Elim Cemetery

Before 1863;

Elim Cemetery appears to have been a private burial ground, used by people who farmed in northeast East Whitby Township, and unfortunately, due to the lack of records, it is unclear when it stopped being used as a burial ground.  Today it is a quiet piece of land, tucked away from busy Winchester Road, serving as a somber resting place for 19th century settlers.

The cemetery can be seen on the 1877 County of Ontario Atlas, with a church and cemetery noted as being located at the southeast corner of Concession 6, Lot 7.  This today is the northwest corner of Wilson Road and Winchester Road.  In 1877, it was located on land owned by Henry Graham.

This parcel of land is still zoned as a cemetery and appears to be its own parcel of land, according to the Interactive Mapping System from the City of Oshawa.  This cemetery is on the Heritage Inventory, prepared by Heritage Oshawa, the city’s Heritage Advisory Committee, as a property of interest.

In the Oshawa Museum’s archival holdings, there is an undated transcription of five graves, commemorating Jacob Raicard (died 1872, aged 46), David Stephens (died 1877, aged 14), Mary Graham, nee Underwood (died 1877, aged 43), Mahala G Stephens (died 1869, aged 19), and Robert Henry Graham (died 1877, aged 13).  Today, there appears to be only one marker remaining, and interestingly, it was not included in the original transcription. It is for [     ] Elizabeth Postil, died 1863, aged 17 (stone broken, and her first name appears to be missing).  In its inventory, Heritage Oshawa dates the cemetery as 1863, likely due to this surviving headstone.

Postil’s headstone is at the base of a stone pillar, encased in cement, by the entrance to this cemetery.  This pillar can add some confusion to this cemetery as it may have been moved from Elmcroft Farm/Windfields Farm.  A stone in the pillar reads ‘Lot 12 Con 5 East Whitby;’ information available from Windfields Farm confirms that Elmcroft was located at Lot 12 Concession 5.  It is interesting to note that Elmcroft farm started by George McLaughlin, son of Robert McLaughlin and brother of Col. RS McLaughlin, and the land stayed in the McLaughlin family until it was purchased by EP Taylor, who would establish Windfields Farm.

As mentioned, the cemetery was located on land owned by Henry Graham, and two of his family members are buried here, his wife and son.  Robert and Mary Underwood were married in 1860 and were parents to Annie, Robert, John, Ruth, and Margaret.  Mary died in January 1877 of Pthysis, or tuberculosis.  Their son Robert died a few months after, in June, of consumption, another term for tuberculosis.  It appears sometime between 1877 and 1881, Robert remarried, and he passed away in 1912 in Orangeville.

According to records, there also appears to be two members of the Stephens family buried in the cemetery, Mahala and David, the children of Walter and Fanny Stephens.  Walter and Fanny lived around Lot 5 Concession 5 in East Whitby and were the parents of 9 children; they are both resting in Union Cemetery.

Jacob Raicard was 46 years old when he died in 1872, the son of Mark and Catherine, as per his headstone.  His was married to Alvira, and it appears that they had four children.  He was born in the US, immigrated to Quebec (as per the 1861 Census) but later moved to East Whitby Township (as per the 1871 Census).

Finally, the lone remaining headstone is for Anne Elizabeth Postil.  She was the daughter of William and Sarah, the eldest of their children, who also included Francis, Frederick, Elisa, Mary, George, and Charles.  Sometime between 1871 and 1881, the family relocated to Moore Township, Lambton County, which is where William and Sarah passed away, both in 1905.

 

Winchester Road East 900
Oshawa L1H 8L7 ON CA
Get directions