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Christened as Betty Anderson Murray, the third child of Angus and Elizabeth Murray was also known as Elizabeth. She was christened in the Parish of Clyne on the 5th August 1815. The entry in the Register of Baptisms appears as follows: Betty Anderson Daughter to Angus Murray and Betty McDonald Blacksmith Brora, was born 3rd and Baptised 5th August. In the year previous to this birth, a McPherson family had left the area and emigrated to Pictou County, Nova Scotia. One of the McPherson children was Alex MePherson about six years old at the time. The baptism of Alexander McPherson was recorded in the Register of Births & Baptisms in the Parish of Clyne: Brora Mar. 5th 1808 McPherson: Said day, Hugh McPherson & Suthd his spouse, in Killraer, had a child Baptized born named Alexr For some reason the minister neglected to put in the given name of Mrs. McPherson. Other sources list her name as Anne. Some years later in 1831 the Murray family followed the McPhersons to Pictou County. One must wonder if the two families were acquainted in Brora or if they met in Pictou County. Whether it was coincidence, planning or fate, the McPhersons ended up in the same neighbourhood as the Murrays. According to the McPherson Family Bible Elizabeth Murray and Alexander McPherson were married at West River of Pictou on the 10th April 1840. For the rest of their lives, they lived on the family farm at Watervale. Their land was approximately five hundred yards north of the old Watervale School. A year after their marriage they became the parents of twins - a boy and a girl. Unfortunately, the son, named Hugh, lived only ten days and became the first of several of their children to die young. The girl was named Elizabeth and was one of the five children who lived beyond childhood. Annie McPherson was born 1 Feb 1843, followed by a second Hugh on the 25th Jan. 1845, Angus on the lst January 1847, and Alexander on the 29 Dec. 1848. Sadly, Angus died at age five and Alexander lived only a month. One more girl was born before the 1851 census and was named Jessie. The 1851 census was only a head of house census in Nova Scotia and did not give the names of all the family members. The Alex McPherson family then consisted of two males and two females under ten, one female between ten and twenty, one female between thirty and forty, one male between forty and fifty and one female above fifty. There was one widow who must have been Alex's mother. According to tombstone inscriptions in Baillie Cemetery, Hugh McPherson had died 12 Oct 1843 at age 64 and his wife, Anne Sutherland, died Sept. 8, 1857 age 74 years. Three more children were born into the family: John Alexander in 1853, Isabella A. in 1855 and Johnston in 1857. John and Isabella both lived less than two years. In 1866, the oldest daughter, Elizabeth married George Sutherland of Earltown, Colchester County. The 1871 Census for Mount Thorn was taken on 18th April and listed: Alexander (male, 63, married, Farmer, b.
Scotland) The 1871 Census for Earltown lists George and Elizabeth Sutherland with their family: George ( Male, 34, married, farmer b. N.S.) Two more marriages occurred that decade. Jessie McPherson married James Sutherland, also of Earltown, Cochester County and Hugh married his cousin, Margaret Ester Sillers. In 1879 Hugh McPherson left Nova Scotia and settled in Brandon Hills, Manitoba. His family followed later. The very day on which Hugh arrived in Brandon Hills, his mother back in Watervale died. The life she had lived coming from Scotland to pioneer circumstances, was probably a contributing factor to her death at the age of sixty-three. The deaths of half of her children before age six would have been another difficulty in her life. The 1881 census gives a few more clues about the McPhersons. The Mount Thom District #20, page 26 contains: McPherson, Alexr Male, 73, b. Scotland,
Farmer, Widower The Earltown District 19 on page 8 and 24 has the following two entries: Sutherland, George S., Male, 45, b. N.S.,
Farmer married Sutherland, James, Male, age 37, farmer,
married Hugh McPherson and his family were in Manitoba by this time. In 1891 the MePhersons were not listed in the census for Pictou County. Alexander McPherson died early in the year of 1891. His tombstone is found in Baillie Cemetery and the inscription is as follows:
