1911 Courtship: May 1 Dear Noah

Sorry for getting this out late, but I don't want to print erroneous information and I'm in a quandry about the Deverell Family. More on that under Genealogy Notes.

Author of Letter: Ethel Isabell Nelson, age 21
Dated:  Apr 23, 1911
Addressed to: Mr. N. C. Draper... Dear Noah
Mailed  from:  Belhaven, Ontario
Relationship:  Courting
Profession:  Farmer's Daughter  
Writing  instrument: Fine point  pen, black ink
Written on: Light bluey/gray, slightly thick, textured, linen-like paper, 9 inches x 6 inches, folded in half. Ethel has written straight front to back like a booklet, with a PS page tucked inside.

People/places mentioned in this letter:

- Our English man - *hired man
- Robert Davidson - a Belhaven neighbour
- Manuel - *Emanuel Nelson - Ethel's 5 year old brother
- *Sedores - Hugh Sedore and his family had diphtheria
- Pa - *James Henry Nelson
- Rob't - the Nelson's hired man, Robert, who plays the violin 
- Herb Deverell **

*Absence makes the heart grow fonder

Legend: 
* Look under the Categories/Labels in the right side column for more posts on this 
  person/place/thing.
** see Genealogy Notes below

Belhaven. May 1st 1911.

Mr N. C. Draper
               Grand Coulee.
                            Sask.

Dear Noah,-
                          I missed your letter last
night, but I will be looking for one
to-morrow night. I sometimes
get them on Monday.
                          Say I just wish you
were here to hear our English
man talk, He gave us girls a
great old lecture last night
(Perhaps we need it eh) Well I
would rather have you lecture
us anyway.

2.

    I was down to Mr Robt
Davidson's yesterday. They
had a barn raising. There
were about 125 men there
There little boy has pneumonia
Glen)
     Manuel got bit on Friday
night by our dog. It is torn
to the bone on the one side
of his leg.
      Say: did you get that
letter, if you did not I think
it must have gone astray
for I posted one to you that
week. You may depend I
will write if I possibly can.

3.

   For I know just how I look for
your letters. I don't know but
I don't believe you are quite
as foolish as I be.
You say absence make the
heart grow fonder. I think by
the time I see you again that
love surely will reign, for I thot it
did before. I have no objections
to how strong my love grows
to thee in your absence.
But oh! I wish it was just
so you could run in once in
a while. Is your mother
still thinking of coming down?
Wish you were coming to.
But never mind it wont be
long after I hope until I see you.
I am awfully glad you sent your

4.

photo. It don't let me for get you.
I tell you there was no danger of me
forgetting you. The card is handled
quite a bit.
   How are all the folks up there.
There is quite a bit of sickness
around here just at present. 4 cases
of pneumonia. It was Mrs Sedore
that was sick at Sedore's they are
out now & Hugh is working here.
   I think Pa has about ten acres
to sow yet.
   I don't know wether  Robt can play
"I don't know why I love you but I do" true
I think I will wait and ask you.
instead of asking Robt. Pa has told Robt
twice for to leave, if he don't soon
pay attention I think Pa will be
tempted to walk with him to the road
unless he soon does better. hope your
man is better than ours. Well I think
I am nearly to the closing point for this
time. I am the same as B 4. with all love
x lots x this x time x eh x    from Ethel Nelson
   x     x   x    x   x    x    x   x  x
       x     x    x   x   x    x    x  x

P.S.
         I am going to send you
the piece that was in the
paper about Herb Deverell's
death. Suppose you have heard
of it before this reaches you
but perhaps not got the little
piece of the paper. It was in the
News. I wrote my letter Sunday.
So to-day when I had it ready
to post I just happen to think
that I intended to send it to you.
So here I am, finishing
up on Monday. It has been
raining nearly all day.
I guess I am making my P.S.
rather long. so Good-Bye
                                                  Ethel

THE TOMB

DEVERELL - At 107 Chester Aven-
          ue, Toronto, on Thursday, the
          20th April, 1911, Herbert Wil-
          liam Deverell, aged 36 years.
     Funeral last Monday. Internment
at Queensville.

