Henry Culbert of Ripley, Ontario (1837-1920)

On March 27th this year, we welcomed the descendants of Henry Culbert and Margaret Wall to the Culbert Family History blog. Now let's learn a little more about Henry Culbert and his family.

Henry Culbert, 1913

Henry Culbert was the first-born son of John Culbert and Mary Ward. Born 17 March 1837 in Ireland, Henry was only three years old when he made the journey to Canada with his family, settling in Biddulph Township, Middlesex County near Lucan, Ontario on Lot 19, Concession 2 (The Coursey Line.)

The John Culbert-Mary Ward family c1865. Henry Culbert is in the back row, far left with his brothers.

Henry was the first of John and Mary's children to move away from Biddulph Township. I don't know what year he moved to Huron Township in Bruce County (known today as The Township of Huron-Kinloss) nor do I know why he moved away. I do know that he kept in touch with his family.

Old map of Huron Township, Bruce County

Henry lived at Lot 3, Concession 8 of Huron Township in Bruce County (near bottom left of map)

Henry married Margaret Wall on 25 January 1862 in Bruce County. Margaret (born 1838) was the daughter of pioneers Moses Wall and Ellen Greene. Moses, born in 1806 was one of several Walls who came to Canada from Tipperary, Ireland.

Henry and Margaret bought a 100 acre farm at Lot 3, Concession 8 in Huron Township, near Ripley, Ontario. 

Henry and Margaret had six children. They retired to Ripley in 1898.

Henry and Margaret retired to this house in Ripley at 63 Queen Street. Photo is recent and not taken when Henry and Margaret lived there.

The red marker indicates Ripley's location; southeast of Kincardine.

Henry is shown in the image below as one of Ripley's long-time residents...

"A Remarkable Group of Veteran Residents in Ripley, Ont." Photo published in The Globe newspaper on 8 March 1913. Henry Culbert is in the middle row, third from the left.

As you can see from the information on her death certificate below, Margaret (Wall) Culbert died 16 June 1917.

However, her headstone says 18 June 1917. Henry died three years later on 21 June 1920 and the funeral service was held at the home of his son, Thomas Ezra Culbert. 

 

Henry Culbert's obituary. Source: The Lucknow Sentinel, 1 Jul 1920, page 5.

 

Henry Culbert and Margaret (Wall) Culbert are buried in Ripley Cemetery in Ripley, Ontario. Henry, his wife, Margaret, and five of their six children are buried in Ripley Cemetery. A daughter, Mary Marilla "Mame" (Culbert) Needham is buried in Kincardine Cemetery.

Note to genealogists: Henry Culbert's death certificate contains an error, saying his mother's name was Mary Dobbs. That is incorrect. Henry's mother's name was Mary (Ward) Culbert. Mary Ward had cousins by the surname Dobbs which may account for this error.

THE 6 CHILDREN OF HENRY CULBERT & MARGARET WALL:

JOHN SILAS CULBERT (1863-1939). John married Elizabeth "Lizzie" Needham and they lived in Ripley. John and Elizabeth had a son, John Earl Culbert (1896-1965.)

Henry's son John Silas Culbert and his wife, Elizabeth "Lizzie" (Needham) Culbert. Photo via Keith Inscho's Ancestry family tree.

JOSEPH HENRY CULBERT (1865-1943). Joseph married Edith "Dolly" Swalwell and they took over his parents' farm. Joseph and Edith had 7 children: Lot, George, Joseph, William, Elizabeth, Edith, and Norine.

Henry's son Joseph Henry Culbert, his wife Edith "Dolly" (Swalwell) Culbert, and their cat, in 1935. Photo courtesy of Nena Henriksen.

WILLIAM EDWARD CULBERT (1867-1903). William married Rachel Harris and they had 4 children: Lorne, Ina, Edna, and Eva.

MARY MARILLA "MAME" CULBERT (1869-1951). Mame married James Needham. Mame married her brother's wife's brother. Mame and James had one son: Harry Needham.

