September 3, 2004:

Thanks to Bob Mackett for the following: 

I am attaching a newspaper article on my g-g-gfather Gilbert Heron 
[with web page reference] and some
other interesting newspaper articles that I transcribed from clippings sent 
to me by a relative. You can put them on bytown.net if you wish.

Bob Mackett, Cochrane AB
Mailto:bobmackett@hotmail.com

---
Article in Evening Citizen, Ottawa, Canada Tuesday, July 3, 1934:

Family Celebrates Hundredth Anniversary of Landing of Gilbert Heron in 
Canada Fourth, Fifth and Sixth Generations of Family Meet at Home of J.R. 
Heron, Billings Bridge, some 150 Members of the Family Signing the 
Illuminated Guest Book Prepared for Event.

"One hundred years ago this month, a little sailing vessel weighed anchor of 
Greenock, on the Clyde, and with her decks piled high with household goods, 
pointed her way across the broad Atlantic for eastern shores of Canada.  
Among the passengers was a man and his family who subsequently were destined 
to play an important part in the pioneering of what is now known as the 
Township of Gloucester. His descendants were to leave their impress on the 
life of the country of their adoption in no uncertain manner."

"This man, Gilbert Heron, and his wife, Janet Sheppard, brought with them 
their two daughters, Janet and Laura, and their six sons, Gilbert, John, 
Matthew, George, Thomas and Keith, the last-mentioned being but five weeks 
old.  In the party, were also two nephews, Robert and William Heron, the 
latter already married to Janet (daughter of Gilbert Heron). This couple had 
two children, Gilbert and Matthew, Matthew being but three months old..." 
[see http://freepages.family.rootsweb.com/~howiefamily/15/35.htm and 
http://freepages.genealogy.rootsweb.com/~howiefamily/hh/heron.htm]

"The historians report, compiled by Miss Nettie Heron and Mr. H.H. Legate, 
and presented by Mr. H. H. Legate, gave an interesting history of the Heron 
family since its arrival in Canada. They referred to the activities and 
successes of the various branches of the family over the period of the last 
hundred years."

"On the arrival of Gilbert Heron and his family at Quebec, they came ashore 
with their feather beds,
homespun blankets, hand-woven linen, candlesticks, clocks, the family bible, 
and such small articles of furniture as they had been able to bring along 
with them. According to the historian's report it was thought that the 
little group of settlers had come up the river to Montreal by steamboat, as 
a steamer had been plying between Quebec and Montreal for about ten years 
previous to the time of their landing.  From Montreal, they traveled in 
flat-bottomed boats, often towed by oxen from the shore and steered by means 
of long poles.  After an adventurous journey, they arrived in Bytown and 
were conducted to houses on Dalhousie Street, which were provided for 
incoming settlers at a rental of 12 shillings a month.  From here, the 
family moved to a small farm holding on the old Stuart property, the present 
site of the Museum."

"As Gilbert Heron had a large family, he determined at once to find good 
land and enough of it to suffice for the future needs of his sons and 
daughters.  Accordingly he explored the property along the Rideau River 
where he found much of the land had already been settled. From Braddish 
Billings, he bought his first one hundred acres, later acquiring a large 
tract of land through which Heron Road now runs."

"Gilbert Heron and his sons were soon busy clearing the land and putting up 
a homestead.  With axe and saw they felled huge trees and build their first 
log house. Soon they were sowing their precious wheat among the stumps.  
When it ripened it was cradled, threshed with a flail, winnowed in the wind, 
and carried to the mill. The men of the family worked hard, but so did the 
women. They spun and they wove, and made clothes of the flannel. They made 
coats of bearskin and moccasins of deerskin.  They braided the wheat straws 
and sewed it into hats. They preserved the wild fruits and cured the game 
and fish.  They cared for their large families and taught their children 
their letters, and they were never too busy to be neighbourly with the other 
settlers of the district."

