova  Scotia  in  order  to  hold  the  land  rather  than 
for  any  desire  either  to  make  farmers  of  themselves  or  to 
secure  a  home  of  their  own.  But  the  old  soldiers  who  settled 
at  Tatamagouche  were  men  who  came  here,  not  because  of 
any  free  grant  of  land,  for  here  they  either  had  to  purchase 
or  rent  the  land  from  Colonel  DesBarres,  but,  who  came 
rather  because  of  the  desire  to  obtain  in  the  New  World  a  home 
which  they  could  really  call  their  own.  They  bought  their 
lots  and  with  inexpressible  difficulties  conquered  the  wilderness. 
By  the  side  of  the  lonely  harbour  and  river,  far  from  the 
rattle  of  musketry  and  the  blare  of  trumpets,  they  fought 
again  another  battle — a  battle  not  against  the  armed  forces 
of  the  enemy,  but  rather  against  the  awful  power  of  Nature 
which  has  always  opposed  with  a  silent  but  almost  irresistible 
effort  every  endeavour  to  claim  new  land  to  cultivation. 
Who  with  truth  can  say  that  their  contest  in  the  wilderness 
on  the  New  World  was  one  iota  less  heroic  than  their  struggles 
in  the  battle  fields  of  the  older  Continent? 


HON.  ALEXANDER  CAMPBELL 

THE   FOUNDER  OF  THE  SHIPBUILDING 
INDUSTRY  AT   TATAMAGOUCHE. 


HISTORY    OF    TATAMAGOUCHE  59 

CHAPTER    VII 

FROM    THE    RISE    TO    THE    DECLINE    OF    THE    SHIPBUILDING 

INDUSTRY 

have  already  seen  that  up  until  this  date  the  early  set- 
tlers depended  almost  entirely  for  their  living  upon  the 
produce  of  their  farms.  The  lumbering  industry  had  barely 
begun,  it  being  confined  for  the  most  part  to  the  sale  of  squared 
pine  timber  which  found  a  good  market  in  the  Old  Country. 
For  instance,  in  1802,  when  Waugh  was  in  Scotland  he  had  a 
vessel  load  sent  across.  Included  in  this  cargo  were  some 
sticks  52  to  56  feet  long  and  18  inches  square.  This  square 
timber  in  those  days  was  sold  by  the  ton,  so  that  we  find 
Waugh  ordering  "One  hundred  tons  of  square  pine  timber, 
twenty  tons  of  hardwood  consisting  of  black  birch  and  maple, 
oak  staves,  three  dozen  hand  spokes  and  twenty  or  thirty 
pieces  of  yellow  pine."  But  the  middle  "twenties"  saw  a  great 
change  in  the  industrial  life  of  the  community,  for  it  was  then 
that  the  shipbuilding  industry  began,  an  industry  which 
for  the  next  fifty  years  was  to  be  the  main  stay  of  the  com- 
munity. 

The  first  registered  ship  of  any  description  to  be  built 
at  Tatamagouche,  was  the  "Fish  Hawk",  a  small  schooner 
of  16  tons.  She  was  built  by  James  Chambers  and  launched 
on  the  1st  of  May,  1818.  This  was  a  small  and  modest 
beginning  of  the  industry  which  for  the  next  half-century 
was  to  mean  much  to  the  people  of  Tatamagouche.  Closely 
following  Chambers  in  the  business  came  Alex.  McNab 
of  Malagash  who,  on  November  12th  of  the  same  year 
launched  the  "Mary"  a  schooner  of  32  tons.  For  the  next 
four  years  no  further  ships  were  built  here,  but  in  1823  the 
"Dapper,"  22  tons;  "Nancy,"  73  tons;  and  "Lilly,"  28  tons 
were  built  by  Thomas  Langille,  Fred  Hayman,  and  Murray 
and  Samuel  Waugh  respectively.  These  men  all  built  for 
personal  use  in  the  coasting  trade. 

But  the  real  founder  of  the  shipbuilding  industry  at  Tatama- 
gouche was  the  late  Hon.  Alexander  Campbell,  who  was 
the  eldest  son  of  William  Campbell,  the  half-brother  of 
Wellwood  Waugh.  He  was  born  at  Pictou,  and  as  a  young 
man  came  to  Tatamagouche,  first  as  a  clerk  for  Mortimer 
and  Smith  of  Pictou,  but  in  a  few  years  he  began 


60  HISTORY    OF    TATAMAGOUCHE 

business  for  himself.  No  place  had  at  that  time  better 
natural  advantages  for  the  carrying  on  of  this  industry  than 
Tatamagouche.  The  two  rivers  made  it  particularly  easy 
to  transport  from  the  interior  the  timber  necessary  for  the 
construction  of  the  vessels,  and  on  the  shores  of  rivers 
and  harbours  were  to  be  found  many  suitable  sites  for  the  yards. 
Then,  at  that  time  there  was  plenty  of  labour,  for  in  the 
vicinity  were  many  able-bodied  men  who  failed  to  get  the 
expected  returns  from  farming  and  welcomed,  indeed  prayed 
for  steady  employment  such  as  could  be  had  in  a  shipyard. 

Campbell  selected  a  site  for  his  shipyard  on  the  west 
bank  of  French  River  just  above  its  junction  with  Waugh's 
River.  There,  in  1824,  he  built  his  first  vessel,*  the  "Eliza- 
beth", a  good  sized  schooner  of  91  tons.  Three  years  later, 
with  his  partners,  he  launched  the  first  brig  to  be  built  at 
Tatamagouche.  This  was  the  "Devron"  of  281  tons  register 

The  first  vessels  constructed  in  Nova  Scotia  for  the 
English  market  were  nearly  all  large  ones,  varying  from  125 
to  700  tons.  As  a  rule,  these  were  sold  outright,  the  builders 
seldom,  if  ever,  retaining  a  share.  Often  the  vessel 
remained  long  unsold  in  the  English  market.  In  the 
meanwhile,  expenses  accumulated  so  that  frequently 
the  returns  did  not  equal  the  expenditures.  Campbell, 
however,  who  had  commenced  on  a  small  scale,  was 
always  able  to  keep  his  business  running  and  make  good 
profits  besides.  At  one  time,  after  a  most  successful  year, 
a  friend  of  his  urged  him  to  retire  from  the  business  before 
he  met  with  the  severe  losses  which  seemed  bound 
to  overtake  all  who  remained  long  in  this  uncertain  industry. 
Campbell  agreed  with  the  wisdom  of  the  suggestion  but 
added,  "What  will  happen  to  the  men  I  now  employ?" 
Campbell's  words  were  only  too  true.  The  people,  lured  by 
the  prospect  of  steady  employment,  had  quickly  abandoned 
the  farms  which  through  many  sacrifices  they  had  brought 
into  a  state  of  cultivation.  These  soon  "ran  out,"  and  it  would 
be  years  before  they  could  be  brought  back  to  their  former 
degree  of  fertility.  A  sudden  collaspe  of  the  shipbuilding 
industry  would  have  brought  poverty  and  suffering  to  almost 
every  family  in  the  community.  Years  after,  its  gradual 

*This  may  not  be  correct.  At  one  time  Campbell  was  building  vessels  below  where 
James  Bryden  now  lives  and  it  may  have  been  that  his  first  vessels  were  built  there. 


HISTORY    OF    TATAMAGOUCHE  61 

decline  was  accompanied  with  much  hardship  to  those  who 
for  years  had  looked  to  it  as  a  means  of  livelihood. 

Campbell's  first  house  was  a  log  one  and  was  situated 
in  what  is  now  the  field  of  Gordon  Clark,  close  by  the  railway 
cut.  After  his  marriage  he  removed  to  his  new  house 
where  Gavin  Clark  now  resides.  He  early  attained  a  posi- 
tion of  great  wealth  and  influence  in  Tatamagcuche.  Besides 
being  the  employer  of  many  men,  he  had  the  local  manage- 
ment of  the  DesBarres  estate,  from  which,  as  early  as  1837, 
he  had  purchased  no  less  than  2,500  acres  of  the  very  best 
land.  He  died  in  1854  at  the  comparatively  eaily  age  of 
fifty-nine.  A  number  of  years  before  his  death  he  had  been 
appointed  a  member  of  the  Legislative  Council  and  it  was 
on  his  return  from  attending  its  session  at  Halifax  that  he 
was  stricken  with  an  illness  which  at  once  proved  fatal. 
Honest  in  his  dealings,  sound  in  his  judgment,  endowed  with 
great  natural  ability,  and  possessing  a  commanding  per- 
sonality, he  was  for  years  the  foremost  man  in  Tatamagouche. 
Born  when  the  struggle  for  a  bare  living  was  still  a  keen 
one,  education  found  but  a  small  place  in  his  boyhood  days. 
At  an  early  age  he  was  obliged  to  work  for  himself.  He  thus 
obtained  in  "life's  rough  school"  the  training  which  fitted 
him  to  take  a  most  successful  and  prominent  part  in  the 
development  of  this  country.  Of  his  early  days  at  Tata- 
magouche, we  know  but  little.  A  log  house  was  the  first 
home  of  the  man  who  subsequently  was  to  count  his  dollars 
in  thousands,  his  lands  in  square  miles  and  who,  during  his 
business  career  of  thirty  years,  shipped  millions  of  feet  of 
lumber  and  built  over  one  hundred  vessels.  Within  fifteen 
years  after  he  came  to  Tatamagouche  he  was  a  wealthy  man. 
He  became  the  possessor  of  valuable  tracts  of  timber  from 
which  he  sold  each  year  large  quantities  of  lumber.  From 
his  shipyards,  in  which  he  employed  about  one  hundred 
men,  he  launched  annually  three  or  four  vessels.  As  the 
years  went  by  his  wealth  and  influence  increased.  During 
the  "forties"  he  built  each  year  five  or  six  vessels.  The 
number  of  men  whom  he  employed  had  increased  to  two 
hundred.  He  was  the  local  magnate  of  the  community  and 
throughout  the  whole  countryside  his  word,  to  a  great  extent 
was  law.  The  "fifties"  saw  his  influence  undiminished. 
Strong  physically  as  he  was,  the  anxieties  and  the  worries 


62  HISTORY    OF    TATAMAGOUCHE 

of  the  treacherous  business  in  which  he  was  engaged  were 
making  themselves  felt  upon  his  robust  constitution  and  at 
the  close  of  the  session  of  the  Legislature  in  1854  he  returned 
home  only  to  be  stricken  with  a  fatal  illness.  It  is  over  sixty 
years  since  he  passed  away.  Men  of  seventy-five  remember 
him  but  slightly,  yet  his  name  is  as  familiar  as  if  he  had 
died  only  a  score  of  years  ago.  This  is  because  of  the  great 
position  of  influence  which  he  held  and  because  of  a  strong 
personality  which  so  impressed  itself  upon  those  with  whom 
he  came  in  contact  that  his  name  still  lives.  His  likeness 
shows  him  to  have  been  a  man  possessing  vigor,  determina- 
tion, independence  and  kindliness.*  Indeed,  it  was  for  these 
qualities  that  he  was  especially  known.  As  a  business  man 
he  was  remarkably  successful.  Financial  crises  which  could 
neither  be  foreseen  nor  prevented  ruined  many  of  the 
shipbuilders  of  Nova  Scotia  but  through  them  all  he  steadily 
increased  in  wealth.  On  several  occasions,  particularly 
in  the  last  year  of  his  life  he  suffered  losses  which  lessened 
his  wealth  materially  but  even  then  he  died  a  wealthy  man. 
In  public  matters  the  people  looked  to  him  for  leadership. 
Hence  his  friendship  and  support  were  wooed  by  the  politi- 
cians of  his  day.  That  at  times  he  used  his  position  of  in- 
fluence in  arbitrarily  carrying  out  his  wishes  in  public  matters 
there  seems  but  little  doubt.  But  compared  with  the  invalu- 
able services  which  he  rendered  his  community  and,  indeed 
his  province,  his  public  indiscretions  are  as  dust  in  the 
balance.  It  was  his  honour  to  be  a  member  of  the  highest 
branch  of  a  Legislature  which  was  then  performing  duties 
fraught  with  the  gravest  responsibilities.  To  have  been 
called  to  sit  in  this  body  during  the  strenuous  times  of  seventy 
years  ago  and  to  have  had  a  hand  in  the  governing  of  this 
province  during  one  of  the  most  momentous  periods  of  its 
history  was  an  honour  that  could  only  come  to  a  man  of 
marked  ability. 

Mrs.  Campbell,  before  her  marriage,  was  Mary  Archi- 
bald, a  daughter  of  Colonel  David  Archibald,-  who  was  a 
grandson  of  David  Archibald,  one  of  the  pioneer  settlers  of 
Truro  and  the  first  to  represent  that  district  in  the  House  of 
Assembly.  She  died  in  1894  at  the  advanced  age  of  eighty- 
four.  She  was  a  most  remarkable  woman  and  for  years  was 

*"He  was  a  true-hearted  and  good  man;  and  many  a  youth  blesses  his  memory  for  words  of 
encouragement  and  deeds  of  substantial  kindness." — "Presbyterian  Witness,"  Aug.  27,1859. 


HISTORY    OF    TATAMAGOUCHE  63 

the  leader  in  all  good  works  in  the  community.  In  the  early 
days  she  suffered  many  hardships  and  discomforts.  On  one 
occasion  she  rode  to  Truro  on  horseback,  carrying  her  eldest 
child  (Mrs.  Patterson),  then  a  mere  infant,  with  her.  She 
was  kind  and  hospitable  and  there  are  few  of  the  old  people 
but  can  say  that  they  have  on  various  occasions  exper- 
ienced her  kindness.  In  their  family  were  four  sons: 
David,  George,  Archibald,  and  William,  and  four  daughters: 
Elizabeth  (Mrs.  Archibald  Patterson),  Margaret  (Mrs 
Archibald),  Hannah  (Mrs.  John  S.  McLean),  and  Olivia 
(Mrs.  Howard  Primrose).  David  and  Archibald  continued 
in  their  father's  business  until  their  deaths  in  1887  and  1891 
respectively.  Besides  being  leaders  in  the  business  activity 
of  the  place,  they  took  leading  parts  in  all  matters  of  public 
interest.  Archie  was  an  elder  in  the  Tatamagouche  Presby- 
terian congregation.  George  was  a  member  of  the  legal 
profession  and  until  his  death  in  1897  practised  in  Truro. 
William  died  as  a  young  man.  Of  this  family,  the  eldest, 
Mrs.  Patterson,  alone  survives,  now  (1917)  in  the  ninety- 
'second  year  of  her  age.  For  years  she  lived  at  Halifax 
with  Mrs.  McLean,  whose  husband,  in  his  life  time,  had  been 
President  of  the  Bank  of  Nova  Scotia. 

Campbell  was  soon  followed  to  Tatamagouche  by 
others  who,  like  himself,  engaged  in  the  shipbuilding  industry. 
Among  the  first  to  join  him  were  his  two  brothers,  William 
and  James.  The  former  had  his  shipyard  on  the  east  bank 
of  the  French  River,  near  McCully's.  The  ruins  of  his 
old  wharf  may  still  be  seen.  About  1840  he  retired  from 
the  business  and  devoted  himself  to  farming.  He  was 
afterwards  appointed  Customs  Collector  at  this  port,  which 
position  he  held  until  a  few  years  of  his  death.  He  was 
married  to  Olivia,  daughter  of  Dr.  Upham  of  Onslow  and 
grand-daughter  of  Judge  Upham  of  New  Brunswick.  They 
had  a  family  of  four  daughters:  Mary,  who  was  a  teacher 
in  the  public  schools  at  Pictou;  Jessie  and  Margaret,  who 
lived  on  the  old  homestead;  and  Bessie  (Mrs.  W.  A. 
Patterson).  William  Campbell  died  in  1878  and  his  wife 
in  1847. 

James  Campbell  lived  where  James  Ramsey  now  resides 
and  continued  from  1831  until  1841  as  one  of  the  ship- 
builders of  Tatamagouche.  He  died  in  1855.  His  shipyard 


64  HISTORY    OF    TATAMAGOUCHE 

was  near  where  Bonyman's  factory  now  stands.  One 
of  his  ships,  the  "Colchester",  was  at  the  time  (1833)  the 
largest  ship  to  be  built  in  the  county,  and  attracted  much 
attention,  many  coming  from  Truro  and  other  places  to 
see  her  launched.  Campbell  represented  North  Colchester 
in  the  House  of  Assembly  for  one  Parliament,  1851-5.  In 
this  closely  contested  election  he  was  opposed  by  the  late 
Judge  Munroe.  His  wife  was  Elizabeth  Baxter.  They  had 
three  daughters:  Martha  (Mrs.  Laird),  Eliza  (Mrs.  Poole,) 
and  Lavinia  (Mrs.  Daniel  Barclay),  and  two  sons:  William 
and  James  A.  G.  William  died  as  a  young  man.  James 
succeeded  Robert  Logan  as  Collector  of  Customs  and  held 
that  position  till  his  death  in  1905. 

On  October  27th,  1824,  Colonel  DesBarres  died  at 
Poplar  Grove,  Halifax.  We  have  already  noted  his  career 
till  the  close  of  the  Seven  Years'  War  in  1763.  An  engineer 
by  profession,  he  engaged  himself  for  the  next  ten  years 
in  preparing  charts  of  the  Nova  Scotia  coast,  some  of  which 
are  of  the  greatest  repute.  Afterwards  he  extended  his 
labours  and  prepared  a  more  extensive  one  of  North  America. 

DesBarres,  so  it  is  believed,  did  not  consider  himself 
amply  rewarded  for  his  many  valuable  services  to  his  country. 
It  is  true  that  he  secured  grants  of  enormous  tracts  of 
land.  But  at  that  time  this  land  as  a  revenue  producer 
was  a  nullity.  DesBarres  accordingly  pressed  his  claims 
and,  in  1784,  was  appointed  Lieutenant-Governor  of 
the  newly  formed  province  of  Cape  Breton.  He,  in  the 
meanwhile,  had  been  living  at  Portsmouth,  England  and,  on 
the  16th  day  of  November  of  that  year,  landed  at  Halifax 
from  whence  he  proceeded  to  Sydney  where  he  remained 
till  1804.  His  stay  at  Sydney  was  characterised  by  violent 
quarrels  with  other  government  officials.  But  one  thing, 
which  should  never  be  forgotten,  remains  to  his 
credit.  One  winter  the  settlers  of  Cape  Breton  were  in 
poverty-stricken  conditions.  DesBarres,  failing  to  obtain 
proper  relief  from  the  government,  spent  large  sums  of  his 
own  money  in  alleviating  the  sufferings  of  the  people,  and 
at  a  time  when  his  own  financial  standing  was  none  too 
sound.  In  1805,  he  was  appointed  Governor  of  Prince 
Edward  Island,  which  office  he  held  until  1813.  While 
holding  these  positions  of  honour,  which  required  a  large 


DEBAKRE'S  CHART  OF  TATAMAGOUCHE  HARBOUR. 
FREDERICK  BAY 

Sailing  from  the  Eastward  between  Cape  John  and  Tsle  Armotte,  keep  nearer  the  Cape 
on  account  of  a  Ledge  extending  from  the  Islealmist  midway  over;  On  the  West  side  of 
the  Isle  you  have  a  clear  Pafsage.  The  best  Anchorage  for  Ships  is  in  Harbor  John  in  4  & 
o  fathoms  of  Water  muddy  bottom.  Small  vefsels  may  run  up  to  Tatmegoushe  Harbour. 

RAMSHEG  HARBOUR,  The  Flatts  which  extends  from  both  Shores,  at  the  entrance 
of  this  Harbour  leave  but  a  narrow  Channel  throught  which  at  all  times  (excepting  at 
Slack  Water)  the  Tides  stream  with  great  Velocity  &  render  the  Navigation  into  it  very 
unsafe,  altho  the  depth  of  Water  is  sufficient  for  a  Frigate  up  to  the  Anchoring  Ground.  To 
Sail  in  Steer  over  S  Westerly  towards  Gravois  Cliff  giving  a  proper  Birth  to  Shoal  Point 
untill  the  N.  West  Arm  is  well  open,  then  Steer  for  it  keeping  your  lead  going  until!  the 
Beach  to  the  N.  West  of  Gravois  Cliff  bears  SW  by  W,  then  Steer  W  S  W,  &  then  West 
up  through  the  Nariows  to  Anchor  in  o  &  f>  Fathoms  of  Water  mud  bottom.  The  Colour 
of  the  Water  is  the  best  guide,  as  it  appears  black  in  the  Channel,  and  from  the  Mast  Head 
the  Flatts  shew  very  distinctly. 


HISTORY    OF    TATAMAGOUCHE  65 

outlay  of  money,  with  a  comparatively  small  income,  Des- 
Barres  was  continually  in  need  of  money  and  determined 
^iat  his  vast  estates  should  furnish  him  the  necessary  amounts. 
So  that,  as  his  financial  difficulties  increased,  so  did  the 
discontent  of  his  Tatamagouche  tenants,  many  of  whom, 
as  we  have  already  seen,  left  and  settled  in  River  John. 

DesBarres,  in  order  to  prevent  the  loss  of  all  his  tenants, 
began  granting  freehold  deeds,  but  only  in  a  limited  number, 
so  that  up  till  as  late  as  1820  the  number  of  land  owners 
at  Tatamagouche  did  not  exceed  half  a  score. 

He  frequently  visited  Tatamagouche.  According  to  one 
writer,  he  found  it  a  quiet  retreat  when  hard  pressed  by  his 
creditors.  Though  the  following  incident  can  hardly  be 
said  to  have  any  connection  with  the  history  of  Tatama- 
gouche, we  think  it  well  worth  repeating: 

"He  and  General  Haldimand  were  great  friends.  They  carried  on  a 
lively  correspondence  mostly  in  French.  There  is  a  letter  in  the  Haldimand 
papers  at  Ottawa  which  the  Colonel  wrote  from  Tatamagouche.  The  Colonel 
wanted  a  small  loan  which  he  could  repay.  He  explains  that  some  sort  of 
an  adventurer  whom  Haldimand  had  sent  to  him  with  letters  of  introduction 
had  victimised  him  to  the  extent  of  a  few  hundred  pounds,  and  impaired 
his  credit.  So  seriously  were  DesBarres'  affairs  involved  that  he  had  come 
a  little  hastily  in  order  to  have  peace.  Tnere  is  a  modern  touch  about 
this  incidental  remark."* 

DesBarree  continued  as  Governor  till  1813,  when  he  removed 
to  Halifax,  where  he  spent  the  remaining  eleven  years  of 
his  life. 

A  strong  man  physically,  he  endured  many  hardships 
and  yet  lived  to  be  one  month  of  one  hundred  and  three 
years  of  age.  It  is  related  that  he  celebrated  to  the  great 
amusement  of  his  friends,  his  one  hundredth  birthday  by 
dancing  on  a  round  table. 

"It  would  be  difficult  to  say  how  far  his  troubles  and  services  on  the 
battlefield  shortened  his  life.  .  .  Given  an  easy  life,  he  might  perhaps 
have  completed  the  second  century,  on  whicii  he  entered  with  good  health 
and  extraordinary  vigour.  But  as  he  could  not  forget  his  losses  and  mind 
his  griefs  no  more,  he  was  cut  off  at  the  above  early  age."t 

He  was  a  good  and  brave  soldier;  strange  that  he  who  never 
feared  any  foe,  often  fled  in  terror  before  an  angry  creditor. 
He  possessed  a  fiery  temper.  On  one  occasion,  when  judg- 
ment had  been  given  against  him  in  Court,  he,  on  the 
spur  of  the  moment,  insulted  the  Chief  Justice,  Jonathan 

*Article  in  "Colchester  Sun",  July  31,  1893. 
tlbid. 

5 


66  HISTORY    OF    TATAMAGOUCHE 

Belcher.  For  this  offence  he  was  severely  reprimanded  by 
the  Governor  and  Council,  and  forced  to  apologise.  He 
did  so  in  an  evasive  way  which,  however,  seemed  to  satisfy 
the  Court  and  Council. 

The  following  is  an  account  of  his  funeral  taken  from 
the  "Acadian  Recorder"  of  November  6th,  1824: 

FUNERAL  OF  THE  LATE  COL.  DESBARRES. 

"On  Monday  last,  about  three  o'clock,  p.  m.,  the  funeral  procession 
left  his  late  residence.  His  Honour,  the  President,  most  of  the  members  of 
His  Majesty's  Council,  the  gentlemen  of  the  Bar,  the  officers  of  the  Army 
and  Navy,  and  many  other  respectable  inhabitants  attended  as  mourners 
by  invitation. 

"The  procession  was  escorted  by  a  detachment  of  military  and  the  rear 
was  closed  by  a  number  of  carriages.  On  arriving  at  St.  George's  Church, 
where  his  remains  were  deposited,  the  funeral  service  was  impressively  read 
by  the  Rev.  D.  J.  T.  Twining,  at  the  conclusion  of  which  three  volleys  were 
discharged  by  the  troops.  Although  the  day  was  very  rainy,  we  have  seldom 
seen  a  greater  attendance  or  more  interest  excited  on  such  an  occasion.  Indeed 
every  reflecting  person  must  have  found  great  cause  for  meditation  in  the 
departure  of  this  venerable  man  from  our  fleeting  and  unsubstantial  scene. 
We  saw  him  on  the  day  before  the  internment,  lying  in  state.  His  face  was 
exposed  to  view,  and  it  exhibited  unequivocal  marks  of  a  mind  originally 
cast  in  a  strong  and  inflexible  mould,  while  the  hand  of  time  appeared  to 
have  made  but  a  slight  impression  on  the  features.  The  Chart,  which  he  pre- 
pared from  his  own  survey  of  this  Province,  will  give  his  memory  claims  upon 
the  gratitude  of  the  nautical  world,  and  could  only  have  been  produced  by 
a  man  of  surpiising  perseverance. 

We  believe  he  was  a  native  of  Switzerland,  and  are  informed  that  he  held 
a  Captain's  Commission  under  the  great  Wolfe  'at  the  reduction  of  Quebec. 
He  was  within  a  month  of  103  years  of  age." 

On  the  death  of  DesBarres  his  son,  the  Honourable 
Augustus  W.,  who  was  a  judge  of  the  Newfoundland  Bench, 
took  over  the  management  of  his  father's  estate  at  Tata- 
magouche.  We  quote  the  following  from  the  History  of 
Newfoundland  by  D.  W.  Prowse: 

"The  Hon.  Augustus  DesBarres  was  a  most  correct  man.  .  .  He  was 
so  young  when  he  received  his  first  appointment  as  Attorney  General  of 
Cape  Breton,  that,  by  the  advice  of  friends  he  wore  a  pair  of  false  whiskers 
when  he  went  to  receive  his  commission.  He  was  very  celebrated  for  his 
ready  wit  and  repartee.  Once,  when  the  late  Judge  Hayward  was  quoting 
Chitty  to  the  Bench,  his  Lordship  retorted,  'Chitty,  Mr.  Hayward,  goodness 
me,  what  does  Mr.  Chitty  know  about  this  country?  He  was  never  in 
Newfoundland.'  " 

Augustus  DesBarres,  either  to  satisfy  his  own  need  for 
money  or  to  prevent  the  tenants  from  removing  to  other 
places,  immediately  began  to  give  freehold  deeds  to  the 
Tatamagouche  tenants.  Since  in  many  cases  they  were 
unable  to  pay  the  agreed  price,  mortgages  were  given  to  Des- 


HISTORY    OF    TATAMAGOUCHE  67 

Barres.  In  the  year  1828,  forty-seven  lots  of  one  hundred 
acres  each  were  mortgaged  back  to  the  DesBarres  estate. 
But  the  mortgages,  in  the  course  of  a  few  years,  were  released 
and  the  owners  acquired  an  absolute  title.  DesBarres,  while 
in  Newfoundland,  continued  to  sell  the  land  in  small  lots 
to  suit  the  buyers.*  Alexander  Campbell  was  his  local 
agent  at  this  place.  Campbell  was  also  a  Justice  of  the 
Peace  and  his  name  in  that  capacity  is  to  be  found  in  nearly  all 
the  early  land  transactions  at  Tatamagouche.  In  1858, 
DesBarres  received  his  pension  and  retired  from  the  Bench 
and  returned  to  spend  the  rest  of  his  days  in  England.  No 
longer  wishing  to  be  burdened  with  the  worries  of  the  Tata- 
magouche estate,  he,  in  1859,  gave  full  power  of  attorney 
over  these  lands  to  Charles  Twining  of  Halifax,  who  appointed 
Samuel  Waugh,  Esquire,  his  local  agent.  By  this  time 
the  vast  estate  had  greatly  dwindled,  but  rents  continued 
to  be  collected  and  lands  sold  until  every  acre  of  the  original 
grant  had  passed  into  other  hands.  Today,  DesBarres' 
descendants  do  not  lay  claim  to  the  title  of  a  single  acre 
of  land  at  Tatamagouche. 

In  1826,  John  Nelson,  at  the  age  of  twenty-one,  settled 
at  Tatamagouche.  His  father  came  from  the  north  of 
Ireland  to  Musquodoboit,  where  he  married  an  Archibald. 
John  Nelson  married  Margaret  Hayman,  daughter  of 
William  Hayman  and  settled  on  Waugh's  River.  His 
son  David,  who  for  many  years  has  been  one  of  the  leading 
merchants  of  the  village,  represented  both  Waugh's  River 
and  Tatamagouche  in  the  Municipal  Council,  and  for  six 
years  was  Warden  of  the  County.  Three  other  Nelson 
brothers  also  came  to  Tatamagouche:  Hugh,  who  lived 
where  George  Millar  now  resides;  Robert,  who  removed  to 
Wallace;  and  David,  who  settled  on  the  New  Truro  Road. 
The  last  married  Nellie  Hayman,  who,  after  his  death 
married  Donald  Cameron.  His  son  John  continued  till 
his  death  to  live  on  his  father's  farm. 

In  the  same  year,  the  Rev.  Hugh  Ross,  who  was  the 
first  Presbyterian  minister  to  be  settled  at  Tatamagouche, 
took  up  his  residence  on  that  point  of  land  which  to  this 
day  bears  his  name.  -He  was  a  native  of  Aberdeenshire, 
Scotland,  and  in  1813  came  to  Pictou  County,  where  his 

*In  1836,  the  remainder  of  the  DesBarrea  property  at  Tatamagouche  was  publicly 
announced  for  sale.  Notices  to  that  effect  were  published  in  the  newspapers. 


