| Administrative History | Mary Jane Ogston was the second daughter of James Hargrave. James emigrated from the Borders area of Scotland in 1820 to Montreal to join his parents who had emigrated a year earlier. He went into the fur trade with the Hudson Bay Company. On leave in 1837 he met Letitia (1813-1854), the niece of one of the other Hudson Bay Company employees, George Mactavish. Letitia was the daughter of Dugald MacTavish and lived at Kilcrist House in Campbell Town, Argyll. After they were married in 1840, they spent the next 11 years at York Factory on Hudson Bay. Shortly after being posted to Sault St. Marie in 1854, Letita and their last son, Dugald, died of cholera. James moved his family to Toronto and after two more years at York Factory retired to Brockville, Ontario.
Henry Hargrave Cowan was the third child of Alexander Ogston's elder sister Jane Ogston and Professor Henry Cowan. He married Janet Shirra Gibb.
York Factory was on the north bank of the Hayes River, close to Hudson Bay. It was the main depot of Hudson's Bay Company from 1821. From 1821-29 John George McTavish was in charge at York Factory, Alexander Christie from 1830-33 and from 1833 James Hargrave. |