THOMAS EZRA CULBERT (1872-1949). Thomas married Sarah Ann Berry and they had 3 children: William, Walter, and Hazel.

ELLEN REBECCA "NELLIE" CULBERT (1875-1922). Nellie married William "Bill" Johnston and they had 4 children: Elliott, George, William, and Mayme.

Henry Culbert and Margaret Wall leave behind a staggering number of descendants. Since surnames change as descendants marry, you might not even be aware that Henry is your ancestor. Aside, from Culbert, some other surnames of Henry's descendants are: Ackert, Ariss, Arsenault, Barnett, Bell, Brown, Bruce, Buckles, Bullivant, Canning, Cathcart, Charles, Colwell, Daley, Davis, Dobbyn, Durrer, Eadie, Elliott, Fair, Flett, Forster, Gardiner, Guse, Hamer, Hanniman, Helm, Hodgins, Holroyd, Howe, Ireland, Johnston, Kirkland, Kummer, Langdon, MacLelland, Matheson, McColl, McKay, McLaughlin, Meyer, Mitchell, Morrison, Needham, Niesen, Patulski, Peterbaugh, Pletsch, Pollock, Poole, Reid, Roman, Scheurwater, Scott, Simpson, Sled, Smith, Somogyi, Travers, Vandenberg, Weber, Wiley, and many more!

Numerous descendants have chosen to remain in Bruce County but many have ventured further.

One blog post isn't enough to outline all the descendants of Henry Culbert and Margaret Wall. From time to time, I'll write about their various descendants.

If you have photos or stories to contribute about any of Henry's descendants (including yourself!) please email me at this address:

For futher reading about the Henry Culbert-Margaret Wall family, consult these books:

Descendants of Moses Wall and Ellen Greene compiled by the Wall Family History Committee and published by Skyway Printing, 1993.

Ripley 1875 – 1992: Huron’s Hub: People, Activities, Homes by Ripley Historical Group, 1994. 

The two books mentioned above are rich sources for information about Henry's descendants. Some descendants are also mentioned in the book below,
Toil, Tears & Triumph: A History of Kincardine Township by the Kincardine Township Historical Society, 1990. Wanita Fletcher, editor.

Henry Culbert's Family Tree:
Ancestors:
John Culbert & Mary Ward (parents)
Descendants: (Children)
John Silas Culbert
Joseph Henry Culbert
William Edward Culbert
Mary Marilla "Mame" Culbert
Thomas Ezra Culbert
Ellen Rebecca "Nellie" Culbert

Major Arthur Hall (1889-1971)

The Culbert Family History blog presents a memoir of Arthur Hall, written by his daughter, Lynda (Hall) Hunter. Arthur was the great-grandson of John Culbert and Mary Ward.

Arthur Hall (left) with his brother, Albert Hall.

ARTHUR HALL: A memoir by his daughter, Lynda (Hall) Hunter.

My dad, Arthur Hall, was the youngest child of Charles Hall and Anne Jane Dagg. He was born in Kincardine, Ontario, on January 14, 1889. Charles Hall, son of Jane and James Hall, had immigrated to Canada as a young boy from Ireland. Anne Jane Dagg was born in Biddulph Township, Ontario, to Richard Dagg and Elizabeth "Eliza" Culbert, from Ireland.

Dad was in his twenties when talk of war loomed close. Like so many other Canadian men, he was anxious to join the effort. Tired of waiting for Canada to completely commit, he went to Toronto and signed up with the British Navy, under His Majesty King George V. From there, he served with The Royal Naval Canadian Volunteer Reserve (R.N.C.V.R.) Overseas Division as an Ordinary Seaman and was later ranked as Petty Officer. 

After three months of training with the British Navy, and Canada now fully involved in the war effort, he asked for a transfer into the Canadian Naval Service. He was assigned to different sea-going ships; Victory, Idaho, Vivid 111, and Niobe from November 29th, 1916 to April 5^th, 1919. 

