Victoria | genealogyhistory

Victoria

Victoria is situated on the northern slope of a ridge of land about midway between Oxford and Wallace River. There is a small lake at the base of the northern slope and a much larger one at the base of the southern slope that separates Victoria from South Victoria. The stream from the lake is the head of Pugwash River and has been named Pugwash Lake. This stream runs westward from the lake about a mile and a half, then gradually turns northward again. It is the western boundary of Victoria and extends eastward to Hartford, a distance of nearly 5 miles.

Pioneers began to make clearings and put up buildings between the years 1830 and 1840. James Ryan and his brother-in-law Isaac M. Henney were the first to apply for grants. Going west, the applicants were James Gilmore, Connell Boyle, Joseph Livingstone, John McPherson, three bothers of the Ross Family, Alec MacDonald, Samuel Scott, John and Donald MacKenzie, Mr. Fraser and his son-in-law Ebenezer Watson. Among there were ship carpenters, a social teacher, a chopper and a wheelwright.

Henry Betts, visiting Henney and others he knew, was so favourably impressed with what he saw that he induced Mr. Henney to sell him part of his 200 acre lot. Donald Ross, one of the Ross family, procured a lot on the eastern side of the Henney Grant.

The lack of good roads was a very great hindrance to the comfort and prosperity of the settlers but by government aid and much free labour added to what the statute labour act required, they soon succeeded in having quite passable roads. The Statute Labour act, at that time, exacted six days from every householder, one day for every pair of oxen or horse fit for use and two days from those sixteen years old and upwards until they became householders.

About the time Victoria became Queen of Great Britain, the settlers began to consider a name to choose for their new settlement. They finally selected Victoria in honour of their newly crowned monarch, hence the name by which it has been known and likely will continue to be known down the ages.

Of the two groups of families - Ross and Fisher - the latter moved elsewhere after their mother’s death, except James, who remained for several years. The Ross girls, of whom there were four - Christie became the wife of Malcolm MacLeod, Gulf Shore; Jessie was wooed and won by John McPherson, her next neighbour; Margaret became the wife of Samuel McPherson, John’s brother who settled on the McPherson homestead in Pugwash River; Elizabeth died a few years after the family settled in the woods among the pines and hemlocks. The father was so injured by the falling of a tree that he died from the effects. The mother lived some years after her son Alexander who had the homestead.

It may be stated here that the Ross family came from Tain or Crowmarty, Rosshire, Scotland to Wallace in the spring of 1833 and rented a farm from Donald McFarlane on which they remained three or four years before they settled on their granted lands.

John McPherson was one of the family who settled near Pugwash River. He succeeded in getting a 200 acre lot beside the Livingstone grant.

John and Donald MacKenzie were sons of Kenneth MacKenzie who located south of Wallace, two miles or more, when he come to this country. He was on the lookout for lots for his three sons and secured a grant for the land on which they settled.

The others who secured grants along this ridge lived first in Pugwash and some other places of which the writer has no accurate knowledge. James Livingstone, a lame man, brother of Joseph, got the part of his lot north of the road and made his home there for several years and lived in the settlement the rest of his days.

Their buildings were of the most primitive construction at first, but those who were healthy, energetic and persevering succeeded in a few years in having larger and better for themselves and their animals.

The barns were built large enough to hold the hay and grain and good floors on which to thresh their grain in the fall.

John Fillmore, at the head of the Pugwash River tide, had a sawmill and grist mill about three miles from the settlement which was a great convenience in regard to getting lumber for the buildings and their grain ground.

Pugwash was their great market where they bought and sold. Pugwash doctors were called. Religious services were attended occasionally in Pugwash. Voters had to go to Pugwash to vote for the chosen candidates. In fact, the people appeared to be an essential part of Pugwash and Pugwash an essential to the inhabitants of the settlement. It was thus until Oxford began to draw trade there.

In the first years of pioneer life, during the summer seasons when there were no roads or wagons, when deaths occurred, the bodies were carried on two long poles by two suitable horses. The ends of the poles were placed in the stirrups of the saddles between the horses and then thoroughly secured and carried in this matter to the place of burial.

Some sad accidents occurred that may be mentioned. About the year 1847, in the month of September, Mrs. Neil Mattinson, Mrs. Donald Ross and her son of South Victoria were crossing the lake to visit neighbours in Victoria in a leaky boat. Before they reached the opposite shore, notwithstanding all their efforts to bail the water out of the boat and row to shore, they were unable to reach the landing and they sank. Neil Mattinson, who was watching them from where he was in his farm, seeing them go down, started at once to a point extending into the lake with all the speed he possessed, shouting as he went. He swam across and soon discovered where the boat and bodies were and diving secured his wife and brought her to land. The vital spark had fled and could not be restored. Others reached the place as quickly as possible and assisted in getting the other bodies. The lifeless bodies were carried to the McPherson home, it being the nearest and prepared for burial, sympathizing friends and neighbours doing what they could to aid in the work and console the bereaved.

