Edward George Campbell and Vera Hannah Campbell (nee McMurray)

Edward was born in 1863 in Portadown, Armagh County, Northern Ireland.  He went by the nickname “Paddy”.  He died Sep 13, 1949.

Hannah was born Oct 10, 1884 in Lisdown, Parish of Eglish, Eglish, Northern Ireland.  She was christened Nov 23, 1884 at the Church of Eglish, Parish of Eglish, County Armagh, Northern Ireland.  Hannah died Oct 17, 1959.

Edward and Hannah died in New Liskeard and are buried in the Pioneer Cemetery in New Liskeard, Ontario, Canada.  The headstone reads “In Memory of Edward G. Campbell 1863 – 1949 Hannah Campbell 1884 – 1959 Asleep in Jesus”Edward Campbell was orphaned at an early age. He was passed around between relatives and never knew his parents or his birthday. Edward Campbell was married in Ireland. No family records or children known from this first marriage. Edward remarried to Hannah McMurray in Ireland.

Edward (age 51) and Hannah (age 30) came to Canada separately in 1914 from Armagh, Ireland.  Edward came in the spring and Hannah followed a few months later with four children, Johanna (age 5), Georgina (age 4), and twins Joshua and Samuel. 

Edward was saved in 1935 at the age of 73.  It made a big change in his life.  He came home and tossed his pipe and tobacco up onto the top of a cabinet.  Years later, after his death, the family found them when cleaning.

Edward was a child labourer in Ireland from the age of six.  He was orphaned at an early age and passed around between relatives.  He had no education but after he was saved God taught him to read.  He spent hours in the bible and never read anything else.

Edward (Paddy) Campbell worked for Levi Smith (father of Gordon and Chester) when he arrived in Heaslip, Ontario. He got off the train when he realized that he was on the wrong train.  He had intended to settle in western Canada but wound up in Northern Ontario by accident. 

The Memorial Stone

There is a memorial stone in the Englehart cemetery that reads:

In Loving Memory of

Joseph Edward

Alfred Stuart

Mary Johanna

Samuel William

Campbell

Gone but not forgotten

We do not have a record of a Joseph Edward Campbell but Georgina McRoberts (nee Campbell) remembers her parents talking of a baby that died.  She was not sure if the baby died in Ireland, as she was four years old when the family came to Canada.

Alfred Stuart Campbell, called Stuart, died of pneumonia at age 6 to 8 months old, just before the 1922 fire.

Mary Johanna Campbell, called Johanna, was born deaf in 1909.  She died Oct. 4, 1922 in the 1922 fire.  With a huge fire coming the family tried to get the little ones to safety in the river.  Johanna ran into a root cellar and suffocated there. 

Samuel William Campbell, called Sam, was a quiet Christian man.  He died at the age of twenty at Rouyn, Quebec in a railway accident.  He was working on the railway at the time. 

 The Chronology

Edward George Campbell and Hannah McMurray were married in Ireland. 

• 1909 Mary Johanna Campbell was born deaf in Ireland
• Aug. 4, 1910 – Georgina Septima Campbell was born in Ireland
• Twins Joshua and Samuel William were born in Ireland
• 1914 the family came to Canada from Armagh, Ireland
• 1914 – Anthony was born in Canada
• Feb. 11, 1916 – Colleen Rita Campbell was born
• 1918 – Thomas George Campbell was born
• Feb. 22, 1920 – Elizabeth Ruth Campbell was born
• 1922 – Alfred Stuart Campbell was born
• 1922 – Alfred Stuart Campbell died of pneumonia (age 6 – 8 months)
• Oct 4, 1922 – Mary Johanna Campbell died in the 1922 fire
• Oct. 4, 1922 – Georgina Septima Campbell was suffered a serious spinal injury
• Early 1930s – Samuel William Campbell killed in railway accident (age 20)
• Feb. 14, 1941 – Elizabeth Ruth Campbell married Frederick Joseph Harman
• Sep. 13, 1949 – Edward George Campbell died (age 87)
• Oct. 17, 1959 – Hannah Campbell died (age 75)

The Children of Edward George Campbell and Hannah McMurray

 Georgina (Gina) Septima Campbell had suffered a severe spinal injury during the 1922 fire and had spent a long time recovering in a Toronto hospital before returning home.  Georgina married Charles (Charlie) McRoberts.  They had a daughter Betty Ann McRoberts.

• Joshua (Josh) Campbell married Myrtle Webster.
• Anthony (Tony) Campbell married Eileen Smith.
• Colleen Rita Campbell married George Stephenson on Oct. 2, 1948 at the Salvation Army Hall in New Liskeard, Ontario.  They did not have any children.
• Thomas George Campbell married Una Howard.
• Elizabeth (Lily) Ruth Campbell married Fredrick (Fred) Joseph Harman.