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HISTORY
OF
KINSALE
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By
VICTORIA A. MOWBRAY
AuGuBT, 1931
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history of Kinsale
Victoria A. Mowbray, Brooklin, Ont., Aug., 1931.
(Formerly of Kinsale) .
Kinsale is a small village about eight miles
from Whitby, situated on the sixth concession
line of Pickering Township in the County of On-
tario. About one hundred years ago the first
settler in Kinsale neighborhood, by the name of
Wing Rogers, coming from Vermont to make a
home for his family in the wilds of Canada,
settled in the woods about a mile and a half west
and north of Kinsale; cut down the bush, cleared
a spot and set up the first dwelling in this vicini-
ty. A couple of years later in 1833 Ralph Mow-
bray came from New York City with his family
to hew out a home near the same place.
The land all around was owned by one Lord
Emsley from England. Why he had possession
of so much land I do not know. Surely it was not
for its. value for in one instance he gave a man fifty
acres of land for chopping one sideroad one and
one quarter miles long. Soon after the above fam-
ilies were settled in their homes, other settlers
came in thick and fast, viz: McAvoy, Coultice,
Dunn, Redman, Parkin, Sadler, Gibson, Adamson,
Gee, Hyfield, Hortop, Salton, John Mackie, Law-
ton, Sylvester Mackey, Joseph Rogers, McBrien,
Stevenson, Lawrence, Brignall, and others who
all settled in and around Kinsale.
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Among the early settlers not before mentioned
was John Clerke who settled on the farm now
owned by Victor Parkin. He hailed from Kinsale,
Cork County, Ireland; and in all his journey did
not find a name more suitable for our little village
than that of his home town Kinsale which met
with the approval of all concerned and still sounds
good after the lapse of many years. The last
member of Mr. Clerke's family, Elizabeth Clerke
Mowbray, passed away a little over a year ago
at the age of eighty-three years.
A few of the homes remain still in the family
name but most of them have changed hands.
Those remaining are A. Rogers, Sadler, Parkin,
Dunn, H. Mowbray, McBrien, Lawton and Steven-
son. All others have changed hands. The old
Gibson and Mowbray homesteads are now owned
by Carson; Hortop farm now owned by Harbron,
Gold farm by Richardson, Redman by Wagg,
Clerke by Victor Parkin, J. Mackie farm by H.
Parkin, Sylvester Mackey by Charles Lidgett, and
Joseph Rogers' farm by M. Gormley. Mr. Gorm-
ley's home has the distinction of being the only
original log home in the vicinity, built when
Joseph Rogers settled on the farm. It is still in
use but so camouflaged by modern improvements
that it can hardly be recognized. The farms on
the corners, have repeatedly changed hands. The
farm on the east side is at present owned by
Thomas Hirst, north west corner by Mr. Crews,
and the south west corner is now occupied by Mr.
W. Bell.
At one time Kinsale was quite a flourishing
village. We had a Temperance Hall, harness
shop, cheese factory, cider mill, general store and
post office, blacksmith, carpenter, wagon shop,
shoe store, church, quite a number of dwelling
houses and a population of eighty.
The first church was built one mile west of the
village, in 1849, at what is still known as Salem
Corners. A community burying ground was
there laid out. Wm. Gibson (F. W. Gibson's
grandfather), I am told, was the first person to
occupy a portion of that plot for his last resting
place "Until the day breaks and the shadows
flee away." Since then a great host have rested
there. The grounds have been twice enlarged to
meet the demand's of the Grim Reaper Death.
This plot has been well cared for and is still for
neatness and beauty a "joy to behold." The
church still stands, in fairly good condition and is
used for funeral services .and other occasions. I
was once told an amusing incident, by one who
was there at the time, which happened in this
church a long time ago. A good old man noted
for being just himself and nobody else, whose
name I shall not mention, went, as was his cus-
tom, to prayer meeting on a cold winter night;
was called upon by the minister to lead in prayer.
