Lanark County Genealogical Society continues to celebrate our farming community and the pioneers who cleared the trees and rocks built their homes and planted around the stumps. Our two-volume set published last year Lanark County Routes, East and Lanark County Routes West was a great success.
We tapped into the history recorded in the local Tweedsmuir History books and collaborated with several of the present farmers in the County to tell the stories. We tell the story of who the early settlers were and what is known of their family, and the subsequent owners up to the present day, noting the changes in farm life, from the days of oxen and horses to that of big machinery and robots.
But many stories are yet to be told. We are now beginning to work on a sequel.
LCGS is happy to tell the stories of all the properties and the people who have lived on them, whether they were successful or not. If your farm was not included in last year’s books and you are interested in your farm history being recorded for future generations, please get in touch.
In corresponding with our organization we encourage you to send your email message to communications@lanarkgenealogy.com or by phone: 613-257-9482
This photo is of the McWatty homestead called High Lonesome built in 1875 and demolished in 2013. The McWatty homestead farmland in Pakenham Township (now part of the Municipality of Mississippi Mills) today is the High Lonesome Nature Reserve, a 200-acre property located in the Pakenham Hills and lies within the Pakenham Mountain Provincially Significant Wetland Complex. To read more about this reserve select the link.
Lanark County farms have a varied history. In the early days of settlement, every family relied on the land to provide them with the income and food that they needed to survive. However, that only worked for those who were fortunate enough to get the good land. Many properties passed through several different hands if it was not profitable. Some properties, with the right people involved, grew and prospered and are still providing adequate living for their owners today.
Sample Farms in Lanark County Routes East
The Robertson farm on Upper Perth Road in Ramsay is a farm whose original settler’s descendants farmed until 1962 when it was sold to another local farmer. Like many of the small older farms on its own it was no longer able to sustain a family with the income that was needed
The John Kidd farm on Kidd Road in Beckwith is a farm that is still in the possession of descendants of the original owner, also John Kidd, who arrived in Beckwith in 1818. This is one of many farms where the descendants’ names are recorded for future generations.
Corad Farms Pakenham township is an example of several 100-acre parcels being combined into a large modern operation. The Hunt family have over 500 head of Limousin cattle and grow corn, soybeans and hay on their 1000 acres of land.
Sample Farms in Lanark County Routes West
The John Love farm in North Sherbrooke is an example of one of those farms where the pioneer was barely able to make a living because the land was so rocky and poor. This man was eventually forced to move to Dalhousie where he had slightly better land. His buildings from North Sherbrooke did survive and are now part of the display at Wheeler’s Pancake House and Museum.
Another difficult area to farm was Darling Township. However, the John Rintoul farm Concession 6 was able to sustain Rintoul family members for 143 years. When it was sold in 1995 the new owners extensively updated the buildings including rebuilding the stone foundation under the barn and made it into a working farm again.
Drover’s Way farm in North Elmsley was a property that changed hands many times over the years. The Loten family who bought the land in 2001 have turned it into a major sheep farm with about 600 ewes. They also have horses and operated a riding school.
For more information, or to enquire about having your farm listed in the sequel, please call 257–9482 or email communications@lanarkgenealogy.com .