Edward Cornwall (abt. 1795 - 1883)

Born about 1795 in Kiltullagh, Castlereigh, Roscommon, Ireland

Husband of Helen (Adamson) Cornwall — married 5 Dec 1833 in Trafalgar Twp, Ontario, Upper Canada

Descendants

Died 26 Jul 1883 at about age 88 in Oakville, Ontario, Canada

Problems/Questions Profile managers: G. MacKay [send private message], Patricia McKee [send private message], and George House [send private message]

Biography

Edward Cornwall was born in Roscommon, Ireland, in 1795 to Michael and Izet Cornwall. He was part of a family that lived in the tiny hamlet of Cloonkeehane, Kiltullagh, Roscommon, as evidenced by the Tithe applotment books from 1832. Edward Cornwall migrated from Ireland to Upper Canada in 1824, although it's unclear if that was the same year he left Ireland.

The first written evidence of Edward Cornwall's life in Upper Canada is a marriage license indicating his marriage to his first wife, Helen Adamson, on December 4, 1833, in Trafalgar, Ontario. Edward and Helen did not have any children, and Helen passed away in 1855 at the age of 60.

On June 17, 1856, at the age of 61, Edward Cornwall married Matilda McCleary, who was 21 years old at the time. They went on to have six children: Helen Cornwall (1857-1857); William Edward Cornwall (1858-1925); Izet Cornwall (1860-1880); George Alexander Cornwall (1863-1931); Emily Ashenhurst (1866-1940); and James Leonard Cornwall (1869-1941).

Edward Cornwall was a prominent landowner in the Township of Trafalgar, Upper Canada. He was the proprietor of Lot 2, 2nd Concession S.D.S., Trafalgar, and also owned other properties in the area. His main occupation was farming, and he primarily grew wheat on his land. However, in 1857, due to a dramatic drop in wheat prices, he diversified into small fruit production, particularly strawberries, which were native to the Oakville area.

Edward Cornwall was known to be an old man when he got married for the second time, and he was described as sitting in a wheelchair and throwing his shoe at the kids, as recounted by his grandson Dr. Alexander E. Ashenhurst in a recorded interview in 1975. Edward Cornwall passed away on July 26, 1883, in Oakville at the age of 88. The cause of death was senility, which had lasted for four months. His son William E. Cornwall was the informant for his death certificate.

Edward Cornwall's legacy included owning several properties and leaving his children a farm upon his death. However, according to his grandson Alex Ashenhurst, his mother (presumably Matilda McCleary) may have been "gyped out of that somewhere," and eventually received a settlement but was not happy about it. Edward Cornwall's life and contributions as a farmer and landowner in Upper Canada are remembered as part of the local history of Trafalgar and Oakville.

Cornwall Road

Cornwall Road is a historic road located in Oakville, Ontario, Canada. It is named after Edward Cornwall, an Irish immigrant who settled in the area in the early 19th century. Edward Cornwall was granted a land patent for a 200-acre parcel of Crown land in October 1837, which included the area where Cornwall Road is now located.

Edward Cornwall cleared the land for farming and built a family home on the northern portion of the property facing Middle Road. He was primarily engaged in wheat farming, but due to a drop in wheat prices in 1857, he and other farmers in the Trafalgar area were forced to diversify into small fruit production, particularly strawberries, which were native to the Oakville area and became a commercial crop through improvements made by farmers like Cornwall.

Over the years, the area around Edward Cornwall's property developed, and Cornwall Road was established as a local road. Today, Cromwall Road is a residential road located in a suburban area of Oakville, lined with homes and trees. It is known for its historical significance as part of the early settlement of the area by Edward Cornwall and other Irish immigrants from Ireland to Upper Canada.

