Notes:

Comments (1)
WILLIAMEWATSON42 added this on 4 Jan 2010:
Since 1992 when I initially acquired the Cunningham information relating to my family, there was controversy concerning Albert’s middle name, it had stated that it was Alexander, his dates also did not match.. Albert Abraham Cunningham, born 5 Jul 1876 in Whitchurch, York, Ontario, died 22 Nov 1933 in Simcoe, Ontario, son of George Cunningham & Mary Ellen Rankin, married 9 Dec 1903 in Simcoe, Ontario to Elizabeth Watson, born 26 Sep 1874 in North Orillia, Simcoe, Ontario, died Aug 1976 in Orillia, Simcoe, Ontario, daughter of William Watson & Elizabeth Montgomery, my great-grandparents. George & Mary Ellen had an eighth child named Allen Arthur, born 20 Jun 1882 in Simcoe, Ontario. George & Mary Ellen’s son Robert reportedly married 12 Jun 1888 in Simcoe, Ontario, to Catherine Amelia Robinson, from North Orillia, Simcoe, she was the daughter of Emile Robinson & Catherine M McInnis. George & Mary Ellen’s daughter Mary Isabella married 26 Dec 1900 in Simcoe to Oliver Burnet Patterson, son of Walter & Elizabeth Patterson. George & Mary Ellen’s son George R. married 29 Oct 1894 in Muskoka, Ontario to Neah Martha Gessin, daughter of John & Ann Gessin Albert Abraham Cunningham & Elizabeth Watson went on to have two sons, William George Cunningham, born 16 Apr 1905 in Lake St. George, Ontario, died Jan 1987 in Orillia, Ontario, married in Orillia to Millicent Rawn & Watson Albert Cunningham, born 18 Dec 1915 in Lake St. George, Ontario, died 6 Mar 1935 in Hamilton, Ontario.
My email is [email protected]

Albert married Elizabeth WATSON on 9 Dec 1903 in Simcoe, Ontario. Elizabeth (daughter of William WATSON and Elizabeth MONTGOMERY) was born on 26 Sep 1874 in North Orillia, Simcoe, Ontario; died in Aug 1976 in Orillia, Ontario. [Group Sheet] [Family Chart]

Notes:

Farmer, Whitchurch Township, York County, at time of marriage.
1871 census listing: Whitchurch Twp., York North, Division 1, page 29, microfilm C-9965.
1881 census listing: Matchedash & Orillia, Simcoe North District 139 sub-district N, page 74, household # 330.
1891 census listing: District 116, Simcoe East, subdistrict Orillia, archive roll T-6367.

His death record states that he died of senile dementia.

George married Mary Ellen RANKIN on 12 Sep 1861 in York County, Ontario. Mary (daughter of William RANKIN and Mary MAHOFFEY) was born on 5 Nov 1837 in Ireland; died on 25 Nov 1915 in Orillia, Ontario. [Group Sheet] [Family Chart]

Notes:

The Ontario County Marriage Registers 1858-1869 database shows TWO marriages on the same date (12 September 1861) for Mary H. Rankin, resident of Markham Township, age 24, in Haldimand County. One was to Levi Brillinger, age 26. The other was to George Cunningham. Both of these men were shown in the 1861 census for York County, Brillinger in Markham Township and Cunningham in Whitchurch Township. In the same census, Mary was shown living with her widowed mother in Whitchurch Township. Mary's parents were shown correctly on both marriage records as William and Mary. Curiously, both Brillinger's and Cunningham's parents were shown as William and Sarah. The record of the marriage to Brillinger was probably a clerical error. He and a wife named Anna were in the 1871, 1881, 1891 and 1901 York County censuses.

In the 1901 census, Mary was shown married to Robert Cunningham, living with son Albert A. Cunningham. Simcoe East, Orillia subdistrict, enumeration district h-4, page 12, line 35. Her year of immigration to Canada from Ireland was listed as 1840. This may have been a second, perhaps informal) marriage. There is no official record of it. Mary's first husband, George Cunningham, died in 1910 of senility, so perhaps he was in an institution. He was not found in the 1901 census.