68  HISTORY    OF    TATAMAGOUCHE 

father  had  settled  at  Hopewell.  His  wife  was  Flora  McKay. 
He  died  in  1858,  aged  sixty-two  years.  His  wife  died  in 
1874,  aged  seventy-six.  In  their  family  were:  Mary  Ann 
(Mrs.  Walker);  Margaret  (Mrs.  McGregor);  Caroline  (Mrs. 
Irving);  Isabella,  who  lived  till  her  death  a  few  years  ago 
on  the  old  homestead;  Flora  (Mrs.  Joseph  Spinney)  of  the 
village;  Jessie  McGregor,  who  for  a  number  of  years  was  a 
school  teacher  in  New  Annan;  Elizabeth  (Mrs.  Thornton); 
James;  John;  Peter;  and  Alexander.  Later  on  we  shall 
deal  with  the  work  of  Mr.  Ross  as  minister  at  Tatamagouche. 

About  the  year  1828,  John  Bonyman,  who  was  a  son 
of  William  Bonyman  of  Rothmase,  Aberdeenshire,  Scotland, 
settled  on  the  farm  on  the  French  River,  now  owned  by  his 
grandson,  William.  John  Bonyman  was  a  magistrate  and 
one  of  the  first  elders  in  the  Tatamagouche  Presbyterian 
congregation.  He  removed  to  Illinois.  One  of  his  sons, 
James,  settled  on  the  Mill  Brook,  and  another,  John,  on  the 
old  homestead.  A  few  years  after  coming  to  Tatamagouche, 
he  was  joined  by  his  brother,  Edward  from  Banffshire,  who 
settled  on  the  farm  now  owned  by  John  Tattrie,  on  the 
New  Annan  Road.  John  Bonyman,  who  erected  the  wood- 
working factory  in  the  village,  and  Alexander  Bonyman, 
merchant,  were  two  of  his  sons.  About  1836,  a  third  brother, 
James,  settled  on  the  farm  now  owned  by  his  son,  John.  The 
only  sister  to  come  to  this  country  was  Susan,  the  wife 
of  Robert  Cooper. 

James  Simpson  was  another  early  settler  of  this  district. 
About  1828  he  took  up  a  farm  on  the  hill  across  the  river 
from  Cooper's  where  he  built  his  house  on  the  very  bank  of 
the  river.  John  Simpson  is  his  grandson. 

The  census  of  1827  is  the  first  one  in  which  Tatama- 
gouche appears.  In  the  ones  previous  to  that  time,  the  popula- 
tion of  Tatamagouche  was  included  in  the  return  for  the  dis- 
trict of  Colchester.  Even  in  the  year  1827,  Tatamagouche  is 
linked  up  with  Earltown,  so  that  it  would  be  nearer  correct 
to  say  that  it  is  a  return  for  North  Colchester,  rather  than 
for  Tatamagouche  alone.  The  following  are  the  returns 
given  for  that  year:  Population,  1104,  number  of  acres  of 
land  under  cultivation,  2607;  number  of  bushels  of  wheat, 
1820;  number  of  bushels  of  other  grain,  3978;  number  of 
bushels  of  potatoes,  37,780;  number  of  tons  of  hay,  860; 


HISTORY    OF    TATAMAGOUCHE  69 

number  of  horses,  86;  number  of  horned  cattle,  818;  number 
of  sheep,  1113;  number  of  swine,  788.  The  year  1827  was 
very  unfavourable  to  the  growth  of  wheat  and  the  return 
may  be  considered  not  more  than  one-third  of  an  average 
crop. 

Besides  the  settlers  and  their  descendants  already 
mentioned,  there  were  at  Tatamagouche,  in  1828-9,  John 
Smith,  on  Waugh's  River,  near  where  the  late  Fred  Meagher, 
Esquire,  lived;  Charles  Simpson;  Kenneth  McDonald,  trader, 
who  had  his  house  in  the  field  of  Gordon  Clark  (where  you  can 
still  see  its  site) ;  Dan  Hurley,  who  settled  on  the  Williamson 
place;  John  Jollimore;  George  Stewart,  on  lot  80,  east  side; 
and  Samuel  S.  Tupper,  where  the  late  George  McConnell 
lived.  These  were  all  the  settlers  who,  up  till  the  year  1828, 
had  any  land  in  this  vicinity,  at  least  as  far  as  the  records 
at  Truro  show,  but  in  all  probability  there  were  others  who 
were  living  here  but,  as  yet,  had  acquired  no  interest  in 
any  land,  hence  their  names  do  not  appear  in  the  Registry 
of  Deeds  at  Truro. 

About  1830,  came  another  Scotchman,  William  McCully. 
He  first  lived  up  the  French  River  on  the  Donaldson  farm 
which  was  then  owned  by  the  Hon.  Alexander  Campbell. 
He  then  lived  on  Ross'  Point  for  a  while,  but  finally  removed 
to  New  Annan.  One  son,  William,  came  to  Tatamagouche, 
where  he  lived  on  the  hill  which  is  still  known  by  his  name. 
Another  son,  James  is  still  living  on  the  old  farm  in  New 
Annan.  Another  son,  John,  also  lived  in  New  Annan. 
Mary  (Mrs.  Kenneth  McLeod)  was  a  daughter.  William,  Jr., 
was  a  ship  carpenter  at  Campbell's. 

During  the  "thirties"  this  immigration  continued.  In 
1832,  came  John  Ross,  a  native  of  Rosshire,  Scotland.  In 
the  old  country  he  had  served  his  time  as  a  cartwright  but, 
hoping  to  improve  his  condition,  came  to  Nova  Scotia  and 
landed  at  Pictou,  whence  he  came  to  Tatamagouche. 

In  Scotland  he  had  known  the  Lepper  family,  which 
previously  had  settled  on  the  French  River,  and  on  arriving 
at  Tatamagouche,  he  first  visited  them  and  then  went  to 
work  in  Campbell's  shipyard.  He  eventually  became  foreman 
but,  after  building  one  ship  for  him,  went  to  work  for 
Edward  Kent,  who  had  commenced  shipbuilding  up  the 
river  near  James  Campbell's.  After  building  two  for  Kent, 


70  HISTORY    OF    TATAMAGOUCHE 

he  returned  to  farm  life.  He  bought  and  settled  down  across 
the  river  on  the  lot  now  owned  by  his  son,  Alexander.  He 
was  soon  joined  by  his  brothers:  Alexander  in  1833  and  George, 
William,  Thomas,  and  Hugh  in  1841.  Alexander  settled 
at  Barrachois,  where  his  sons  William  and  Jefferson  now 
reside,  and  the  last  three  at  Waldegrave  on  the  farms  now 
owned  by  Ross  Wetherbie,  William  Kennedy,  and  Mac  Ross 
respectively. 

It  was  in  or  about  the  year  1832,  that  the  first  hotel 
was  opened  at  Tatamagouche.  William  McConnell  was 
the  proprietor  and  his  first  inn  was  the  building  now  known 
to  us  all  as  the  "Stirling  Hotel",  though  since  that  date 
it  has  suffered  many  changes  and  received  many  additions. 
McConnell,  who  was  a  native  of  Galway,  was  a  land  surveyor, 
and  before  coming  to  Tatamagouche  lived  for  ten  years 
in  New  Annan.  At  his  death  he  was  a  few  years  under 
a  hundred.  His  wife  was  also  a  McConnell.  One  daughter 
was  the  wife  of  the  late  John  Ross.  When  he  left  Tata- 
magouche, he  was  succeeded  in  this  hospitable  business 
first  by  Charles  D.  McCurdy*,  then  by  a  Copp  from  Pugwash, 
who  was  here  somewhere  about  1848.  Copp  in  turn  gave 
way  to  Mrs.  Talbot.  After  she  gave  up  the  business,  James 
Blair,  the  father  of  Isaac  Blair,  took  over  the  charge  until 
about  the  year  1860.  During  the  next  five  years  this  business 
passed  through  the  hands  of  James  Morrison,  the  Misses 
Murdoch  of  New  Annan,  and  Miss  Rood,  who,  in  1865, 
sold  out  to  Archibald  McKenzie  from  whom  Timothy  Mc- 
Lellan,  the  father  of  the  present  proprietor,  purchased  it 
in  1873. 

In  the  early  "thirties",  John  Hewitt  came  from  Guys- 
borough  to  act  as  foreman  in  the  shipyards  of  Alex.  Camp- 
bell who  was  then  building  some  of  his  vessels  on  the  river 
below  James  Bryden's.  Hewitt  built  the  Williamson 
house  which,  until  it  was  torn  down  a  few  years  ago,  was 
the  oldest  house  in  the  village.  Subsequently  he  removed 
from  Tatamagouche. 

In  1834,  Robert  Cooper,  who  was  a  native  of  Aberdeen- 
shire,  obtained  from  DesBarres  a  grant  of  land  on  the  French 
River  where  his  daughter,  Mary,  now  resides.  He  had 
two  sons:  James  and  William,  who  both  moved  away.  His 
brother  George  settled  with  him  on  this  farm. 

*First  lived  on  what  is  now  the  farm  of  Clias.  McKeen. 


HISTORY    OF    TATAMAGOUCHE  71 

John  Lockerbie,  who  was  a  native  of  Castle  Douglas, 
Kirkcudbright,  Scotland,  came  to  Tatamagouche  in  1835 
and  settled  on  the  farm  now  owned  by  his  son,  David.  On 
this  property,  previous  to  Lockerbie's  arrival,  were  two  log 
houses.  One,  between  the  present  house  and  the  river,  was 
built  by  David  Hayman,  and  the  other,  on  the  bank  of  the  river 
opposite  the  Pride  place,  by  Thomas  Henderson.  Lockerbie 
was  married  in  Scotland  to  Catherine  Williamson.  Two 
children,  John  and  Jane  (Mrs.  Robert  Purves),  were  born 
there,  and  Margaret  (Mrs.  Reid),  Mary  (Mrs.  James  Bryden), 
Martha  Bell,  Cassie  (Mrs.  Anderson),  David,  and  Ninian 
at  Tatamagouche. 

A  few  years  afterwards  came  Lockerbie's  brother- 
law,  David  Williamson,  who  was  a  descendant  of  Alex. 
Williamson*,  a  leading  Covenanter  of  Sanquharf,  one 
of  the  most  historic  spots  in  Scotland  and  the  scene 
of  many  a  conflict  between  the  Covenanters  and  their  op- 
pressors. Williamson,  his  wife,  and  two  children  came  out 
in  a  ship  named  "Burnhope  Side",  which  was  laden  with 
bricks  for  the  Citadel  at  Halifax.  The  voyage  took  over 
two  months.  The  first  person  to  board  the  ship  at  Halifax 
was  Joseph  Howe,  who  soundly  rated  all  those  who  were 
concerned  with  the  overloading  of  the  ship.  David  William- 
son took  up  his  abode  in  what  was  afterwards  known  as 
the  Williamson  homestead.  The  sturdy  independence  and 
unfailing  hospitality  which  characterized  the  Covenanters 
descended  in  full  share  to  Williamson,  and  for  his  kindness 
and  piety  he  was  known  throughout  the  whole  countryside. 
He  was  an  elder  in  the  Tatamagouche  Presbyterian  con- 
gregation. On  one  occasion  during  family  worship,  his 
barn  took  fire.  He  left  his  reading  and  saw  it  burn  to  the 
ground  without  being  able  to  save  it,  then,  returning  to  the 
house,  he  took  the  books  and  finished  prayers.  His  wife 
was  Mary  Carruthers.  She  predeceased  her  husband  twenty- 
two  years,  he  living  to  the  good  old  age  of  eighty-six.  Their 
son,  Alex.  Williamson  died  in  Buenos  Ayres  and  a  daughter, 
Mrs.  J.  W.  Kent,  still  survives. 

In    1835,    the    Bryden   brothers,    William    and    Robert, 

*This  Williamson,  so  the  writer  been  credibly  informed,  was  also  the  progenitor  of  Presi- 
dent Wilson  of  the  United  States. 

tSanquhar,  in  Gaelic,  means  "old  fort".  This  place  has  a  most  interesting  history. 
We  would  refer  our  readers  to  "Traditions  of  the  Covenanters"  by  Rev.  Robert  Simpson. 
Many  of  the  common  family  names  at  Tatamagouche  will  be  found  in  its  pages. 


72  HISTORY    OF    TATAMAGOUCHE 

came  from  Old  Barns  and  settled  at  Tatamagouche.  They 
were  both  born  at  Maitland,  and  were  descendants  of  Robert 
Bryden,  who  was  one  of  the  Dumfries  settlers  of  Pictou,* 
and  who  subsequently  settled  on  the  Middle  River,  Pictou 
County.  William  was  a  blacksmith  and  had  his  place 
of  business  where  Gordon  Fraser  now  pursues  the  same  trade. 
Before  purchasing  what  is  now  the  Reilly  property,  he  lived 
in  the  old  house  of  Alexander  Campbell.  His  wife  was 
Susan  Kent  who,  after  his  death,  married  Charles  Reilly. 
In  their  family  were:  James,  of  the  village;  Mary  Jane 
(Mrs.  Irvine),  who  is  living  in  the  States;  and  Elizabeth 
(Mrs.  McCurdy).  He  died  in  1842,  aged  thirty-four 
years.  Robert,  his  brother,  was  also  a  blacksmith, 
his  shop  being  directly  across  from  his  house  in  the 
building  now  used  by  Thomas  Bonyman  for  the  same 
purpose.  He  died  in  1902.  His  wife  was  Christina  Reilly, 
who  died  in  1913  at  the  advanced  age  of  ninety-four.  In 
their  family  were  Charles,  Elizabeth,  James,  Kate,  Mary 
(Mrs.  Hatheway),  and  Robert.  Of  these  the  first,  Charles, 
is  a  Presbyterian  minister  and  at  present  is  connected  with 
the  Mi.ssion  Field  in  the  Canadian  West. 

About  the  same  time  came  Neil  Ramsey,  from  Prince 
Edward  Island.  He  was  a  blacksmith  by  trade  and  had 
his  house  and  forge  in  what  is  now  the  garden  of  the  Misses 
Blackwood,  close  to  the  church  lot  and  near  the  Back 
Street.  He  did  a  great  deal  of  the  iron  work  for  the  ships 
and  subsequently  went,  in  a  small  measure,  into  shipbuilding. 
He  afterwards  removed  to  the  Island.  James  Ramsey,  the 
present  Collector  of  Customs,  Tatamagouche,  is  a  son. 

It  was  in  or  about  the  year  1837,  that  John  Millar, 
of  Pictou,  came  as  a  boy  of  thirteen  years  to  work  as  a  clerk 
for  Alexander  Campbell.  He  was  a  son  of  Andrew  Millar 
of  Pictou,  who  was  a  native  of  Edinburgh,  Scotland  In 
the  course  of  time  he  was  given  an  interest  in  the  busines 
of  his  uncle,  the  Hon.  Alex.  Campbell,  which  now  went 
by  the  name  of  Campbell  and  Company.  Subsequently 
he  commenced  a  mercantile  business  for  himself  in  the 
village,  his  shop  being  situated  at  the  corner  of  Main 
Street  and  the  Public  Lane.  He  built  and  lived  his  married 
life  in  the  house  now  owned  by  Miss  Mclntosh.  Mr.  Millar, 

*Canae  to  Pictou  in  1773. 


HISTORY    OF    TATAMAGOUCHE  73 

until  his  death  in  1895,  was  one  of  the  most  prominent  men 
in  the  village.  Until  its  dissolution  in  1868,  he  was  Colonel 
of  the  6th  Colchester  Battalion,  Nova  Scotia  Militia.  He 
was  one  of  the  representatives  of  Tatamagouche  in  the 
Municipal  Council  and,  for  at  least  one  term,  was  Warden 
of  the  County.  He  was  also  a  Justice  of  the  Peace.  A 
business  man  of  the  old  school,  he  introduced  into  whatever 
matter  he  had  on  hand,  those  rules  of  punctuality  which 
characterised  the  business  men  of  that  time.  In  later  years, 
when  he  and  Henderson  Gass  drove  on  week  days  from  their 
homes  to  their  places  of  business  in  the  village,  it  has  been 
said  that  they  were  so  punctual  that  when  they  opened  their 
shops  in  the  morning,  it  was  a  signal  for  the  people  to  set 
their  watches  at  eight  o'clock.  He  was  married  to  Louisa 
Patterson,  a  daughter  of  Abram  Patterson  of  Pictou.  George, 
their  third  son,  is  a  Presbyterian  minister  at  Alberton, 
Prince  Edward  Island.  Alexander,  their  youngest  son, 
succeeded  his  father  in  business.  He  was  a  municipal 
councillor  for  Tatamagouche  West  for  one  term.  He  is 
now  residing  at  Sydney,  N.  S.  Another  son,  William,  is 
engaged  in  railway  work  in  the  American  West. 

In  1837,  Robert  Purves  came  from  Pictou  to  engage 
first  in  lumbering  and  subsequently  in  shipbuilding.  He 
purchased  a  lot  from  Mortimer  in  1839  and  began  building 
along  the  shore  below  where  the  late  W.  A.  Patterson  subse- 
quently lived.  He  also  built  a  vessel  across  the  harbour  on  Oak 
Island,  which  then  became  known  as  "Ship  Yard"  Island.  His 
house  was  erected  close  to  where  the  railway  now  runs.  After 
conducting  business  here  for  a  number  of  years,  he  removed 
to  Wallace,  but  he  subsequently  leturned  to  Tatamagouche, 
and  built  that  large  residence  known  as  "Oak  Hall",  which 
remained  the  property  of  his  daughter,  Mary,  till  it  was 
purchased  a  year  or  so  ago  by  E.  L.  W.  Haskett-Smith.  In 
his  business  transactions  he  appeared  to  be  most  successful 
and,  at  his  death  in  1872,  he  was  considered  a  well-off 
man.  His  son,  Robert,  was  for  many  years  the  post- 
master in  the  village.  He  also  conducted  a  general  store. 
A  daughter,  Mary,  lived  in  the  old  home  till  a  few  years 
ago,  when  she  removed  to  Sydney,  where  she  died  in  the 
winter  of  1916.  Mrs.  Wallis,  in  England,  is  another  daughter. 

It  was  in  or  before  the  year  1838  that  Robert  D.  Cutten 


74  HISTORY    OF    TATAMAGOUCHE 

came  from  Onslow  to  Tatamagouche.  He  was  by  trade 
both  a  tinsmith  and  sparmaker.  His  first  shop  was  in  what 
is  now  the  orchard  of  Gavin  Clark.  He  built  the  house  now 
owned  by  Mrs.  Robert  Jollimore.  He  was  married  to  Hannah 
Pryde.  Three  of  his  sons,  Edward,  David,  and  William,  are 
now  residing  in  the  States,  wheie  the  family  removed  some 
time  in  the  "sixties". 

In  or  about  the  same  year,  John  Irvine  came  to  Tata- 
magouche from  Pictou  to  work  at  his  trade  as  block-maker  in 
the  shipyard  of  Alexander  Campbell.  His  first  house  was  built 
on  the  west  side  of  the  main  road,  a  little  west  of  Mrs. 
Crowe's.  About  this  time  a  number  of  men  who  were 
employed  in  the  various  yards  built  residences  along 
this  road,  so  that  it  was  commonly  known  as  "Mechanic 
Street".  Subsequently  Irvine  built  and  lived  in  the  house 
now  owned  by  Arthur  Cunningham.  He  was  accidently 
killed  by  falling  from  a  beam  in  his  barn.  His  wife  was 
Maysie  MacKinnon.  Their  family  of  six  boys  are  all  dead. 
William  died  of  yellow  fever  while  on  a  voyage  to  Havana. 
James  moved  to  the  Southern  States  where  he  died  only 
a  few  years  ago.  The  other  members  of  the  family  were 
George,  Joseph,  Robert,  and  Washington. 

By  this  time  the  shipbuilding  industry  had,  for  a  place 
of  the  population  of  Tatamagouche,  reached  almost  gigantic 
proportions.  A  hurried  glance  at  Appendix  D,  which  gives 
a  list  of  vessels  built  at  Tatamagouche,  will  show  that  during 
the  "thirties"  there  were,  as  a  rule,  three  or  four  ships,  averag- 
ing 200  tons  each,  built  each  year  at  Tatamagouche.  The 
years  1836-7-8-9  were  extremely  busy  ones.  "The  Mersey", 
a  ship  of  734  tons,  built  in  1837,  was  the  largest  one  at  that 
time  to  be  launched  in  North  Colchester.  The  total  tonnage 
built  here  in  1837-9  amounted  to  somewhere  around  5,500 
tons. 

In  1840-1  there  was  a  serious  financial  depression 
which  had  full  effect  in  Nova  Scotia.  Freights  were  low 
and  there  was  little  or  no  market  for  ships.  Many 
of  the  Nova  Scotian  builders  went  insolvent.  At  Tatama- 
gouche though  suffering  seriously  they  managed  to  weather 
the  gale  and,  fn  a  year  or,§p,  conditions  were  again  normal. 
.From  that  date,  shipbuilding  in  Tatamagouche,  as  elsewhere 
in  Nova  Scotia,  had  a  new  lease  of  life,  and  during  the  follow- 


HISTORY    OF    TATAMAGOUCHE  75 

ing  years,  the  population  of  Tatamagouche  continued  to 
be  increased  by  a  number  who  came  here  either  to  build 
vessels  or  to  work  in  the  yards.  But  before  dealing  with 
the  events  of  these  years,  we  may  note  two  or  three  fatal 
accidents  which  occurred  in  this  community  sometime 
during  the  years  1830-40. 

One  of  these  took  place  in  the  year  1836  at  the  inn  of 
old  William  Currie.  John  Doull,  who  was  one  of  the  early 
settlers  at  Brule,  had  come  on  horseback  from  Halifax, 
whither  he  had  been  on  business,  and  stopped  at  the  inn 
for  his  dinner.  After  his  meal,  while  he  was  endeavouring 
to  unhitch  his  horse,  it  kicked  him  on  the  head,  causing 
almost  immediate  death. 

Another  tragic  death  which  occurred  about  the  same 
time,  possibly  a  few  years  later,  was  that  of  a  man  by  the 
name  of  Regan,  who  had  previously  belonged  to  Halifax. 
He  had  been  engaged  in  hauling  logs  and  was  unloading 
them  on  the  bank  of  Waugh's  River  near  the  small  creek,  a 
little  east  of  where  Abe  Currie  now  resides.  He  had  un- 
hitched one  horse  for  the  purpose  of  hauling  the  heavy 
logs  off  the  waggon,  and  while  putting  the  chain  around  a 
stick,  the  hook  caught  in  his  trousers  at  the  ankle.  Before 
he  could  free  himself,  the  horse  took  sudden  fright,  and 
he  was  dragged  helplessly  on  the  ground.  All  his  efforts 
to  loose  himself  or  stop  the  horse  were  in  vain,  but  his  cries 
attracted  the  attention  of  Murray  Currie,  a  son  of  John 
Currie,  who  immediately  ran  to  the  road  in  an  endeavour 
to  stop  the  horse.  Before  he  could  reach  the  animal,  a 
small  dog  which  was  with  him  had  by  barking  and  biting 
so  frightened  it,  that  all  his  attempts  were  futile.  The 
small  brook  near  McCulloiigh's  was  then  crossed  by  a  log 
bridge,  on  which  repairs  were  being  made,  and  while  Regan 
was  dragged  over  it,  a  loose  stick  ran  into  his  side.  The 
frightened  animal  continued  to  drag  man  and  stick  until 
it  was  finally  caught  near  where  Archie  Waugh  now  lives. 
The  unfortunate  man's  injuries  were  most  serious  and  in  a 
short  time  he  died. 

But  the  most  shocking  accident  which  ever  occurred 
in  the  community  was  the  one  that  resulted  in  the  death 
of  a  young  child  of  Hector  Sutherland,  an  early  settler, 
who  was  then  living  on  the  farm  now  owned  by  George 


76  HISTORY    OF    TATAMAGOUCHE 

McKay  near  the  Mine  Hole.  His  house  was  a  small 
log  one  close  to  which  extended  the  primeval  forest.  A 
short  time  previous  to  the  time  of  the  accident,  there  had 
been  a  heavy  wind  storm  which  had  uprooted  several  of 
the  large  trees  near  the  house.  In  his  spare  moments, 
Sutherland,  with  the  assistance  of  a  neighbour  would  saw 
these  trqes  into  blocks  for  shingles.  One  day  while  they 
were  engaged  at  this  work,  the  child  was  sent  by  its  mother 
to  call  them  to  their  meal.  As  neither  the  child  nor  the  men 
returned,  the  mother  became  alarmed,  and,  on  going  to 
her  husband,  she  was  surprised  to  learn  that  they  had  neither 
seen  nor  heard  of  the  child.  Word  was  at  once  sent  to  all 
the  neighbours  and  to  the  village,  and  a  search  party  organ- 
ized. Alexander  Campbell,  so  it  is  said,  not  only  offered  a 
large  reward  for  the  recovery  of  the  child,  but  allowed  all 
the  men  in  his  yards  to  join  in  the  search  and  even  sent 
provisions  (including  a  good  supply  of  rum)  to  the  men  who 
were  searching  in  the  woods.  No  trace  of  the  child  was  found 
and  after  a  day  or  two  the  search  was  given  up,  all  knowing 
that  by  that  time  the  child  would  have  perished  from  hunger 
and  exposure.  Some  time  previous,  Indians  had  been  seen 
in  the  vicinity  of  the  Mine  Hole  and  it  was  generally 
believed  that  they  were  responsible  for  the  disappearance 
of  the  child.  A  few  days  later,  other  Indians,  induced  by 
the  prospect  of  obtaining  so  large  a  reward,  and  believing 
that  some  of  their  less  worthy  brothers  had  been  guilty  of 
stealing  the  child,  went  as  far  east  as  Cape  Breton  in  search 
of  the  missing  one,  but  they  returned  without  accomplishing 
anything.  Several  weeks  after  the  mystery  was  cleared  up, 
but  in  a  most  ghastly  manner.  A  quarrel  between  a  cat 
and  a  dog  attracted  the  attention  of  the  parents,  who  were 
surprised  and  shocked  to  find  the  cause  of  the  quarrel  was 
none  other  than  the  hand  of  their  lost  child.  When  going 
to  call  them,  it  had  climbed  up  on  the  upturned  root  of  the 
tree  on  which  the  men  were  working.  When  it  had  been  severed 
from  its  trunk,  its  weight  carrying  it  back,  had  crushed  the 
child  to  death.  There  the  body  had  remained  unknown  to 
all,  till  the  dog,  discovering  it,  had  brought  it  once  more 
to  the  sight  of  the  parents. 

Among  others  who,   during  the   late  "thirties"   and   the 
'forties"  came  to  Tatamagouche  and  who  subsequently  became 


HISTORY    OF    TATAMAGOUCHE  77 

some  of  its  leading  citizens,  we  may  note  the  following:  James 
McKeen,  Edward  Kent,  Archibald  Patterson,  Charles  Reilly, 
Robert  Logan,  William  Fraser,  and  Henderson  and  Robert 
Gass. 

James  McKeen  was  a  native  of  St.  Mary's,  Guysborough 
County,  and  came  to  Tatamagouche  to  take  over  the  tanning 
business  then  operated  by  James  Campbell  and  James  Hep- 
burn of  Pictou.  This  business  he  conducted  till  shortly 
before  his  death  in  1894.  He  was  married  to  Mary,  a  sister 
of  Charles  Reilly.  In  their  family  were  John,  who  was  man- 
ager of  the  Bank  of  Nova  Scotia  at  Amherst,  Ottawa  and 
Halifax,  and  who  in  1915  was  elected  a  controller  of 
the  City  of  Halifax;  James,  who  is  a  Presbyterian  minister  at 
Orono,  Ontario;  Charles, who  resides  on  the  old  homestead;  and 
Kate,  Jessie,  Emily  (Mrs.  Maxwell),  Janie  (Mrs.  Abram  H. 
Patterson),  Sophia  (Mrs.  E.  D.  Roach),  Elizabeth  (Mrs. 
McGregor),  Annie,  and  Hannah. 

Edward  Kent  was  the  grandson  of  James  Kent,  who 
was  born  in  Alloa,  Scotland,  in  1749.  His  father  was  John 
Kent  who  lived  in  Lower  Stewiacke,  where  Edward  Kent 
was  born  in  1823.  Coming  to  Tatamagouche,  he  engaged 
in  blacksmithing  first,  then  in  shipbuilding  and  other  mer- 
cantile business.  He  erected  the  house  now  owned  by  Dr. 
Murray.  In  1851,  he  built  his  first  vessel,  the  "Little  Pet", 
which  was  launched  up  the  river  below  where  Abe  Currie 
now  lives.  After  this,  until  shortly  before  his  death  in  1870, 
he  continued  at  the  same  business.  His  wife  was  Jessie 
Williamson,  who  still  survives.  In  his  family  were  David, 
of  the  village;  James,  in  the  States;  Roach  and  Alex,  in 
California;  Mary  (Mrs.  Ingraham);  Jeanette;  Florence,  who 
was  a  distinguished  actress;  Jessie;  and  Janie  Bell. 

Archibald  Patterson  was  a  grandson  of  John  Patterson, 
who  was  one  of  the  Pictou  pioneers  of  the  "Hector"  His 
father  was  Abram  Patterson,  of  the  same  place.  He  first 
came  to  Tatamagouche  and  engaged  in  trading  in  lumber 
and  other  business,  but  it  was  not  till  1854  that  he  built 
in  his  shipyards,  where  Bonyman's  factory  now  stands, 
his  first  vessel,  the  "MacDuff.*  In  1862,  Patterson  was 
appointed  a  member  of  the  Legislative  Council,  a  position 

*In  1861-2,  he  built  the  barque  "Laurette"  for  Lowden  and  Company  of  New  York. 
Her  first  trip  was  to  Havana.  While  there  yellow  fever  broke  out  among  the  crew  and  all 
died  including  the  captain,  Jacob  Roberts,  and  William  Irvine,  the  second  mate. 


