A Move, a Marriage, and More: Mary Jane's Story Continues

The St. Catharines' area, where the opening of the Welland Canal in 1829 had ushered in shipping and industry, caught the eye of the Sheridan and Saul families.1

 

Mary Jane Sheridan spent her childhood in the busy canal neighborhood of the Hydraulics in Buffalo, Erie Co., New York. As she entered her teens, the Sheridans moved to Evans, down the Lake Erie shore, where her father, Henry, took up shoe making in about 1851. The family stayed in Evans for about nine years during which time Mary Jane attended school and grew into a young lady.

As the 1850s drew to a close, it appears Mary Jane’s father, Henry, once more considered if there were “greener pastures” in which to live. Canada, it seemed, was the place to be, especially around St. Catharines, Ontario, about 60 miles from Evans. The Welland Canal had brought shipping and industry to the area and the Grand Trunk Railroad had arrived in 1856, further establishing it as a booming port city with need of many workers.²

Henry may have heard about the St. Catharines area from a man named Thomas Saul. Both the Saul and Sheridan families attended St. Patrick Catholic Church in Buffalo. Thomas and his wife Elizabeth—formerly Cassidy—married there in 1843 and baptized their daughters, Mary Ann and Elizabeth, there in 1844 and 1846, respectively.³ The Sheridans baptized Mary Jane’s brother William at the same church in 1846.⁴ The families may have become familiar during this time and stayed in contact after Mary Jane’s family moved to Evans.

Though the exact timing is unclear, it appeared that Thomas was considering a move to Grantham, near to St. Catharines, where Elizabeth’s brothers, Daniel and Philip Cassidy, were making a good living farming on 89 acres.⁵

Around the time that the Sheridans and the Sauls emigrated, however, Thomas Saul died.⁶ It’s possible that Elizabeth Saul had no other family in Buffalo and a move to Canada was a natural choice; there, she would have the company and protection of her brothers. Now that the notion of leaving New York had been planted, the Sheridans probably accompanied Elizabeth Saul and her daughters to Canada West, making the journey sometime between spring 1858 and spring 1859.⁷

About this time, Mary Jane, then about 19, was introduced to Philip Cassidy. The couple was probably wed in early 1860 and began a life together on the Cassidy farm in Grantham.⁸ Much like her prior homes in Buffalo and Evans on the shores of Lake Erie, Mary Jane’s new home was located on the southern shore of Lake Ontario, and bordered the townships of Louth and Thorold.⁹ 

Mary Jane's new home in Grantham, highlighted here, located on the southern shore of Lake Ontario.10

Instead of sharing the home with just her husband as common today, the newlywed Mary Jane began her married life among an extended Cassidy family. By 1861, there were eight in the household. In addition to Philip and Mary Jane and their first son, Charles, Mary Jane’s unmarried brother-in-law Daniel Cassidy, Elizabeth Saul, as well as her daughters, filled the one-story frame house in Grantham. Another young woman named Mary A. Ryan—possibly a servant—also lived with the family.¹¹ The home was surrounded by fertile farmland, in the midst of a bustling and productive farm.¹²

Mary Jane’s early years in Grantham must have been a bit of a shock to her system. In the span of a few short years, she immigrated, became a wife and mother, and began to learn how to manage a farm household. Had her life in the Hydraulics or Evans prepared her for such a drastic change in lifestyle?

The workload at the Cassidy farm, though substantial, was well worth the effort and the farm was profitable. In 1860, Daniel and Philip had sixty acres under cultivation, with thirty acres of orchard and twenty acres of crops which included fall and spring wheat, oats, Indian corn, hay, and potatoes. In that one year, they produced 70 pounds of wool from their 30 sheep, and kept five steers/heifers, five milch cows, and nine pigs, as well as eight horses and one colt.¹³ Like many farms of its time, the Cassidy farm was a place of stability set apart from the dangers of the cities, with their crowds and disease.¹⁴

Running the farm was a family affair, with many hands to support the effort. It’s possible that the close quarters and the shared workload created a lifelong bond between Mary Jane and her sister-in-law Elizabeth Saul—who went by Eliza. Mary Jane, Eliza, and her daughters possibly shared in several food-related tasks, such as milking the cows, churning butter, and curing pork and beef. Each time-consuming job was performed while also managing everyday household chores like cooking, doing laundry, and child rearing.

