Old Forsyth Homestead destroyed

     The old Forsyth homestead at 187 Dock Road in the community Union (between Elmsdale and Alberton) was destroyed in April 2019 by a "control burn" by the local fire department.
     I took these photos on Apr. 11, 2004 from the road before the leaves came onto the trees - the house was quite a distance from the road.
     The 1880 Meacham's Atlas of PEI shows John Forsyth Jr. living here with 104-acres.
     The 1928 Cummin's Atlas of PEI shows John W. Forsyth living here with a bit more acreage. It notes his wife, Martha Minnetta Hodgson and their four daughters: Margaret, Jean, Mary and Dorothy. (Margaret never married; Jean married Lloyd Wilkie; Mary married Russell Lockerby; and Dorothy married Leslie Hardy).
     The last person to live in this house was Margaret Forsyth. I believe she passed away in the mid-1980s. She was the secretary for the Town of Alberton for many years. No one lived here following her passing. The contents of this house were sold. By chance I found a box of 1940's Christmas cards at Riverview Antiques and bought them.   

     This house displays two eras in architectural periods and style. The original house is the kitchen wing (left) to the rear of the main house (right) and was built in the "center-dormer style" in the 1850s. The main part of the house was built later, possibly around 1900 when a new generation might have taken over the homestead.

MacWilliams Farm, Belfast

     I took these photos of this old homestead on the TransCanada Highway in Belfast yesterday.  Meacham's1880 Atlas shows this property belonging to Robt McWilliams (50 Ac) & Chas. & Jas McWilliams (52 Ac) - today it appears these two parcels are one.  The low roof pitch and style makes me think this is a mid-1800's house.  The house appears to be on the Chas. & Jas McWilliams portion.
     In Cummins 1928 Atlas it show's Jno. R. McWilliams with 110 Ac.  It notes that John is an Ex-Road Master; married to Catherine, with the following children: Marion, Margaret, Bruce, Florence and John.

Old Barn, Hope River - demolished

     On July 3rd I noticed the windows had been taken out of this old barn and thought it must be in advance of demolition - so I took these photos.  It's located on the St. Mary's Road (Rte 224) near the intersection with Simpson Mill Road.

     Meacham's 1880 Atlas of Prince Edward Island shows this farmstead was 2 farms, to the right/west was Felix Murphy with 55-acres and the Hope River Post Office.  The farm to the left/east belonged to Jno Hogan with 60-acres. 

     Cumin's 1928 Atlas of Prince Edward Island shows the two farms above now one farm owned by Leo Reid with 114-acres.  

     Above is the new house that belongs to this farmstead - the old barn is to the left.  This house was built in 2003-2004 - it replaced the house below which was moved over to the east corner lot (at St. Mary's Rd and Broadway Rd.) of the farmstead, restored and sold.

     The photo below was taken on Feb. 14, 2004 - it shows the original house (now the yellow house above) with the new house behind (beige house /w red roof above) and the demolished barn above, in the far left.

On July 14th I took the photos below of the barn demolished.

Elite Seed Farm, former Ashley Homestead, Fox Island

     Recently I was over to Fox Island in western Prince Edward Island.  It's located at 269 Fox Island Rd., off Rte. 12, between Alberton and Cascumpec.  
     Cumin's 1928 Atlas of Prince Edward Island shows the Island belonging to Lowden Ashley with 182-acres. Lowden was married to Susan Lewis and had the following children: Rhodes, John, Gladys, Alvin, Elmer, Freda, Fred and Harold.  
     Lowden *Loudy* Huestis Ashley (1877-1953), son of John Butcher Ashley and Sarah Stapley Wallace married Susan *Susie* Lewis (1878-1947) in December 1898.  They lived on the part of the Ashley farm and later purchased the west end of Fox Island from his uncle, Fred Wallace.  Loudy and Susie then moved to Fox Island where they raised their family of eight.  Loudy was a farm and fox rancher.  Info cf. http://www.ancestraltrails.ca/

     When I worked at Maplewood Manor, Alberton, in the summers of 1981-82, Gladys (Ashley) Bonyman was a resident - she was in her 80's.  She often told us about growing up on Fox Island and recalled Mik'maq families coming back to the shores of the Island to spend the summers.  One of her vivid memories was seeing a native woman giving birth.
     See 2008 Guardian newspaper article below telling history of the seed farm which was established in 1962.

 Below: Front of house, facing Northeast.
The house is a "Fox House" style home, likely built just before WWI.

     Below: northeast view from front of house looking towards Dock River and Alberton.

Below: Southeast side of house.

 Below is a barn standing out by itself as you drive up to the property.

     Below is an article from the Guardian newspaper six years ago about the Elite Seed Farm.