78  HISTORY    OF    TATAMAGOUCHE 

which  he  held  till  Confederation.  In  1868  he  retired  from 
business  in  Tatamagouche  and  moved  to  Halifax  where  he 
was  Inspector  in  the  Inland  Revenue  Department.  He  was 
married  to  Elizabeth,  the  eldest  daughter  of  the  Hon.  Alex- 
ander Campbell.  Mrs.  Patterson  is  now  living  in  Truro. 
A.  C.  Patterson  who,  till  his  death  in  1913,  was  a  barrister 
in  Truro,  was  a  son.  Mrs.  J.  W.  Revere  was  a  daughter. 

Charles  Reilly,  of  Irish  "descent,  came  from  Pictou  to 
Tatamagouche  and  worked  for  a  while  in  Campbell's  tannery. 
His  first  house  was  a  small  one  built  in  the  front  of  what  is  now 
the  house  lot  of  C.  K.  McLellan.  For  a  number  of  years 
he  lived  there  with  his  sisters  until  they  were  married  to 
James  McKeen,  Robert  Bryden,  and  James  McLearn 
Reilly  was  married  to  Susan  Kent,  the  widow  of  William 
Bryden.  Subsequently  he  lived  on  the  property  now  owned 
by  his  daughters  Misses  Annie  and  Sarah.  Here,  till  his 
death,  he  carried  on  his  trade  as  a  butcher.  He  was  for  a 
short  time  in  the  shipbuilding  business  and  built  a  few 
vessels  on  the  river  below  where  James  Bryden  now  resides. 
William  Reilly,  of  the  village,  is  his  only  surviving  son. 
Another  son,  John,  died  in  the  States  only  a  year  or  so  ago. 

Robert  Logan  came  to  Tatamagouche  from  New  Glasgow 
and  was  employed  for  a  number  of  years  as  clerk  for  William 
Campbell.  He  became  interested  in  shipbuilding  and  built 
for  a  number  of  years  on  the  river  a  little  below  Clark's  wharf. 
After  retiring  from  business,  he  was  appointed  Collector  of 
Customs  at  this  port.  His  wife  was  Mary  Bryden,  sister 
of  Robert  Bryden.  One  son,  Capt.  William,  died  at  sea  from 
an  attack  of  yellow  fever.  Another  son,  Robert,  and  a 
daughter,  Anna  Bell,  are  now  living  in  Bridgewater,  Nova 
Scotia. 

In  1840,  William  Fraser,  of  Pictou,  built  here  a  brig, 
"James",  for  James  Cameron  of  Halifax.  In  a  few  years  he 
became  foreman  for  the  Hon.  Alex.  Campbell  and  after  Camp- 
bell's death  he  continued  to  act  in  that  capacity  for  the  firm 
till  shipbuilding  at  Tatamagouche  was  of  the  past.  He 
built  and  lived  in  the  house  in  Mechanic  Street  which  is 
now  owned  by  C.  N.  Cunningham.  His  wife  was  a  sister 
of  Mrs.  Irvine.  Two  of  his  sons,  Marmaduke  and  Howard 
Primrose,  met  a  tragic  death  by  being  drowned  in  the  wreck 
of  the  "Indian  Chief"  on  the  Goodwin  Sands.  One  daughter, 


HISTORY    OF    TATAMAGOUCHE  79 

Elizabeth,  was  married  to  Alexander  Williamson  and  lived 
until  her  death  in  South  America.  Another  daughter,  Alice, 
is  now  living  in  Westville.  Mr.  Fraser  was  a  most  efficient 
foreman,  and  some  of  his  ships  were  of  the  finest  built  in 
Nova  Scotia.  He  was  one  of  the  most  highly  respected  men 
in  the  village  and  from  1860  till  he  removed  to  Pictou,  was 
an  elder  in  the  Tatamagouche  Presbyterian  congregation. 
Henderson  and  Robert  Gass  were  brothers,  sons  of 
John  Gass  who  came  from  Dumfries,  Scotland,  and  settled 
at  Pictou  in  1816.  The  former,  a  saddler  by  trade,  came  to 
Tatamagouche  about  1848  and  took  up  his  residence  on  the 
street  next  to  John  Millar's.  He  was  captain  of  the  Lake 
Road  Company  of  the  Nova  Scotia  Militia.  His  wife  was 
Eliza  Irish.  He  died  in  the  winter  of  1912.  Among  his 
children  are:  Mrs.  James  Ramsey  of  the  village;  Miss  Kate 
Gass,  Cambridge;  George,  of  Trenton;  and  William,  of 
Sackville. 

Robert  Gass  was  a  shoe-maker  and  came  to  Tatamagouche 
about  the  same  time  as — perhaps  a  little  later  than — his 
brother.  He  died  in  1894.  One  son,  Robert,  is  now  living 
in  the  United  States. 

Later  on,  it  may  be  noted,  there  came  another  Robert 
Gass,  who  took  up  the  Blockhouse  farm  and  to  distinguish 
him  from  his  cousin,  Robert  the  shoe-maker,  they  were  com- 
monly called  "Shoe-maker  Bob"  and  "Blockhouse  Bob". 
Robert  (Blockhouse)  Gass  was  a  son  of  Joseph  Gass,  who 
came  to  Pictou  from  Dumfries  with  his  brothers  Robert  and 
John  in  1816,  but  who  removed  to  Cape  John  in  1842.  Robert 
Gass  was  twice  married  to  sisters,  Misses  Perrin  of  River 
John.  Several  children  by  his  first  marriage  still  survive. 
They  are:  Will,  in  Bass  River;  Mrs.  Till  and  Mrs.  Elwood, 
of  Boston;  and  Mrs.  McLellan  in  the  West. 

Among  others,  who  in  the  early  "forties"  lived  on  Mech 
anic  Street,  we  may  note  William  Higgins,  a  shoe-maker,  and 
James    Grant,    a   blacksmith.     Both   subsequently   removed 
to  Wallace. 

Until  the  time  of  the  arrival  of  these  families,  nearly 
all  the  houses  and  places  of  business  at  Tatamagouche  were 
on  the  west  side  of  French  River  in  the  vicinity  of  Campbell's 
shipyards,  and  there  seemed  every  indication  that  the  site 
of  the  future  village  would  be  there.  From  Campbell's  to 


80  HISTORY    OF    TATAMAGOUCHE 

Waugh's  there  were  houses  only  at  rare  intervals  and  outside 
the  cluster  of  buildings  at  the  former  place,  there  was  nothing 
that  could  assume  even  the  name  of  a  hamlet.  In  fact,  as 
late  as  the  "forties"  there  were  only  four  buildings  between 
Wm.  Campbell's  and  McConnelPs  tavern.  These  were  the 
houses  of  Neil  Ramsey  and  Mungo  Heughan,  the  old  Presby- 
terian meeting  house  and  the  small  shop  of  John  Blackwood. 
Alex.  Campbell,  however,  who  either  owned  or  con- 
trolled nearly  all  the  land  near  the  French  River,  was  averse 
to  selling,  and  men  found  it  difficult,  if  not  impossible,  to 
obtain  land  from  him.  James  Campbell  and  others 
who  owned  the  lots  where  the  present  village  is  situated, 
had  no  such  aversion.  They  were  willing  and  ready 
to  dispose  of  their  land.  Then  the  shore  along  these 
lots  was  well  suited  for  shipyards,  as  a  comparatively  deep 
channel  ran  close  to  the  bank.  It  was  for  these  reasons  that 
the  shipbuilders  and  others  who  came  in  the  "forties",  located 
where  they  did,  alid  thus,  in  a  great  measure,  determined 
the  location  of  the  present  village. 

A  man  named  Young  is  said  to  have  been  the  first  to 
erect  a  shop  in  the  present  village.  He  came  here 
interested  in  shipbuilding,  and  built  a  small  store  near  the 
site  of  Thomas  Bonyman's  forge.  This  store  was  afterwards 
purchased  by  Robert  Logan  and  moved  down  to  the  corner 
of  Main  Street  and  New  Annan  Road  where,  enlarged  and 
with  frequent  repairs,  it  stands  till  this  day,  still  in  use  as 
a  place  of  business. 

One  of  the  first  tailors  to  come  to  Tatamagouche  was 
Mungo  Heughan.  He  had  been  employed  aboard  a  man- 
of-war  and,  after  leaving  the  sea,  settled  down  for  the  rest 
of  his  days  at  Tatamagouche.  He  had  his  shop  and  house 
on  the  east  corner  of  the  present  Manse  property.  For 
years  he  was  Superintendent  of  the  village  Sunday  School; 
in  all  probability  of  the  first  regular  Sunday  School  to 
be  held  here.  John  Heughan,  who  settled  on  the  New 
Annan  Road,  and  James  Heughan,  of  Cariboo  are  two  of  his 
sons. 

John  McDowl,  who  came  here  in  1841  from  River  John, 
was  another  tailor.  He  lived  in  the  house  now  owned  by 
J.  T.  B.  Henderson,  Esq.  Previous  to  his  coming,  one 
Telfer,  who  came  in  the  early  "thirties,"  and  who  also  was 


ROBERT   PUHVIS. 


HISTORY    OF    TATAMAGOUCHE  81 

a   tailor,    had   his   shop   in   this   building.     John   McDowl, 
the  veteran  engine  driver  is  a  son. 

It  was  about  this  time  that  Stephen  Rood,  a  ship 
carpenter,  settled  in  Tatamagouche.  He  built  and  lived 
in  the  house  now  owned  by  Charles  Brown.  Charles  Rood, 
of  New  Glasgow,  is  a  son. 

It  was  in  1840  that  the  Rev.  Robert  Blackwood  came 
to  Tatamagouche.  He  first  lived  in  a  house  near  where  Mrs. 
Crowe  now  resides  but  subsequently  he  removed  to  the 
house  now  owned  by  Charles  Brown.  His  wife  was  Anne 
McCara,  daughter  of  the  Rev.  John  McCara  of  Scotland. 
In  their  family  were  Jessie,  who  was  the  wife  of  Rev.  Dr. 
Smith  of  Upper  Stewiacke;  David  who  lived  in  Halifax;  and 
William  who  remained  in  Tatamagouche.  The  last  was  one 
of  the  best  known  men  and  merchants  in  North  Colchester. 
For  a  time  he  was  in  public  life  and  represented  the  Northern 
District  of  Colchester  in  the  House  of  Assembly  from  1863  to 
1867.  In  politics  he  was  a  strong  Liberal  and  an  opponent 
of  Confederation. 

About  the  same  time  (1840)  David  Murdock  and  his 
wife,  Sara  Wilson,  both  from  Scotland,  settled  at  what  has 
since  been  known  as  the  Murdock  farm,  on  Waugh's  River. 
The  property,  as  we  have  seen,  had  previously  been  owned 
by  William  Currie.  Murdock  had  been  a  game  keeper  in 
the  estate  of  a  Scotch  nobleman,  and  his  wife  had  been  the 
house-keeper.  He  came  out  first  and  then  she  joined  him. 
He  met  her  in  Truro  and  conveyed  her  over  the  mountain 
in  a  cart.  They  had  no  children  and  the  farm  was  given  to 
his  nephew,  David  Murdock,  father  of  the  present  owner 
John  Murdock. 

One  of  the  last  families  that  came  directly  from  Scot- 
land to  settle  at  Tatamagouche,  was  the  Clark  family  of 
Aberdeen.  It  would  be  sometime  around  1842-3,  when 
two  brothers,  John  and  James,  who  were  the  first  to  come 
out,  arrived  at  Tatamagouche.  They  landed  at  Halifax, 
and  from  there  walked  to  Tatamagouche.  Often,  in  later 
years,  they  used  to  relate  how,  on  a  Sunday  morning,  when 
the  people  were  coming  from  the  church,  they  reached  the 
village  in  their  bare  feet,  and  had  their  first  meal  in  what 
was  to  be  their  future  home,  at  the  house  of  Mungo  Heughan. 

6 


82  HISTORY    OF    TATAMAGOUCHE 

John  settled  on  the  Mill  Brook,  near  what  is  known  as 
the  Peugh  Bridge.  At  the  time  of  the  gold  rush  to  Australia, 
he,  in  company  with  his  brother,  went  and  remained  for 
a  number  of  years  in  that  colony.  On  his  return  he  lived 
for  a  year  on  the  Robert  Bell  farm  at  Waldegrave,  and  then 
went  into  business  in  the  village.  In  1871,  he  built  the  shop 
now  owned  by  J.  M.  Bonyman  &  Company.  In  1860,  he 
was  elected  elder  in  the  Tatamagouche  Presbyterian  con- 
gregation, a  position  which  he  faithfully  held  until  his  death. 
For  years  he  was  superintendent  of  the  village  Sunday 
School,  to  which  office  he  gave  his  unfaltering  attention  till 
advancing  years  made  it  impossible  for  him  to  perform  its 
duties.  His  venerable  figure  and  kindly  word  will  always 
be  remembered  by  those  who,  as  boys  and  girls,  sat  on  Sun- 
days beneath  his  charge.  In  August,  1901,  he  met  a  sudden 
death,  by  being  drowned  while  bathing  in  the  river  below 
his  house. 

James  Clark,  on  his  return  from  Australia,  settled  on 
the  farm  now  owned  by  his  son,  Sydney,  at  Bayhead.  He  for 
number  of  years  was  one  of  the  representatives  of  Tatama- 
gouche in  the  Municipal  Council.  He  was  also  a  Justice 
of  the  Peace.  He  died  in  1891. 

There  were  four  other  members  of  this  family  who  also 
settled  in  Tatamagouche:  George,  Charles,  Robert,  and 
William.  The  last  three  took  up  farms  on  the  Mill  Brook. 
George  early  entered  into  business  for  himself  in  the  village. 
Beginning  in  a  small  way,  he  built  up  a  prosperous  business 
and  soon  became  the  leading  hardware  merchant  of  the 
village.  So  successful  was  he,  that  at  the  time  of  his  death 
he  was  the  most  influential  and  probably  the  wealthiest  man 
in  North  Colchester.  In  politics  he  was  a  strong  Liberal 
and  a  firm  believer  in  the  principles  of  Free  Trade.  In  1886, 
and  again  in  1890,  he  was  elected  to  represent  Colchester 
in  the  House  of  Assembly.  He  died  in  May,  1905. 

The  last  settler  to  come  directly  from  Scotland  to 
Tatamagouche  was  David  Donaldson,  of  Perthshire.  In 
1849,  he  left  Scotland  and,  after  a  voyage  of  six  weeks, 
landed  at  Pictou.  He  first  settled  at  Brule,  on  the  farm  now 
owned  by  his  grandson,  A.  P.  Semple.  He  built  his  first 
log  house  close  to  the  creek  which  ran  through  his 
farm.  At  the  time  of  his  arrival,  this  fine  property  was 


HISTORY    OF    TATAMAGOUCHE  83 

heavily  wooded  with  hemlock.  He  appears  to  have  been 
particularly  successful  as  a  farmer.  The  land  there  is  very 
fertile  and  it  is  said  that  in  a  few  years,  he  was  able,  one 
winter  to  sell  a  ton  of  flour  made  from  the  wheat  grown 
on  his  own  place.  After  remaining  for  seven  years  at  Brule, 
he  removed  to  French  River,  near  the  bridge  now  known  by 
his  name.  At  the  same  time  there  came  to  Tatamagouche 
with  Donaldson,  his  sons-in-law,  Wm.  Menzie  and  James 
Semple.  The  former  went  first  to  Fox  Harbour,  Cumberland 
County  and  then  to  the  "Back  Road"  to  River  John.  Sub- 
sequently he  came  to  the  village  to  live.  James  Semple 
remained  on  the  farm  at  Brule.  Six  years  later  came  a  third 
son-in-law,  Thomas  Malcolm,  who  settled  at  Brule  where 
his  son,  Robert  D.  Malcolm,  now  resides. 

David  Donaldson  was  married  to  Mary  Hutchinson,  of 
Perthshire.  He  died  in  1891,  aged  eighty-four,  and  his 
'wife  in  1895,  aged  ninety-two.  Their  sons  were  Robert, 
John,  and  George,  who  removed  to  New  Zealand  and  Aus- 
tralia, and  William  and  David  who  remained  on  their  father's 
farm.  The  daughters  were  Agnes  (Mrs.  Menzie),  Elizabeth 
(Mrs.  Malcolm),  Cecelia  (Mrs.  Semple),  Jane  (Mrs. 
Langille)  of  the  village,  and  Mary  (Mrs.  Wm.  Langille), 
French  River.  The  last  three  are  the  only  surviving  members 
of  the  family.  Mrs.  Menzie,  being  the  eldest,  had  reached 
maturity  before  leaving  Scotland,  and  was  the  only  member 
of  the  family  to  speak  the  Scottish  dialect. 

Along  with  shipbuilding  came  also  the  sister  industry, 
lumbering.  As  we  have  already  noted,  the  commencement 
of  this  industry  was  the  sale  of  square  pine  timber  in  the 
Old  Country.  It  was  soon  eclipsed  in  importance  by  ship- 
building but,  nevertheless,  it  continued  to  give  employment 
to  many  men,  particularly  in  the  winter  months.  At  first 
the  lumber  was  manufactured  entirely  by  hand,  the  large 
logs  being  sawn  into  boards  or  other  material  by  the  laborious 
efforts  of  two  men  on  a  whip  saw.  With  the  opening  of  the 
English  market,  and  the  introduction  of  water  mills,  the 
industry  went  forward  in  leaps  and  bounds.  Small  mills, 
we  have  already  noted,  were  constructed  by  the  French,  but 
these  were  probably  used  for  grinding  grain  more  than  for 
sawing  purposes.  William  Waugh,  the  son  of  old  Wellwood 
Waugh,  is  said  to  have  been  about  the  first  to  build  a  water 


84  HISTORY    OF    TATAMAGOUCHE 

mill  at  Tatamagouche  for  sawing  lumber.  Certain  it  is 
that  he  erected  one  at  a  very  early  date  on  the  small  stream 
which  is  still  known  as  the  "Mill  Brook".  Later  on 
the  Hon.  Alex.  Campbell  built  a  small  mill  on  the  Black 
Brook,  just  a  little  east  of  where  it  is  now  -crossed 
by  the  road  to  Balfron.  The  remains  of  the  old  dam  can 
yet  be  seen.  During  the  "thirties,"  a  number  of  others  were 
constructed.  William  Campbell  built  one  on  the  French 
River  on  the  lot  now  owned  by  James  Ramsey.  Abram 
Patterson,  of  Pictou,  also  built  a  gmall  mill  on  the  Mill  Brook 
branch  of  the  French  River.  During  the  subsequent  years, 
a  dozen  or  so  of  similar  mills  were  erected  at  various  places 
on  French  and  Waugh's  Rivers  and  up  till  the  time  of  the 
introduction  of  steam  mills  they  did  all  the  sawing. 

About  the  early  "fifties"  Abram  Patterson,  who  was  now 
actively  engaged  in  the  lumbering  industry,  came  to  live 
at  Tatamagouche.  He  bought  the  property  subsequently 
owned  by  his  son,  the  late  W.  A.  Patterson.  Engaged  with  him 
in  this  business  was  James  Primrose  of  Pictou.  For  a  time 
they  operated  a  mill  at  Porteous',  French  River.  They 
then  commenced  cutting  some  of  the  larger  and  better 
lumber  pn  the  mountain  lots  and  erected  a  mill  near  Farm 
Lake.  They  were  the  first  to  commence  here  the  planing 
and  other  manufacturing  of  lumber. 

Abram  Patterson  was  a  son  of  John  Patterson  (who 
came  to  Pictou  in  the  "Hector")  and  was  married  to  Christina, 
the  eldest  daughter  of  Dr.  MacGregor,  the  pioneer  Presby- 
terian minister  in  Pictou.  One  of  his  sons,  Archie,  as  we 
have  noted,  was  engaged  for  a  number  of  years  in  ship- 
building at  Tatmagouche.  His  youngest  son,  W.  A.  Patter- 
son, Esq.,  continued  in  the  lumber  business.  In  1874 
he  was  elected  as  a  Conservative  to  represent  Colchester  in 
the  Provincial  House.  He  was  a  member  of  that  House 
till  1886,  being  re-elected  in  1878  and  1882.  In  1891  he  was 
elected  to  the  Dominion  House  of  Commons  and  sat  in 
that  House  till  his  retirement  from  political  life  in  1896. 
He  died  June,  1917. 

The  year  1847  was  a  hard  one  for  this  community. 
A  financial  depression  caused  the  bottom  to  fall  out  of 
the  ship  market  and,  consequently,  there  was  no  profitable 
sale  for  ships  of  any  kind.  Many  of  the  shipbuilders 


HISTORY    OF    TATAMAGOUCHE  85 

of  Nova  Scotia  lost  heavily.  With  scarcely  a  mo- 
ment's warning,  thousands  of  dollars  and  the  wealth  of 
years  were  swept  away.  It  is  said  that  Alexander  Campbell 
was  the  only  builder  on  the  North  Shore  who  remained 
solvent,  but  this  is  probably  an  exaggeration.*  He,  though 
he  suffered  severely,  was  able  to  continue  his  business.  This 
depression,  as  the  ones  of  '25  and  '40,  soon  passed  away 
and  times  in  a  year  or  so  were  better  than  ever. 

These  years  from  1825  to  1847  were  crowded  with  many 
events  and  crowned  with  much  prosperity  for  the  people  of 
Tatamagouche.  Every  year,  as  the  log  cabins  decreased, 
the  frame  dwellings  increased.  The  settlers  no  longer 
struggled  for  the  necessaries  of  life  alone,  for  into  their 
homes  had  already  oome  a  few  of  the  simplest  luxuries.  No 
longer  was  it  necessary  to  carry  provisions  through  the 
woods  from  Truro,  or  along  the  shore  from  Pictou,  for  a 
dozen  or  more  merchants  were  here  with  their  stores  full  of 
various  goods  and  commodities.  Labor  was  abundant 
and  wages,  for  those  days  were  good.  Tatamagouche  was 
yet  to  see  darker  days  by  far  than  those  of  1825-47. 

One  great  improvement  was  in  the  roads.  When 
the  first  settlers  came  here  the  only  road,  or  rather 
trail,  was  across  the  mountains  to  Truro. f  If  we  can  rely 
upon  the  old  French  records,  this  road  was  then  in  good 
condition,  and  in  all  probability  its  course  was  followed 
by  the  subsequent  settlers.  To  Pictou  there  was  no  path 
whatever,  and  as  late  as  1793,  people  went  to  that  place 
by  following  along  the  shore  to  River  John  and  from  there 
they  would  either  strike  through  the  woods  or  continue 
along  the  shore.  We  have  been  unable  to  ascertain  when 
the  road  from  Pictou  to  Tatamagouche  was  opened,  but 
in  1833,  we  find  that  the  sum  of  £40  was  granted  by  the 
Assembly  for  a  bridge  at  Currie's  ^Mur  dock's).  The  road 
must  have  been  opened  a  considerable  time  before  this 
date  as,  for  a  number  of  years,  the  river  was  forded  at 
that  place.  The  first  road  through  the  village  ran  south  of 
the  present  main  road,  somewhere  back  of  where  James 
Ramsey  now  resides.  What  is  now  commonly  known  as 
the  "Back  Street"  is  a  continuance  of  the  old  road. 

The  writer  knows  for  a  fact  that  at  least  one  other  builder,  Alex.  McKenzie  of 
River  John,  remained  solvent. 

fThis  was  also  an  old  French  trail,  running  from  Tatamagouche  to  Chignecto.  Thia 
was  opened  by  La  Corne  in  1746. 


86  HISTORY    OF    TATAMAGOUCHE 

The  first  bridge  across  the  French  River  was  built  about 
the  same  place  as  the  present  one.  The  next  one  was  placed 
higher  up  on  the  bank  and  nearer  the  main  river.  It  must 
have  been  constructed  at  the  early  period  before  shipbuilding 
had  become  of  any  great  importance.  The  bridge,  as  then 
located,  did  away  with  the  long  and  inconvenient  Camp- 
bell's and  McCully's  Hills,  but  its  position  prevented 
the  launching  of  any  large  ships  from  Campbell's  yards  and 
consequently  it  was,  when  being  rebuilt,  moved  further  up 
the  river  to  its  former  site.  It  was,  of  course,  a  wooden 
structure.  The  writer  has  been  unable  to  ascertain  in  what 
year  it  was  built  but,  in  1839,*  the  sum  of  £100  was  granted 
for  the  erection  of  a  bridge  over  the  French  River  and  it 
was,  in  all  probability,  during  that  year  that  this  bridge 
was  built.  At\he  time  of  its  construction,  a  petition 
was  presented  to  the  Government  praying  that  a  draw 
be  placed  in  the  bridge  so  that  those  who  lived  further  up 
the  river  would  not  be  precluded  from  shipbuilding.  The 
petition  stated  that  the  river  was  navigable  one  mile 
above  the  bridge  for  ships  of  twenty  feet  draught.  We 
rather  fear  that  the  then  citizens  of  Tatamagouche  were 
more  eager  to  obtain  the  draw  than  to  sustain  their  accustomed 
reputation  for  veracity.  The  present  steel  structure,  which 
is  on  the  same  site,  was  built  sometime  during  the  "eighties". 
The  first  bridge  at  Lockerbie's  was  built  on  the  site  of  the 
present  one,  some  time  about  1840,  possibly  a  year  or  so  later. 

In  1825  people  at  Tatamagouche  had  little  intercourse 
with  the  outside  world.  They  were  a  little  colony  by  them- 
selves. In  1847  this  was  no  longer  true.  Her  ships  sailed 
to  every  quarter  of  the  globe,  and  to  her  harbour  came 
vessels  bearing  the  flags  of  a  score  of  nations  and  manned 
by  sailors  of  various  nationalities  and  speaking  a  dozen 
different  tongues.  With  the  exceptions  of  Halifax,  Yarmouth, 
Sydney,  Pictou,  and  possibly  a  few  others,  Tatamagouche 
had  as  much  intercourse  with  the  outside  world  as  any 
other  port  in  Nova  Scotia.  Improved  roads,  too,  led  to 
more  communication  with  nearby  places. 

In  regard  to  early  postal  service,  we  have  little  infor- 

*In  1851  Rev.  John  Sprott  visited  Tatamagouche.  He  writes  as  follows:  "When  I  first 
visited  Tatamagouche,  thirty  years  ago,  I  crossed  the  French  River,  where  the  noble  bridge 
now  stands,  on  a  cake  of  floating  ice  for  want  of  a  canoe.  On  the  one  side  it.  has  now  a  long 
range  of  shops,  and  on  the  other  the  princely  mansion  of  the  Hon.  Alex.  Campbell,  backed  by 
a  splendid  orchard  and  shaded  by  trees." 


HISTORY    OF    TATAMAGOUCHE  87 

mation.  Wellwood  Waugh  was,  as  we  have  seen,  the  first 
courier  between  Truro  and  Tatamagouche.  At  that  time 
the  only  interprovincial  mail  coming  from  what  is  now  the 
Upper  Provinces,  was  landed  at  Tatamagouche.  The  sailing 
vessel  "Mercury"*  made  regular  trips  to  and  from  Quebec. 
It  was  evidently  this  mail  which  Waugh  carried  as  far  as 
Truro.  Who  succeeded  him  in  this  responsible  duty  is  unknown. 
After  a  time  this  method  of  bringing  the  mails  from  Quebec 
was  abandoned,  and  apparently  they  were  brought  all  the 
way  by  land  for,  we  find  that  in  1821,  the  inhabitants  of 
Pugwash,  Wallace,  and  Tatamagouche  presented  a  petition 
to  the  House  of  Assembly  for  a  sum  to  be  set  aside  to  defray 
the  expense  of  a  weekly  mail  service  to  those  places  from  the 
main  post  road  that  ran  over  the  mountains  in  the  vicinity 
of  Westchester.  There  is  no  record  to  show  that  the  prayer 
of  this  petition  was  ever  granted,  and  we  have  never  heard 
of  any  mail  route  running  through  those  places  to 
Tatamagouche. 

About  1843,  a  tri-weekly  mail  was  established  between 
Halifax,  Pictou  and  various  points  along  the  northern  shore 
of  Nova  Scotia.  A  man  by  the  name  of  Arnison  drove  this 
mail  from  Pictou  to  Tatamagouche.  Many  can  yet  recollect 
him  as,  driving  into  the  village  over  Lockerbie's  Hill,  he  would 
announce  his  coming  by  the  blowing  of  a  horn.  Subsequently, 
James  Blair,  who  came  to  Tatamagouche  about  the  middle 
"fifties",  drove  the  mail  from  Pictou  to  Tatamagouche.  In 
Belcher's  Almanac  this  mail,  running  to  Pictou,  Wallace 
and  Amherst,  is  said  to  have  run  tri-weekly,  but  those  whose 
memory  reaches  back  into  those  years  say  that  at  that  time 
the  mail  came  through  Tatamagouche  but  once  a  week. 
There  was  also  a  mail  from  Truro  which  at  first  came  at  irregu- 
lar intervals,  usually  brought  by  a  man  or  boy  on  horseback. 
One  of  the  last  drivers  was  Tim  Archibald,  who  drove  two 
horses  tandem. 

During  the  "sixties",  when  the  "Heather  Bell"  was  plying 
between  Brule  and  Charlottetown,  mails  were  received  here 
twice  a  week  from  both  Halifax  and  the  Island. 

In  1867,  "Blair's  Express",  owned  by  James  Blair,  ran 

*The  vessel  commenced  running  from  Quebec  to  Tatamagouche  about  1778  and  was 
used  during  the  Revolutionary  War  in  particular,  for  carrying  despatches  from  Sorel.  A 
messenger  was  landed  here  and  either  proceeded  in  person  over  the  mountain  or  obtained 
another  courier. 


88  HISTORY    OF    TATAMAGOUCHE 

over  the  mountain  to  Truro.     We  take  the  following  from 
Belcher's  Almanac  of  that  date: 

"Blair's  Express,  a  mail  waggon,  leaves  Truro  for  Tatamagouche,  Wallace 
and  Pugwash  on  Tuesday,  Thursday  and  Saturday,  returning  on  the  inter- 
vening days." 

