Marker for Christianna Walker, Alexander John, Christianna Sarah, children of AJ and C Ferns; also father Alexander John Ferns (Credit Mary Davis Little)
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Born: null 1829

Died: 22 October 1830

Map Location: 57 - under the church hall

Inscription

CHRISTIANNA WALKER
died May the 18th 1828
Aged 8 months
ALEXANDER JOHN
died Oct. the 22nd 1830
Aged 1 year & 5 months
CHRISTIANNA SARAH
died June the 26th 1832
Aged 1 year & 4 months
Children of
A.J. & C. FERNS

ALEXANDER JOHN FERNS
Father of the above children
died April the 30th 1835
Aged 36 years

Further Information and Sources

See Digital Kingston for the announcement of John Alexander’s death in the Kingston Chronicle, 2 October 1830, pg 3, col 3 (Accessed 2016-03-02)

Long’s Sketchy History of St. Paul’s Church records “Christianna Walker, 1827-1828 and Alexander John, 1829-1830 and Christianna Sarah, 1831-1832, children of Alexander Ferns, 1799-1835.” (pg 45, #57)

There are five children of the Ferns family buried under the church hall: Christianna (Christina Walker) (d 1828, 8 mos), Alexander John (d 1830, 1 yr), Christianna Sarah (d 1832, 1 yr), William James (d 1832, 9 yrs), and Eliza (d 1833, 8 mos).  They died in a 5 year period before their father, Alexander John Ferns committed suicide in 1835.

Alexander John’s father (also named Alexander John) is inscribed on the marker but there is no record of Alexander John Ferns in the burial register as having been buried in 1835.

Alexander John Ferns, the father, committed suicide by drowning off Strange’s Wharf.  There is a sad account in the Chronicle & Gazette, 2 May 1835, pg 3, col 1 (Digital Kingston, accessed 2016-03-02) which may have prevented his burial in an Anglican grave yard.  Two other newspaper articles in the British Whig (5 May 1835, pg 3, col 4; 8 May 1835, pg 1, col 4; Digital Kingston, accessed 2016-03-02) refer to the matter of “deliberate suicide” versus “temporary insanity.”