an unknown little Canadian boy of my Coyne~Fenton~Morden~Ireland family flows tonight with remembering our shared great...


On August 7, 1864 the angels of Tir Na Nog called sweet Ann Gardiner Coyne. She met her dear Henry in rapidly changing Belfast. Ireland was still united as one at the time. Ann and Henry married and soon were parents of 3. They decided to sail to America in the fall of 1810 to give their young ones a better life. The saddest part was leaving other family behind, including a baby who crossed over at just 54 days old...
Ann, Henry, Mary, John, and James settled in the Pleasant Valley of New York, near the Hudson River. They soon were in the middle of the War of 1812. They added 3 more children while surviving the chaos. By 1817, Ann and Henry again felt they had to leave their home. They packed up and in the fall of 1817, the reached the shores of Lake Ontario. Mary, John, and James looked after Thomas, William, and Elizabeth, their American born siblings, as they already faced living in a new land.
By the next year, Ann and Henry welcomed little Isaac to the family, their first Canadian child. in 1924, they gave birth to their last cherished child and named her Ann for Henry's love.
In southern Ontario, Ann and Henry settled and built an inn. Henry proudly named it Coyne's American Hotel. Ann was known for being a wonderful host as weary travelers sought rest on the vast frontier. Ann and Henry happily saw each of their children marry. Soon numerous grandchildren added to their flowing Gardiner~Coyne love. Heartache also invaded Ann and Henry as they lost their youngest child, Ann, to the ravages of consumption in 1846. Young Ann had been married less than two years. This event shocked their entire family.
Henry succumbed to heart problems in 1853 and Ann was left a widow, matriarch of the family. She helped several of her children as they faced the deaths of their children and spouses, unable to survive harsh seasons and outbreaks of deadly diseases.
On August 7, 1864, a very aged and loving Ann Gardiner Coyne was called to Tir Na Nog. A true survivor at 84 had experienced the best and the worst of times. She earned the right to rejoin her eternal family.
In my dreams last night, she drifted by and gave me a mystical Otherworld hug, happy that I share of her life. She led me to this little boy tonight and I see her holding him as he added his special joy at Coyne's American Hotel...