Milch cows.15

Mary Jane’s morning might have begun with a trip to the barn to milk the five milch cows the family kept and continued with the task of making butter. Again and again, she plunged the dasher into the large wooden churn until the cream thickened. After straining the buttermilk, did she stop to give a small cupful to Charles as he watched her work from his perch in a nearby chair? She might then have washed the butter, pouring pitchers of water over it and turning the butter with a wooden paddle until the water ran clear. Then she could form it in wooden molds, turning the morning’s milk into blocks of butter for her own family, or for sale or barter.¹⁶

Mary Jane may have used a wooden butter churn like this one.17

On another day, Mary Jane may have cured pork using a recipe that took up to three weeks to complete. She may have rubbed the mixture of salt, sugar, and saltpeter into the meat three times in nine days, then left the meat in a barrel for two weeks, after which time it was smoked. Or, she might have salted the meat then packed it in a barrel, covering it with a brine mixture, then weighing the meat down and covering it.¹⁸ Using these methods or those like it, the Cassidy farm produced 400 lbs. of beef and 1,200 pounds of pork in 1860.¹⁹ 

Was Mary Jane overwhelmed by the number of daily tasks or did she feel rightly proud of her hand in the farm’s success?

At the end of every busy week, Mary Jane,  Philip and their family likely traveled to nearby St. Catharines to attend Mass at St. Catherine of Alexandria parish, where Charles had been baptized. There, Mary Jane may have relished a few moments of peace, reading her prayer book or closing her eyes in silent prayer as the priest prayed aloud in Latin. Perhaps she felt a sense of grace there and gathered strength for the coming week. 

St. Catherines Church, the Cassidy's place of worship.20

Later on Sunday, the family might have visited Mary Jane’s parents and younger siblings who also settled in Grantham, to share a meal or enjoy a brief respite from the farm work and Henry’s job as a shoemaker. One can imagine grandparents Henry and Catherine doting on young Charles or fussing over Mary Jane, who likely would have been carrying another of the eight children she had with Philip. 

In the coming years, Mary Jane would face the challenges of an ever-growing family, and along with her extended family, the pursuit of making the farm a success. What did the future hold?

Until next time… 

© Nancy Gilbride Casey, 2025. All rights reserved.

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NOTES

¹ J.D. Kelly, Schooner Ann and Jane, at lock 1, the day the first Welland Canal opened, 1941; imaged, Wikimedia Commons (https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Schooner_Ann_and_Jane,_at_lock_1,_the_day_the_first_Welland_Canal_opened.jpg : accessed 18 Mar 2025). In the public domain.

² Wikipedia (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Timeline_of_Ontario_history : accessed 21 Nov 2024), "Timeline of Ontario History," last updated 4 October 2024, at 20:34 (UTC).

³ St. Patrick Church, Buffalo, Erie, New York, Marriages 1841-1857, p. 18, Thomas Saul and Elizabeth Cassidy, 2 December 1843; imaged, "Church Records, 1841-1857," FamilySearch (https://www.familysearch.org/ark:/61903/3:1:3Q9M-CS4L-DH37-5?i=14 : accessed 24 Jan 2025); citing Niagara University, Lewiston, New York. Also, St. Patrick Roman Catholic Church, Buffalo, Erie, New York, Baptisms 1841-1855, p. 53, Mariam Saul, born and baptized 13 October 1844; imaged, FamilySearch (https://www.familysearch.org/ark:/61903/1:1:HWFG-H2T2?lang=en : accessed 7 Feb 2025); citing Niagara University Library, Lewiston. Image provided by Denton [Texas] Public Library, a Family Search affiliate library. Also, St. Patrick Roman Catholic Church, Buffalo, Erie, New York, Baptisms 1841-1855, p. 93, Elizabetham Saul, born and baptized 6 Nov. 1846; imaged, FamilySearch (https://familysearch.org/ark:/61903/1:1:HWF1-VJMM : accessed 23 Jan 2025); citing Niagara University Library, Lewiston. Image provided by Denton [Texas] Public Library, a Family Search affiliate library.

⁴ St. Patrick Roman Catholic Church, Buffalo, Erie, New York, Baptisms 1841-1855, p. 85, Guigliullmum [William] Sheridan, baptized 14 June 1846; imaged, FamilySearch (https://familysearch.org/ark:/61903/1:1:HWF1-VJMM : accessed 14 Jan 2025); citing St. Joseph Catholic Church, Buffalo. Image provided by Denton [Texas] Public Library, a Family Search affiliate library.

⁵ 1861 Ontario, Canada Census, Lincoln County, Agricultural census, ED 4, Township of Grantham, p. 47 (stamped), Daniel Casedy; imaged, FamilySearch (https://www.familysearch.org/ark:/61903/3:1:S3HY-6S5W-D3F : accessed 11 Mar 2025); citing Public Archives, Toronto.

⁶ 1861 Canada West Census, Lincoln Co., ED No. 4, p. 67, line 30, Mrs. “Mary” Saul, widow, in Daniel Casedy household; imaged, FamilySearch (https://www.familysearch.org/ark:/61903/3:1:S3HT-DWY7-DHM : accessed 3 Mar 2025); citing Public Archives, Toronto. 

