The Crawleys, Continued

The last post introduced you to Susan Culbert, a daughter of John Culbert and Mary Ward. 

 

Photo of Susan (Culbert) Crawley courtesy of her great-great-grandson, Lorne Floyd Brock of Wallaceburg, Ontario. This image was clipped from a larger photo which you can see by clicking here. This photo was added as an update on 18 Aug 2020.

We learned that Susan Culbert married Phillip Crawley and lived just half a mile north of the Culbert homestead on the Coursey Line near Lucan, Ontario. Widowed at age 40, Susan was left to manage the household, the farm, and raise several children ranging in age from 2-18. 

Whatever happened to Susan (Culbert) Crawley's children? This list gives us a few details...

Rachel Crawley the 1st (1851-1852) died the year after she was born.

Rachel Crawley the 2nd (1854-1881) married William Brock, also of Biddulph Township. Rachel died in 1881, two days after giving birth to their daughter, Susannah Rachel Brock. The baby died after only eight days. Rachel's husband would later marry Rachel's sister, Rebecca Crawley.

Maria Crawley. (c1855-1885) So far, I haven't found any evidence of what happened to Maria. She's recorded on the 1871 Census when she was a teenager but she's not in the 1881 Census. I can't find a death record for Maria either. In fact, I can't even find her birth record. The only mention I've seen of Maria is in that 1871 Census. UPDATE on 18 Aug 2020: Her full name was Annie Maria Crawley. She married William Herbert, and gave birth to a daughter, Annie M. Herbert on 27 April 1885 in Biddulph Township. Annie Maria (Crawley) Herbert died as a result of childbirth on 28 April 1885, age about 30 in Biddulph Township.

Sarah Catherine Crawley (1857-1939) married Samuel Hill Hodgins when she was 17 years old. Samuel was born, lived all his life, and died on Lot 14, Concession 3, Biddulph Township, near the Culbert family, and even closer to the Crawley family where young Sarah lived. There were so many Hodgins men in Biddulph Township that they were given nicknames to distinguish one from another. Samuel Hodgins was known as "Red Samuel." Sarah & Red Samuel had 11 children: Annie Hodgins, Mary Ida Hodgins, Estella Kate Hodgins, James Grafton Hodgins, John Dufferin Hodgins, Florence Susan Hodgins, Pearl Ellen Hodgins, George Allen Hodgins, Gladys Sarah Hodgins, William Walter Hodgins, and Lillian Victoria May "Elaine" Hodgins.

Sarah Catherine (Crawley) Hodgins (daughter of Susan Culbert & Philip Crawley). Photo courtesy of Judith Luker Massey.

Elizabeth Crawley (1859-1915) married Thomas Morgan. In the early years of their marriage, they lived in Biddulph Township but in 1882, they moved to Michigan. Elizabeth & Thomas had 8 children: Edsel/Etsol Phillip Morgan, Lucinda Morgan, John Grafton Morgan, Elizabeth "Lizzie" Morgan, Cora Morgan, Susan Elizabeth Morgan, Edna Pearl Morgan, and Thomas Milton Morgan.

Rebecca Crawley (1860-1933) married William Brock, the widower of her deceased sister, Rachel Crawley the 2nd. Rebecca & William had 4 children: Harry Huber Brock, William Nelson Brock, Lorne George Brock, and Clarence Gordon Brock. UPDATE: Rebecca Crawley was the twin sister of Margaret Crawley.

Rebecca (Crawley) Brock (daugher of Susan Culbert & Philip Crawley). Photo courtesy of Lorne Floyd Brock. This photo was added as an update on 18 Aug 2020.

Margaret "Maggie" Crawley (1860-1932) married George Ryan of Biddulph Township. Maggie & George had 2 children: Ethel Susan Ryan and Sarah Olive Ryan. UPDATE: Margaret Crawley was the twin sister of Rebecca Crawley.

George Eli Crawley (1864-1921) married Ida Victoria Fraleigh of Birr, Ontario; a hamlet between Lucan and London. They lived in Lucan and in Exeter. George ran livery businesses in both towns. George & Ida had no children.

Harriet Ellen "Hattie" Crawley (1866-1926) married Alexander McNeil of London Township. They lived in Lobo where Alexander was a hotel keeper. Hattie and Alexander  had 2 children: Susan Kathleen McNeil and Ward Alexander McNeil. The 1911 Census shows them living in Melbourne Village, Ekfrid Township, Middlesex West, Ontario. In 1914, the family immigrated to the United States. The 1920 U.S. Census shows the family living on Grand Avenue in Highland Park, Michigan, and Alexander is working in an auto shop.