Good Sportsman "For if these early settlers were hard workers, they were 
also good sportsman and most of them crack shots with the rifle. Many a deer 
they picked off.  In the early seventies, the Heron settlement played 
lacrosse and in 1875 the Heron boys made up half the team. They were a very 
hospitable family and their doors were always open to their many friends 
throughout the district.  With them they played and danced and sang, and no 
hunting party, logging bee or house-warming was complete without them."

(4th, 5th and 6th generation of Gilbert Heron) (150 descendants signed the 
guest book)

Hosts: Heron, Mr. J.R. Heron Rd  Address: Billings Bridge ON.
Heron, Dan [chairman's address honouring the King]
Heron, Mrs. William
Heron, Mrs. Allan
the great-aunts of Legate, Ms. Barbara & Ms. Joan, daughters of Mr. Legate, 
H.H. [563 historians report], and Bach, Ms. Jane (representing the 6th 
Generation of Gilbert Heron), daughter of Bach, Mr. James and Margaret, 
Trenton ON.
Davidson: William Donald of Toronto ON [reply to family honour]
Heron, Arthur [wedding march]
Heron, Ms. Nettie  [historian]
Belford, Ms. Edith [wedding march]
Mason, Ingrid [wore old wedding dress]
Mason, Fred [Master of Ceremonies],
Mason, Gerald and Arthur [orchestra]
Oliver, Miss Dora [orchestra]
Butler, Mr. and Mrs. H.M.[solo/duet]
Saunders, Pipe Major [bagpipes]
Johnson, Rev. Robert of Knox Presbyterian Church.

19 Attending the reunion from out of town:
Heron, Mr. and Mrs. Matthew Heron and  Heron, Miss Maude Vanguard SK
Heron, Mrs. Archie  and her son Heron, Jimmie Vanguard SK.
Heron, Mr. and Mrs. W.D., Ms. Laura, Montreal PQ
Heron, Mr. and Mrs. Stanley and young daughter Mary of Montreal PQ
Blackmore, Mr. Arthur  Toronto ON
Bach, James and Margaret Trenton ON
Danby,  Mr and Mrs. Charles & family of  Weston ON

Phelan, Mrs. Elizabeth and the two sons:
Heron, Donald and Robert  Oakland CA
Wilson, Mrs. R.W. Pittsburg PA

Mesages of Regrets from:
Heron, Mr. Archie Vanguard SK
Heron, Misses Doris and Francis of Ottawa ON
Heron, Orlando York Mills ON
Black, Ms. Georgie Trenton ON
Bond, Mrs. Windsor ON
Hume, Sqd. Leader & Mrs. McKenzie Camp Borden ON
Jones, Mrs. Cecil         Coldwater ON
Luke, Mrs. S.A. Oakville ON
McFarlane, Mr. Robert & Mr. Jim Cornwall ON

Heron, Mrs. Gilbert Buffalo NY [w/o Albert Gilbert]
Heron, Harold D. Pittsburg PA
Bell, Mrs. J.A. Pittsburg PA
Reid, Miss Myra Heron Pittsburg PA
Terry, Mrs. Oakland CA
Wilson, Miss Virginia Heron Pittsburg PA
Wilson, Mr. Ralph Pittsburg PA

---
The Evening Citizen, Ottawa Ont. 28 Sep 1935 - Days Around Ottawa by Earl G. 
Wilson

Wedding Procession Came to Grief on Trail to Old Heron Homestead Bumps and 
Stumps Proved Too Much for Bytown Hacks

James Albert Heron Relates Story of Wedding Party in Early Fifties. Says 
Only Two of Thirteen Cabs Survived the Ordeal.  Tells of Amazing Feats of 
Strength Performed by His Hardy Ancestors. Interesting Facts About the 
Original "Buchan" Homestead.

Readers of The Citizen will recollect that a little more than a year ago -- 
June 30, 1934, to be exact -- there was a big gathering at the home of J.R. 
Heron, Heron road, above Billings Bridge, for the purpose of celebrating the 
one hundredth anniversary of the arrival in the district of Gilbert Heron 
and his little band of pioneers, who formed the well known Heron settlement 
which figured prominently in the social and economic affairs of Gloucester 
township down through the years.

