Sutton Township in Canada is growing quickly, with the
Westovers as one of the town's most prominate family
socially. At the turn of the century, Moses Westover
and his son Stephen had very successful careers in
surveillance, Elizabeth was active in the Church in her
grandchildren's lives. Things were going well in their
new homeland.
In 1800, Stephen turned 14 years
old. Very little is known about his childhood. By the time he was 16 he was working alongside
his father in survey of the lands surrounding Brome, setting
up townships.
1802: Moses and Elizabeth granted lot 16 of range 10 (east of Sutton Junction) of the Township of Sutton.
3 March 1814: Stephen was appointed an "Ensign and Quarter Master in the Second Battalion of Militia of the Townships"
4
Dec 1816: Stephen married Dorinda Ball (born 1794 to Jacob and
Elizabeth (Stone) Ball) at the Anglican Church in Dunham Township,
Charles Caleb Cotton as minister and Darius Ball and James Ball as
witnesses. Children in the timeline.
29 Oct 1817: Elizabeth born in Sutton. d. 29 Jan 1900
26 Dec 1819: Sophronia born in Sutton d. 1 Apr 1903
26 Aug 1821: Olive born in Sutton d. 13 May 1907
9 Jun 1823: Roswell born in Sutton
27 Jul 1825: Stephen Egbert born in Sutton (our ancestor)
5
October 1826: Stephen dies in an accident on the St. Lawrence
River. From the Montreal Hearld, Saturday, 7 October 1826: "On
Thursday last, about two o'clock, a fatal accident occoured in the
river opposite this city. As the William Annesly Steamboat was
passing between this port and the opposite shore, when crossing the
sault, in consequence of the rapidity of the current, she was whirled
round about, and thrown so far upon on side, that two men and a woman
and a double wagon were precipitated into the water. The
engineman, who observed, from his place, the fall of the wagon, stopped
the engine in an instant. One of the men clung by the
paddle-wheel, until he was taken on board. The woman, who fell
rather farther out, was picked up by the small boat, which was
instantly lowered, but the other male passenger who was thrown farthest
into the current, was observed to sink about 15 or 20 yards below, at
the moment the woman was got hold of...The sufferer on this occasion
was named Stephen Westover, a respectable land-surveyor from
Sutton. Yesterday morning the steam-boat went to the spot where
the accident happened, and fired several guns over it in order to bring
the body to the surface, but without effect." According to the Quebec Gazette the other two persons involved were "Mr. Henry Rosenberger of St. Armand with his wife who were sitting in a wagon on the deck..." Stephen's
cousin Catherine (daughter of Asa) married an H. Rosenberger, so it
very well could have been them. At the time of thiw writing, it
is unknown when his body was found other than it was some time later
21
October 1826: Moses bequeaths three-fourths part of lot 15, range 10 of
Sutton to his grandsons, Roswell and Stephen Egbert, leaving the
remaining one fourth to his son John. He also set aside of that
three-quarters a burial ground where Stephen is now buried, though
Moses was buried first. It is called the Pettes-Asletine Cemetery.
2
December 1825: Dorinda made a land trade with a Mr. Joseph Bates
in favor of her children. Lot Number 14 of Range 3, Dunham (which
Stephen had previously bought from Bates) was traded for 70 acres of
Lot 16, Range 10, Sutton where a grist and sawmill stood (which Moses
sold to Bates)
3
Nov 1826: Because of improvements Bates made to the mills on the
property Dorinda traded for, an appraisal committee made up of Horatio
G. Hibbard and John Jackson decided that Dorinda was to pay Bates
$186.
7 December 1830: Dorinda married John Pettes, widower.
1838: Dorinda Ball Westover Pettes dies.
Stephen Egbert remained in Sutton (now called Sutton Junction) his entire life, farming land and working as a carpenter.
26 Sep 1850: Marries Mary Hawley in Dunham, Quebec (b. 8 Mar 1830, Sutton to Ephriam Hawley and Mary Spencer). Children in timeline.
28 Jun 1852: Elwin M. born in Sutton
23 May 1854: Stephen Melvin born in Sutton
28 Nov 1857: Newbary Eddy born in Sutton
22 Jul 1861: Ernest Plympton born in Sutton
9 Oct 1863: Ellen Annette born in Sutton
28 Oct 1865: Frank Leslie born in Sutton
23 May 1867: Mary dies in Sheldon, Vermont while visiting and is buried in the family cemetery, Pettes-Aseltine in Sutton.
