July 25, 2009:

Hello,
I am searching for any information about my paternal g-g-g grandfather Robert McMullen and 
the 47th Regiment of Foot.  He is buried in Union Cemetery in what is now North Gower, 
Ontario and his cemetery record states:  "In memory of Robert McMullen, native of County Derry,
Ireland, who served fifteen years, nine months in His Majesty's 47th Regiment of Foot, died 
Dec. 27, 1878, aged 100 years".  Although he died in 1878, his age according to various 
census and other records would indicate he might have actually been anywhere from 94 to 100 
at the time of his death (suffice it to say he reached an impressive age!). 
 
In the 'British Army Pensioners Abroad 1772-1899' by Norman Crowder (1995), there is a record 
that Robert McMullen of the 47th Regiment of Foot was awarded a pension on December 7, 1820.   
His residence was reported as Bytown, Ontario.  Also among the names of immigrants into the 
Richmond Military settlement in approximately 1818, is a "Robert McMullen".  So far, I haven't 
been able to verify that this is in fact "my" Robert McMullen and I do not yet know the 
approximate date of his entry into Canada.    
 
Any help or advice you might be able to offer would be most appreciated.
 
Sincerely,
Paddy Erwin
_________________________

Hello and thank you for your kind response. I would have no objection to you starting a web 
page for Robert McMullen and would in fact welcome any input with regards to this period 
in history.  
 
I do know of two other 'McMullen' researchers in the same general area of Ontario, Patricia 
McMullen Simpson and Sherril Nephew, but so far we have not been able to establish any family 
links.  They have each been doing this work far longer than I and according to Ms. McMullen 
Simpson, there seem to have been three distinct McMullen families in the area, with mine 
settling in the area first.  Two families were Protestant (mine were predominantly Presbyterian, 
a few Church of England) and one was Catholic, which helps a wee bit in the searching.  
Anyway, I live close to where the family owned land and farmed, so this has been all that 
more fascinating to me.  The family originally had property in North Gower / Marlborough 
Township but by the 1901 census had moved across the Rideau River into Oxford-on-Rideau 
Township.  My paternal grandparents ended up in South Gower and Kemptville, moving to Ottawa 
in the '50's.  
 
Again, thank you and I look forward to hearing back from you.
 
Sincerely,
Paddy