by John Daly (son of Brian Daly and Rose Ann Walsh)

Written about 1924

In the year 1818 Brian Daly and his wife the former Bridget Bulger left their

home in County Carlow, Ireland and came to America. With their family, John,

James, Patrick, Mary Ann, Eliza and a baby who died during the voyage, they

landed in Boston the same year.

In 1819 the family moved to Miramichi, New Brunswick, Canada where Brian

engaged in lumbering with his three sons.

After two years he with eleven other families chartered a schooner and sailed

for the Bay of Chaleur District early in June of 1821. They passed Bathurst,

Petit Roche and Belledeau Point and sailed up to what is now called Sergus

Point where they attracted to a man dipping Caplin (fish) from the beach.

The caplins were so numerous that the whole beach seemed like a shining cove

of silver. The abundance of the fish and the general fine appearance caused

them to stop the schooner and come closer to shore but they were prevented

from landing because of the rocky reefs that projected into the Bay and

covered by water at high tide. They finally landed about a half mile west of

Belledeau Point and the men of the party went a shore on what is now the

Church property. (A Catholic Church was built on the Daly property.)

The men hastily constructed temporary shelter--their wives, children and

supplies were brought ashore and the schooner sailed away. All the colonists

worked what land was available for crops and planted their seeds after which

they head of each family and the single men prospected and located on farms

or claims of their own. The landing place was kept by Brian Daly who was the

head of the Dalys in America. His original claim was about 200 acres.

His son John, age 17, was drowned while crossing Middle River with a friend

on a raft. Neither boy could swim but his friend saved himself by clinging

to a log. They were going to Bathurst to work for work at the lumber camp

since that business was flourishing at this time.

Mary Macleish