With  the  opening  of  the  railway  to  Pictou  and  the  main 
line  through  Wentworth,  we  received  regular  mails  from  those 
places. 

As  far  as  we  are  aware,  the  first  postmaster  at  Tatama- 
gouche was  Wm.  McConnell,  who,  as  we  have  seen,  conducted 
a  tavern  where  the  "Stirling  Hotel"  is  now  situated.  The 
writer  has  seen  a  letter  bearing  date  1843  addressed  "c/o  Wm. 
McConnell,  postmaster".  About  1855,  possibly  before,  John 
Lombaid  was  appointed  postmaster.  Four  years  later  the 
office  was  moved  up  the  road  and  kept  by  James  McLearn. 
In  1863,  Wm.  Fraser*  became  postmaster  and,  in  1866, 
Isaac  Blair  was  appointed.  Three  years  later,  Robert 
Purves  became  postmaster,  and  held  the  position  till  his 
death  when  he  was  succeeded  by  his  widow.  At  her  death, 
in  1904,  Dr.  Johnson  was  appointed,  f 

The  years  following  the  depression  of  1847  were  busy 
ones  for  the  shipbuilders  at  Tatamagouche.  The  English 
market  was  good  and  there  arose  a  demand  in  New- 
foundland for  vessels  of  about  100  tons  built  especially  for 
seal  fishing.  Several  who  had  not  previously  gone  into  the 
business  began  at  once  building  vessels  of  this  type. 
The  year  1857  was  long  known,  indeed  to  this  day,  as  the 
"big  year"  at  Tatamagouche.  In  that  year  fourteen  vessels 
were  on  the  stocks  at  one  time.  Campbells,  Purves,  Logan, 
Kent,  Patterson,  Reilly,  Robert  Bryden,  Wm.  Blackwood, 
and  B.  F.  McKay  all  built  that  year.  Some  had  two  or 
three.  The  whole  shore  from  Lockerbie's  to  Ross'  Point 
was  one  busy  hive  of  industry.  One  vessel  was  built  on 
the  shore  across  from  Campbell's  Point,  another  one  on 
Ross'  Point,  two  or  three  at  Campbells',  one  at  the  mouth 
of  the  small  creek  which  runs  through  Gordon  Clark's  field, 
three  or  four  in  the  yards  of  Kent,  Logan  and  Patterson,  and 
two  up  below  James  Bryden's,  where  Reilly  and  McLaren 
were  building.  This  was  the  high  water  mark  for  ship- 

*The  office  waa,  however,  not  moved  down  the  road  but  was  kept  in  a  little  shop  near 
where  D.  W.  Menzie  now  resides. 

fBesides  those  mentioned  above,  there  were  others  who  held  the  office  of  postmaster 
for  short  times.  Robert  Logan  and  Robert  Cutten  were  two  and  there  may  have  been  others. 


HISTORY    OF    TATAMAGOUCHE  89 

building  at  Tatamagouche.  For  a  few  years  markets  con- 
tinued good  and  all  went  well.  But  every  few  years  there 
came  a  repetition  of  the  financial  crises  which  we  have 
already  noted  and  then  the  entrance  of  steamers  into  the 
work  of  ocean  transportation  was  gradually  ruining  the 
market  for  wooden  sailing  vessels. 

On  the  first  day  of  April,  1854,  there  occurred  an  unusually 
heavy  freshet.  The  exceptionally  heavy  snow-fall  of 
the  winter  had  all  remained  on  the  ground  until  the 
beginning  of  a  heavy  rainstorm  which  commenced  on  one 
of  the  last  days  of  March.  Many  of  the  bridges  on  Waugh's 
and  French  Rivers  were  swept  away,  and  a  large  jam  of  ice 
formed  fiom  Patterson's  wharf  across  to  Steele's  Island. 
The  waters,  in  rising,  engulfed  the  island  and  flooded  the 
barn  of  John  Steele  which  was  built  on  thfe  low  slope  of  the 
mainland  near  the  island.  All  his  cattle  were  drowned.  The 
following  account  of  the  storm  is  taken  from  the  diary  of 
the  Rev.  Robert  Black  wood: 

"A  most  fearful  storm  and  freshet  on  the  first  of  April,  1854.  It  melted 
the  snow,  raised  the  ice,  and  carried  before  it  bridges  to  an  alarming  extent 
on  Waugh's  River.  Campbell's,  Murdoch's  and  Lockerbie's  bridges  were 
carried  away  with  one  general  sweep.  The  river  must,  with  the  ice,  have 
raised  eight  or  ten  feet.  One  poor  man,  Steele,  lost  thirty  head  of  sheep,  twelve 
head  of  cattle,  one  horse,  and  his  buildings,  to  which  the  freshet  never  rose 
before." 

One  who,  during  the  "fifties",  entered  into  business  at 
Tatamagouche,  and  who  was  the  first  to  erect  a  shop  of  two 
stories  in  the  village,  was  Stewart  Kislepaugh.  His  was 
such  a  peculiar  character  that  we  must  give  him  more  than 
passing  notice.  His  father  had  been  a  French  soldier  who 
during  the  retreat  from  Moscow  had  served  under  Napoleon. 
After  the  war,  the  old  soldier  came  to  Nova  Scotia 
and  finally  settled  on  Tatamagouche  Mountain.  There, 
one  of  his  neighbours  was  a  man  who,  during  the 
same  wars  had  fought  under  the  banner  of  England, 
and  the  old  warriors  rather  than  forget  their  quarrels 
of  the  past,  showed  a  disposition  to  fight  them  over  once 
again.  Stewart,  as  a  young  man,  came  to  work  in  the 
village,  first  as  a  clerk  for  Robert  Purves  and  then  for  James 
Campbell,  who  ran  a  small  store  near  where  J.  R.  Ferguson 
now  resides.  Eventually  he  commenced  business  for  himself. 
His  shop  was  destroyed  by  fire.  Stewart  had  just  opened 
a  cask  of  turpentine  and  some  of  the  contents  had  been  spilled 


90  HISTORY    OF    TATAMAGOUCHE 

on  the  floor.  A  number  of  men  were  in  the  store  at  the 
time,  and  one  of  them  who  was  smoking  remarked  "Stewart, 
you  don't  know  the  great  risk  you  are  running  with  that 
turpentine."  He  was  alluding  to  the  danger  of  fire.  At 
the  same  time  a  lighted  match  fell  from  his  hands,  and, 
before  the  men  could  think  or  act,  the  interior  of  the  building 
burst  into  flames.  He  rebuilt,  this  time  a  building  of  two 
stories,  where  the  store  of  James  Bonyman  &  Co.  now  stands. 
In  1862  this  shop  was  also  destroyed  by  fire.  Stewart  was  left  a 
poor  man  and,  for  a  number  of  years  was  absent  in  South 
America.  Returning,  he  found  himself  in  poverty.  Gone 
was  all  his  former  prosperity  and,  like  King  Lear,  he  was 
content  to  live  in  a  mere  hovel.  He  was  a  man  of  much  intelli- 
gence, was  well  read  and  possessed  a  great  deal  of  public 
spirit.  Perhaps  more  than  anything  else  he  was  noted 
for  his  ready  wit  and  practical  jokes.  Many  of  his  sayings 
and  stories  are  still  remembered  and  retold,  always  with 
appreciation.  During  his  last  years  he  lived  in  an  old  shop 
across  the  road  from  where  D.  W.  Menzie  now  resides.  A 
great  part  of  his  time  he  used  in  doing  acts  of  kindness  to 
those  whom  he  could  in  any  way  assist.  There  are  many 
today  who  regard  his  memory  with  the  warmest  feelings, 
and  think  with  sadness  that  a  personality  which  had  so 
much  of  the  finest  qualities  accomplished  so  little.  "Stew- 
art's" pump,  which,  due  mainly  to  his  labours,  was  pre- 
served for  the  public,  stands  as  his  monument,  and  daily 
recalls  the  memory  of  this  peculiar  but  zealous  citizen.  He 
died  in  the  winter  of  1894. 

About  1850,  James  Blair  came  from  North  River  to 
take  over  the  hotel  at  Tatamagouche.  He  also  ran  the 
stage  from  Truro  to  Tatamagouche  and  Wallace.  His  wife 
was  a  Miss  Lyons.  Isaac  Blair  is  his  son. 

In  1854,  William  McKenzie  came,  as  a  young  man, 
from  Pictou  to  act  as  a  foreman  in 'the  shipyard  of  Archibald 
Patterson.  He  was  a  man  strong  in  body  and  in  mind, 
and  in  every  way  typical  of  the  splendid,  virile  people 
which  at  that  time  Nova  Scotia  and  Pictou  County  in  par- 
ticular, seemed  able  to  produce.  As  a  ship  foreman  he  had 
few  equals,  being  at  all  times  able  to  hold  the  confidence  of 
his  men  and  employers;  and  it  has  often  been  said  that  he 
was  able  to  get  more  work  out  of  his  men  than  any  other 


HISTORY    OF    TATAMAGOUCHE  91 

foreman  of  his  time.  In  later  days,  when  he  retired  from 
active  work,  his  advice  was  readily  sought  after  in  matters 
relating  to  the  construction  of  wooden  ships.  He  died  in  the 
winter  of  1911,  aged  eighty-seven. 

The  first  carriage  builder  to  come  to  Tatamagouche 
was  John  A.  McCurdy,  of  Onslow.  In  the  early  "fifties",  he 
commenced  business  in  a  shop  about  opposite  the  present 
Post  Office.  He  was  married  to  Elizabeth  Bryden  and  lived 
in  the  house  now  owned  by  Dr.  Sedgwick.  His  two  children 
are  Mrs.  C.  N.  Cunningham  of  the  village,  and  Gordon, 
who  is  Police  Inspector  of  the  Rainy  River  District.  About 
1860,  McCurdy  moved  back  to  Onslow  and  Alex.  McLeod 
commenced  the  same  business  in  the  shop  now  owned  by 
James  Perrin. 

In  1854,  James  McLearn  came  from  Halifax  to  Tata- 
magouche. He  built  the  house  now  owned  by  Mrs.  Menzie. 
He  engaged  in  shipbuilding  and  built  a  number  of  vessels 
in  the  yards  below  where  James  Bryden  now  resides.  He 
also  had  charge  of  the  first  telegraph  office  to  be  established 
in  the  village.  His  wife  was  a  sister  of  Charles  Reilly. 
He  removed,  first  to  California,  then  to  Halifax,  where  he 
died. 

Those  who,  during  the  subsequent  years,  have  come 
to  live  at  Tatamagouche  are  so  well  known  to  the  public 
of  today  that  to  deal  with  them  individually  would  be  super- 
fluous. Some  are  still  with  us;  others  have  but  recently  passed 
away.  Of  those  who,  during  or  about  the  years  1855-65, 
came  to  Tatamagouche  from  various  places  in  Pictou  County, 
we  may  mention:  Daniel  Barclay,  Alexander  Matheson, 
and  David  Fraser,  merchants;  Alex.  McLeod,  carriage 
builder;  Andrew  Urquhart  and  George  Douglas,  blacksmiths; 
and  D.  A.  Fraser,  tailor.  Others  who,  about  these  years, 
were  in  business  at  Tatamagouche  were  Archibald  Mingo 
and  Jeremiah  Murphy  who  built  what  was  long  after  known 
as  Clark's  wharf. 

Concerning  those  who  are  still  alive,  or  who  have  but 
recently  passed  away,  the  writer  has,  for  obvious  reasons, 
forborne  to  make  any  more  than  passing  remarks.  But  a 
most  justifiable  exception  may  be  made  in  the  cases  of  Rev. 
Dr.  Sedgwick  and  the  late  E.  D.  Roach,  M.  D.  These  two 
men  were,  as  indeed  one  is  today,  for  so  many  years  the 


92  HISTORY    OF    TATAMAGOUCHE 

leading  and  outstanding  men  of  this  community,  that  we  are 
constrained  to  add  a  few  words  of  tribute,  imperfect  as  they 
may  be,  to  their  character  and  service.  Both  came  to  Tata- 
magouche  in  the  fall  of  1860  as  young  men  fresh  from  college 
and  entered  with  all  the  ardour,  of  early  manhood  into  their 
professional  duties.  Both,  too,  belonged  to  those  professions 
which  bring  their  members  into  the  /closest  contact  with 
the  people.  There  is  not  a  home  in  this  community  but 
has,  especially  in  the  time  of  sorrow  and  trouble,  received 
these  men  as  comforters  and  healers  of  soul  and  body.  With 
the  life  and  service  of  Dr.  Sedgwick  we  shall  deal  in  the 
chapter  on  the  Churches  and  their  Ministers. 

Dr.  Roach  was  a  native  of  Cumberland  County  where 
he  received  his  early  education.  After  graduating  from 
Pennsylvania  Medical  College,  he  came  to  Tatamagouche 
where  he  continued  for  forty  years  to  practise  his  profession. 
The  greater  part  of  that  time  he  was  the  only  medical  man 
residing  in  North  Colchester.  As  a  professional  man  he 
in  his  time,  stood  high.  Though  the  study  of  medicine  had, 
because  of  the  progress  of  science,  become  almost  entirely 
different  at  the  close  of  his  practice  to  what  it  was  at  its 
beginning,  he  was,  nevertheless,  because  of  his  ability  as  a  stu- 
dent, able  to  keep  well  up  in  the  study  of  the  modern  methods 
and  treatments.  He  was  a  man  of  mild  temperament  and 
had  the  heart  of  a  child.  After  forty  years'  experience  with 
sickness  and  death,  he  never  seemed  to  lose  his  sensitiveness 
to  pain  and  sorrow,  and  sympathy  for  the  sick  prompted 
him  on  many  occasions  to  continue  at  work  when  he  himself 
was  far  from  a  well  man.  We  believe  that  we  *can  say, 
without  fear  of  contradiction,  that  no  man  ever  hel«,a  firmer 
grip  on  the  affections  of  the  people  of  Tatamagouche  than 
did  "the  old  doctor".  It  is  no  disgrace  to  him  to  say  he 
died  a  poor  man.  Had  he  received  all  the  remuneration 
which  he,  in  justice  to  himself,  could  have  demanded,  he 
would  have  died  wealthy.  His  reward  was  not  riches  but 
rather  to  be  held  in  grateful  remembrance  by  those  who 
had  experienced  his  skill  as  a  physician,  or  had  felt  the 
sympathy  of  a  friend  who  never  failed. 

We  have  already  mentioned  the  old  Nova  Scotia  Militia, 
and  traced  its  course  at  Tatamagouche  as  late  as  1825.  We 
shall  now  make  a  few  further  remarks  upon  this  subject. 


HISTORY    OF    TATAMAGOUCHE  93 

In  1827,  the  militia  throughout  the  province  appears 
to  have  been  re-organized.  The  2nd  Battalion,  Colchester 
Regiment,  was  to  be  composed  of  men  from  the  northern 
half  of  the  present  county  of  Colchester.  In  this  year  the 
following  officers  were  from  Tatamagouche  and  vicinity: 
Capt.  Alex.  Campbell,  2nd  Lieuts.  Samuel  Waugh  and  M.  H. 
Wilson.  Two  years  later  the  following  additional  names 
appear:  1st  Lieut.  Rufus  McNutt,  2nd  Lieuts.  M.  Waugh 
and  Charles  McCurdy,  and  Edwin  Carritte,  Surgeon.  In 
1831,  Alexander  Campbell  was  promoted  to  Major  and  Ed- 
ward Langille  made  2nd  Lieut.  In  1833,  there  was 
another  re-organization  and  we  find  that  the  3rd  Battalion 
of  the  Cblchester  Regiment  was  made  up  of  men  from 
what  is  now  the  District  of  Stirling.  We  give  the  officers 
in  full:  Lt.  Col.  Alexander  Campbell*,  Major  R.  B.  Dickson, 
Captains  J.  McL.  Dickson,  D.  Dewar,  D.  Baxter,  Alex. 
Conkey,  Hugh  Munroe,  George  Ross,  and  D.  C.  McCurdy; 
1st  Lieuts.  Edw.  Langille,  John  McKay,  M.  Waugh,  R. 
Murray,  and  Wm.  Scott;  2nd  Lieuts.  John  Langille,  James 
Campbell,  David  Wilson,  Donald  Ross  and  D.  McKay; 
Adjutant  J.  McL.  Dickson;  J.  B.  Davidson,  Quartermaster. 
In  1841,  Alex.  Conkey  was  appointed  Major  and  the  fol- 
lowing 2nd  Lieuts.:  John  Lombard,  Wm.  McConnell,  John 
Millar,  John  Lockerbie,  Wm.  Bryden,  Ephrm.  Langille, 
Jas.  Simpson,  Alex  McCurdy,  John  Nelson,  John  Hewitt, 
Robert  Purves,  Robt.  Byers,  Q.  M.  Jas.  Hepburn. 

Although  annual  drill  was  compulsory  by  law,  it  was 
not  always  performed.  Many  years  the  Assembly  deemed 
it  unnecessary  and  it  was  dispensed  with.  During  the 
"fifties"  the  militia  throughout  Nova  Scotia  was  lifeless,  and 
it  was  not  until  the  Fenian  troubles  of  the  "sixties"  that 
it  was  revived.  After  the  death  of  the  Hon.  Alexander 
Campbell,  the  3rd  Battalion  Colchester  Regiment  was  without 
a  Colonel.  Finally,  in  1863,  Alex.  Conkey  was  appointed. 

The  period  1842-63  we  can  pass  over  as  far  as  the  militia 
is  concerned  as  unimportant.  But  the  "sixties"  brought 
complications  with  the  United  States  over  the  Civil  War, 
which  was  followed  by  the  Fenian  Raids.  The  Government 

*The  appointment  of  Hon.  Alex.  Campbell  was  opposed  by  Wm.  Waugh  (son  of  old 
Wellwood  Waugh)  who  claimed  that  as  he  (Waugh)  had  been  Captain  in  the  Militia  since 
1808  that  he  was  entitled  to  the  rank  of  Lt.  Col.  His  claims,  though  presented  in  the  form 
of  a  petition,  were  overlooked. 


94  HISTORY    OF    TATAMAGOUCHE 

of  Nova  Scotia  hastened  to  prepare  the  Province  as  best 
it  could  for  the  threatening  dangers.  The  ihilitia  was 
re-organized  and  new  officers  appointed.  In  1864,  the  militia 
in  this  County  was  increased  to  six  battalions,  the  sixth 
being  made  up  of  men  from  the  present  electoral  districts 
of  Tatamagouche  East  and  West,  New  Annan,  Waugh's 
River,  and  Brule.  The  officers  of  this  battalion  in  1864 
were  as  follows:  Lt.  Col.  John  Millar;  Majors  D.  A.  Camp- 
bell and  R.  A.  Logan;  Captains  Arch.  Campbell,  Benj.  Blair, 
Edw.  Kent,  Abram  H.  Patterson,  Henderson  Gass,  Wm. 
Logan;  1st  Lieuts.  W.  A.  McDonald,  Geo.  Waugh,  John 
Urquhart,  Wm.  Patterson  and  Marmaduke  Fraser;  2nd 
Lieuts.  Washington  Irving;  Surgeon  E.  D.  Roach.  The 
following  became  officers  in  the  next  year:  Captains  Alex. 
Williamson  and  David  Nelson;  1st  Lieuts.  Robert  Purves, 
E.  L.  Cutten,  Wellwood  Currie,  Wm.  Irvine,  Isaac  Blair 
and  James  Bryden;  ^2nd  Lieuts.  John  Wilson,  Isaac  Reid 
Wm.  McCully,  Jas.  Nelson  and  Jas.  Kennedy;  Adjutant 
B.  Blair;  Quartermaster  Arch.  Patterson.  In  1869,  the 
last  year  the  militia  had  drill,  the  following  new  officers 
appear:  Capt.  W.  A.  Patterson;  1st  Lieut.  A.  H.  Patterson; 
2nd  Lieuts.  Rod.  Barclay,  Jos.  Sled,  J.  T.  B.  Henderson, 
Jas.  T.  Johnson,  J.  D.  Mclntosh,  Hugh  Harris,  Geo.  Nelson, 
and  Jas.  Porteous. 

During  these  years  annual  drill  of  five  days  was  performed. 
On  the  first  four,  each  company  was  drilled  by  itself.  The 
last  day  was  taken  up  with  battalion  drill.*  On  that  day, 
which  was  not  without  high  excitement,  all  the  companies 
met  in  the  village. 

By  the  terms  of  Confederation  in  1867,  the  control  of 
the  militia  passed  to  the  Federal  Government.  As  Fenian 
Raids  were  over  the  Government  decided  to  do  away  with 
compulsory  drill,  giving,  however,  to  all  units  the  right  to 
drill  if  they  desired.  For  two  years  the  men  of  Tatama- 
gouche continued  to  drill,  and  then  they  voluntarily  disbanded. 

It  may  be  noted  that  in  the  spring  of  1866,  when  the 
Fenian  scare  was  at  its  height,  the  militia  men  of  this  com- 
munity, in  accordance  with  the  Proclamation  issued  by  the 
then  Lieut.  Governor,  were  under  orders  to  prepare  them- 
selves to  meet  any  emergency.  Men  were  drafted  from  the 

*The  drill  was  usually  held  in  the  field  back  of  David  Campbell's  house.  For  excitement 
it  rivalled  the  day  of  a  launch,  and  as  a  rule  ended  with  a  fight  in  the  evening. 


HISTORY    OF    TATAMAGOUCHE  95 

various  companies,  and  did  a  special  drill.  As  all  the  mem- 
bers were,  technically  speaking  at  least,  on  active  service, 
they  became  eligible  for  the  Fenian  Raid  bounty  granted  a 
few  years  ago  by  the  Dominion  Government. 

At  the  same  time  as  the  revival  of  the  militia,  there  was 
inaugurated  throughout  the  Province  a  volunteer  movement. 
By  this  scheme  a  number  of  men  sufficient  to  form  a  company, 
volunteered  to  perform  a  certain  number  of  days'  drill  annually 
for  three  years.  In  1860-61,  several  units  were  organized 
throughout  the  Province,  but  it  was  not  till  '62  that  the 
"Stirling  Rifles"  was  organized  at  Tatamagouche.  The 
officers  were  as  follows:  Captain  David  Campbell;  1st  Lieut. 
Wm.  Blackwood;  2nd  Lieuts.  W.  A.  McDonald  and  Arch. 
Campbell;  Surgeon  E.  D.  Roach.  At  the  expiration  of 
their  time  of  service  in  1866,  a  grand  ball  was  given  in  the 
Town  Hall  by  the  officers  and  men.  It  was  the  social  event 
of  the  times  and  was  attended  by  all  the  flower  and  beauty 
of  the  community.  The  officers,  for  the  last  time,  appeared 
in  their  unfiorms. 

In  this  democratic  country  there  is,  as  a  rule,  a  general 
aversion  to  anything  in  the  nature  of  compulsion,  particu- 
larly in  regard  to  military  service  or  drill.  That  was,  in 
all  probability  one  of  the  reasons  why  the  Government 
determined  to  make  the  militia  throughout  Canada  purely 
voluntary.  But  still,  we  cannot  but  have  regret  that  the 
old  Nova  Scotia  Militia,  which  had  reached  so  high  a  degree 
of  proficiency  was  not  continued  throughout  the  Province. 
Aside  from  the  fact  that  it  was  compulsory  there  were  no 
odious  features  connected  with  it.  The  men  enjoyed  the 
drill,  where  for  a  few  days  they  could  turn  aside  from  the  usual 
day's  routine  and  mingle  with  and  become  better  acquainted 
with  their  fellow  men.  Its  physical  effects  were  good;  men 
stood  straighter  and  walked  with  better  carriage.  From  a 
military  standpoint  it,  too,  accomplished  its  purposes.  By 
it  each  man  in  the  community  became  acquainted  with 
the  rudiments  of  military  drill.  He  learned  to  handle  a 
rifle  and  to  shoot  straight.  If,  at  the  outbreak  of  the  present 
war,  there  had  been  organized  throughout  Nova  Scotia  a 
militia  as  there  was  in  the  "sixties,"  it  would  have  assisted 
greatly  in  the  raising  of  volunteers  and  in  the  training  of 


96  HISTORY    OF    TATAMAGOUCHE 

the  recruits.     A  good  start  would  have  been  made  long  before 
the  outbreak  of  hostilities. 

No  sketch,  however  short,  of  the  shipbuilding  days  at 
Tatamagouche,  is  complete  without  a  reference  to  the 
loss  of  the  "Isabella",  a  small  vessel  of  50  tons,  built 
in  the  fall  of  1868  by  John  Millar,  of  the  Mountain.  It 
was  early  December  before  the  vessel  was  completed  and 
loaded  with  a  cargo  of  lumber  for  South  America.  There 
are  many  yet  alive  who  can  well  recollect  her  as  on  that 
December  day  she  gaily  sailed  out  of  the  harbour,  and  was 
soon  lost  to  view  on  what  was  to  prove  her  first  and  only 
voyage.  From  the  day  she  sailed  through  the  Gut  of  Canso, 
nothing  has  ever  been  heard  of  either  her  or  her  crew.  Heavy 
storms  visited  the  country  shortly  after  she  set  sail,  and 
it  was  generally  believed  that  she  was  lost  off  the  Cape 
Breton  coast.  There  were  rumours  which  were  probably 
not  without  foundation,  that  wreckage  of  a  vessel  answering 
to  her  description  had  been  found  along  that  coast.  On 
board  the  vessel,  besides  John  Millar,  the  owner,  were  Tom 
Millar,  his  son;  John  Mclntosh,  of  Waugh's  River;  and 
Alex.  Drysdale,  of  the  Mountain;  John  Toker,  Jr.,  captain; 
Hector  McLean,  who  was  mate;  and  Ephraim  Matatall. 

Another  wreck  was  that  of  a  brigantine*  which  was 
built  by  Robert  Logan  in  or  about  1863.  On  her  first  voyage 
she  was  loaded  with  merchandise  for  Newfoundland,  and 
set  sail  from  Tatamagouche  about  th'e  last  of  October.  On 
the  night  subsequent  to  sailing,  the  mate,  who  was  unfamiliar 
with  the  Northumberland  coast,  was  directing  the  course 
of  the  vessel  and,  in  some  way,  either  missed  or  mistook 
Pictou  Island  light.  About  4  a.  m.  he  was  surprised  that 
he  was  unable  to  see  Cape  George  light  and  becoming 
alarmed  he  had  all  the  crew  called  on  deck.  They  immediate- 
ly "hove-to"  and  while  each  was  endeavouring  to  catch 
a  glimpse  of  a  light,  they  were  surprised  to  see  a  high 
and  rocky  shore  loom  up  almost  alongside  the  ship. 
They  had  oversailed  their  course  and  were  almost  ashore 
at  Broad  Cove,  Inverness.  Frantic  efforts  were  made  to 
put  the  vessel  seaward,  but  the  heavy  wind  and  sea  made 
their  endeavours  of  no  avail.  As  soon  as  it  was  found  that  noth- 
ing could  prevent  the  ship  from  striking,  the  crew  lashed  them- 
selves to  the  yards  and,  after  the  vessel  had  struck,  they 

*Mary  Jane  (?) . 


HISTORY    OF   TATAMAGOUCHE  97 

remained  there  till  the  storm  in  a  great  measure  had  abated. 
In  an  endeavour  to  reach  shore  in  a  boat  which  was  upturned 
the  mate  was  drowned.  He  was  a  remarkably  strong  man, 
and  it  is  said  that  he  clung  for  twenty  minutes  to  a  rope 
before  he  was  finally  carried  away  by  the  high-running  sea. 
Samuel  Weatherbie  of  the  village  was  a  seaman  on  board 
at  the  time.  James  Tattrie,  Lake  Road,  and  the  late  Simon 
Millard  were  with  the  ship  as  was  also  the  owner,  Robert 
Logan. 

But  the  wreck  which  aroused  the  greatest  interest 
at  Tatamagouche,  and  indeed  no  small  amount  of  interest 
throughout  all  shipping  circles,  was  the  loss  on  the  Goodwin 
Sands  of  the  "Indian  Chief"  in  the  winter  of  1880.  She 
was  not  a  Tatamagouche  vessel,  but  was  built  and  owned 
at  Yarmouth.  Marmaduke  Fraser,  son  of  William  Eraser, 
was  captain  of  this  vessel  at  the  time  she  was  lost, 
and  with  him  as  second  mate  was  his  brother,  Howard 
Primrose,  and  it  was  the  loss  of  these  two  young  men  which 
has  made  the  story  of  the  wreck  of  the  "Indian  Chief"  a 
familiar  one  in  every  Tatamagouche  home. 

The  "Indian  Chief"  a  ship  of  1238  tons  register,  sailed 
from  London  on  a  Sunday  afternoon  bound  with  a  general 
cargo  for  Yokohama.  For  the  first  few  days  thick  weather 
was  encountered  but  all  went  well.  Early  on  Wednesday 
morning,  there  arose  a  sudden  squall  accompanied  with  rain, 
and  in  the  confusion  which  followed,  the  ship  struck  the 
sands.  She  was  made  of  soft  wood  and  it  was  feared  that 
she  would  at  once  go  to  pieces.  Fires  were  kindled  and  rockets 
were  sent  up.  "But  all  the  while  the  wind  was  graduallly 
sweeping  up  into  a  gale  and  oh!  the  cold,  good  Lord,  the 
bitter  cold  of  that  wind!*"  At  daybreak  a  lifeboat  was 
sighted,  but  it  was  soon  forced  to  give  up  the  attempt  to 
reach  the  stranded  vessel.  Through  the  day  the  ship  slowly 
went  to  pieces  and  believing  that  it  was  only  a  matter  of 
time  till  she  would  break  up,  the  Captain  ordered  three 
boats  to  be  launched.  They  were  immediately  engulfed  and  the 
sailors  drowned.  Finally  all  climbed  to  the  top  of  the  masts  as 
a  last  place  of  refuge.  There  they  stayed  till  daybreak, 
when  a  life  boat  rescued  those  who  were  still  alive.  Captain 
Fraser  had  died  from  exposure  and  cold  several  hours  before 

*Quotation  from  account  written  by  W.  Clark  Russell  in  English  newspaper. 


