Robert Nelson Bonnar was the youngest son of
James Bonnar and Margaret Chambers. James and Margaret immigrated from Ireland to New Brunswick in 1835. Robert Nelson was born October 20, 1857 in York, New Brunswick. On November 24, 1874 he married
Johanna Harris. Johanna was born in 1859 and was the daughter of
Moses Harris and Johanna Curtis. Robert and Johanna had seven children.
M. Maude Bonnar, born December 23, 1880
Beverly Robinson Bonnar (son), born October 21, 1881
Ada M. Bonnar, born December 22, 1883
Franklin (Frank) Moses Bonnar, born November 15, 1885
Margaret Alwilda Bonnar, born April 4, 1888
Annie L. Bonnar, born 1890
Benjamin York Bonnar, April 9,1891
In 1881, Robert and Johanna appear on the census in Douglas, York, New Brunswick. Robert is 26 and noted to be an engineer. Johanna is 24, listed as Jewish and a member of the Church of England. Maud was age 3, Beverly R. was just 3 months old. Also in the household was Margaret Harris, age 21, listed as Jewish and a member of the Church of England. Margaret may have been Johanna's sister.
In 1891, Robert and Johanna appear on the census in Douglas, York, New Brunswick. Robert is 36 and Johanna is 36. Next to Johanna's name in the column for church attended, Salvation Army is written as the church. Their children on this census are Maud age 13, Beverly R. age 11, Ada M. age 9, Franke age 6, Alwildie age 4, Annie L. age 1 and Benjamin Y. age 1/12.
In 1901, Robert and Johanna are found on the census in York, New Brunswick. Their last name is spelled Boner. In the household are Maud age 20, Beverly age 19, Ada age 17, Frank age 15, Ollie age 13 and York age 9. The child Annie L. does not appear on the 1901 census.
In 1911, again in York, New Brunswick, Robert and Johanna Bonar are living in the household with son Beverly, age 30 and a child named Marion, age 6. Marion was listed as their daughter. I have since learned that Marion was not their daughter, but their grand daughter and the daughter of Maud.
M. Maud Bonnar
Maud Bonnar, oldest daughter of Robert and Johanna, married
Ludlow Elmer Pangburn on July 9, 1906
. Ludlow was born in 1888. Maud and Ludlow had four children.
Hazel Mae Pangburn was born April 27, 1907.
Joseph A. Pangburn was born in 1909.
Robert Burns Pangburn was born July 24, 1911 and
Clarence A. Pangburn was born January 27, 1913. In October 1917, Ludlow enlisted in the Canadian Expeditionary Forces. He was in Regiment #336100, 65th Battery. On his enlistment application, he listed his wife as Maud Pangburn and stated that her residence was the Provincial Hospital in St. John, New Brunswick. The Provincial Hospital was an insane asylum. Sadly, Ludlow died on May 13, 1918. He died in the C. C. Hospital in Carlton county NB. His cause of death was pneumonia. He is buried at the Holmesville Cemetery in Carlton, NB. His death left his wife in an asylum and his children without parents to take care of them.
On the delayed birth certificate of
Hazel Mae Pangburn, her birth was verified by her uncle Stephen Taylor on
July 15, 1948. On the birth certificate, Mr. Taylor states, " Her father is deceased...her mother is ill and unable to understand what is said to her, or to understand the making of an affadavit." That suggests that Maud Bonnar Pangburn's mental illness continued from Ludlow's 1917 enlistment date until at least July 1948. Her illness may have been present before October 1917, because in August 1917 Maude is the departure contact on a Boarder Crossing to Houlton, ME for her son Robert with Stephen Taylor as the arrival contact. In April 1921, Maude Pangburn is the departure contact for daughter Hazel in a Boarder Crossing into Maine. On the obituary of
Hazel Mae Pangburn Carpenter it states that she was raised by her aunt and uncle, Steve and Adelaide Taylor. The Taylors lived in Aroostook, ME. The following is Hazel Mae's obituary which appeared in the Bangor Maine newspaper in 2003.
