By Ashley Harper Note: This post has been updated to reflect additional information provided to the author. When digging on your own property, you rarely find anything noteworthy - perhaps some interesting rocks or bits of pottery or glass bottles, discarded and forgotten long ago. Maybe even some old coins if you're lucky. One never expects to find a skull, much less an entire skeleton. But that is precisely what happened on the morning of 26 August 1997. Construction workers on the farm of Clifford Howse (Lot 21, Con. 8 in Mountain Township) were digging in order to build a coverall shelter when they unearthed a human skull. Using a backhoe, the remainder of a skeleton was revealed. It rested just three and a half feet below the surface, hands folded atop its ribcage, with its feet pointed to the east and head pointed to the west - typical for a Christian burial. The Ontario Provincial Police were contacted, and they, in turn, informed the Dundas County Coroner, Dr. Gabriel Slowey of Chesterville. At the suggestion of the Cemeteries Branch of the Ontario Government, the police enlisted the help of anthropologists Dr. Lynda Wood and Janet Young (later Dr. Young) of the Canadian Museum of Civilization (now the Canadian Museum of History). Drs. Wood and Young assisted with the excavation of the remains, and in the process found remnants of a coffin, including handles, screws, nails, and other hardware. The skeleton was bagged, bone by bone, to be examined along with the coffin parts, then the surrounding ground was searched carefully to collect any other fragments from the grave. The presence of a coffin ruled out a suspicuous death, and the type of hardware indicated that it was a historic burial. But who was this person? When did they die? Why were they buried on a farm and not in a cemetery? The last question, at least, could be answered fairly easily. Prior to the establishment of public cemeteries in this area during the mid-1800s, burial on one's own property was pretty common. A family would choose a location away from the fields to prevent the site from being disturbed - usually a front or side yard, sometimes called an "orchard", where their loved ones could rest in peace. Many of these graves were never marked, and some were never mentioned to younger members of the family. That, along with land changing hands over the years, means that most of these family burial grounds have been forgotten. Of course, this is not the case for all home burials. Some, like the Coyne Family Cemetery in Connaught and the Hummel Family Cemetery in Chesterville, contain gravemarkers and have been maintained to some degree, usually by family, volunteers, the municipality, or a combination of these groups. Even after public cemeteries began popping up in North Dundas, like Maple Ridge Cemetery, South Mountain Union Cemetery, and Ormond Cemetery (all founded in 1866), some people continued to be buried at home until this practice largely fell out of use near the end of the 19th century.
He had helped countless people with their historical enquiries, so it made sense to approach him for this investigation. He soon came back to the constable with a name: Margaret Ellen Belway. Margaret Belway was sixth child and youngest daughter of William Belway and Eliza McKeen. She was born around 1874, likely on the family farm at Lot 20, Con. 8 in Mountain Township, directly west of the Howse Farm. Her father had owned part of the east half of that lot since 1868, having purchased it from his father, Joseph Belway.
Did the remains belong to Margaret? She was a child, much like the skeleton, and her family had lived on the farm at the time of her death. But there was no record of her burial there, and Drs. Wood and Young had yet to complete their analysis, so there had been no conclusions reached about the age or sex of the child. Dr. Slowey, however, was convinced. Confident in his conclusion, he gave an interview to the Winchester Press. "Through local records as well as those from Toronto and the assistance of local historian Clarence Cross, it was determined that the remains are that of Margaret Ellen Belway, who died on October 22, 1881 of diphtheria," Press reporter Sandra Dillich wrote. But there was one major problem: Margaret Belway already had a headstone, and it wasn't at the Howse Farm. It was at Brown's Cemetery, a small, public burial ground nestled away off Main Street West in nearby Winchester. Ena Belway and her son Lyle were quick to point this out. At 91 years old, Ena had been born long after Margaret's death, but her father-in-law James Belway, Margaret's brother, had been fourteen when it happened. They maintained that Margaret was buried at Brown's, not on the farm.