98  HISTORY    OF    TATAMAGOUCHE 

the  rescue  but  Howard,  his  brother,  was  still  living.  He 
was  taken  on  board  the  lifeboat  where  he  died  half  an  hour 
later.  He  was  the  hero  of  the  wreck.  During  the  long 
hours  on  the  masts  he  sheltered  his  brother  as  best  he  could 
and  continually  strove  to  keep  up  the  courage  and  hope  of 
all  those  who  were  aboard.-  The  first  mate,  who  was  rescued 
speaking  of  him  said:  "Near  him  (the  captain)  wa§  his 
brother,  a  stout-built,  handsome  young  fellow,  twenty-two 
years  old,  as  fine  a  specimen  of  the  English  sailor  as  ever  I 
was  shipmate  with.  -He  was  calling  about  him  cheerfully, 
bidding  us  not  be  down-hearted  and  telling  us  to  look  sharply 
around  us  for  the  lifeboats.  He  helped  several  of  the  be- 
numbed men  to  lash  themselves  saying  encouraging  things 
to  them  as  he  made  them  fast."*  Marmaduke  and  Howard 
Fraser  surely  were  two  men  who  in  the  sternest  test  the 
sea  could  give,  lived  up  to  the  best  traditions  of  the  British 
sailor. 

In  December,  1867,  an  American  schooner  of  100  tons 
was  burned  in  the  channel  of  the  river  near  Steele's  island. 
She  had  been  loaded  with  copper  ore  at  Patterson's  wharf, 
and  grounded  in  the  channel  near  the  island,  and 
before  she  could  be  floated  the  river  was  frozen  across. 
One  night,  not  long  afterwards,  she  was  burned  to 
the  water's  edge.  The  first  intimation  which  the  people 
of  the  village  had  of  the  fire  was  when  they  awoke  the  next 
morning  and  saw  on  the  island  several  tents  which  the 
crew,  using  the  sails,  had  made  to  protect  themselves  from 
the  cold  of  the  night.  No  satisfactory  explanation  of  the 
origin  of  the  fire  was  ever  given,  and  it  was  generally  believed 
that  the  crew,  in  order  to  escape  spending  the  winter  in 
the  vessel,  had  deliberately  set  her  on  fire.  For  some  years 
after,  some  of  her  timbers  could  still  be  seen  at  low  tide. 
These,  however,  were  removed  at  the  time  of  the  dredging 
operations.  Only  a  few  years  ago  some  of  the  copper,  which 
had  been  half-smelted  by  the  fire,  was  recovered  from  the 
bottom  of  the  channel  by  the  Stirling  Mining  Company  which 
had  taken  over  the  interests  of  the  old  company.  Two  bells, 
which  were  afterwards  purchased  by  the  school  sections  of 
Barrachois  and  Tatamagouche  were  saved  from  the  wreck. 
The  Tatamagouche  one  continued  to  be  used  till  the  time 
of  the  building  of  the  new  school  house. 

*A  notation  from  account  written  by  W.  Clark  Ruasel  in  English  newspaper. 


THE  BUILDING  OF  THE  "McCLURE,"  1900. 
TOI.PEDOEO  IN  MEDITEKRANKAN.  JUNE,  1917. 


HISTORY    OF    TATAMAGOUCHE  99 

By  1870,  shipbuilding  had  lost  its  place  as  the  leading 
industry  of  the  community,  and  at  the  end  of  another  ten 
years  it  could  no  longer  be  called  an  industry  at  all. 
Some  of  the  last  ships  built  by  D.  and  Arch.  Camp- 
bell were  the  largest  to  be  launched  at  Tatamagouche. 
The  "Jumna",  "Edith  Carmichael",  and  "Minnie  Car- 
michael" were  vessels  of  some  800  to  1000  tons.  They 
were  built  in  Campbells'  yards  and  were  so  large  that  their 
bowsprits  extended  over  the  highway  that  runs  near  the 
yards.  The  building  of  these  ships,  practically  brought 
to  an  .end  the  shipbuilding  industry  at  Tatamagouche. 
Subsequently  small  coasting  vessels  were  built.  In  1900  and 
1904,  Capt.  Alex.  Weatherbie  built  the  "McClure"*  and  the 
"  Unity",  three  masted  schooners  of  about  200  tons  each. 

The  decline  of  this  industry  at  Tatamagouche  was  due, 
of  course,  to  the  loss  of  the  market  for  wooden  sailing  vessels, 
their  place  in  the  work  of  ocean  transportation  being  gradu- 
ally taken  by  iron  and  steam  craft.  The  rather  premature 
close  of  this  industry  at  Tatamagouche  may  have  been 
accelerated  by  various  local  conditions,  but  its  final  close 
was  inevitable.  At  River  John,  for  instance,  they  continued 
to  build  ships  for  another  ten  years,  though  a  good  portion 
of  the  ship  timber  was  obtained  in  the  vicinity  of  this  place. 
Still,  it  was  only  ten  years  till  shipbuilding  at  River  John  met 
the  same  fate. 

We  may,  however,  before  concluding  this  chapter,  add 
a  few  other  general  observations  upon  the  shipbuilding 
i  ndustry  as  carried  on  at  Tatamagouche. 

The  vessels  constructed  varied  in  size  from  the  small 
"Jane  Ann"  of  7  tons  to  the  "Jumna"  of  1000  tons.  They 
were  used,  according  to  their  size  and  build,  for  coasting, 
intercolonial  and  foreign  trade.  A  number  were  built  for 
fishing  purposes,  the  "Newfoundlanders",  for  instance. 
The  majority  were  built  for  sale  in  the  open  market  but  many, 
notably  the  larger  ones,  were  built  under  contract  for  persons 
in  the  Old  Country  or  elsewhere.  The  foremen,  as  a  rule, 
did  the  designing,  though  when  building  under  contract, 
the  specifications  and  drafts  were  generally  sent  out  by  the 
buyers.  The  five  classes  of  vessels  so  common  in  those 
days — schooner,  brigantine,  brig,  barque,  and  full-rigged- 

*Torpedoed  in  the  Mediterranean,  June.   1917. 


100  HISTORY    OF   TATAMAGOUCHE 

ship — were  all  built  at  Tatamagouche.  The  ship  market 
during  those  years  was  so  fluctuating  and  uncertain  that  the 
greatest  variance  is  to  be  found  in  the  sums  realised  for  like 
ships  at  different  periods.  There  was  no  gradual  and  well 
ordered  fall  and  rise  in  the  prices,  but,  as  we  have  seen,  with 
scarcely  any  apparent  reason  or  warning,  the  bottom  fell 
out  of  the  ship  market  and  vessels  frequently  sold 
for  amounts  that  did  not  cover  their  expenses  across 
the  Atlantic.  More  than  one  Nova  Scotian  shipbuilder 
has  been  ruined  because  of  expenses  which  have  accumulated 
around  a  vessel  lying  unsold  in  Liverpool,  or  other  foreign 
ports.  It  may,  however,  be  interesting  to  note  the  actual 
values  which  were  placed  upon  a  few  of  the  many  vessels 
constructed  here.  In  1834,  Wm.  Campbell  built  a  schooner 
"Thomas  Mahoney"  of  94  tons.  She  was  contracted  for 
persons  in  England  and  was  to  be  built  for  the  most  part 
of  black  birch  and  to  be  fully  rigged.  For  this  ship  Camp- 
bell received  £475  or  roughly,  $2,000.  The  Customs  returns 
for  1863  placed  the  value  of  the  "Staffa",  a  barque  of  309 
tons  at  $12,300;  of  the  "Gertrude"  brigantine  of  133  tons, 
at  $5,300;  and  of  the  "Glen  Tilt",  barque  of  323  tons,  at 
$13,000.  In  1865,  the  "Lillie  M.',  a  barque  of  349  tons, 
was  valued  at  $14,960.  These,  being  Customs  returns, 
do  not  exactly  represent  what  the  owners  received,  but 
they  fairly  well  indicate  the  value  of  ships  built  at  that  time. 
Considering  the  large  number  of  ships  which  were  built 
here,  it  is  rather  surprising  how  few  shares  in  them  were 
ever  retained  by  Tatamagouche  people.  There  were,  of 
course,  exceptions,  but,  as  a  rule,  the  builders  seemed 
desirous  of  selling  their  vessels  outright;  and  it  was 
rarely  that  they  retained  any  substantial  interest.  Another 
peculiar  fact  is  that,  while  Tatamagouche  was  a  leading 
shipbuilding  port,  it  cannot  be  said  to  have  been  the  home 
of  many  sailors.  Some  of  her  sons,  it  is  true,  have  followed 
the  sea,  but,  considering  the  large  number  of  ships  were  were 
constructed  and  for  the  first  time  manned  here,  the  number 
is  surprisingly  few.  Indeed,  it  seems  that  when  a  vessel 
was  launched  and  sold  that  as  far  as  the  people  of  Tata- 
magouche were  concerned  was  the  end  of  her. 

Although  this  industry    conferred   few,    if    indeed  any, 
permanent    benefits    upon    this     place     and     community, 


HISTORY    OF    TATAMAGOUCHE  101 

still  for  fifty  years  it  made  Tatamagouche  a  busy 
hive  of  industry.  From  sunrise  to  dusk  the  shores  from 
Campbell's  to  Lockerbie's  heard  the  music  of  the  singing 
saws  and  the  continual  din  of  hammer,  axe  and  adze.  In 
the  evenings  the  small  village  presented  a  busy  scene,  men 
in  groups  gathered  in  the  stores,  or  along  the  streets,  mingling 
with  sailors  from  the  ships,  or  farmers  from  the  surrounding 
districts.  Rum,  which  was  sold  as  a  staple  article  by  all 
the  local  merchants,  was  plentiful  as  water  and  tended  in  a 
great  degree  to  make  the  evenings  merrier  and  the  nights 
more  hideous. 

But  those  days  are  gone,  never,  save  in  story,  to  return. 
And  after  all,  who  would  call  them  back?  Theirs  was  a  false 
and  transient  prosperity,  which  before  it  was  born  was 
doomed  by  science  to  an  early  death.  Shipbuilding,  with 
all  its  charms  and  alluring  possibilities,  never  can,  as  an 
industry,  have  the  same  solid  and  dependable  value  to  a  com- 
munity as  has  agriculture.  For,  while  the  one  produces 
only  that  commerce  may  be  expedited,  the  other  brings 
forth  from  the  earth  those  products  which  are  indispensable 
to  life  itself.  If  all  else  should  fail,  agriculture  must  and 
will  go  on. 


102  HISTORY    OF    TATAMAGOUCHE 

CHAPTER  VIII 
THE  CHURCHES  AND  THEIR  MINISTERS 

''PHE  first  service  conducted  at  Tatamagouche  by  a  Min- 
ister of  the  Gospel  was  in  the  year  1775.  It  was  then 
that  this  community  was  spiritually  uplifted  by  a  visit  of 
the  Rev.  James  Bennet,*  an  itinerant  missionary  of  the  Church 
of  England.  On  the  occasion  of  his  visit  he  administered 
the  Lord's  Supper  to  twenty-eight  communicants.  This 
was  only  three  years  after  the  arrival  of  the  first  permanent 
settlers  so  that  this  number  would  include  about  all  the 
adult  persons  then  living  in  the  community.  Fifteen  years 
afterwards,  Mr.  Bennet  again  visited  Tatamagouche.  Re- 
turning to  Pictou,  he  lost  his  way  and  was  forced  to  spend 
the  night  in  the  woods. 

The  first  settlers,  as  we  have  already  seen,  were  intensely 
religious  and,  though  they  did  not  have  a  regular  minister 
stationed  in  their  midst,  they  nevertheless  held  meetings  of 
their  own,  and  thus  kept  alive  the  strong  religious  principles 
for  which  they  were  known.  In  1793,  the  coming  of  the  New 
Lights  among  the  people  at  Tatamagouche  and  River  John 
caused  such  serious  unrest,  that  John  Langille  and  George 
Patriquin  of  the  latter  place  sent  for  Dr.  MacGregor  of  Pictou, 
who  immediately  answered  their  call.  After  his  visit  to 
River  John,  he  proceeded  to  Tatamagouche.  At  the  time, 
there  were  only  fourteen  families  in  the  settlement,  three 
Scotch  and  the  others  Swiss.  All  were  Protestants,  the  Scotch 
of  course,  being  Presbyterian,  and  the  Swiss  Lutheran,  though 
they  nearly  all,  if  not  all,  became  members  of  the  Presby- 
terian Church.  Dr.  MacGregor  found  that  the  little  settle- 
ment had  in  no  wise  neglected  the  spiritual  side  of  life.  In 
their  weekly  prayer  meetings  a  Mr.  Kelley  took  an  active 
part. 

"Kelley  was  an  intelligent,  able  and  industrious  man  to  whom  they  all 
became  much  attached,  and  through  whom  they  obtained  instruction  in  the 
elementary  branches  of  education.  This  Mr.  Kelley,  however,  set  out  for 
Truro,  but  never  returned.  Afterwards  his  body  was  found  near  a  pond  where 
he  had  perished  from  cold  and  hunger,  after  having  erected  a  slight  shelter 
and  made  a  fire.  His  loss  proved  a  great  injury  to  the  moral  and  religious 
improvement  of  the  people. "f 

*Mr.  Bennet  resided  at  Fort  Edward  (Windsor). 
tMemoirs  of  Dr.   MacGregor,  page  263. 


REV.  ROBERT  BLACKWOOD. 


HISTORY    OF    TATAMAGOUCHE  103 

While  at  Tatamagouche,  people  from  far  and  near,  some 
even  from  Wallace,  came  to  converse  with  Dr.  MacGregor 
at  the  house  of  Wellwood  Waugh,  where  he  lodged  during 
his  short  stay.  The  weather  was  stormy,  which  prevented 
him  from  doing  much  travelling.  On  Sunday  he  preached 
at  the  house  of  James  Bigney  which,  as  we  have  seen,  stood 
near  the  east  bank  of  the  French  River.  So  many  gathered 
that  the  small  house  could  not  contain  them  and  "when  par- 
ents held  up  children  to  be  baptized  they  had  go  into  the 
open  air  to  find  standing  room."* 

A  few  years  later  Dr.  MacGregor  again  visited  Tata- 
magouche, River  John,  and  Wallace.  This  time  he  came 
around  by  the  shore  from  Pictou  to  River  John  and  then 
through  the  woods  to  Tatamagouche.  In  the  following  years 
he  paid  several  other  visits  to  this  place  while  on  his  way 
to  Wallace  where  a  number  of  Scottish  families  had  settled. 

The  first  minister  to  hold  regular  services  at  Tatama- 
gouche was  the  Rev.  John  Mitchell,  who  was  born  in  the  spring 
of  1765  at  Newcastle-on-Tyne,  England,  where  his  father 
carried  on  the  business  of  a  flour  merchant.  He  left  school 
after  receiving  the  ordinary  common  school  education,  and 
began  to  learn  the  rope-making  trade.  Spending  his  spare 
hours  in  either  idleness  or  wickedness,  his  life  at  first  was 
anything  but  a  Christian  one.  On  a  Sunday,  while  out 
rowing,  he  was  saved  from  drowning  by  what  he  believed  to 
be  the  intervention  of  Divine  Power.  After  this  he  became 
a  regular  attendant  at  church  services,  but  at  the  same  time 
he  did  not  entirely  forsake  his  evil  ways.  One  day,  when 
on  the  race  track,  to  which  he  frequently  resorted,  he  seemed 
to  come  to  a  fuller  realisation  of  his  sins,  and  then  and  there 
determined  to  give  his  life  to  the  ministry. 

"The  next  day",  to  use  his  own  words,  "when  others  were  going  to 
see  the  races,  I  went  out  to  the  fields  to  pray,  read  and  meditate.  The  Bible 
became  precious  to  me,  prayer  my  delight,  and  divine  C3nte.nplation  exceeding- 
ly sweet  to  my  soul." 

He  decided  to  become  a  minister  and  in  the  long  way  which 
led  to  his  entry  into  that  profession,  he  never  faltered. 

Preaching  in  the  day  time,  his  spare  hours  were  no  longer 
given  to  idleness  but  rather  to  study,  so  that  by  1795  he  had 
obtained  sufficient  education  to  enter  Horton  Academy. 

*Memoirs  of  Dr.  MacGregor,  page  263. 


104  HISTORY    OF    TATAMAGOUCHE 

When  he  completed  his  course  at  that  institution,  he  was  sent 
by  the  London  Missionary  Society  to  America.  Leaving 
London  on  March  17th,  1800,  he  arrived  at  Quebec  ten  weeks 
later.  He  first  received  a  call  from  Montreal,  but  preferred 
to  go  to  New  Carlisle,  which  was  a  poor,  struggling  congre- 
gation, for,  to  use  his  own  words,  "The  cries  of  the  poor  on 
the  Bay  are  more  pressing  than  the  cry  of  the  rich  in 
Montreal." 

In  1803,  Mitchell  made  a  tour  of  the  coast  from  Bay  of 
Chaleur  to  Canso.  On  May  5th  he  preached  at  River  John 
and  then  proceeded  to  Tatamagouche,  Wallace  and  other 
places.  In  the  same  year  to  the  great  regret  of  the  people 
of  New  Carlisle,  he  left  them  to  take  up  his  work  at  Amherst. 
When,  in  1808,  that  congregation  had  so  increased  in  wealth 
and  number  that  it  was  well  able  to  support  a  minister  of 
its  own,  he  bade  it  farewell  to  take  up  the  more  arduous 
duties  of  attending  to  the  spiritual  needs  of  River  John  and 
Tatamagouche.  He  resided  at  the  former  place  and  removed 
his  family  there  in  the  following  year.  He  held  regular 
monthly  services  at  Tatamagouche;  in  the  winter  they  would 
meet  in  the  larger  houses  and  during  the  summer  in  the 
new  frame  barn  of  Wellwood  Waugh. 

Waugh  was  his  right-hand  man  at  Tatamagouche; 
besides  being  a  regular  attendant,  he  aided  his  minister 
financially  as  well.  The  difficulty  of  providing  funds  to  pay  the 
minister  his  promised  salary  is  not  confined  to  the  present 
day.  Frequently  in  addition  to  paying  his  full  share,  Waugh 
advanced  money  for  the  congregation.  On  his  books 
you  frequently  find  this  entry:  "To  sum  lente  for  paying 
the  minister."  The  little  congregation  suffered  greatly 
because  of  the  need  of  a  regular  place  of  worship.  The  houses 
were  all  too  small  as  well  as  inconvenient,  and  lacked 
the  inspiration  which  a  regular  place  of  worship  will  in 
time  possess.  At  various  times,  encouraged  by  their  minister, 
the  people  endeavoured  to  erect  a  meeting  house, 
but  without  success.  Differences  that  could  not,  or  would 
not  be  reconciled,  arose,  and  the  project  was  abandoned. 
At  length,  in  1820,  Waugh,  who  was  now  not  only  advanced 
in  age,  but  also  in  the  material  things  of  this  world,  under- 
took, with  the  aid  of  his  sons,  to  build  the  church.  The 
following  is  what  he  himself  says  about  this  matter: 


HISTORY    OF   TATAMAGOUCHE  105 

"This  settlement  being  favoured  with  the  preaching  of  the  Gospei,  the 
inhabitants  thereof  concluded,  as  a  duty  indispensable  and  necessary,  to  pre- 
pare a  place  of  public  worship.  Meetings  were  held  and  plans  were  arranged 
to  carry  the  same  into  effect.  Their  resolution  in  this  was  short  lived,  because 
incoherently  dividing  in  their  opinion  concerning  matters  of  small  importance, 
they  soon  desisted  from  their  imaginary  ideas,  which  seemed  rather  to  frustrate 
than  to  propogate  the  gospel  among  them.  Measures  were  again  adopted 
for  the  same  purpose  by  a  contracted  number  of  individuals  but  with  little 
better  success;  having  erected  a  frame  adjacent  to  the  place  where  the  meeting 
house  now  stands,  dissensions  analogous  to  the  former  arose,  and  instead 
of  coalescing  with  and  supporting  each  other,  they  disunited  and  irresolutely 
desisted  from  the  work. 

"Having  by  these  polemical  controversies  which  were  alloyed  with  no 
inconsiderable  mixture  of  prejudice  and  opposition  (a  character  unbecoming 
to  professors  of  Christianity)  overturned  the  whole  system  of  their  former 
resolutions,  a  purpose  more  circumscribed  than  the  former  now  takes  place, 
the  aforementioned  Waugh  with  his  sons  Thomas,  William  and  Wellwood*, 
independent  of  others,  begins  and  carries  into  effect  the  putting  up  of  a  meeting 
house,  a  delineation  of  which  we  have  in  the  following  piece  of  poetry: — 

"Altho.  in  number  few  we  be 
Thy  Promise  is  to  two  or  three, 
We'rt  only  four  here  as  we  stand 
We  beg  thy  counsel  and  direct 
And  also  be  Thou  the  architect. 
We'll  go  to  work  with  heart  and  hand, 
A  house  will  build  at  Thy  command. 
No  sacrifice  property  we  desire  to  have 
But  free-will  offering  from  all  friends  we  crave. 
On  the  apostle's  doctrine  and  Christ  alone 
We  lay  the  foundation  and  build  thereon; 
And  from  all  dangers  keep  us  free, 
From  Popery  and  from  prelacy. 
We  pray  for  a  blessing  by  Thy  grace 
On  him  who  labours  in  word  and  doctrine  in  this  place; 
Let  him  and  us  preserved  be 
Until  this  house  be  dedicated  a  church  to  Thee. 
All  jarring  contests  we  will  putraise, 
And  turn  them  to  Thy  glorious  praise, 
Thy  promise  is,  and  cannot  fail, 

Against  Thy  Church  the  gates  of  Hell  shall  not  prevail. 
The  ten  commandments  our  guides  shall  be 
But  cannot  keep  one  of  them  perfectly 
The  Westminster  Confession  of  Faith  shall  be  our  guide, 
And  all  the  doctrines  as  they  do  stand 
Covenants  as  they  were  sworn  to  with  uplifted  hands." 

"It  is  recommended  that  the  members  of  the  congregation  would  nominate 
and  appoint  two  or  three  of  their  members  to  be  chosen  annually  for  the 
purpose  of  inspecting  and  for  keeping  in  repair  the  meeting  house  and  what- 
ever emolument  may  accrue  from  the  letting  of  seats  to  be  appropriated  to 
the  use  of  the  minister,  and  that  a  minute  book  and  register  may  be  kept  by 
them.  It  is  a  common  thing  that  where  a  place  of  common  worship  is,  the 
burying  ground  also  is  public,  but  here  it  is  to  be  observed  that  it  was  deter- 
mined by  the  proprietors  of  the  meeting  house  that  whoever  contributed 
to  the  aid  of  the  same  should  have  a  right  to  and  privilege  of  occupying  a 

*Waugh*3  other  son,  Alexander,  had  died  previously. 


106  HISTORY    OF    TATAMAGOUCHE 

part  of  the  burying  ground,  but  those  who  did  not,  were  to  be  excluded  from 
any  claim  thereto.  Therefore  let  it  be  known  that  from  henceforth  none 
may  claim  or  have  a  privilege  there  but  their  proprietors,  thereof,  their 
families  or  those  to  whom  they  may  grant  permission. 

Tatamagouche,  August,  1820. 
Contributions  etc.,  Alex  McNab,  a  bell." 

Thus  it  came  to  pass  that  in  August,  1820,  the 
place  of  worship  which  has  since  been  known  as  the  "Willow 
Church"  was  opened  for  service.  Disregarding  the  small 
Catholic  Chapel,  which  was  built  by  the  French  during 
their  short  stayyit  was  the  first  church  of  any  denomination 
to  be  erected  in  North  Colchester.  We  are  at  least  safe 
in  saying  that  it  was  the  first  church  erected  by  a  Protes- 
tant denomination  in  this  community.  It  was  the  inten- 
tion of  the  builders  that  pews  should  be  placed  therein, 
but  this  plan  was  never  carried  out  and  for  many  years  the 
worshippers  were  obliged,  while  their  souls  received  spiritual 
refreshment,  to  get  from  the  wooden  benches  what  comfort 
they  could  for  their  physical  bodies.  In  the  interior  at  one 
end,  stood  the  high  pulpit  which  for  years  was  so  character- 
istic of  Presbyterian  churches.  Doubtless  it,  too,  had  the 
usual  wide  swinging  doors.  Before  this  commanding  pulpit, 
from  which  old  and  young,  through  the  succeeding  years, 
eagerly  heard  the  Divine  message,  sat  the  precentors, 
who  in  the  absence  of  any  musical  instrument  led  the  con- 
gregation in  singing  Psalms  of  David  in  the  Scottish  version — 
hymns  in  those  days  being  debarred.  Aaron  Crowe,  of 
the  Mountain,  who  had  been  a  music  master  in  Halifax,  was 
one  of  the  precentors.  Who  can  ever  think  of  this  old 
church  and  not  imagine  that  he  hears  them  singing  still, 
the  blending  of  the  voices  of  men  and  women  and  even  of 
little  children  as  they  poured  forth  into  such  verses  as  these: 

"The  Lord's  my  shepherd,  I'll  not  want, 
He  makes  me  down  to  lie 
In  pastures  green:  he  leadeth  me, 
The  quiet  waters  by." 

or  again: 

"I  to  the  hills  will  lift  mine  eyes 
From  whence  doth  come  mine  aid"? 

Gone  are  all  the  singers,  but  the  words  they  sang  live  immortal. 

This  old  Willow  Church  was  built  a  little  to  the  east  of 

the  present  one,  which  was  erected  some  time  in  the  "fifties."51 

*At  the  time  of  the  resignation  of  the  Rev .  Robert  Blackwood  from  the  Tatama- 
gouche Presbyterian  congregation,  the  Willow  Church  portion  of  the  congregation  supported 
him  and  it  was  then  that  the  present  church  was  built. 


REV.  HUGH  Ross 


HISTORY    OF    TATAMAGOUCHE  107 

In  the  August  gale  the  church  suffered  serious  loss,  its  roof 
being  carried  away  by  the  hurricane. 

In  the  "Presbyterian  Witness"  of  August  27th,  1859, 
we  find  the  following  comment  upon  the  erection  of  the  new 
church: 

"The  Willow  Church  (the  old  church  is  referred  to)  is  gone,  and  so  are 
the  congregation  that  sat  in  it,  the  minister  who  preached  in  it,  and  the  very 
willows  that  so  beautifully  surrounded  and  overshadowed  it.  Why,  oh  why 
was  the  woodsman's  axe  permitted  to  fell  those  venerable  and  charming  trees? 
Surely  this  was  an  act  of  vandalism.  The  stumps  are  here  among  the  graves 
but  the  willows  that  were  wont  at  morn  and  even  to  weep  over  the  dead 
are  gone.  The  only  consolation  is  that  an  elegant  new  church  has  succeeded 
the  old  one,  and  that  the  Gospel  is  still  preached  here  faithfully  to  an  increasing 
congregation." 

The  writer  of  the  above  quotation  had  great  veneration 
for  the  old  church  which,  he  says,  was  "fragrant  with  the 
memory  of  good  old  Wellwood  Waugh  and  all  the  fathers 
of  the  hamlet."  He  is  perhaps  a  little  severe  in  his  attack 
upon  those  who  destroyed  the  willows.  There  were,  in  all 
probability,  practical  reasons  for  such  an  "act  of  vandalism". 

About  1822,  Mr.  Mitchell  began  monthly  services  in 
New  Annan.  We  have  already  seen  that  that  community  was 
first  settled  in  1815  by  John  Bell  who,  in  1822,  was  joined  by 
Wm.  Byers,  Thomas  Swan,  James  McGeorge  and  Wm. 
Scott.  These  men,  though  few  in  number  were  accus- 
tomed to  hold  weekly  prayer  meetings  either  in  their 
own  houses  or  in  the  school  house.  The  old  people  of 
New  Annan  often  used  to  tell  how  on  a  Sabbath  that  their 
Pastor  was  not  to  preach  there,  they  would  skate  on  the 
ice  to  Tatamagouche  and  even  to  River  John,  attend  two 
services  and  return  home  the  same  day.  Owing  to  the  increase 
of  settlers  these  communities  had  so  grown  in  wealth  and 
numbers  that  by  1826  Tatamagouche  and  New  Annan  felt 
strong  enough  to  themselves  support  a  minister  and  in  that 
year  they  extended  a  call  to  Rev.  Hugh  Ross.  Mr.  Mitchell 
continued  to  labour  in  River  John  till  death  claimed  him 
in  1841. 

"Mr.  Mitchell  was  above  the  ordinary  size,  well  formed,  and  sinewy;  of 
a  fair  complexion  and  cheerful  countenance.  Although  he  made  no  pre- 
tensions to  extent  of  learning,  lie  was  acute  and  possessed  of  a  respectable 
share  of  general  information.  He  was  a  good  man,  and  his  memory  is  much 
and  justly  revered." 

As  we  have  already  noted  in  an  earlier  chapter,  Mr. 
Ross  was  a  native  of  Invernesshire,  and  in  1813  came  with 


108  HISTORY    OT    TATAMAGOUCHE 

his  father  to  Nova  Scotia,  where  he  remained  for  a  number 
of  years  in  the  mercantile  business  in  Halifax.  He  then 
joined  his  father  who  had  settled  at  or  near  Hopewell  in 
Pictou  County.  In  1820,  Divinity  Hall  was  opened  in  con- 
nection with  Pictou  Academy.  Dr.  McCullough  was  the 
first  professor  of  Theology.  Four  years  later,  Mr.  Ross, 
with  five  others,  completed  the  prescribed  course  and  was 
licensed  and  ordained  to  preach  the  Gospel.  These  six 
men,  it  may  be  noted,  were  the  first  fruits  of  this  institution 
which  was  itself  the  first  Presbyterian  Theological  School 
in  Canada.  After  his  ordination,  Mr.  Ross  laboured  as 
an  evangelist  in  Cape  Breton  until  in  1826  he  received  and 
accepted  a  call  to  the  congregation  of  Tatamagouche  and 
New  Annan. 

