Page 9 - News On 7 July 2021

“CARVED IN STONE” -- IS IT ALWAYS THE TRUTH?

THE STORY OF PATRICK KINCAID, By Keith Kincaid

The middle decades of the 1800s in Ireland were tough times and, for many residents, that inspired a move to North
America. No exception was Patrick Kincaid of County Donegal. In 1842 he decided that he would move his wife and eight
children (ranging in age from eight to 24) to what was to become the province of Ontario. Life became an adventure
thereafter.
Just before the boat was to sail in June of 1842, Patrick's wife, Anne Love, died so the voyage was put off until a year later,
at which time he and his children set sail on the Gazelle, a two-mast brigantine. After several boat changes along the St.
Lawrence, they ended up in Belleville from where they immediately headed north to begin a new life.
They first settled in Hungerford Township about 15 miles north of Belleville and took over a farm. Life continued to
change for Patrick; on January 20, 1846, at the age of 58, he married 35-year-old widow Mariah Findlay McGowan, a
partnership which produced two additional children.
In 1850, Patrick was ready for another new adventure. The Hungerford farm was sold and the family moved 15 miles
northwest to take over 100 acres near Hazzard's Corners in Madoc Township. Tragedy struck. In February, 1852, Patrick
was struck by a falling tree while clearing his land, and died.
His 1852 death date will surprise anyone who has visited the Hazzard's Corners cemetery where, carved in granite, his
gravestone says he died in 1867. However, there is no doubt he died in 1852. Land registry documents related to the
ownership of the farm are quite clear, and the records of the Anglican Church set out that he was buried on February 28,
1852
How this misinformation was carved into history is a mystery. The gravestone is obviously a later-year replacement and,
one would think, would have been organized by one of Patrick's descendants. It can also be noted that the gravestone
lists the name of the wife that died in Ireland; his second wife is not listed.

Captions: (1) A two-mast brigantine that took three-four weeks to bring the Kincaid family from Ireland to Canada
(2) If it's carved in stone is it always the truth?

Caption 1

Caption 2