- Elite seed farm topic at potato board meeting -

The Guardian. By Nancy Willis. Published on February 27, 2008

P.E.I. Potato Board holds first of four Islandwide annual meetings in Rollo Bay

ROLLO BAY - The P.E.I. Potato Board held the first of its four Islandwide annual meetings here Tuesday, where the future of the Fox Island Elite Seed Farm was of key interest.
            This industry owned seed farm has been a fundamental part of the Prince Edward Island potato world for more than half a century.
            Unlike similar organizations that are nationally funded in the United States, or provincially backed in New Brunswick, the P.E.I. Potato Board is supported completely by local Island growers.
            This year, it cost those producers $217,000 to keep it running and the board decided it was time to take it to the farmers and let them decide what to do with it.
            For decades, the elite seed farm was an international showplace for visitors, and throughout its lifetime it has ensured commercial Island growers that a local source of clean seed would be available to them.
            Now dramatic changes in the potato world, a decrease in the numbers of varieties allowed to be grown there and increased private ownership of seed worldwide have all contributed to the farm not making a profit for the last few decades.  "A variety of factors are also at play, including lower production acreage than in the past; the implication of various regulatory scenarios; and lower virus levels in seed now, which translate into less demand for early generated seed,'' said staff member Mary Kay Sonier.
            Although the farmers were presented with a variety of alternatives, no one was interested in getting rid of it. A few of the many options included maintaining the status quo; selling the property and getting out of early seed production, or continuing with nuclear seed production and trying to expand the varieties they are able to grow.
            Keeping the farm going and maintaining it as a safety net for the industry future was clearly the chosen path. All seemed to agree that the percentage of their dues that went to keeping it running was relatively small, and that keeping it was to everyone's benefit.
            "We now need to know what direction the growers would like to take because there is much to be done out there, and that will depend on the direction we choose,'' said board chairman Kevin MacIsaac.
            "Well, I don't see anyone jumping up and down to say sell her and make cottage lots,'' said Eastern Kings farmer Boyd Rose. He suggested looking at opening up the variety restrictions and lowering the price of the seed they sell so it is more competitive with commercially available product.
            This and a raft of other topics and issues will be discussed at meetings in Mill River Thursday afternoon, and Summerside Thursday night.

* * * * * * * * * * * * * * *

Below is the map from Meacham's 1880 Atlas of PEI showing Fox Island.

New London Farmhouse Restored 1992

     This article appeared in the RE*NEW Magazine in the Feb-Mar 1992 issue.  The house was surely destined to be lost when the Shoalts came along and saved it!  It's been 21 years since the restoration and its as good as the day it was built / restored.

 Below is the only image I have on file for this house, taken around 2005.

Here's a link to Google Maps Street View.

https://maps.google.ca/maps?q=new+london,+prince+edward+island&hl=en&ll=46.473158,-63.51737&spn=0.010876,0.066047&geocode=+&hnear=New+London,+Queens+County,+Prince+Edward+Island&t=h&z=15&layer=c&cbll=46.47315,-63.51738&panoid=ytEwOfNMwUNmcFeYCmfdHw&cbp=11,315,,0,0

     Cummin's 1928 Atlas of Prince Edward Island shows John Coles owning this property with 80 acres.  John Coles was married Cora Bert - at the time they had the following children: Annie, Edith, Archibald, Ethel, Lee and Earl.

     Meacham's 1880 Atlas of Prince Edward Island shows Jno Coles living here with 50 acres of land.

Springtime on Prince Edward Island

     It's springtime here on Prince Edward Island and the farmers are busy tilling up the fields.  Here's a great photo of an old abandoned house on Cannery Road (off Route 20) down to the fish plants at French River.

     Meecham's 1880 Atlas of Prince Edward Island shows this property being owned by Mrs. Cole along with 50 acres across the road for a total of 88 acres.

     Cumins 1928 Atlas of Prince Edward Island shows John T. Adams with 38 acres - and notes his wife being Grace Craig with one child, Robert.  

Below: down the road is the French River Cannery.

Cornish Farmstead, Carleton

     I've been meaning to photograph this old farmstead for the past year - with the recent clearing of the woodlot next to the property I took time yesterday to take these photographs.

     This was the childhood homestead of my friend Judy's grandmother Ruth Cornish Adams.  Ruth's younger brother Russell farmed here after their parents were gone.  Following the death of Ruth's husband she moved back to the homestead to help her brother with house-keeping.
     Following Russell's death a family member now owns the property - the house has been vacant now for near 10 years.
     The farmstead is a long way from the road, especially this time of year, mud season!  I would liked to have gone in to get some closer photographs but I was just as happy to stay at the road and use my zoom lens!
     The farmstead is located on the east side of the Western Road (Route. 2) in Carleton (between Coleman Corner and O'Leary Corner).

     In Meacham's 1880 Atlas of Prince Edward Island this 100-acre farm belonged to Jno. Beaton.

     In Cummins 1928 Atlas of Prince Edward Island show this 100-acre farm belonging to William Cornish.  It lists him as being married to Jennie ? (born in Maine, USA) with the following children: Eurilla, Earl, Alfred, Russell, Samuel and Ruth. 

     The old barn seems to be in reasonably good condition.  It's quite old and features few windows, no eave boards, and has the classic arrangement of small doors and large barn door on the front facing south wall.

     The forest that's being cut to the right doesn't belong to this farm.  Always when I drove by this farmstead I would look in to see it, it seemed like it was carved out of the forest and the farm set far into the woods.   But not now!  The old house and barns seem to have been exposed after all those years.

Old Barn, Wellington Center

    In the late 1990's I photographed this old farmstead.  In early 2000 the barn was demolished and the old house was moved back on the lot and turned 90 degrees on a new foundation.  The house is still there, however, it seems abandoned these days.  
     I estimate the main barn to be about 60 feet long by 30 feet deep with a 30 foot by 40 foot addition to the rear.  The front of the barn, facing the road and east, is very symmetrical.  Note the rear addition has a lower level.

     This property is located on the corner of the Western Road (Rte. 2) and the Hackmatack Road (Rte. 125) in Wellington Center, about half was between Day's Corner (to Wellington) and Richmond.

     Meacham's 1880 Atlas of Prince Edward Island shows this property as being two farms - Jno. Larasie had 79 acres on the corner and Dougald Currie had 78 acres on the inside.

      According to Cummins 1928 Atlas of Prince Edward Island, F. Connell lived here with 157 acres.
     This farmstead was located on the south side of the farm lot - one might conclude this was the original Currie farm and by 1928 the Larasie land was bought to make the Connell farm larger.