Cantley 1889 Articles

Ginns Ecological Gift – its history, Cantley’s heritage

Margaret Phillips

Driving along chemin Ste-Elizabeth is a trip back in time. Once known as the “Burr” (Borough) Road, it leads to Cantley farms owned by generations of Burkes, Foleys, Blanchfields, Flemings, Birts and other iconic Cantley families. Although most heritage farm buildings are gone now, some of their historic farmlands remain. One will be protected forever, thanks to the vision and generosity of the Ginns.

In 2018, biologists Anne and Jim Ginns donated a 103-acre parcel of their land on the east side of chemin Ste-Elizabeth to Cantley. Their intention was to preserve this parcel of natural woodland, wetland and historic pasture in perpetuity for future generations. They envisioned a walking path for visitors to observe and enjoy wildlife, birds and the diverse ecological features of the three natural environments. The Ginns arranged their donation through the Ecological Gifts Program of Environment and Climate Change Canada in order to ensure its protection forever.

The story of the donated land began centuries ago when it was likely part of Anishnàbeg Algonquin hunting territory. We believe its first settler was Morris Foley who built his farm here sometime after arriving in Canada from Ireland in 1820. This land is typical of Cantley farmland with rocky cliffs, wetlands, forests and small cleared fields suitable for pasture and hay.

By 1861, Morris Foley’s daughter Ellen married John Blanchfield. Records indicate John became owner of the farm by 1875. Their daughter, Mary Blanchfield, married Dominic Fleming in 1887. The Flemings eventually assumed ownership of the Blanchfield property.

Dominic and Mary Fleming had ten children. They grew vegetables and raised enough cows, pigs and chickens to feed their family. Presumably to earn extra income, they provided room and board for school-teacher Margaret McAndrew (later married to neighbour James Birt).

A Fleming son, Daniel (1898-1975), was the last person to live on this land. Danny was a notorious Cantley character, a hard-working, generous bachelor who lived his entire life on the farm. He lived off the land earning money by selling firewood and cedar posts to Cantley farmers. Sadly, one April day Danny returned home from cutting wood to find his family farmhouse had burned to the ground. He spent his final years living in a one-room shack attached to the barn. For many Cantley families, “Danny stories” are legendary.

Very little remains of the farm. Some remnants of buildings and homestead artefacts lie scattered about. Walls of a log barn still stand. In its heyday, the farm was similar to most Cantley farms which usually began with a simple log cabin. As the farm prospered, a larger 2-storey farmhouse was built and more buildings were added. Typically, farms included a large cow barn, horse stable, equipment shed and smaller structures for pigs, sheep, chickens and a granary. Families pumped their water from a shallow well and hauled it by hand. Instead of a bathroom, they used an outhouse and a metal tub with bathwater heated on the kitchen wood stove. The kitchen stove heated the entire house. This farming neighbourhood had no electricity until 1962 or telephone until 1965!

The Birts, Burkes and Flemings were neighbours and good friends. Their children attended the one-room school beside the Birt farm. Mary Birt fondly remembers fishing for brook trout and gathering wild strawberries.

Farmlands like these are sought after by housing developers. With visionary planning, parcels of Cantley’s iconic landscapes can be set aside, to save and protect for future generations to learn from and enjoy.

This should be done for the sake of Cantley’s environment, for us, our children and for Cantley’s heritage.

The Ginns Ecological Gift is a good example of one way this can happen.