Family History

James Pritchard (1783-1880) with his wife Judith Ferguson (1788-1852) and family emigrated in the early 1830s from County Monaghan, Ireland, and settled at North Wakefield (now Alcove), Quebec, some thirty kilometres up the Gatineau River from the Ottawa River. (See Irish Ancestry for a map of County Monaghan.)

The exact date of arrival in Canada is in some dispute; descendants celebrate 1832 as the year of arrival, whereas a Pioneer Memorial plaque installed in 1997 at Hall's Cemetery, Wakefield, puts the year as 1834.

Pioneer Memorial
Hall's Cemetery, Wakefield
(Click on the thumbnail for the full-size photo)

The Pritchards were preceded in Canada by daughter Mary and her husband Joseph Irwin, who, along with three-year-old eldest son James, paddled by canoe up the Gatineau River to become the first settlers at Wakefield in 1829. Daughter Ann Irwin (1829-1886), who married James Shouldice, was the first child to be born in Wakefield Township.

Within five years of the Irwins' arrival, most of the land in the south-west corner of Wakefield had been taken up, almost all of it by families from Ulster (see Irish Emigration).

"The Maxwell brothers, William and John, crossed Meech Creek as it flowed into the Gatineau, taking land bordering the west bank of the river. William Copeland and Hugh McGarry chose adjoining acreage. After they reached the wide sweep of the river where Joseph Irwin was established, Foster Moncrieff and George Hall climbed to the plateau above. John Landers followed to its source a little creek which joined the Gatineau 400 metres north of the Lapêche. Cain and Timothy Connors crossed the Gatineau to the east bank above the rapids, as did Thomas Stevenson, the latter moving to a valley further back. William Fairbairn began to build a log cabin on the west bank of the Gatineau above Joseph Irwin's property. The Shouldices, Joseph and John, travelled about three kilometres north to the mouth of Indian Creek."  (Norma Geggie, Wakefield and Its People, p. 3)

Foster Moncrieff and George Hall originated from the same part of Ireland as the Pritchards and Irwins, and would have been related by marriage (although exactly how is unknown). Foster Moncrieff was married to a Mary Irwin (born about 1799), and George Hall to a Jane Pritchard (b. abt. 1804). (See Irish Ancestry.)

It is thought that all the children of James and Judith Pritchard were born in Currin parish, County Monaghan; however, although there are Pritchards recorded in the townland of Briscarnagh (and Lurganboy) during this time, there are no baptismal records for their children. Even earlier Pritchard origins are likely in Wales, as the surname is Welsh, being derived from "ap Richard" (son of Richard), and is not common in Ireland.

James and Judith Pritchard had 10 children:

From past discussions with Fred Pritchard (grandson of Thomas & Elvira), however, it is Ian Pritchard's understanding that the "Agnes" appearing as a child of James and Judith was a relative of Elvira, and not a Pritchard at all.

Pritchard Homestead

The Pritchard homestead at Alcove, which has been the site many family reunions over the years, was reputedly built in 1842. It was successively the residence of James and Judith Pritchard, son Andrew, and his son James. Dr. "Jim" Pritchard and his family lived there until his death with the flu in 1918, and the house has not been occupied year-round since. It is currently owned by James (Bing) Thompson, who was married to the late Mary Pritchard, daughter of Dr. Jim.

Pritchard Homestead

Pritchard Cemetery

The family cemetery is located on a tree-covered hill behind the homestead in Alcove. James and Judith Pritchard are buried there, as are three of their children and spouses, and other descendants.

Thomas Pritchard and Elvira Hamilton are buried about 500 metres west of Alcove in the Pritchard-Hamilton Cemetery, while Thomas Stevenson and Ann Pritchard are buried in Hall's Cemetery, Wakefield. It is believed that Joseph Irwin and Mary Pritchard are buried in the Irwin Cemetery, Rupert (Range 6, Lot 31).

These cemeteries are included in a 1999 book by Norma Geggie about cemeteries of the Gatineau Valley ("A Place Apart").