Dad served on the Niobe the longest where it patrolled the approaches to the St. Lawrence River, and then joined the Royal Navy’s 4^th Cruiser Squadron to patrol off New York City. At one point, the Niobe was engaged in intercepting German ships along the American coast. For the most part these ships were on minesweeping duties.

Before WWII broke out, Dad had joined the Militia Infantry, in London, Ontario. After many courses, he qualified as Major Arthur Hall.

On September 18^th, 1943 he married my mother, Roberta Iola Cowan.

Art Hall & Roberta Cowan's wedding day.

They had three children: Ronald Gary, Richard Douglas, and Lynda Jane. 

Art & Roberta's children. Left to right: Gary Hall, Lynda Hall, and Doug Hall.

Dad had an incredible thirst for reading. One of my jobs as a teenager was to go the library for him and collect 10 or 12 books at a time. I remember telling my boyfriend (my husband now) to look for a small pencil mark on the back page. If there was a mark, return it, and keep looking. After a couple of hours, we finally came up with enough books. For dad, these books were like new found treasures. I also remember many times pulling a loaded wagon full of books to trade with Lorne Hall Sr. Apparently Lorne had the same affliction.

It was rare to see dad sit down at the dinner table without a tie and suit coat. It was amusing to watch him fuss with his serving dishes so that his food choices didn’t touch. I can’t imagine what would have happened if the stewed tomatoes dared to touch the mashed potatoes. As usual as it was to see him in a tie and suit coat at meal time, it was just as usual to see him out (pre-dawn) weeding his garden in his pyjamas.

He loved to play cards, especially cribbage, and excelled at crossword puzzles. He read as many newspapers as he could get his hands on, and Perry Mason was his favourite TV show. And for him, there was nothing better than dropping by the Legion for a visit with his old war buddies.

Dad died February 11^th, 1971 in his 83rd year, and we miss him.

Arthur Hall's Family Tree:
Ancestors:
John Culbert & Mary Ward (great-grandparents)

Eliza Culbert & Richard Dagg (grandparents)

Anne Jane Dagg & Charles Hall (parents)
Descendants: (Children)
Richard Douglas Hall
Ronald Gary Hall
Lynda (Hall) Hunter 

Arthur Hall is buried in Kincardine Cemetery.

Descendants of Richard Culbert and Ann Jane Harlton

Dear Followers:

This post will be of little interest to you so if you have something better to do, like watching paint dry, for instance, now is the time to do so.  

However, if you're a descendant of Richard Culbert & Ann Jane Harlton, please contact me at this email address:

 

With this post, I'm hoping to attract and connect with descendants of Richard Culbert & Ann Jane Harlton. Call this post "bait" if you wish.

We know that Richard Culbert & John Culbert were probably brothers. If you missed the post about Richard & Ann, click here.

This is a partial list of the descendants of Richard Culbert & Ann Jane Harlton. 

Please note that this list is incomplete and the dates have not been confirmed. There may be errors in this list so please confirm everything before adding this information to your family tree.

LIST OF CHILDREN OF RICHARD CULBERT & ANN JANE HARLTON:

John Culbert (c1840-1874). Born in Ireland.

Elizabeth Culbert (aka Ettie and Eliza) (1842-1914). Born in Ireland.

Helen Culbert (c1844 - ?). Born in Biddulph Township, Ontario, Canada.

Sally Ann or Sarah Culbert (c1845 - ?). Born in Biddulph Township, Ontario, Canada.

Catherine Culbert (1850-1923). Born in Biddulph Township, Ontario, Canada.

Rebeccca Culbert (1854-1927). Born in Plympton Township, Lambton County, Canada.

William Culbert (1863-1935). Born in Plympton Township, Lambton County, Canada.

DETAILS OF THE CHILDREN OF RICHARD CULBERT & ANN JANE HARLTON AND THEIR DESCENDANTS:

JOHN CULBERT (c1840-1874). Son of Richard & Ann.

No record of marriage or children.

