The Liberty statue is an icon of freedom of the United States: a welcoming signal to immigrants arriving from abroad. Jodie who is portraying Miss Liberty in front of Liberty Tax on 119 Bridge Street in Carleton Place is demonstrating the freedom we have to pay taxes. I know most of you are groaning at that statement, but we are lucky to live in a wonderful town in a free country.
My Great-Grandfather docked on Ellis Island as an immigrant to become a song writer. My Grandfather said he always had a strong feeling for the Statue of Liberty, because it became the statue of friendliness and personal liberty. Well Bill Knauert of Liberty Tax Service wants everyone to know that everyone should come have their taxes done by him because he is offering friendliness. Plus you get a bonus of seeing a local Lady Liberty herself.
What some newcomers to the town don’t know is that we have a Cairn on Emily Street that signifies early freedoms in Carleton Place.
The Cairn above placed on the property now owned by The Bell Telephone Company, which was the original burying site for the Morphy Family, first settlers of this area. In 1819 Edmond Morphy, his wife Barbara Miller and their eight children, the first residents on the site of Carleton Place, emigrated to Upper Canada from Ireland and settled here.
Their land grant, Lots 14 and 15, Concession 12, Beckwith Township, was divided east and west of present-day Bridge Street. Comprising 400 acres was officially deeded to Morphy and his three eldest sons, John, William and James in 1824. By then a village, one of the earliest in the vicinity of the National Capital Region, had begun to develop at “Morphy’s Falls”. Although the first Morphy house, a small log shanty stood on Allan Street, an acre of land was reserved for a family burying ground at this site. Edmond, his wife and several descendants rested here until the 1960’s, when their remains were re-interred.
Erected in 1982 by the Corporation of Carleton Place in appreciation of the efforts of Inez McCoy to have the historic site marked and in co-operation with Bell Canada. Take your children and show them that we too have a permanent memory erected to those that that arrived from abroad.
Files from: The Carleton Place and Beckwith Heritage Museum
Carleton Place- The Happiest Damn Town in Lanark County
For the Facebook Group:
Tilting the Kilt, Vintage Whispers from Carleton Place by Linda Seccaspina is available at Wisteria at 62 Bridge Street, the Carleton Place Beckwith Museum in Carleton Place, Ontario and The Mississippi Valley Textile Mill in Almonte. available on all Amazon sites (Canada, US, Europe) and Barnes and Noble
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