Lorenzo Miller and Louise McKay Dodds
Born: 6 Dec 1862, Bathurst Twp, Lanark County, Ontario, Canada
Married: Louisa McKay Dodds, 1 Mar 1893 Glen Tay, Bathurst Twp, Lanark County, Ontario, Canada
Died: 14 Nov 1928, Crookston, Polk County, Minnesota, United States
Buried: Lorenzo and Louisa are buried in Oakdale Cemetery, Crookston, Polk County, Minnesota, United States
Family Tree: miller.family genes Lorenzo Miller
Relationship of Lorenzo Miller to author: 1st cousin 2ce removed
Relationship of Louisa Dodds to author: great-great aunt
Lorenzo E. Miller and Louisa M. Dodds
Lorenzo Miller was born 6 December 1862 on lot 8 in the 2nd concession of Bathurst township on the south side of the Christie Lake Road. His grandparents, Andrew Miller and Catherine Munro moved from Lanark township in search of land after their marriage in the early 1830s. His parents, Andrew Miller Jr. and Helen Mason Miller later farmed in the area. Andrew Junior received land on concession 2 Lot 7 E ½ and nine acres of land purchased from Peter McNab on concession 3 lot 5. The latter may have been the location of Andrew and Helen’s home.
Early Years
Lorenzo was the eldest of eleven children and he spent his childhood developing the family property. His father died on the 12th of August 1876 at the age of 46, just months before his eleventh child was born. He had been suffering from consumption for about 3 years prior to his death. Lorenzo, at 14 years of age helped to support the family.
In 1891, when his youngest brother was 14 years of age, Lorenzo travelled to Minnesota in search of land and settled in Hammond township, Polk County MN. In 1893 he returned to Canada to marry Louisa McKay Dodds, daughter of Ralph Dodds and Louise McKay who resided on the edge of the village of Glen Tay.
Lorenzo and Louisa McKay homestead
Lorenzo Miller farm buildings
Home and Family in Hammond Twp, Polk County, Minnesota
Lorenzo and Louisa raised three children on their property in Hammond township, Cora, born in 1895, died in 1930 without marrying. Dodds, born 1895, died in 1987 at the age of 91. He continued to farm and raised a family in Hammond township. Arthur, born in 1898, died in 1963, also farmed and raised his family in Hammond township.
Lorenzo Miller Family, Louisa Dodds, Cora, Dodds, Ross
Considering Options in Alberta
Lorenzo made application for a homestead grant in Oct 1908 and on 29 Jul 1912 received the grant to NE 25-2-14-W4 (49.155489 -111.747834) in Alberta, Canada. This property was located between Milk River and Writing-on-Stone provincial park. Today this entire section of land appears to be prime cropland, and no buildings are located on it although several large agricultural units are adjacent.
Reconnecting with Family and Friends
In December of 1918, the family returned to the Perth area to visit with friends and family. From family photos it appears that Canadian family members often visited Hammond County and Crookston, Minnesota as well. In 1925 Lorenzo and Louise were among the first to arrive of the ‘Old Home Week’ held in Perth, July 1925.
Lorenzo died 14 Nov 1928 in Crookston where he retired when leaving the farm to son. Lorenzo’s mother, Helen Mason Miller, aged 88 at the time was still alive and living in Bathurst township where she had raised eleven children on her own. His wife, Louisa Dodds died in May 1941.
Intertwined Families
One of the discoveries I made while researching Lorenzo Miller was how “connected” I was to him. At first glance, he appears on a genealogical family chart as a 1st cousin twice removed. But there were additional relationships. Endogamy, a custom or practice of marrying within one’s own social or ethnic group, was common among the early settlers to Canada. Although intertwined, there was no pedigree collapse.
Lorenzo’s mother Helen Mason Miller was a daughter of my great-great grandparents George Miller and Helen Mason. His father and mother were 1st cousins 1ce removed.
William Miller and Elizabeth Gilmour are shared ancestors. They are my 4x great grandparents and Lorenzo’s great grandfather. This makes us 2nd cousins 3 times removed by this relationship.
Robert Mason and Helen Gourlie are also shared common ancestors, my great-great grandparents and Lorenzo’s great grandparents.
Lorenzo’s wife, Louise McKay Dodds, daughter of Ralph Dodds and Louise McKay, my great-great grandparents places him as husband of my great-great aunt. They were not related.
The Miller ancestors that arrived in Canada in 1820 and 1821 left the townships of Dalhousie and Lanark in the early 1830s. They sold or abandoned the poor lots they had been allotted as settlers and acquired adjoining parcels of land, forming a small community of mainly relatives in Bathurst township. They purchased land that was originally assigned to military settlers, many of whom were of Swiss and German descent. These men cleared land and built a shanty or cabin, acquired their deed, and sold the title to others before returning to their native countries. With large families, land was not available for all the sons, so some went where new lands was opening for settlement. First to Western Ontario and Minnesota, then to North Dakota and Manitoba, some as far as California and Oregon. Later as the Canadian west opened for settlement Saskatchewan and Alberta were popular destinations and today many descendants of these families are residents. Until the 1970s many of the Miller farms in Bathurst township, remained the basis for a tight knit community with strong familial tie.