Abraham and Sarah (Anderson) Grimshaw

Quaker Immigrants to the Toronto Area from Yorkshire

Abraham and Sarah Grimshaw were born (in 1812 and 1811) and were married in Yorkshire (in 1834). After the first five children, the family emigrated to Gwillimbury, Ontario where they joined others who were adherents to the Quaker faith. They then had three more children. They lived out their lives in the area and are buried in the Religious Society of Friends Burial Ground, which is in Newmarket, York Regional Municipality, Ontario. Abraham died in 1867; the date of Sarah’s death is not known. Abraham Grimshaw is a descendant of the Edward and Dorothy (Raner) Grimshaw line.

One of Abraham and Sarah’s children, William Alfred Grimshaw, married Dora Tinley in Bradford in 1875, and the family settled in Detroit, Michigan. This family is the subject of a companion webpage.

It was previously hypothesized on this webpage that another Grimshaw family, that of GR and Ellen Grimshaw (see companion webpage on John Thomas and Arvilla Grimshaw), may have also descended from Abraham and Sarah Grimshaw. The families of both William Grimshaw and GR Grimshaw settled in the Detroit area and apparently were closely connected, as indicated by the commonality of names in the two families. However, the evidence is not strong enough to support the hypothesis.

Webpage Credits
Preliminary Descendant Chart for Abraham and Sarah Grimshaw
Abraham Grimshaw Arrived in New York on July 26, 1843
Abraham Was Descended from the Edward and Dorothy (Raner) Grimshaw Line
Two Daughters of Abraham and Sarah Grimshaw in Commemorative Biographical Record of the County of York (Ontario)
William Grimshaw, Ninth Child of Abraham and Sarah, Married Dora Tinley
Where is East Gwillimbury, Ontario, Where Abraham and Sarah Grimshaw Settled?
Did Abraham and Sarah Grimshaw Come to East Gwillimbury as Quakers for Land?
Abraham and Sarah Grimshaw Are Buried in Newmarket, Ontario
References

Webpage Credits

Credit goes to the Goodwin Family Tree, Utts/Johnson Family Tree, Plantt Family Tree, Newell, Robertson and LEBLANC-CLARRIDGE-YOUNG-GRAYSON on Ancestry.com.

Preliminary Descendant Chart for Abraham and Sarah Grimshaw

The following descendant chart for Abraham and Sarah Grimshaw has been constructed from several sources, in particular the family trees found on Ancestry.com.

