This copy of The Canada Farmer from 1872 is presumed to have been owned by John Alexander Gemmill, son of John Gemmill, the first settler on Lot 15W, Concession 9 in Ramsay. This rather large book has travelled through two locally famous families, as upon the death of John A. Gemmill, his wife Janet Cannon and daughter of the famous Dr. William Cannon, had the book bound and gifted to her nephew, John Cannon in 1892.
These pencilled notes were all written in the book by Edna Gardiner Lowry, who had it gifted from Dora (Cannon) Chapman, a descendant of John Cannon. The inked notes, however, are more likely to be from the original owners of the book, John A. Gemmill and Janet (Cannon) Gemmill.
While unfortunate that this historical artefact has been written on by a modern hand, one can’t be too upset that the history of these families and the ownership of this book has been recorded for future generations. Had the lineage not been written down, it may have been lost entirely.
