Up the Gatineau! Article
This article was first published in Up the Gatineau! Volume 10.
An Irishman in Canada: John Egan
Dr. H. T. Douglas
I wish to speak to you about John Egan, a young Irishman who came to Canada and up the Ottawa River in 1832. But first of all, I would like to provide a background for my story.
By the year 1820, a road had been built which ran westward from the village of Hull to the shoreline of Lac Deschenes. In 1825 Captain Prendergast, an Army officer who had served in the war of 1812, took up land farther up the Ottawa River, not far from where Shawville is today. He built a house, which is still there, and a wharf and a mill, and that area became known as Prendergast Mills. What I have to do now is to bring John Egan to Prendergast Mills.
Young Egan was born in Lissavaughan, Aughrim, County Galway, and in 1832 when he reached Quebec he was only 20 years of age. He was a tall presentable young fellow and, by dint of calling on lumber merchants in Quebec City, he obtained a position as a sort of Stores Clerk with Thomas Durrell, a lumberman and merchant of the Aylmer area. As clerk for Thomas Durrell, the young Egan boarded with Captain Prendergast at Prendergast Mills.
I would like to throw in some geographical information. lt seems that the Pickannock River, a tributary of the Gatineau, runs well back of Kingsmere Mountain - indeed, its headwaters are north of Shawville. Timber was cut along the Pickannock, and brought down the Gatineau, but supplies were brought up largely from the Prendergast Mills area, and that is where the lad Egan operated. He is spoken of as follows, -
“Egan had a pleasing manner, and a great fluidness of speech. With his horse and box-sleigh caparisoned after the manner of the French-Canadians, and wearing his gray capot, sash, toque, moccasins and mitts, he became a familiar figure in the surrounding township, as he made his way through the settlement, buying hay, oats, pork and other commodities for use in the shanties. He was a welcome visitor at practically every homestead in Clarendon and Bristol; and when, some years later, he moved to Aylmer village to engage in business, there was very deep regret expressed by all within the territory".
This move to Aylmer would be around 1836, although I am not sure of the date.
The first office occupied by John Egan and Co. at Aylmer was situated in a small frame building on the main street.
He was married in August, 1839. The Bytown Gazette of August 14th, 1839, says, — “Married last evening by the Rev. John Cruikshank, John Egan, Esq., of Aylmer, to Margaret Briscoe Gibson, daughter of Captain Wm. Gibson, a retired Army officer”.
In 1840, to house his bride, he built “Mount Pleasant" at Aylmer. This was a solidly-built stone home on the north side of the road at the entrance to the village. The house is still there, and is in good repair.
It is obvious that, in the early ‘40’s, Aylmer was growing rapidly, and so was the Egan business. In the year 1845 he built a sawmill at Quyon, also a grist mill, and opened a store there. In 1847 he was elected Member of Parliament. In the year 1853 he put up a very large mill at Pontiac. In 1854 he obtained a large grant for the proposed Chats Canal.
Mr. and Mrs. Egan on several occasions entertained Governors-General of Canada who happened to be passing through Aylmer.
One instance would be when Lord Elgin came to Bytown in July, 1853. I quote from Mrs. H. J. Friel:-
“A ‘repast‘ had been held at Rideau Hall, and soon after His Excellency started for Aylmer, where he was to dine with Mr. John Egan, M.P.P. On reaching the town of Aylmer, His Excellency repaired to Mount Pleasant, the residence of Mr. Egan. While His Excellency and party were at dinner, other guests who had been invited for dancing passed the time admiring the decorations of the ballroom, and the scene presented by the illumination of the grounds. Dancing commenced about ten o'clock. His Excellency took part in the dancing". (I have no doubt a good time was had by all!)
The firm of Egan and Co. did an immense lumber business. In one year they had one hundred rafts en route to Quebec. But in the year 1856, the wheel seemed to turn for Mr. Egan. The failure of an important firm in London meant serious losses for Quebec timber merchants, and this in turn reacted on the Egan businesses. However, I will read you what Nicholas Davin has to say about the Egan empire: -
“John Egan was head of the largest business on the Ottawa River. (Davin is speaking of the 50‘s) It was he who first gave system to its timber trade, which provided 0ne—quarter of the entire revenue of Canada. His business ran up, in the few years before his death, to over $800,000 annually. He used 1,600 horses in his business. and employed 2,000 men. With Mr. Hickey, he founded the town of Eganville".
The genial Irishman John Egan died at Quebec City in July, 1857, at the age of 46 years. His headstone can be seen in Beechwood Cemetery. It is obvious that Mr. Egan was a man of enterprise, and a good organizer. Overall, John Egan was a gentlemanly person.
This article is from a collection of the writings of the late Dr. H. T Douglas on Ottawa and the Ottawa area entitled — ‘BITS AND PIECES. THAT'S ALL’. dated 1969
Permission to reprint this article was kindly granted by Dr Douglass daughter. Mrs. Frank Packard. of Bobcaygeon. Ontario.
PICK A SPELLING
It will be noticed that, in the foregoing two articles, there are three spellings of Picanoc. We believe that the one in this note is the currently accepted one.