William H. Crawley (1869-1930) married Katherine Elizabeth "Kit" Kane and they lived in Hartford, Connecticut where Will worked as an electrician. Will & Kit had 2 children: Mary Crawley and George Andrew Crawley.

Note: If you're a descendant of any of these people, please contact me here...

The Crawley Family of Middlesex County

Our Crawley family is not to be mistaken for the Crawley Family of Downton Abbey...

 ... nor the Crawley Family of Vanity Fair...

Our Crawley Family (Philip Crawley & Susan Culbert) lived in Biddulph Township, Middlesex County, Canada near the Culbert homestead.

SUSAN CULBERT was the daughter of our ancestors, John Culbert & Mary Ward. Susan was born 28 July 1832 in Ireland. She was eight years old when the Culberts came to Canada, settling on Lot 19, Concession 2 (the Coursey Line) near Lucan.

In 1848, when she was about 16 years old, Susan married Philip Crawley; an Irish-born farmer who lived in Biddulph Township. Susan and Philip moved onto a farm about 1/2 mile north of the Culbert homestead. The Crawley property was Lot 17, Concession 2 (the Coursey Line), and the Culbert property was Lot 19.

If anyone has photos of Susan Culbert & Philip Crawley, please contact me so I can use actual photographs instead of these silhouettes.
UPDATE on 18 Aug 2020: We now have a photo of Susan (Culbert) Crawley. Thanks to Lorne Floyd Brock in Wallaceburg, Ontario for sending us this photo of his great-great-grandmother...

Susan (Culbert) Crawley (1832-1907). Photo courtesy of Lorne Floyd Brock.

The photo above is clipped from a larger group photo. To see the larger photo which includes her daughter, Rebecca Crawley, Rebecca's husband, William Heber Brock and their children, click here.

Susan (Culbert) Crawley bore 10 children.

Just as the Crawleys of Downton Abbey and Vanity Fair had servants, our Crawley family had one servant. A man named George Jackson is listed as their servant in the 1871 Census. It's likely he was their hired hand; a man employed to do physical labour on the farm. With so few boys in the household, it's not surprising they hired a man to help with the chores.

And just as tragedy struck the Crawleys of Downton Abbey and Vanity Fair, so too did misfortune befall our Crawley Family. Susan Culbert was left a widow when her husband died of stomach cancer in 1872. Susan was only 40 when Philip died. She had to manage the household and the farm while raising her many children, ages 2 to 18, on her own.

The list below is from the Index to Biddulph Township Map by Concession and Lot from the Historical Atlas of Middlesex County, 1878. The list shows the property holders of each lot on Concession 2 in Biddulph Township in 1878. Lot 17 is in the possession of Mrs. Susan Crawley. This is six years after the death of her husband...

You can see from the left side of the map below how close Susan (Mrs. Susan Crawley) and her children lived to her father, John Culbert. Note that John Culbert's name is spelled "Jno" which was a popular abbreviation for John at that time. Susan lived only about a half mile north of the Culbert homestead, where she had grown up...

Susan (Culbert) Crawley died 19 November 1907, age 75 at the home of her daughter, Harriet "Hattie" (Crawley) McNeil at Lot 13, Concession 4 in Lobo Township. Susan had been living with cancer for over a year at the time of her death. 

Susan and Philip are buried in St. James Cemetery, Clandeboye, near Lucan although I haven't seen the headstone nor do I have a photo of it.

And now for the Crawley Family Tree...

No, not that Crawley Famly! THIS one!...

Susan Culbert's Family Tree:

Ancestors:

John Culbert & Mary Ward (parents)

Descendants: (Children)

Rachel Crawley 1st (1851-1852)
Rachel Crawley 2nd (1854-1881)
Maria Crawley (c1855-? Last seen on 1871 Census so may have died between then and the 1881 Census although I can't find a death record.)
Sarah Catherine Crawley (1857-1939)
Elizabeth Crawley (1859-1915)

Rebecca Crawley (1860-1933) Twin.
Margaret Crawley (1860-1932) Twin.
George Eli Crawley (1864-1921)
Harriet Ellen "Hattie" Crawley (1866-1926)
William H. Crawley (1869-1930)

Culberts and Canines

Myron Culbert's wife, Effie with 4 of her sons and their dog. Back row: Cliff, Effie, Ken. Front row: Ivan, the dog, and Mel. Photo taken at Poplar Farm near Lucan, Ontario on the Coursey Line, 1920s.

