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Gillmore@HomePort
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We
are pleased to
make contact, or learn of
the descendants of George and Ann Gillmore.
Rev. George Gillmore (1720-1811) of
Antrim,
Ireland was a Presbyterian minister, who studied in
Edinburgh. In
1769, along
with his wife Ann
Allen and
their three children, under the age of ten,
they embarked on a voyage to America lasting almost three months. In America, he served
as a minister until his British allegiances branded him a Loyalist
during the American
Revolution. He found himself fleeing his home to follow his
conscience
to Canada where he
settled his family
in Nova Scotia on wooded land on Ardoise Hill in 1786. He
eventually
returned
to active ministry in his adopted land. Journals that survived,
tell of
his story.
A biography
of Rev. George Gillmore was
produced by Sidvin
F. Tucker in
1960 as part of The Gillmore
Saga
1720-1960. A brief
biography
of Rev. Gillmore has been edited
from that text as an introduction.
The Gillmore family avoided starvation in Nova
Scotia,
subsisting on milk and potatoes, with Rev. George (in his late
sixties)
carrying hay on his back through
deep woods - a four
mile journey - to keep their two cows producing milk. Despite
these
hardships,
the family
survived and through six of the seven children of George and Ann,
a
large
number
of descendants have been recorded in the genealogical section of
Tucker's book, The
Gillmore
Saga 1720-1960.
An additional biography of Rev.
George
Gillmore, is included in the
Dictionary of Canadian Biography Online.
A lasting monument to his efforts stands in the
restored
and still active Covenanter
Church in
Grand Pré, Nova Scotia, built during
his
ministry there. He remained active until his death in his
90s. A dozen of his descendants have
entered the Christian ministry including, Rev.
John Redford Scott. The Covenanter
Church
at Grand Pré,
is both a National
Historic Site of Canada and a Registered NS Heritage Property. A
brief history brochure had
been distributed by the congregation. The Covenanter Church is
now operated as part of Orchard Valley
Pastoral Charge.
Do you
have
information that could be helpful in correcting or adding to the
contents
of HomePort ? We appreciate your comments, suggestions and
additions.