There  is  no  roll  in  existence  of  those  who  were  elders 
and  communicants  at  the  time  of  the  induction  of  Mr. 
Ross,  but  they  included  nearly  all,  if  not  all,  of  the 
adult  members  of  the  community  for  all,  irrespective  of 
their  former  religious  beliefs,  attached  themselves  to  the 
Presbyterian  Church.  In  the  handwriting  of  Mr.  Ross, 
still  legible,  is  the  roll  of  those  who  became  members 
during  the  subsequent  years.  This  will  be  found  in  Appendix 
B.  We  find  in  1831,  the  following  elders  in  this  congrega- 
tion: James  Munroe,  New  Annan;  Alex.  Sherar,  Tatama- 
gouche Mountain;  James  Leaper,  New  Annan;  Duncan  Dewar, 
Dewar's  River;  Edward  Langille,  John  Currie,  and  John 
Bonyman. 

When  Mr.  Ross  came  to  Tatamagouche  there  was  but 
one  place  of  worship,  the  Willow  Church,  which,  as  we  have 
seen,  was  erected  in  1820.  The  need  of  a  house  of  worship 
in  a  more  central  part  of  his  congregation  was  a  real  one,  and 
Mr.  Ross'  first  endeavours  were  to  meet  this  need.  He  was 
successful  and  a  church  was  erected*  in  the  north-east  corne 
of  the  lot  now  used  as  the  village  cemetery. 

Mr.  Ross'  duties  were,  to  say  the  least,  most  arduous.    His 
congregation  was  scattered  and  extended  from  the  Head  of  the 

*Exaot  date  unknown. 


HISTORY    OF    TATAMAGOUCHE  109 

Bay*  to  Waugh's  River,  while  in  the  interior  it  included  all 
the  districts  of  New  Annan  and  Tatamagouche  Mountain, 
districts  which  were  being  rapidly  populated  by  people  who 
expected  and  desired  regular  religious  services.  Mr.  Ross, 
too,  encountered  difficulties  which,  thanks  to  sane  legislation, 
do  not  exist  today  to  the  same  degree  as  they  did  then. 
Liquor  was  openly  sold,  not  in  contravention  of  the  laws  of 
the  land,  but  rather  under  their  protection.  This  of  itself  was  a 
great  hindrance  to  the  moral  and  spiritual  development  of 
the  community  and  added  greatly  to  the  many  burdens  of 
the  minister. 

It  was  Mr.  Ross  who,  in  1830,  preached  the  funeral 
sermon  of  the  late  Dr.  MacGregor.  The  manuscript  of  this 
sermon  is  still  preserved,  now  in  the  possession  of  Peter 
A.  MacGregor,  New  Glasgow,  who  is  a  grandson  of  the 
late  Dr.  MacGregor. 

"It  is  written  on  two  sides  of  a  small  sheet  of  paper  about  four  by  six 
inches,  and  in  exceedingly  small  hand,  with  very  close  lines,  yet  clear  and  dis- 
tinct to  good  sharp  eyes.  .  .  This  unique  manuscript  was  given  to  Mr 
MacGregor  by  a  daughter  of  the  author.  Either  he  must  have  had  exceedingly 
keen  eyesight,  or  else  he  did  not  use  liis  manuscript  in  the  delivery  of  tiiis 
sermon,  "f 

It  may  be  noted  that  this  was  the  usual  way  for  Mr.  Ross 
to  prepare  his  sermons,  a  number  of  which  are  extant. 

In  1840,  differences  arose  between  minister  and  congre- 
gation— differences  which  at  length  became  so  serious  that 
Mr.  Ross  considering  the  interest  of  all  concerned,  tendered 
his  resignation.  He  then  joined  the  Synod  of  the  Church 
of  Scotland  and  became  pastor  of  the  congregation  of  George- 
town and  Murray  Harbour  in  Prince  Edward  Island.  Sub- 
sequently when  he  relinquished  this  charge  he  rejoined 
the  Synod  of  Nova  Scotia. 

Having  completed  his  active  ministry,  Mr.  Ross  returned 
to  spend  the  evening  of  his  life  at  his  old  home  in  Tatama- 

*The  first  church  service  held  at  Bay  Head  was  in  a  little  log  school  house.  When  the 
congregation  grew  larger,  services  were  held  by  Rev.  Hugh  Ross  of  Tatamagouche  in  a  barn 
owned  by  Wm.  Dobson.  A  threshing  floor  with  a  table  and  chair  furnished  the  convenience 
for  the  parson,  hay  mows  as  seats  for  the  people.  They  did  not  have  money  at  the  time  to 
go  ahead  and  build  a  church;  they  did  so  by  hard  labour.  The  people  united  as  one  family 
from  Clark's  Point  (at  that  time  J.  P.  Mclntosh's)  to  McClure's,  decided  to  have  a  church 
built.  They  called  a  meeting  formed  a  committee  consisting  of  Geo.  Johnson,  James  Johnson, 
Wellwood  Johnson,  Dr.  McDonald,  W.  Dobson,  D.  Cunningham,  Jacob  Spinney  and  several 
others.  The  meeting  resolved  that  every  man  should  throw  off  his  coat.  They  then  went 
to  the  forest  with  axes  and  adzes,  hewed  a  frame  and  built  a  church — a  union  church.  The 
same  church  stands  today — a  union  church — a  united  people." — An  Old  Timer,  "Colchester 
Sun,"  Nov.  16,  1916. 

f'Presbyterian  Witness." 


110  HISTORY    OF    TATAMAGOUCHE 

gouche,  where  he  was  welcomed  by  those  who  had  been  his 
firm  friends  during  the  days  of  his  ministry  there.  He  died 
suddenly  of  heart  disease  on  the  1st  day  of  December,  1858. 
It  has  been  said  of  him  that  "he  was  a  man  of  good  talents, 
of  kindly  disposition,  and  was  a  clear  and  forcible  preacher 
of  the  Gospel  both  in  English  and  in  Gaelic." 

In  1840,  a  call  was  extended  to  the  Rev.  Robt.  Black- 
wood,  who  was  the  pastor  at  Shubenacadie.  Mr.  Blackwood 
accepted  the  call  and  was  duly  inducted  into  the  charge  of 
the  congregation.  Mr.  Blackwood  was  a  native  of  Kinross, 
Scotland,  and  left  that  country  with  the  intention  of  settling 
in  the  State  of  Ohio.  When  he  reached  Halifax  he  was 
persuaded  that  there  was  as  much  need  for  him  in  Nova 
Scotia  as  in  Ohio.  So  he  remained,  and  in  October  of  1816, 
was  settled  as  pastor  of  the  wide  spread  congregation  of 
Nine  Mile  River,  Gay's  River  and  Shubenacadie.  There 
he  continued  to  labor  for  twenty-four  years. 

The  call  from  Tatamagouche  to  Mr.  Blackwood,  with 
the  original  signatures,  is  still  preserved.  A  copy  will  be 
found  in  Appendix  C.  There  are  no  records  to  show  who 
were  the  elders  and  communicants  at  the  time  of  Mr.  Black- 
wood's  induction,  but  eleven  years  later,  in  1851,  we  find  that 
the  following  were  members  of  the  united  session  of  Tata- 
magouche and  New  Annan:  Edward  Langille,  David  William- 
son, John  Currie,  James  Hingley,  John  Nelson,  and  George 
Shearer  for  Tatamagouche,  and  Robert  Byers,  Gavin  Bell, 
and  Irvine  Bell  for  New  Annan. 

Mr.  Blackwood,  before  coming  to  Nova  Scotia,  had  ac^ 
quired  some  knowledge  and  experience  in  the  medical  pro- 
fession, or  perhaps,  more  correctly  speaking,  in  the  admin- 
istering of  drugs,  and  so  during  the  course  of  his  ministry 
he  frequently  brought  bodily  as  well  as  spiritual  relie/f  to  the 
sufferer.  At  times  he  kept  a  diary,  in  which  you  will  find 
such  items  as  these: 

"Jan.  18th,  1841.  Mr.  ,  suffering  from  a  severe  cold,  bled  and 

gave  a  second  dose  of  medicine. 

Jan.  23rd,  1841.  Man  from  Purvis'  cook  house  was  bled  and  received 
two  doses  of  medicine. 

"1st  February.     Mr.  Hugh a  sore  thumb  for  a  long  time."  etc.  etc. 

As  a  rule  Mr.  Blackwood  prepared  his  sermons  by  writing 
them  in  full.  He  wrote  a  fine,  clear  hand  which  the  student 


HISTORY    OF    TATAMAGOUCHE  111 

of  today  will  experience  little  difficulty  in  reading.  He 
kept  a  collection  of  all  his  sermons  with  the  date  of  delivery, 
etc. 

Both  Mr.  Ross  and  Mr.  Black  wood  received  but  a 
small  remuneration  for  their  services.  Scarcely  ever  was  their 
salary  paid  in  full  and  during  the  later  year  of  their 
ministries  at  Tatamagouche  their  income  fell  far  short  of  the 
promised  amount.  Nor  was  the  stipend  as  a  rule  paid  in  cash. 
In  the  books  for  both  of  these  reverend  gentlemen  items  such 
as  these  form  the  majority:  "By  cod  fish."  "By  50  Ibs. 
oat  meal."  "By  two  days'  ploughing."  "By  20  Ibs.  butter." 
"By  days  teaching  children."  It  is  not  difficult  to  guess 
that  John  Currie  was  credited  with  the  last  item. 

In  1852)  Mr.  Blackwood  resigned  his  charge  at  Tatama- 
gouche but  continued  to  minister  to  the  New  Annan  and 
Willow  Church  portions  of  the  congregation.  He  then 
removed  from  his  old  home,  near  where  Mrs.  Crowe  now 
lives,  to  the  house  now  occupied  by  Charles  Brown.  He 
died  on  December  12th,  1857,  in  the  seventy-third  year  of 
his  age  and  the  forty-third  of  his  ministry.  We  quote 
the  following  from  the  "Presbyterian  Witness"  of  the  same 
year: 

"It  is  said  that  he  was  a  man  of  much  mental  energy;  that  his  memory 
was  remarkably  retentive;  that  he  delivered  his  discourses  with  a  natural 
eloquence  which  rendered  them  peculiarly  impressive  and  that  he  was  chari- 
table and  liberal  in  his  views,  drawing  together  men  of  very  different  sects, 
so  that  it  was  not  uncommon  to  see  sitting  under  his  ministry  Baptists, 
Methodists  and  Roman  Catholics,  as  well  as  Presbyterians." 

Of  those  who  sat  in  the  Tatamagouche  congregation  during 
the  ministry  of  the  Rev.  Robert  Blackwood  there  are  but 
few  alive  today,  but  these  still  remember  the  eloquence 
and  power  of  this  man  and  are  willing  witnesses  to  the  veracity 
of  the  above  quotation. 

Mr.  Blackwood  was  succeeded  by  the  Rev.  James  Byers 
who,  on  May  31st,  1853,  was  inducted  into  the  charge  of 
the  Tatamagouche  portion  of  the  congregation,  which  now 
included  the  village  proper,  French  River,  Brule,  and  that 
portion  of  New  Annan  which  had  not  separated  itself  from 
the  Tatamagouche  congregation  at  the  time  of  the  resigna- 
tion of  Mr.  Blackwood.  The  Willow  Church  portion,  as 
we  have  seen,  had  united  with  New  Annan. 


112  HISTORY    OF    TATAMAGOUCHE 

R.  L.  Byersj,  George  H.  Oliver  and  J.  Irvine  Bell  repre- 
sented as  elders  the  New  Annan  section  of  the  Tatamagouche 
congregation. 

In  1858,  after  the  death  of  Mr.  Blackwood,  upon  petition 
of  Murray  Waugh,  John  Nelson  and  others,  the  Willow 
Church  section  was  once  more  united  to  Tatamagouche 
congregation  to  which  it  is  still  attached. 

In  1854,  during  the  ministry  of  Mr.  Byers,  the  present 
village  church  was  erected,  though  since  that  time  it  has 
been  enlarged  and  improved.  It  was  in  that  year  that  the 
name  "Sharon  Church"  was  first  adopted.  John  Irvine, 
William  Fraser,  and  Archibald  Patterson  werte  the  first 
trustees,  and  the  following  signed  the  constitution:  John 
Irvine,  M.  Heughen,  D.  A.  Campbell,  John  McConnell, 
Robert  Logan,  John  Millar,  Robt.  Bryden,  David  Gilmore, 
Hugh  McNutt,  Wm.  Fraser,  James  Talbot,  Edward  Kent, 
James  McKeen,  Chas.  Reilly,  John  Heughen,  Stewart  Kis- 
lepaugh,  David  Tattrie,  Wellwood  Hutchison,  Arch.  Patter- 
son, John  Lombard,  Wm.  Campbell,  Robert  McLeod,  John 
Dumphy,  James  Tattrie,  Geo.  Lombard,  Michael  Tucker, 
James  Marshall,  Arch  Campbell,  James  McBurnie,  Jas. 
Blair,  James  Chambers,  Geo.  Patriquin,  Robt.  McLeod, 
David  Langille,  Jas.  Weatherbie,  John  Bonyman,  Henderson 
Gass,  Mary  Campbell,  John  Gould,  Roderick  McDonald, 
.  P.  Mclntosh.  Of  these,  all  have  passed  away,  Henderson 
Gass,  who  died  in  the  winter  of  1912,  being  the  last  survivin 
signatory. 

To  cover  a  portion  of  the  expense  of  building  the  church, 
the  pews  were  ordered  to  be  "sold  at  auction  at  an  upset 
price  to  be  put  thereon".  Besides  the  auction  price,  the 
holder  of  the  pew  was  obliged  to  pay  a  yearly  rent,  and  in 
cases  in  which  the  arrears  in  rent  exceeded  the  purchase 
price,  the  trustees  were  empowered  to  take  possession  of 
such  pew  and  dispose  of  it  in  any  way  they  saw  fit.  The 
cost  of  this  building  amounted  to  somewhere  around 
£580.  One  contribution  in  particular  should  be  mentioned. 
Messrs.  Millar,  Houghton  &  Co.,  of  Liverpool,  England, 
for  whom  Hon.  Alex.  Campbell  had  built  a  number 
of  ships,  generously  donated  a  bell  which  was  valued  at 
£40  sterling.  This  is  the  same  bell  which  through  the 
succeeding  years  has  done  such  faithful  service,  and  today, 


REV.  DK.  SEDGWICK 


HISTORY    OF    TATAMAGOUCHE  113 

although  fifty  years  have  elapsed,  remains  in  good  condition 
and  continues  to  call  the  people  of  Tatamagouche  to  their 
house  of  worship. 

In  1859,  Mr.  Byers  resigned  his  charge  at  Tatamagouche 
and  moved  to  Clifton,  Colchester  County,  where  he  con- 
tinued in  his  work  of  the  ministry.  He  was  a  man  of  the 
finest  type,  gentlemanly  in  his  ways  and  Christian  in  his 
character.  While  not  gifted  as  a  speaker  to  the  same  degree 
as  his  predecessor,  he  was  nevertheless  a  sound  preacher, 
holding  the  confidence,  respect  and  regard  of  a  community 
which  consisted  of  peoples  of  different  creeds  and  character. 
It  was  not  the  wish  of  his  people  that  he  should  leave  them; 
only  their  inability  at  the  time  to  pay  him  the  proper  stipend 
obliged  him  to  sever  his  connection  with  the  congregation. 

"Mr.  Byers  was  a  graduate  of  our  West  River  Seminary  and  also  a  student 
at  Princeton.  His  first  pastorate  was  at  Shelburne,  where  he  laboured  seven 
years,  travelling  over  a  widely  extended  field.  The  people  to  whom  he  min- 
istered were  deeply  attached  to  him  and  when  leaving  they  said  of  him  that 
for  compactness  of  composition  and  graceful  beauties  of  style,  he  had  no 
superior  in  the  church.  He  died  21st  May,  1877."* 

Shortly  after  the  resignation  of  Mr.  Byers,  a  call  was 
extended  to  the  then  Thomas  Sedgwick,  licentiate,  who  was 
born  in  Aberdeen,  Scotland.  His  father  was  Dr.  Robert 
Sedgwick,  minister  at  Musquodoboit.  After  coming  to  Nova 
Scotia,  he  completed  his  theological  course  at  the  West 
River  Seminary  and  on  September  19th,  1860,  was  ordained 
and  inducted  into  the  charge  of  the  Presbyterian  congre- 
gation at  Tatamagouche,  a  charge  which  he  faithfully  per- 
formed for  forty-nine  years  till  on  October  31st,  1909,  he 
preached  his  farewell  sermon  and  brought  to  a  close  his  active 
connection  with  the  congregation. 

At  the  time  of  the  induction  of  Dr.  Sedgwick,  that 
portion  of  the  New  Annan  district  which  had  remained  with 
the  Tatamagouche  congregation  at  the  time  of  the  resignation 
of  Mr.  Blackwood,  decided  to  unite  with  the  New  Annan 
congregation,  and  from  that  time  the  separation  of  Tata- 
magouche and  New  Annan  as  a  congregation  has  been 
complete.  This  still  left  a  large  field  for  Dr.  Sedgwick. 
Besides  the  two  services  which  he  regularly  conducted  each 
Sunday  in  the  village  church,  he,  as  a  rule,  held  a  service 

*Kxtractfrom  Article  on  Tatamagouche  Congregation  by  Rev.  A.  B.  Dickie,  in  "Presby- 
terian Witness",  Aug.  1913. 


114  HISTORY    OF    TATAMAGOUCHE 

at  one  of  the  following  places:  Willow  Church,  Waugh's 
River,  Tatamagouche  Mountain,  The  Falls,  and  latterly 
at  Balfron.  Besides  attending  to  these  services  and  the 
various  other  duties  of  a  pastor  of  so  large  a  congregation, 
Dr.  Sedgwick  took  an  active  part  in  attending  to  the  interests 
of  the  Presbyterian  Church  as  a  whole.  He  was  Moderator 
of  Synod  in  1885  and  in  1893  was  moderator  of  the  General 
Assembly  and  has  been  clerk  of  Synod  since  1886. 

That  Dr.  Sedgwick  was  most  successful  in  the  discharge 
of  his  duties  goes  without  saying.  His  difficulties  were  not 
always  light  ones.  The  community  saw  many  dark  and 
changing  days  but  through  them  all  the  congregation  increased 
in  membership  and  in  financial  strength.  At  the  beginning 
of  his  ministry  only  one  hundred  and  twenty-five  names 
were  on  the  church  roll;  at  the  close  the  membership  had 
increased  to  three  hundred  and  sixty-eight,  notwithstanding 
the  fact  that  in  the  meanwhile  the  community  had  not 
increased  in  population.  Various  causes  may  have  con- 
tributed to  bring  this  about,  but  no  small  share  of  the  credit 
must  go  to  the  man  who,  during  that  time,  had  in  the  con- 
gregation the  chief  post  of  responsibility. 

In  addition  to  his  professional  duties,  Dr.  Sedgwick  took 
a  prominent  and  leading  place  in  any  work  for  the  welfare 
of  the  community.  For  a  number  of  years  he  was  a  school 
commissioner  and  even  after  resigning  that  position,  his 
interest  in  the  school  children  never  failed.  During  the 
course  of  his  regular  visits  to  the  schools,  he  always  sought 
to  impress  upon  the  children  a  better  and  broader  sense 
of  patriotism. 

In  no  part  of  this  small  work  has  the  writer  felt  so  keenly 
his  inability  to  do  full  justice  to  his  subject  as  he  does  when 
dealing  with  the  ministry  of  the  Rev.  Dr.  Sedgwick  If 
it  were  to  be  told  in  full  it  might  well  fill  the  entire  pages  of 
this  small  volume.  Only  one  who  has  lived  and  sat  in  the 
congregation  for  the  last  fifty  years  could  do  justice  to  such 
a  theme,  and  unfortunately  there  is  scarcely  such  a  person 
alive  today. 

We  believe  that,  with  one  or  two  exceptions,  it  is  the 
longest  ministry  in  the  history  of  the  Presbyterian  Church 
in  Canada.  At  its  close  it  was  a  different  congregation — save 
in  name — to  the  one  to  which  he  had  ministered  forty-nine 


HISTORY    OF    TATAMAGOUCHE  115 

years  before.  Not  one  who  was  present  at  the  induction 
service  of  1860  was  present  when,  on  October  31st,  1909, 
Dr.  Sedgwick  delivered  his  farewell  sermon.  Of  the  one 
hundred  and  twenty-five  members  of  the  congregation  at 
the  commencement  of  his  ministry  only  seventeen  were 
still  alive.  They  were  as  follows:  Mrs.  James  Semple, 
Miss  Isabella  Ross*,  Mrs.  James  McKeen*,  Mrs.  Robert 
Bryden*,  Miss  Margaret  Bentley*,  Mrs.  William  Blackwood*, 
Mrs.  David  Fraser*,  Mrs.  David  Williamson*,  Mrs.  William 
Donaldson,  Mrs.  George  Reid,  Mrs.  Archibald  Patterson, 
Mrs.  J.  S.  McLean*,  Mrs.  John  Millar*,  Mrs.  Edward  Kent, 
Mrs.  Sutherland,  Mrs.  McLearn*,  and  Miss  Mary  Hutchin- 
son,  and  of  these  the  last  seven  had  ceased  to  have  active 
connection  with  the  congregation.  It  is  to  be  noted  that 
there  was  not  a  surviving  male  member  either  at  Tata- 
magouche  or  elsewhere. 

At  the  time  of  Dr.  Sedgwick's  induction,  there  were 
only  three  elders:  John  Currie,  John  Nelson,  and  James 
Hingley.  In  the  autumn  of  1860,  Archibald  Patterson, 
William  Fraser,  James  Langille  and  John  Clark  were  elected 
as  elders.  We  may  note  the  following  who  subsequently 
were  elected  elders:  Wm.  Blackwood,  Arch.  Mingo,  Archibald 
Campbell,  Wm.  Donaldson,  John  Ross,  David  Donaldson, 
David  Malcolm,  Alex.  Sutherland,  Frederick  Meagher,  Daniel 
Urquhart,  David  Chambers,  John  Chambers,  Wm.  Kennedy, 
Amos  McLellan,  Alex.  Millar,  John  J.  Clark,  Daniel  McKay, 
and  E.  C.  McLellan.  This,  however,  may  not  be  an  exhaust- 
ive liet: 

Sunday  and  Monday,  the  2nd  and  3rd  October,  1910* 
were  days  that  long  will  be  remembered  at  Tatamagouche,  for 
on  these  days  were  held  the  Jubilee  services  which  celebrated 
Dr.  Sedgwick's  connection  of  fifty  years  with  this  congregation. 
On  Sunday,  special  services  conducted  by  Rev.  Dr.  Forrest, 
Rev.  Clarence  McKinnon,  and  Rev.  George  Millar  were 
held  and  on  Monday  evening  there  was  the  concluding  service. 
Rev.  Dr.  Forrest  occupied  the  chair.  An  address  from  the 
Presbytery  of  Wallace  was  read  by  Rev.  Mr.  Fitzpatrick 
of  New  Annan,  and  one  from  the  congregation  by  R.  D. 
Malcolm.  These  were  accompanied  by  a  gift  of  $500 
to  Dr.  Sedgwick,  and  a  gold  brooch  to  Mrs.  Sedgwick. 

*Sinc«  deceased. 


116  HISTORY- OF    TATAMAGOUCHE 

The  Address  of  the  Committee  appointed  to  represent  the 
Maritime  Provinces  was  read  by  Dr.  John  McMillan. 

"It  referred  to  the  high  esteem  in  which  Dr.  Sedgwick  was  held  by  his 
brother  clergymen,  to  his  kindness  of  heart,  gentleness  of  manner,  and  un- 
wavering faith  in  the  old  Gospel;  to  his  strong  sense  of  honour  and  duty, 
ability  as  a  preacher,  and  earnest  and  untiring  devotion  to  the  interests  of 
the  church  and  its  work." 

This  address  was  accompanied  by  a  further  gift  of  $300.00 
from  his  friends  in  the  Synod. 

"Dr.  Sedgwick  made  a  dignified,  humble  and  touching  reply,  expressing 
his  heartfelt  appreciation  of  the  kind  words  and  gifts  of  his  friends.  One 
thing  in  the  address  expressed  the  exact  truth — the  most  kindly  and  generous 
appreciation  in  word  and  gift  of  the  character  and  work  of  his  dear  wife."* 

Other  addresses  were  by  W.  A.  Patterson,  who  welcomed  the 
visiting  friends,  Hon.  B.  F.  Pearson,  Judge  Patterson,  W.  D. 
Hill  and  others. 

Though  no  longer  actively  connected  with  the  congre- 
gation, Dr.  Sedgwick  is  still  residing  in  Tatamagouche  and 
continues  to  give  his  congregation  of  the  past  that  advice  and 
those  words  of  wisdom  which  can  only  come  from  one  whose 
sound  judgment  has  been  coupled  with  years  of  experience. 
The  least  we  can  say  of  him  is  that  now,  even  perhaps  in 
a  greater  degree  than  ever,  he  holds  the  respect,  admiration 
and  affection  of  those  with  whom  he  has  been  acquainted. 

The  people  of  Tatamagouche,  like  the  people  of  every 
other  small  village,  have  on  divers  occasions  been  rent 
asunder  by  controversies  and  divisions  whi  h  for  a  time 
formed  breaches  which  seemed  almost  ir  eparable.  But 
among  the  various  religious  denominations  at  Tatama- 
gouche such  controversiesis  and  disputes  are  happily  removed. 
Ever  since  the  day  that  old  Wellwood  Waugh  unfurled  the 
banner  of  his  mother  church,  the  Presbyterians  have  been 
in  overwhelming  preponderance,  for,  as  we  have  already 
seen,  they  were  able  as  early  as  1826  to  obtain  and  have  resid- 
ing in  their  midst  a  premanent  minister.  At  his  church  and 
that  of  his  successors  all  denominations  have  attended  and 
have  been  welcomed. 

In  1867  the  Episcopalians  felt  themselves  strong  enough 
to  erect  a  church  where  they  could  carry  on  their  own  form 

tQuotations  are  fromareport  of  the  Jubilee  Servicesin  the  "Presbyterian  Witnegs,"  October 
8.  1910. 


HISTORY    OF    TATAMAGOUCHE  117 

of  worship.  In  their  endeavour  they  had  nothing  but  the 
best  wishes  from  their  Presbyterian  friends.  In  the  erection 
of  this  church  at  Tatamagouche,  the  name  of  Mrs.  Irvine 
stands  out  most  prominently.  She  it  was  who,  most  inde- 
fatigable in  her  efforts,  finally  saw  partial  success  crown 
her  endeavours.* 

Before  this  time  they  had  had  occasional  visits  from  the 
Rev.  Charles  Elliot,  who  became  Rector  at  Pictou  in  1834, 
and  in  whose  first  parish  was  embraced  the  whole  of  the  North 
Shore  from  Pugwash  to  Stellarton.  In  1865,  he  retired 
from  active  work  and  returned  to  England,  where  he  died  a 
few  years  later.  Rev.  Mr.  Kaulbach  succeeded  Mr.  Elliot 
as  Episcopal  Minister  at  River  John,  and  after  the  com- 
pletion of  the  church  at  Tatamagouche,  held  regular  services 
there.  After  four  years'  service,  Mr.  Kaulbach  removed  to 
Truro.  He  was  afterwards  appointed  an  Archdeacon.  He 
died  in  March,  1913. 

Rev.  J.  L.  Downing  succeeded  Mr.  Kaulbach  and  as 
part  of  his  work  he  continued  to  hold  services  at  Tata- 
magouche, during  the  last  years  in  summer  months  only. 
Unfortunately,  the  congregation  became  weaker  rather 
than  stronger.  Death  removed  many  of  the  older  members 
who  had  been  most  active  in  the  work  of  the  congregation. 
Many  moved  away  and  none  came  to  fill  their  places.  Others 
allied  themselves  with  the  Presbyterian  Church.  William 
Buckler  was  one  of  the  most  active  supporters  and  a  most 
faithful  attendant.  After  his  death  in  1900  no  more  services 
were  held.  Mr.  Downing  continued  for  thirty-seven  years 
as  Rector  at  River  John.  He  died  April,  1912. 

In  Tatamagouche  there  were  always  a  small  number 
who  favoured  the  doctrines  of  John  Wesley;  but  it  has  not 
been  more  than  thirty  years  -since  they  have  had  a  place  of 
worship  of  their  own.  The  late  Alex  Bonyman  was  one 
of  the  leading  members  of  this  congregation,  which 
is  a  part  of  the  River  John  circuit.  Twice  a  month 
services  are  held  here  by  the  minister  stationed  in  that 
circuit.  The  ministers  with  their  year  of  appointment  are 

*  "Alter  much  consultation  about  ways  aud  means,  it  was  determined  to  build  a  rhurch 
at  Tatamaeouche  to  accommodate  175  worshipi-ers.  Through  the  exertions  of  friends  at 
Charlottetown,  Pictou,  Halifax,  Truro,  and  i.unenhura:,  and  the  hard  work  of  the  people 
in  the  Mission  itself,  two  successful  bazaars  were  held  and  the  church  was  beaun  in  1866. 
It  was  finished  and  ready  lor  consecration  in  March,  18P7." — "  History  of  St.  John's  Church," 
Truro,  N.  8.,  by  Rev  J.  A.  Kaulbach. 


118  HISTORY    OF    TATAMAGOUCHE 

as  follows:  1891,  Rev.  Wm.  Nightingale;  1893,  James  B.  Heal; 
1895,  Donald  Farquhar;  1899,  Charles  M.  Mack;  1903, 
C.  H.  C.  McLaren;  1905,  Hibbert  R.  Baker;  1909,  Dr.  G.  J. 
Bond;  1911,  H.  B.  Townsend;  1914,  Ernest  Ploughman. 

