Samuel Gofton

Abt 1790 - Jul

• Name	Samuel Gofton
  Born	Abt 1790	, England
  Gender	Male
  Residence	1815	Sigglesthorne, , Yorkshire, England   [1]
  Residence	1815	Sigglesthorne, , Yorkshire, England   [2]
  Residence	1817	Sigglesthorne, , Yorkshire, England   [3]
  Residence	1822	Sigglesthorne, , Yorkshire, England   [4]
  Epidemic	1834	Galt (Cambridge), Waterloo Region, Ontario, Canada
  	Cholera
  Eby ID Number	Waterloo-29894
  Died	Jul	, Waterloo Region, Ontario, Canada
  Buried	Unmarked grave, Waterloo County, Ontario
  Person ID	I29894	Generations
  Last Modified	3 Mar 2025

  
  

  Family	Elizabeth Hall,   b. 9 Jun 1794, , England ,   d. 21 Sep 1853, Waterloo Twp., Waterloo Region, Ontario, Canada  (Age 59 years)
  Married	17 Apr 1815	Sigglesthorne, , Yorkshire, England   [1]
  Children	1. Samuel Thomas Gofton,   b. 1815, Sigglesthorne, , Yorkshire, England ,   d. 1877, , Oxford Co., Ontario, Canada  (Age 62 years)   2. John Gofton,   c. 19 Aug 1817, Sigglesthorne, , Yorkshire, England ,   d. Yes, date unknown   3. Roger Gofton,   b. 10 Oct 1820, Sigglesthorne, , Yorkshire, England ,   d. 1 Jun 1874, Blenheim Twp., Oxford Co., Ontario, Canada  (Age 53 years)   4. Nancy Gofton,   b. 1822, Sigglesthorne, , Yorkshire, England ,   d. 30 May 1842  (Age 20 years)   5. Robert G. Gofton,   b. 25 Feb 1832, Blenheim Twp., Oxford Co., Ontario, Canada ,   d. 26 Feb 1888, Plattsville, Blenheim Twp., Oxford Co., Ontario, Canada  (Age 56 years)   6. Charlotte Gofton,   b. 10 Sep 1832, , Ontario, Canada ,   d. 5 Jul 1900, , Ontario, Canada  (Age 67 years)
  Last Modified	4 Mar 2025
  Family ID	F27105	Group Sheet  |  Family Chart

  
  

• Notes

  Family lore indicates that Samuel died coming from from a circus and died of cholera and was buried at the side of the road, His horse was brought to his widow. _____________ From an account of the cholera epidemic in which Samuel perished is below. "The most striking and melancholy example within our knowledge of the generations and effects of the local infection occurred in this vicinity in the summer of 1834. On the 28th of July, 1834, Galt, a village on the Grand River, U. C. was visited by Showmen with a Menagerie. It was exhibited under an awning of canvass, nearly enclosed at the sides, and drawn together in a conical form almost to the top. The day was excessively warm, and the crown suffocating. The exhibition lasted about 3 hours. It is estimated that about 1000 persons were present, and that not less than 200 of them died of Cholera within ten days. The population from which the assembly at the exhibition was composed, in the Township in the vicinity of Galt, it supposed to be about seven thousand. The first case was in one of the Showmen, who sickened on that day, which was Monday. No other case occurred until the following Wednesday morning - on that day not less than thirty were attacked all of whom had been at the show - The greatest number of cases were on the Thursday and Friday following - but new cases occurred for several days. In speaking of an attack, we here allude to the time the patient supposed the attack commenced - the time he was "taken down" . The average length of time the disease lasted after this event was about sixteen hours. Four days previous to the exhibition of animals at Galt, two children of Mr. J. G., on the Governor's Road, 12 miles south east of Galt, were attacked with Cholera, one of which died. On the same day (24th July,) two cases of what we shall call second grade Cholera came under our care, being the first that occurred of that form of the disease within our knowledge that season - About this time also, many were affected with first grand symptoms, - but with the exception of the children alluded to we have not been able to learn that any case of fully developed Cholera occurred in this part of the province previous to the exhibition of animals at Galt, and for several days subsequent to that event, and in which more than two hundred were attacked with Cholera, all had been at that exhibition with only two or three exceptions. From the 6th of August the disease became more general and not confined to such as were at the Menagerie; but this time it appeared at Hamilton and Dundas - situations more low and marshy than Galt, and adjacent to Burlington Bay of the Head of Lake Ontario. From these facts it is evident that a deteriorated state of the atmosphere existed previous to the 28th July, yet the fatal catastrophe following the exhibition at Galt was mainly attributable to the highly vitiated, or imperfectly oxygenated air, produced by the numerous and sweltering crowd under the canvas - the ventilation being altogether inadequate for so numerous and crowded assemblage. It also appears that at Hamilton, Dundas and several other situations the Epidemic influence was the product of the more common causes of general infection, united with a local infection, which last is caused by the action of heat upon putrescent vegetable matter...." Elam Stimson, MD, The Cholera Beacon, being a treatise on the Epidemic Cholera: as it appeared in Upper Canada in 1832-4:

  
  

• Sources

  [S1803] zzEngland, Marriages, 1538-1973, Marriage of Samuel Gofton and Elizabeth Hall; Indexing Project (Batch) Number: M10740-1 System Origin: England-ODM GS Film number: 990846. Samuel Gofton and Elizabeth Hall, married 17 Apr 1815 Sigglesthorne, Yorkshire, England [S1808] z England, Births and Christenings, 1538-1975, christening of Samuel Thomas Gofton; Indexing Project (Batch) Number: C10740-1 System Origin: England-ODM GS Film number: 990846. christening of Samuel Thomas Gofton, 31 Jul 1815, Sigglethorne, Yorkshire, England [S1808] z England, Births and Christenings, 1538-1975, christening of John Gofton; Indexing Project (Batch) Number: C10740-1 System Origin: England-ODM GS Film number: 990846. John Gofton, christening 19 Aug 1817 Sigglesthorne, Yorkshire, England [S1808] z England, Births and Christenings, 1538-1975, Christening of Nancy Gofton; Indexing Project (Batch) Number: C10740-1 System Origin England-ODM GS Film number: 990846.

  
  

• Event Map

  Born - Abt 1790 - , England Residence - 1815 - Sigglesthorne, , Yorkshire, England Residence - 1815 - Sigglesthorne, , Yorkshire, England Married - 17 Apr 1815 - Sigglesthorne, , Yorkshire, England Residence - 1817 - Sigglesthorne, , Yorkshire, England Residence - 1822 - Sigglesthorne, , Yorkshire, England Epidemic - Cholera - 1834 - Galt (Cambridge), Waterloo Region, Ontario, Canada Died - Jul - , Waterloo Region, Ontario, Canada Buried - - Unmarked grave, Waterloo County, Ontario  = Link to Google Earth