ELIZABETH CULBERT (aka Ettie and Eliza) (1842-1914) Daughter of Richard & Ann. Elizabeth Culbert married Philip Dieterich Betz, a German-born farmer. They moved to Michigan. Elizabeth & Philip had 4 children:

Philip F. Betz. (1869-1955). Philip married Mary Vanhoutan and they lived in Michigan. Philip F. Betz & Mary Vanhoutan had a son: James Phillip Betz (1900-1991). James Phillip Betz married Leona Wilhelmina Boldt and they had 4 children: Elvin F. Betz (1924-2011), Irene Frances Betz (1933-2001), and two other children.

Alice Catharine Betz. (1871-1946). Alice married Daniel Lobdell Bale and they had 2 sons: Alton George W. Bale, Sr., (1892-1973) and Earl Hazen Pingree Bale (1894-1967). Alton George Bale, Sr. married Laura Amalia Meir and they had 2 children: Alton George Bale, Jr., and Muriel Ellen Bale who married Ferdinand Borino. Earl Hazen Pingree Bale married Viola Wilson and they had 6 children: Earl Hazen Bale, Jr., Eugene Phillip Bale, Charles Landers "Chuck" Bale, Alice Jane Bale, Dan Joseph Bale, and William Robert Bale.

Ella Betz (1874-1960). Single.

Eugene Clifford Betz.(1877-1956). Eugene married Matilda Julia Knapp and they had 2 children: Stanley Eugene Betz and Lucille Margaret Betz. Stanley married Marjorie Albrecht. Lucille married Joseph Dorr Kinney, Jr., and they had 4 children.

HELEN CULBERT (c1844-?). Daughter of Richard & Ann.

Helen may have died young. No records to show that she married or had children.

SARAH CULBERT, who may also have been known as Sally Ann Culbert (c1845-1910). Daughter of Richard & Ann. Sarah Culbert married Luther Martin Haughn, also spelled Hahn. Sarah and Luther lived in Toledo, Ohio. Sarah & Luther had 3 children:

Lydia Haughn (1869-1909). Lydia married Henry Adam Waltenburg or Waltenbury.

Ulysses Haughn (1873-1934). Ulysses married Lulu Maud Anderson and they lived in Sarnia. Ulysses & Lulu had 4 children: William Luther Haughn (infant death), Gladys Maude Haughn, Alice May Haughn, and Gordon Haughn. Gladys Haughn married Wilfred Earnest Aiken and they had 7 children. Alice Mary Haughn married Edward Thomas Avey and they had 4 children: Dorothy May (Avey) Regan (c1931-2002), Virginia Avey (1932-2005), Keith Avey (1940-2003), and Alex Avey (1945-2000).

Frederick Haughn or Hahn (c1891-1972). Frederick died in Virginia, USA.

CATHERINE CULBERT (1850-1923).  Daughter of Richard & Ann.

Catherine Culbert married Alexander Morden. Catherine & Alexander had 5 children:

George Alfred Morden (1874-1905)
George Alfred Morden married Ida Loia Anderson.

Frederick Alexander Morden. (1881-1882)

 

Richard Alfred Morden. (1884-1965)  

Richard Morden married Mabel Louise Elliott. Richard and Mabel had 3 children: John Allan Morden (1911-?); Dorothy Louise Morden (1913-1986) who married Eugene G. Stewart; and Elliott Laverne Morden (1920-1998). Elliott Morden married Stella Adelaide Bates and they had 2 children: Linda Joan Morden (1944-2015) and Richard Herbert Morden (1947-2004).

Rose Zelpha  Morden: (1886-c1952)

Rose Zelpha Morden married Henry William Walton. Rose Zelpha Morden & Henry Walton had 4 children:

Alfred Ardell Walton (1908-1967). Alfred married Ruth Cranmer.

Glayda Lucille Margaret Walton (1910-1993). Gladys married Ralph Sherrick. 

Roselle Alexandria Walton (1913-2000). Roselle's first husband was John Alexander McLeod with whom she had 4 children: a daughter, Eleanor Joyce McLeod (1947-1985) who married Paul Arthur Desrosiers, and three sons. Roselle's second husband was Evan Roy McBrayne.
Maizie Christine Walton (1918-1995). Mazie's first husband was Earl Johnston Eady with whom she had a child. Mazie's second husband was Herbert Laking with whom she had a child.

