H e e n e y G e n e a l o g y
S e c o n d G e n e r a t i o n
Luke Heeney Eliza Greene Born 19/06/1835
Northern IrelandBorn 06/10/1842
Fitzroy Harbour, Ontario, CanadaDied 05/05/1902
Danford Corners, Quebec, CanadaDied 14/03/1926
Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada
Married 31/03/1864 Ottawa, Ontario, Canada
Children:
Thomas Born 28/02/1865 Danford Lake, Quebec, Canada Frederick Born 28/02/1867 Danford Lake, Quebec, Canada William Herbert B. Born 18/10/1869 Danford Lake, Quebec, Canada Helena A. Born 20/12/1872 Danford Lake, Quebec, Canada Katherine Born 20/03/1875 Danford Lake, Quebec, Canada Sarah Alice Born 17/10/1877 Danford Lake, Quebec, Canada Ellen Ethel Born 16/04/1882 Danford Lake, Quebec, Canada
The following is taken from H.B. Heeney's "From Roots to Twigs - Book 1" (pg. 12-14):
Luke Heeney was born June 19, 1835 in Northern Ireland, the eldest son of William and Sarah Heeney. While still a boy he immigrated to Canada with his parents and grew to manhood on the family farm in Huntley Township, Carleton County a few miles west of Ottawa. As one reads early family stories it was apparent that Luke was not a farmer at heart and as soon as he reached his late teens he began working for the lumber companies on the Gatineau watershed in the Province of Quebec. He rapidly became aware of the potential of the area, particularly the White pine stands around Danford Lake, 70 miles north of Ottawa.
Luke was so impressed with these stands of pine that as early as April, 1860 he invested his winter's wages in title deeds. Over the next twenty-five years all the land he purchased was at the Quebec Government rate of 30 cents per acre, 20% down and the balance over a four-year period. The following is a list of land purchases made by Luke Heeney during this period. All lands were in Aylwin Township, Ottawa County, Quebec except the final two purchases which were in Alleyne Township of Pontiac County.
Date Purchased April 4, 1860 March 3, 1862 Nov 1, 1868 May 26, 1874 Sept 8, 1878 May 5, 1879 Oct 26, 1883
Luke Heeney and Eliza Greene were married on March 31, 1864. Family stories suggest that they eloped and were married in Christ Church Cathedral, Ottawa. Luke and his new bride then settled in the Danford Lake area on land he had purchased a few years earlier. Eliza was born October 6, 1842 in the family home on the 9th line of Fitzroy. Although recently renovated the house was still standing in 1986. Eliza was the daughter of Thomas Greene(1812-1897), an immigrant from Ireland, and his wife Ellen (Stanley) Greene. The Greene's became a well-known family in the Fitzroy Harbour area. Like his father there were many references to the influence of Luke Heeney on the establishment of the Church of England in the northern reaches of the Gatineau River. It was Luke who first greeted Rev. Lonsdale, the first missionary sent by the Bishop of Montreal to the Upper Gatineau. It was Luke and his father who were at least partially responsible for the construction of Holy Trinity Alleyne in 1867. This was the first Anglican Church in the Gatineau and it was regularly referred to as the "Old Heeney Church". Many of the early Heeney's were baptized, married and buried there.In 1880 Luke Heeney donated the bell weighing 150 pounds that is still in use at the church. The esteem, which surrounded the Heeney name in church circles at the turn of the century, was best expressed in a report to the meeting of the Clarendon Archdeaconry in 1908. "There are many names which figure very prominently among the laymen of the Parish: Mr. Luke Heeney, Robert Heeney, Charles Heeney, Henry Heeney, Mr. Carruthers, and Mr. R. G. Howard. The residences of these men were a home for the clergy, and principally that of Luke Heeney, where a royal welcome always awaited them".
Luke Heeney although he got his start in the lumbering industry was also a well-established farmer in the Gatineau area for the better part of his life. It was on this farm that his children were born and raised. The family consisted of three boys, Thomas, Frederick, & Herbert Brian and four girls Helena A., Katherine, Sarah Alice and Ellen Ethel.
After a long and productive life on the farm, Luke and Eliza retired from the farm and moved to Upper Kazuabazua. This was a small trading post at the junction of the Gatineau River and Kazuabazua Creek. When Luke died May 5, 1902, he was buried in the Cemetery of Holy Trinity Church at Danford Corners. After Luke's death Eliza and her daughter Helena went west and lived with Thomas Heeney in Calgary where they took care of Ardene Heeney. While Thomas and Bernard were overseas during the First World War. After the end of hostilities, when Herbert's wife Mima died in the early 1920's, Eliza and Helena (Lena) spent a year at the Herbert Heeney farm near Brandon Manitoba. In 1921 Eliza and Lena returned to live with her eldest son Thomas who was then operating a store in British Columbia. Eliza died March 14, 1926 and was buried in Ocean View Cemetery in Vancouver BC.
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This page was last updated on April 23, 2002.
