William Millar Muirhead (1861 - 1921)

Born 1 Mar 1861 in Teenis, Ballynacaird, Ireland

Husband of Sarah Jane Muirhead — married 29 Jul 1884 in Broughshane, Ireland

Descendants

Died 30 Jul 1921 at age 60 in New Westminster, British Columbia, Canada

Biography

William Muirhead has Irish ancestors.

William, son of Black William Muirhead, and his wife Sarah came with their family of three small children from Ballymena, County Antrim in Northern Ireland, in the year 1888 straight to Carberry, Manitoba. They were able to come overland by train as the rails had gone through in 1882. Already many relatives of the large Muirhead clan had settled around Carberry, Douglas and Gladstone. Thus, they were met by family members who helped them get settled.

William had become a member of the Salvation Army and even after he came to Carberry kept in touch with that organization. For this reason, he was nicknamed "Army Billie" and that name stuck with him most of his life. It was one way of distinguishing him from the dozens of William Muirheads that were in the clan. After a careful search for land in the areas around, he chose a homestead in the Arizona district in section 10-10-12, just south of the Arizona School, about half a mile.

Their children started to school and more children arrived to bless their home. Altogether, they had a family of fourteen. Although some died quite young and there were eleven left to grow to maturity. Their names were: Stanley, Earl,' Graham, Minnie, Jennie, James, Bill Jr, Sarah, Wilson, Cecil and Currell.

One of the first deaths happened on the night when there was to be a Christmas tree in the school. little Samuel, two years old, was playing around while his sister Sadie prepared supper for the family. A large pot of soup was bubbling on the stove. When Sadie's back was turned, little Samuel managed to reach the pot and pull it over himself, receiving a terrible scalding. The burn was so severe that Samuel could not be saved, so that made a very sad Christmas for the family. The little boy was buried in Carberry cemetery. The mother, Sarah, had a tin trunk she had brought from Ireland and in this she kept keepsakes. Among them were some of Samuel's clothing, as well as the bag of candy which was on the Christmas tree with Samuel's name on it, that fateful night. Many, many years later, she still kept these mementoes in her old tin trunk. All times were not sad though, and the family enjoyed everything that went on in the community. Often the young people would visit their cousins in the Carberry area. In 1891, they were excited to hear that Billie's sister Lizzie was traveling by herself all the way from Ireland to become part of their family. She arrived in Carberry by train, and was met by her relatives. On the platform that day was a young man by the name of James Routley. When he saw this pretty Irish girl step off the train, he said to himself. "There's the girl I intend to marry". He immediately got acquainted as he belonged to an Arizona family and after a proper courtship. the couple were married in 1894. They homesteaded on the land where the Arizona School is now situated. and went on to raise a family of eleven children. This is covered by the Routley story elsewhere in this book.

After about twelve years, somewhere around 1900. Billie and his family moved to another homestead at Estevan, Saskatchewan. We knew they were still in this area in 1910, but later they moved to homestead number three, this time in Northern Saskatchewan at Turtleford. There they farmed until most of their family was grown and establishing homes of their own. But once again, Billie seemed to get "itchy" feet, and he along with his son Cecil went to Prince George and started to farm in that area. There, Billie lived until his death and he is buried at Prince George. The mother, Sarah, on the other hand, stayed on at Turtleford until she retired and went to make her home with one of her daughters at the coast.

Of this large family, only the three youngest boys are surviving. Earl and Stanley, who live in Prince George, and Wilson who lives at Armstrong, B.C. Alex Patterson's grandfather, John Muirhead, of the Helston district was a first cousin of "Army Billie" and Lizzie (Muirhead) Routley. Alex married Elsie Bickford in 1978 and is now farming in Arizona. Probably Alex has never heard of "Army Billie" but the relationship is there, and Billy sits on a large branch of Alex's family tree. ^[1]

Research Notes

Birth: 01 MAR 1861 Teenis, Ballynacaird, Ireland

Death: 30 JUL 1921 New Westminster, BC, Canada

Cause: Senile Dementia

Residence: 1891 Carberry, Marquette, Manitoba, Canada

Residence: 1916 Battleford, Saskatchewan, Canada

Arrival: 1871

December 2018: Merged Muirhead-987 into Muirhead-441

Sources

1. ↑ Provided by John Muirhead; from Arizona 1882-1982, written by Marjorie Williams, ISBN 0-88925-366-8. William and Sarah Muirhead, by Marjorie Williams

• S253 1891 Census of Canada Publication: Name: Ancestry.com Operations Inc; Location: Provo, UT, USA; Date: 2008; NOTE Library and Archives Canada, Census of Canada, 1891, Ottawa, Ontario, Canada: Library and Archives Canada, 2009

• S290 1916 Canada Census of Manitoba, Saskatchewan, and Alberta Publication: Name: Ancestry.com Operations Inc; Location: Provo, UT, USA; Date: 2009;

• "British Columbia Death Registrations," online database with images. Entry for William Muirhead; Registration Number: 1921-09-284330, New Westminster, 1921-07-30, Age at Death: 60. Not digitized. http://search-collections.royalbcmuseum.bc.ca/Genealogy Royal British Columbia Museum: BC Archives (royalbcmuseum.bc.ca/genealogy : accessed 16 Oct 2021).

See also:

• Find a Grave, database and images (https://www.findagrave.com/memorial/122695972/william-millar-muirhead : accessed 16 October 2021), memorial page for William Millar “ArmyBilly” Muirhead (1 Mar 1861–30 Jul 1921), Find A Grave: Memorial #122695972, citing Woodlands Memorial Garden, New Westminster, Greater Vancouver Regional District, British Columbia, Canada ; Maintained by III (contributor 47426837) .
• "Canada, British Columbia Marriage Registrations, 1859-1932; 1937-1938", , FamilySearch (https://www.familysearch.org/ark:/61903/1:1:JD85-649 : Fri Mar 08 07:24:23 UTC 2024), Entry for Earl Victor Muirhead and William Millar Muirhead, 08 Dec 1926.
• "Canada, British Columbia Marriage Registrations, 1859-1932; 1937-1938", , FamilySearch (https://www.familysearch.org/ark:/61903/1:1:JD8Q-SQX : Sat Mar 09 07:25:38 UTC 2024), Entry for Cecil Davidson Muirhead and William Miller Muirhead, 13 Jul 1928.