* * *

Herbert Deverill Fasted
       and Died from Weakness
 We clip the following from the To-
ronto Star.  Mr. Deverill was a native
of Ravenshoe. 
      Herbert Deverill took sick with the
grip this winter and refusing to give
up and go to bed continued work ev-
ery day in Medd's grocery store in
Gerrard street east. On an occa-
sion of a former illness, due to dia-
betes, he had obtained good results
from a prolonged fast of 21 days,
and he became firmly convinced
of the efficacy of that treatment. He
tried it again for this grip and after
fifteen days, during which he grew
steadily weaker, he died at his home
at 107 Chester avenue.  The funeral
will be from his widowed mother's
house at 291 Palmerston avenue on
Monday.
      Herbert Deverill was well known in
New Ontario.  He was the manager
Revillon Brothers' store at McDou-
gall Chutes for some time, and con-
ducted stores of his own at Abilibi
Crossing and at Corcoran.   It is
said that he strained his vitality by
too heavy and too prolonged work.
When the prospectors came in for
outfits, they were always in a hurry
and Deverill would frequently work
all night.  He worked all day carry-
ing 100 pound bags of flour and sugar
half a mile to the boat from his store,
or from the railway station.
He was never a heavy or robust
man, but on the termination of his
former long fast, he became very
fleshy and continued so for a consid-
erable period.
      He came to Toronto on the death
of his father about a year ago to
settle the estate, and he still owned
a general stock of goods in the north
country.  He is survived by a wife
and three children.

* * * 

Genealogy Notes

 I found the newspaper clipping about Herb Deverell that Ethel mentions in her letter and have posted it above.  But as it happens with many things in genealogy, there's a mystery here as well...

Noah's mother is *Sarah Sophia Deverell and Noah's father is David Draper. Both Sarah and David were born and raised in Belhaven in North Gwillimbury Township. But in 1867 when David was 25 and Sarah was 21, they went all the way to Haldimand Township which is around the western tip of Lake Ontario and almost directly across from Erie, Pennsylvania, to get married. Why so far away? I can't find any record of family living there. Or did they elope?


The following info on Sarah Sophia's family is taken from the 1861 Canada census for North Gwillimbury:
Father  - William H Deverell b1808 in England, Occupation: Minister 
Mother - Fanny b1815 in Ireland

Residence:  Conc 3 Lot 26 Ravenshoe, North Gwillimbury

Note: the following children were all born in the above house.

Mary b1840
Robert b1855

Sarah b1846
Letitia b1857

Frances b1848
Thomas b1860

However, there was another Deverell family living in the same township and here is their information according to the 1881 Canada census for North Gwillimbury:
Father - William H Deverell b1814 in Ontario (English heritage),  Minister
Mother - Fanny b1818 in Ontario (English heritage)

Residence: Conc 4 lot 1 Queensville, North Gwillimbury

This William H and Fanny live with their son's family:
William Deverell b1846 and his wife Euphemia b1848
And among their many children born in Queensville are:
- Charles b1869
- Herbert b1876 

A note here... C Deverell is mentioned in the letter of  Feb 4 Dear Ethel when Noah talks of going up to Burke's Falls and seeing him having a rest. But according to the obit, he came down from the 'north country' soon after that. 

So, we finally found Charles Deverell and  Herbert Deverell and from the above information, it looks like they could be Sarah Sophia's nephews thereby making them Noah's cousins. And that would explain why Ethel is sending Herbert's obituary. 

Except for a few things... it would also mean their father - William Deverell b1846 - would be Sarah Sophia's brother, right? But they can't be siblings for the following reasons:
1. they share the same birth year but were born a couple months apart
2. their parents have the same names & jobs, but not the same birth years
3. if they were siblings, William would show up on Sarah's 1861 census. 

So what relation are Charles and Herbert to Sarah Sophia? 

(If you know, please tell me as I've exhausted all my leads.)