estate. A map of the estate, dated 1825, shows only nine
persons occupying 1750 acres of the 10,000 acre estate;13
and they were located along the coast, at Seven Mile Bay.
Settlement remained slow until the late 18305.

The settlement of Maple Plains is situated in the
southern half of Township 27, near the border with
Township 28. (See map, p. 8) A map of this part of the
township, dated 1828, shows a dozen settlers in the western
part of the township, but no settlers in the eastern part
where Maple Plains is located.” Nor is Maple Plains iden-
tified in the 1841 Census. However, in 1845 a new road was
completed “from Tryon to the Anderson Road through the
swamp on Lot 273’15 This road seems to be the road con—
necting Maple Plains with Tryon and Kinkora. An early
name for this settlement was No Man’s Land, which ac—
cording to one source resulted from an error in surveying,
which left a parcel of land in neither Township 27 nor
Township 28, and therefore was no man’s land.16 Its first
school dates from 1865.

The final settlement considered in this study is Newton,
which is situated in the southern part of Township 26,
bordering on Middleton and Kinkora-Shamrock.
Although a Newton or Newtown existed as early as 1831}7
it is not identifed in the 1841 Census. It’s beginnings are
unclear; but it is believed that Irish immigrants moved in-
to that area, known simply as the “Back Woods”, after the
settlements at Kinkora and Middleton were made.18 A new
road, called the Monaghan Road was built in Township
26 in 1844; and, reference is made in 1857 to the
“Monaghan Settlement” in Township 2639 In his testimony
before the Land Commission in 1860 Mr. A.E.C. Holland,
a landlord in Township 26, referred to his Irish tenants as
“these Monaghansi’ and named John Smith, John
McCarron and Hugh McEachern as tenants.20 Since these
men or their descendants were later associated with the

10

 

Newton settlement it seems probable that the following
people listed in the 1841 Census for Township 26 were
among the eary settlers of Newton.

Table 1:4, Early Settlers in Newton Area’1
Number in Household

Name

Michael Cunningham & Mary McCarvill 2
Mary Duffy (widow) 11

Bridget Johnston (widow)
Francis McCainey
John McCardle & Ann McCarville

Hugh McCarron
John McKenna & Margaret Campbell
John Smith & Ann Brown

With the exception of those at South West (Middleton),
the majority of the immigrants to these five settlements
were Irish. Two counties in Ireland are mentioned as their
ancestral home: Monaghan and Armagh. About those on
the Mann estate in Township 27 it is said:

The majority of these people were tenants of the
notorious Henry Westeura,* Lord Rossmore, and had
been bordering on starvation at home where they eked
out a miserable existence on farms of from two to

seven acres, upon which it was barely possible to live,

much less pay ren t. Others again were from the parish
of Tynan** where was the celebrated “Bishop Estate”
administered by a body of twelve Protestant
clergymen. On this estate every worldly advantage and
indulgence were offered the tenants provided they
would send their children to the “Church School.” Of
course this temptation kept up a constant struggle bet-
ween conscience and interest, and the staunch
Catholics found their best safety in flight. 22

* Henry Westenra, Baron Rossmore, lived in County Monaghan, according to: A General
and Heraldic and Baronetage of the British Empire. John Burke. 1829. Third Edition.
** Tynan is located in County Armagh.