(Buckley family, two brothers missing, Grandpa B back right, sister lower right, mother in the middle)
Grandpa Buckley was a very stern and bitter man. Uncle Peter said he became
bitter because he spent his whole life making sure his mother and all his siblings
(they were 10 siblings, all boys but the one sister) rose out of the poverty
they were born into.
We were told that Grandpa’s family immigrated to Canada during the Potato Famine
in Ireland. I am not so sure that it is so since 1845-1849 seems a bit early.
He said they came over at the end of the 1800s.
In all likelihood, saying they came over during the Potato Famine, was
another way of saying they came over because they were poor. Being poor was a stigma
for many Irish immigrants, no matter when they came over and under what
circumstances.
The first house he and his family lived in when they arrived in Montreal
was in the countryside. It was only the most rudimentary of houses; no running
water, windows without glass, only shutters to keep out the cold, and far away
from their neighbours.
As he became older, he glorified those times. He’d asked Pat to drive
him and grandma out to the countryside to take a look at the landmarks of his
childhood. Pat was always puzzled about this. Grandpa, someone who very rarely
had anything positive to say about anyone or anything, would spend his time in
the car reminiscing about the good times they had back then.
