Grandma Burns always said that she had lived a charmed life because she got to do what she wanted to do and liked to do. She was born Sarah Carter on Jan. 6, 1867, the year Canada became a Dominion. She was the eighth born of the ten children of James Carter and Elizabeth Kelly Carter. When she was 17, a young man came calling to ask for her hand in marriage. She refused his proposal with the very valid reason that she wanted to make something of herself. This provoked much discussion at home, with her mother and some brothers upset that she hadn't accepted the proposal. Grandma promptly left home, first staying with her cousin Kate Kelly, then later going to live with her older brother Tom and his family in Carleton Place. There she attended Secondary School in preparation for entrance to Model School where she graduated as a teacher. I asked her why she had decided to become a teacher, and she replied "I wanted to help boys make something of themselves." (It was the Agricultural era then, and boys usually left school after the sixth grade to work on the family farms.) When Grandma greeted her first students in that one-room country school – just as she had anticipated, there were many girls of all ages but no boys beyond 12 years. She proceeded to visit the neighbourhood farms to encourage parents to provide opportunities for their sons. She was a farmer's daughter and she knew that the cycle of farming included an off-season. In Autumn when the harvest was stored, the boys could complete their early morning chores and attend daily classes until early spring, when a new busy season began. This added 5-1/2 to 6 months of learning for them. She taught the usual 3 R's – Reading, Writing and Arithmetic, but added another R – Responsibility – teaching that our lives begin and end the day we become silent about things that matter. Since she was teaching in the public system she couldn't teach prayers so she taught poetry because she loved it; she considered it a cultural experience. Her students committed to memory the works of the old masters – Oliver Goldsmith's "The Village Schoolmaster", John Milton's "On His Blindness", Thomas Gray's "Elegy Written in a Country Churchyard" and Tennyson's "Charge of the Light Brigade", etc, etc. She could recite these poems without ever referring to a book. She had me memorize these poems years before I studied them in High School. Grandma encountered much resistance in her quest to teach senior boys but she persisted and enlisted the support of the girls already in her class. Soon a few older brothers joined their sisters, and as good reports spread throughout the community, more came and she had to ask for regular tables and chairs to accommodate these bigger students (who couldn't fit in the desks). Grandma remained in that school until, at the age of 36, she married Peter Burns on May 4, 1903 in St. Michael's RC Church, Corkery. Thereafter she signed her name Mrs. Peter Burns. Grandpa was 42 and an amputee [see his bio for that story]. Her family opposed the marriage because they were concerned an amputee could not support her, but Grandpa was the caretaker of the Almonte Post Office which included an upper floor apartment, and he also supplemented his income as an agent for McCormick farm machinery. (Farming would have been impossible for him, as an amputee.) In rapid succession they became the parents of Mary, Jim and Carmel. At times the household swelled to include the children of her brothers Jim and Pat of Corkery. Grandma encouraged her nieces and nephews to attend High School in Almonte. One niece, Leona Carter said that 3 of her sisters became teachers after living with Grandma, another became a nurse and her two brothers graduated from Almonte High School and went on to Ottawa University. Leona herself became Scotia Bank's first female bank manager in Ottawa. Grandma's own children also strove to achieve; Jim became a laywer and Mary and Carmel became teachers. Mary would have preferred to be a nurse but she said she had to do "what was expected of her." Grandpa retired from the Post Office in 1928, and he and Grandma moved to a house on Farm St. – a few blocks from St. Mary's Church. Grandpa died in 1935, and the following year Grandma left Almonte on a series of prolonged visits to the homes of her children: Mary, on the farm north of Almonte, Carmel in Toronto and Jim in Kirkland Lake. [According to her diary, she returned to Almonte in June 1937 and rented a small apartment close to the church for $5/month, and "took up housekeeping at Mrs. Alex Schoular's" to make a little money. She remained there until at least May 1942.] Both my Grandma Burns and Grandma Colton were very strong women, with personalities and temperaments at opposite ends of the spectrum. I have so many happy memories and holidays spent in the care of them both, as each gave me the precious gift of their time… lots of time. Years later, my mother told me "They felt you had to be rescued from all those brothers who followed you." Grandma Burns never uttered a cross word or scolded any of us. In her final years, when life and travel became more confusing for her, she came to live with Mary and our family on the farm. There, her forgetfulness made for a few humourous situations, but a withering glance from our mother smothered any snickers. [Occasionally she would come downstairs from her room with a packed suitcase, announcing she was ready to go "back home". Rather than upset her already confused state, my brother George (or another one) would escort her to the car and drive her around the countryside for a short while. She would happily arrive back where she started and take her suitcase back up to her room.] On April 4, 1953, our wise, mild-mannered, gracious grandmother died at the farm. Of her twenty-two grandchildren, ten of us followed in her footsteps and became teachers; perhaps she would be proud. [Maryalice (Colton) Nugent, granddaughter & H. Presley, g-grandson]
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The Almonte Gazette
Almonte, Ontario, Canada
Friday, May 8, 1903, p. 1