Representing the third generation of this hardy band of pioneers is James 
Albert Heron, whose father George, build the old log house which is still 
standing on Kilborn avenue, about a mile and a half east of the Metcalfe 
road.  This old house was erected nearly ninety years ago on what was the 
original "Buchan" farm and it is believed to be the oldest house in this 
district.

The exterior of the structure was build of hand-hewn logs, while the lumber 
for the flooring came from trees grown on the farm and sawn at the little 
mill conducted by the original Braddish Billings in the gully at the 
junction of Metcalfe road and the present Kilburn avenue.  This avenue or 
road, was formerly known as the "Buchan" road.  But when the old log house 
was build in the dim and misty past there was no road -- nothing but a 
stump-strewn blazed trail through the forest.  And thereby hangs an almost 
tragic tale.

                   The Hacks Couldn't "Take It"

Mr. Heron tells that when his father and mother were married in December, 
1852, and took up their residence in the log shanty the father had built on 
a small clearing surrounded by tall timbers, a number of their friends in 
Bytown were invited to join in the wedding festivities.  They came in 
"hacks" -- thirteen in all -- especially hired for the occasion, and each 
bearing gifts for the newly wedded pair.

All went well until they commenced to negotiate the blazed trail in to the 
Heron home.  The things began to happen -- to the hacks -- which simply 
weren't build to take the bumps, stumps and other barriers to progress that 
the old trail offered. The upshot of it all was that long ere the little 
home in the clearing was reached, eleven of the thirteen conveyances were 
wrecked almost beyond repair and were obliged to give up the hunt.

                     China Survived

It is perhaps a little short of remarkable that a set of china which was 
being taken in as a wedding present all but survived the hazardous journey. 
Two or three pieces were broken but the rest of the set was intact and is 
still preserved as a family relic in the home of John Albert Heron.

As the original Gilbert Heron, grandfather of James Albert, had a large 
family of sons, he determined to get good land and enough of it; so he took 
his time and explored along the Rideau river where he found much of the land 
had already been settled. From Mr. Braddish Billings he bought his first 
hundred acres and later bought a large tract of land through which the Heron 
road now runs.

But one hundred years ago there was no such fine road as on travels today 
from the Metcalfe to the Russell highways.  Gilbert cut a bridle path 
eastward from what is now the Metcalfe road, a distance of about 
three-quarters of a mile. The clearing of the brush farm was not the hard 
work for the Herons as it was for some of the settlers, as they came from a 
long line of farmers in Scotland.   Gilbert himself was a man of immense 
physical strength, standing five feet eleven inches, and weighing about two 
hundred pounds.  He needed all his strength and the strength too of his sons 
for the next few years.  With axe and saw they felled the trees and built 
their first little log house.  It stood just a few yards from where J. R. 
Heron's stone house now stands.

As illustrating the great strength and brawn of the pioneer Herons, James 
Albert tells about his grandfather and a cousin, William Heron, who 
emigrated to this country together in 1834, were the equal of a dozen 
ordinary men in a stand-up fight.  They were known to have had many 
encounters with Bytown's bad men -- the Shiners -- and to have held their 
own on every occasion.  It was a common saying among the members of the 
Heron settlement that they had no fear whatever of meeting up with a whole 
army of Shiners as long as Gilbert and William were with them.

It is told that on one occasion when Gilbert was alone in Lower Town he was 
attacked by a half-dozen of these ruthless Irish raftsmen.  When he found 
that things getting a little too hot for him, he grabbed one of the 
assailants by the legs and used him as a battering ram.  When he had floored 
two of the gang in this manner, he dropped the man he had picked up and 
waded into the other three with his fists, scattering them left and right.  
Then he calmly walked off, leaving them to nurse their wounds and 
contemplate what manner of a fight had happened.


             A Mighty Arm

Another time Gilbert and number of his acquaintances were sitting around a 
heavy oak table enjoying a game of cards.  All went well for a time, but as 
the evening wore on a dispute arose over a deal -- something which mightily 
upset this Samson of the Heron clan. Jumping to his feet, he grasped the 
heavy table with one hand and holding it out at arm's length, he shouted: 
"Remember the strength of that arm."  That settled the argument there and 
then.

