A retired teacher, Stephen has ancestors who sailed aboard the Union, the flagship of the Spring Fleet, which brought the first Loyalists to New Brunswick in May 1783.  His 1975 bachelor’s thesis on an aspect of Black Loyalist history, became the basis for his contribution to the Dictionary of Canadian Biography.  In addition to contributing articles to The Loyalist Gazette and submitting over 825 articles to Loyalist Trails, Stephen’s research has appeared in multiple genealogical periodicals, a national children’s magazine, a number of Maritime newspapers, and The Beaver.

He served as a consultant for two websites created by the Univ of NB, spoke at two UELAC Dominion conferences, served as Peter C. Newman’s consultant and researcher, and authored two books on Black Loyalists.