Hi, Dean,
Chart 17, page 66, of the booklet of charts by D.
MacDonald, publ. 1995, lists the wrong
descendants of 'Donald Cameron', son of Mary and
John. Chart 17, page 66, was copied directly in
error from the Abstract for Lot south half 12,
Concession 3, Finch Township, a farm situated
west of Finch village on highway 43. The Donald
Cameron and Janet Cameron listed in the
Abstract[and on Chart 17]for Lot south half 12,
Concession 3, Finch, were alive in 1878[See date
of Instrument. People listed on an Abstract are
alive at Date of instrument]
There were numerous 'Donald Camerons' who settled
within Finch Township, Stormont County, Ontario.
My great great grandfather, Donald Cameron, and
his brother, Allan[sons of John and Mary, Lot 6-4
Cornwall], 'went north' to Finch Township in
1808, but Donald [my gg]was killed in March 1809
by a falling tree while building his log cabin at
Lot 21, Concession 4, Finch Township[the 'Cameron
School ' was built on this property in 1850 by my
gt grandfather, Duncan Cameron, first male born
in Finch Township in 1808, died 1890 buried Cedar
Brae Cem. Boundary road and 4th of Rox. in
Finch]].
It took three days and nights to take Donald's
body out to the 'front' along the blazed Indian
trail to his father's farm for burial on the
boughs of the tree that killed him. Bonfires were
kept going at night to keep the wolves at
bay. [Rev. Donald Neil MacMillan, a descendant of
Donald and Nancy, and my cousin through
MacMillans and Camerons, stated wrongly on page
331 in his book "Kirk in Glengarry" that Donald's
name was Hugh, etc, but he told me that he had
read Harkness' book and became puzzled. He never
checked out Abstract or family] Mr. Harkness was
a lovely gentleman but ....the genealogy in his
book should be doublechecked. My gg Nancy's
parents, John cameron and Marjorie Cameron of
Inveruiskavouline [Glenloy]landed in Montreal in
September of 1804.
Donald's wife, Nancy was at the 'front' at the
time of the tragedy visiting relatives and
acquiring seed potatoes for the spring planting.
There was still snow on the ground in March 1809
and bonfires were kept burning on the hillock
where her husband, Donald, was to be buried[Lot
6-4 Cornwall] in order to soften the frozen
ground to dig a grave.
My grandfather, Donald Cameron[he did not have
another brother named 'Donald' nor a brother
named 'Ranald', etc], born May 17th, 1847, died
February 1920[buried MacMillan graveyard, conc 1,
Lot 19, Finch], had been a Reeve at various times
of Finch Township, and assessor and collector for
thirty years and county auditor for two, and had
excellent records. My Uncle, D.B. Cameron
[1883-1981]had been Clerk Treas of Finch Township
from 1911 until 1926. My Cameron line was not
related through the paternal line to any other
Cameron families within Finch Township. My
brother, Donald Cameron[1924, died 1991]at one
time VP of CTV and one cousin, were the only two
males with the name "Cameron", within their
generation in our family, to descend from Donald
Cameron[Clunes], killed March 1809, Lot 21, Conc.
4 Finch Township. Many errors have been made in
local books/histories, etc. by gen. about my gg
grandfather Cameron.[i.e.=Harkness' history of
SDandG, page 84, where he has been renamed 'Hugh'
in error, etc. My gg Donald Cameron and his wife,
Nancy[Ann] Cameron, b1779, daughter of John
Cameron of Inveruiskavouline, lived near the
South Branch Road and Summerstown Road before
going 'north' to Finch Township in 1808]
Unfortunately, Duncan MacDonald evidently used a
manuscript by Elizabeth Ferguson Blair, at one
time a genealogist for the UEL for 'research',
where in this manuscript produced by Mrs.
Ferguson and her rel., they claimed descent in
error from my great great grandfather, Donald
Cameron, Lot 21, Conc. 4 Finch Township. [Lot
21-4 Finch[my family's home farm in Finch] where
my father was born, the Cameron School, etc. were
mentioned in this manuscript]. Mrs. Blair was a
cousin to the Cameron family that lived at south
half Lot 12, Conc. 3, Finch Township, and in turn
to the Cameron family that lived at Lot 15, Conc.
1 Finch township. [i.e. Jenny Bicks was her
cousin, and, also, a friend to my Mother] Jenny
Cameron Bicks was a daughter of David Cameron
descended from Donald Cameron, Kenmore, Scotland,
who m ig. 1802 and settled on Lot 15, Conc 1,
Finch Township. Jenny Bick 'grew up' at Lot 15,
Concession 1, Finch, and her cousins lived at Lot
south half 12-3 Finch.
Mrs. Elizabeth Ferguson Blair did not have too
much knowledge about her grandfather Cameron,
and, sadly, made quit e a few errors in her
'tracing',
It is difficult to 'trace back' on the 'Camerons
and MacMillans' of Finch Township without
knowledge of the family. The Cameron farm at Lot
21, Concession 4 Finch Township remained in my
family until the 1950s. The farm had been split
between two brothers, Donald Cameron b 1847[my
father, J.G. Cameron, 'signed off' lnterest in
July 18, 1933], my grandfather, and my
granduncle, Archibald Cameron, b 1856.
At the time of my grandfather Donald Cameron's
death[See online Glengarry News obits]in 1920,
the farmhouse where my father was born became the
home of my father's first cousin, Hugh
Cameron[1888-1968], hence the errors in the name
of 'Hugh' in reference to error in my direct line
from Donald. These families were very
interrelated, and in the case of Hugh, his sister
married my Mother's brother. Their grandmother
was a 'Janet Cameron' [buried MacMillan Cem.
along with her husband Hugh MacIntyre]no relation
to my grandfather Cameron or to me. This 'Janet
Cameron' was the daughter of an Alexander Cameron
a completely different line of Camerons, but,
after 1920, my line at the Cameron School were
often referred to as the 'Hugh Donalds' or the
Donald Hughs, etc.[by others, a nickname for the
family then living there, therefore, causing much
confusion to researchers].... My father's
cousin, Hugh, and my Aunt Hanna, Hugh's sister,
were related to the 'Camerons ' across the road
from Cameron School, but my father was NOT
related to the 'Camerons' across the road,
etc.....etc. Hugh Cameron was named for his
grandfather MacIntyre. There was no 'Hugh' in my
direct line from my gg grandfather Cameron,
except for my father's first cousin.
It is difficult to correct errors which are
continously made by researchers. Duncan
MacDonald's booklets should not be used for
research, unless doublechecked at registry
offices, etc.. [i.e. = on page 58, of Edwin
MacDonald's 'published indices' by Duncan
MacDonald, it is stated that 'Joe Cameron's
daughter had been married to a German
stormtrooper'!! My husband had been a panzer
captain in the Wehrmacht in WWII and a freiherr,
not a stormtrooper!]
Margaret Janet Cameron
Long Sault, Ontario
[not related to the foregoing 'Janet Cameron' mentioned above]