Based on the child's teeth, Drs. Wood and Young estimated that the child was about five to six years old. This was corroborated by the state of the occipital and atlas bones (the base of the skull and first vertebra in the neck, respectively), which indicated a child older than five but younger than seven. Characteristics of other vertebrae and the length of the long bones matched this estimate. Because the child was so young, its sex could not be determined. This meant that Margaret, who died at the age of eight years, was too old to be the child found on the Howse Farm. But where did that leave the investigation? Remember, the bones were not the only remains collected from the burial site. Parts of the coffin, including handles and various bits of hardware, were also found and transported to the lab.
Analysis of coffin hardware was a relatively new effort being undertaken in Ontario. First, Drs. Wood and Young looked at the shape of the coffin. Because it was rectangular, rather than hexagonal, it could be assumed that the burial was made after about 1850, when that shape of coffin was introduced. The white metal screw and tack covers used to close the coffin lid post-date 1860, while the lack of stamped tin screw and tack covers led them to believe the burial pre-dated 1871, as a mixture of white metal and tin covers would likely have been used post-1871. In summary, Drs. Wood and Young determined that this skeleton belonged to a five to six year old child (sex unknown) who was buried between 1860 and 1871. So, both the remains and the coffin heavily contradicted the Margaret Belway conclusion. It was time to hit the books once more. The first step was to return to the Land Registry records, which Clarence Cross had used in his original search. Land registries document the transfer of land between parties, noting the registration date, the type of instrument (wills, purchases, transfers, etc.), and what piece of land it affects. The records for Lot 21, Con. 8 of Mountain Township indicate that William Belway purchased the land from John Robinson in 1880. The Robinson children were dismissed as possible candidates because, although the three children listed in the 1881 Census did have significant age gaps (which could indicate the birth of an additional child that had since died), it would not fit the pre-1871 timeframe. In addition, the Robinsons didn't purchase the land until the mid 1870s, which itself contradicts the 1860 to 1871 estimate. This dismissal was also supported by the fact that no death records could be found for any Robinson children between 1874 and 1880. So, they had to look back even further. John Robinson had purchased the land in two parts: first, he bought all but ten acres of the west half of the lot from Thomas Veitch in 1874, then the remaining ten acres from Adam Veitch in 1875. The Veitch family had resided there since 1852, when Thomas Veitch Sr. purchased the entire lot from James West. In 1857, the west half of the lot was transferred to Thomas Veitch Jr. as stipulated in Thomas Sr.'s will. Ten acres were sold to Thomas Jr.'s brother Adam in 1866. Another brother, Samuel, lived on the east half of the lot. In 1871, all three of the Veitch brothers had young children, so it was necessary to look carefully at each family. For a child to be a likely candidate, they would have to have been born between 1854 and 1866, which would account for a five- or six-year-old child to have died between 1860 and 1871.
Thomas's family, however, was more promising; the 1871 Census showed six children being born between 1859 and 1870, with a four-year gap between daughter Margaret (born 1859) and son Thomas (born 1863). Drs. Wood and Young suggested that this could indicate that a child was born between Margaret and Thomas (about 1861), who could have died at the age of six around 1867, prior the 1871 Census. The issue with their suggestion, however, is that birth dates and ages in Census data are not always reliable. Thomas was actually born around 1860, having been one year old at the time of the 1861 Census - this would close the gap between Margaret and Thomas to one year. Several sources also suggest that Jane was born in 1863 or 1864 rather than 1865, making about a three-year gap between Thomas, Jane, and the next child, David (born 1866). This would still make Drs. Wood and Young's suggestion possible, though somewhat less likely. Last was the family of Adam Veitch. There were four children in the 1871 Census, born between 1865 and 1870, all of which were accounted in the next census a decade later. Adam and Harriet were married sometime after the 1861 Census, but an exact date is unknown. However, due to their ages (both were 31), it would have been possible for a child to have been born prior to Rachael in 1865.