HOULTON – Hazel Mae Carpenter, 96, quietly ended a long and active life on Sept. 14, 2003, in Fort Walton Beach, Fla. She was born Hazel Pangburn, April 27,1907, in Woodstock, New Brunswick, the daughter of Ludlow and Maude (Bonner) Pangburn. Hazel moved to Ludlow as a child where she was raised by her aunt and uncle, Steve and Adelaide Taylor. After graduating from Ricker Classical Institute in Houlton, she moved to Haverhill, Mass., to pursue a nursing career. While in Haverhill, she married Charles “Red” Miller, and they had two daughters, Joyce and June. She later returned to Houlton and was married to Jasper Carpenter. Hazel traveled to Europe to visit her daughter, June’s family in the 1960s. After her husband’s death, she split her time between Haverhill and Shalimar, Fla., where she lived with her daughter, June and her family. While in Shalimar, she was active in the Eglin Catholic Chapel Community, where she was affectionately known as “Mom.” She was preceded in death by her husband, Jasper Carpenter, and her daughters, Joyce, Mrs. John Cronin and June, Mrs. Don Giroux, both of Haverhill, Mass. She was dearly loved by many friends and relatives, and is survived by nine nephews and nieces and six grandchildren. Graveside services and interment will be held 10 a.m. Friday, Oct. 24, 2003, at the Evergreen Cemetery, with the Rev. Rod Black officiating. Donations in her memory may be sent to Covenant Hospice, 101 Hart St., Niceville, FL 32578. A service of Dunn Funeral Home, 11 Park St., Houlton.
Joseph A. Pangburn was born in 1909 and appears on the 1911 census in New Brunswick. However, I have found nothing more about son Joseph Pangburn.
Robert Burns Pangburn was born July 24, 1911. He too was taken to Maine in 1921. No departure contact person was named on his Boarder Crossing record. Robert died April 9, 1998 in Salt Lake City, Utah. His obituary states he attended Boston University and graduated from the University of Maine. He was in the aircraft business for over 30 years. He married
Mildred Gerry in 1933 in Maine and had several subsequent marriages. Robert is buried at Mt. Olivet Cemetery in Salt Lake City.
Clarence A. Pangburn was born January 27, 1913. He was taken to Maine in October 1921 by his grandmother
Hannah Pangburn. Hannah's husband, Edward, died in September 1921. It is likely that Clarence had been living with his grandparents after his father died and until 1921. In 1930, Clarence appears on the census in Houlton, ME living with his Uncle Stephen and Aunt Adelaide Taylor. Clarence married
Helen Alice Parks in 1935. They had nine children, three daughters and six sons. Clarence died November 22, 1999 and his wife Helen died December 29, 2010. Clarence's obituary also states he was raised by Stephen and Adelaide Taylor.
Maude Bonnar's daughter
Marion Bonner was born before Maude married Ludlow Pangburn. The name of Marion's father is not known. Another Bonner researcher stated that Marion had one daughter in 1936 and the daughter was living in Media, Pennsylvania in 2005.
Beverly Robinson Bonnar
Beverly Robinson Bonnar , son of Robert and Johanna, was born October 21, 1881 in New Brunswick. I haven't found much information about Beverly. He and his brothers, Frank and Benjamin, migrated to Western Canada from New Brunswick. Beverly married Grace Clifford on December 8, 1914 in Vancouver, Canada. Grace was born in 1882 in Pennsylvania and she died July 25, 1931 in Vancouver. Beverly died on October 5, 1939 in Vancouver. On his death certificate he is listed as a widower, the son of Robert and Joanna H. Bonner and that he was born in New Brunswick. Rather than having the middle name of Robinson, it is listed as Robertson. Beverly is buried at Mountain View Cemetery in Vancouver.
Ada M. Bonnar
Ada M. Bonnar , daughter of Robert and Johanna, was born December 22, 1883. She married Harry Allan Palmer on March 17, 1903 in New Brunswick. Harry was the son of Bevaley and Augusta Palmer and he was born in 1881 in Jewitt's Mill, NB. Ada and Harry had a daughter, Maudie Augusta Palmer who was born September 13, 1903 in Devon, York, New Brunswick. Their second child was John V. Palmer who was born January 1, 1906 in New Brunswick. Although I have not found a death certificate for Ada, she died between 1906 and 1908. Harry Palmer married Frances Swode in 1908 and it states on their marriage certificate that Harry Palmer was a widower.
After Ada Bonnar Palmer died and Harry Palmer remarried, Maudie Augusta Palmer is not living with her father Harry and his wife Frances. On the 1911 census, Maudie was living with Charles and Eliza Palmer and her aunt, Pearl Palmer in York, NB. In 1911, son John Palmer is also not living with his father Harry Palmer. He is living with George and Augusta Newell. Augusta Newell was Augusta Palmer, his grandmother who remarried George Newell about 1887. On the 1911 census, young John is listed as the grandson of Augusta Newell.
The situation with the Palmer children seems to only get worse. In November 1920,
Maudie Augusta Palmer is sent by her father to live with her
Uncle Walter M. Jardine. Mr. Jardine had married Maudie's aunt, Pearl Palmer. Pearl was the sister of Harry Palmer. They lived in Vanceboro, ME. Then I found a death certificate, number 052363, for son
John V. Palmer who died November 30, 1927 at age 20 in New Brunswick. The cause of death was an accidental gunshot wound to the abdomen. He is buried at Millville Cemetery in New Brunswick.
