John Squire Shopland

John Squire Shopland was born on 12/15August 17, 1849, at Green Lane, St. Teath, Cornwall (1August 24, 1849, Par, Cornwall/11August 17, 1850 St. Leath, Cornwall). 111The 1861 Cornwall census lists John Shopland, age 11, born in St. Teath, as a servant, occupation Cow Boy, in the household of John Geach. 1John left home at age 12 or 15 and signed on as a cabin boy on a sailing vessel. He sailed nearly all the waters around Europe, spending most of his time sailing in the waters of the Mediterranean, with two trips to both Norway and Sweden. I would be very surprised if he was not involved with smuggling, as most of the ships to sail from Cornwall were, at least in part, smugglers.

3John always wore a beard due to a scar from a block and tackle on board ship. 1He returned home when he was 17 as Second Mate and stayed for 6 months, leaving after a disagreement with his father. He signed on as a deck hand on a ship bound for New York, deserted the ship in New York and went to Toronto, where his sister, Agnes, lived. 2John spent a year there, then left for Goderich on Lake Huron to take up sailing on the Great Lakes. 1It was there he met the Salkeld family and their daughter, Jane. 1In 1869, he traveled west and got a job tending a carload of sheep destined for Victoria via San Francisco. On arriving, he hired himself to a sheepman named Keddy who was in the smuggling business. They would get the sheep from San Juan Island, USA, and then dump them overboard when they reached Vancouver Island. John's job was to count them in the morning and herd them over the rocks from Oak Bay to Beacon Hill Park, BC (now part of Victoria). When Keddy returned to England, John bought his property and started his own farm.

John wrote to one of the Salkeld brothers when the CPR was completed in 1885, asking if Jane was still single and to tell her how he felt. He received an encouraging reply and returned to Goderich in late November with John Oliver (future premier of BC). They bought a carload of sheep and cattle and Oliver took them back to BC. John and Jane were married in the Goderich Anglican Church on December 16, 1885. They returned to BC and lived at Foul Bay where Norman J. was born October 29, 1886. Isaac Victor (Vic) was born in Goderich during a visit home on February 20, 1888. The family then moved to Maple Bay, BC and opened the Shopland Post Office January 1, 1889. All the other children were born there, Elizabeth (Betha) on June 12, 1889, William Albert (Bert) on October 6, 1890, Francis Joseph (Frank) on December 16, 1892, Agnes on August 24, 1894, and Herbert Squire (Herb) on March 30, 1896. 4They ran the post office until John resigned on October 21, 1896. The post office changed its name to the Maple Bay post office on May 1, 1905, and closed January 31, 1916. 1From Maple Bay, the family moved to Christmas Hill near Victoria, then to North Saanich and farmed there until 1902, when they moved to Courtney to farm until 1913.

1John wanted his sons to get set up in farming and Alberta was being advertised as the province with good, available farmland. In the summer of 1910, he and Bert went by rail to Edmonton. They were interviewed by Mr. Overland, a Land Settler for the District of Rochester, then known as siding 6. They made the journey by stage coach, traveling the Athabasca Landing Trail, which follows the Tawatinaw Valley. When the CNR was brought to Athabasca in 1912, the name Rochester was given by one of the rail workers from Rochester, England.

1The land was not good for grain, but John thought it was ideal for stock. John had visions of growing feed crops, using the then-plenty free grazing land and going into the cattle business. They filed on three adjoining quarters, one for Francis (Frank), Norman and Bert in that order from North to South, approximately one mile to the west of the Tawatinaw River. The railway and highway also ran in the valley. The land grants to Shoplands in the Rochester area as recorded in the National Archives of Canada are slightly different, as follows:

John Squire Shopland NE 14 62 24 W4 (5later owned by Norman)

Norman J Shopland SW 24 62 24 W4

Isaac V Shopland LS 3, 4, 5, 6 of 14 62 24 W4

Herbert Squire Shopland SE 15 62 24 W4

Bert and Frank did not receive grants of land from the government, but Bert eventually owned 5SE and SW 14 62 24 W4 (4SE does not have a name on the original land grant) and Frank owned the 5SE 23 62 24 W4, 4which was originally granted to someone else. John and Bert returned to BC that autumn. 1In the spring of 1911, Bert and Victor went back to start clearing land and build living quarters. They found that the "free" grazing land that was in their plans had all been sold, so they made adjustments for mixed farming.