In response he shouted "I cawn't, my feet's oo'er
cau'd", plainly demonstrating that physical dis-
comforts are not conducive to health of mind and
heart. For a long time he has been peacefully
resting in the old church yard. He lived to be a
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very old man, away up in the nineties, and after
he was unable to get about, his open Bible, on a
little stand before him, was his constant com-
panion until the last leaf of life was turned to be
continued in the next. Later on in history the
need was felt for a church at Kinsale which was
duly erected in the year 1854 and was used by the
Methodists until it was considered unsafe, the
foundation having given. away. In 1929 the resi-
dents decided to build a new one. This was made
possible by the generosity of a former resident
together with the generous contributions of the
community. All worked together with a will and
succeeded in erecting a very fine new church, its
beautiful memorial windows a grand tribute to
the energy and generosity of the present genera,
tion. We hope they will long live to enjoy its
privileges and be greatly blessed by being faithful
to their trust.
The first store was opened by John Fairless
followed by Mr. Levi Mackey who carried on a
successful business for a number of years then
sold out to Mr. Willis, whose successor was Mr.
Alvin Orvis. The latter sold out to Mr. John
Rodd and later it became the firm of Rodd &
Mowbray. Now it is showing up the colors of a
chain store under the name of R. V. Mowbray.
The harness shop on N.W. corner was carried
an by Joseph Sadler during his short life in Kin-
sale, then torn down. Thomas Brignal had a
wagon shop just west of Mr. Sadler. Mr. B.
Weatherall started a cheese factory which was
quite active fora few years then proved a failure.
Mr. George Salton operated a cider mill and turn-
ing lathe. The shoe store was successfully car-
ried on by Mr. Richard Brignal who kept a good
supply of footwear and had a thriving business
until he was called to his reward. He was suc-
ceeded by his own son Mark, but the competition
of large firms and machinery finished his business,
so our shoe store was closed. Mr. John Lawrence
our genial carpenter, who was ever ready to give
a hand in any kind of building or woodwork, was
always faithful to his trust until he received the
summons to lay down his tools. His son Edward
faithfully kept up his father's work until he too
was called away. The first blacksmith of my
recollection was Mr. John Hortop, then Mr. James
Foley who was succeeded by a Mr. Allen for a
short time. Mr. Allen was followed by Mr. Ben
Wagner, a faithful worker and a man of genius,
who held the post for many years until his health
gave out. During his regime the shop and house
were destroyed by fire. By the kindness and
sympathy of the surrounding neighborhood a new
home and shop were soon erected which afforded
better accommodation than the old buildings.
Our village has been five times visited by fire
and there are three unsightly gaps still showing
where new buildings wlll probably not be erected.
Mr. Wagner did a good business here until fail-
ing health made it necessary for him to give up.
The smithy and home were then bought by Mr.
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James Pengelly who carried on for several years
until he found a more lucrative position in the
village of Brooklin. Since he left there has not
been much done in that line owing to the use of
cars, tractors, and other machinery which do not
seem to require so many trips to the shop.
The Sons of Temperance flourished for a time
in the sixties, then dwindled and their hall stand-
ing on the southeast corner was bought by the
church officials and moved to where it now stands.
It was once destroyed by fire then rebuilt and has
done duty for Sunday School and other com-
munity activities for some time.
Before we had a regular mail the residents had
to go to Hamer's Corners, east of Whitby, for
their mail; afterwards to Whitby. In a few
years time we had a mail delivery from Whitby
to Kinsale and across to Brougham every day.
The post office was in connection with the store,
although for a time Mr. Weatherall had charge
of it in his house. It reverted to the store and
was there looked after until 1908 when the sys-
tem was changed and we had rural mail delivery
at our doors where every swain or business man
could get his expected letters at first hand inst
of taking a long tramp for them at night aftek a
hard day's work. Our route is called Route 1,
Brooklin. So Kinsale as a postal center is done.
The first school house was built at Salem Cor-
ners on the Hyfield place. Joseph Gillespie and
Geo. Gamble are names of two of the teachers.
6
In 1852 the Union School Section No. 2 was form-
ed and a frame school house was built on Mr.