Alexander Lavergne Morden. (c1892-1974).

Alexander Morden married Marie Klassen. They lived in Wyoming, Ontario.

His second marriage was to Norella Winrow.

REBECCA CULBERT (1854-1927). Daughter of Richard & Ann.

Rebecca Culbert married David Manser. They lived in Sarnia, Ontario. Rebecca & David had 4 children:

Annie Laura Manser (1879-1952). Annie Laura married Samuel Gray Taylor and they had 3 children: Alma Lenore Taylor, Howard Franklin Taylor, and Bruce Edward Taylor. Alma Lenore Taylor married W. Norman Eastwood (assistant construction supervisor of the Empire State Building.)

Franklin B. Manser (1882-1904). Died age 21, the result of a fall while working on the Grand Trunk Railway (G.T.R.)

Thomas Frederick Manser (1886-1954) Thomas Frederick Manser married Margaret Isabel Sinclair and they lived in Sarnia, Ontario. He worked for Imperial Oil Limited. Thomas & Margaret had 3 sons: Arthur Frederick Manser, Earl Sinclair Manser, and William I. Manser.

Randall Herbert Manser (1889-?). Randall Manser married Alice O'Donnell and they had 2 daughters: Marion Manser & Muriel Leona Manser.

WILLIAM CULBERT (1863-1935).Son of Richard & Ann.

Married Jane "Jennie" Thomas. They lived in London, Ontario. William died in Michigan. I have no record of children for this couple.

 

Wyoming, Ontario, Canada. Photo credit: Wikipedia.

Of course, there are many more people to record but this gives you a general idea of the descendants of Richard Culbert & Ann Jane Harlton. DNA testing proves that Richard is related to my ancestor, John Culbert. Richard and John were most likely brothers as they purchased land next to each other in Biddulph Township in 1840. Later, Richard and his family later moved to Lambton County, Ontario where many of his descendants live. 

If you're a descendant of any of these people, please email me at this address: 

The Culberts Next Door - Richard Culbert and Ann Jane Harlton

Next door to John Culbert and Mary Ward near Lucan, Ontario lived another Culbert family: Richard Culbert and his wife, Ann Jane (Harlton) Culbert.

Thanks to Ancestry DNA testing, we know that Richard is definitely related to our ancestor, John Culbert.

Was he John Culbert’s brother? His cousin? And why did Richard and Ann later move away to Wyoming, Ontario? No one in my family could answer that question so I set out to see what I could discover.

Why oh why, Wyoming?

This Richard Culbert (not to be confused with John and Mary’s son of the same name) was born circa 1813 in Ireland.

Our ancestor, John Culbert and his mystery relation next door, Richard Culbert are listed in the Ontario Archive Land Record Index; showing land deeds for each man dated October 1840. John purchased Lot 19, Concession 2 in Biddulph Township while Richard purchased Lot 18, the property just north of John. 

Skipping ahead a couple of years to 1842, the Assessment List and Population Return for the Township of Biddulph shows John Culbert with 100 acres on Lot 19 and Richard Culbert on Lot 18 with 100 acres. 

These records prove that John and Richard purchased land at the same time (October 1840) next to each other.

So there they are, living side by side. But how were they related? We don’t know. John was born c1806 so he was about seven years older than Richard. However, there’s no mention in any of the documents as to their family relationship.

A decade goes by. The 1851 Census (taken in 1852) gives us more information about the family. At this point, Richard and Ann have five children; John who was born in Ireland; and Elizabeth, Helen, Sally Ann, and Catherine who were born in Canada. (Sally may have been a nickname for Sarah.) (Note for family historians: In 1851, Ontario was known as Canada West, and Biddulph Township was at the time part of Huron County, not Middlesex County.)

Fast forward to 1861. The Richard Culbert family have left Biddulph Township. They’re living in a log house in the village of Wyoming in Plympton Township, Lambton County, Ontario. 