Three or more years after the drownings, Mrs. Joseph Livingstone had one of her knees injured. The usual simple applications were applied but the injury would not yield to such treatments. At length a doctor was procured from Pugwash who tried his skill but the result was the same. The injured limb was getting worse. He then advised Mrs. Livingstone to get young Dr. Tupper on the case, as he was spoken of as very skilled as a physician and surgeon and acquired all the latest knowledge in surgery and medical science as known in the universities that he attended. He was procured. The doctors diagnosed the injured limb and finally decided that it would have to be amputated. They did so. Her suffering and the loss of her limb weighed so heavily on her vitality that she survived only a few weeks after the operation. After the burial, Mr. Livingstone became so discouraged that he sold his belongings as soon as he could and left Victoria a thoroughly despondent man.

About the year 1853, James Gilmore of Victoria and his brother-in-law Elijah Tuttle of Pugwash, who were each raising a large family of boys and girls, conceived the idea that if they had good timber lands a saw mill nearby, they might add to their income during the winter, when they could not do much on their farms. They found what they considered suitable for their requirements, made purchases, built a dam and a sawmill and were operating their plant about a year or more when on the last Monday morning of 1854, when commencing work in the mill, James Gilmore fell on the floor and expired almost immediately.

On the evening of the 30th of December, 1866. John McPherson, a full grown son of Mr. and Mrs. McPherson, Victoria, went on the lake north of his home for a skate. The ice being too weak where he was skating, it broke. He could not pull himself out. His shouts for help were heard by some and they ran to his assistance but before they reached him he sank, His body was recovered next day in about twenty-five feet of water. Since then, skaters on these lakes made sure there was no danger before they ventured on them.

The education of the rising generation was not neglected. A school house was built and used for some years near James Ryan's west line, but accidentally, it was burned. During one winter, school was kept in part of the Ryan house, but the next summer, preparations for one being well advanced in the spring, another was built near where the present school house now stands.

Alexander McDonald, James Barclay, Robert Barclay and others imparted what knowledge they possessed to the receptive minds under their tuition. To the credit of the parents be it stated that no youth grew to maturity in Victoria lacking a fair knowledge of the three R's.

Before the school system came in force, parents subscribed for the attendance of so many scholars and instead of paying for a teacher's maintenance by a tax, the teacher boarded at every house in proportion to the number of scholars subscribed. The present method is a vast improvement over the previous one, although the education the youth receive now (1912) has not advanced to the same relative extent.

The school house was used as a place for religious services until a church was built near the Victoria cross roads and hall in Hansford near the bridge.

It was about 1855 before a mail route was established trough this part of Cumberland, the inhabitants having no postal facilities between Pugwash and the post office at Dr. Phillips, near where the post road crossed the River Philip Road. To get a mail route established between these points, Thomas Thompson, John Ross and Isaac M. Henney pledged themselves to the then government on Nova Scotia that they would pay the loss to the post office department for three years annually if any loss occurred during that time to the department on account of the establishment of the mail route as they desired.

The result was that tenders were asked for contract for four years to carry the mails once a week from Pugwash via Victoria and Hansford and up the River Ph8ilip road to Phillips; post office and return to Pugwash via the settlements on the southern side of said River Philip below what is now known as Oxford.

Elijah Tuttle and son Guy secured the contract. Doubtless many old persons now living remember them. This mail route was continued until the I. C. Railway carried her Majesty's mails, after which the mails were taken to and from Thompson to Victoria P. O. where is has been kept first by Henney and then by his son-in-law, Mr. Giles, since it was established about fifty five years ago. Those living on farms in Victoria now (1912) are Albert and Alex Ross, on their father Donald's farm, Henry Giles on the Henney farm, Henry Betts, grandson on the homestead. Francis Ryan has a southern part of the Betts and Ryan lots. Egerton Betts was on he northern part of the \\\james Ryan property.

David, John and William Murphy, three brothers have most of the Gilmore, Boyle and James Livingstone lots. Maurice Minaken has what James Livingstone possessed; Alec McPerherson has teh eastern part of what his father possessed; Duncan Ross has his father;s farm and the eastern side of what his uncle John had; J. H. Treen has teh western part. John McArthur 's heirs have the Walter Ross, Alec McDonald and S. Scott lots; Colin McKenzie, all of the land his father and Uncle John had; John Morrison and his mother have the Fisher lot and Wilton E. Lockhart has teh Lockhart homestead where he wa born and has lived nearly all his life since his birth.

Taking Victoria as it has been since it was first inhabited by white people, it compares favorably witih many other places having similar advantages. The residents are generally prosperous and consequently have a fair maeasure of contentment.