Another story which all good and true members of the Heron settlement never 
tire of relating, as illustrating the immense strength of their ancestors, 
is that on one occasion William was known to have shouldered and carried the 
width of a barn and back, two heavy planks on which were deposited fifteen 
bushels of beans.  The combined weight of the planks and the beans were 
estimated at close to a half a ton.

Mr. Heron states that when he was a wee lad the forest was surrounding the 
old homestead was infested with wolverines, which gave the farmers of the 
district no end of trouble. They would break through strong doors to get at 
the cattle, the pigs, sheep and other animals. He has known his father to 
sit up all night with a gun waiting for an attack from this menace.

George Heron died in the log house at the early age of forty-nine years 
survived by a family of eight. From then until the boys were grown up the 
fortitude of a pioneer mother keep that farm together and caring for her 
flock.  James Albert was only twelve years of age when his father passed 
away.

          Early Settlers

Comparatively few of the names associated with the early settlement of that 
district are to be found among the present-day inhabitants of the old  
Buchan road.  The farm adjoining the original "Buchan" farm was occupied in 
the fifties and sixties by the Graburn family, while further to the east was 
the homestead of William Evans, uncle of J. H. Evans, who conducts the 
blacksmith shop at Billings Bridge.  Most of the land west of the Heron farm 
and reaching down what is known as Smith road was owned by Samuel Billings.

It was through the Billings property that the trail led from Metcalfe road 
to the Heron farm.  The only other neighbors east of the Herons in the 
sixties and seventies were George, James and Robert Johnston, each with 
separate farms. The Johnstons originally came from South Gloucester.  Their 
father was James Johnston.

          Deer Plentiful Then

Mr. James Albert Heron, who was born on the old "Buchan" farm, east of the  
Metcalfe Road, above Billings Bridge, says his mother used to tell him that 
deer were so plentiful and tame, in the early fifties, that they would come 
out of the brush and feed with the cattle.

        Ponied to School on Teacher's Back
Was The Way James Albert Heron Got There as Lad of Four Years

James Albert Heron, owner of the "Buchan" Farm, on the old Buchan Road, east 
of Billings Bridge, was only four and a half years old when he was packed 
off to school.  And for a wee tot it was a long a trudge through the bush 
and over the fields to the old log school on the Metcalfe Road where the 
Ellwood school now stands.

Mr. Heron tells that his first teacher was James Boyd, who lived north of 
Buchan Road.  His way to the school led past the Heron homestead. In winter 
he always used snowshoes when going to school, and when he reached the Heron 
home he would stop, hoist little James Albert up on his shoulders and carry 
him all the way to school.

The next teacher was one De--ey? and Mr. Heron tells that he was very fond 
of the bottle.  When the urge came upon him to have a "nip" he always 
excused himself and went down to the trees behind the school. This usually 
happened three or four times during the day. "But that was his only fault," 
said Mr. Heron, "Otherwise, he was a fine teacher."

Mr Heron recalls one tutor who had a "terrible time" trying to manage some  
of the big lads who went to school at that time.  He was one Murphy, and 
being rather small of stature, he found it impossible to maintain discipline 
while he had these lads on his hands.  Finally the school trustees -- James 
Spratt, Henry Woods and James Ellis -- took a hand in the matter and 
expelled four of the ring leaders.

--another clipping from the same newspaper---

        Family Lived in Field While Fire Threatened Homestead

Trying Ordeal of a Gloucester Family During Terrible Bush Fires of 1879.
Red Glare Lighting Heavens Told of Approaching Danger.  Intense Heat and 
Smoke Added To Their Miseries.  Long Period of Tense Anxiety

The terrible ordeal through which some of the people living on the outskirts 
of Ottawa passed during the great fire of 1879, which spread ruin and 
desolation over a wide territory, and at one time actually threatened to 
destroy Ottawa is aptly illustrated by an account given to O.T.S. by James 
Albert Heron of the plight in which his parent found themselves on the old 
Buchan road, some distance in from the Metcalfe road.

