Wayne & Valerie Breadner live near Temple Hill, on a century farm that they raised their three, now grown children. This farm has been in the Breadner family for more than 150 years, passed down from generation to generation. The Breadner's are avid participants in their community and have been for a long time. This was the second Barn Quilt of our trail to be painted of the first phase, because it was an easy pattern to start with. The story is rich in family history, tradition and farming, check it out!
The Breadner Family immigrated to Canada in the 1840's from Keady, County Armagh in Northern Ireland. The Breadner family settled the land where the Barn Quilt is today all the way to the Temple Hill Corner. At first, the settlers of the Temple Hill area gathered in the home of William Breadner, walking as far as six miles through the bush, to attend Church. In 1859 the congregation built a log church located on the corner of Mr. Breadner's property where the cemetery is today. The group of people decided to call the church Temple Hill after the church in Ireland where the Breadner's had attended before coming to Canada. After already enlarging the log church the congregation grew larger and they purchased the parcel of land on the corner of Lot 21, Concession B from James Boyd. The church was built in 1887 for $2,105.00 with the congregation providing some of the material. In 1905 William Breadner was killed when felling a tree in the bush. He was the first person to be buried in what is now the Temple Hill Cemetary, after his wife donated the land. Eliza (his wife) also walked to Meaford to sell butter to pay for his casket. The farm is still being worked by the 6th and 7th generation of Breadner's to farm the land. The log house where Wayne and Valerie raised their three children was built in 1983 by Wayne. With over 170 years of farming, family, and community in our blood it is great to see the tradition stay alive!
Thank you for joining the barn quilt trail early on and sharing your family's story!