David arrived from Scotland with his parents and his sister in the spring
of 1832 when David was about 2 years old. Janet with the two children remained
in Montreal while William headed to Ontario to find a suitable place for the
family to settle. They stayed with a 'Quebec' family according to Mrs. Weweler.
Janet died on July 2, 1832, leaving the 2 children to be carred for.
It became the responsibility of that family to bury her. How long the children
were with this other family before William returned is not known. When he
arrived he found out what had happened and then decided to carry on.
William set out with the children for the Freelton area and within a few
years he married an Elizabeth Wood who must have been living in the area at
that time. (In 1875 there were a couple of properties owned by prople by the
name of Wood in the immediate district. See Appendix #13, Map of holdings and
names of owners in a section of Beverly County 1875.)
David married and apparently moved from Beverly county up to Bruce County
where the most of the family were born. Later they decided to go to S. Carolina
where David took up sweet potato farming for a couple of years. As it was
just after the end of the civil war things were chaotic and they decided to
return, sending young George ahead to Freelton area to obtain a place for the
family to live. It is obvious that they returned and purchased the lot 36
conc. 9 which was just north of William's property. Roy has indicated that
David was just about broke when they returned so it would be reasonable to
assume that William obtained the property for them when George came telling of
the return of the family in the next spring (I assume).
It seems that all but Benjamin were born when they returned and they had
had a little girl who died, being buried in the Westover Baptist Cemetry.
She died at the age of 14 years 1 month. It has been said that she was not
quite right mentally.
Later David and the family moved to Vittoria where,as far as I know, they
entered into tobacco farming. This information was some from stories told to
Marrian Bezzo by Harry Gundry, or her father Charles. (Appendix # 29)
We have his will which gave the correct designation of the property in
Beverly Co. and the property along Lake Erie near Vittoria.
Marion Bezzo, in a letter (Appendix #29) states that Jane was born in 1833 and
in Scotland, but in another letter she stated that Jane was Irish, there is
nothing really wrong with that for there were Irish in Scotland.Her history is somewhat that of David's but it is clear that she was a strong
and perhaps a dominant person in the family. When David died, leaving her with
the farm between Vittoria and Fisher Glen, she had Benjamin take over but
became dissatisfied with his management and went west to try and convince
Charles to return from Manitoba to take over. Charles did return and later
bought the farm. She then moved into Vittoria, the house she owned and lived in
in Vittoria is now a historic building. In her later years she was
looked after by her daughter Emma and her husband John Gundry. Their son Harry
Gundry has said, "she was not well and was a great care for them". Marion goes
on to say: "For a time she spent the summers in her house in Vittoria and her
winters with the Gundry's on their farm. "( The farm was next door to the
family farm, the house and barn just around a corner on the road that ran into
Fishers Glen and the Gundry's and Johnstone's were constantly going back and
forth. After David's first wife died in Manitoba Jane went west and brought him
and his children back to Vittoria, Where David bought a farm and lived between
1Vittoria and what in now #24 highway.
George Smith Johnstone was fifteen years old when David and Jane (Dunn)
Johnstone, decided to return to Beverly twsp where davids father William and
family lived. George was sent ahead of the rest of the family. He came first to
find a place for the family to live when they came home to Canada. It is not
known exactly when he deciced to go West, but as all the males in the family at
one time or another made the trip to Manitoba and it seems that George didn't
move to Norfolk Co. with the family so it would be safe to assume it was before
1890. The story that was found in a book the tail of the fox, which is a
history of the district around Biscarmouth Man. tells of George and two other
men comming to that area, with a team of Oxen and an Ox cart to homestead, they
lived in a tent until they decided on the land each wanted to homestead on.
George lived the remainder of his working life on the land that he settled,
he never married and we are led to understand that he died in Calgary Alta. His
ashes were returned to Manitoba for burial.
Elizabeth married a neighbor's son, who lived about two miles away from where
they were raised, it is very likely that they went to school to-gether, if not
then very likely they at least went to the same church
12. Jane JOHNSTONE
After Jane's husband Robert Peebles died, she lived for a time with her brother
and sister. She remarried later and her children were raised by Ben and Mary,
all except her daughter Agnes, who was raised by her half sister Ann Dixon who
lived in Paris Ont.