Lawton's farm. Mr. Tilley was the first teacher,
then a Mr. Ganton in 1855. Up to this time parents
paid an amount agreed upon for the tuition of each
child. The school system was then changed to
what was called free school. The residents were
taxed to pay the expenses of the school and every
child could go. Later on in the twentieth century
it was made compulsory for each child to attend
school until fourteen years old. In 1860 a brick
school was built on the same site, which still
stands as one of the best equipped rural schools
in the County. Many of the boys and girls who
received their early training there are taking
their places in the higher ranks of life both
socially and commercially.
The old oxcart and waggon trails, old log bridg-
es -of the past have been suplanted by fine iron
and cement bridges which add to the beauty of
our country; and paved roads so widened that
they are perilously near some of our dwellings.
Hills have been cut down, and everything possible
has bQen done for the tourists who now frequent
the roads, to make travelling by motor a joy and
comfort; and woe betide the oxcart, waggon or
carriage, which in these times would dare ob-
struct its .path. Our Kinsale Highway is. sched-
uled Highway No. 7.
One change I am pleased to record is the abo-
lition of public grog shops, which in early times
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were dotted along the roads about two miles
apart, where the weary traveller could rest and
slake his thirst to his hearts content with "real
good whiskey", and would often loose sight of the
fact that he had had enough. This improvement
is not as satisfactory as it might be when we
take into consideration the present speed of
travelling which still brings those places objet-
tionably near. We hope for still better conditions
in the future for the rising generation. Mrs.
Richardson's corner had the honor of catering to
the inhabitants in the vicinity of Kinsale, a Mr.
Snell being the proprietor.
Only two of the former residents of Kinsale
aspired to municipal honors: Sylvester Mackey
and R. R. Mowbray. Latterly two respective
sons of their worthy sires are following in their
footsteps: Charles Mackey as Reeve of Whitby
Township and R. E. Mowbray as Councillor in
Pickering Township.
Our women too have not been behind in doing
their part towards the advancement of communi-
ty welfare. Over thirty years ago in 1897 a
young woman married a farmer at Stoney Creek,
and being entirely ignorant of the requirements
of a farmer's wife, conceived the idea of starting
a society to help those who were in a similar
situation. It was duly organized and named
Women's Institute. Kinsale Branch was the
next one organized the same year. Charter
Members: Mrs. Royal Rogers, Mrs. Clarkson
Rogers, Mrs. John Seldon, Mrs:. Joseph Harbron,
Mrs. Ralph R. Mowbray, Mrs. Lovell Harrison,
Miss F. Pearce. It is still going strong and has
been a great help to us all in our homes and in
social work. The movement is now world wide.
Our women are also actively interested in church
and other community activities.
A great many changes have taken place during
the past century. Commodius barns and com-
fortable dwelling houses of metal, brick, lumber
or cement have taken the places of the log barns
and cabins of earlier times. Homespun yarn,
home woven clothing and tallow candles are un-
known to the present generation. Electric lights
take the place of candles. Automobiles, trucks
and areoplanes supplant the carts, waggons and
carriages of former times, while tractors supply
the horse power for much of the farm work. We
are living in a new world. The time is past when
maidens walked through the bush to Oshawa to
buy a new bonnet, carrying their shoes and
stockings until near their destination in order
that they might have them looking well on their
arrival in town. They walked back the same day
with their purchases which did duty much longer
than they do now. When men would shoulder a
bag of wheat and carry it many miles to have it
ground, then would carry the flour home in the
same way. Those times are past, and we are
glad that they have changed, but we can scarcely
realize how much we owe our forefathers, the
pioneers of our race, for their powers of endur-
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ance and sterling qualities; and it behooves us to
be worthy sons and daughters of such worthy
sires and mothers.
I cannot close without alluding to cherished
memories of the old church at Kinsale which was
not lacking for leaders in prayer and song. I
think I can still hear Mr. and Mrs. Hortop, Mrs.
Mackey, Mr. Dennis, Mr. Brignall, Mr. Brown,
and others. Also Nathan Richardson's clarion
voice singing "Sweeping through the gates of the
New Jerusalem, Washed in the blood of the
Lamb." Whether or not it was best for the
younger ones, who always. looked for the elders
to take the lead, we do not know. In later years
we are glad that the younger people are taking a
more active part in church work, and hope that
the coming generation will be still more dilligent
in the Master's service, in making this world bet-
ter fitted for the Kingdom of our God.