For  a  number  of  years,  Rev.  Robert  McCunn,  of  River 
John,  held  services  at  Tatamagouche  for  those  who  were 
members  and  adherents  of  the  Established  Church  of  Scot- 
land. No  church  was  ever  built,  but  regular  services  were 
held  in  the  Town  Hall.  At  the  time  of  the  union,  the  members 
of  this  church  at  Tatamagouche  wisely  decided  to  join  the 
congregation  of  Dr.  Sedgwick,  in  which  they  became  loyal 
and  useful  members.  Among  those  who  were  active  in 
support  of  the  Established  Church  at  this  place  we  may 
note:  Robert  Purves  ST.,  William  McKenzie,  Alex. 
McLeod,  Andrew  Urquhart  and  George  Douglas.  These, 
all  came  to  Tatamagouche  from  various  places  in  Pictou 
County.  Mr.  McCunn,  after  the  union,  continued 
to  minister  to  the  congregation  in  River  John,  which  for 
some  time  did  not  enter  the  union.  He  died  in  1895.  Mr. 
McCunn  was  an  able  preacher.  His  ability  as  a 
student  was  far  above  the  average  and  his  course  at  college 
was  a  most  distinguished  one.  It  has  been  said  of  him: 
"To  his  own  congregation  he  was  loyal;  to  other  people 
ever  charitable  and  ready  to  be  helpful."* 


*S>ee  "Kiver  John  and  Its  People",  by  Rev.  G.  Lawson  Gordon. 


ALONG  THE  SHORE,  TATAMAGOTJCHE,  N.  S. 


TATAMAGOUCHE  RIVER  AND  HARBOR 

(1)   Ross'  POINT;   (2)  WETHERBIE'S  POINT:   (3)  MALA  GASH;   (4)  STEEI.E'S 
ISLAND,   (5)  OLD  BTTRY  ING-GROUND. 


HISTORY    OP    TATAMAGOUCHE  119 

CHAPTER  IX 

1870-1917 

TN  the  preceding  chapters  have  been  briefly  recorded  the 
most  important  events  in  Tatamagouche  up  until 
the  decline  of  the  shipbuilding  industry.  To  bring  this  short 
sketch  to  a  close,  nothing  remains  but  to  note  a  few  of  the 
many  changes  and  events  since  that  time. 

The  greatest  change  is  undoubtedly  found  in  the  indus- 
trial life  of  the  village  and  community.  Then,  shipbuilding 
was  the  main  industry  of  the  place.  Farming,  of  course, 
was  carried  on  but  there  were  only  a  few  who  devoted  all 
their  time  and  efforts  to  this  industry.  The  farms,  as  a 
rule,  were  neglected  and  yielded  but  poor  returns  to  the 
half-hearted  efforts  of  the  men  who  were  primarily  inter- 
ested in  the  shipbuilding  and  lumber  industries.  The  entrance 
of  steamers  as  a  real  factor  in  the  commercial  world  soon  de- 
stroyed the  English  market  for  wooden  sailing  vessels.  About 
the  same  time  the  Newfoundland  market  for  fishing  vessels 
failed,  so  that  by  the  "eighties"  no  ships  were  built  at  Tata- 
magouche for  foreign  markets.  A  few  small  ones  for  local 
coasting  were  the  only  product  of  the  shipyards  of  that  date. 
The  depletion  of  this  industry  had  for  a  while  a  dis- 
astrous affect  upon  the  place.  Men  for  the  first  time  found 
that  they  were  unable  to  obtain  remunerative  employment. 
Numbers  at  once  left  to  obtain  work  in  the  United  States  and 
elsewhere.  Others,  mostly  those  who  were  older  and  who 
could  not  well  leave,  returned  to  farming.  From  this  for 
years  they  were  able  to  make  but  a  poor  living.  The  farms 
had  "run  out"  and  while  there  was  as  yet  no  home  market 
for  farm  produce,  the  American  market  was  closed  by  a  high 
tariff.  Prices  were  low  and  nearly  all  the  pay  for 
produce  was  taken  in  goods  from  the  stores  of  the  local 
merchants.  Cash  prices  were  the  exception  rather  than 
the  rule.  Those  were  the  days  when,  to  use  the  rather  verna- 
cular expression,  "You  couldn't  pick  up  a  dollar  in  every 
cow  track." 

The  lumber  industry  had  also  declined.  The  first  settlers 
in  their  mad  haste  to  clear  and  cultivate  the  land,  looked 
upon  the  forest  as  their  natural  enemy  and  attacked  it,  as 


120  HISTORY    OF    TATAMAGOUCHE 

has  been  said,  with  "fire  and  sword".  Valuable  timber 
land  was,  only  too  often,  by  laborious  effort  converted  into 
farms  which  were  to  prove  valueless  for  agricultural  purposes. 
The  lumbermen  showed  but  little  better  discretion.  It  never 
seemed  to  occur  to  them  that  the  forests,  vast  as  they  then 
were,  would  eventually  be  exhausted.  The  result  was  that 
by  the  ''nineties"  the  stock  of  original  timber  had  become 
scarce,  and  now  practically  all  that  is  cut  is  second  growth. 
Of  late  years  the  market  for  timber  has  so  increased,  and 
prices  have  so  advanced,  that  though  the  quality  of  the 
timber  is  inferior  to  that  of  thirty  or  forty  years  ago,  the 
total  value  of  an  average  year's  cut  is  probably  greater. 
During  the  last  few  years  lumber  shipments  from  Tatama- 
gouche  have  been  abnormally  large. 

In  the  early  days  all  the  lumber  was  sawn  by  small 
water  mills.  Later  on  the  stationary  steam  mill  came  into 
use.  D.  and  Arch.  Campbell,  about  1870,  had  a  steam 
mill*  erected  on  the  bank  of  the  French  River  near  their 
shipyards.  This  continued  to  give  employment  to  a  number 
of  men  until  it  was  finally  closed  down  at  the  death  of  Archi- 
bald Campbell  in  1891.  John  Bonyman  &  Sons  are  yet 
operating  a  small  saw  mill  iii  connection  with  their  wood- 
working factory.  The  only  other  attempt  at  sawing  in 
the  village  was  by  Joseph  and  Arch.  Langille,  of  New  Annan, 
who,  in  1897,  erected  and  for  a  year  operated  a  small 
mill  on  the  shore  adjacent  to  Patterson's  wharf.  David 
Malcolm  also  ran  this  mill  for  a  year.  Today  nearly  all 
the  lumbering  is  done  by  portable  steam  mills  which,  in 
winter  time  can  be  moved  into  lots  that  have  a  good  second 
growth.  The  Maple  Leaf  Lumber  Company  are  the  largest 
shippers  from  this  place.  Wm.  Swan  &  Sons  make  yearly 
shipments  of  over  a  million  feet. 

In  the  old  days,  the  lumber  was  rafted  out  of  the  harbour 
and  loaded  in  barques  and  other  large  vessels  which  were 
unable  to  come  further  than  the  bar.  Market  was  found 
chiefly  in  the  Old  Country,  but  occasional  cargoes  were  sent 
to  the  West  Indies  and  South  America.  After  the  openin ; 
of  the  railway,  lumber  was  shipped  either  to  Pugwash  or 
Pictou,  and  there  loaded  upon  steamers  or  vessels  bound 
for  the  Old  Country.  The  only  lumber  shipped  directly 

*Also  a  grist  mill. 


•'•>. 


W.  A.  PATTERSON 

MEMBER    PROVIXCIAL    PARLIAMENT    1874-86 
MEMBER    HOUSE    OF   COMMONS    1891-fi 


HISTORY    OF    TATAMAGOUCHE  121 

from  the  wharves  was  in  small  vessels  which  were  able  to 
sail  up  the  river.  This  was  for  the  Prince  Edward  Island 
market.  This  trade  still  continues. 

It  has  been  in  agriculture  that  the  greatest  progress  has 
been  made.  The  fertile  valleys  of  the  French  and  Waugh's 
Rivers  and  the  undulated  slopes  of  the  harbours  of  Tata- 
magouche,  Brule  and  Barrachois,  now  form  one  of  the  most 
prosperous  farming  communities  in  Nova  Scotia.  But  it 
was  not  without  discouraging  days  that  the  farmers  reached 
the  prosperity  of  today.  The  decline  of  shipbuilding,  as 
we  have  seen,  forced  men  from  necessity  to  return  to  their 
farms  and  in  the  majority  of  cases  it  was  only  after  years 
of  unprofitable  labour  that  the  farms  were  worked  into  better 
shape.  With  the  development  of  the  coal  mining  and  the 
various  other  industries  throughout  Nova  Scotia,  particularly 
in  Cape  Breton,  Pictou,  and  Cumberland  Counties,  came  a 
ready  and  convenient  market  for  farm  produce.  The  building 
of  the  railway  in  the  year  1890  was  a  great  boon  to  the 
farmers,  as  it  was  the  means  of  permitting  them  to  market 
their  produce  whenever  and  in  whatever  manner  they  chose. 
Previous  to  this  time,  the  merchants  or  farmers  before  they 
could  make  shipments,  were  obliged  to  wait  until  a  vessel 
was  ready  to  sail,  or  until  there  was  enough  produce  to  bear 
the  expense  of  an  eighteen  mile  drive  to  Wentworth,  the 
nearest  railway  station.  Improved  methods  and  the  latest 
implements  have  also  been  introduced  into  the  farming  of 
this  community.  As  long  as  the  good  markets  keep  up,  and 
the  farmers  continue  to  give  their  undivided  attention  to 
this  industry,  there  is  every  prospect  that  it  will  continue 
to  be  in  the  future,  as  in  the  present,  the  basic  industry 
of  this  community 

Then  there  has  been  a  great  change  both  in  the  business 
men  and  in  the  business  methods.  Such  names  as  Campbell, 
Purvis,  Blackwood,  Logan,  Millar,  once  so  common  here 
that  it  might  be  said  that  they  were  synonymous  with  the 
name  Tatamagouche  itself,  have  all  passed  away  from  the 
mercantile  life  of  the  village.  In  fact  not  one  male  of  these 
names  is  today  residing  at  Tatamagouche.  In  the  days 
of  shipbuilding,  the  credit  system  in  Tatamagouche,  as 
elsewhere  throughout  Nova  Scotia,  was  carried  to  the  extreme 
limit.  The  builders  themselves  often  sold  their  vessels 


122  HISTORY    OF    TATAMAGOUCHE 

on  credit.  In  the  meantime  their  employees  obtained  goods 
out  of  the  store,  which  nearly  every  shipbuilder  ran  as 
part  of  his  business.  Often  the  men  would,  so  to  speak, 
"over-draw  their  account"  and  become  indebted  to  their 
employers.  Next  year,  to  square  the  account,  they  would 
be  given  employment.  In  some  cases  this  went  on 
from  year  to  year.  The  result  was  that  the  employee 
became  discouraged  with  the  prospect  of  being  always 
in  debt  and  failed  to  put  his  best  endeavours  into  his 
work.  The  credit  system  as  it  was  then  carried  on  was 
unprofitable  to  both  employee  and  employer.  While  this 
system  has  not  by  any  means  ceased,  it  is  not  carried  on 
to  such  an  extent  as  before.  Farmers  and  merchants  now 
receive  cash  for  all  their  products,  while  the  labourers  in  the 
lumber  woods  or  elsewhere  receive  monthly  wages,  so  that 
now  cash  prices,  which  were  once  the  exception,  are  the 
rule. 

Then  in  the  professional  life  of  this  little  village  there 
has  been  almost  a  complete  change.  Only  the  venerable  Dr. 
Sedgwick,  who  came  here  in  the  autumn  of  1860,  still  remains. 
Since  that  time  he  was  the  only  minister  permanently 
residing  in  Tatamagouche  until  in  1906  when  Rev.  Wm. 
Forbes  came  here  as  one  of  the  pastors  of  the  Presbyterian 
congregation,  and  four  years  later,  on  the  retirement  of 
Dr.  Sedgwick,  assumed  the  full  pastoral  charge  of  that  con- 
gregation. 

In  the  medical  profession*  there  have  been  many  changes. 
Dr.  E.  D.  Roach,  through  failing  health,  was  forced  to 
give  up  his  practice  in  the  spring  of  1901.  Dr.  D.  M.  John- 
son and  Dr.  J.  W.  Clark  practiced  here  till  their  deaths  in 
1907  and  1913  respectively.  The  former  was  a  graduate 
of  the  Nova  Scotia  Medical  College,  and  the  latter  of  McGill 
with  a  post-graduate  course  at  Edinburgh.  Dr.  E.  B.  Roach 
practised  here  from  1901  till  1906,  when  he  removed  to 

*Tae  first  me.iical  man  to  come  to  Tatamagouche  was  an  Englishman,  Dr.  _Edward 
Garnie  of  Truro.  He  never  resided  at  Tatamagouche,  but  was  ia  the  habit  of  making  fort- 
nightly visits.  He  would  leave  medicines  and  instructions  with  Mrs.  Campbell,  who  saw 
that  they  were  properly  administered.  In  1829,  we  find  his  name  as  surgeon  in  one  of  the 
local  Militia  units.  Young  Dr.  Anderson,  of  Pictou,  after  Carrite's  time,  came  to  Tatama- 
irouche  and  lived  in  the  old  Williamson  house.  About  1840,  came  Charles  Creed,  M.  D.,  from 
Halifax.  He  lived  first  in  the  house  now  owned  by  Mrs.  Spinney,  but  subsequently  moved 
across  the  French  River.  He  removed  to  Pugwash.  Then  came  a  Dr.  Henry  Kirkwopd  of 
Pictou,  and  Dr.  Marshall.  The  latter,  who  was  a  son  of  Judge  Marshall,  Sydney,  continued 
at  Tatamagouche  for  some  time.  He  lived  at  Mrs.  Irvine  s  where  he  died  in  1860  at  the  early 
age  of  thirty-four.  During  the  "seventies"  and  "eighties"  other  medical  men  made  short 
stays.  They  were  Drs.  McLean,  Baxter,  Kent,  and  Creelman. 


HISTORY    OF    TATAMAGOUCHE  123 

Halifax.  Dr.  Dan  Murray  succeeded  him,  and  in  1914  took 
into  partnership  with  him  Dr.  C.  L.  Gass,  one  of  our  own 
Tatamagouche  boys. 

We  have  only  had  one  member  of  the  legal  profession 
at  Tatamagouche.  J.  J.  McKay,  a  graduate  of  Dalhousie 
Law  School,  lived  and  had  an  office  here  from  1900  till  his 
death  in  1911. 

Of  the  early  school  teachers  we  have  already  noted 
Robert  McBurnie  and  John  Currie.  The  first  school  house 
in  the  village  was  situated  in  the  field  of  Wm.  Campbell  near 
McCully's  Hill..  John  Currie  taught  here  for  a  number  of 
years.  Afterwards  he  had  school  in  his  brother's  house  at 
McCullough's.  This  school  was  attended  by  all  the  youth 
of  the  village.  His  last  school  was  held  on  week  days  in 
the  Willow  Church.  When  the  old  schoolhouse  on  McCully's 
Hill  had  fulfilled  its  days  of  usefulness,  a  new  one  was  built  with 
two  rooms.  This  was  the  one  which,  till  only  a  few  years 
ago,  did  service  as  the  public  school.  As  a  rule  two  teachers 
were  employed.  The  site  for  this  building  was  given  by  Alex, 
and  Wm.  Campbell  who  used  this  means  to  prevent  it  from 
being  moved  further  up  the  road.  It  is  impossible  to  give 
a  complete  list  of  those  who  during  the  succeeding  years 
have  instructed  in  this  building  the  youth  at  Tatamagouche, 
but  among  those  who  subsequently  have  entered  one  pro- 
fession or  another,  we  may  note:  the  late  Alex.  McKay, 
who  was  supervisor  of  Halifax  Schools;  Dr.  Collie,  of  River 
John;  W.  M.  Ferguson,  barrister,  of  Truro;  Rev.  George 
Millar,  of  Alberton;  Rev.  Wm.  Cunningham;  Rev.  Wm. 
McKay;  Dr.  Lawson;  W.  A.  Brittain,  Ph.  D.;  Dr.  Dan 
Murray;  H.  S.  Patterson,  barrister,  of  Calgary;  H.  W.  Menzie, 
barrister,  of  Lethbridge;  and  Robert  S.  Campbell,  barrister, 
Swift  Current,  Alberta.  The  new  building  was  built  in 
the  summer  of  1912,  but  not  without  controversies  which 
we  are  happy  to  pass  over. 

Of  the  many  events  which  have  happened  at  Tatama- 
gouche during  these  years  1870-1916,  the  most  important  and  far 
reaching  in  its  consequences,  was  the  opening  of  the  Oxford 
and  Pictou  Branch  of  the  Intercolonial  Railway.  This  branch 
running  through  the  village,  at  length  gave  it  railway  facili- 
ties. The  project  was  first  undertaken  in  1883  by  a  company 
known  as  the  Great  European  Railway  Company.  The  concern 


124  HISTORY    OF    TATAMAGOUCHE 

was  most  unfortunate  and  after  no  small  outlay  it  was  forced 
in  July  of  the  same  year,  to  abandon  the  undertaking.  The 
Federal  Government,  in  1889,  took  over  the  scheme  with  the 
intention  of  utilising  the  branch  as  a  short  line  from  Moncton 
to  Sydney.  Unfortunately,  heavy  grades  and  poor  construction 
work  destroyed  the  original  purpose  and  the  branch  is 
now  fulfilling  only  its  secondary  object  of  supplying  rail 
communication  to  the  people  living  along  its  route.  It  may 
be  said,  however,  that  of  late  years  the  original  project  of 
using  this  branch  as  a  short  line  to  Sydney  has  been  once  more 
revived,  and  we  believe  was  only  prevented  by  the  outbreak 
of  the  present  war.  The  first  train  to  pass  over  the  line  was 
in  July,  1890. 

Of    the    many    benefits  and    conveniences    accruing    to 

Tatamagouche    because    of  rail    communication    with    the 

outside  world,  we  shall  say  nothing.     They  are  surely  self- 
evident. 

In  1883,  the  village  was  visited  by  a  fire  which 
destroyed  four  of  the  largest  shops,  which  were  situated  in 
Main  Street,  just  west  of  the  Public  Lane.  The  fire  com- 
menced during  the  night  in  the  shop  owned  by  Jeremiah 
Murphy  and  then  occupied  by  a  man  by  the  name  of  Asa 
Slack.  It  quickly  spread  on  the  one  side  to  the  shops  of 
David  Fraser,  then  occupied  by  J.  W.  Cassidy,  and  of  John 
Millar,  and  on  the  other  to  the  shop  belonging  to  the  estate 
of  Alex.  Matheson.  All  four  shops  were  totally  destroyed. 
The  exact  cause  of  the  fire  was  never  ascertained,  but  at  the 
time  and  afterwards  there  was  a  suspicion  that  it  was  of 
incendiary  nature.  The  shop  of  Stewart  Kislepaugh,  which 
was  next  to  Matheson's  narrowly  escaped.  George  Clark's 
store  was  also  in  danger.  John  Millar  was  the  only  one  to 
rebuild. 

During  a  night  of  May,  1905,  the  village  was  visited  by 
another  fire.  Shortly  after  midnight,  fire  was  observed  in 
a  shed  at  the  rear  of  the  shop  of  George  Clark.  Alarm  was 
given,  but  before  any  number  of  the  citizens  could  gather 
it  was  seen  that  the  shop  was  doomed.  The  general  store 
of  David  Nelson  was  the  next  to  catch,  and  was  soon  a  prey 
to  the  flames.  In  the  meanwhile,  the  fire  had  spread  to  the 
shop  formerly  owned  by  John  Millar  and  then  owned  by 
Alex.  Fraser.  It  too  was  burned  to  the  ground.  The  office 


GKORGE  CLARK 
MEMBER  PROVINCIAL  PARLIAMENT  1S80-94 


HISTORY    OF    TATAJHAGOUCHE  125 

of  the  late  Dr.  Roach,  which  was  adjacent  to  Nelson's  store, 
was  the  other  building  to  be  destroyed.  The  night  was  one 
of  almost  perfect  calm;  what  little  wind  there  was  being  off 
the  village.  Only  this  prevented  greater  destruction.  The 
origin  of  this  fire  has  never  been  ascertained. 

During  these  changing  years,  there  have  been  many 
other  events  of  interest  and  importance  which  can  well 
demand  further  time  and  space,  but  we  shall  be  content  to 
add  merely  a  word  or  more  on  the  Tatamagouche  of  today. 

Snugly  situated  on  the  banks  of  the  river,  it  is  in  every 
way  a  typical  Nova  Scotian  village.  It  has  its  dozen  stores, 
forges,  churches,  a  school,  town  hall,  hotel  and  all  those 
other  buildings  which  are  to  be  found  in  a  village  of  like 
population.  Its  people  are  prosperous,  but  not  overburdened 
with  the  riches  of  this  life.  As  Longfellow  said  of  the  village 
of  Grand  Pre,  we  may  say  of  the  village  of  Tatamagouche: 
"There  the  richest  was  poor,  and  the  poorest  lived  in  abund- 
ance." Real  luxury  and  real  poverty  are  both  strangers  to 
our  people. 

For  natural  beauty,  the  village  of  Tatamagouche 
takes  second  place  to  none  in  Nova  Scotia,  but  when  we 
link  up  to  this  beauty,  the  historic  associations  of  the  past, 
surely  its  charms  are  enhanced  many  fold.  In  storm  or  calm, 
how  can  we  look  upon  the  waters  of  the  harbours  and  rivers 
and  yet  close  our  minds  to  the  memory  of  the  stirring  deeds 
which  happened  upon  their  bosom,  and  of  the  brave  men 
who  toiled  along  their  shores.  /oluntarily,  or  involuntarily, 
we  think  of  the  stealthy  Indians  who  silently  drove 
their  canoes  through  the  water  as  they  sped  on  their  errand 
of  cruelty;  of  the  Acadian  farmers  who  dyked  the  shores, 
felled  the  trees,  and  turned  the  sod;  of  the  strong  men  who 
preferred  the  hardships  and  the  dangers  of  the  wilderness, 
to  the  bigotry  and  tyranny  of  Church  and  State;  and  of 
those  pioneers  from  whose  lips  our  hills  and  shores  first 
heard  the  accents  of  Scotland,  and  who  fostered  here  anew 
the  traditions  and  glories  of  their  native  land. 

For  those  who  were  born  and  spent  their  childhood  days 
here,  Tatamagouche  has  its  double  charm.  To  them  every 
turn  of  the  brook,  every  hill,  road  and  lane,  every  foot  of 
the  shore,  recalls  incidents  of  the  care-free  days  when,  in 
the  healthy  atmosphere  of  old  Tatamagouche  they  grew  to 


126  HISTORY    OF    TATAMAGOUCHE 

manhood  or  to  womanhood.  To  them  earth  can  never  nearer 
approach  heaven,  than  when  in  the  delightful  days  of  summer 
along  its  shores,  they  drink  in  the  soft,  saline  breezes  fresh 
from  the  broad  Gulf  of  St.  Lawrence,  or  when,  wandering  on 
the  sunny  hill  slopes  they  catch  the  intoxicating  odour  of  the 
clovered  fields. 

Of  the  future  the  writer  will  say  nothing  save  to  express 
the  wish  that  in  the  years  to  come  we,  as  a  community,  shall 
not  in  any  way  prove  unworthy  of  the  men  and  women  whose 
quiet  heroisms  made  possible  our  present  life  of  plenty  and 
comfort. 


APPENDICES 


HISTORY    OF    TATAMAGOUCHE  131 

APPENDIX    A 
THE  DEsBARRES  GRANT 

August  25,  1765.  To  all  whom  these  presents  shall 
come,  Grettings.  Know  ye  that  I,  Montague  Wilmont, 
Esquire  Captain  General  and  Governor  in  Chief  in  and  over 
His  Majesty's  Province  of  Nova  Scotia  or  Acadie  and  its 
dependencies,  vice  Admiral  of  the  same  etc.  By  virtue  of 
the  power  and  authority  to  me  given  by  his  present  Majesty 
King  George  the  third  and  under  the  great  seal  of  Great  Britain 
and  pursuant  to  the  order  of  His  Majesty  in  Council  Dated  the 
llth  day  of  July  1764  have  Given,  Granted  and  Confirmed 
unto  Joseph  Frederick  Wallet  DesBarres,  Esq.,  his  heirs  and 
assigns  a  Tract  of  land  situate,  lying  and  being  beginning 
at  the  Eastermost  Point  of  a  Creek  in  the  river  or  Har- 
bour John,  thence  Running  South  480  chains  on  un- 
granted  lands,  thence  west  15°  north  480  chains  on 
ungranted  lands,  thence  north  12°  West,  530  chains  on  un- 
granted  lands  to  a  point  on  a  stream  near  the  head  of  Tata- 
magouche  Bay  thence  back  as  the  shore  runs  to  the  before 
mentioned  boundaries,  containing  in  the  whole  by  estimation, 
twenty  thousand  acres  with  allowance  for  roads  etc.  accord- 
ing to  the  plan  hereto  annexed,  with  all  and  all  manner 
of  minerals  unopened,  excepting  mines  of  gold  silver  and 
coals*  to  have  and  to  hold  said  granted  premises  with  all 
privileges,  profits,  commodities,  and  appurtenances  there  unto 
belonging  unto  the  said  Joseph  Frederick  Wallets  DesBarres, 
his  heirs,  assigns  forever  yeilding  and  paying  by  the  said 
grantee  his  heirs  and  assigns  which  by  the  acceptance  hereof 
he  binds  and  obliges  himself  his  heirs,  executors  and  assigns 
to  pay  to  His  Majesty  George  the  third  his  hei4rs  and  suc- 
cessors or  to  the  Commander  in  Chief  of  the  said  province 
for  the  time  being  or  to  any  person  lawfully  authorized  to 

*It  is  to  be  noted  that  copper  is  not  reserved  to  the  Crown.  This  is  an  unusual  provision 
as  in  nearly  all  other  grants  the  Crown  reserved  all  copper  ores.  We  do  not  think  that  this 
provision  in  DesBarres's  grant  was  the  result  of  chance.  He  was  evidently  aware  of  the  indic- 
ations of  copper  on  Waugh's  and  French  Rivers  and  saw  to  it  that  this  unusual  provision  was 
inserted  in  the  grant.  The  result  of  it  is  seen  very  plainly  during  recent  years.  Land  owners 
on  the  DesBarres  grant  having  acquired  the  rights  of  the  original  grantee  have  sold  their  rights 
in  copper  mines  to  some  of  the  various  companies  which  at  one  time  or  another  during  the  last 
forty  years  have  been  working  the  mines.  Owners  of  land  granted  by  the  Crowu  under  the 
ordinary  provisions  acquired  no  rights  in  the  copper  and  have  found  that  the  companies  by  ob- 
taining a  lease  from  the  Crown  were  at  liberty  to  remove  all  the  copper  ore  from  the  premises. 


132  HISTORY    OF   TATAMAGOUCHE 

receive  the  same  for  his  Majesty's  use,  a  free  yearly  quit 
rent  of  one  shillingf — fathing  per  acre  for  one  half  of  the 
granted  premises  within  five  years  from  the  date  hereof  the 
whole  to  be  payable  within  ten  years  from  the  date  of  the 
grant  and  so  to  continue  yearly  here  after  forever  and  the 
said  grantee  binds  and  obliges  himself,  his  heirs  and  assigns 
annually  to  plant  five  acres  of  the  said  land  with  hempf 
and  to  keep  a  like  quantity  of  acres  planted  during  the  suc- 
cessive years  and  the  Grant  here  by  made  is  upon  this  further 
condition  that  if  said  grantee  shall  not  settle  the  said  grant 
of  land  with  Protestant  settlers  in  the  proportion  of  one 
person  for  every  two  hundred  acres  within  ten  years  from 
the  date  herein  then  this  grant  is  to  revert  to  the  Crown, 
and  the  Governor. 


APPENDIX    B 

COMMUNICANTS    TATAMAGOUCHE    PRESBYTERIAN 
CONGREGATION  1828. 

Irving  Bell  George  Stewart 

William  Byers,  Sen  Hugh  McDonald 

Mrs.  John  McKeen  Mrs.  (Rev.)  Hugh  Ross 

Donald  Mclntosh  Mrs.  James  McConnel 

Mrs.  Donald  Mclntosh  Mrs.  John  Bell,  Sen. 

Mrs.  Angus  Kennedy  Mrs.  Newcombe  (Wallace) 

Mrs.  Dewer,  Sen.  Mrs.  Lyons  (Wallace) 

Mrs.  Duncan  Dewar  Mrs.  Baxter,  Sen. 

Mrs.  Alex.  Dewar  Mrs.  John  Currie 

Barbara  Waugh  James  McConnel 

Sarah  Waugh  Mrs.  George  Langille 

Mrs.  Chambers,  Sen.  John  Richards 

Edward  Langille  Simon  Matatall 

Frederick  Hyndman  Mary  Byers 

Mrs.  Tom  Waugh  James  Bell 

Mrs.  William  Cuirie  William  Bell 

Jeremiah  Murphy  Mrs.  Francais  Wilson 

Alexander  Dewar  Mrs.  Alex.  Shearer 

David  Baxter  Mrs.  William  Waugh 

Gavin  Bell  Mrs.  Samuel  Waugh 

Mary  Currie  John  Byers 

George  Tattrie  Mrs.  William  Byers,  Sen. 

Mrs.  George  Tattrie  Mrs.  George  McKay 

George  Smith  George  McKay 

Mrs.  Wm.  Hyndman  Enock  Stevens 

Mrs.  James  Munroe  Mrs.  Wm.  McConnel 

John  Hingly  Mrs.  Alex.  Campbell,  Esq. 

Mrs.  Gavin  Bell  John  Biggar 

Mrs.  George  Stewart  Mrs.  John  Biggar 

tThese  provisions  were  never  fulfilled. 


HISTORY    OF    TATAMAGOUCHE 


133 


APPENDIX     B— Continued. 


Helen  Waugh 
Mr.  Mitchell 


John  Johnston 

Mrs.  John  Johnston 

Miss  Drysdale 

Robert  Byers 

John  McKeen,  Jun. 

Robert  Bell 

William  Waugh,  Sen. 

