The Backus family was one of several families that had obtained land from Colonel Thomas Talbot and settled in the area which quickly came to be known as Little Ireland (a namesake due to the Irish ancestry of the settlers).
The Backus-Page House Museum is located within the grounds of the John E. Pearce Provincial Park, situated within a restored Georgian style house which was constructed in 1850. It is one of the first brick homes built in what would eventually become Dunwich Township. The house was commissioned by Andrew and Mary Jane Backus. The property that Andrew built his house on was given to him by his grandmother, Mary Storey, who received her original land grant in 1809.
published
Records created, collected and/or maintained by the Backus family of Dunwich Township. The fonds is comprised of the following series:
-Land records series, 1825-1906.
-Historical records series, 1877-1909.
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published
Land records created, collected or maintained by members of the Backus family. Records include:
-Indenture (Bargain & Sale): from The Honourable Thomas Talbot to Stephen Backus and Walter Storey of the Township of Dunwich, December 1, 1825. -Indenture (Bargain & Sale): from The Honourable Thomas Talbot of Port Talbot to Stephen Backus of the Township of Dunwich, August 1, 1826. -Indenture (Bargain & Sale): from The Honourable Thomas Talbot of Port Talbot to Walter Storey of the Township of Dunwich, August 22, 1826. -Indenture (Bargain & Sale): from Stephen Backus of the Township of Dunwich to Benjamin Willson of the Township of Yarmouth, August 1, 1837. -Memorial of an Indenture (Bargain & Sale): from Stephen Backus of the Township of Dunwich to Benjamin Willson of the Township of Yarmouth, August 31, 1837.
-Indenture and Sale: from Stephen Backus of the Township of Dunwich, to Robert Backus of the Township of Dunwich, August 23, 1852. -Indenture: from Robert and Georgina Forbes Blackwood of Tyrconnell, Township of Dunwich, to Robert Backus of the Township of Dunwich, August 28, 1857. -Indenture of Bargain and Sale between Stephen Backus of the Township of Dunwich, and Robert Backus of the Township of Dunwich, October 28, 1858.
-In Chancery (Office Copy Decree, Notice and Master's Warrant), between George Macbeth, Plaintiff, and James Blackwood and Georgina Forbes Blackwood, his wife, Andrew Backus, Richard B. Nichol and Joseph Scott, defendents, October 20, 1865. -Indenture between the Township of Dunwich and Robert Backus of the Township of Dunwich, February 22, 1870. -Indenture (Deed of Land) between Robert and Jane Backus of the Township of Dunwich, and Frederick Henry Backus of the Township of Dunwich, July 2, 1889. -Indenture (Deed of Land) between Jane Backus of the Township of Dunwich, and John Robert Backus of the Township of Dunwich, October 6, 1898. -Release of Executor: John Robert Backus of the Township of Dunwich, to Jane Backus, October 6, 1898. -Indenture (Statutory Lease) between Annie Francis Backus of the Township of Dunwich, and Frederick Henry Backus of the Village of Wallacetown, March 9, 1899.
-Quit Claim Deed: Jane Backus of the Township of Dunwich, widow of Robert Backus, deceased, and Anna Francis Docker, of the Township of Dunwich, wife of Edward Docker, December 17, 1904. -Lease from Edward Vernon Docker and Anna Frances Docker of the Township of Malahide to George Sidney Docker and Martha Docker, September 6, 1906. -A listing of landholders for Concession 9, Lot 13. Dunwich, from 1821 to 1891.
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published
Historical records created, collected or maintained by members of the Backus family. Records include:
-Illustrated Historical Atlas of Elgin County, Ontario by H.R. Page & Co., 1877.
-"Biographical Sketches of Some of the Residents of Elgin County," ca. 1885.
-Education Department, Ontario, High School Entrance Examination in Literature, December Examinations, 1887. This examination copy belonged to Fannie Backus.
-"The Evening Journal, St. Thomas, August 29, 1896."
-An invitation to the Patterson, Pearce, Storey and Backus reunion, to be held at Port Talbot, July 14, 1909.
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