In 1911 census, Mary was a widow, living with son-in-law, Oliver B. Patterson, daughter Mary E. and their son. Simcoe South Barrie subdistrict, enumeration district 25, page 1.

Mary Ellen's obituary stated that she came from County Antrim in Ireland.

William married Elizabeth MONTGOMERY. Elizabeth died in UNKNOWN. [Group Sheet] [Family Chart]

William married Sarah DOHERTY. Sarah was born in in Ireland; died in UNKNOWN. [Group Sheet] [Family Chart]

Notes:

The death record of William's son John and the burial record of his daughter Isabella stated that they were born in Antrim, Ireland. From this we may infer that the family came from that county.

There are two listings of a William Rankin in the 1828 Tithe Applotment Book in Antrim [PRONI ref. FIN/5/A/134 - in Dunluce Parish, one in Park townland, and the other in Ballyhome townland. A Hugh Rankin and a Thomas Rankin are also listed in Park townland. These tithe applotment records list no Mahaffeys. Dunluce Parish contains the spectacular ruins of Dunluce Castle situated on a rocky promentory overlooking the Atlantic Ocean.

The 1796 flaxgrowers bounty list includes: a Hugh Rankin in Ballyrashean Parish, 2 James Rankins in Dunluce Parish, a Thomas Rankin in Ballyrashean Parish and a William Rankin in Derrykeighan Parish.

1824-1827 Vestry minutes of the Church of Ireland parish of Dunluce, held in PRONI [MIC/1/90//1] mention a Hugh Rankin as a church warden. The following Rankin baptisms are also mentioned:
Jan. 16, 1814: John, son of James Rankin of Lisales, Billy.
July 7, 1817: Hugh, son of William Rankin of Park Mountain.
July 25, 1822: James, son of William Rankin of Ballyhome.

The 1901 census listing for William's son Abraham states that the family immigrated to Canada in 1842.

According to the biography of Frederic Fortescue Passmore in "Commemorative Biographical Record of the County of York, Ontario: containing biographical sketches of ..", J.H. Beers, Toronto, 1907:

".. Mr. Passmore married Miss Isabella Rankin, who belongs to a family long identified with County York, being a daughter of William and Mary (Mahoffey) Rankin, natives of Ireland, who came to Toronto at an early date, settling on Yonge Street, where Mr. Rankin owned a tract of land, and where both he and Mrs. Rankin died. Of their thirteen children, Mrs. Passmore and her sister Mrs. Cunningham, and one brother, Abraham Rankin, are the only survivors....".

A copy of William Rankin's will, dated Mar. 8, 1848, is among the personal papers of his son-in-law, Frederick Fortecue Passmore. He requested that his possessions and his farm, at Lot 10, Concession 1, in Whitchurch Twp., be sold to pay his debts and funeral expenses. The will lists his wife and his 11 children - William, Robert, James, John, Samuel, Margaret, Isabella, Daniel, George, Mary Ellen and Andrew.

In census and marriage records, many Rankins, probably from several families, were listed in Vaughan, Whitchurch and Markham Townships in York County in the mid-1800s. Among the marriages, with Rankin parents listed as William and Mary were:
John Rankin, b ~ 1824 in Ireland, m. Elizabeth Hope Nov. 26, 1879
Harriet Rankin, b. ~1846 in Canada m. James Cochrane, Aug. 1, 1868
Mary Jane Rankin, b. ~1842 in Ireland m. James Kelly, Jul 18, 1866
Samuel Rankin, b. 1830 in Ireland m. Ellen Sleightholm, Sep 25, 1861
Isabella H. Rankin b. 1833 in Ireland m. Frederick Fortescue Passmore, Aug. 4, 1859

Other Rankin marriages, for which parents were not listed included:
Elizabeth Rankin m. Daniel McPherson Feb. 13, 1834 witnesses: James Rankin and Esther Rankin
James Rankin m. Mary Sweetman Oct 21, 1836
Margaret Rankin m. James Stewart Dec 22, 1846 (1891 census shows her as b. ~1826 in Ireland)

The 1861 census for Whitchurch, York County (which includes upper Yonge Street), includes a Mary Rankin, age 60, widowed, born in Ireland, and living with her daughter Mary, age 22.

