At age 21 Nicholas Hedley married Irish-born Jane McBride, age 16, of Huntley Twp. They were married October 12, 1835 in Wesleyan Methodist Church, Bathurst District, Carleton County "by Special License of Banns." Witnesses were Wm. Gainfort and Robt. Lyttle.

Jane McBride, born May 3, 1819 in Tyrone County, Northern Ireland, was the daughter of Henry and Nancy (Little) McBride, who were born in 1786 and 1791 respectively, both natives of Tyrone County in Northern Ireland. The McBrides came to Canada with their infant daughter Jane in 1819, initially to the Richmond Settlement, Upper Canada. They settled in Huntley Township in 1821, the year their son William McBride was born. The 1822 Census for Huntley Township lists Henry McBride, head, his wife, a daughter and a son.

In addition to their property in Huntley, the McBrides owned farmland in Torbolton Township, where John Hedley, Nicholas’ brother, was Reeve at the same time that Henry McBride was Reeve of Huntley Twp. The 1861 Census for Torbolton Twp. shows William McBride, Jane’s brother, on Lot 28, Concession 4 on a 169 acre farm valued at $4200. Thirty-six acres are cultivated--24 in crops and 12 in pasture;140 acres are woods/wild. The 1879 Historical Atlas of Carleton County (Belden) shows William McBride farming on Concession 2, Lot 14, next to the farm of N. Hedley (Lot 13).

At the time of the marriage of Nicholas and Jane, in 1835, Nicholas’ parents, John and Frances, were 65 and 62 respectively. Only William, age 20, and Mary Ann, age 14, were unmarried and probably still residing with their parents on Lot 18, Concession 4, the original property on which John and Frances had settled in 1923. Nicholas and his young wife Jane may also have lived for awhile with the family. The property at the time had two log houses, the original, built about 1826, and a log house constructed later, closer to River Road (now Kerwin Road) which was destroyed by fire in 1838. By the following year, it had been replaced by a fine stone house. This home, at 1045 Kerwin Road, has served as a family dwelling for the past 168 years. (See Chap 2 for more about the Hedley residences.)

On April 26, 1837 Jane gave birth to their first child, William Henry Hedley, and on Nov. 4, 1838 to a second son, John Henry Hedley. A third son, Thomas Hedley, was born in 1840.

In addition to his work as farmer and mill operator, Nicholas played an active roll in the life of the community: He was one of three March Township constables in1837, a sergeant in the local militia in the 1840's, one of several pathmasters from 1842 to1844, a March Township Councilor in 1852 and 1853, and an active member of the South March Loyal Orange Lodge # 331.

The March Township Registry of May 9, 1842 lists Nicholas Hedley as owner of the south half of lot 18, concession 4, although his parents John and Frances probably continued to live there. By that time Nicholas’ younger brother and sister, William and Mary Ann, had both married and moved to homes of their own. The 1851 Census for March Township shows Nicholas’ parents, John, age 80, and Frances, age 74, living with William, his young wife Bridget and their four little girls in their one-storey log cabin (Chapter 6).

The Collector’s Roll for the Township of March, 1848, listing the relative value of the inhabitants’ property, showed that Hamnett Pinhey, by far the wealthiest, was assessed at 1011 pounds; Mrs. Bridge at 377 pounds; F.W. Richardson at 273 pounds; and Nicholas Hedley at 217 pounds. Nicholas, whose family had come to Canada as indentured servants 29 years earlier, was now among the wealthiest in the township! Bob Gregory, present owner of the property, and contributor of the above information, attributes this financial success to the Hedleys’ business activities as gristmill and sawmill owners.

The family of Nicholas and Jane was growing rapidly, with the addition of five more children between 1843 and 1851: Nicholas, Robert, Ann, Edward, and Mary Jane. The 1851 Census is the last census showing the  family of Nicholas and Jane Hedley in March Township:

            Jan. 12, 1851 Ont. Census for March Township, Carlton County (age next birthday)

This Census also notes that the family was living in a stone house, one of only eight in March Township at the time, and that they were operating a sawmill worked by water, producing 20,000 ft. of sawn lumber and employing three persons. The designation of "labourer" ascribed to the five sons ages eight to fourteen years, in addition to their school attendance, indicates the parental expectation that their children would contribute fully to the work required for the family to succeed.

John Hedley, father of Nicholas, died Jan.3, 1855 at age 82. Nicholas’ mother Frances remained with their son William and his young wife Bridget, who died two and a half years later, at age 31 on Aug. 30, 1857. William was left with seven children, ranging in ages from infant Bridget to 16-year-old Mary Ann. It is likely that Frances, although approaching her 80^th year, provided needed support and assistance in the care and nurturing of her grandchildren. Frances (Lawes) Hedley, born Oct. 12, 1777 in Ryton Parish, Northumberland, England, died on July 14, 1866 in March Township, Carleton County, Ontario at age 88 .

