The Woeful Tale of Dr. John Leander Peppard

Main Street - Great Village 1907

John Leander Peppard was the second of 12 children born in 1840 in Fredericton, New Brunswick, to John Peppard and Sarah Davis.  He was my 2nd cousin, 4 times removed, my 3rd cousin 4 times removed and the husband of my 3rd cousin, 3 times removed.

The family had 4 generations of roots in the Great Village area of the Fundy Shore in Colchester County, Nova Scotia.  His father was a carpenter who thought he'd give New Brunswick a try, but soon returned to their home to raise their growing family.

John went to school in Truro and then completed his medical training at the Dartmouth Medical College and Harvard Medical School.  After a short time practicing in Boston, he returned home to tend to the folks of Great Village.

Now Great Village is a charming town of 500 with winding roads, ancient trees and charming Victorian architecture.  There, on a lovely 150 acre plot of land, John developed "Derry Farm" - his pride and joy.  He lovingly established orchards of plum, apple, cherry and pear trees, bountiful vegetable gardens and meadows of hay and oats.  When not practising medicine, he spent almost every spare moment working on his land and beautifying his flower beds.  The view from the front porch looked down over Economy Point onto the rich red sands of the Cobequid Bay.  Life was good.

John married 3 times - each time to someone much younger and as a result enjoyed a happy household of 9 busy children who tumbled over the lawns and fished in the little pond.

Great Village

On September 27, 1907, John and his friend Sam Lindsay were mowing hay under an unusually hot autumn sun.  They decided to go up to the house and enjoy a glass of cold buttermilk before continuing with their work.  Arriving in the kitchen, John suggested they have a "Wee Dram" rather than the buttermilk and he reached for a bottle on the shelf.  Both men took a good long draw on the bottle and then returned to the field to get back to their mower.

Shortly, however, John fell from the mower and before assistance could arrive, the man was dead.  His friend lingered for a few days before succumbing himself.    Upon investigation, it turned out that the bottle they had drunk from contained Strychnine, rather than whiskey.

The irony was that Dr. John Leander Peppard was the chairman of the Great Village Temperance Society.  I'm told, locals still recount the tale as they drive by the still productive orchards.