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From: Sharon Haggerty <>
Subject: [UPPER-CANADA] Bernard REYNOLDS: c. 1793 - 1864
Date: Tue, 30 Jan 2007 19:54:49 -0800


I am trying to fill in some gaps in the life of my ggg grandfather, Bernard Reynolds, a native of County Leitrim, Ireland. His wife Mary was also a Reynolds.

The Perth Courier published the following notice of Bernard's death, January 22, 1864, p.3:

"Died at his residence in Bromley, on the 8th inst., Bernard Reynolds, aged 71 years. For the last 20 years he had been a resident of Bromley, where he held several offices of trust. He leaves a large circle of friends to mourn his loss."
(Source: http://www.rootsweb.com/~onlanark/NewspaperClippings/Spencer/PerthCourierSeven.htm ).

If the 20 years is correct, this means the family must have settled in Bromley (Renfrew county) about 1844. The land records for Lot 15, Third concession reveal that Bernard purchased the land 18 March 1851. Bernard's will was dated 14 December 1863.
In Founding Families of Bromley Township, Carol Bennett McCuaig notes that "Barney Reynolds" was one of the first teachers at Connaught School, along with Mick Mulligan. Connaught School was united with another school in 1848 (McCuaig, 1996, p. 17). She also notes that Ann Dooner (1811-1889), wife of Francis Carty of Brudenell, was a native of County Leitrim, Ireland (p. 67). Bernard Dooner, whose wife was a Winnifred Reynolds, may have been a brother or cousin of Ann; as well, Winnifred may have been a sister or cousin of either Bernard or Mary Reynolds. The same first names were common in both the Dooner and Reynolds families. I suspect the Dooners and the Reynolds knew one another in Leitrim and deliberately settled in the same part of Canada when they immigrated. McCuaig notes that the Dooners lived in Pakenham, Lanark county, before coming to Bromley. I also suspect this may be where Bernard and his family first settled given that Bernard's death was reported in the Perth newspaper.

I also found at: http://www.rootsweb.com/~onlanark/histdoc/Lest_We_Forget_4.htm the following excerpt from the Perth Courier of June 21, 1935 concerning "SS #15, Drummond, on the Scotch Line" (unfortunately, there is nothing to indicate just when these "early teachers" were teaching in Drummond--could the teacher named Reynolds have been my Bernard?):

Peter McIlquham and James McLenaghan of Drummond vividly recall their early childhood school days. They tell of the games played, the pranks performed, the fights in the school yard, the reading, the writing, the arithmetic, the hickory stick. The old schools are clear in their memories particularly the second school which they attended. The floor of sided logs with gaping cracks filled with bread crumbs invited the rats to dine upon the refuse. How often would their eyes fill with tears when they dropped the slate pencil and it would disappear between the logs on the floor to fraternize with the rats. Slates were precious and all exercises were worked on them, the exercises being ushered into oblivion by means of spittal and the coat sleeve. Some of the early teachers were: Chrisholm, Cameron, Reynolds, Morgan, Long, Gilespie, York, Stone, Wiley, Thompson and Comrie(?). They were of the old school-rank and fearless-and they always kept to the proverb "spare the rod and spoil the child".

Census records for Bernard's children are not consistent re: birth places of their two youngest children, Edward and Bernard Jr, born in the mid to late 1830s. Some records indicate they were born Ireland; others say Canada. Therefore, we can't be too certain when they left Ireland. The family was Roman Catholic.

My web page on the Reynolds family is at: http://homepages.rootsweb.com/~sharonmh/reynolds/ and my regularly updated complete database is posted at: http://wc.rootsweb.com/~sharonmh

Overall, my questions are:

1. When did Bernard and Mary Reynolds leave Ireland and where did they first settle in Canada? Might it have been Pakenham or elsewhere in Lanark county? Do they appear anywhere in the 1842 census?

2. Could Bernard be related to other Reynolds who lived in Lanark county in the early mid 1800s? I have found in the Lanark list archives reference to the following two women whose maiden names were Reynolds:

Annie McMULLEN (McMILLAN) b. 1839 d. 1925, buried in Poland, Ontario. I know that her parents were Robert McMULLEN (McMILLAN) & Bessy REYNOLDS, but I have nothing on her sibs.

My Thompson family came from Ireland in 1830 and settled in Malakoff, near North Gower. The 12 children of John Thompson and Jane Reynolds have spread all over Canada and the USA.

Could Jane and Bessy Reynolds have been sisters or otherwise related to Bernard? These early Irish immigrants typically following the traditional Celtic naming patterns, so the names of their children can be a valuable clue to relationships. Bernard's known children were (in birth order): John, Anne?, Mary, Margaret, Michael, Winifred, Edward, Bernard, James.

3. Was the early Drummond teacher Bernard Reynolds? If not, what was his name? And regardless, when was he at Drummond?

I would welcome contact with anyone who might have information on these Reynolds and/or other Irish Catholic families who might have some connections to the Reynolds family.

Sharon Haggerty
Vancouver, BC
http://homepages.rootsweb.com/~sharonmh/

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