A history of Pickford Area Pioneer Families Daniel Morrison

GRAHAM

Mr. and Mrs. William Graham, with their three children, Emma, Georgina, and James, settled three miles north of Pickford about 1880. A brother, James, and a sister; Mrs. Robert Bawks, had come in 1879. Mr. Graham died in 1912 and Mrs. Graham in 1930, Mrs. Graham's parents, Mr. and Mrs. George Smith, with a granddaughter, Lottie (Mrs. Hugh McDonald), came over a few years later and settled four miles north and two miles west of Pickford.

In addition to the three children that the Grahams brought with them Garfield, Victoria, Isabelle, Mary Violet (Lottie), Elsie, and Otto were born in Pickford.

EMMA married Thomas Sanderson and settled north of Pickford. They had one daughter and three sons. Their son, William, and grandson, William, Jr., farmed in the Pickford area. Mts. Sanderson died in 1959 and William, Sr. in September 1972.

GEORGINA married Fred Atkinson and settled in Sault Ste. Marie. They had seven children. She died in 1932.

JAMES married Alta Rich and moved to Belding, Michigan, where he died in 1954.

GARFIELD married Orivia Roe. They had two children, Helen and Clayton. Helen (Mrs. Merlin Lyons) lives in Colorado Springs, Colorado, and had two sons and four grandchildren. Clayton married Rita McCarthy. They have no children and live in Flint, Michigan. Garfield farmed on the south half of the original homestead until after Olivia's death in 1921. Then for a number of years, he carried mail between Pickford and Sault Ste. Marie. He then worked for the State Highway Department and Chippewa Road Commission, a position he held until his death in December, 1949. In 1929 Garfield married Hannah Follis, a teacher. They had two children, Illa Mae and James. Illa Mae married Jack Nettleton and lives in Pickford. They have one son, James married Velma Ames and lives in Flushing, Michigan. They have three children: Jeffery, Lisa, and Steven.

VICTORIA (deceased) married Ernest Booth and had two children.

ISABELLE married John Haugh and had one son, Spencer. She died in 1966.

MARY VIOLET married Judson McKenzie. She had one son and seven daughters, all living. Elda (Mrs. Elliott Cottle) and Merle (Mrs. Charles Wilson) are the only ones in Pickford. A number of years after Judson McKenzie's death, she married a brother-in-law, David Batho. After his death, she made her home with her daughter, Merle, for a few years prior to her death in 1962.

ELSIE (Mrs. David Batho) died in 1948. She had eight children. William David was killed in Africa during World War II. Isabelle (Mrs. Lloyd McDonald) is deceased. Wilna (Mrs. Melbourne McDonald) lives in Rudyard. Beatrice (Mrs. Eldred Rye) lives in Pickford. Janice (Mrs. Mervin Lockhart) lives in Pickford. Shirley (Mrs. Clifford Harrison) lives in Pickford. (Mrs. Wayne Storey) and Phyllis (Mrs. Orries Huyck) live in Pickford also.

OTTO married Eva Jane Rye and they had three children: Duane, Chalta, and Raeone. Duane married Kathleen Taylor and has five boys. He is Registrar at Lake Supetior State College in Sault Ste. Marie. Chalta married Lamar Hillock and they live in Ohio. Their children are Nyla, Christine, Nolan and Myron. Raeone married James Robbins and lives in Pellston. They have three children: Scott, Betsy Jo, and Mark. OTTO remained on the home farm until 1931 when he moved to town and carried mail between Pickford and Sault Ste. Marie until 1946. He then worked for the County Road Commission until his death in 1958. He was the Pickford Township Clerk from 1922 until his death. Eva died in 1967.

GRAY

Thomas Gray, Sr., and wife, Mary, came to Michigan in 1881. They owned a dairy farm in Rawdon, Quebec. He left Canada because the public schools had closed. Arriving in Sault Ste. Marie, he found property could be bought cheap. The boat crews and lumberjacks were filling the streets and drinking and fighting were the favorite pastimes. It was not to the liking of a man hunting a home for himself, his wife, and ten children. He then went to Jolly's Landing on the boat, Northern Belle, and proceeded on foot to his wife's cousin's home in Stalwart - - the Reynolds and O'Brien families he knew in Canada. Thomas then filed a homestead claim on a piece of land on the Sand Ridge and sent for his wife and ten children, The children ranged in age from 5-year-old Edward to 25-year-old Mary plus James, Andrew, Robert, Thomas, Jr., Anna, George, Elizabeth, and Jane. The stay on the homestead was of three years' duration - they found a better location at Stirlingville and bought a tract of land from James Hill (railroad people) at Stirlingville. The new home was quickly built of logs and was besides that of Mother Gray's brother, Gabriel Kerr. A spring of water was handy, a navigable river close by, a school and Presbyterian Church under construction, and also land the boys might buy. Thomas Gray, Sr., had the misfortune to lose his arm in a shake mill while making shakes for his roof. How his grandchildren enjoyed the shakes used as toboggans in winter! About 1891 Thomas, Sr., died. He had established a cemetery on his land for his family. It was high and dry, he said. He was the first to be buried in it. Three days after his funeral, his only granddaughter, Mary (ROBERT's daughter), was buried beside him. ELIZABETH GRAY HILL was interred soon after.

JAMES, ANDREW, and ROBERT settled close to the homestead. THOMAS, JR., took over the home place at his father's death. The young Gray adults soon began to marry and established their own homes. MARY became Mrs. William Wiggins. JAMES married Cassie Daley.

ANDREW married Kathleen Walker. They had one son, Earl, who died in 1917. Later, he went to Oregon and married a widow with six children.

ROBERT married Letitia D'Arcy. They had eight children. Two boys and three girls are deceased. Edna Gray Lakenen lives in Hazel Park. Ethel Gray Fountain lives in Pickford, as did Ada Gray Sweeney until her death in July, 1972. Lula Gray Wahl lives in Sault Ste. Marie. Robert Gray was the Stirlingville postmaster from 1910 until 1916.

THOMAS, JR., married Almina Tripp. They had nine children. Merle Gray Massey lives in Detroit. Ruby Gray Rader lives on the Pickford Road. Myttle Gray Barnes lives in Fibre. Evelyn Gray Kiernan lives in California. Hazel, Mary (Minnie), Charles, Henry, and Anna are deceased.

ANNA married Nelson Wiggins and went to the Dakotas to live.

GEORGE didn't like Michigan winters, so he went to Oregon.

ELIZABETH married Alexander Hill and went to live on their farm nearby.

JANE married David Mulle, and taking her mother with her, went to Oregon to, live. Mary Gray never returned to Michigan, but died at Jane's home at the age of 96.

EDWARD GRAY married Bertha Dodds and they had six children. Elsie Gray Townsend lives in Port Huron; Earl and Ervin in Pickford; Erma Gray Nelson and Cora Oulette in Sault Ste. Matie; Delia is deceased and Earl is at home. Today Bertha Gray and son, Earl, ate the only Grays residing in the Stirlingville area.