Daniel met two key criteria: he was the right age and died during the estimated period. He died of an accidental gunshot, and although the bones did not show any damage that would indicate a gunshot wound, it may have been a flesh wound that led to death by infection or blood loss. But who was Daniel Veitch? How was he connected to the Veitch family of Lot 21? His death record did not note the names of his parents, as that was not required at the time. No birth record existed, either - much like death records, the province did not collect that data until 1869, and Daniel was born around 1864. Becuase his death record stated that he was a Presbyterian, Drs. Wood and Young looked for parish records for St. Paul's Presbyterian Church in Winchester. However, baptismal records for that time period no longer existed. In addition to collecting data on the living, 1871 Census included a "Nominal Return of Deaths within the last twelve months", which gave the name, age, and cause of death of the deceased, among other things. But it did not give any parental information. Drs. Wood and Young stated that data compiled by the Ontario Historical Society (OHS) from the 1871 Census indicated that Daniel was the son of Adam and Harriet (Brown) Veitch. This data also stated that Emma was their daughter, but this is known to be false: while Emma did not have a birth record, her twin sister Elly did, which clearly gave her parents as Thomas and Rachel Veitch. So, although the data used from the OHS does have errors, the conclusion about Daniel Veitch is supported by other factors. First, it is unlikely that he was the son of Samuel or Thomas Veitch due to the dates of birth of their known children. Samuel had daughters born in 1863 and 1865, while Thomas had a daughter born around 1863 or 1864. Adam, Samuel, and Thomas's other brothers were not married until after the 1871 Census. An additional hint may be found in Daniel's name: although it does not prove anything, it is interesting to note that the father of Harriet Brown Veitch was Daniel Brown. It was very common at the time to name children after their grandparents.
However, they were later successful in using mtDNA to connect Daniel to a local resident, Estella Rose of Mountain Township. Through her maternal line, Mrs. Rose is the great-granddaughter of Jane Brown, whose sister Harriet was the mother of Daniel Veitch. As a result, it can definitively be said that the remains belong to Daniel Veitch. Drs. Wood and Young had used a combination of science and good old fashioned detective work to solve this mystery and close the case. With the analysis complete and a confident identification achieved, there was one more issue to take care of: reburial. He couldn't be re-interred at the Howse Farm, so where would he go? He had no immediate family buried in Dundas County, as his parents and siblings had moved to the Muskoka area sometime between 1871 and 1881, possibly around 1875 when Adam Veitch sold his piece of land to John Robinson. In the end, he was interred at Brown's Cemetery in Winchester sometime in 1998. It was close to the former Veitch farm, and Daniel's paternal grandfather, Thomas Veitch, had a gravestone at that cemetery. Although his mother's maiden name was Brown, she does not appear to be related to Robert Brown, who established the cemetery on his property in 1869. Estella Rose took on the responsibility of ensuring Daniel was reburied and given a proper gravemarker. It is a simple flat stone bearing his name, years of birth and death, and when he was unearthed and reburied, along with the names of his parents. Mr. and Mrs. Rose held a small service at the cemetery with their local minister. The corrected identification of the remains was never reported in the local newspapers, and the incorrect statement that they belonged to Margaret Belway was re-published in the Winchester Press' "Remember When" column in 2007 and 2017. Daniel Veitch's life was tragically cut short 153 years ago. Because he lived during a period between census records and near the beginning of the province's collection of vital records (births/marriages/deaths), there was very little evidence of his existence prior to his skelton being unearthed on a rural farm in late summer, 1997. Only a death record and a nominal return of his death in the 1871 Census remained, which is not that uncommon for those who died young in this locality prior to late-1800s. Now, he has a permanent memorial that will allow his memory to live on. But today, twenty-five years after his gravestone was erected, it can no longer be found in Brown's Cemetery. It has not been moved, nor has it been destroyed - rather, it is hidden by overgrown bushes and trees. Brown's Cemetery has a long history of neglect, but an upcoming effort by the Township of North Dundas has the potential to remedy this ongoing issue. One of the major resources used to write this story was "Historical Skeletal Remains from Dundas County, Ontario: A Cautionary Tale Concerning Individual Identification", written by Drs. Lynda S. Wood and Janet Young following their analysis of Daniel Veitch's remains. You can read this paper for free through the Northeast Historical Archaeology Journal, which originally published the paper in 1998. Here is the link: https://orb.binghamton.edu/cgi/viewcontent.cgi?article=1159&context=neha Correction: This post has been updated to reflect that mitochondrial DNA was successfully used after Drs. Wood and Young's article was published to link the remains to a living relative and therefore positively identify Daniel Veitch, and that the reburial of the remains and erection of a gravestone were undertaken by said relative, Estella Rose. Many thanks to Mrs. Rose for contacting us with this correction.
