A history of Pickford Area Pioneer Families Daniel Morrison

MC DOWELL (HIRAM)

Hiram McDowell was born August 22, 1854, in New Stead, New York, and came to Michigan in 1888. Hiram married Martha Brundson July 13, 1892. They had four children: Mildred, Norman, William Harold, Esther, and Robert.

MILDRED married George Leach. They had eight children: Dorothy Esther, Mildred, Ruby, Elwin, Ivan, Vern, and Howard. Mrs. Leach lives in Pickford.

WILLIAM HAROLD married Belle Nettleton. They had three children: Marvin, Freida, and Dale. Marvin married Shirley Rye and they live west of Pickford. They have four children: Carol, Bill, Charles, and Myrna. Freida (Mrs. Jack Howard) has four children: Esther, Elizabeth, Barbara, and Donna. Dale married Alice Jeske and they live in Rudyard. Their children are: Cindy, Candy, Robbie, Connie, and Randy. HAROLD died suddenly in 1971.

NORMAN was born Sept. 27, 1894, and died in Oct., 1970. He married Mary Bawks and they had two daughters: Lorraine, a missionary in Chad, Africa; and Donna (Mrs. George Andrews) of Flint. A few years after Mary's death, Norman married Jennie Beckham.

ROBERT married Alvina Moore and lives in Sault Ste. Marie. They have three children: Vera (Mrs. Harold Barclay), Robert, and Harvey.

ESTHER (Mrs. Anderson) lives in Marquette.

MC DOWELL (LEONARD)

Leonard McDowell came to Michigan in 1896 from Westfield, Ontario. He bought bush land: in the Pickford area and cleared enough land for some crops, garden, and a house which he built. He later returned to Canada and married Mary Jane Mitchell. They then returned to Michigan. Their four children were Gertrude, Elmer, Orton, and Della.

GERTRUDE married Lewis Harrison. They had seven sons: Elwood (deceased); Maitland; Lewis Jr., Howard, Carlvle, Gerald, and Clifford. Mr. Harrison died in 1919. In 1925 she married

Robert Thompson and they had one daughter, Audrey (Mrs. Roland Hill, Jr.). Robert Thompson died December 25, 1972.

ELMER married Edith Rye. They had six children: Glen, Leonard, Clayton,and Clvde (twins), Vern, and Phyllis (Mrs. Gerald Ehle) who all live in Rudyard.

ORTON married Gladys Wilson. They have a son, Russel, who married Arla McConkey. They had four children: Betty, Alan, Evan, and Larry (deceased).

DELLA married Orville Bawks and they have two children, Alvin and Mary (Mrs. Robert Howell).

MC INNIS (DONALD)

Donald (Dan) McInnis was born in Derby Township, Canada on October 26, 1870 to Neil and Flora McInnis. He has four brothers and three sisters: John, Neil, Jr., George, Charles, Cassie, Jennie and Barbara.

This family moved from Canada to a farm two miles north and one half mile west of Pickford. Donald married Lydea Margaret Denny, a daughter of William and Maria Denny, on June 23, 1909. Their children Hector Donald, Elton Webster, Osborne Neil were born while this family lived on Lizzie Street in Pickford. They moved to their home near the Fair grounds where their three daughters Leola Marie, Bernice Flora and Ervadean Isabelle were born.

Donald owned a Confectionary and Ice Cream Store in the village for a while. After he sold this store he was a contractor and builder. He also was an auctioneer. Later he bought a Grocery Store. He built a church four miles east of Pickford where the family attended for four years. Later Donald was Superintendent of the Presbyterian Sunday School for nine years. He was Chaplain of the Loyal Orange Lodge for ten years.

The Donald McInnis family lived in Pickford for sixteen years. They moved to Gardenville where he went into farming. Two sons were born to them there: Neil, Jr. and James Davis.

Their son Osborne died from scarlet fever in June 1920. Donald died May 24, 1934, and Lydea died in June 1958.

MC KENZIE

Duncan McKenzie was born in Scotland, the son of Donald McKenzie. His brothers were Dan, James, John, and William. Duncan came alone to Canada and was a blacksmith by trade at Lauti, Ontario. He married Annie Daley who was born in Paikhill, Ontario. She had five brothets, Petet, George, Jud, John, and Alex, and three sisters, Catherine, Emily, and Ellen.

