A history of Pickford Area Pioneer Families Daniel Morrison

MAC DONALD (ISAAC)

Nellie Davis was born in Ireland of Scottish parents about 1778. Neilly in Donegal, Ireland. He was born in 1762-in Scotland. To them were born two sons and three daughters: William, Jane, Ann, Helen, and Andrew.Ann was born in 1803 in Donegal, Ireland.

She married John MacDonald, son of James MacDonald and Maria David MacDonald of Belleshanery, Ireland. John was a carpenter, as was his father. In those days it was popular to spin and Ann's spinning wheel is still owned by the MacDonald family. John was barn in 1809 and they were married in 1827 when she was 23 and he was 19. They had nine childten, five born in Ireland and four born in Canada. Only well-to-do people had shoes then, so John bought the maid a pair to wear when she took the children for a walk.

John MacDonald decided to come to Canada and sailed from Glasgow in 1844. He and his wife brought the two youngest children, leaving the three oldest with their Grandmother McNeilly. Grandfather McNeilly was very ill and they thought he would not live. So his wife said she would come to Canada after his death. But he recovered and she died. It was 13 years later that they came over to Canada.

It was 7 weeks on the voyage. They encountered fields of ice that nearly cut the vessel. They arrived in New Richmond, Bay Cheleur County, Bonaventure, Quebec on May 30, 1842. They moved 30 miles up the bay to Escuminac and settled on a farm. He also worked in a shipyard at Oak Point. Some of the rails he cut to build a fence are still on the farm, but the buildings are gone.

WILLIAM, the oldest son, received his educiation in the University of Belfast, Ireland, and came to Canada in 1855. After he was through school he worked for $1.00 per month to earn enough to come to Canada. He was 13 weeks coming across. He taught school after arriving in Canada, boarding a week in each home for part of the teaching salary. In 1856 he married Margaret Forbes in Dalhousie, New Brunswick. Her parents came from England and Scotland. He continued teaching after buying a farm which his wife lived on and cared for the children. Isaac, the second child, was born November 18, 1860 in the town of Escuminac, New Brunswick. He was named after his great grandfather, Isaac McNeilly. He had four sisters and three brothers.

William taught his children to read and write before they attended school. When Isaac was scarcely in his teens, he drove oxen and helped cultivate the land. The oxen's names were Buck and Bright. William still taught school at this time. Five of the children were born in New Brunswick and three in Upper Canada. John MacDonald died in Escuminac and Ann moved to Upper Canada with her son, William. He was a bookkeeper for his brother-in-law, who was a lumberman.

In 1879 they moved to Pickford, where they lived on a farm two and one-quarter miles south of Pickford. Ann MacDonald came with them. She died at the age of 93 and is buried in Bethel Cemetety. WILLIAM died in 1907 and Margaret in 1910. They are both buried in Bethel Cemetery.

Isaac took up a homestead at Rockview, located one mile west and one-half south of Rockview, which he partly cleared and farmed. Later he moved to a farm one and one-half miles south of Pickford. He married Eliza Rye of Pickford. They had four children and one adopted child. The four children were Sarah Elizabeth, a minister, who married Rev. James H. James; William Richard, who married Myrtle Mitchell; Hope Ethel, who married Simon Parker; James Albert who married Katie Galer, several years after Katie's death, Bert married Helen Nash; and Lucille Werve the adopted daughter.

Isaac MacDonald made maple syrup on the homestead at Rockview in an open kettle late 1880's. The Bert McDonalds still make syrup, but use an evaporator now. The syrup has gone to several places in Africa, Japan, Alaska, India, England, Germany, Philippines, Australia, Canada, and almost all of the states in the United States. Bert has the deed for the homestead that his father, Isaac, took up in the 80's signed by President Benjamin Harrison.

Isaac was Highway Commissioner of Marquette Township for several years. When they moved from the homestead to the farm south of Pickford in 1890, the Swamp Road 3/4 mile long was all corduroy built by Long John White and sons.

William married Myrtle Mitchell and they had four children. Davis*- was killed in service. Gloria* (Mrs. David Swick) lives in Waterloo, Iowa, and has three children. Dale* lives in California and has three children.

Bert has four children: Gertrude, Edwin, Marvin, and James*. Edwin* marriede Myrtle Crawford and they have five children. Richard** married Shelby Miller from Fitchburg, Massachusetts, and they have one son, Sean***. richard is still in the service in Fort Riley, Kansas. Frances** married James Wood and is teaching in Warren, Michigan. Brian, Beverly, and Robert** are at home. Marvin* married Virgene Cottle and they have three children: Carol Ann(Mrs.Larry Whitson), Wayne, and Steve**. Wayne recently married Ruth Waybrant.

Hope, Lucille and Sarah are deceased.

MAC DONALD (I. D.)

Isaac D. MacDonald, the oldest son of Mr. and Mrs. James MacDonald, was born in Tiega, Ontario, June 3, 1880. The family moved to Michigan, arriving in the Soo on Sunday, August 18, 1886, on the steamer Campana. They brought all of their household goods, one team of horses, some cows, and a complete sawmill with them. This was the first circular sawmill in the Upper Peninsula. They settled on a farm five miles north of Pickford where they ran the saw mill and also farmed.

I.D. MacDonald was married December 24, 1895, to Augusta Mae Rowse, daughter of Mr. and Mrs. John Rowse, who were also early pioneer settlers in Chippewa County. Mr. Rowse carried mail to the Soo in those early days by horseback, making one trip a week. Of this marriage there were six children: COLETTE (Mrs.Henry A. Hermann, now living in Detroit); HOWARD, who is married to the former Lois Armstrong and living in the Soo; IRENE, now living in Detroit; ETTA

Mrs. Norman J. Love, living in the Soo); BURNETT (BUD), who is married to Jo Donnelly and living in Rudyard. One child, WILLIAM ALFRED, died in infancy.

Mr. MacDonald worked with his father in the mill north of Pickford, and when his father retired, he bought the mill and moved it to Pickford. This was in 1907. in 1909 fire completely destroyed the mill, but Mr. MacDonald rebuilt it, adding a planing mill to the original plant. Then in 1914, the mill was again destroyed by fire. With only $300 insurance available, because of lack of protection from fire at th0at time, he again rebuilt and climbed to the top. In 1932 a branch lumber yard was est0ablished at Rudyard under the management of his son, Bud. That same year M. MacDonald built a shingle mill 4 miles north of Pickford and continued to operate both mills until he retired. He sold the Pickford mill to his son, Howard, who owned and operated it until 1949, when he sold it to Howard Beacom. Howard retained the retail lumber yard which he moved to a location on M-129 in 1947. He sold it to Babcock in 1964, who later sold to Taylor and it is now called the Cashway Lumber.

The lumber yard in Rudyard burned to the ground April 1, 1940, and was immediately rebuilt by Bud MacDonald. It was destroyed by fire April, 1947, and again rebuilt. It burned again in 1970 and was not rebuilt.

Mr. MacDonald died December 25, 1949, and was preceded in death by his wife who died on October 13 of the same year.