4
Feb 1868: Stephen married Sarah Eliza Martin in Sutton (b. 14 Oct 1839
to Anthony Martin and Lucretia Sargent in Quebec). Children
continue in timeline.
28 Dec 1868: Mary Louisa born in Sutton
18 Jul 1870: Arthur Charles born in Sutton
9 April 1872: Egbert William born in Sutton
16 Jul 1874: Reuben Martin born in Sutton (our ancestor)
22 Jun 1876: Jessie Sophronia born in Sutton
12 Jan 1878: Anna Eliza born in Sutton
1 Jan 1880: Eva Lucretia born in Sutton
4 Jan 1890: Stephen dies and is buried in Pettes-Aseltine Cemetery
19 May 1916: Sarah Eliza dies and is buried with her husband in Pettes-Aseltine.
Reuben Westover wrote a brief memoir about his childhood dated 19 Jan 1955: "I, Reuben Martin Westover, was born July 6, 1874 on a farm at Sutton Junction, Quebec, Canada. This is the picture of the house where I was born and lived until May 1896 when Mother sold the farm of 175 acres. (Picture to be included at a later time here). My Father was Stephen E. Westover, who was a carpenter and farmer, was born July 27, 1825 died Jan. 4, 1890. My Mother was Eliza Martin, born 1839 and died 1916. She was a school teacher from the age of 15 to 28 she taught in the little red school house at $15.00 per month and board. Had to board around at homes of her school children, divided equally around the school. She had to walk to their homes sometimes two miles through deep snow, and take her pay in wheat or potatoes or anything they had to spare on the farm. I had four half-brothers which left home when I was young, also one brother and four sisters. Mary, the eldest, then Edbert and myself and Jessie, Anna and Eva. Egbert had his left arm cut off at the shoulder Xmas Eve 1889. And Father died the year later, that let me to run the farm and raise the family at 16. It was a dairy farm but we also raised horses, sheep, hogs, chickens, turkeys. Raised wheat, buck wheat and corn which we took to the mill and had ground. We had a large garden, down the center was a row of currents, rhubarb, gooseberries and horse radish on each side was many kinds of vegetables and along the far side of hom was the orchard and beyond that was the beaver brook and their old dam where we went fishing and skating in winter. Along the road was nice level fields and back of it was a rocky pasture then the sugar place where we tapped 1200 trees and made a ton of maple sugar. In the winter we cut logs and hauled them to the home. Then hired a two handed farmer saw to cut them up they were split and thrown in a loose pile. It was as large as a house. The wood to boil the sap was cut by hand in the woods and hauled to the sugar house. We sheared the sheep and Mother knitted out socks and mittens and scarfs. Also made out soap by taking the fat when we butchered, and lye, water came through a barrel of hard wood ashes and boiled in a large kettle, that would hold two barrels, out in the yard. We had soft soap also made hard soap. We killed a lamb in the summer for fresh meat. In the fall we butchered two or three hogs and also a beef which we put down in a brine and froze and stored in the oat bin which kept to June. We did not have much time for play but had a picnic in summer and party in winter evenings and in the fall went to the Junction Saturday afternoons to play football, my school played each other. Egbert and I played on the team, but I was not going to school, but that made no difference, it was the team, not the school. One morning when I was about six we had the thrashen and everyone was busy and no one had pulled my high boots on and it came school time, there was snow on the ground. The school was on our farm about three city blocks away, so I went to school barefooted. I remember meeting a man he asked me if my feet were cold. I said no. When we sold the farm I went to Eastman and boarded at Uncle Will Martin's and worked with an ax building a logging road through the woods. Next job was in Eastman for the Canadian Pacific building the trestle when was 3/4 mile long and 60 ft high."
On Sunday, 24 October 1937 at the Sutton United Church of Canada, there
was a dedication held for the Westover Memorial Window, now hung in the
Church. The address is as follows:
Read Selection 768 (Ecclesiastious 44)
On this the 60th anniversary occasion we recall all these who have had a part in the beginning of this church. Among these were two Mr. and Mrs. Stephen E. Westover.
Mr. Westover was born on the farm where he lived all his life above Sutton Junction now occupied by Mr. and Mrs. Lawrence. In 1865 he was united in marriage to S. Eliza Martin and together they built a Christian home and brought up in Christian nurture their 2 sons and 3 daughters. This Christian nurture was not precept only but far more by example, for Mr. and Mrs. Westover lived out in daily living the religeon they professed.