The 1861 England census has John a cow boy for John Geach in Tywardreath.

John left home shortly after at age 12 or 15 and signed on as a cabin boy on a sailing vessel. He sailed nearly all the waters around Europe, spending most of his time sailing in the waters of the Mediterranean, with two trips to both Norway and Sweden. John always wore a beard due to a scar from a block and tackle on board ship.

John returned home in 1872 as a Second Mate and stayed for only 6 months, leaving after a disagreement with his father. He signed on as a deck hand on a ship bound for New York, deserted the ship in New York and went to Toronto to join his sister Agnes. The 1881 Canada census has one Agnes Thompson (b. ~1848 England) and her husband, John Thompson (b. ~1850 England), a carpenter, living in Uxbridge, Ontario North, district 133, sub district J, page 19, household 93 with two children, Fredrick (b. 1874) and Mary (b. 1876).

John left a year later and went to Goderich to sail on the Great Lakes and soon met the Salkeld family. He later travelled west and got a job tending a carload of sheep destined for Victoria via San Francisco. On arriving, he hired himself to a sheepman named Keddy who was in the smuggling business. They would get the sheep from San Juan Island, USA, and then dump them overboard when they reached Vancouver Island. John's job was to count them in the morning and herd them over the rocks from Oak Bay to Beacon Hill Park, BC (now part of Victoria). When Keddy returned to England, John bought his property and started his own farm. John wrote to one of the Salkeld brothers when the CPR was completed in 1885, asking if Jane was still single and to tell her how he felt. He received an encouraging reply and returned to Goderich in late November with John Oliver (future premier of BC). They bought a carload of sheep and cattle and Oliver took them back to BC.

John and Jane were married in the Goderich Anglican Church on December 16, 1885.

They returned to BC and lived at Foul Bay where Norman J. was born October 29, 1886. Isaac Victor (Vic) was born in Goderich during a visit home on February 20, 1888. The family then moved to Maple Bay, BC and opened the Shopland Post Office January 1, 1889. All the other children were born there, Elizabeth (Betha) on June 12, 1889, William Albert (Bert) on October 6, 1890, Francis Joseph (Frank) on December 16, 1892, Agnes on August 24, 1894, and Herbert Squire (Herb) on March 30, 1896. They ran the post office until John resigned on October 21, 1896. The post office changed its name to the Maple Bay post office on May 1, 1905, and closed January 31, 1916. From Maple Bay, the family moved to Christmas Hill near Victoria, then to North Saanich and farmed there until 1902, when they moved to Courtney to farm until 1913.

John wanted his sons to get set up in farming and Alberta was being advertised as the province with good, available farmland. In the summer of 1910, he and Bert went by rail to Edmonton. They were interviewed by Mr. Overland, a Land Settler for the District of Rochester, then known as siding 6. They made the journey by stage coach, traveling the Athabasca Landing Trail, which follows the Tawatinaw Valley. When the CNR was brought to Athabasca in 1912, the name Rochester was given by one of the rail workers from Rochester, England. The land was not good for grain, but John thought it was ideal for stock. John had visions of growing feed crops, using the then-plenty free grazing land and going into the cattle business.

John and Bert returned to BC that autumn. In the spring of 1911, Bert and Victor went back to start clearing land and build living quarters. They found that the "free" grazing land that was in their plans had all been sold, so they made adjustments for mixed farming. Norman followed with his new wife, Marriott Letitia Armstrong, after they were married in Sidney, BC, on April 19, 1911. They traveled from Edmonton by stagecoach to Stoney Creek, approximately seven miles east of siding 6, the stopping spot for that district on the Landing Trail. They walked to the new homestead and farm and spent the summer living in a tent until the log house was ready on November 11. Frank came to Rochester in 1912 and the rest of the family followed in 1914.

John died on November 7, 1917 and was buried in Athabasca. Death: Rochester, Division No. 13, Alberta, Canada