⁷ 1861 Canada West Census, Lincoln Co., ED No. 4, Grantham, line 9, Henry Sheridan (jr) in Henry Sheridan household; imaged, Ancestry (https://www.ancestry.com/imageviewer/collections/1570/images/4391944_00303 : accessed 13 Jan 2025); citing Public Archives, Toronto. Henry is noted as age 2 with a U.S. birthplace. The family could not have moved before his birth.

⁸ Grantham Twp., Lincoln County, Ontario, Canada West, Deeds, book C, p. 449, No. 10561, Philip Cassidy to Daniel Cassidy, 12 January 1860; imaged, "Land records of Lincoln County, 1847-1909," FamilySearch (https://www.familysearch.org/ark:/61903/3:1:3Q9M-C3H6-G3JR-T : accessed 20 Jan 2025); citing Registrar of Deeds, St. Catharines, Ontario, Canada. Also, Cathedral of St. Catherine of Alexandria (St. Catharines, Ontario, Canada), "Baptismal Register, 1860-1906," p. 1, baptism of Charles F. Cassidy, 7 Dec. 1860; digital images, Ancestry, "Ontario, Canada, Roman Catholic Baptisms, Marriages, and Burials, 1760-1923," (https://bit.ly/2VRK5Yu : accessed 5 July 2020), image 107/554; citing Archdiocese of St. Catharines, Ontario. Mary Jane is not mentioned in Philip’s land transaction in January 1860; she would have to release her dower if they were already married. Both Philip and Mary Jane are listed as parents in Charles’ baptismal record, indicating they were married at the time of his birth/baptism. Though illegitimate infants could be baptized, their fathers were not generally listed in the same baptismal register where Charles' baptism was recorded.

⁹ Wm. H. Smith, Smith’s Canadian Gazetteer…p. 71, “Grantham”; imaged, Internet Archive (https://archive.org/details/smithscanadianga00smitrich/page/71/mode/1up : accessed 17 Mar 2025); citing University of California Libraries.

¹⁰ Robert Pilkington, "Grantham Township Locator Map 1818"; imaged, Wikimedia Commons (https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:GranthamTownshipLocatorMap1818.jpeg : accessed 18 Mar 2025);

11 1861 Canada West Census, Lincoln Co., ED No. 4, p. 67, line 30, Daniel Casedy household; imaged, FamilySearch (https://www.familysearch.org/ark:/61903/3:1:S3HT-DWY7-DHM : accessed 3 March 2025); citing Public Archives, Toronto. 

¹² 1861 Ontario, Canada Census, Lincoln County, Agricultural census, ED 4, Township of Grantham, p. 47 (stamped), Daniel Casedy.

¹³ Ibid.

¹⁴ Colin M. Coates, “Canada was … just like a farmer: Confederation from the perspective of agrarian society," Active History, 4 July 2016 (https://activehistory.ca/blog/2016/07/04/canada-was-just-like-a-farmer-confederation-from-the-perspective-of-agrarian-society/ : accessed 13 Mar 2025).

¹⁵ François Guénon, et al, A Treatise on Milch Cows, Whereby the Quality and Quantity of Milk Which Any Cow Will Give May Be Accurately Determined by Observing Natural Marks or External Indications Alone; the Length of Time She Will Continue to Give Milk (New York: Greeley & McElrath, 1846), title page; imaged, Library of Congress (https://lccn.loc.gov/07007311 : accessed 13 Mar 2025).

¹⁶ 1820 Col. Benjamin Stephenson House, “How Butter was Made in the 1800s,” 17 Mar 2023; YouTube (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cifj0B1fVYg : accessed 18 Mar 2025).

¹⁷ Jean-Francois Millet, Woman Churning Butter, 1855-56; image, Wikimedia Commons (https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Woman_Churning_Butter_MET_DP827612.jpg : accessed 13 Mar 2025); citing Metropolitan Museum of Art, New York, New York. In the public domain.

¹⁸ Sarah Lyn, “How to Salt Port in a Barrel According to Great-Great Grandma Emma,” Walking with the Ancestors, 29 January 2020 (https://walkingwithancestors.blogspot.com/2020/01/how-to-salt-pork-in-barrel-according-to.html : accessed 17 Mar 2025). The author’s great-great-grandmother was a contemporary of Mary Jane, so Mary Jane might have used similar methods. 

¹⁹ 1861 Ontario, Canada Census, Lincoln County, Agricultural census, ED 4, Township of Grantham, p. 47 (stamped), Daniel Casedy.

²⁰ William Richard Harris, The Catholic Church in the Niagara Peninsula 1626-1895 (Toronto, Ontario: William Briggs, 1895), p. 321, illustration of St. Catharines Church; imaged, Internet Archive (https://archive.org/details/catholicchurchin00harr/page/320/mode/1up : accessed 18 Mar 2025); citing Columbia University Libraries, New York. In the public domain.