Remember back in April when I asked for photos of Culbert descendants with dogs? Well, here they are!

John "Jack" Westell of Kincardine with dog. November, 1928.

Left to right: Alice Carscallen, Helen (Culbert) Carscallen with Trafalgar the dog (aka Traffic), Kathleen "Kay" Carscallen, and Charles Peter Carscallen. Late 1930s.

Kay (Carscallen) Gowland with Sandy the dog.

Left to right: Effie (Taylor) Culbert, Earl Culbert, Mert Culbert, Mel Culbert, their dog, and Ken Culbert on Poplar Farm, circa 1930.

Top to bottom: Mert Culbert, Earl Culbert, and their dog on Poplar Farm.

Ivan Hector Culbert on Poplar Farm with dogs.

Ivan Hector Culbert (years later) the day he brought home a new puppy, Frisky. Next to Ivan is his daughter, Vicky holding her sister, Christine. Spring, 1957 on Colborne Street in London, Ontario.

Phillip Myron Culbert and dog, c1951. Phil obviously objects to the dog sharing the limelight.

Phil Culbert (years later) with his puppy, Summer in Vernon, British Columbia.

Brad Culbert and Lily, with their puppies

Lexus the dog with Lincoln Phillip Tait (one of our youngest Culbert descendants.) Lexus is whispering, "Bet I can crawl faster than you!"

"Ready, set, go!"

Brielle Culbert and Lexus. Is there a prize for cutest photo?

Kim (Culbert) Oke Small with dogs, Oscar (left) and Richard.

Connor Small with dog, Oscar.

Sophie Small with dog, Summer. Huntsville, Ontario, 2013.

Terrence Patrick "Terry" Culbert with Merlot (left) and Justin, 2009. What's in the thermos, Terry?

Terry Culbert's partner, Barbara Högenauer. Merlot on her left and Justin on her right.

And finally...

Mary Jane Culbert with Laddie c1962 in Lucan, Ontario. Photo by her big brother, Terry Culbert.

The James Culbert-Rebecca Portis Family

Today we look at another Culbert family who are connected to our Culbert family. We don't yet know how the James Culbert-Rebecca Portis family is related to us but DNA testing proves they're our relatives.

James may be a brother of our ancestor, John Culbert or a cousin.

The Ancestry DNA test shows that I share DNA with various descendants of the James Culbert-Rebecca Portis family. First and foremost is Devonna (Atkinson) Del Grosso of New Westminster, British Columbia, Canada.

Devonna (Atkinson) Del Grosso & her husband, Sandro Del Grosso.

Devonna is the great-great-granddaughter of James Culbert & Rebecca Portis. She's the great-granddaughter of James & Rebecca's daughter, Rebecca Culbert who married Jonathan Atkinson. Devonna's DNA proves that James and his descendants are related to us, the descendants of John Culbert and Mary Ward.

Devonna has done a tremendous amount of research on her family tree. For anyone researching the James Culbert-Rebecca Portis family, I recommend looking at Devonna's family tree on Ancestry.

Devonna and I haven't yet figured out how her James Culbert is related to our John Culbert. Were they brothers? Were they cousins?

MORE ABOUT JAMES CULBERT & REBECCA PORTIS:

James Culbert (also spelled Colbert) was born circa 1817 in Ireland.  He married Rebecca Portis (alternate spellings include Porteous, Porte, and Pooler) on 1 Apr 1839 in Modreeny, Tipperary, Ireland; a civil parish about 2.5 miles northwest of Cloughjordan.

It's believed that James Culbert & Rebecca Portis came to Canada around 1864, over 20 years after our John Culbert arrived here in Canada.

The 1881 Census shows James and Rebecca living in the Village of Lucan, Ontario in Biddulph Township. Between 1885 and 1891, they moved with their four children to British Columbia.

James died in 1899 in New Westminster, BC, age 40.

THE 4 CHILDREN OF JAMES CULBERT & REBECCA PORTIS:

Elizabeth/Eliza Culbert (1841-1891). Elizabeth Culbert married Robert Blackwell and they lived in London, Ontario.

