Hugh McGrandle passed away in the
General Hospital at Wetaskiwin, Alberta, on July 6th,
1928,
an outstanding surveyor and pioneer.
Hugh McGrandle was the seventh child of Samuel McGrandle and his
wife, Matilda, and was born on a farm near Arundel, Quebec, on
March 12th, 1857. His father, Samuel McGrandle, came out from
Scotland in the year 1838, and settled near Arundel in the
County of Argenteiul, Que., where he married Matilda Wilson,
Hugh's mother, who died in 1857.
His father, Samuel, afterwards married Elizabeth McIntyre, by
whom he had twelve additional children. The father moved with
his family to Ontario about the year 1863, and settled near
Listowel, Perth County.
Hugh, the subject of this sketch, was educated at Rockwood
Academy, Rockwood, Ontario, and at the School of Practical Science,
Toronto, and served under articles for three years as a surveyor
with the late Hugh Wilson, PLS, of Mount Forest. During his
apprenticeship he assisted in surveys of roads and townsites in Ontario, and in the Lower Ottawa Valley, and spent one
season (1881) on government work in North-West Territory. He
qualified as a Provincial Land Surveyor for Ontario on January
5th, 1883, and as a Dominion Land Surveyor shortly afterwards.
He laid out the townsite of Huntsville, Ontario, of which he became
a resident, and made many surveys in the vicinity of timber
limits for J.R. Booth and Hamilton Brothers in the townships of Chaffey and Brunel.
In May 1890, he married Helen Robina Foote, daughter of Dr.
Jonathan Foote, of Brooklyn, New York, a noted physician, of his
day.
The children of Hugh and Helen McGandle, all born in Huntsville,
Ontario were:
(1) William J. McGrandle, born November 12th, 1892.
(2) Hugh McGrandle Jr., born March 28th, 1897.
(3) Nora McGrandle, born July 18th, 1902.
After his marriage Hugh McGrandle continued to make surveys in
Muskoka and Parry Sound districts, with township subdivisions in
the West each season. About the year 1900 he surveyed and laid
out the shortest standard gauge commercial passenger railway in
Canada, "The Huntsville and Lake of Bays Railway," at the
portage dividing Peninsular Lake from Lake of Bays. This railway
is slightly over one mile in length, and a "switch-back" had to
be used in order to overcome the difference of level of about
100 feet. The motive power consists of two "dinky" locomotives,
formerly used in logging operations, a converted Toronto Street
Railway car for passengers, and a small box car for freight and
baggage. Both locomotives are required to haul the "train'" of
two cars, known as "The Hot Tamali Limited."
On the death of his wife in 1902, Hugh McGrandle left Huntsville
with his family and located at Wetaskiwin, Alberta, where he
carried on until about
1915
with general surveys locally, and with topographical contracts
from the Dominion Government in the Medicine Hat, Battle River,
Pigeon Lake, Athabasca Landing, Smoky Lake, Pembina River,
McLeod River, Jasper Park, Wolf Creek, Brazeau River, and
Embarras River Districts. He also, during this period, laid out
practically all townsites between Wetaskiwin and Hardisty on the
Edmonton-Saskatoon line of railway.
In carrying out the
government work he had many narrow escapes
from death. In an attempt to cross the Embarras River during
high water on a small raft of three logs, the raft broke up and
he was carried, clinging to one log, through the rapids and
landed two miles below, in a badly bruised condition. North of Athabasca Landing, in 1907, he was badly mauled by an enraged
bear, and only by feigning death did he manage to escape.
Transportation was almost wholly dependent on jack-horses as
wagon roads seldom extended nearer than twenty miles to the
survey location, and he had many fights with forest fires for
day after day, felling trees, trench digging and backfiring, in
an attempt to arrest the progress of the flames.
Hugh McGrandle was a member of Unity Lodge, AF and AM, of Huntsville, a member of the Alberta Old Timers' Association", a
Director and Shareholder of the "Westaskiwin Co-operative
Trading Co.," and owner of "Coulee Ranch" a 580-acre fertile
farm three miles east of Westaskiwin.
He passed away in his 72nd year, after two years failing health,
and two serious operations. His body was taken to Huntsville by
his son, Hugh, and there met by his elder son William, who had
flown from Ottawa, where he was then stationed. Burial took
place in the family plot in St. Andrew's Cemetery, Huntsville,
next to the remains of Helen, his wife.
