INTRODUCTION


This site is a reproduction of the 1994 publication by Roy McGilvray, entitled 'Cumberland Pioneers'. The book listed every known settler who was in Cumberland prior to c1875. All available sources (except deeds) were indexed by name and location in order to assist any researcher tracing an ancestor in this twp. Deeds were not included because its alphabetical index was often illegible and it was comprised mainly of mortgage holders. It was also believed most land owners would show up on at least one of the other sources. Comments would be appreciated from those who know of exceptions or who have found other Cumberland sources that should be included in later versions.

Much difficulty was experienced with the considerable variation in name spelling. This was especially true of French names which were usually written phonetically by anglophones. As well, consistent spelling was not considered important in the days when few people could read or write, and different versions were often used, sometimes even in the same document. eg) Macdonell, McDonell, McDonald. Comments on serious errors, that persist, would also be appreciated.

The 3 sections of this book stand alone; but, are inter-related in order to assist those who know only a name or only a location.

Hopefully, one day such an index will be available for all Ontario twp's, and then family research here will be simple.