Family History

Last semester, I had to do a heritage project for one of my classes. Contacting different relatives on my mom’s side of the family was really fun for me; I got to talk to some people that I normally would not have, and I got to hear things that they were excited to share. I learned that the first documented Pugsley (my mom’s maiden name) was Thomas Pugsley (1598-1644), born in England. He had two sons, James and Matthew, who immigrated to New York. The Pugsleys lived in New York for several generations. However, they did not agree with the Revolutionary War, and so Gilbert Pugsley moved to Nova Scotia in 1776. After that, there is a lack of clarity about the family line until it picks back up with David and Jane Pugsley. They were born in Amhurst, Nova Scotia and had three sons: Leonard, Frank, and George. Leonard and Frank left Nova Scotia in 1886 to construct bridges for the Great Northern Railroad. Leonard Pugsley is my great-great-grandfather. He had my great-grandpa, Robert Sr., who had my grandpa, Robert Jr., who had my mother, Catherine Pugsley. Leonard Pugsley settled on the Marias River in Montana and established the Pugsley ranch. It has stayed in my family; Leonard worked on the ranch and was followed by my great-grandpa, my grandpa, and now, my two uncles, and one of my cousins.

It was really interesting for me to hear about the history of the ranch and how long it has been in my family. I grew up visiting the ranch in the summers, but now I know that my family was one of the original European homesteaders in the West. My grandparents live in a small town just outside the ranch, and as I talked to my great-grandma, she showed me old newspaper titles from the town like, “Ranch on Marias River remains in the family.” My great-great-grandma was a family historian of sorts, and it is interesting to hear about the variety of visitors who came through the ranch, especially when the Pugsley bridge over the river was the only means of southern travel to Fort Benton and Great Falls.

Here is a story my great-great grandma wrote about her husband working on the ranch:

“It is not easy to pinpoint incidents after all these years, but sometime during this period I was working alone building a barn when the axe I was using hit my foot, going partly through to the bone. There was not a soul around for 20 miles or more. Knowing something had to be done I took some heavy black thread, used for mending, and sewed it up the best I could. Then I put a piece of fat pork over it, bound it up, and went back to work. In those days the healing properties of pork received more respect than now (1958). Every man had to be self-sufficient in every way. With no stores near-by, you either made it yourself or did without.”

She also wrote:

“One of the most pleasant features of ranch life were the many interesting visitors…When people traveled with horses and in the early years of the automobile, when travel was not so swift and anything but certain, travelers knew they would be welcome at the Pugsley Ranch and usually started out with the intention of spending the night there. No one was ever lonely and there was plenty of time for reading and visiting among the neighbors. One memorable overnite visitor was Miss Jeanette Rankin, when she was first out campaigning for the U.S. House of Representatives.”

It was really interesting to hear about my family’s connection to the land in Montana and how their hard-work and faith shaped their character. I asked my grandparents what they would say the Pugsley’s core values are, and they said, “honesty, believe in yourself, treat others with respect, be involved and informed then put a lot of energy and hard work into what you are involved in, believe in God, don’t blame others for what you do or what happens, accept responsibility for what happens, help others who help themselves, be on time, be respectful of your parents…and lastly, if you work hard, then you can play hard.”