The following is a history, in genealogy format, of the descendants of James KEYES and Hester GARLAND as far as I have been able to compile to date.

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The majority of this work was copied directly from a photo copy of “Genealogical Record, Family of JAMES KEYES – HESTER GARLAND 1818-1936”. If anyone knows the author of this work I would very much like to acknowledge them for the wonderful work that was done while compiling this record.

The KEYES family does not have a direct ancestral connection but has been included because so many of James and Hester's descendants marry into the families that we have researched. The following paragraphs have been copied directly from the history mentioned above.

James KEYES came to Canada from Carlow, Carlow County, Ireland in the year 1818 and settled in the Township of Beckwith, County of Lanark, Ontario. He was one of the early settlers and had the distinction of erecting the first shingled house in that township. In 1822 he married Hester GARLAND .

Hester GARLAND was the eldest daughter of John GARLAND who came from Leighlinbridge, Carlow County, Ireland, this being the same neighborhood from which James KEYES came. He first settled in Derry, Beckwith Township, County of Lanark but later moved to Gouldborne Township, Carleton County, residing near Dwyer Hill. From an old registry book in Leighlinbridge, Ireland it is recorded that John GARLAND frequently held the position of Church Warden. Also that he married Eliner BUTLER, who was descendant from the Duke of Ormond who was beheaded in the reign of Queen Ann. They had fifteen children and left Ireland in 1819, except the two eldest boys who came to Canada at a later date. The names of the family being; Thomas, Patrick, Richard, Nicholas, William, James, Edward, John, Hester, Betty, Margaret, Maria, Anne, Ellen and Matilda.

James KEYES came to Bruce County with his family, with the exception of two girls, Mary and Clara, in 1855 and settled on Lot 5, Concession 17, Greenock Township. Hester died in the autumn of 1858 and James in may of 1868. They are both buried in the English Cemetery in Cargill, Ontario.

Clara (1823-1892) married Tomas KIDD who came to Canada from Dublin, Ireland in 1822. They had a family of twelve and stayed in the Lanark, Carleton area.

Thomas (1824-1895) graduated from Normal School of Upper Canada on October 15, 1849 with first class honors in all subjects. He married Jane BROWN who came from Ireland to Queenston, Ontario. Thomas visited Bermuda in 1880 for the benefit of his health. He was for many years County Treasurer of Lincoln County, Ontario. Thomas and Jane had a family of seven.

John (1826-1896) came to Greenock Township with his parents and married Elizabeth SAUNDERS. John and Elizabeth farmed on Lot 8, Con. 16 of Greenock Twp. and had a family of thirteen. Their daughter Jane married Henry James MOONEY had a son David Percy who married Agnes MOFFAT . Agnes and David can be found on the William RITCHIE & Jane ELLIOT Family or the John MOFFATT & Suzanne MILLAR Family

George (1827-1918) came to Greenock Township with his parents and married Mary Ann MAY and had a family of six. In the 1880 Beldon Atlas George is listed as farming 69 acres in Yokassippi (later known as Cargill).

Ellen (1829-1899) was the only member of the family who did not marry. Upon the death of her mother in 1858 she took charge of her father's household until the time of his death in 1868. She then made her home with her sister Matilda McFADDEN, until the time of her death.

Mary (1831-1917) married George WILSON in the Lanark County area and stayed behind when the rest of the family migrated to the Queen's Bush. Mary and George raised a family of seven.

Matilda (1831-1910) married William McFADDEN at Ashton, Carleton County in 1853. They followed the Keyes family to Bruce County on November 9, 1858 and settled on Lot 7, Con. 17 of Greenock Twp. Matilda and William had a family of eight.

Margaret (1833-1919) was married to John ARNOLD in 1857 by Rev. J. McLelland, Pastor of St. Andrew's Church, Paisley, Ontario. They lived on Con. 14 of Greenock Twp. Afterwards moving to Paisley. John ARNOLD came to Canada from Leitrim, Ireland (now Irish Free State). He sailed from Liverpool, May 23, 1849 and landed in New York on June 23, 1849. The writer (the original author) visited his birthplace in 1916, going by train from Dublin to Killeshandra. The house he built before coming to Canada was still standing and the visitor received a warm Irish welcome.

James (1834-1903) married Eliza Jane SHERIDAN in 1862 and raised a family of seven in Greenock Twp.

Elizabeth (1839-1897) married James DAVIE in 1864. James was originally from Aberdeenshire, Scotland. Elizabeth and James farmed on Lot 5, Con 16 of Greenock and had a family of three.

Esther (1841-1911) married James STEELE in 1863. James was born in Belfast, Ireland and he went to Manitoulin Island as a missionary in 1886 and served there and on St. Joseph's Island until the time of his death. Esther and James had a family of three.

William (1843-1906) married Amelia MARTIN of Paisley on January 29, 1866. They moved to Western Canada in 1881, settling in Portage La Prairie in 1882. He afterwards moved to the town now called Keyes, Manitoba, the same being named after him. They had a family of eight. Their eldest son William was for many years Editor and Publisher of “The Country Publisher” and “The Country Merchant” of Winnipeg, Manitoba.

History of Keyes, Manitoba provided by “Lynn” on RootsWeb.com; Keyes, hamlet east of Neepawa (36-14-13-W). In the late 1870's the community was known as Mosquito Lake, because of the swarms of those pests in the area. When the CNR reached the village in 1882-1883, the name was changed to Midway, as the village was midway between Portage La Prairie and Minnedosa. But the mails proved confusing as there were other centres known by that name. Thus, in 1900, the name was changed to honor a pioneer businessman, William Keyes, who had started a store in the community in 1893.

From a book “Place Names of Manitoba” at the Manitoba Archives.

Phoebe (1844-1926) married Samuel KING in 1868 at Paisley, Ontario. They had a family of five. Their son Frederick KING served with the American Expeditionary Forces during WWI as an Educational Secretary, St. Aigan Noyers Division and as Religious Director at Lyons, France. He was also Registrar of the University of Lyons having regard for 450 students of the American Expeditionary Force enrolled there.

William John KEYES (1826-1904) married Mary Ann SAUNDERS (1835-1886). William is not a part of this family but it is rumored that he is a nephew of James Sr. (1876-1868). Mary Ann is a sister to John's wife Elizabeth SAUNDERS . To see William's family click on SAUNDERS

This genealogy has no beginning and no end, and will never be complete. My current goal is to maintain this record as current as possible. To this end I would be pleased to hear from all of those reading these pages that recognize errors and omissions or have additional information that could be used to update this family history.