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HomeMy WebLinkAboutThe Exeter Times-Advocate, 1966-03-31, Page 22Page 2 Times-AdIvocate, April 7, 1966 ROBERT CAR g NER thSTatthicsmE.Sconao DIED JAN. 9.1915 ALSO HIS BELOVED WIF MARY TURNBULL BORN IN LANARK COUNTY DIED MAR. 5.1921 TILL THE DAY EIREANN. WAITING COLOR TV . IT WILL BE HERE SOON In the meantime you can enjoy a good black and white reception. TRADE YOUR SET NOW FOR A QUALITY ELECTROHOME CONSOLE When color comes we will allow you the amount you paid on the purchase of your COLOR TV SET RUSSELL ELECTRIC PHONE 235-0505 EXETER kiret#N.e.;Vr?-r'rrir'r. r rr r rArr(r. rr' ,;,91V.1;i939z1u, .41•_°..zastmok t • _ h iftta, Proi,,4 --.ATANY BANK OR MAI GOUPON. NAME . ADDRESS // YOU KNOW.. 0411S/P/ 77/E avrAeo AIED/C4L SERV/C.E.5 /ASUR4VVCE-IZAN. /7-",41ELec%5 YOGI: AY AX/R.CczTOAWILL5 ..„,;24!•4714,:s BOY PCN, WOULD YOU MINDDROPPING ME OFF AT THE NEAREST BANK. I'LL PICK UPPAYAPPLiCATION NOW. Dear Sirs: Please send me your folder containing complete information on OMSIP and accompanying application. TO: OMSIP, 135 St. Clair West, Toronto. ONTARIO MEDICAL SERVICES INSURANCE PLAN 1.4 ,••••1111111.......ponorm•••• "APPLJOIT/ONSAf44L774A7292 /114Y /sr kfzi_1-/AVE A 3 44CYV771 Gs/A/77'/VGAVQ/00 HEY MUG/ I Fl.CiJ NEEPAN APPLICAT1CN FORM OR MORE INFORNMON ABour OAASI P, PICK uPAN CYVIS1 P FcwEP.. The Gardiner Ranch is centennial farm Scenes from a farm Tracing tarm Tracing the history of a family awl farm can be interesting, es- peci Ally when it is your own. This is the opinion of Mrs. V. G. Gardiner who resides on one of the Centennial farms of Usborne Township. Mrs. Gardiner in the article below traces the history of the farm shown here back to 1853. As the centennial year ap- proaches we feel this would be an ideal time for people living on older farms to set down their history before time passes and the memory is lost forever. The Times-Advocate appreciates the work done by Mrs. Gardiner in tracing this history and it is our hope that the people of the area will use this as an example to carry out similar projects. (T-A photos) Beet board name officers The Ontario Sugar Beet Mar- keting Board held their election of officers in Chatham last week with 11 of 12 directors present. Re-elected chairman of the group was Edward Mailloux. First vice- president is George Higgs of Dresden, second vice-president is John Wilson of Charing Cross and Mac Campbell has been re- hired as secretary. Of the 20,000 acres expected to be contracted for in 1966, 13,000 have been contracted and the Board are hoping to have this increased in the near future. The Granton Station which was closed last year has already contracted 300 acres reports Lloyd Lovell, Huron County Director. There will be 225 bilingual hostesses to help visitors to Expo. Many of them will speak three or four languages. By V. G. GARDINER There are a number of farms in Usborne Township that have been in the family name 100 years or more, and among them are two of the farms of James W. Gard- iner and Sons, Thames Road. It was in 1853 that Peter Gard- iner and his wife Ann Battison migrated to Canada from Sterl- ingshire, Scotland, with their six young sons, the youngest only one and one-half years old. There were four brothets_ 9,f peter's who had come to Canada prior to this and settled on farms. on the Usborne Hibbert boundary. They had written letters to Peter and Ann telling them of the great country and the wonderful op- portunities for raising a young family. With this in view Peter and Ann came to Canada. Ac- companying them was Peter's father William, his wife having predeceased him in Scotland. He came to spend his remaining days with his family. He lived with Peter and Ann about two years in Canada and was among the first to be buried in Roy's cemetery. The Gardiner family took up the land on Thames Road lots 20 and 21 and built a log house on the south side of the road. Although work was no doubt hard and progress slow they got along very well. Of their six sons, William and Alex took up farms in McKillop Township near the village of Walton. Peter was a blacksmith later moving to Michigan and John was a doctor practicing in London. When James (who was the fourth son) married Christina Christie in 18'76 they built the first brick house on Lot 20 North Thames Road west of the father's home on Lot 21 North Thames Road. James and Christina had two sons Peter and David. They had two daughters