Have you driven along Highway 4 between Lucan, Ontario and Exeter? If so, you’ve passed a large, stone memorial at the intersection of Highway 4 (Richmond Street) and County Road 24 (McGillivray Drive).
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| Lewis Cemetery also known as the Lewis Colony Cairn. Photo by Don Jarrell, 2003. |
Perhaps you noticed the sign: Lewis Cemetery but thought no more about it; after all, we’re Culberts, not Lewises.
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| This pioneer cemetery fell into a state of disrepair, and so this stone memorial was erected in 1963 to replace the grave markers. |
For those of you who stopped for a closer look, it may have surprised you to see the name Culbert engraved on the stone.
Seeing the name Margaret Culbert Hodgins, you probably wondered who she was. Margaret (whose maiden name was Margaret Emily Lewis) was the wife of William Culbert of Birr, Ireland. After William died, she married a Hodgins but we’ll get to that later. (There’s always a Hodgins in the wings, isn’t there?)
So, who were William Culbert (1807-1843) and Margaret Emily Lewis (1807-1886)?
Disclaimer: I’m not an expert on this family so please do your own original research.
It’s possible that William Culbert (husband of Margaret Emily Lewis) was the brother or cousin of John Culbert (husband of Mary Ward). DNA testing tells us that the descendants of William Culbert & Margaret Emily Lewis are related to the descendants of John Culbert & Mary Ward. If anyone reading this blog post has documented proof of William and John’s relationship, please let me know.
William Culbert was born about 1807, within a year or two of John Culbert. William lived in Birr, Ireland; straddling the borders of County Tipperary and County Offaly (formerly King’s County.) During William's lifetime, Birr was known as Parsonstown.
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| We have no photo of William Culbert so we'll have to make do with a photo of Birr Castle. Built long before William's birth, it still stands today. William may have been the king of his castle but I'm sure William's house wasn't quite as grand as this. |
Family lore says that William Culbert was a bodyguard (or a somewhat similar position) to a Church of England minister. William died in 1843 in Birr, Ireland, age about 36. It’s said that “a heavy rain left a fatal cold in his lungs.” William left behind his widow, Margaret Emily (Lewis) Culbert and their four children: Ellen Culbert, Sarah Culbert, Thomas Culbert and William James Culbert.
Following William’s death in 1843, the widowed Margaret Emily (Lewis) Culbert decided to go to Canada where there would be better opportunities for her fatherless Culbert children. In addition, Margaret had a relative in Canada named William Lewis (either her brother or her cousin, depending on whom you ask.) William Lewis and his wife, Jane Carter had settled in McGillivray Township near Clandeboye, just north of Lucan, Ontario.
Accompanying Margaret and her children on the voyage were her brother, Joseph Lewis, and their 80-year-old mother, Ellnor (McKay) Lewis. The family settled in McGillivray Township.
Margaret Emily (Lewis) Culbert remarried to a widower and hotel-keeper, Robert Hodgins, Jr. (1807-1871) of Clandeboye. Long-time readers of this blog know that because there were so many Hodgins, they were given nicknames. Robert Hodgins, Jr. was known as “Young Robert” to distinguish him from his father, “Old Robert.” Young Robert had five children from his first marriage to Ann Maunsell. Young Robert and Ann's children were Robert “Lame Bob” Hodgins, Mary Ann Hodgins, James Byron Hodgins, Maunsell Hodgins, and Isabella Hodgins. (More about Isabella Hodgins, later.) Robert Hodgins, Jr. and Margaret Emily (Lewis) Culbert didn’t have any children together.
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| "Young Robert" Hodgins (1807-1871) is buried at Lewis Cemetery with his first wife, Ann (Maunsell) Hodgins and his second wife, Margaret Emily (Lewis) Culbert Hodgins. |
Following Young Robert's death in 1871, the Census shows that Margaret Emily (Lewis) Culbert Hodgins continued operating the hotel.
Margaret Emily (Lewis) Culbert Hodgins died, age 79 on 13 November 1886 in Parkhill, Ontario. According to her death certificate, she died from a blood clot that formed during an attack of typhoid. Her death notice says "the cause of her demise being inflammation." Margaret is buried at the Lewis Cemetery also known as the Lewis Colony Cairn. It’s not known where her first husband, William Culbert is buried but presumably, it’s in Birr, Ireland.
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| Death notice for Margaret Emily (Lewis) Culbert Hodgins. Source: Exeter Times, 18 November 1886, page 1. |
THE 4 CHILDREN OF WILLIAM CULBERT & MARGARET EMILY LEWIS:
1. ELLEN CULBERT (1829-1908) married George Lewis (c1830-1907) and they had nine children. Ellen’s husband George was the son of Margaret Emily Lewis’s brother (or cousin), William Lewis and his wife, Jane Carter. Assuming that Margaret Emily Lewis and William Lewis were siblings, then Ellen Culbert’s marriage to George Lewis was a 1st cousin marriage; not uncommon in small communities at that time.
Later in life, Ellen and George moved to West Lorne in Elgin County, Ontario where they are buried at Evergreen Cemetery.
