We operate the Loyalist Resource Center, a Loyalist and genealogical treasure trove. Originally located in Morrisburg, we’re in the midst of moving westward, to Iroquois.

Our branch president, Lorraine Reoch,  made the announcement in the latest issue of our newsletter, The Royal Yorker, and the subject was also a topic of discussion at our May 2018 branch meeting. Lorraine wrote this in the newsletter:

“Our Loyalist Resource Center will be moving in the next few weeks or months. Our new location will be at the Dundas County Archives, 5 College Street, Iroquois, which is being set up now. We will be a large part of this operation. We are cataloguing all the books, family histories, records and wonderful finds. The packing has begun and the days are full. “

Please also see our Loyalist Resource Center page for additional details and updates.

September 22, 2018 (6:00 PM):

Annual Banquet, St. Matthew’s Church, 15 Memorial Square, Ingleside. Please make a reservation before Sept. 15: Lorraine Reoch at (613) 821-2327 or (613) 294-4550, or fancylass@hotmail.ca. Speaker is to-be-announced.

October 21, 2018 (1:30 PM):

Show & Tell, Hulbert Valley United Church, 11064 Hulbert Road, Brinston. Our very popular “Show & Tell” meeting returns! Bring an item of interest, with a story to tell about it. This a fun meeting with lots of discussion.

The UELAC 2021 annual conference will take place in Cornwall, Ontario, within the catchment area of the St. Lawrence Branch. For more information, please visit the conference page on the website of the UE Loyalists Bridge Annex, the UELAC branch that is taking the lead on hosting the conference, or on the UELAC main site’s conference page.

In 1934 the Historical Sites and Monuments Board of Canada erected a plaque in Cornwall to commemorate the Loyalists. The plaque had many homes over the years; it is now carefully preserved and displayed in the Cornwall Community Museum. It’s an appropriate spot, as the museum is the former residence of Loyalist William Wood.

On August 12, 2018, the UELAC and the museum will re-dedicate the plaque in a special ceremony. Information on the event is provided below.

During the UELAC St. Lawrence Branch Annual General Meeting, held on May 20, 2018 at St. Clare’s Anglican Church in Winchester, the membership chose its new executive. It’s a mix of previously-serving members and new ones, who will serve until 2020.

From the left to right: Director Sandra Shouldice, Director Gord Reoch, Social Convenor Ashley Harper, Newsletter Editor and Webmaster Stuart Manson, President Lorraine Reoch, Treasurer Mike Eamer and Secretary Darlene Fawcett. Former Secretary Carol Goddard (not pictured because she’s behind the camera) will also serve as a Director. Also not pictured are Directors Murray Barkley and Michelle Walczak. (Photo: Thompson Goddard)

May 20, 2018 (1:00 pm):

St. Claire’s Anglican Church, Winchester, ON. Come join us for our first branch meeting of the year! The church is located at 2530 Falcone Lane, which is just south of Winchester proper. Falcone Lane is off St. Lawrence Street, near the intersection with Highway 31. Speaker is to be determined.

June 24, 2018 (12:00 noon):

McIntosh Memorial Park, Berwick, ON. Our annual summer picnic takes place at this pretty spot located on Crysler Road just south of the great metropolis of Berwick. The park has a gazebo and plenty of shade trees to shelter us from the sun.

We labour on, but we’ve almost completed the overhaul of the UELAC St. Lawrence Branch website. Take a look around, and you’ll find some interesting new pages to explore.

PLEASE NOTE: Over the next few weeks, parts of the UELAC St. Lawrence Branch website will be under construction. We are reorganizing the content and structure, and making other improvements. Stay tuned!

The UELAC St. Lawrence Branch has been given permission, by Edward B. Kipp, to make available his essential resource for Loyalist history in our region: Indexes of the McNiff map of 1786.

As related by him in his report “An Index to the 1786 McNiff Maps of the Townships of Lancaster, Charlottenburgh, Cornwall, Osnabruck, Williamsburgh and Matilda (the Loyalist Maps),” Kipp provides the background to the map:

“Patrick McNiff was one of the surveyors who assisted Major Holland of the British Army to survey Eastern Ontario before the Loyalists began to settle it. In early 1784, McNiff surveyed the front of Stormont, Dundas and Glengarry along the St. Lawrence River. The results of this survey were used to allocate the land. Each Loyalist drew a paper which contained the location of a lot. McNiff later prepared maps for Sir John Johnson of the six eastern townships dated November 1, 1786. These maps gave the concession and the lot number along with the name of the owner of each lot.”

Kipp’s background report, described above, is available here.

He has prepared an index of the entire region covered by the McNiff maps, available here. (An index also appeared in Jacob Farrand Pringle’s 1890 history of the region, Lunenburgh or the Old Eastern District, which is available here, but we recommend using Kipp’s version.)

Kipp also divided his main index into township-specific indexes:

• Lancaster (Lake Township)
• Charlottenburgh (Royal Township No. 1)
• Cornwall (Royal Township No. 2)
• Osnabruck (Royal Township No. 3)
• Williamsburgh (Royal Township No. 4)
• Matilda (Royal Township No. 5)

Finally, if you wish to peruse copies of the McNiff maps, scanned versions are available below. Note that in some cases, the maps spill over into the township adjacent to that listed.

Lancaster: Lan13193 Lan21346 T1a21346

Charlottenburgh: T1a13193 T1b13193 T1b21346 T1c21346 

Cornwall: T2a13193 T2b13193 T2a21346 T2b21346 T2c21346  T2d21346

Osnabruck: T3a13193 T4a13193 T3a21346 T3b21346

Williamsburgh: T4a21346 T4b13193 T5a21346

Matilda: T5a13193 T5b21346