Birth

Date: ABT 1795 (According to cemetery stone marker)

Place: Roscommon

Country: Ireland

Ireland Documents

Tithe applotment books from 1832 for the tiny hamlet of Cloonkeehane, Kiltullagh, Roscommon has entries for the homesteads of John, Michael and James Cornwall, all residing close to one another.^[1]

Immigration

Ed. Cornwall

Proprietor of Lot 2, 2nd Conc S.D.S., Trafalgar

Migrated from Ireland 1824, no family given^[2]

Marriage

Edward Cornwell, bch. & Ellen Adamson, spr. Both of Trafalgar. Married 4 Dec. 1833 at Toronto (tp.)(3255) Ref 16L, 04 Dec 1833, Mr. Orange Lawrence (b. 23 Feb 1796 in Canaan, Litchfield VT, d. 15 Dec 1861 in Orangeville, ON) is listed as a yeoman of Trafalgar and a bondsman for the marriage of Edward Cornwall and Ellen Adamson, pg 265.^[3]

Land Ownership

Township of Trafalgar, Lot 13 Concession 1 SDS (Homestead, orchard)^[4]

2347 Royal Windsor Drive - Edward Cornwall House - this property has potential cultural heritage value for its c.1800s frame farmhouse^[5]

Please help us keep an eye on our heritage buildings! If you see any boards removed or broken windows please call by-law right away at the Town and also let us know so we can follow up. One of our members recently contacted us about the condition of 2347 Royal Windsor Drive. As a result By- law has been out to see the property and is requiring the building to be stabilized by boarding up windows, etc. (Source: Trafalgar Township Historical Society, Spring 2011)

This lot was owned by Edward Cornwall but was used for wheat and fruit growing and apparently was not used for the purpose of residing on at least for the Cornwall family. The Cornwall's residence, it has been determined, was on another plot of owned land situated closer to the village of Trafalgar, along Dundas Street (see below).

In 2014 Oakville city council voted to allow the demolition of a derelict home built on the lot for 2347 Royal Windsor Drive. A heritage impact assessment was drawn up by Oakville Heritage Planning Services, and it was found that the house was constructed after Edward Cornwall had sold portions of the land. The historical background drawn up by the reads as the following:

The history of the property began in October 1837 when the Government of Upper Canada granted a land patent to two gentlemen, Edward Cornwell and Christopher Wilson for a 200 acre parcel of Crown land designated as Lot 2, Concession 2 in the Township of Trafalgar.

EDWARD CORNWELL (1837 - 1879) Edward Cornwell was granted the west 100 acre parcel and proceeded to clear the property for farming. He also built a family home on the northern portion of the property facing Middle Road. A portion of the property (1-42/100 acre) was sold to the Hamilton & Toronto Railway in 1853. This property was one of four parcels that Cornwell acquired at the time.

On his farm, Cornwell grew primarily wheat. In 1857 the price of wheat dropped so dramatically that he and the rest of the Trafalgar farmers were forced to diversify into small fruit production, particularly strawberries. Strawberries were native to the Oakville area and became a commercial crop through improvements by farmers like John Cross, who farmed on land between the railroad and Lower Middle Road.

In August 1879, Cornwell sold the lower portion of his property (4-45/100 acres) bounded by the railway tracks and Lower Middle Road, to George & Sarah Long, a shoemaker for $300.00.

In the spring of 1880, the Longs' sold the property to David & Agnes Caroline Winters for $450.

Trafalgar has a road passing through it called the Dundas Street, which runs nearly a west course from the Township of Toronto to Nelson. The concessions, in the old survey, are numbered North and South from Dundas Street, and the Lots number from East to West.

In the new survey, the concessions number from West to East, and the lots are numbered from South to North.

Trafalgar has five concessions and a broken front in the old survey; two of which are North, and three and the broken front South, of the street; there are also eleven concessions in the new survey.

It has 716 lots, but many of them are very small, containng only a few acres. The 1st concession south of the street has 66 lots; 2nd, 79; 3rd, 74; and the broken concession, 36.

