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Note: James Nickle (1822 1904)
Summary Notes
Notes written in 1956 by Carl Olaf Nickle, great-grandson of James Nickle, state that the Nickle family came from Ireland to Ontario, Canada in 1842, "driven partly by the potato famine of County Armagh, but largely by a desire to build a new home in the new land that was to become the Dominion of Canada a quarter century later." [From a speech entitled "A Man, A Company, and An Industry in Western Canada!", by Carl O. Nickle. The speech was given in Toronto, Canada on November 8th, 1956, to The Newcomen Society in North America. The source of his reference to 1842 is unknown.]
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A note written by Samuel William Aylesworth on April 28, 2001:
James Nickle was my great-great-grandfather (my grandfather's grandfather). I have not yet found definitive information regarding his birthdate or birth-home, and do not know the name of his parents.
James Nickle purchased/received farm land directly from the crown in the Township of Zone (near to Thamesville Ontario), in the County of Kent, on May 18th, 1854: East-half of Lot 2, Concession 3.
He married Agnes Black on April 16th, 1855 in the Township of Dumfries (north of Brantford, Ontario). My own transcription of their handwritten marriage certificate (which I have) is as follows:
Marriage of James Nickle and Agnes Black, April 16th, 1855
Transcription of handwritten marriage certificate:
“I do hereby certify that on the sixteenth day of April in the year of our Lord one thousand eight hundred and fifty-five James Nickle of the township of Dunfries and Agnes Black of Beverly were married by me Thomas Fawcett a Minister of the Wesleyan Methodist Church in Canada in the presence of George Black and Mary Ann Black which said marriage was solemnized by banns
Witnyss my hand at St George
April 16th a.d. 1855
Thomas Fawcett
Wesleyan Minister
Witneyss
James Black
Mary ann Black”
Transcribed: April 10, 2005
By Samuel William Aylesworth
Great-great grandson of James & Agnes
As: James Nickle & Agnes (1)
George Nickle & Martha Jane Stanton (2)
Samuel Clarence Nickle & Gudrun Olga Mylada Simonson (3)
Agnes Alice Nickle & Robert Wesley Aylesworth (4)
Samuel William Aylesworth & Sharon Diane Parson (5)
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James and Agnes had seven (or six?) children, four of whom survived to adulthood:
Alexander Nickle (who remained a bachelor)
George Nickle (my great-grandfather)
Mary Jane Nickle (later married to Edward Moran), and
Agnes Nickle (who remained a spinster)
Two children who died at a younger age were:
- James, born in May 1870. May have died as an infant. No detailed information has been found.
- Samuel, born in 1868. He died in Chatham in 1889, at the age of 21. No further detail has been found.
The obituary of James Nickle (Senior) speaks of a seventh child, but I have not been able to confirm this or find related detail.
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George Nickle married Martha Jane Stanton in Thamesville on Feb 25th, 1884, and they had three children:
Samuel Clarence Nickle (my grandfather)
Stanton Nickle
Agnes Alice Nickle
Samuel Clarence Nickle married Gudrun Olga Mylada Simonsson in Winnipeg Manitoba on October 16th, 1912, and they had four children:
Samuel Clarence Nickle
Carl Olaf Nickle
Olga Nickle
Agnes Alice Nickle (my mother)
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James Nickle (Senior) died on July 4, 1904 in Thamesville. His wife, Agnes, was still living at the time, his son Alexander still lived (as a bachelor) in Thamesville, George and his wife Martha were living in Detroit, Michigan and his other two children (Mary Jane Moran and Agnes Nickle) lived in Winnipeg, Manitoba, Canada.
The following obituary was published in the Thamesville Herald in July 1904:
"After an illness of some length, James Nickle, aged 84, a well known and highly respected citizen of Zone township passed to the great beyond on Monday. Deceased was a native of Ireland and came to this country in 1849 settling near Brandtford where he was married to Miss Agnes Black. About 48 years ago he and his wife moved to Zone where seven children were born to them, 4 of whom survive, Alex. at home, George at Detroit, Agnes and Mrs. E.H. Moran at Winnipeg. The funeral took place on Wednesday, service being conducted at the house by Rev. J. McInnes."
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James died without leaving a will. A Quit Claim Deed dated Feb 1, 1905 indicates that at the time of his death he owned:
- the 100 acre farm in Zone Township
- lots 3, 4 & 5 fronting on Elizabeth and Sarah Streets in Block O in Thamesville, as laid down on the map by John Omara which was registered in the County Office at the time
- lots 5 and 6 in Block T as shown on plan #145 of the Samuel Sherman Survey, Thamesville, and
- lot 7 in Block C on Victoria Street in Thamesville, excepting not the the northwest fourteen feet thereof.
Through agreement within the family, a total of $4,500 ($1,500 each) was paid by Alexander to George, Mary Jane and Agnes (the daughter) for these lands, and ownership passed to Alexander. This amount was accepted as "all the money they are entitled to out the estate of their father James Nickle deceased."
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Agnes (Black) Nickle, the widow of James, died in Winnipeg on September 22nd, 1905, at the age of approximately 74, awhile visiting her daughters Mary Jane Moran and Agnes Nickle, who then lived in Winnipeg.
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On December 29, 1909, Alexander sold the 100 acres of farm land to John Wellington Grainger for the sum of $3,000, with a mortage loan of $2,500 for this purchase provided by Alexander to Mr. Grainger.
Mr. Grainger sold the property to John D. Thompson on Nov 4, 1912 for $3,500, subject to the mortgage to Alexander Nickle.
Mr. Thompson sold the property to William M. Jackman on Nov 14, 1918, subject to the mortgage to Alexander Nickle's estate.
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At some point Alexander Nickle moved to Vancouver B.C., to live with or near his sister Mary Jane Moran and her family. Alexander died in Vancouver in May 1918, at the age of 61. Mary Jane and Edward Moran were the executors of his will. In April 1920, they signed a discharge of the 1909 Mortgage, indicating that it had been repaid in full.
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To date I have not been able to locate information regarding the later life and deaths of the two daugthers Martha Jane Moran (who eventually moved to Vancouver with her family) and Agnes Nickle (who never married).
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Current research is underway in Brantford and in Hamilton Ontario to clarify the earlier history of James Nickle and his wife Agnes Black, and to identify their parents and siblings. We believe that both James and Agnes immigrated separately from Ireland and that they met and married in the county of South Dumfries.
Sam Aylesworth
August 7, 2005
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