BURNS-CARTER.
St. Michael's church, Huntley, was the scene of a quiet wedding last Monday morning which united in holy bonds Mr. Peter Burns, formerly of Ramsay but latterly of Almonte, and Miss Sarah Carter of Huntley. Rev. Father Corkery performed the ceremony, Miss Katie M. Kelly assisting the bride and Mr. Harry Kennedy the groom. After the wedding the party drove to Mr. Burns' home on Ottawa street, where a few hours were pleasantly spent. A number of friends from Almonte were present at both church and house. Mr. and Mrs. Burns have the good wishes of a host of friends.
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The Almonte Gazette
Almonte, Ontario, Canada
Thursday, April 9, 1953, p. 8

MRS. PETER BURNS
On Tuesday, April 7th, at St. Mary's Church, Almonte, final tribute was paid to Sarah, widow of the late Peter Burns of Almonte, who died April 4th, at the home of Wilfred R. Colton of Kinburn. Born in Huntley in 1867, Mrs. Burns was the last surviving member of ten children of the late Mr. and Mrs. James Carter. She attended school in Carleton Place and Perth and taught school in this area for a number of years. In 1903, she was married to Peter Burns, wellknown [sic] resident of Ramsay and took up residence in Almonte. In Almonte, Mrs. Burns took active interest in parish activities until the death of her husband in April, 1935. Since then, Mrs. Burns resided with her three children, P. Jas. Burns of Kirkland Lake, Mrs. C. Hilliard James (Carmel) of Toronto, and for the past six years, Mrs. Wilfred R. (Mary) Colton of Kinburn. She is survived by 22 grandchildren. Rev. Maurice Egan, P.P., officiated at the Requiem Mass and Rev. Jas. R. Murray of Pakenham, at the parish cemetery. Six pallbearers were her six grandsons, Peter Burns, Walter James, Frank, James, Leo and George Colton. Among those who attended from a distance were Mr. and Mrs. Ed Carter and Frances, Mrs. K. McKenna and Leona, of Sudbury; Mr. and Mrs. Jas. Boulger and son of Aylmer; C. Hilliard James, Muriel and Margaret of Toronto; Rev. Mother Margaret Maureen of Gloucester St. Convent, Mrs. Patrick Carter and Leona of Ottawa.
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The Ottawa Citizen
Ottawa, Ontario, Canada
Monday, April 6, 1953, p. 28

BURNS, Sarah - In Fitzroy Township on Saturday, April 4th, 1953, Sarah Carter, widow of the late Peter Burns in her 87th year. Resting at the Scott Funeral Home, Elgin Street, Almonte, Ontario, until Tuesday morning at 8:45, thence to St Mary's Church for requiem high mass at 9 o'clock. Interment parish cemetery.