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By Ashley Harper Written for Look Back at the Past, an initiative by the Township of North Dundas This year marks one century since construction began on the North Mountain Consolidated School in Hallville. On August 8, 1922, four hundred people gathered to witness the school’s cornerstone being laid at the southwest corner of County Road 43 and Shaw Road. Founding a consolidated school, which would accommodate students from kindergarten to Grade 13, was an ambitious plan for this little community. At the time, the school was said to be only the second of its kind in Eastern Ontario, and it remains the first and only consolidated school in the history of Dundas County.
The school was a source of pride for the community but falling enrollment over the years threatened its survival. In 1960, all secondary students were transferred to South Mountain Continuation School, which became known as Mountain District High School. The consolidated school became Hallville Public School. The same issue of low enrollment caused both schools to close just ten years later in June 1970. While secondary students were split primarily between Seaway High School and North Dundas District High School, elementary students got a new facility: Nationview Public School. The old buildings were temporarily revived during the 1970/71 school year when the construction of Nationview was delayed. To mark the end of an era, a giant reunion for students of the two schools was held in the summer of 1970 with about 1,200 people in attendance. Another was held in 1995 and a third was planned for 2020, which would have marked the 50th anniversary of the closing. However, it was postponed due to COVID-19.
By Ashley Harper Death can be a very uncomfortable subject for many. But at this time of year, it's also one that is very hard to avoid. From Halloween movies to haunted walks, it seems to be everywhere. Historically, death and death rituals/practices can provide an interesting look into an individual's life, their community, and the broader culture that they were a part of. Documents produced at the time of death, including memorial cards, also serve as an important historical and genealogical resource.
The Chesterville and District Historical Society has three memorial cards in its collection—those of Mary J. Crawford Hall, Alfred Wilson, and John L. Richardson. The oldest card, that of Mary Crawford Hall, dates back to 1887.
The second memorial card is that of Alfred Wilson, son of John Wilson and Mary Southam. He was born in England around 1859 and immigrated to Canada some time prior to 1881, when he was living in Cornwall with Robert Hodge and family. The census states that Alfred was a carder in a cotton mill. There were three cotton mills in Cornwall at the time—the Cornwall Manufacturing Company, the Canadian Cotton Limited, Stormont Mill, and the Canadian Cotton Manufacturing Company, Canada Mill—but it is not known which mill he was employed at.
Annie lived to the age of 87, dying in 1948--60 years after her husband. She never remarried and is buried beside her sister in Williamstown, Massachusetts. Alfred and Annie's daughter Edith married Ambrose Powell and died in 1943 at the age of 58, leaving no children. Alfred Jr. worked in the textile industry like his parents. He lived a long life with his wife Miriam Aspinwall, dying in 1983 at the age of 95. He left behind one son.
John remained on the farm until his death on 23 July 1909 following a "shock of paralysis". He outlived both his wife and daughter Eleanor, who died in 1895 and 1904 respectively. The three of them are buried together at Oldsville Cemetery in Pope Mills, just outside of Macomb.
Only the Richardson card includes the maker's name—H. F. Wendell & Co. of Leipsic, Ohio. The Wendell company was the largest producer of memorial cards in the United States during the late 19th and early 20th century. A digitized catalogue from about 1920, which includes the card style used for the Richardson card, can be viewed through the Duke University repository. Many people have a box of memorial cards somewhere in their home - a tradition carried on from our grandparents. These collections provide a wonderful opportunity to reminisce about the old times and remember those we have lost. They are also a great keepsake to pass down to future generations.
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CDHS publishes articles about interesting photos, artifacts, people, events, buildings, etc. that relate to the history of Chesterville and District. If there is something that you would like to see, email us at [email protected]
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