Aaron Grimshaw* (23 Nov 1778 – About 1834) & Mary Lister (11 Feb 1776 – 5 Aug 1826)
|–Abraham Grimshaw (12 Oct 1812, Yorkshire – 2 Dec 1867, Ontario) & Sarah Anderson (5 Jun 1811, England – unknown, York, Ontario). Married 29 Jan 1834, Brighouse, Yorkshire.
|–|–George Grimshaw?
|–|–Mary Jane Grimshaw* (15 Dec 1834, England – 25 Apr 1924, Aurora, York, Ontario, Canada) & Simon Press. Married 15 Apr 1852, Newmarket, Whitchurch, York.
|–|–|–William Beers Press
|–|–|–Sarah Jane Press
|–|–Mary Jane Grimshaw* (15 Dec 1834, England – 25 Apr 1924, Aurora, York, Ontario, Canada ) & Charles Danbrook. Married 4 Oct 1859, Newmarket, Haldimand, York.
|–|–|–Hannnah Eliizabeth Danbrook
|–|–|–John Henry Danbrook
|–|–|–Amy Louise Danbrook
|–|–Joseph John Grimshaw (17 Jun 1836, England – ?)
|–|–Anna Eliza Grimshaw (15 Dec 1838, Yorkshire – ?) & George Williams (ca 1834, England – ?). Married 9 Oct 1858, Laskey, Haldimand, York, Ontario.
|–|–|–Mos G Williams? (1859, Ontario – ?)
|–|–|–Thomas H Williams & ? Walk
|–|–|–Sarah A Williams & George Clark
|–|–Abraham Grimshaw (13 Aug 1840, Yorkshire – Jan – Mar, 1842, Leeds, Yorkshire)
|–|–Joseph John Grimshaw (24 Aug 1842, Leeds, Yorkshire – unknown, York, Ontario) & Elizabeth Reynolds (ca 1847, Whitchurch, Ontario – ?). Married 1 Jan 1867, Haldimand, Ontario.
|–|–|–Carrie Grimshaw
|–|–|–Thomas Grimshaw & Elizabeth Bessie Packer
|–|–|–Arthur Grimshaw
|–|–|–Esther Blanche Grimshaw & George Nott
|–|–|–Herbert Theodore Grimshaw & Elvira Alberta Long
|–|–|–Louis Reginald Grimshaw & Mary or Nellie May Hodgins
|–|–|–Mary Webster?
|–|–|–Charles Webster?
|–|–|–Daniel Webster?
|–|–Sarah Jane Grimshaw (1843 – 27 Apr 1901, Peel, Ontario) & William Peaker (1831, Goole, Yorkshire – 16 Aug 1913, Peel, Ontario). Married 24 Sep 1859, Newmarket, Ontario.
|–|–|–William Josiah Peaker & Rose McLaughlin
|–|–|–Charles Peaker
|–|–|–Thomas Bramley Peaker & Alma Lavina Bowen
|–|–|–John Wilcox Peaker
|–|–|–George A Peaker
|–|–|–Frederick James Peaker
|–|–|–Edwin Allen Peaker
|–|–|–Alexander Peaker
|–|–|–Kenneth Peaker
|–|–|–Alexander Oliver Peaker & Alma Amelia Crawford
|–|–|–Harriet Jane Peaker & Rev Albert George Hudson
|–|–|–Mary Louise Peaker & Alfred Franklin Hickock or Hillock
|–|–|–Edith Rose Peaker
|–|–|–Annie Beatrice Peaker
|–|–William Alfred Grimshaw (May 1845, East Gwillimbury, Simcoe, Ontario – 16 Jan 1911, Detroit, Michingan) & Dora Thera Tinley (Sep 1853, Bradford, Simcoe South, Ontario – 1927, Detroit, Michigan). Married 1870 or 1 Jul 1875, Bradford, Ontario.
|–|–|–Albert Edward Grimshaw & Emma Nollett
|–|–|–George Richard Grimshaw & L Julia Josephine Murtagh
|–|–|–Mary Ann or Annie Sara Lisa Grimshaw & Charles Joseph Kimmel
|–|–|–John Lester Grimshaw & Ada Ebling
|–|–George Henry Grimshaw (15 Sep 1847, Markham, York, Ontario – ?) & Jane Hunter (Oct 1852, Ontario – 12 Jan 1931, Toronto, Ontario). Married 4 Jan 1875, Chingcousy Twp, Peel Co, Ontario).
|–|–|–Ida May Grimshaw & Eli Bertram Warner
|–|–|–Jessie May Grimshaw & Alfred Benjamin Fleming
|–|–|–Sarah Elizabeth Grimshaw & John Roger Williams
|–|–|–George Edward Grimshaw & Laura May Harrison
|–|–|–William Thomas Grimshaw & Mabel Frances Jay
|–|–|–John Henry Grimshaw & Annie Baldwin
|–|–|–Lawrence Almer Grimshaw
|–|–|–Joseph Douglas Grimshaw
|–|–Hannah Maria Grimshaw (1850, Whitchurch, Ontario – ?) & John Archibald Campbell (ca 1845, Stormont, Ontario – 27 Jan 1876, Auroro, Ontario). Married 4 Oct 1871, York Ontario.
|–|–|–William Campbell
|–|–|–Eliza Campbell
|–|–|–George Archibald Campbell & Caroline Edith May

Abraham Grimshaw Arrived in New York on July 26, 1843

[Record needed.]

Abraham Was Descended from the Edward and Dorothy (Raner) Grimshaw Line

Abraham’s lineage to the early Yorkshire Grimshaw line has been identified as shown below.

