Saturday, August 20, 2011

Darley Curran?

Wonder if this is "Darby Curran"?

Found at: http://www.ontarioobits.com/genealogy/dufferincht.htm



As published in the Orangeville Banner on April 20, 1911 (Page 6, Column 3)
THE FIRST SETTLERS
Melancthon Gravel Road Was Chopped About 1848.
Editor of the Banner.
Dear Sir, - The Banner of last week contained an interesting account of the pioneer days of Melancthon, written by the facile pen of Mr. w. L. Smith, editor of the Toronto Weekly Sun. The Shelburne Free Press also recently published brief accounts of the early days in this northern township, but both the Banner and the Free Press are somewhat mistaken. The Banner said something about someone drawing hay to Shelburne, and getting stuck in the mud and remaining there all night. As a matter of fact, where Shelburne stands was an unbroken wilderness at that time, and there was no hay market there until about 20 years afterwards. The late Wm. Jelly built the first Mansion House on the present site about the year 1864, and this was the first progressive business place of the now progressive town of Shelburne.


Last week a Free Press correspondent published the names of those settlers, who are supposed to be the first settlers, namely: -- Lewis Gant, Thos. Doyle, Robt. Atkinson, David Biggar, Wm. Gant, Michael Shoaf, John Johnton, Darley Curran and John Hodgins. Now, the earliest of these men came in about 1851, and the others not until three or four years afterwards. The "Toronto Line," now the Gravel Road, was chopped out in '47 or '48, and the men who were engaged on that contract were the first settlers, among whom were Mr. Atcheson, Andrew Darrah (the latter took up and settled the hill where the Gravel Road Church now stands), Jas. Watson, first clerk of Melancthon, and others who settled about Dundalk were the McDowell, Connor and McAuley families. These were really the first settlers. James Beachell came shortly afterwards, and opened the first Post Office in Atcheson's Hotel, which stood on what was known as Beachell's Hill.
READER.
Corbetton, April 18th, 1911


Friday, August 19, 2011

Hefenieder Origins in Germany?


I've found a bit of information from the American Historical Society of Germans from Russia suggesting that the original Hefenieder / Hefeneider / Hefeneder family that settled in Russia originated in the town of Schlitz, Germany.

Information found at: www.ahsgr.org/findancestors/GO/goNi.htm

This is a photograph of Schlitz from a German tourism website at Christmas time. An old watchtower is decorated as a candle.

Schlitz is about an hour and a half northeast of Frankfurt am Main. Binsfeld, believed to be the ancestral home of the Hammer family (mom's side) is about an hour and a half south of Frankfurt am Main.

There is an article in the "Stars and Stripes" with a couple of photos of Schlitz:
www.stripes.com/military-life/travel/drink-in-the-ancient-german-origin-of-schlitz-beer-1.79062