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| Headstone of Ellen Culbert and George Lewis at Evergreen Cemetery in West Lorne, Ontario. |
2. SARAH CULBERT (1831-1911) married James Scott (c1923-1905) and they had 13 children. They lived in London Township, Middlesex County, Ontario. Their property was northwest of Bryanston on Lot 12, Concession 15. Sarah and James are buried at Woodland Cemetery in London, Ontario.
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| Headstone of Sarah Culbert and James Scott at Woodland Cemetery in London, Ontario. |
Interesting descendancy note: Jason William Garrett (born 1970) whom you met previously here, is the 2xgreat-grandson of Sarah Culbert and James Scott. This means that Jason Garrett is the 3xgreat-grandson of William Culbert and Margaret Emily Lewis. Jason’s other set of 3xgreat-grandparents are John Culbert and Mary Ward. Jason is descended from Culberts on his paternal side of the family and on his maternal side of the family. It’s possible that Jason’s two 3xgreat-grandfathers (William and John) were brothers. I like to say that Jason has a double dose of Culbert DNA.
3. THOMAS CULBERT (1833-1903) married Emeline Jane Sutton (1833-1895) and they had 15 children. In 1880, they moved from McGillivray Township in Middlesex County, Ontario, Canada to Tuscola County, Michigan, USA. Thomas and Emeline are buried at Brookside Cemetery in Fairgrove, Michigan.
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| Thomas Culbert & Emeline Sutton: parents of FIFTEEN children. |
4. WILLIAM JAMES CULBERT (1836-1915) married twice. His first wife, Isabella Hodgins (1842-1869) was not only his wife; she was his step-sister. As mentioned previously, Margaret Emily (Lewis) Culbert (the mother of William James Culbert) took Robert Hodgins, Jr. (Young Robert) of Clandeboye as her second husband. Young Robert had previously been married to Ann Maunsell with whom he had a daughter, Isabella Hodgins. And it's this Isabella Hodgins who is the step-sister/wife of William James Culbert. Isabella (Hodgins) Culbert died in 1869, probably from complications due to childbirth. Isabella (Hodgins) Culbert is buried in Lewis Cemetery with her baby daughter, Isabella Amanda Culbert….
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| Isabella (Hodgins) Culbert (1842-1869) was the first wife of William James Culbert (son of William Culbert of Birr & Margaret Emily Lewis.) Isabella is buried in Lewis Cemetery with their infant daughter, Isabella Amanda Culbert (1869-1869). |
In 1872, a few years after the death of his first wife, Isabella (Hodgins) Culbert, William James Culbert married Ann Simpson (1838-1915). At some point, they moved to Tuscola County in Michigan; this is the same place that his brother Thomas Culbert moved to.
William James Culbert had at least three children with Isabella Hodgins and at least two children with Ann Simpson. William James Culbert and his second wife, Ann Simpson are buried at Brookside Cemetery in Fairgrove, Michigan.
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| William James Culbert (the fourth and final child of William Culbert & Margaret Emily Lewis) is buried at Brookside Cemetery in Fairgrove, Michigan with his second wife, Ann Simpson. His first wife, Isabella Hodgins is buried with their baby daughter, Isabella Amanda Culbert at Lewis Cemetery. |
In closing, I'll remind you that we're not sure if William Culbert of Birr, Ireland (husband of Margaret Emily Lewis) and John Culbert (husband of Mary Ward) were brothers or cousins. If you have documented proof of their relationship, please contact me at this email address:
LEWIS CEMETERY
IF YOU GO:
Lewis Cemetery is a pioneer cemetery located at the intersection of Highway 4 (Richmond Street) and County Road 24 (McGillivray Drive). To find it on Google Street View, enter this address: 34733 Richmond Street, Lucan, Ontario. (The cemetery is actually located northwest of Lucan but that address will help you locate it on the map.)
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| The number 13 represents the location of Lewis Cemetery, north of Clandeboye. |
The intersection was formerly known as “Lewis Corners” and later, “Grundy’s Corners.” This settlement was named for William Lewis (Margaret Emily Lewis's brother or cousin) and his wife, Jane Carter who donated a corner of their property in 1848 for a church, school and cemetery. All that remains on the property is a large stone memorial which was erected in 1963 in memory of the people buried here. The cemetery was in a state of disrepair and so any original markers were replaced by one large marker.
Note: Lewis Cemetery is sometimes confused with the Christopher Lewis Farm Cemetery, located on private land in Brinsley, Ontario.
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| A close-up of the left side of the stone marker. The name Margaret Culbert Hodgins is Margaret Emily (Lewis) Culbert Hodgins, the wife of William Culbert of Birr, Ireland. Photo by Don Jarrell. |
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| A close-up of the right side of the stone marker. The name Isabella (1842-1869) is Isabella (Hodgins) Culbert, the first wife of William James Culbert (son of William Culbert of Birr, Ireland & Margaret Emily Lewis). The name Isabella Amanda (1869-1869) is Isabella Amanda Culbert, the daughter of William James Culbert & Isabella Hodgins. Photo by Don Jarrell. |
