Bruce County Genealogical Society - Arran Township
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Bruce County Genealogical Society

Box 1083, Port Elgin, Ontario, Canada N0H 2C0

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Arran Township

A map of Arran Township can be found on the Bruce County GenWeb website. Arran Township was named after the Island of Arran, Scotland.


Arran Township Places

  • Arran - the 1st post office, opened in 1853. Later renamed Invermay.

  • Arkwright - a post office and hamlet on the 7th Concession. The post office opened in 1857.

  • Burgoyne - a post office and hamlet on the townline of Arran and Saugeen. It is the crossroads of the Elora and Saugeen  Road (County Road 3) and the Saugeen and Owen Sound Road (County Road 17).

  • Eblana - a post office established in 1862 at Tara. The post office's name was changed to Tara a year later.

  • Grimston - a post office that was originally established in 1884 in Sullivan Township of Grey County, but was moved to the 1st Concession of Arran in 1900.

  • Invermay - A post office and village on the 7th Concession, a mile south of the village of Tara. Was previously the Arran post office; renamed in 1859. The village lots were surveyed in 1855.

    Invermay Methodist CemeteryInvermay Methodist Cemetery 
    Mausette family cemeteryMausette family cemetery, southeast of Invermay

     

  • Mount Hope - a hamlet on the 2nd Concession.

    Mount Hope CairnCairn in Mount Hope cemetery:  "Erected to the memory of the pioneer settlers of the Mount Hope area"
    Mount Hope United ChurchMount Hope church

     

  • Tara - the township's principal town, located on the 8th Concession. It was named for the seat of royalty in County Meath, Ireland. Although the town was settled in the 1850s, its post office was not established until 1862, and was initially named 'Eblana'.

    Tara main streetTara main street
    Founding of Tara PlaqueFounding of Tara plaque
    Tara Christ Church Anglican Cemetery RecordTara Christ Church Anglican Cemetery Record
    Tara Christ Church Anglican Cemetery Record namesTara Christ Church Anglican Cemetery Record (click on photo to read names)

     

  • West Arran - A post office north of Burgoyne, opened in 1853. Originally, it was on the east side of the Elora and Saugeen Road, in Arran Township, but later it was moved to the west side of the Elora and Saugeen Road, in Saugeen Township.


Arran Township Notable People

William Augustus Gerolamy operated a fanning mill at Tara. He patented improvements in fanning mill technology, and won prizes at the World's Fairs at Philadelphia, Paris and Chicago. The Department of Agriculture, Ottawa, granted him patent of invention No. 2406 for a "Fanning-Mill-Maker, an improved fanning mill" on January 7th, 1868.

Robert Leith 'Dinny' Hanbidge, barrister and politician, had roots in both Southampton and Arran Township. His father was a blacksmith and carriage maker in Southampton, and also owned a farm in Arran Township. 'Dinny' Hanbidge was mayor of Kerrobert, Saskatchwewan - see an early biographical sketch in The Story of Saskatchewan and Its People.  He was member of parliament for the riding of Kindersley, Saskatchewan from 1958 to 1963. He was Lieutenant Governor of Saskatchewan from March 1, 1963  to February 2, 1970. He died on July 25, 1974. A biography, Dinny: R. L. Hanbidge, 12th lieutenant governor of Saskatchewan (AMICUS No. 9855693) was published.

Hon. Sir William Howard Hearst, Premier of Ontario, was born in Arran Township in 1864. He was Premier from 1914 to 1919.  

Isabella Hendry Macmillan, raised in Arran Township, was a prominent Christian Scientist pastor and teacher. She married John Stewart, who was also active in the church. She died in 1912. Her biography appears in the Dictionary of Canadian Biography Online.

Mary MacNeill, born about 1859, was raised in Arran Township. Her family was from the Isle of Colonsay, Scotland.  She was one of Canada's early female physicians. Her biography appears in the Dictionary of Canadian Biography Online.

Frederick W. 'Cyclone' Taylor, born in Tara in 1885, was inducted into the Hockey Hall of Fame in 1947. He died in 1979.

Cyclone Taylor plaque in TaraCyclone Taylor plaque in Tara

Bibliography

A History of the Village of TaraA History of the Village of Tara: on the Hundredth Anniversary of the Settlement  by Bruce Miller, 1951. Amicus No. 80462

 

 

 

History of the County of Bruce by Norman Robertson, 1906. Available online.

Light through the years : 125 years with Knox Presbyterian Church, Burgoyne, 1862-1987 and Dunblane Presbyterian Church by the Burgoyne Historical Society, 1987. Amicus No. 7250382

Reflections of Arran, 1852-1982 by the Arran Township Historical Society, 1982. Amicus No. 4708213

Tara Before 1981 by Bruce A. Miller, 1980. See Publications page.

Tara United Church by the History Committee, 1975. Amicus No. 66571


 

Bruce County's Townships (before  1998 amalgamations)

Albemarle Township
Colpoy's Bay United Church, Colpoy's Bay, Albemarle Township, Bruce County

Amabel Township
Wiarton, Amabel Township, Bruce County

Arran Township
Christ Church Anglican Cemetery Record, Tara, Arran Township, Bruce County

Brant Township
Walkerton town clock, Walkerton, Brant Township, Bruce County

Bruce Township
Underwood United Church, Underwood, Bruce Township, Bruce County

Carrick Township
Mildmay church, Mildmay, Carrick Township, Bruce County

Culross Township
Salem United Church, Culross Township, Bruce County

Eastnor Township
Barrow Bay, Eastnor Township, Bruce County

Elderslie Township
Memorial plaque, hamlet of Williscroft, Elderslie Township, Bruce County

Greenock Township
Plaque, village of Pinkerton, Greenock Township, Bruce County

Huron Township
Huron Township Hall, Ripley, Huron Township, Bruce County

Kincardine Township
Mural, village of Tiverton, Kincardine Township, Bruce County

Kinloss Township


Lindsay Township
War Memorial, Lindsay Township, Bruce County

Saugeen Township
Dunblane Presbyterian Church, Saugeen Township, Bruce County

St. Edmunds Township

Lighthouse, Tobermory, St. Edmunds Township, Bruce County
Bruce County Genealogical Society
PO Box 1083, Port Elgin, Ontario, Canada N0H 2C0
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