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ADDENDUM
Ministers of Kinsale:
At first there were six appointments, called
Greenwood Circuit viz: Greenwood, Kinsale,
Brougham, Audley, Mt. Zion and Glen Major,
with two mnisters and some local preachers.
The following officiated on this circuit:
G. Reid 1864 J. McDonald
T. Stobbs 1867 D. Williams
G. Cornish 1870 (Women's Missionary Auxiliary
organized with Mrs. Williams,
G. T. Richardson 1874 President).
G. Dingman J. Robeson
W. W. Leach E. A. Tonkin
Ladies Aid organized, Mrs. C.
W. Washington
J. Stevenson, President).
T. Potter- (died) S. Tucker
C. Langford, supply. S. Tink
F. C. Keam 1884
W. Hall J. Totten
J. Harris. J. Bunner
W. Hewitt M. Leigh
G. R. Clare 1897 J. Barnes
J. McFarlane (died 1901)W. Smart 1930
Colleagues until about 1888:
A. C. Wilson, Hill, Walsh, Deacon, Ross, Mad-
den, Elliott, Dove, Coffee, Strongman, Bunner,
Real, Crux, Latter, Wilkinson, Bartley, Lang-
ford, Reynolds, Hassard, Woodger, W. Norman
(died), Daniel Norman.
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In 1888 two appointments were dropped, Glen
Major and Audley; and we had one minister
with local help.
Local Preachers:
B. Bunting W. Jackson
E. Jackson G. West
About the year 1884 we had union of Wesley-
an, Episcopal, and Primitive Methodists with
Canadian Wesleyan Methodists and Bible Christ-
ians under the name of Canada Methodist Church.
Latter a second union in 1925 when Presby-
terians, Congregationalists and Methodists joined
to form the United Church of the present time.
In the early eighties The Epworth League of
Christian Endeavor, a society for young people,
was organized. This has continued under various
names and is still a great influence for good
among the young people of the community.
When Mr. S. Tucker was pastor he organized
the "Young Men's Brotherhood" which greatly
interested the boys and young men and kept them
in touch with church work.
In 1918 the "Maple Leaf Mission Band" was
started by Miss Gladys Mowbray and is still
flourishing under the able leadership of Mrs. V.
Parkin. It has done a noble work among the
children.
Teachers of Kinsale School
Mr. Tilley 1852
Mr. Ganton 1855
D. Frost 1856
0. Reilly 1857
J. Palmer 1858
Miss McLean 1859
Geo. Barclay 1860-
Chas.
860Chas. Clerke 1861
Wm. Dundas 1862
W. Law 1863
W. L. Black 1866
Geo. Bengough
Levi Mackey 1868
Miss L. Palmer 1870
Alex. McMurray 1871
James Balfour 1872
S. F. Johnson 1873
G. H. Hopper 1874
S. M. Brown 1875
Mr. Bain 1876
Miss Susan Betts 1877
S. F. Johnston 1878
D. Selden
A. L. Brown 1879
J. A. Youmans 1880
E. '0. Graham 1881
R. J. Niddery 1883
S. H. Jeffery 1885
Byron Jones 1887
S. H. Jeffery 1888
Walter Thom 1889
W. H. Greenwood 1890-2
Frank Chapman and
Walter Thom 1893
G. E. Pegg 1894
J. McCullough 1895
A. Holliday 1897
Miss Pearce 1901
Miss Annan 1903
Miss. Sharrard 1905
Miss L. Rogers 1906
Miss Francis 1907
Miss Black 1909
Mr. Kidd 1910
Miss A. Johnson 1911
Miss White 1912
Miss Hervey 1913
Miss P. Miller 1915
Miss McKay 1916
Miss Whitehead 1918
Miss Fleet 1924
Miss Carson 1926
Miss Nesbitt 1927
Miss Thomas 1929
Miss Munroe and
Miss Draper 1931
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