ALEXANDER McPHERSON died Jan. 15, 1891 Age 82 years Annie married on June 25th, 1889 according to the McPherson Family Bible. Unfortunately the Bible does not say who she married or where she married. A search of the marriage records for 1889 for Pictou, Kings, Hants, Halifax, Guysboro, Digby, Colchester and Cape Breton counties do not have a record of her marriage. Did she also go west or did she follow some of the family to the U.S.? She was over forty-five years of age by the time she married. Did she have any children? (Since this issue came out more information has been found about Annie. She was married to Rev. Angus McKenzie. Although she died at Bashaw, Alberta, she is buried at Ridgefield, Washington next to her husband.) "The Brandon Hills story: a publication marking the centenary of the Community, July 1979/ [Brandon Hills History Committee]", published at Winnipeg, Manitoba by Murray McPherson gives a short history of Johnston McPherson, the youngest son of Alexander and Elizabeth McPherson. It states that he came to Manitoba in the 1880's and worked on C.P.R. construction as well as at Brandon Hills with his brother Hugh. He married Elizabeth Cranston and they had four children: Annie, Alexander, William and George. They farmed until their retirement to Brandon in 1937. Johnston passed away in 1944 and his wife in 1956. The next available information is from a marriage slip from the Province of Nova Scotia showing George Sutherland, a widower, marrying Mary Ann (Marion) McKay at Earltown on the 21 Feb 1885. This means that Elizabeth McPherson Sutherland died sometime between 1881 and 1885. The family Bible gives her death date as 23 Jan. 1882. On the 1891 census for Earltown, Jessie Sutherland is listed as a widow with children Neil, Alexander Hugh, Willie Kenneth and Bessie. She followed her children to Alberta and died on the 5th of Feb. 1916. Hugh McPherson is on the 1891 census of the Province of Manitoba, District No. 1, Selkirk, S. District nr Cornwallis with his wife Margaret and children Georgina J., M. Harriet, Johnston and Angus S. Hugh passed away in 1916 and his wife in 1935. Hugh McPherson
Mrs. James Sutherland (from the Pictou Advocate) 19 March 1920 p. 8 (The Star, Bashaw, Alberta, Feb 12) The death took place on Thursday, Feb 5th, at the home of James A. Lane of Jessie McPherson, wife of the late James Sutherland, in her 70th year. The late Mrs. Sutherland was born at Watervale, Pictou Co. Nova Scotia, Feb. 18th, 1850 and was married to James Sutherland, of East Earltown, March 5th, 1874. Mr. Sutherland died on Feb. 15th, 1890. Coming west in 1910 she made her home in Settler (sic) for a number of years and in 1917 she moved to Bashaw and made her home with her daughter, the late Mrs. James Lane. During her residence in Bashaw, her kindly, loveable nature won her many friends among all who regret to learn of her demise and who will extend their sympathy to the bereaved relatives, of whom there are three sons, Neil J., of Winnipeg and Alex. H. and William K., of Mechehe (sic), Alta., besides a son-in-law, Jas. A. Lane, and three grandchildren, Jimmie and Jean and George Lane. One brother, Johnston McPherson, of Rounthwaite, Manitoba is left to mourn her loss. (Angusl, John2, Alexander3)
Two days after the last issue was printed the microfilm with the Brandon Weekly Sun arrived at the Lethbridge Public Library. It contained the following obituary for Hugh McPherson: Hugh McPherson, aged 71 years, an old timer of the Brandon Hills district, died Tuesday morning on the farm where he first homesteaded thirty-six years ago. He leaves a widow, two sons and two daughters. The sons are Johnston and Angus and the daughters George & Hettie. All live at home. Deceased also had a brother, Johnston, at Rounthwaite and two sisters, Mrs. McKenzie and Mrs. Sutherland, at Stettler, Alberta. Here is the married name of Annie McPherson and her residence. A copy of the registration of death adds some interesting information. Annie McKenzie, widow, died at Bashaw, Alberta but the place of interment was Ridgefield, Washington, U.S.A. It appears that she came to Stettler to live with her sister after the death of her husband, Reverend McKenzie. She moved to Bashaw with her sister. Several months after the above mentioned roll of microfilm came into the Lethbridge Public Library, another that was ordered at the same time finally arrived. Obituaries for Johnston McPherson appeared in two issues. Brandon Daily Sun The death occurred this morning of Johnston McPherson, aged 86 years, a resident of the city for the past eight years. The late Mr. McPherson was born at Watervale, N.S. and came to Manitoba 62 years ago and engaged in farming in the Rounthwaite district after spending some time in railway construction work in the west. Deceased is survived by his widow, one daughter, Miss Annie McPherson at home, three sons, George at Rounthwaite, Alex and William McPherson in Brandon. Funeral services will be held on Monday afternoon at 2:30 from Macpherson and Bedford's and burial will be made in the family plot, Brandon cemetery. Tuesday, April 25, 1944 Many friends from the Rounthwaite and Brandon Hills districts paid honor to the memory of a fellow pioneer on Monday afternoon by attending the funeral service of the late Johnston McPherson, whose death took place in the city on Saturday last. Rev. K M. Glazier conducted the service at the Macpherson and Bedford funeral home and the following acted as bears: Messrs. Jack and Angus McPherson, Henry and William Sellers and Hewitt and Chester Cranston. The remains were laid to rest in the family plot in Brandon cemetery. OBITUARY
McPHERSON, Alfred Angus Murray February 15, 1923 – November 25, 2001  |