The following is a list of the lots, in each concession, with the names of the owners or occupants, as far as can be ascertained

Second Concession south of Dundas Street, - Number 1 Ferris Lawrence, D. Grennis and Erastus D. Hill; 2 Richard and John Wilson and Edward Cornwell; 3 Samuel Shain and Edward Jeffre

Source: A Sketch of the County of Halton, Canada West, by Robert Warnock, Common School Teacher; Printed in Toronto, Leader Steam-Press, King Street, 1862^[6]

When observing a satellite image of the Trafalgar area little is left of the village itself. Trafalgar Rd at Dundas St. E is a major intersection that includes gas stations and big box stores. It is estimated that any homestead belonging to the Cornwall family would be situated on a block of scrub land, on the south side along Dundas St. E between Oak Park Blvd, Millwood Dr. and bounded on the south by Oak Walk Drive. It was likely the location where Alex Ashenhurst and Emily Cornwall were married in 1887. The foundations of a complex which likely replaced the old homestead may be easily seen in the satellite image. More information about this plot should be investigated. The assumed location is 43°28'58.5"N 79°43'25.8"W. For whatever the numbers on nearby lamp post mean, the land is located between pole 7420 and 7421. Observation by G. Patrick MacKay.

Census

1842 Upper Canada Census - Trafalgar Twp., Gore County, Ontario^[7]

William McCleary, Weaver - Number of years in the Province 8 (1836); 7 family members from Ireland; Number in family 7; 1 person 14-18y; 1 person 18-21y; 1 person 30-59y; 1 male 21-29; 1 female 14-44

Recorded on the same sheet...

Edward Cornwall, Farmer - Number of years in the Province 17 (1825); Number in family 2; 1 from Ireland, 1 from Scotland; 1 male 21-29; 1 female 14-44

1851 Canada West Census - Easterly part of Halton - Automated Genealogy.^[8]

William MaClaray -- 60 -- 1792, Farmer, born Ireland, Church of Scotland, 1 story log house.

Sarah MaClaray -- 50 -- 1802, born Ireland

Matilda Maclaray -- 18 -- 1834, born Ireland

William Maclaray -- 24 -- 1828, born Ireland

Alexander Maclaray -- 21 -- 1831, born Ireland

(listed as a 1 story frame house a few properties down from the McCleary's, on the same Census page.)

Edward Cornwall -- 51 -- 1803, born Ireland, Farmer, Church of England

Ellen Cornwall -- 54 -- 1799, born Scotland, Church of England

Cornwall, Edward , Farmer, Male, Age 50, Birth Place: Ireland, Religion: Church of England, Anglican, Living in Trafalgar Township, 1851, division 1, page 52

1861 Census^[9] -- Halton, Trafalgar, District # 3, 1 & 1/2 story frame house

Edward Cornwall -- 58 -- 1803, b. Ireland, Farmer, Church of England

M. Cornwall -- 28 -- 1833, b. Ireland, Church of England

Wm. E. Cornwall -- 3 -- 1858, b.Upper Canada, Church of England

(Izet) Cornwall -- 1 -- 1860, b.Upper Canada, Church of England

1871 Census^[10] - Oakville, Dwelling 106, District #38 Halton, Sub-District C, Page 28.

Edward Cornwall -- 70 -- 1801, b. Ireland, Farmer, Church of England

Matilda Cornwall -- 38 -- 1833, b. Ireland

William E. Cornwall -- 12 -- 1859, b. Ontario

Izet Cornwall -- 10 -- 1861, b. Ontario

George A. Cornwall -- 8 -- 1863, b. Ontario

Emily Cornwall -- 4 -- 1867, b. Ontario

James L. Cornwall -- 1 -- 1870, b. Ontario

1881 Census^[11] - Oakville, Halton, District #150, Sub District D, Household 264, p. 61

Edward Cornwall -- 75 -- 1796, b. Ireland, Church of England, Occupation:

