52 Ancestors in 52 Weeks

Ancestor # 9

Abraham Wynne (1849-1928)

Abraham Wynne was born in Montague, Lanark, Ontario, Canada on 16 October 1849 and died in St. Thomas, Pembina, North Dakota on 1 October, 1928. He was the son of Edward and Catherine (Shannon) Wynne. He married Catherine Maria Van Camp in Merrickville, Grenville, Ontario, Canada on 16 January 1877. She was born on 24 September 1856 in Mountain, Dundas, Ontario and died in Spokane, Spokane, Washington on 8 June 1929.

There is no document that gives us a definitive date for his birth. Family records list October 16 but there is some confusion about the year. His birth year ranges from 1848 – 1851. I have made a table listing the calculated birth year and the source for that calculation.

1848	1928 death certificate1
1849	18612, 19003, 19204 censuses
1850	1881 census5
1851	1877 marriage registration6

I have settled on 1849 as the most likely date. First of all it is the one that is most consistently cited. The 1861 census was taken on 16 Jan 1861 and the question asked was the age of each inhabitant on his or her next birthday. Abraham’s age is listed as 12. Since he would have been 12 in 1861, that means he was born in 1849. He fits nicely between his sister Sarah who was born in 1847 and his brother Edward who was born in 1851.The 1848 date on his death certificate is probably due to a misunderstanding between the person taking down the information and his wife who was listed as informant. Abraham died 15 days before his birthday. I can see Catherine thinking he would be 79 in 15 days, stating that fact and causing confusion in the mind of the official.

Abraham grew up on his father’s farm in Montague. He was the sixth of fourteen children. Edward Wynne received a patent from the crown in 1845 for 100 acres in Montague. If he was like most of the other settlers in this region, he probably started farming on his lot before he applied for a patent. This family lived on lot 6 in the 2^nd concession. Unfortunately, concession 2 returns have not survived for the 1851 census for Montague.

I have not been able to identify Abraham positively in the 1871 census. He may have been in Wellington County. But by 1875 he was back in Lanark where he witnessed a mortgage agreement for his parents. After his marriage, he farmed in Renfrew County until 1886 when he moved his family to St. Thomas. He bought 320 acres of farmland and a lot in town where he and his family lived. My father liked to visit his grandparents and lived with them for a year so he could go to high school. It was common for farm children to have to board with a town person in order to complete their public education. In the early 20^th century roads were not good and transportation 15 miles to and from school on a daily basis was not an option.

Abraham was naturalized in 1891 according to the 1920 census. This action would have effectively naturalized his wife and 3 minor children. The family soon became part of the St. Thomas community and Abraham served for many years on the school board. I have inherited his Bible presented to him on March 17, 1876 "by his affectionate mother" and his black bowler hat which he wore most of the time.

Children of Abraham and Catherine Maria (Van Camp) Wynne:

1. Helena Gertrude⁴.Wynne, b. 8 Nov 1878 in Renfrew, Renfrew, Ontario, d. 11 Dec 1952 in Park River, Walsh, North Dakota, m. on 27 Feb 1900 Daniel Webster Baldwin, b. 7 Dec 1877 in Mountain, Dundas, Ontario and d. 23 Aug 1961 in Langdon, Cavalier, North Dakota.
2. Janet Isabelle Wynne, b. Sep 1882 in Renfrew, d. 10 Mar 1957 in Spokane. She never married and taught high school English in the Spokane school system for over 25 years.
3. Edward Gordon Wynne, b. 30 Apr 1884 in Renfrew, d. 5 Apr 1968 in Spokane, m. on 8 Nov 1908 in St. Thomas , Jeannie May McKibbon, b. 3 Mar 1886 in Woodlands, Selkirk, Manitoba, Canada and d. 31 Jul 1950 in Spokane.

1 North Dakota Department of Health, Bismarck, North Dakota, Certificate #3277, Abraham Wynne, 1 Oct 1928.

2 1861 Census of Canada, Lanark County, Canada West, population Schedule, Montague, District 9, page 13, line 23, Edward Wynne; digital image, Ancestry.com (http://www.ancestry.com: accessed 1 Jan 2016), citing Library and Archives Canada microfilm, roll C-1042-1043.

3 1900 US Census, Pembina, North Dakota, population schedule, St. Thomas, Enumeration District (E.D.) 119, Sheet 5B, dwelling 84, family 87, Abraham Wynne: digital image, Ancestry.com (http://www.ancestry.com: accessed 18 Nov 2015), citing National Archives and Records Administration microfilm T623, roll 1230.

4 1920 U.S. census, Pembina, North Dakota, population schedule, St. Thomas, Enumeration District (E.D.) 99, sheet 8B, page 153 (stamped), dwelling 41, family 41, Abraham Wynne; digital image, Ancestry.com (http://www.ancestry.com: accessed 10 Nov 2016), citing National Archives and Records Administration microfilm, T625, roll 1338.

5 1881 Canadian census, Admaston, South Renfrew County, Ontario, Schedule 1, District 113, sub-district C, page 45, Ebram Van Camp, digital image, Ancestry.com (http://www.ancestry.com: accessed 20 Nov 2014) citing Library and Archives Canada, RG 31, roll C_13234.

6 “Ontario Canada marriages, 1857-1922”, digital images, Ancestry.com (http://www.ancestry.com : accessed 30 Sep 2014) Wynne-Van Camp marriage, p. 687, marriage 005422; citing Archives of Ontario, MS932.