"For days and nights," said Mr. Heron, "the fire had been gradually working 
towards Ottawa from the west, sweeping everything before it, and leaving 
thousands of people homeless.  Finally when it did reach this district it 
swept south of the Heron road and for a time we thought we were safe. But 
eventually the wind changed and the flames roared back in our direction."

           Terrible Speed

"Never had a fire been known to spread so rapidly.  In some fields where 
there was long, dry grass, the flames kept pace with the wind.  It came on 
with such a rate that my parents thought they would surely perish.  The sky 
for miles around us was filled with dense, heavy smoke and at night the red 
glare lighting the heavens told of the terrible body of fire stalking 
through the country.

"It appeared as thought our little home was doomed to share the fate of 
hundreds of others; so, as quickly as possible, my parents gathered together 
all their belongings --clothing, furniture, livestock and all -- and 
deposited them in the open fields some distance from the house.  There, with 
no other shelter but the smoke-filled sky, they lived through a long period 
of tense anxiety.

"Beds were set up in the field, but there was little thought of sleep for 
several days; the danger from the approaching flames was too great."

           Carried the Meals

"During the days that we camped in the field, my mother cooked the meals on 
a stove which had been set up in a lean-to adjoining the old log house (the 
one referred to in today's feature story) and carried them back to where we 
were living gypsy style.

"Fortunately, the wind veered again towards the south before the flames 
reached our homestead, and we escaped without any damage having been done to 
our property.  But it was a trying ordeal, Nevertheless."
September 4, 2004:
Some more interesting material from Bob:

Gilbert Heron, who came to these parts in 1834, and after whom the Heron 
road in Gloucester is named, was one of the pioneers of note in the 
locality.

Mr. Heron came from Aberdeenshire in Scotland with a wife, six sons and two 
daughters, and settled in the middle of 100 acres of bush land which he 
bought from Braddish Billings.  When Mr. Heron located, there was no fine 
Heron road as now. To get to his land, he had to cut a bridle path from what 
is now Metcalfe road, a distance of about three-quarter of a mile eastward.

The vanquishing of a bush farm was not such a hard task for the Herons as it 
was perhaps for other settlers, as Mr. Heron himself was a man of immense 
physical strength.  He stood 5 feet 11 inches and was large of frame.  His 
six sons were also all husky chaps. So it was not long before the Herons had 
made a large clearing.

In Scotland, Mr. Heron had been a farmer and therefore was no not, at the 
start, at the same disadvantage as many of the green settlers, clerks, 
ex-soldiers and others, who started to cut into the virgin brush.

                  Brought his Nameplate

That Mr. Heron had faith that it would not before he would reproduce in 
Canada the "Logie" farm which he had left behind in Scotland is shown by the 
fact that he brought with him the steel sign, "G. Heron", which decorated 
the front gate of the Logie farm.  That sign (now well over a hundred years 
old) today decorates the front gate of a grandson, Mr. Gilbert [Knox] Heron, 
on the heights west of Billings Bridge. [Photo: Gilbert K. Heron's home was 
on New Mount Pleasant off Riverside Dr. with the Logie sign on the wire 
gate]

                  A Family of Gilberts.

Mention of Mr. Gilbert Heron recalls the interesting fact that there have 
been a variety of Gilberts, in the Heron family.

The pioneer Gilbert, as already told, had six sons. The eldest of these was 
a Gilbert and the eldest son of each of these six sons was named Gilbert, in 
honor of a certain Gilbert Heron who in the past wielded a mighty sword in 
the border wars.

The present Gilbert [Knox] Heron is the last Gilbert of three generations.  
He is a son of the late John Heron and had the distinction of being born in 
the old homestead on the Heron Road.
[see http://freepages.family.rootsweb.com/~howiefamily/19/70.htm]

The six sons of the original Gilbert were Gilbert, Matthew, John, Thomas, 
George and Keith. All six are long dead, but they have left their mark 
indelibly on the part of Gloucester in which they lived and which became 
known as the Heron settlement.  As the six sons grew up, they each acquired 
land for themselves and so the conquering of the bush proceeded.