There were three children born in Canada to Duncan and Annie: Alex, Lillian, and Adelia. Then they moved to a homestead in Stirlingville about 1878. Duncan cleared the land, farmed, and did some blacksmithing. Two more children were born to them here, Judson and Alvin.

They sold their farm to their son, Alvin, and moved to Pickford in 1917, and lived there until about 1923, when they moved to Sault Ste. Marie. Duncan died in 1933 and Annie in 1938.

ALEX married Clara Nixon and had one son, Cyril, who died in 1934. Clara died when Cyril was a baby and Alex later married Sarah Parks and they had one daughter, Stella. ALEX died in 1938.

LILLIAN married Alfred Rowse and had three children, Velma, Glen and Opal. She died in 1948.

ADELIA married Newman Brundson and lived west of Pickford on what is now the Howard Leach farm. They had three children, Elgin, Elva, and Verna. They later moved to Sault Ste. Marie and ADELIA died in 1945.

JUDSON married Mary Violet Graham and settled on the farm north of there homestead in Stirlingville. They had eight children: Minard married Hazel Greer and has two children, Wayne and Kay. Wayne has two sons, Michael and David.* Kay has two daughtets, Lisa and Julie.* Marion married Albert Walker and has one son, Lloyd. Lloyd has three sons, William, Robert, and Jack.* William has three children. Bernice married Robert Kerr and has four children, Betty, Elva, Gail, and Sonny. Betty married Floyd Bricker and has four children, Elva married Vern Tomkins ans has two children, Gail married Louie Mayer and has ten children, and Sonny has three children. merle married Edwin Harrison (deceased in 1955) and has three children, Theora, Patricia, and Lynn. Theora maried Arvid Hamilton and has three children, Joni, Kevin, and Kurtis.* Patricia married Don Stevenson and has two children, Chris and Sheldon.* Lynn married Vernon Dumbeck and has one child, Kristin.* Merle is now Mrs. Charles Wilson. Cora married Herb Dewitt and has two children, Fonda and Carol. Fronda has one child. Carol has four children. Cora is now Mrs. E.O. Hubbard. Violet married Robert McMurray and has five children. (Robert is deceased). Bonnie has two children, Deanna has three, James has two, Mary has two, and Cheryl has one. Violet is now Mrs. Don Flansburgh. Eva married Arnold McMurray and has two children, Don and Paul. Don has one child. Elda married Elliott Cottle and has three children, Richard, Dennis, and Marjorie. Richard married Marcie Hansen. Marjorie married Dale Williams, and they have one child, Chad.*

ALVIN married Jessie Hill and bought the homestead and lived there until a few years ago, when he built a house in Pickford and moved to town. He later built another house near Cedarville, but then returned to Pickford where he died in 1971. Alvin and Jessie had seven children. Leta (Mrs. Kinnee Ames) has three children. Fred married Charlene Nayback and they have a boy and a girl and they live in Flint. Joyce (Mrs. Hexey) also lives in Flint and has two children. Shelley is at their home east of Pickford. Alvina (Mrs. Frank Zqolinski) lives west of Pickford on what was the George Sterling farm. They have two children: Wayne, who lives on Mackinac Island and is married to the former Joann Sayers; and Karen (Mrs.Weedman) of Dallas, Texas. Verna and John Zwolinski have five children. Johnette (Mrs. Wayne Shoberg) has three sons, Russell, Tom, and John*. Bonnie is married to Randy Harrison and lives in Pickford. Marion (Mrs. Norman Avery) lives in gary, Indiana, where Alan is also working. Barbara is at home. Jean (Mrs. Wallace Beacom) lives southwest of Pickford and has six children. Ann (Mrs. Ed Sernes) jas rpir children. William married Rhonda Bennett had they have one girl. Darlene died in 1947. Nadinelives in Chicago with her husband, George Pollard, and has six children. Keith Wayne (Duncan) married Edith Kennedy and lives in California. They have three children, Patsy, Ricky, and Penny.