Thomas Culbert (1844-1909). Thomas Culbert married Eleanor "Ellen" Atkinson and they had 9 children. Thomas & Ellen wed in 1869 and lived on Concession 5, Biddulph Township. Around 1880, they moved to New Westminster, BC with their four eldest children. Thomas's first wife, Ellen died in 1894. Thomas married his second wife, Kate Knox in 1899. Apparently, Thomas wasn't fond of his new wife so he and his youngest boys packed up and moved to New Zealand in 1901. Thomas Culbert died in New Zealand in 1909. Thomas's eldest son, Jonathan Culbert was living in Transvaal South Africa. Jonathan went to fight in the Boer War with His cousin, Ernest Atkinson (son of Jonathan Atkinson and Rebecca Culbert.) So that means there are Culberts in South Africa, New Zealand and Australia.

Thomas Culbert and family in Langley Prairie, British Columbia, after 1894. 

Rebecca Culbert (1852-1927). Rebecca Culbert married Jonathan Atkinson and had 13 children. Rebecca and Jonathan lived for a time in Kincardine, Ontario but were living in British Columbia by 1901.

James Culbert, Jr. (1856-1896). James Culbert, Jr. grew up in Biddulph Township, Middlesex County, Ontario but moved to British Columbia. There is no record of a marriage or children.

So there you have it. Proof of another Culbert family related to our Culbert family. You can help unravel the mystery of these families by taking the Ancestry DNA test. The more Culbert DNA we have in their database, the more likely we'll find the answers to these questions:

Who were John Culbert's parents?

Who were John Culbert's siblings?

Who were John Culbert's ancestors?

Where did John Culbert and Mary Ward live in Ireland before they came to Canada?

Please consider taking the Ancestry DNA test. And thanks to those of you who've already taken the test! Your DNA led me to discover that James Culbert and his family are related to us.

Four Generations Photos

In August, I asked you to send photos showing four generations together.

The first photograph is from the collection of Mert and Muriel Culbert of Lucan. It was taken in the early 1940s at Poplar Farm (the Culbert homestead) near Lucan, Ontario...

The oldest member of the family is Jane (Fairhall) Culbert, seated in the rocking chair. Technically, she's not a Culbert descendant since she married a Culbert but her husband Richard Culbert died a decade earlier, in 1932. Seated beside Jane is her son, Myron Manford Culbert. Seated in front of Myron is his son, Kenneth Arthur Culbert. The baby is one of Ken's two sons; I'm not sure whether it's Cam or Greg.

On the back of this photo, Myron's son Mert Culbert wrote, "The four generations. Dad says he looks as if he is catching flies"...

"Dad" is Myron Culbert who's seated on the left of that photo with his mouth open.


Our next photo was taken in 1946 and sent to us by Carole (McLeod) Cox of Winnipeg, Manitoba...

The oldest family member (again) is Jane (Fairhall) Culbert. Standing behind Jane is her son, George Arthur Culbert. On the far right we see Arthur's daughter, Jean Elsie (Culbert) McLeod. The little girl is Jean's daughter, Carole Ann Jean McLeod (now Carole Cox.)


The next photo was sent to us by Betty (Carscallen) Marmura of Antigonish, Nova Scotia and was taken around 1938...

The oldest family member is once again Jane (Fairhall) Culbert. Behind Jane is her daughter, Hulda (Culbert) Carscallen whom you'll remember from her years in China. Beside Hulda is her son, Charles Newton Carscallen. The baby is Elizabeth "Betty" Carscallen (now Betty Marmura.)


Jane (Fairhall) Culbert makes yet another appearance in this photo sent to us by Wendy (Carscallen) Boole of Ottawa, Ontario. It was taken around 1944...

 
Standing behind Jane is her daughter, Hulda (Culbert) Carscallen. Seated beside Jane is Hulda's daughter, Kathleen Ethel "Kay" (Carscallen) Gowland. The little girl is Kay's daughter, Patricia Jane Gowland (now Pat Rowell.)


Here we see the same four members of the Culbert family, taken at a different time than the photo above...

And finally, the Westell Family. This photo, taken in 1948 was sent to us by Don Jarrell of Courtenay, British Columbia...

The oldest family member, Omar Westell is seated, centre. On the right is Omar's son, Oran Westell who you'll remember as the lighthouse keeper in Kincardine, Ontario. On the left is Oran's brother, John Russell "Jack" Westell who you'll remember for his work as a spy during the Cold War. The baby is Jack's son, Ian Westell.

Thanks, everyone for your photos!