On April 11, 1923,
Maudie Augusta Palmer married Roy Millan Nelson in Brookline, MA. I do not know if they had children. Maudie Augusta Palmer Nelson died October 5, 1978 and Roy died November 30, 1985. They are buried at the Fredericton Rural Cemetery in Fredericton, NB.
Franklin Moses Bonnar
Franklin Moses Bonnar, son of Robert and Johanna, was born November 15, 1885. Frank, as he was known, appears on the 1901 census with his parents in New Brunswick. In 1911, Frank is in Winnipeg, Manitoba, Canada. On the 1911 census, Frank is 24 years old and is a lodger in the home of George H. Hodskis, his wife May and daughter Nora L. Hodskis. There is a second lodger in the home named Francis E. Evans.
On July 7, 1915,
Frank M. Bonnar married Mildred Marguerite Eichman in Bucyrus, Crawford, Ohio. Mildred, known as Millie, was born in 1889 and was the daughter of M. B. Eichman and Augusta Boedecker. The Eichman family immigrated to the United States from Germany in 1866. In 1916, Frank M. Bonnar and Mildred are listed on the census living in Winnipeg, Manitoba, Canada. Mildred's father, Max Barnhardt Eichman died in 1932. Mildred is mentioned in his obituary. The obituary states that in 1932, Mildred was living in Winnipeg. Frank and Mildred had one son, Franklin Edward Bonnar born in 1916.
On Frank and Mildred's marriage certificate, Frank's occupation is listed as "financial broker". In a review of the archives of the Manitoba Free Press, I found numerous advertisements for Frank's businesses. In 1914, he had the company "MacLean and Bonnar, Financial Agents". Then from 1916-1923 there are ads for the "F. M. Bonner & Co.", rental agent. It appears he was managing rental properties because the ads were for cottages and bungalows. In 1922, he also had an ad, "Money to Loan on First Mortgages, F.M. Bonner". It was very interesting to see the advertisements.
I have not found dates of death for Frank or Mildred. I learned from a descendant of the Eichman family that in 1972, Frank was living at 326 Ashland Avenue in Winnipeg. He was 86 years old at the time. The Eichman family member also sent me about five pages of family photographs that included Frank and Mildred. On the photograph, Mildred was identified as Millie. According to the Eichman family member, Millie was the youngest of nine children.
Margaret Alwilda Bonnar
Margaret Alwilda Bonnar, daughter of Robert and Johanna, was born April 4, 1888. On the various census records, her name varies from Alwilda and Alwildie to Ollie. Here is a very pretty picture of Margaret Alwilda that I found on the internet.
There is an article in the American Journal of Nursing that mentions her name. However, I have been unable to access the article. It is said that Margaret Alwilda was very active with the Salvation Army. Family members also know that she never married and for a number of years she and her sister Maud lived together in New Brunswick.
Annie L. Bonnar
Annie L. Bonnar appears on the 1891 census, age 1, with her family, but she does not appear on the 1901 census. I have found no other mention of her and no death certificate.
(On September 5, 2011 I found a burial record for Annie Louise Bonner, daughter of Robert and Johanna. She died August 11, 1890 at age 4 months, 6 days. She is buried at St. Marks Cemetery in York county.)
Benjamin York Bonnar
Benjamin York Bonnar, the youngest child of Robert and Johanna, was born April 9, 1891 in New Brunswick. On June 24 1915, he enlisted in the Canadian Expeditionary Forces. He served in Regiment #521017. On his enlistment record he was living in Vancouver, British Columbia and his wife was
Emma Louise Bonnar. His occupation was listed as traveller. I'm not certain, but I think that name was given for traveling salesmen or sales representatives. His height was 5 ft. 8 in. and he had a dark complexion, gray blue eyes, and black hair. His church preference was the Wesleyan Church.
His wife was Emma Louise Kells Weir and she was born in 1894 in Ireland. She was the daughter of William Weir and Elizabeth Jane Kells. The Weir family immigrated from Ireland to the United States in the early 1900's and ultimately moved to the Vancouver area. Emma Louise Bonner died January 4, 1988 at age 93. Benjamin York Bonnar died April 13, 1965. I have not identified the burial location of Benjamin and Emma, but they died in Vancouver, British Columbia. Benjamin and Emma had one son.
In reading over this blog entry, it is apparent that
Robert Nelson Bonnar and Johanna Harris Bonnar had a very diverse family. Robert died June 26, 1928 in Devon, York, New Brunswick. The cause of death was valvular disease of the heart. His daughter Alwilda was the informant on the death certificate. Johanna Harris Bonnar died in 1914, but I am not sure of the date.
I will continue to add updates about the Bonnar Family of New Brunswick, as more information becomes available. Gathering information about them has been a challenge, but it has also been very rewarding. All of the Bonnar family members have left an admirable legacy for those of us who have followed.
