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The Firth Pioneer Family in My Part of the World

This is a little snap shot of my own family history.  There is still some information missing but I hope to eventually fill in the blanks someday.  My ancestors were not rich people.  They considered earning a decent wage in order to feed families more important than tracing family history. Hence family bibles were lost and dates were forgotten. 

Many folks were farmers in the summer and lumbermen in the winter.  After the crops were brought in, the men would go to the lumber camps and work there all winter.  In the spring, logs were floated down the river system to the mills in Campbellton, New Brunswick, Canada.  My father worked on the last few log drives when he was a young man.  His job was to work with the horse teams that came down both sides of the river system.  It was a hard life and some died working as lumbermen.  My father said you could always spot a lumbermen by the way they walk.  This was learned by walking on the logs and breaking up jams with dynamite as they went. This way of life ended in the 1950s. 

George Firth:
Born - 1788 in Newton-Upon-Ouse (?), Yorkshire County, England
Died - About 1874 in Flatlands, Restigouche County, New Brunswick, Canada
Married Mary Granger on May 08, 1815 in Farlington, Yorkshire County, England

Mary Granger:
Born - 1794 in Farlington (?), Yorkshire County, England
Died - About 1874 in Flatlands, Restigouche County, New Brunswick, Canada

 

Above is a copy of George and Mary's marriage certificate.  Here is what it says:

 Marriages solemnized in the Parish of Farlington, in the County of York, in the year 1815. George Firth of the parish of Newton upon Ouse, and Mary Granger of this parish were married in this church after Banns, this 8th day of May 1815, signed, R. Barton as curate, George Firth signed his name, Mary Granger made her mark (X). In the presence of Wm. Granger & George Bowman.

George, Mary, and 2 of his brothers immigrated to Canada in 1815.  During the crossing, one of his brothers died. Nobody knows the name of the brother that died but George's other brother, Richard, did survive the trip. Both brothers first settled in Point La Nim, Quebec, but later on George moved his family to Flatlands, New Brunswick.  George had another brother who left England at the same time he did but this brother went to Australia.

There is a story in the family that George Firth's ancestors were from Scotland but nobody has done much research beyond the borders of  Canada and the U.S.  When I have the money, I would like to hire a researcher in Yorkshire to track down George's family.  There is always lots to do in genealogy.

The children George and Mary are:

  • William Firth (1816 - 1902)

  • George Firth (1821 - ?)

  • Richard Firth (1825 - ?) - I am part of his family line

  • Mary Ann Firth (1822 - ?)

  • Sarah Firth (1828 - ?)

  • Jane Firth (? - ?)

William Firth:
Born - 1816 in Flatlands, Restigouche County, New Brunswick, Canada
Died - 1902 in Flatlands, Restigouche County, New Brunswick, Canada
Married Bridget Canning on November 4, 1841 in Flatlands, Restigouche County, New Brunswick, Canada

Bridget Canning:
Born - May 28, 1815 in Longford, Ireland
Died - August 22, 1898 in Flatlands, Restigouche County, New Brunswick, Canada

Their children were:

  • Mary Firth (1843 - ?)

  • George Firth (1844 - ?)

  • Charles Firth ( 1846 - ?)

  • James Firth (1848 - 1919)

  • William Firth (1849 - ?)

  • Dinah Firth (1853 - ?)

  • Richard Firth (1855 - ?)

  • Adeline Firth (1857 - ?)

  • Theresa Firth (1854 - 1918)

  • Bridget Ann Firth (1858 - 1912)

George Firth:
Born - 1821 in Flatlands, Restigouche County, New Brunswick, Canada
Died - ?
Married Margaret Elizabeth Mann on September 13, 1841 in Flatlands, Restigouche County, New Brunswick, Canada

Margaret Elizabeth Mann:
Born - September 25, 1826
Died - ?

George and Margaret Mann moved their family to the U.S. state of Maine after the 1851 New Brunswick census.  According to family lore, their lives were soon caught up in the U.S. civil war and George was killed in action fighting for the Union in a Maine military unit.  I have found some information on a George Firth but I am not certain it is actually him.  Family historians have told me that many of the Firth families living in Maine is our distant cousins.

Their children were:

  • Margaret Firth (1841 - ?)

  • Richard Firth (1843 - ?)

  • Andrew Firth (1845 - ?)

  • Mary Firth (1847 - ?)

Richard "Dick" Firth:
Born - October 6, 1825 in Flatlands, Restigouche County, New Brunswick, Canada
Died - ?
Married Eliza North on March 20, 1855 in Flatlands, Restigouche County, New Brunswick, Canada

Eliza North:
Born - May 9, 1836
Died - ?

Their children were:

  • Mary Granger Firth (1854 - 1916)

  • Edward "Ned" Firth (1857 -1928)

  • Isabella "Bella" Firth (1859 - 1937)

  • Richard B. Firth (1861 - 1930)

  • Thomas Burns Firth (1864 - 1948)

  • Jane "Jennie" Firth (1866 - ?)

  • George Firth (1867 - 1938)

  • Elizabeth Firth (1868 - 1941)

  • William Firth (1870 - 1953)

  • Sarah Firth (1874 - 1958)

  • Murdock Firth (1876 - 1957)

  • Arthur Firth (1878 - 1972)

  • Charles Firth (1879 - 1961)

Mary Ann Firth:
Born - July 9, 1822 in Flatlands, Restigouche County, New Brunswick, Canada
Died - ?
Married Edward Clarence Mann on April 7, 1838

Edward Clarence Mann:
Born - October 18, 1812 in New Carlisle, Quebec, Canada
Died - December 21, 1888

Their children were:

  • George A. Mann (1838 - 1919)

  • William A. Mann (1841 - 1921)

  • Isaac Mann (1844 - 1914)

  • Mary Ann Mann (1846 - ?)

  • Edward "Ned" Mann (1848 - 1934)

  • Jane Mann (1849 - 1938)

  • Richard "Dick" Mann (1850 - ?)

  • Isabella Mann (1853 - 1933)

  • Sarah E. Mann (1856 - 1938)

  • John T. Mann (1857 - 1940)

  • Margaret Mann (1863 - 1940)

  • Murdock G. Mann (1856 - ?)

Sarah Firth:
Born - 1828 in Flatlands, Restigouche County, New Brunswick, Canada
Died - ??? in Bridgewater, Nova Scotia, Canada
Married twice - (1) William Thomas (1822 - disappearance), and (2) a man whose last name was Brown

William Thomas came to New Brunswick, Canada in 1837 from Norway.  William stated in the 1851 census that he was of English ancestry.  The disappearance of William is still a family mystery.  Family lore indicates that his horse and wagon was found in Matapedia, Quebec but nobody could find his body.  It is assumed he drowned in a nearby river.  After William's disappearance, Sarah married a Brown from Bridgewater, Nova Scotia, Canada.

The children of William and Mary were:

  • Hannah "Anna" Thomas (1845 - ?)

  • Jane Thomas (1847 - 1937)

  • John Thomas (1851 to 1937)

  • George Thomas (1854 - 1922)

Jane Firth:

Not much is known about her but the family historians do know she married Mick Archibald.

If you would like to know more information on my family tree don't hesitate to contact me.  If I am unable to answer your questions, I can put you in contact with someone who does.  There are many folks working on these family trees and hopefully they will compare notes to get a more accurate view of our ancestry.