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Introduction / Families / Drever / David Drever and Ann Reid / James Drever and Mary Harcus William DreverWilliam Drever was born at Hammar on 21st March 1862, son of James Drever and Mary Harcus. William married Elizabeth Fairley of Guelph, Ontario, Canada on 28th October 1890. Elizabeth was born in 1870. William and Elizabeth had three children:
After the untimely death of Elizabeth, William married Mary Fleming of Guelph on 21st June 1905. They had two children:
William was orphaned as a young child and was raised by an aunt, Elizabeth (Eliza) Harcus, his mother's sister, and her husband Robert Burgar. He lived at the farm of Cott, at the north end of Pharay, with them and three cousins. From there he attended the school and did chores around Cott. He tended sheep with collies and developed a love for the dogs which he kept as pets throughout his life. When time came for William to learn a trade he went to Edinburgh to learn baking. Asthma, from which he had suffered since childhood, was aggravated by the bakery business and he returned to Kirkwall where he stayed with his cousin David Harcus and learned cabinet making. In July 1888, he and a friend William Logie went to Lerwerk, Shetland where they stayed for about a year. Both young men immigrated to Hamilton, Ontario via Philadelphia in 1889, possibly in May. William described his trip in a diary. His crossing took him from Kirkwall by ship to Leith, aboard the St. Magnus which departed about 11pm. They stopped in Aberdeen about 5 am and arrived in Leith about noon where they were met by Mrs. Drever (who was not further identified). William spent about a week in Edinburgh with Mrs. Drever visiting friends and seeing the sights. He then took the train from Edinburgh to Queens Street Station, Glasgow, where he was met by James Harcus who took him to the Allan Line office and then to the wharf where the unidentified steam boat was berthed. (James Harcus was thought to be a cousin, the son of John Harcus and Margaret Seater.) William and his friend William Logie spent the evening with James and boarded the ship the next morning for the 7:30 sailing. The boat docked briefly near Londonderry, Ireland. Crossing took about two weeks during which they experienced some heavy seas. They landed at Philadelphia and visited William's sister Mary who had previously emigrated. Both men then went by train to Hamilton, Ontario where they were for about a year. William Drever went to Guelph and worked as a cabinetmaker at the Guelph Piano and Organ Company. In Guelph, William married Elizabeth Fairley in 1890, daughter of Benjamin Fairley (from Scotland) and Elizabeth Kribs. Elizabeth was ill for some time and died 20th February 1904. William subsequently married Mary Fleming. By 1910, William had been elected to represent his district on the Board of Education of Guelph. He continued in public service the rest of his life. He also served as an officer of his church and belonged to the Masonic Order, becoming a member of the Scottish Rite in 1920. He also served as president of his local labour union. He was able to return for a visit to Pharay in 1912. He spent about five or six weeks and visited the Burgars at Cott where he had spent time as a youth. He visited his brother Gillies in Kirkwall. William continued to live at Rosedale Cottage in Guelph and his daughter described him as being "passionately fond" of gardening. William died 20th June 1926 as a result of a bicycle accident when he was riding home from work. Mary died about 25 years later, on 18th February 1952. | |||
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