who died in infancy and later two foster daughters. Florence (the late Mrs. James McK'a i g and Gertrude, M r s. Leonard Harris who lives in Usborne. David married Margaret Hack- ney and farmed in Hibbert town- ship. They had two daughters and three sons. In 1910 James and Christina began to build a large red brick house. They felt the one they built when they were married was too small for the family but James never lived to see it finished, he took a stroke and died in November of that year at the age of 62. When the large house was completed there was only Peter with his widowed mother and Ger- trude to move into it. Peter con- tinued to work the farm. He bought the first car in 1914. Peter married Jessie Monteith in 1916. They had no children and he died in 1919. Gertrude was married in 1924 and Christina Was left alone. It was decided that James (David's eldest son) would live with his grandmother. He was only 13 when he dame to the Thames Road farm. At first his father supervised the farm and later James had it on his own. The first tractor was bought in 1940 and the first combine in 1944. Christina died in 1935, at the age of 83. James married Velma Gratton in 1942. They had many happy as well as bitter experiences on the farm. In 1945 the large brick house was destroyed by fire while they were away from home. They were left with only the clothes they were wearing. Prized posses- sions which had been in the Gard- iner family for years were all burned in the fire. It was at the close of World War II and build- ing materials were scarce, but they did as best they could. The wall of the old house was of three ply brick so was able to be used again. Although the new house had not the lovely structure of the old it was a modern one and one- half storey house and a pleasure to move into months later. _In 1958 the bank barn was destroyed by fire, being struck by lightning during a storm and three years later the pole barn which replaced it was burned too, after an elevator caught fire so another pole barn had to be built that fall. Now only one drive shed stands of all the buildings which grandfather James had built. James and Velma had three sons, David, Charles and Alex. They all followed the Gardiner's for their love of farming, help- ing after school. When they were quite young and when they finish- ed their education were glad to take up farming as their life work. Robert Gardiner who was the youngest son of Peter and Ann took over his parents farm. The father died at the age of 54 in 1871 but the mother lived until 1901. Robert built a white brick house to replace the log one, in 1880, near the time of his mar- riage to Mary Turnbull. They had six children. The younger five all scattered to distant parts, but Arthur the eldest took over the family farm. He married Stella Passmore in 1911. They had three children, Mary. Ro- bert (Bert) and Melvin. Bert graduated from Osgoode Hall and is employed in London where he lives with his father and sister Mary. Melvin took over the fam- ily farm. He married Audrey Fletcher and they had one daugh- ter Marilyn. Melvin farmed successfully for over 16 years but as they had no son to carry on decided to take up other employment. So when James' who lived next door agreed to buy the farm both parties were happy, as it would still be in the Gardiner name. So in 1961 Melvin, Audrey and Marilyn mov- ed to Exeter and James W. Gard- iner and sons took over. David ,(James' eldest son)mar - ried Mary Aiken in 1965 and they reside in the house on lot 20. The rest of the family moved into the house vacated by Melvin. They remodelled the brick house, great uncle Robert had built 85 years before, making a modern home, with all the sentiment of the past. Six generations of Gar- diners have lived on thiS farm and next door where David and Mary live there has been four generations. Farming methods have changed very much since the early set- tlers came to this country. The oxen gave place to horses. Now there are no more of these, tract- ors being used entirely and ma- chinery taking the place of hand work. The first binder was pur- chased in 1885 and a concrete silo built, after the turn of the century to replace the wooden structure that had been in use before this. Looking back over the history during the century we feel sure all the descendants are happy for the brave venture Peter and Ann Gardiner made when they left their native Scotland to start a new life in Canada.