FAMILY TIES
UNDER DEVELOPMENT
The connections between people living in the Metis area are vast and complicated. There are those between families who claim blood ties with the earliest Scottish European settlers. There is another raft who came as the area began to develop its rich farmland, timber and fishing resources. And still later, summer guests looking for a salubrious climate, rest, relaxation and other pastimes. And many people have stayed put, leading to up to six or more generations, as well as marriages across the past Catholic/Protestant religious divide and the year-round/summer gulf. Here’s where you will find the names of people and links between them and their “clans”.
THE MARLER FAMILY
The Marler family has a long, distinguished history. Of particular note, in 1944, George Carlyle Marler (notary and politician) hosted, in the Metis house he rented from the distiller Seagram, two prominent Canadians. Future Prime Minister Louis St. Laurent and Thérèse Casgrain (social reformer, women’s rights activist, and first woman to lead a political party in Canada) talked about family allowances, and that they should be paid to women – which became a reality in 1945. Search for the word Metis to learn more about the Metis connections.
THE MEIKLE FAMILY
We hope you enjoy this walk down memory lane with the Meikle family (boat makers, carpenters, boardinghouse keepers and garage owners), and that these photos and anecdotes bring back wonderful memories of the family.
METIS CONNECTIONS
Unlike the hum of a city, the atmosphere of a small town is slower, quieter, and more personal. The focus of life is often about relationships.
THE BAKER’S DOZEN
As many as 35 Turriffs from all over Canada have been known to squeeze into the house at one time for a taste of Winnie’s cooking.
MERRETTS OF METIS
The Merretts For 65 years or so, at least one and often more Merretts summered in Metis Beach. How many Merrett memories do you share?
THE MATHEWSONS & PATTONS
Figuring out who is related to whom over generations of families, each with many children, can be mind-bogging. Parents, siblings, uncles, aunts, grandparents, cousins, nieces and nephews – heads spin trying to decipher family trees, especially if different generations, or different families in a single generation, use the same names as ancestors. The Mathewson and Patton families are no exception – they came to Metis – and stayed – by the dozens!
THE SAVAGE & MARTINS
My grandmother bought the Metis property in 1875 – the year my father was born – but the family didn’t occupy it until a year later. There were no trees of any size, just a big square house, painted white, and two out-buildings.
MICHAEL’S MENTAL METIS DRIPPINGS (1950-1970)
I was a premature February baby. Mum would endlessly tell the story of my delayed arrival home to Gage Road and how I ‘screamed bloody murder’ day and night for the next six months. Colicky, I guess, but I couldn’t digest much of anything and Mum said my survival wasn’t thought to be a sure thing.
RECOLLECTIONS OF JOHN H. FERGUSON
Even though the seigneurial rights had been abolished in 1854, it took time in Metis to change from the old ways. In 1870 John H. Ferguson became know as the working seigneur for his people of Metis. In his recollections of Metis he describes with feeling the hardships endured by the early pioneers.
COMMUNITY VOLUNTEERS
Volunteering is described as an unpaid activity where someone gives their time to do a particular task or job that is not required nor an obligation nor being forced to do it.