Matilda Cornwall -- 46 -- 1835, b. Ireland, Church of England, Occupation:

William E. Cornwall -- 22 -- 1859, b. Ontario, Church of England, Occupation: Finisher

George A. Cornwall -- 18 -- 1863, b. Ontario, Church of England, Occupation: Tinsmith

Emily M. Cornwall -- 14 -- 1867, b. Ontario, Church of England, Occupation: Student

James L. Cornwall -- 11 -- 1870, b. Ontario, Church of England, Occupation: Student

Mary A. O'Neil -- 23 -- 1858, b. Ontario, Roman Catholic, Occupation: Servant

Death

From Matilda Cornwall's Bible

Death of Edward Cornwall^[12]

Date: 2 Aug 1883

Place: Oakville, ON, Canada

Cause: Senile dementia

Age: 88 (1795)

Birthplace: Ireland

Rank or Profession: Gentleman

Religion: Church of England

Informant: William E Cornwall

In Ancestry.com his name is transcribed as "Edward Cerndeall". Died 2nd August, Aged 88. Senility was a cause of death with a duration of 4 months. William E. Cornwall was the informant, and the death was registered on 16 August 1883, in Oakville, Halton County.

Death Notice

Cornwall - At his residence, Oakville, July 29th, Edward Cornwall, a native of county Roscommon, Ireland, aged 88 years. (Source: Canadian Champion (Milton, Ontario), 2 Aug 1883, p. 3)

Burial

St. Peter's Anglican Church Cemetery

City: Erindale, Mississauga

Findagrave link

Note

The following is a summary of a research query made to the IARC (The Irish Ancestry Research Centre) in Limerick, Ireland by Edward's great great grand-daughter Patricia Joyce-McKee in April 2014.

While we are unsure which individuals were directly related to Edward Cornwall, be they parents, siblings, cousins, nieces or nephews, it is clear that there was at least one Cornwall family living in Roscommon in the nineteenth century and into the early twentieth century. Further research into each individual listed in this report may lead to more defined answers as to whom they were and what relationship, if any, they had to Edward Cornwall.

For more conclusive research into an earlier period before he was born, we would need to find more concrete evidence of Edward’s parents. From the results of our initial research, the most likely parents of Edward Cornwall are William and Jane who married in 1790. However, we must not rule out that they are not his parents and Edward’s mother and father’s marriage record was simply lost or never recorded. There is also a chance that the church marriage record for William Cornwall from Roscommon in 1790 was not the same William Cornwall who married Jane Phair in 1790. As stated in the report, civil registration of Irish births, deaths and marriages did not begin until 1864 and census records before 1901 were destroyed. Indeed, many less well-off parishes did not keep records in the late eighteenth and early nineteenth century. Therefore, the lack of marriage and birth records for Edward and his parents is not uncommon. However, if you were to become aware of any further information, research into the Cornwall family could certainly be looked at again.

Most likely siblings of Edward Cornwall:

George Cornwall, b. 1798; d. 1883 (85y); Registration District: Castlereagh, Co. Roscommon

Francis Cornwall, b. 1804; d. 1872; Registration District: Roscommon

Margaret Cornwall, b. 1818; Registration District: Co. Roscommon

John Cornwall, b. 1855; Registration District: Curraghmore, Co. Roscommon

The findings also revealed a concentration of Cornwall family members in Co. Roscommon, and in particular, the parish of Kiltullagh.