Edward Grimshaw (About 1559 – 22 Jun 1635) & Dorotye Raner
|–Abraham Grimshaw (1603 – 1670) & Sarah ( – 21 Sep 1695)
|–|–Josias Grimshaw (25 Apr 1658 – 15 Dec 1722) & Sarah Ibbitson (25 Dec 1647 – 15 Feb 1741/1742)
|–|–|–Abraham Grimshaw (24 Feb 1691/1692 – ) & Elizabeth Sandall (5 Dec 1701 – 13 Apr 1787)
|–|–|–|–Aaron Grimshaw (14 Dec 1722 – 8 Oct 1777)
|–|–|–|–Elizabeth Grimshaw (19 Jan 1724/1725 – )
|–|–|–|–Mary Grimshaw (29 Mar 1727 – ) & Samuel Cooper
|–|–|–|–Sarah Grimshaw (20 Feb 1729/1730 – )
|–|–|–|–Abraham Grimshaw (7 Nov 1731 – 7 May 1786) & Ellenor Whalley (24 Aug 1744 – 28 Oct 1841)
|–|–|–|–|–Joseph Grimshaw* (5 Apr 1765 – 27 May 1841) & Margaret Wetherald
|–|–|–|–|–Aaron Grimshaw* (23 Nov 1778 – About 1834) & Mary Lister (11 Feb 1776 – 5 Aug 1826)
|–|–|–|–|–|–Abraham Grimshaw (14 Dec 1801 – )
|–|–|–|–|–|–Josiah Grimshaw (29 Jul 1803 – )
|–|–|–|–|–|–Eliza Grimshaw (22 Feb 1806 – )
|–|–|–|–|–|–William Grimshaw (14 Jun 1809 – )
|–|–|–|–|–|–Mary Grimshaw
|–|–|–|–|–|–Henry Grimshaw (7 Dec 1810 – )
|–|–|–|–|–|–Abraham Grimshaw (12 Oct 1812 – ) & Sarah
|–|–|–|–|–|–|–Mary Jane Grimshaw (15 Dec 1834 – )
|–|–|–|–|–|–|–Joseph Grimshaw (17 Jun 1836 – )
|–|–|–|–|–|–|–Anna Eliza Grimshaw (15 Dec 1838 – )
|–|–|–|–|–|–|–Abraham Grimshaw (13 Aug 1840 – )
|–|–|–|–|–|–|–Joseph John Grimshaw (24 Aug 1842 – )
|–|–|–|–|–|–|–Sarah Grimshaw (1843 – )

Two Daughters of Abraham and Sarah Grimshaw in Commemorative Biographical Record of the County of York (Ontario)

Information on two of Abraham and Sarah’s daughters, Anna Eliza and Sarah Jane Grimshaw, has been found on the following publication and is shown below.

J. H. Beers & Co. Commemorative Biographical Record of the County of York (Ontario) 1907.

Anna Eliza Grimshaw Married George Williams (p. 623-624)

The following record of the marriage of Eliza A Grimshaw to George Williams on Octrober 9, 1858 was found on the internet.

http://homepages.rootsweb.com/~maryc/york1858.htm
York County Marriages, 1858
from Ontario Archives microfilm MS 248 reel 18, vol 84: York Co. 1858 – 1862
FORMAT: birth place is given before residence
George WILLIAMS, 24, England, East Gwillimbury, s/o Richard & Sarah, married Eliza A. GRIMSHAW, 20, Canada, Whitchurch, d/o Abram & Sarah, witn: William RANEY of Whitchurch, 9 Oct 1858

Sarah Jane Grimshaw Married William Peaker (p 118-119)

William, Thomas, George, Frederick, E.S. (dentist), K (dentist), John W, Oliver (dentist)

William Grimshaw, Ninth Child of Abraham and Sarah, Married Dora Tinley

Another child of Abraham and Sarah, William Alfred Grimshaw, is described below and more completely on a companion webpage.

