There would never be another winter like it, not in the history of Grey County. It began in the late fall of 1842. There was a scattering of settlers along the Garafraxa Road south of Sydenham as the new port on the bay was then called. Most of the pioneers were English, Irish or Scottish and what they found in Grey was unbroken wilderness. That first summer was hard, clearing a bit of land and putting up a rude, clay-chinked log home.
Food and warmth were essential but time, money and the availability of supplies had left the Barnes family short. They lived along the settlement road a few miles from Johnstown as Chatsworth was then called. The winter of ’42 started early and sub-freezing temperatures wiped out their remaining crops. The woods seemed empty and a thin rabbit was usually the reward of the hunt.
December came and went and the Barnes smalls tock of flour, sugar, and potatoes ran out like the seeds of time. One attempt was made to reach Sydenham but they turned back and dug in to survive the coming months of bitter cold. By late February, desperation had found its way to the small cabins scattered up and down the Garafraxa. The snow was of such depth that a hunt in the wood was dangerous. The Barnes ate their last forgotten turnip and frozen potato – and starved.
The head of the household gave what food he had to the children and his wife. By late March, he had died of starvation. Help arrived too late but the Barnes family was finally rescued. Spring finally came and the horrors of the winter of 1842 receded with each more successful season. Still, those who had lived through the cruelest winter would tell the tale long after it scars had faded away.
Originally aired in 2016
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