William married Mary MAHOFFEY. Mary was born about 1801 in Ireland; died on 11 Aug 1883 in Whitchurch, York Co., Ontario. [Group Sheet] [Family Chart]

Notes:

The maiden name of Isabella's mother comes from the article on Frederick F. Passmore in "Commemorative Biographical record of the County of York, Ontario", 1907. In Isabella's marriage record, her mother's surname is given as McKay.

There is a Mary Rankin listed in the 1853 Toronto tax assessment rolls - owning a 1 3/4 acre property on Queen St. West (west of Denison's Ave.) in St. Patrick's Ward.

The book "Inhabitants of York County, Ontario, 1850", by N.K. Crowder, lists Mrs. Rankin occupying Lot 70 Concession 1 in Whitchurch Township.

The 1861 census for Whitchurch, York County (which includes upper Yonge Street), includes a Mary Rankin, age 60, widowed, born in Ireland, and living with her daughter Mary, age 22.

In the York North 1871 census for the Whitchurch sub-district, there is a Mary Rankin listed, age 70 (b. ~1801), of Irish ethnic origin, Scotch Presbyterian religion. This is the same district as that of her daughter Mary and son-in-law George Cunningham.

The 1881 census for the Whitchurch sub-district of York North shows Mary Rankin, age 82, widow, Presbyterian, born in Ireland.

Mary Mahoffey Rankin died 11 Aug. 1883. Her probated will was as follows:
"I Mary Rankin of the Township of Whitchurch in the County of York, widow of William Rankin formerly of the same place, farmer, deceased, declare this to be my Last Will and Testament, hereby revoking all former wills and testamentary dispositions by me at any time heretofore made.
I devise and bequeath all of my estate real and personal to my son John Rankin of the Township of Trafalgar in the County of Halton his heirs and assigns, my personal estate consisting of some money and securities and household furniture and clothing, and my real estate of one acre of land with buildings thereon erected situate on the southwest corner of Lot number Ten on the east side of Yonge Street, in the Township of Whitchurch aforesaid upon [?] for the purposes following, namely FIRST to specifically divide my household furniture and clothing into six equal shares of as nearly equal value as possible and give one of each share to each of my six children now named, namely to himself, John Rankin, Margaret Stuart, wife of James Stuart of the Township of King, Isabella Passmore, wife of Fortescue [sic] Passmore of Toronto, Abraham Rankin of Barrie, Mary Ellen Cunningham, wife of George Cunningham of Whitchurch and Andrew Rankin whose residence is now unknown. SECOND, as speedily as possible to convert the remainder of my said estate which shall not consist of money, into money and after payment of my debts and general and testamentary expenses, to divide the balance thereof equally amongst my six children just named.
And I direct that if my son Andrew's residence is not certainly made known or came to the knowledge of my son John within three years after my decease, then that immediately after the expiration of such three years his share shall vest in and become the property of the other five of my said six children named and shall thereafter be divided amongst them by my said son John.
AND for the disposition sale or conversion into money of my real estate I give my said son John as full and absolute power and authority as he would have over the same were he the owner thereof in fee simple absolute without encumbrance
AND appoint my said son John Executor of this my will."
Mary X Rankin
(her mark)
The will was dated 15 Feb., 1876, and was witnessed by Joseph Rankin and William Rankin.

The will does not mention William, Samuel, Daniel, George, Robert or James as children of Mary Rankin. The will does mention Abraham, who was not listed in the earlier will of Mary's husband William.

The probate record shows the estate valued at about $169, of which real estate constituted about $100, and the rest personal goods.