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Reflections: A 'pioneer mother' of Perth County

Margaret Chamney played a pivotal role in the community life of 19th-century Wallace Township

The death of a longtime Perth County resident made front page news in the Listowel Banner on Nov. 29, 1928. The esteemed resident was Margaret Chamney, who had lived in Wallace Township for 75 years.

Chamney, whose maiden name was Stewart, was born in Wicklow County, Ireland, in 1832. At only three months old, she was brought to Canada by her parents, Mrs. and Mr. Edward Stewart. They first settled near Toronto but soon moved to Tecumseh Township in historical Simcoe County. While living there, they had a close relationship with their neighbours, the Chamney family. Eventually, as the children grew up, four members of the Stewart family married four Chamneys.

Reflections: A 'pioneer mother' of Perth County Back to video

In 1853, Edward Stewart visited the Queen’s Bush, an unsurveyed tract of land north of Waterloo Township and south of Lake Huron. He was so taken with the countryside in that area that he bought squatter’s rights from a man living on land that would eventually become part of Wallace Township The plot of land included more than 200 acres, but only four acres had been cleared while the rest remained covered in dense bush.

Young Thomas Chamney and his wife, Margaret, made their way to this land to live in a shanty. According to Margaret’s biography published in the Listowel Banner for her 92nd birthday, Margaret spent many lonely and homesick hours in that shanty surrounded by isolating woods. However, a trail was eventually blazed through the bush to the neighbours, and soon “a road was worn right past the corner of the shanty, and here those looking for new homes found rest, shelter and food – free.” There were many nights where the shanty floor was covered with improvised beds for travellers making their way to new homes in the area.

Before a church was constructed in the locality, worship services were held in their shanty. The Chamneys were Anglican and their marriage service was read by Rev. Featherston Osler. Osler was the father of several sons who had a significant impact on North American history, including: Sir Edmund B. Osler, a politician, financier and philanthropist who was one of the founders of the Royal Ontario Museum, William Osler, a founder of Johns Hopkins Hospital at John Hopkins University in Baltimore, Md., and Britton Bath Osler, a lawyer who was involved in securing the conviction of Louis Riel following the North-West Rebellion.

Interestingly, Rev. Featherston was a former lieutenant in the Royal Navy who was invited to serve as a science officer on HMS Beagle for Charles Darwin’s famous expedition to the Galápagos Islands in 1831. Osler turned down the offer since his father was on his deathbed. Instead, Osler later left the navy to become an Anglican minister in the historical “Province of Canada.”

In 1856, Margaret’s husband, Thomas, purchased a farm on Lot 18, Concession 3 in Wallace Township. In 1860, a log house was built on the lot where the couple lived. In the 1925 article about her 92nd birthday, Margaret reminisced about those early days: “her first baby was rocked in a sap-trough, then in a bread tray and then two neighbours volunteered to make a real cradle. That pine cradle was shaped with simple lines and generous capacity in spare evenings. When it was completed, Mr. Chamney recompensed his friends for their trouble with a gift of a quart of whiskey.”

When asked about the “chief charm” of pioneer life, Margaret answered: “the neighbours; there were real neighbours in those days. In sickness the neighbours did each other’s work, in death they mourned with you — respecting your sorrow so much that no work was done by anyone till after the funeral. How different in these days when people can hardly snatch time to go to a neighbour’s funeral. But then, conditions are different now.”

In 1902, Margaret and Thomas moved off the farm to live in Listowel and, in 1904, after her husband’s death, Margaret moved in with her daughter on Victoria Avenue in Listowel. Her daughter, Wilbertina, was the local manager of the Bell Telephone Co. in the 1920s. Margaret and Thomas had eight children in total. Margaret had two grandsons who served in the First World War — Harold, who was killed in action, and Clarkson, who died from the effects of wounds sustained during the war. She had 24 grandchildren and 38 great-grandchildren.

Margaret passed away in her 96th year on Nov. 23, 1928. Her obituary on the front page of the Listowel Banner expressed that she was one of the most respected citizens of Listowel and was considered one of the “pioneer mothers” of the district.

The Stratford-Perth Archives welcomes donations to the collection and is open for drop-in research from Tuesday to Friday, as well as other times, including Saturdays, by appointment.  For details about what’s available during Reading Room drop-in hours and appointments for in-depth research, please visit www.perthcounty.ca/StratfordPerthArchives, call us at 519-271-0531 ext. 259 or email archives@perthcounty.ca. 

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