Parental lineage to Michael and Isett, as well as to a group of siblings, are described in a biographical sketch of Valentine Cornwall written in 1880:

VALENTINE CORNWALL

One of the early settlers of Wakeshma, was born in the village of Clonkehune, Roscommon Co., Ireland, in the year 1818. He was the youngest in a family of eight boys and one girl. His parents, Michael and Isett Cornwall, were people in good circumstances, and gave their children liberal advantages. Valentine received a good common-school education. He was reared in the Episcopalian faith, and lived under the paternal roof until he was eighteen years of age, when he decided to come to America. Knowing that a trade would be of material assistance, he apprenticed himself; after the completion of his indentures he went into business, and upon the death of his father, in 1838, he took passage for America, in company with his older brother James. They settled in Canada, where two brothers, Michael and Edward, had preceded them. Edward was a wealthy farmer and a prominent citizen, and Valentine was in his employ some four months, when he went to the county of Oxford, where he purchased a farm. Here he resided fifteen years, when he sold his property and came to Wakeshma, and purchased the farm where he now resides, which originally consisted of three hundred acres of unimproved land. In 1876, Mr. Cornwall was married to Miss Matilda Swanwick, who was born in the town of Bedinlough, Roscommon Co., Ireland. In his political and religious affiliations, Mr. Cornwall is a Republican and an Episcopalian. He has acquired a competency, the result of a long life of industry and economy. He has two children, Isett and Mary Ann. ^[13]

Video

The Ashenhursts

Here is a link to a 2016 YouTube video that chronicles Alexander Ashenhurst, and his son, featuring a 1973 recorded interview of Alexander E. Ashenhurst and his wife, Lois. Includes memories told by Alec Ashenhurst, Peter Joyce and Danford MacKay.

Sources

• WikiTree profile Cornwall-170 created through the import of CornwallDescendants.ged on Feb 6, 2012 by G. MacKay Ahnentafel GM-26. See the Changes page for the details of edits by G. and others.

1. ↑ http://titheapplotmentbooks.nationalarchives.ie/search/tab/results.jsp?county=Roscommon&parish=Kiltullagh&townland=Cloonkeehane&search=Search
2. ↑ 1841 Trafalgar Township Census, Public Archives of Canada at Ottawa; The last time this census was seen it was so torn as to be almost unreadable; Web source: http://www.oakvillehistory.org/pdf/1841%20census.pdf
3. ↑ Collections Canada Marriage Bonds, 1779-1858 - Upper & Lower Canada; Upper Canada and Canada West (now Ontario), 1803 to 1845 (RG5-B9, volumes 13 to 44, microfilm C-6777 to C-6791) This series also includes about ten bonds from 1858 to 1861
4. ↑ Page 14, Archaeological Assessment Study, Brant Street to Trafalgar Road, Regional Municipality of Halton, October 12, 2011
5. ↑ Town of Oakville, SECTION F: Register of Properties of Cultural Heritage Value or Interest (NOT Designated) http://www.oakville.ca/assets/2011%20planning/hrtg-SectionF-apr13-1.pdf
6. ↑ http://archive.org/stream/cihm_93026#page/n3/mode/2up
7. ↑ "Canada, Upper Canada Census, 1842," index and images, FamilySearch (https://familysearch.org/pal:/MM9.1.1/KDRN-3LB : accessed 26 Jan 2013), Edward Cornwall, 1842; www.halton.ca/common/pages/UserFile.aspx?fileId=91906
8. ↑ 1852 Census; Twp of Trafalgar, Halton County, District 1, 6th to 11th concessions from lot 1 to 17; website: http://automatedgenealogy.com/census52/SplitView.jsp?id=7523
9. ↑ 1861 Census - Place: Trafalgar, , Halton, Canada West; Roll: C-1031; Page: 72.
10. ↑ 1871 Canadian Census - Place: Oakville, Halton, Ontario; Roll: C-9956; Page: 29; Family No: 109.
11. ↑ 1881 Canadian Census - Place: Esquesing, Halton, Ontario; Roll: C_13258; Page: 24; Family No: 110.
12. ↑ Archives of Ontario. Registrations of Deaths, 1869-1938. MS 935, reels 1-615; Registration #006006. Archives of Ontario, Toronto, Ontario, Canada.
13. ↑ History of Kalamazoo County, Michigan: Its Prominent Men and Pioneers; Everts & Abbott, Phileadelphia, 1880, P. 552