Mr. Westover was one of the first Trustees of this Church, and ever gave his best interest and service to it's welfare. For many years Mrs. Westover in conjunction with Mrs. Castte, now deceased, carried on a Sunday School in the little schoolhouse near their farm, and many men and women, today living in different places receive from her the teaching of God's Word. Mr. Westover, besides his interests in the Church life, was also active in the life of the community, and for many years was a member of the School Board of the Township and a Justice of the Peace. It is interesting to recall that both of them took an active part in the services of dedication of this Church sixty years ago, and at the supper festival held on the Monday night a poem composted by Mrs. Westover was read as one item in the program.
But if they gave of themselves freely to the life of the Church and Community, they gave themselves even more to the good of their children. These sons and daughters desire now by the presentation to this Church of the beautiful memorial window we are now about to unveil and dedicate to mark their loving rememberance and esteem for these parents. One daughter unable to be present this morning has written this tribute which expresses so beautifully the feeling of them all:
"How I wish I could be there in person, but it makes me so happy to have such a grand man as our father was honoured in this way. I hope in some way and some where he knows about it, as well as what he has always stood for and meant in our every day lives. He never talked very much about the way of life or the way to live, but he himself was a living epistle for kindly unselfish service for his family and his community, to be known and read by all who knew him, a great life to live up to...All these things apply to the mother we had, too. What a wonderful thing to have had two parents like them."
In honour and in loving memory, and with the prayer that this window by it's silent testimony the worth of the two who by the grace of God served their day and generation and how now fallen on sleep, may encourage all that worship in this Church to follow their good example this window will now be presented and dedicated.
The window unveiled by Anna Ball
Presented by Mary Yous
Received by Arthur Yupper
The dedication: To the glory of God and in loving memory of Stephen and S. Eliza Westover we dedicate this window in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Ghost. Amen.
Let us pray - Almighty God, the God of Abraham, Isaac and Jacob and of
all who have put their trust in Thee. Thee in all ages since Thou
hast made Thyself known to man. We give Thee thanks for all the
noble men and women who have ever lived on this earth and have served
Thee and their fellow men. Especially on this Anniversary Sunday
do we remember with gratitude all those who sixty years ago toiled in
faith that this noble Church edifice might be built. We bless
Thee for those whom we remember especially today, and for all others
whose names are in our hearts and whose Godly influence is in our
lives. We bless Thee for the faithful services carried on through
this Church from decade to decade; for the ministers who have declared
Thy truth from this sacred desk, for those who have taught in the
Sunday school, for those who have let the sweet music of worship, for
those who have ministery to the sick and needy, and for all who have
served Thy Church here in her many activities. We bless Thee for
all those our God, and we would bless Thee too for the lives that have
been saved from sin through Jesus Christ and have gone out into the
world to live lives of goodness and service. For all Thy grace
and mercies to us through these sixty years we say "We praise Thee O
God, we acknowledge Thee to be Lord." Now we would ask Thee that
we may have wisdon to follow in the footsteps of those who have gone
before us. May we in our day and generation be as faithful as
they were in theirs. Their work was not completed, they did what
was given them to do, and as they fell asleep handed on to us who came
after them the unfinished task of building Thy kingdon here on
earth. May we living in a new day, and under different conditions
to what they knew, labour as they laboured, love as they loved, give as
they gave, that with our greater oppourtunities we being as gaithful as
they were may carry Thy work to greater heights. We would seek
then, O God, that these sixtieth anniversary services may be for each
one of us a reconsecration of ourselves to Thy service. Cleanse
us from all sin and selfishness in this solemn morning hour as we kneel
before the Sacred Table of our Lord. Help us to give ourself to
Thee withholding nothing of our instruments for the carrying on of Thy
purposes in this world. Grant that we may nor only profess our
love for Thee, but for Thy sake may we love our fellow men and joyfully
bear their burdens and by the power of our love draw them from sin to
the life that Jesus gives to all who come unto Him. So may the
future of this Church be glorious with divine power and we may ever
have fresh cause to glorify Thee Thou God, not of the dead, but of the
living to whom we now give thanks and praise with Thy whole Church on
earth and in heaven above, Through Jesus Christ our Lord, "Our Father
who art in heaven, hallowed be Thy Name. Thy Kingdom come, Thy
will be done on earth as it is in heaven. Give us this day our
daily bread, and forgive us our debts as we forgive our debtors.
For Thine is the Kingdom and the Power and the Glory forever.
Amen."
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