Modern map showing position of Lucan in relation to Wyoming. I'm guessing it's well over 50 miles or over 80 km. (Math wizards, feel free to tell me.) Back in the 1800s, even a distance of 20 miles took a long time to cover by horse and buggy so it's doubtful these families did much visiting after Richard and his family moved away.

The 1861 Census shows a couple of changes to the Richard Culbert-Ann Harlton family. A new member of the family is listed: a daughter, Rebecca Culbert. Daughter Helen’s name has been crossed out and I haven’t seen any reference to her since that time so Helen must have died.

Richard Culbert's family's names on the 1861 Census of Canada. His daughter Helen's name is crossed out so she may have died.

So somewhere between 1852 and 1861, Richard Culbert and his family moved away from Biddulph Township to the Village of Wyoming in Plympton Township, Lambton County. Can we narrow down the date they moved? Yes, we can. Their daughter, Rebecca was born 31 May 1854 in Plympton Townhip so this means the Richard Culbert family moved to Plympton Township in 1854 or earlier.

 

Why did they move away from Biddulph? We don’t know. Lambton County was experiencing rapid growth and prosperity so it’s possible Richard thought he could do better there.

In any case, the Richard Culbert-Ann Jane Harlton family was never again mentioned in any talk I ever heard from my family members. It’s as if they never existed. Yet there they are on the Census form, and the Ontario Archive Land Record Index, and the Assessment List, showing they lived one property north of the John Culbert-Mary Ward family. It may just be because it was so very long ago that memory of them was diminished through time. Or perhaps they lived so far away that the two families lost touch.

Richard and Ann’s last child, William Culbert was born in 1863 in the Village of Wyoming.

A couple of decades later, the 1881 Census shows Richard and Ann, now in their 60s, still living in Wyoming. Most of their children had moved out except William and Catherine. Also in the household was Catherine’s husband, Alexander Morden and their son, George Morden.

Richard’s wife, Ann Jane (Harlton) Culbert (born c1816 in Ireland) died 18 February 1888 at the home of her son-in-law, Alexander Morden.

Ann (Harlton) Culbert's obituary in the March 9th 1888 edition of the Sarnia Observer. Note the misspelling of her last name. If your last name is Culbert, no doubt you've suffered this indignity.

Ann's obituary says that “her aged partner still survives her, although he has been scarcely able to move around for the past year or two. They spent over fifty years of married life together, and are among the oldest residents of the village."

At some point, the widowed Richard went to live with his daughter, Catherine Morden and her family who also lived in Wyoming. He died on 10 March 1894, age 82 of bronchial pneumonia.

Richard Culbert's death document shows that he was a laborer, born in Ireland, who died on March 10th, 1894 at the age of 82 of bronchial pneumonia.

It doesn't take a brain surgeon to figure out that John and Richard are probably brothers. However, as yet, there's no documentation to prove it. Through DNA testing, I've established that Richard Culbert and his descendants are definitely related to John Culbert and his descendants. Eventually, I hope to have a breakthrough and find more details. Please consider taking the Ancestry DNA test. Your DNA may unlock the secrets of these two Culbert men.

Richard Culbert’s Family Tree:

Ancestors:

Unknown. Richard’s brother is probably John Culbert who married Mary Ward but there's no documentation yet to prove this.

Descendants (Children):

John Culbert (c1840-1874)

Elizabeth Culbert (aka Ettie and Eliza) (1842-1914)

Helen Culbert (c1844 - ?)

Sally Ann or Sarah Culbert (c1845 - ?)

Catherine Culbert (1850-1923)

Rebeccca Culbert (1854-1927)

William Culbert (1863-1935)

Note: The next post will discuss the descendants of Richard Culbert & Ann Jane Harlton. 

UPDATE: Since publishing this post, I've discovered that Richard Culbert & John Culbert are probably brothers. See blog post here.

UPDATE: Richard Culbert and Ann Jane Harlton are buried in Wyoming Cemetery in Wyoming, Ontario. See this post.