Today marks the 180th birth anniversary of William Culbert, the son of John Culbert and Mary Ward. William was the first of John and Mary's children to be born in Canada.
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| William Culbert. Photo courtesy of his great-granddaughter, Margaret (Culbert) Hankala. |
William Culbert was born 18 August 1842 in a log cabin on the Culbert homestead: Lot 19, Concession 2 (the Coursey Line) in Biddulph Township near Lucan. At that time, Biddulph was still a part of Huron County rather than Middlesex County, and Ontario was not yet a province.
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| The John Culbert-Mary Ward family circa 1865. William Culbert is second from the left in the back row. Photo courtesy of Margaret (Culbert) Hankala. For more information about this photo, click here. |
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| Close-up of William Culbert from group photo. |
Since publishing a brief post about William Culbert here, I've been trying to find some interesting stories about him. Unfortunately, I haven't been successful so far. Apologies for this being a rather dry account of his life. If you have any stories or further details about William Culbert, please let me know.
In his book,"A History of
the John Culbert-Mary Ward Family and Their Descendants 1828-1995, v.1" author Grant W. Taylor lists William as William Edward Culbert. However, so far, I haven't found any documents showing a middle name for William Culbert although it's possible that his middle name was Edward.
William Culbert lived and farmed at Lot 11 on Concession 4 (known as the Saintsbury Line) in Biddulph Township.
There was a William Culbert who fought in the Fenian Raids in 1866. He was enlisted in the 26th Middlesex Battalion. If this is our William Culbert, he received the Canada General Service Medal.
William was married twice, to sisters Ann de Coursey (1845-1886) and Mary de Coursey (1842-1909). Ann and Mary were the daughters of Thomas de Coursey (c1812-1865) and his wife, Jane Hodgins (1817-1892). Jane Hodgins was the daughter of Colonel James Robert Hodgins. Known as "Big Jim Hodgins," he was one of the first white settlers in Biddulph Township. Big Jim was responsible for bringing many Tipperary Irish to the Lucan-Biddulph area in the 1830s and 1840s.
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| William Culbert and his first wife, Ann de Coursey. Photo courtesy of Margaret (Culbert) Hankala. |
William Culbert was 25 years old when he married 22 year old Ann de Coursey on 11 March 1868. Notice Ann's maiden name: de Coursey. Variations on the spelling include De Coursey with an upper case "D," Courcy, Courcey, Coursey, and other variations. In an effort to remain consistent (and not go insane) I'm using the spelling, "de Coursey." This was the spelling used by Ann's ancestors who came to Canada from Ireland in the 1830s. The Coursey Line was named after the de Coursey families who settled in Biddulph Township on that road. The Coursey Line is also the road on which you'll find Poplar Farm, the Culbert homestead.
William Culbert and Ann de Coursey had three children but only one child, Wes Culbert, survived into adulthood. The three children are as follows:
1. Wilson Wesley Culbert (1868-1949) who married Pearl Elizabeth Cuddy.
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| Wilson Wesley Culbert (known as Wes Culbert). Wes was the first-born child of William Culbert and Ann de Coursey. Photo courtesy of Margaret (Culbert) Hankala. |
14 years passed until the next child was born to William Culbert and Ann de Coursey.
2. Thomas Aljoe Culbert (1882-1901). Single. Died age 18 of appendicitis.
3. A baby girl was born to William and Ann on 31 March 1886 but was unchristened so we don't know her name.
William's first wife, Ann (de Coursey) Culbert died 4 April 1886, four days after the birth of her baby girl. The cause of death is listed as "childbirth."
Just over a year later on 6 July 1887, 45 year old William Culbert married Ann's older sister, 45 year old Mary (de Coursey) Hodgins. Mary was the widow of Thomas Haskett Hodgins also known as "Long Tom Hodgins." Mary had four children from her marriage to Tom Hodgins. William Culbert and Mary (de Coursey) Hodgins didn't have any children together.
William's second wife, Mary (de Coursey) Hodgins Culbert died of heart failure in Lucan, age 67, on 9 October 1909.
William Culbert died at home on 7 December 1910 at Lot 11, Concession 4 in Biddulph Township, Middlesex County, Ontario, Canada. He was 68. Cause of death is listed as "internal injuries from an accident."
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| Final resting place of William Culbert at St. James Cemetery, Clandeboye near Lucan, Ontario. William is buried with his son, Thomas Aljoe Culbert. Photo by Cheryl Clarridge. |
WILLIAM CULBERT'S FAMILY TREE:
Ancestors:
John Culbert & Mary Ward (parents)
Descendants (Children):
Wilson Wesley Culbert (1868-1949)
Thomas Aljoe Culbert (1882-1901)
unamed baby girl Culbert (1886-1886).
