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FARM THAT SOON ATTRACTED the attention of the other settlers was that
of James Hartney, who returned in 1882 to the section on which he had
John Fee and Sam Long (the first settlers in the area) plough several
acres the fall before. He purchased that whole section and all of
section 7 from the CPR and hired several men to break the sod and
prepare it for crop. The men were fed by Betsy Fraser, who, with her
son Jack came from the same part of Ontario as the Hartneys, and was
cook and housekeeper at the Hartney farm before, and for some time
after, the arrival of Mrs. Hartney and her sons Clarence, Russell,
James and Harold. His first year, Mr. Hartney sold 160 acres of wheat
and his returns were encouraging. That fall he imported a carload of
Red Fife wheat from Minnesota, which came to Brandon by rail. After
reserving enough seed for himself, Mr. Hartney sold the remainder to
other settlers, who hauled it from Brandon. In this way James Hartney
began for the district the reputation of being a first class wheat
producing area, and his farm became well known to settlers for many
miles around.
An entry in Sam Long’s diary on January 1, 1884 told of a New Year’s
Eve party at James Hartney’s attended by the neighbours for several
miles around. After the party Sam Long went home with George
Fredericks, because each felt the need of companionship as he started a
new year, and because they were both to be the guests of a New Year’s
dinner at the home of James Duthie and H.A. Smith. They walked home at
10:00 p.m. on January 1st, to their cold houses in temperatures of 35
below zero.
Noteable Hartney area Families
James Hartney may have given the community its name,
but there are other notable family names that are integral to our
history.
Agnew Family
Ardagh Family
Griggs Family
Callander Family
Calverley Family
Canning Family
Clark Family
Cram Family
Denbow Family
Dooley Family
Drummond Family
Duthie Family
Forbes Family
Fry Family
Galbraith Family
Gibson Family
Hardy Family
Hill Family
Hodgson Family
Hunter Family
Isabey Family
Jasper Family
Roper Family
Somerville Family
Vandusen Family
Woodhull Family |
The Robson Family
Oscar, Ethel and Ray Calverley
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