Page 9 - March 2024 News On 7

HAZZARD'S HISTORY NOTES

by Grant Ketcheson
THE BACON FAMILY

The Bacon family was prominent in the farming community of Hazzard's Corners from the 1830s until the early twentieth
century. Like so many other pioneer families, the name is now found only in the cemetery.

Following the death of his wife and their newborn infant in 1832, Samuel Bacon left his home in Norfolk County, England
and brought his family to Canada. What a big step that must have been, making the long Atlantic voyage with seven
children in tow! The Bacon family arrived in Madoc Township in the mid-1830s and established a home on Concession 8,
Lot 15. This land was along the Cooper Road, just north of the intersection of the present Moorcroft Road.

In March of 1843, Samuel Bacon married neighbour, Julia Ann Remington, who had been left with a young family when her
husband, William, died unexpectedly in December 1842. With her seventh child expected within days, she must have seen
widower Samuel Bacon as both partner and saviour. There was no hesitation on Samuel's part to make the baby boy
welcome into the combined Bacon/Remington family, now totalling fourteen children!

While we do not have a record of the land transactions and hard work entailed, we do know that by 1871 Samuel Bacon's
farm totalled 300 acres. This was a remarkable accomplishment for someone who was listed in the 1871 census as “unable
to read and write.” The cheese factory at the intersection of Cooper and Moorcroft Roads was built on the Bacon farm.
Although the official name was Spring Creek, it was called the “Bacon Factory” by the locals. This factory closed in 1950
when the members became part of the new Eldorado Cheese and Butter Co-op.

The eventful life story of Samuel Bacon came to a sudden and dramatic end on December 18, 1872. Family lore tells us that
Samuel, on his way home from Madoc with the family's Christmas goose under his arm, died suddenly of heart failure.

His adopted son, Charles Wesley Bacon, carried on the farm, defending his mother's legacy against claims from some
members of the family. In his own right, Charles Bacon farmed a large acreage, owning and selling various properties in
the area. He also accumulated huge holdings in western Canada. His sons and their families carried on the Bacon farming
tradition in Alberta for two more generations.