The original Gilbert Heron lived till the year 1870 and till after he had 
seen his first log home superseded by a fine stone house, which is still 
occupied by a Heron--Mr. John J. Heron.  The stone house was built in 1868.

                 Cleaned the Hall Out

Stories of the physical strength of the pioneer Heron are told.

It is related that in the sixties there was a political gathering in the 
town hall at Billings Bridge which gave signs of getting too pugnacious.  
The town constable, a Mr. Smith (who was the father of Captain J.J. Smith), 
found the gathering getting beyond him, left the hall and told Mr. Heron, 
who was outside, that if he could not get the crowd in the hall lessened 
there might be serious trouble.

Mr. Heron, elbowed his way into the center of the hall and then, extending 
his arms, began to exert his strength and drive the crowd in front of him.  
All who were in the aisle he pushed out of the building.  The constable then 
went in and was able to control the situation.  This story was told to the 
present Mr. Gilbert Heron by the late Sam Billings, who was a friend of his 
father.

* * *
Another undated clipping

"Ran a Drygoods Store in Bytown" "Son of Pioneer Was One of Town's Early 
Merchants"

The eldest son of the pioneer Heron (Gilbert) left the farm at comparatively 
early period, and moved to Bytown, where he learned the general store 
business, and in the early fifties went into partnership with James Brough, 
under the firm name of Brough and Heron.  Early in the sixties Mr. Heron 
sold out and went back to Scotland, where he established an exporting house 
[Heron, Dickson & Co. of Glasgow] and worked in the lucrative trade with 
Canadian firms. He crossed the Atlantic many times.  After Mr. Heron's 
departure from Bytown, Mr. Brough went into partnership with James Buchanan.
[http://freepages.family.rootsweb.com/~howiefamily/19/34.htm]

*  *  *
"Chopped Cordwood on Daly Avenue"

Mr. Gilbert Heron says that his father, the late John Heron, used tell him 
that in the fifties he chopped down trees and made cordwood on land on Sandy 
Hill where Daly Avenue now runs.
[http://freepages.family.rootsweb.com/~howiefamily/19/36.htm]

 July 5, 2008:

Good afternoon Al,

I am looking for information for two families who were in the Ottawa / Hull? area in 
the 1800's. Heron - Heron Road and Cram - they had a big family, but other than they had 
family on the 'other side of the river' I don't think it was known as Quebec at that time???

Could you point me in the right direction to get some info on these two families?

I have gotten a lot of information from a fellow in Calgary about the Heron family, but 
he tells me they are Scottish from Scotland.  I went to the Glengarry Highland Games last 
year, and the fellow sold me a family tree for HERRON, stating that the family is from 
Ireland, not Scotland?

Mathew Heron was a son of the original Herons.  My grandfather (father's father) and sons 
did originally come over from Scotland around 1834.
They bought land from Billings in Ottawa (they are on the land map) and there is an 
old stone house on Heron Road, I went to that farm when I was a child.  I understand they 
have just made it a Heritage Bldg too ????

I would like to see the drawing of Mathew's house though.  Do you know if the farm was 
known as Buchan Farm?

I only have the information the fellow in Calgary sent me for the Heron's...it is quite 
extensive as far as family goes.  I would like to get some information (stories) on what 
life was like then too.  I saw the info on your website about the Heron Family Gathering...
it was so interesting. 

thank you!  I'll check out your website again.

.. Ann
_______________________
Ann:

The map and photos below show the location and a picture of the Heron farms, including
the likely farm house you visited as a youngster. One of the early Heron farms was called
Buchan Farm.

... Al

Heron Family farms, 1879
Map Source: Belden's 1879 Atlas of Carleton County (Gloucester Township Map)




Farm of Mathew Heron -- "Cruden Farm"

Photo Source: McGill University Digital Atlas Project
This farm home is shown on the map above (bottom right corner). 




The Billings and Heron farms were located in Junction Gore, Gloucester Township.