Debbie James, a descendant of Catherine Milsap, writes the following:
“You are probably wondering why Catherine and Francis went west in
their sunset years. A large contingent of families from Sundridge,
Parry Sound, were convinced to go west. The land they were trying to
farm wasn’t any good and they were promised fertile, cheap land in the
Northwest Territories. The Hacketts were among those that went west.
Anne Jane and Walter Lett Hackett (also in the golden years), went west
on April 13, 1892, with their four sons, Alexander, Joseph, James and
William John (including two sets of wives and children), and three of
their daughters, Lucy, Eliza and Jane (including their husbands and
children), headed to what is now Lamont, Alberta to homestead. The
fourth daughter Ellen (Eleanor) had died, I suspect in childbirth, as
she was a relatively new bride. James Hackett was
married to Jennie Milsap and William John Hackett was engaged to
Margaret Milsap at the time. So in 1893, Francis and Catherine
accompanied Margaret west to join her fiance and to meet up with
Jennie. They decided to stay, the story goes, because Catherine was a
midwife and her older children were for the most part finished having
babies, but they knew there would be lots of babies in the new
settlement and no medical resources. Catherine looked after everyone’s
medical needs until she passed away suddenly. Her son-in-law William
Hackett donated a piece of his property for a cemetery. Catherine’s was
the first burial in Hackett Cemetery. Today the cemetery has been
deeded to the Lamont United Church and is now Lamont United Church
Cemetery.”
