Page 7 - May 2023 News On 7

HAZZARD'S HISTORY NOTES

by Grant Ketcheson
THE LADY WHO PRESERVED HAZZARD'S HISTORY”

She was the 12th of 13 children of Thomas and Mary Ann Kincaid Moorcroft. Their largest baby, with the longest name,
Margaret “Alma” Augusta Moorcroft came into the world on August 4, 1908, weighing a hefty 12.5 pounds.
After attending Remington School, she breezed through her high school entrance exams. Never married, Alma's life centred
around her beloved “Valley Croft” farm just down the road from the house in which she was born. Always a helpmate on the
farm to her younger brother, Roy, she filled her days with both house and farm work, amid the sights and sounds of nature.
Alma was a keen photographer, bird watcher and naturalist. The other passions in Margaret Alma Augusta's world were
Hazzard's Corners Church, community work and preserving local history.
In 1974 Alma collaborated with two friends from Eldorado United Church, Alma Blackburn and Blanche Sandford, to author a
history of the churches of the area. Their book, “Pilgrimage of Faith”, is still available and is the go-to resource for the history
of some 35 church communities in Madoc Village and Madoc Township.
As so often happened in years gone by, Hazzard's cemetery records were destroyed in a house fire. Single-handedly, Alma
took on the task of mapping and cataloguing hundreds of grave stones. She recorded names and inscriptions, row by row,
with uncanny accuracy. On top of this superhuman effort, she typed the entire 90-page manuscript! This book is still the
only definitive index of names and grave locations in Hazzard's Cemetery. Besides her efforts at preserving Hazzard's history,
Alma and her brother Roy acted as secretary-treasurers of the church and cemetery board for well over 40 years.
When Hazzard's Corners Church was closed for regular worship in 1967, Alma was at the forefront in the battle to free the
church from the United Church of Canada. The committee was successful and the fact that this church is now a designated
historic site is due to her efforts. The many papers left in Alma's “Hazzards” file show that, unknown to others, for years she
sent Christmas greetings to every person who signed the Hazzard's Church guest book! Alma kept a meticulous record of
every card sent and every reply that she received.
Margaret Alma Augusta Moorcroft was laid to rest in Hazzard's Cemetery in July, 1992, after a lifetime of service to her
community.