Bridget (Higgins) Cameron And Family Photo

The back of the family photo says "Children and grandchildren of Aunt Ellen. Mr. Duncan Cameron (Aunt Ellen's husband). Mrs. Duncan Cameron (Aunt Ellen) Grandma Murray's oldest sister. Grandma Cameron (Grandma Murray's mother) nee Bridget Higgins of Cork, Ireland. I'm not certain who wrote it.

Bridget (Higgins) Cameron is on the far right; next to her is her daughter Ellen; next to Ellen is her husband Duncan.  Not quite sure who has her hand on Duncan's shoulder (probably his daughter Lillas or Bridget).  The woman sitting on the left is most likely Isabelle (Cameron) McCrea, oldest daughter of Duncan and Ellen.  Ellen McCrea is the 12 year old girl in the picture.  Her older sister Adelia is probably the woman standing to the right of her mother, Isabelle.  Mary McCrea is probably one of the little ones as is Jessie McCrea.  Duncan McCrea is probably the boy sitting in the middle of the photo.

Photo Courtesy of Cousin Gail via Cousin Michael.

I believe this is the photo referenced by Ellen (McCrea) Audley, granddaughter of Duncan and Ellen (Cameron) Cameron in the following letter excerpted below:

Letter From Mrs. Ellen M. Audley dated 9-25-69

Dear April,

First tell me how Bea is your gt aunt. Are you Marion's granddaughter? I have on my TV a 4 generation picture containing a number of the people you ask about taken 74 years ago and all but me dead now.

My gt grandma Bridget Cameron (nee Bridget Higgins). Born in Cork, Ireland 1805? She came to Canada when she was 15 the year of the potato famine in Ireland and that was 1822 or 23 thereabouts. Good looking old woman when I knew her and was probably a real beauty. Also smart. She took service in the Cameron family, the son came home, fell in love with her, couldn't get her any other way so married her and was disowned by his family. She was the oldest of a family of 13 and never saw any of her people again except two brothers who later came to Canada. I could write a volume about her and almost have. This picture was taken in her last summer when she was 85 and I'm my 12th year.

Wish I could personally thank the late April for taking the initiative to find out what she could about our family history.  I believe April's mother, Audrey*, passed this letter along to Aunt Barb and she passed it along to me.  *(I attended a birthday celebration for her and her sister Lois on July 23, 2011, with my aunt)

Cousin Michael was sent a transcript of the letter from Ellen to April and found that Cousin Gail had a copy of it in her possession, passed down through her branch of the family.  It was exciting beyond belief when Michael sent a copy of the photo to me.  

A big thank you to Gail for allowing me to post it online.

I'm grateful for all of the collaboration involved that allowed me to possess a copy of a photo of ancestors whose names I've known but whose faces I had never before seen.