William A Grimshaw was born in East Gwillimbury, Ontario in about 1850. He was descended from the Edward and Dorothy (Raner) Grimshaw line. His parents, Abraham and Sarah Grimshaw and their family, apparently emigrated to East Gwillimbury, a Quaker settlement area, from Yorkshire. (Most of Edward and Dorothy Grimshaw’s descendants were Quakers).
William married Dora Tinley on July 1, 1875 at Bradford, which is located near East Gwillimbury. By the 1881 Canadian Census, the family was living in Tecumseh, which is just across the border from Detroit. Subsequently the family moved across the border to the Detroit area in about 1882.

Where is East Gwillimbury, Ontario, Where Abraham and Sarah Grimshaw Settled?

East Gwillimubury is just north of Toronto and not far northwest of Detroit, down the peninsula between Lakes Huron and Ontario. Maps are shown below.

http://www.eastgwillimbury.ca/profile/location.htm

Did Abraham and Sarah Grimshaw Come to East Gwillimbury as Quakers for Land?

A brief description of East Gwillimbury was found on the internet and is shown below. Most of the Grimshaws from Yorkshire were Quakers.

http://www.eastgwillimbury.ca/profile/history.htm
History
The Town of East Gwillimbury was incorporated in 1850. Governor John Graves Simcoe named the area in honour of his wife, whose maiden name was Gwillim. In the late 1700’s, Governor Simcoe was looking for the best route north from York (now Toronto) to the British naval posts on Georgian Bay. To assist in his search for the best route, he commissioned the first survey of East Gwillimbury in 1800.
Many of the early settlers were United Empire Loyalists and Quakers who were attracted to the area by grants of land and the ability to practice their faith in peace. Hamlets sprung up throughout East Gwillimbury due, in part, for a need for shops, churches and schools. Development occurred in five areas – Holland Landing, River Drive Park, Sharon, Queensville and Mount Albert. Early settlement of these areas dates back to the late seventeen hundreds. The historical atmosphere of the Town is enhanced by the many attractive historic buildings still in use today.
Sharon
Sharon, originally known as Hope, was settled in the early 1800’s by United Empire Loyalists, many of them Quakers, enticed here by the 200 acre land grants. David Willson with his wife, Phebe, and two sons settled here in 1801. After breaking away from the Quaker Church, he established his own religious sect, The Children of Peace. They had a large congregation and developed a unique settlement with a large meeting house and Temple, schools, hotels, a post office, a general store, a cider mill and a grist mill. Many craftsmen – carpenters, wheelwrights, blacksmiths, tinsmiths, shoemakers, a seamstress and a telegraph operator – lived in the village.
Queensville
Among the various land routes to the shores of Lake Simcoe, Yonge Street and its back concessions were perhaps most often chosen by travellers in the early days. “Queen Street”, now Leslie Street, was one of these roads. It had also attracted a large group of Quakers who formed the community of Sharon and later prompted the settlement of another community to the north, originally known as Hackett’s Corners but renamed to Queensville in 1843. The establishment of a school and post office was followed by the addition of a bank, hotels, various churches, several shops as well as a flour and grist mill.
Mount Albert
As the first settlers were arriving at the oldest villages of East Gwillimbury, the only indication of human presence in the eastern section of the municipality was an Algonquin Indian trail which ran north-south over “the hill”. This area was originally settled by a small number of Quakers in 1821. It wasn’t long until more bush was cleared for settlement and the Indian trail was widened to form Centre Road. Growth was slow in the beginning, consisting of farms and a few homes but by the mid-1800’s the village consisted of several houses, grist, flour, woollen and lumber mills, a tannery, churches, schools, several shops and two hotels.

Abraham and Sarah Grimshaw Are Buried in Newmarket, Ontario

The following images and information on Abraham and Sarah Grimshaw’s final resting place were found on find-a-grave.com.

Abraham Grimshaw
Birth: unknown
Death: Dec. 2, 1867, Ontario, Canada
Family links: Spouse Sarah Anderson Grimshaw (1811 – ____)
Burial: Religious Society of Friends Burial Ground, Newmarket, York Regional Municipality, Ontario, Canada
Created by: B. C. B. : :=)
Record added: Jun 15, 2013
Find A Grave Memorial# 112334939
http://www.findagrave.com/cgi-bin/fg.cgi?page=gr&GRid=112334939

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Abraham and Sarah Grimshaw