Ann  Kennedy 

Mrs.  Bonyman 

John  McCombie 

Robert  Stevens 

Janet  Bell 

Mrs.  Stewart  McConnel 

Mr.  Forsyth 

Mrs.  John  Henderson 


Mrs.  John  Wilson 
Mrs.  David  Wilson 
Jane  McCombie 
Mary  McKay 
Lavinia  Drysdale 

Mary  McGeorge 
Beaty  Swan 
Robert  Nelson 
Mrs.  Robert  Nelson 
Margaret  McKeen 
Susana  McKeen 
Mrs  David  Tattrie 


Mrs.  Mitchell 
Miss  Mitchell 

1831 

t  Susan  Patterson 
'  James  Munroe 

Edward  Langille 

John  Bonyman 

John  Currie 

Duncan  Dewar 

James  Leaper 

Alex.  Sherar 

James  McGeorge 

Mrs.  John  Oliver 

Mrs.  David  Baxter 

Christopher  Carruthers 

Mrs.  Christopher  Carruthers 

Sam.  Waugh 
1833 

Sarah  (?)  Graham 

Ephraim  Mattatall  (Lake) 

George  Langille 

Mrs.  George  Langille 

John  Langille 

1835 

Mrs.  Jeremiah  Murphy 
Mrs.  William  Dumphy 
Mrs  John  Oliver,  Sen. 
Edward  Bonyman 

Cooper 

Mr.  Forsyth,  Sen.  (Wallace) 
Mr.  Sloan  [?j  (Wallace) 


APPENDIX  C 
CALL  EXTENDED  TO  RE\T.  ROBERT  BLACKWOOD 

Tatamagouche,  Nov.  4th,  1»40. 

We  whose  names  are  subscribed,  Elders  and  members 
of  the  united  Presbyterian  Congregation  of  Tatamagouche 
and  New  Annan  with  others  who  adhere  to  the  Westminster 
Confession  of  Faith  as  received  by  the  Church  of  Scotland 
and  the  Presbyterian  Church  of  Nova  Scotia,  taking  into 
serious  consideration  our  destitute  situation  through  want 
of  a  fixed  Pastor  to  whom  we  can  with  confidence  commit 
the  orevsight  and  inspection  of  our  souls  being  fully  apprised 


134  HISTORY    OF   TATAMAGOUCHE 

by  good  information  and  out  own  experience  of  the  piety, 
prudence,  literature  and  other  ministerial  endowments  and 
qualifications  of  you  the  Rev.  Robert  Blackwood  at  present 
a  memberof  the  Reverend  the  Presbytery  of  Truro  and  the 
suitableness  of  the  gifts  bestowed  upon  you  by  the  Head  of 
the  Church  for  our  edification.  We  do  hereby  invite,  entreat 
and  Call  you  to  come  over  to  us  and  to  help  us  by  taking  the 
charge  and  oversight  of  our  souls  and  discharging  the  various 
duties  of  the  ministerial  office  among  us.  And  we  do  hereby 
promise  you  all  due  subjection  and  encouragement  in  the 
Lord.  And  we  also  bind  and  oblige  ourselves  to  afford  you  all 
necessary  support  and  subsistence  according  to  you  sta- 
tion and  rank  in  society.  And  we  also  humbly  desire  and 
entreat  the  Rev.  Presbytery  of  Pictou  to  whom  we  present 
this  our  Call  to  sustain  the  same  and  to  take  the  requisite 
steps  with  all  proper  expedition  in  order  to  the  settlement  of 
the  said  Reverend  Robert  Blackwood  among  us  as  soon  as- 
possible. 

John  Currie  •  John  Langille 

John  Bonyman  David  Langille 

Edward  Langille  John  McKeen 

A.  Campbell  John  Lockerbie 

Samuel  Wetherbie  William  McConnel 

James  Campbell  George  Cooper 

James  Hepburn  John  Ross 

Robert  Cooper  James  Drysdale,  Jun. 

Danford  Patriquin  Eliva 

John  Patriquin  Jane  McDougal 

Ephraim  Mattatall  Olivia  Campbell 

George  Waugh  Mary  Campbell 

Edward  Bonyman  Margaret  Upham 

William  Bryden  Jane  McConnell 

James  Bonyman  Elizabeth  McConnell 

William  Lombard  Susanna  Bryden 

William  Campbell  Alex.  Sherar 

Murray  Waugh  Matthew  Henderson 

James  Hingley  David  Hurley 

Donald  Waugh  Melvin  Grassie 

George  Henderson  Thomas  Slade 

James  Drysdale  John  Johnson 

John  Nelson  Katherine  Johnson 

Levi  Mattatall  Wellwood  Johnson 

George  Tattrie  John  Henderson 

James  Chambers  Mary  Henderson 

James  Simpson  John  Richards 

Charles  D.  McCurdy  William  Hayndman 

Eben William  Mattatall 

George  Patriquin  Thomas  Henderson 

George  Mattatall  John  Hingley 


HISTORY    OF   TATAMAGOUCHB 


135 


APPENDIX    C—Contined. 


Daniel  McGregor 
David  Hayndman 
Hugh  Nelson 
Robert  Nelson 
Jeremiah  Murphy 
David  Hayndman 
David  Cameron 
John  Hayndman 
Mitchell  Murray 
Simon  Cameron 
John  Megher 

Wetherbie 

John  Hewitt 
George  Smith 


David  Howard 
Edward  Tattrie 
John  Tattrie 
Lewis  Tattrie 
George  Tattrie  Jun. 
Alex.  Mattatall 
Robert  Kerr 
Charles  Adams 
Robert  Cutten 

James 

John  Lombard 
Joseph  Reid 
Peter  Mattatall 
William  Wetherbie 


From  New  Annan 


Jas.  McGeorge 
Christopher  Carruthers 
Wm.  Aitcheson 
William  Scott 
Robt.  Bell 
Irving  Bell 
George  Langille 
Ephraim  Tattrie 
Christopher  Langille 
John  Langille,  Jun. 
John  Scott 
Mary  Scott 
William  Byers,  Jun. 
Mary  McConnell 
William  Byers,  Sr. 
Josephine  Byers 
John  Byers 
Robert  L.  Byers 
Peter  Little 
John  H.  Wetherbie 


E.  F.  Wetherbie 
Anthony  Elliot 
Philip  Vincent 
Enock  Stevens 
Sarah  Stevens 
Thomas  Stevens 
Samuel  Whidden 
Gavin  Bell 

Duncan 

William  Carruthers 
Mary  Bell 

William  Holiday 
John  Swan 
James  Pugh 
Walter  Byers 
Christopher  Byers 
James  Bell 
Alex.  McCurdy 


Names  are  spelled  as  they  appear  in  the  original  Call.     Names  in  blank 
are  not  leginle. 


136 


HISTORY    OF    TATAMAGOUCHE 


APPENDIX    D 

VESSELS  BUILT  AT  TATAMAGOUCHE,   N.  S.   FBOM 
1818  TO  1917. 

This  list  is  not  claimed  to  be  complete.  It  is  complied 
from  the  register  at  Halifax  till  1840.  In  that  year  Pictou 
was  made  a  port  of  registry  and  from  then  on  practically 
all  the  vessels  built  at  Tatamagouche  were  registered  there. 
Those  registered  elsewhere  will  not  appear  in  the  following 
list  as  the  register  at  Pictou  was  the  only  one  to  be  searched. 

1818 

Mary Schooner.  ...     32 Alex  McNabb 

Fish  Hawke Schooner 16 Jas.  Chambers 

1823 

Dapper Schooner.  ...     22 Thos.  Langille 

Nancy Schooner 73 Fred  Hayman 

Lilly. Schooner 28 Murray  S.  Waugh 

1824 
Elizabeth Schooner 91 A.  Campbell,  Mortimer  Smith. 

1826 

Devron Brig 281 A.  Campbell,  Mortimer  Smith. 

Indian Schooner.  ...     34. ..  .Isaac  Langille 

1827 
Mary Brig 133.  .  *  .A.  Campbell,  Mortimer  Smith. 

1829 

Margaret Schooner.  ...     55. ..  .Alex.  &  Fred.  Hayman 

Susan Schooner ....     52 Eph.  Matatall 

1830 
Elizabeth Schooner ....     29 ....  Henry  Dwyer 

1831 
Martha Brig 271 ....  Jas.  Campbell 

1832 
Mary  Elizabeth Schooner.  ...     96. ..  .Jas.  Campbell 

1833 

Colchester Barque 418. . .  .Jas.  Campbell 

Moose Schooner ....     72 ....  Robt.  Chambers 

Catherine Schooner ....     39 ....  Wm.  Campbell 

Greyhound Schooner ....     32. ..  .Jas.  Chambers 

1834 

John  Millar Barque 119. ..  .Alex.  Campbell 

Antelope Schooner ....     99 ....  Jas.  Purvis 


HISTORY    OF    TATAMAGOUCHE 


137 


1835 

Colchester  

.  .  Barque  .... 

..   562.. 

.  .  Alex.  Campbell 

Thomas  Maloney.  .  . 

.Schooner.  . 

.       96.. 

.  .  Win.  Campbell 

Catherine  

.Schooner.  . 

.  .     14.  . 

.  .  Peter  Millard 

1836 

Olivia  

•  Brig  

..   133.. 

.  .  Wm.  Campbell 

Industry  

Brig  

.  .   145.. 

.  .  Alex.  Campbell 

Sarah  

.  Schooner  .  . 

.  .     24.  . 

.  .  Alex.  Campbell 

Sir  Colin  Campbell.  . 

.Ship  

..  518.. 

.  .  Alex.  Campbell 

1837 

Mersey  

.  .Ship  

.  .  734.  . 

.  .  Alex.  Campbell 

Enterprise  

.  .  Barque  .... 

..  449.. 

.   Alex.  Campbell 

Francis  Laws  

.Barque.  .  .  . 

.  .   325.. 

.  .Alex.  Campbell 

Isabella  

.Brig  

.  .  260.  . 

.  .  Robt.  Chambers 

1838 

Jane  Archibald  

..Brig  

.  .   174.  . 

.  .Jas.  Campbell 

Amitv  

..Brig  

.  .    151.  . 

.  .  Alex.  Campbell 

Hercules  

.  .  Brig  

..  295.. 

.  .Wm.  Campbell 

Commerce  

.  .  Barque  .... 

.  .  369.. 

.  .  Alex.  Campbell 

Trusty  

Biig  

..   169.. 

.  .Wm.  Campbell 

Mary  Campbell 

.Ship  

..  415.. 

.  .Alex.  Campbell 

1839 

Wanderer  

..Brig  

..    176.. 

.  .John  Miller 

Thetis  

.  .  Schooner  .  . 

..       7.. 

.   Isaac  Langille 

Brenton  Haliburtgn  . 

..Ship  

.  .   522  .. 

.  .Alex.  Campbell 

Vigilant  

..Brig  

.  .   178.. 

.  .  Alex.  Campbell 

Neptune  

.  .  Ship  

.  .  484.  . 

.  .Wm.  Campbell 

Eagle  

.-Brig  

.  .  320.  . 

.  .Robt.  Purvis 

Margaret  Millar. 

.  Barque  .... 

.  .   500.  . 

.  .  Alex.  Campbell 

Rambler  

..Brig  

.  .   193.. 

.   Alex.  Campbell 

1840 

James  

..Brig  

..   197.. 

.  .Wm.  Fraser 

Jane  Ann  

.  .  Schooner  .  . 

7.. 

.  .Thos.  Langille 

Bridget  

.  .  Schooner  .  . 

..     55.. 

.  .  Alex.  Campbell 

Favourite  

.  .  Barque  .... 

.  .   529.. 

.  .  Jas.  Purvis 

Sterling  

.  .  Barque  .... 

..  368.. 

.  .  Alex.  Campbell 

Britannic  

..Brig  

..  219.. 

.  .  Alex.  Campbell 

Jessie  

.  .  Barque  .... 

.  .   573  .. 

.  .  Wm.  Campbell 

Velocity  

..Brig  

.  .  237  .. 

.  .Wm.  Campbell 

Acadia  

.  .  Barque  .  .  .  . 

..  369.. 

.  .  Alex.  Campbell 

Columbia  

.  .  Barque  .... 

.  .   375.. 

.  .  Alex.  Campbell 

Francis  Lawson  .... 

.  .Ship  

.  .  539.. 

.  .  Alex.  Campbell 

Eliza  Allan  

.  .Brig  

.  .  200.  . 

.  .Robt.  Purvis 

Caledonia  

.-Brig  

.  .   204.  . 

.  .  Alex.  Campbell 

1841 

Jessie  

.  .  Barque 

..   573.. 

.  .  Alex.  Campbell 

Leander  

.  .  Ship  

.  .  733.. 

.  .  Alex.  &  Wm.  Campbell 

Mersey  

.  .  Barque 

.  .   462  .. 

.  .Alex.  Campbell 

Davenport  
Elizabeth  

Barque  .  .  .  . 
.  .Schooner.  . 

.  .   546.. 
.  .   115.. 

.  ,\\  in.  Campbell 
.  .  Alex.  Campbell 

Albion  

..Brig  

.  .  260.  . 

.  .Alex.  Campbell 

Margaret  

.  .Schooner.  . 

..    111.. 

.   Alex.  Campbell 

Jane  

.  .  Barque 

.  .  508  .. 

.  .  Robt.  Purvis 

HISTORY    OP    TATAMAGOUCHE 


1842 

Wanderer Schooner ....   119 Alex.  Campbell 

Fanny Brig 164 Robt.  Purvis 

Arab Schooner ....   117     . .  Alex.  Campbell . . 

Trident Barque 354 Wm.  Campbell 

Herione Barque 373 Alex.  &  Jas.  Campbell 

1843 

Tartar Schooner.  ...     85 Alex.  Campbell 

Reliance Barque 478. . .  .Alex.  Campbell 

Liberty Brigantine. . .   194. . .  .Alex.  Campbell 

Amity Schooner ....     82 ....  Alex.  Campbell 

Acope Schooner ....     63 ....  Alex.  Campbell 

1844 

Sisters Schooner ....     43 ....  Campbell  &  Millar 

Triton Schooner ....     94 ....  Campbell  &  Millar 

Sarah Schooner ....     25 ...  .Alex.  Ross 

1845 

Dove Schooner ....     26 ....  John  Oliver 

Trial Schooner ....     28 Alex.  Campbell 

Ferronia Brig 109 Alex.  Campbell 

Gleanor Schooner ....     79 ....  Alex.  Campbell 

Recovery Barque 400. .  .  .Alex.  Campbell 

Growler Brig 106 Alex.  Campbell 

1846 

Courier Brig 134. . .  .Alex.  Campbell 

Crion Brig 130 Alex.  Campbell 

Tyre Brig 109 Alex.  Campbell 

Messenger Barque 330. . .  .Alex.  Campbell 

Lady  Harvey Brig 145. . .  .Alex.  Campbell 

J.  Cumber Brig 1 17 ....  Alex.  Campbell 

1847 

Sterling Schooner ....     58 ....  Alex.  Campbell 

Emblem Brig 162 Alex.  Campbell 

Inconstant Barque 517.  .  .  .Alex.  Campbell 

Hannah Brigantine . . .   149 ....  Alex.  Campbell 

Aurora Brig 161 ....  Alex.  Campbell 

Margaret Brig 148 ....  Alex.  Campbell 

1848 

Standard Barque 359. . .  .Alex.  Campbell 

Vine Brig 164 Alex.  Campbell 

Wm.  Molesworth Barque 468 ....  Alex.  Campbell 

1849 

Elizabeth Schooner ....   109 ....  Alex.  Campbell 

St.  Lawrence "...  Barque 362 ....  Alex.  Campbell 

Goojetat Brig 190. . .  .Alex.  Campbell 

Woodman Barque 440. .  .  .Alex.  Campbell 

1850 

Castina Brigantine. . . .  135. . .  .Alex.  Campbell 

Hyades Brig 218 Alex.  Campbell 

Jessie Brigantine . . .    167 ....  Alex.  Campbell 

Meteor Schooner ....     86 ....  Alex.  Campbell 

Transit Brig 195 Alex.  Campbell 

Petrol Brigantine. . .   142. .  .  .Alex.  Campbell 


HISTORY    OF   TATAMAGOUCHE 


139 


1851 

Daring Brigantine. . .   131 Alex.  Campbell 

Delegate Brig 248 Alex.  Campbell 

Argentinus Barque 542 Alex.  Campbell 

Harriet Brigantine ...   101 Alex.  Campbell 

Cm-lew Schooner ....     51 ....  Isaac  Langille 

1852 

Victor Brigantine. . .   133 Alex.  Campbell 

Little  Pet Brigantine ...     60 Edward  Kent 

Historia Barque 453 Alex.  Campbell 

Hunter Brigantine . . .   136 ....  Alex.  Campbell 

Laurel Schooner ....     88 ....  Alex.  Campbell 

Oerona Brigantine. . .   146.  . .  .Arch.  Campbell 

1853 

Sovereign Schooner.  ...     44.  ..  .Geo.  Matatall 

Warbler Brig 156.  . .  .Campbell  &  Millar 

Crybress Barque 405 ....  Campbell  &  Millar 

Trial Schooner 28.  ..  .Geo.  Millard 

Revivial Barque 452 ....  Campbell  &  Millar 

Archibald Brig 226 Campbell  &  Millar 

1854 

Alecto Barque 272 Campbell  &  Millar 

Fortuna Brig 356.  .  .  .John  Millar 

Sterling  Clipper Brigantine. . .   112.  ..  .Edward  Kent 

Lily  Dale Brigantine ...  93 Robert  Logan 

Harmony Barque 457 ....  Campbell  &  Millar 

Reward Brigantine . . .   144 ....  Campbell  &  Millar 

McDuff Barque 374.  .  .  .Arch.  Patterson 

1855 

Ice  King Brigantine . . .   100 ....  Robert  Logan 

Arabel Brig 234 D.  &  A.  Campbell 

Dash Brigantine . . .   100 ....  Edward  Kent 

Nautilus Brigantine. . .   101. .  .  .Jas.  McLearn 

Sir  John  Campbell ....  Brigantine . . .   142 ....  John  Mockler 

A.  G.  Archibald Barque 381 D.  A  A.  Campbell 

Black  Agnes Schooner ....     58 ....  Robert  Purvis 

Roe Brigantine ...   106 ....  Jas.  McLearn 

1856 

Olivia Barque 279.  .  .  .Arch.  Patterson 

Sarah  Jane Schooner ....     23 ....  Hugh  Hingley 

Sygnet Brigantine . . .   170 ....  D.  &  A.  Campbell 

Metor  Flag Brigantine . . .    134 ....  Robert  Logan 

Argo Brigantine. . .   114. ..  .Jas.  McLearn 

Pioneer Brigantine. . .   190.  . .  .Edward  Kent 

Rescue Brigantine. . .   110. .  .  .Wm.  Blackwood 

Amateur Barque 239.  .  .  .A.  Campbell 

Prima  Donna Brig 125 ....  Robert  Logan 

1857 

Glide Birg 187 J.  Millar  &  D.  A.  Campbell 

Lilian Brig 258 ...  Arch.  Patterson 

Anenome Brigantine. .  .   170.  .  .  .D.  &  A.  Campbell 

Advance Brigantine . . .   154 ...  Arch .  Campbell 

Commissiary Brigantine . . .   143 ....  Robert  Logan 


140 


HISTORY    OF    TATAMAGOUCHE 


Gem Brigantine. . .  168. . . .  Jas.  McLearn 

Martin  I.  Wilkens.  .  .  .Brigantine. .  .  184. . .  .John  Mockler 

Kitty  Clyde Brigantine. . .  129 Edward  Kent 

Rover's  Bride Brigantine. . .  153. .  .  .Jas.  Purvis 

Reindeer Brigantine.  . .  147.  .  .  .Wm.  Blackwood 

Holly  Hock Brigantine. .  .  152 Chas.  Reilly 

Thomas  Wright Brigantine. .  .  144 B.  F.  McKay 

Oriental Brigantine. . .  132.  .  .  .Arch.  Patterson 

Success Brigantine. . .  122. . .  .Arch.  Campbell 

1858 

Princess Schooner.  ...  80. ..  .Arch.  Patterson 

Jessie  Brown Brig 113 ....  Robert  Logan 

Sneezer Brig 128 ....  Arch.  Campbell 

Havelock Brigantine. . .  110. ..  .Edward  Kent 

Kate Schooner.  .  . .  50.  . .  .D.  A.  Campbell 

1859 

Rose  Bud Schooner.  ...  28. ..  .John  Langille 

Lovely  Mary Schooner ....  38. ..  .Robt.  Logan 

Ranger Schooner.  ...  24.  ..  .Peter  Matatall 

Francais. Brigantine. .  .  133 ....  D.  &  A.  Camp*bell 

Mary  Joyce Schooner.  ...  60.  .  .  .B.  F.  McKay. 

Sun  Burst Brigantine. . .  222.  .  .  .John  Mockler 

Sarah  Ann Brigantine  .  .  143.  .  .  .Chas.  Reilly 

Lord  Clyde Brigantine. . .  134. .  .  .Robt.  Logan 

S.  May Schooner.  ...  54. . .  .D.  &  A.  Campbell 

1860 

Rosalie Schooner.  ...  46.  ..  .Robt.  Logan 

Elsie Schooner ....  55 ....  D.  &  A.  Campbell 

Mary  Jane Schooner.  ...  50.  ..  .Chas.  Reilly 

May  Jane Schooner.  ...  67.  .  .  .D.  &  A.  Campbell 

John  Bull Brigantine. .  .  136.  .  .  .Edward  Kent 

Renfrew Brigantine. .  .  124.  .  .  .Robt.  Logan 

1861 

Tangier Brigantine, . .   131 .  .  .  .Chas.  Reilly 

Undaunted Brigantine. .     166.  .  .  .Edward  Kent 

Tersina Brig 244.  .  .  .Arch.  Campbell 

Glentiret Brigantine.    .   158.  .  .  .Robt.  Logan 

1862 

Rising  Sun Schooner ....     40 ....  Neil  Ramsey 

Dunbar  Castle Schooner.  ...   113.  ..  .Robt.  Purvis 

Bella  Mary Barque 261 D.  &  A.  Campbell 

Ariel Brigantine. . .   143.  .  .  .Edward  Kent 

Anna  Bell Brigantine. . .   153.  .  .  .Robt.  Logan 

Clansman Barque 467 ....  D.  &  A.  Campbell 

Volunteer Brigantine . . .   157 .  .  .  .Chas.  Reilly 

Mary  Jane Brigantine . . .   144 ....  Robt.  Logan 

1863 

Glen  Roy Barque 334 D,  &  A.  Campbell 

Ariadne Barque 375 ....  Edward  Kent 

Laureate Barque 370.  .  .  .Arch.  Patterson 

Example Brigantine . . .   183 ....  Robt.  Purvis 

Staffa Barque 309 D.  &  A.  Campbell 

Gertrude Brigantine. . .   133. ..  .Chas.  Reilly 


HISTORY    OF    TATAMAGOUCHE 


141 


Glen  Tilt Barque 323 D.  &  A.  Campbell 

Cabot Brigantine. . .   126.  .  .  .Robt.  Purvis 

Bessie Brigantine. . .   143.  . .  .Edward  Kent 

1864 

Rosetta Brigantine ...  291 ....  Arch.  Patterson 

Harold Schooner.  ...     85.  ..  .Wm.  Buckler 

Sir  R.  G.  McDonnell. .  Ship 613 ....  D.  &  A.  Campbell 

Bertha Brigantine . . .  257 ....  Robt.  Logan 

Maud Brigantine ...   168 ....  Edward  Kent 

Elsey Brigantine ...   158 ....  Robert  Purvis 

Clara  Jane Schooner ....     69. . .  .D.  &  A.  Campbell 

Excelsior Brigantine . . .   128 Robt.  Bryden 

Susan Brigantine ...   134 ....  Chas.  Reilly 

Glencairn Barque 351. . .  .D.  &  A.  Campbell 

Harmony Schooner.  . .  .     85. . .  .D.  &  A.  Campbell 

1865 

Lillie  M Barque 349 Arch.  Campbell 

Dundanah Schooner ....     71 ....  Chas.  Reilly 

King  of  Tyre Barque 259 ....  Robt.  Logan 

Fanny  Lewis Barque 402 Robt.  Purvis 

Esk Brigantine . . .  167 Edward  Kent      • 

Rose  M Barque 366 D.  &  A.  Campbell 

1866 

Delta Brigantine . . .   153 ....  Edward  Kent 

No  Name Brigantine. . .  218 D.  &  A.  Campbell 

Anna  Bell Schooner.  ...     30 Jer.  &  Ad.  Embree 

Secret Brigantine ...   117 Robt.  Purvis 

1867 
Glennivis Barque 391 D.  &  A.  Campbell 

1868 
Janet  Forbes Barque 412. ...  D.  &  A.  Campbell 

1869 

Olivia Schooner ....     40. . . .  Wm.  Buckler 

Geo.  Walker Barque 414 D.  &  A.  Campbell 

Glenrallock Barque 587. . .  .D.  &  A.  Campbell 

Isabella* Schooner 50 Millar  &  Rettie 

1870 

Wenonal Barque 669 D.  &  A.  Campbell 

Wahsatch Barque 480 D.  &  A.  Campbell 

1871 

Maggie Schooner ....     20. ...  Saml.  Chambers 

Two  Sisters Schooner ....     58 ....  Murphy,  Mingo  &  Ramsey 

1872 

G.  A.  Pryke Brigantine . . .   128 ....  Murphy,  Mingo  &  Ramsey 

Jumma Ship 1000 D.  &  A.  Campbell 

Ocean  Lily Schooner ....   113 ....  D.  Redmond 

1873 
Trial Schooner. ...     52 Murphy,  Mingo  &  Ramsey 

*This  was  the  Millar  vessel  which  was  lost  with  all  on  board.  She  is  given  here  as 
built  in  '69.  From  sources  that  are  most  reliable  the  writer  has  learned  that  she  was 
built  and  wrecked  in  the  late  fall  of  '68.  It  is  not  understood  why  she  was  not  registered 
till  '69. 


142 


HISTORY    OF    TATAMAQOUCHE 


Phenora Schooner .  . . 

Ashantee Barque 

Sterling Brigantine . . 

Susan  King Schooner . . . 

Maud Brigantine . . 

Edith  Carmichael Barque 


1874 
.     36. 
700. 
.  347. 

1875 

24. 

.  239. 


.  .Jas.,  Jno.  &  D.  Chambers 
..D.  &  A.Campbell 
.  .D.  Redmond 

.  .Hugh  McPherson 

.  .D.  Redmond 

. .  D.  &  A.  Campbell 


John  T.  Ives Brigantine. 

James  Semple Schooner.  . 

Promenader. .  .  .Schooner.  . 


1876 
.  371. 
.     63. 
92. 


Minnie  Carmichael .  .  .  Barque . 


.  .D.  &  A.  Campbell 

. . Roberts 

.  .D.  Redmond 

.  .D.  &  A.  Campbell 


1877 
.   900. 
1878 

Etta Schooner ....   107 ....  Jas.  Semple  et  al 

Lairg Schooner ....     99 ....  Alex.  Matheson 

1879 
Ceteway Schooner ....  20. ...  Ant.  McBurnie 

1880 

Lady  Francklin Schooner ....     77 ....  Alex.  Wetherbie 

Margaret  Ann Schooner.  ...     53. ..  .Wm.  Buckler 

1881 
Jagc Schooner ....  28 ....  Chas.  Reid 

1887 
Athlete Schooner 53. ..  .Alex.  Wetherbie 

1890 
Florence  C Schooner ....  98 ....  J.  W.  Cassidy 

1900 
McClure Schr  (tern).. .  190 Alex.  Wetherbie 

1904 
Unity Schr  (tern). . .  248 Alex.  Wetherbie 

1909 
Al;ce  Matatall Schooner 16 Hugh  Matatall 

1917 
Haael  W . .  Schooner . .  33 Alex.  Wetherbie.  • 


HISTORY    OF   TATAMAGOUCHE 


143 


APPENDIX    E 

MILITIA  ROLL  IST  COMPANY  SRD   BATTALION  COLCHESTER 

MILITIA. 

Commanding  Officer:    Wm.   Campbell,   Esq.,    1841. 


Sergeants 

Geo.  Patriquin 

Privates 

John  Shannon 
Wm.  Peirce 
Solomon  Waugh 
John  Wilson 
Gavin  Currie 
Chas.  ReiUy 
Daniel  McLelland 
Jas.  McKeen 
Thps.  Heuchan 
Neil  Ramsey 
Geo.  Morrison 
Jas.  Waugh 
Jas.  Brown 
Chas.  Cutten 
Robt.  McConnell 
Wm.  Smith 
Alex  Lyons 
Daniel  Waugh 
Welwood  Waugh 
John  Pride 
Robt.  Blackwood 
Stewart  McConnell 
Joseph  McDonald 
Wm.  Fraser 
Thos.  Roberts 
John  Martial 
Matthew  Carrol 
William  Roberts 
David  Cunninghan 

Aaron 

Daniel  Hurley 
John  Huddon 
Daniel  McDonald 
John  Simpson 
John  Suliyan 
Joseph  Spinney 
John  Mclntosh 
Jos.  Ryan 
David  McConnell 
Stephen  Rood 
Hugh 


George  Waugh 
Jas.  Johnston 

Henry  Roberts 
John  Millard 
Wm.  Henderson 
Daniel  Henderson 
Roderick  McDonald  Sr. 
Roderick  McDonald  Jr. 
Duncan  McDonald 
Levi  Graci 
Thos  Slade 
John  Millar 
Robert  Joice 
Morris  Spinney 
Jacob  Spinney 
Welwood  Johnston 
Geo.  Johnston 
Absolem  Cole 
Wm.  Write 
Robert  Bryden 
Michael  Forrister 
Wm.  Ryan 
Jas.  Grant 
John  McDougal 
David  Fulton 
Wm.  Higgins 
Chas.  Higgins 
Chas.  Adams 
John  Irvine 
Joseph  Davis 
Hector  Fraser 
Robert  Cuttin 
Jas.  Chaimbers 
Daniel  Cassidy 
Jas.  McBurney 
Michael  White 
Jas.  Brown 
Robert  Smith 
Peter  Wetherby 
David  Matatal  Jr. 
Peter  Matatal 
Robt.  McCollum 
Wm.  Dumphy 
Daniel  Chambers 
Geo.  B.  Johnston 

The  above  names  are  spelled  as  they  appeared  in  the  original  muster  roll. 
Names  in  blank  are  not  legible. 


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