The Farwell family is one of Compton's greatest families. The Farwell grandfather came from the United States in the early 1800s and, with other explorers, devoted himself to picking wild ginseng that he sold for hefty prices in New Hampshire because that plant became rare for our neighbours to the south.
Therefore, he managed to build up a fortune and he chose to settle his family in this prosperous region.
Ellen Farwell was born in 1838 in a house that still exists today, right next to Ives Hill cemetery. One these lands we could find blackcurrants, blackberries and other wild berries that young and not so young people enjoyed picking, as well as wild leek and ginseng.
Ellen married Cornelius Ives, a descendant from another important family of the region. After building his farm and harvesting his fields, he was the mayor of Coaticook during a dozen of years, namely three mandates.
The hamlet where the Farwell and Ives families settled was originally called Farwell Hill, the name of the first pioneer family. It was renamed Ives Hill after Eli Ives's installation in front of the cemetery. To this day, the passage of these two families in Compton's region can be seen because of the numerous tombstones of Ives Hill cemetery, and the black walnut planted by Eli from the seed brought from the United States. The leaves of this tree that is now two centuries old were used as a decoction to fight against parasites.