By 1846 the grist mill on Nicholas Hedley’s property had been converted to a sawmill. The waters of Constance Creek were probably showing greater seasonal fluctuations as a result of large-scale deforestation. In addition, the increasing number of steam-driven grist and sawmills was probably making the mill less profitable. By the 1850's Nicholas and Jane were considering selling their March Twp property and moving their family of 14 to the recently opened townships in Huron County, where they may have hoped to find low-cost farmland and new opportunities for their growing family. The 1861 Ontario Census for March Township, Carleton County indicates that the property had been sold, and that the mill had apparently fallen into disuse, for it is not mentioned.

1. William Hedley b.1837 in March Twp; m. Sarah Phillips in 1863; lived in Wawanosh, Ashfield and Kinloss Townships; Wm. and Sarah moved to South Dakota in 1881 with their eight children. Sarah died in 1887 at age 40. William married Julia Ann Bennett and had three more children in S. Dakota. William died in 1922 at age 85 in Aberdeen, South Dakota. (Chap. 8,1)

2. John Henry Hedley b.1838; m. Margaret Florence Johnston (b.1847) in 1866; farmed in Kinloss Twp; moved to Greenock Twp. in 1886; Nine children. Margaret died in 1887 at age 39; John Henry married Ann Alexander in1888. John Henry died in Kincardine in 1910 of prostate cancer at age 70. Ann died in 1932 at age 80. (Chap. 8,14)

3. Thomas Hedley b.1840 in March Twp; m. Mary Ann Armstrong in March Twp. in 1863; lived in Kincardine, in Huron Twp. (Bruce Co.) and West Wawanosh, Huron Co. (south of Lucknow). Nine children. Thomas died in 1908 at age 67 of a heart attack. (Chap. 8,2)

4. Nicholas Hedley b.1843 in March Twp; m. Mary Jane Woodbeck in Michigan in 1865; farmed in Macomb Co., Mich; Two daughters (Mary E. d. in childhood and Estella E. b.1870) Nicholas died in 1916, age 73, buried in Macomb, Mich. (Chap. 8,3)

5. Robert b.1844 in March Twp; m. Eliza Ralston abt.1879 at age 35; farmed in Napa Co., Cal.; eight children; died abt.1898 (abt. age 54) in Napa, Cal. (Chap. 8,4)

6. Ann (1846-1934) m. Henry Phillips in 1866; farmed in W. Wawanosh Twp. and Ashfield Twp; Six children; Henry was killed by horses in 1877; Ann and four children appear in the 1881 Census for Wingham; In 1887 Ann married George B. Scott. In 1890 Ann and three daughters moved to London. Ann died in London in 1934 (age 88). (Chap. 8,5)

7. Edward, b.1848, was 4 in the 1851 Census for March Twp. He may have lived in Kincardine and later moved to Michigan where he worked as streetcar operator and teamster; m. fifteen-year-old Minnie Terry in Saginaw; four children; d. between 1900 and 1910. (All of above requires further confirmation.) (Chap. 8,6)

8. Mary Jane b.1851 in March Twp; m. James Woods in 1867; farmed in Kincardine Twp. Eleven children. James died in 1903 at age 53. Mary Jane moved to Kincardine in 1906. Mary Jane died in 1934 at age 84. (Chap.8,7)

9. Maggie, b. abt.1852-53; m. John Burns (b. 1849) a carpenter in Kincardine about 1870; moved to Cleveland, Ohio. Two children, Robert J. and Mary Ann; d. after 1910. (requires further confirmation) (Chap. 8,8)

10. Martha, b.1854, is 16 years old, working as a servant, on the 1871 Ashfield Census.

11. Adeline, b.1856, is listed on her sister Ann’s list of family birthdays.

12. James was probably b. about 1858. His name without a birth date appears on Ann’s list.

13. Susan was b. in 1860, about the time that her parents and their12 children moved from March Twp. to Huron Co. Her birth place is not known. Susan was 11 on the 1871 Kinloss Twp Census and 19, a seamstress, on the 1881 Census for W. Wawanosh. Susan m. Henry Alton in 1882; They farmed near Bruce Mines (in the Sault Ste. Marie area); Six children; Henry died in 1934 at age 75. Susan died in 1958 at age 98. (Chap. 8,11)

14. Alexander b.1862 in Wawanosh, the first born after the family’s move to Huron Co., was a stone mason; m. Thomisine Fisher (b.1862); lived south of Lucknow; Nine children; Alexander was killed by runaway horses in 1908 at age 46. Thomisine died in 1940 at age 78. (Chap. 8,12)

15. Pharaoh b.1864 in Wawanosh, went to California in the 1880's; m. Johanna (Josie) (Klumann) Simonson in 1912. Johanna was b. in 1877 in Oldenburg, Niedersachsen, Prussia (Germany). This was a 2^nd marriage for Johanna; They owned the Van Nuys Hotel in Van Nuys, California; Two sons; Johanna died in Glendale, California in 1951. Pharaoh’s died in Van Nuys, California Sept.1939; both are buried in Oakwood Memorial Park, Chatsworth, Los Angeles County, CA. . (Chap. 8,13)