Loyalist Trails UELAC Newsletter, 2005 Archive

In this issue:
- New Councillor for Pacific Region
- Archives of Ontario: please help us push for improvements
- Gilbert Hyatt Highway Update
- Little-Hyatt One-Room Schoolhouse
- Friends of the Loyalist Collection at Brock University
- Queries
      + Added Comment on James "Demon" Dunlop (issue 2005-10)
      + Added questions about widow's future children being Loyalists
      + Responses re Heritage Fair Project
      + John Stewart in NS

New Councillor for Pacific Region

Congratulations to Carl Stymiest U.E., member of Vancouver Branch, on his appointment as Councillor for the Pacific Region UELAC. Welcome Carl. Look forward to seeing you at Conference and Council Meetings.

Archives of Ontario: please help us push for improvements

The Archives of Ontario is having problems: with mould, with structural issues, with space. The previous government had arranged for new space. The current government cancelled the arrangements. Any forward motion in resolving the issues seems to be occurring at glacial speed. We are asking everyone to write to the government and ask them to please move forward on these issues and to keep the needs of us who do research in mind. Harangues and blame will not work; expressions of use or need will work much better. Below is the letter I sent to Hon. Gerry Phillips and copied to the others in the list. In the list of all members of the Ontario Legislative Assembly each name is linked to comprehensive personal and contact details. If you would like more information before writing, just send a note to mew and I will forward.

Hon. Gerry Phillips, Chair of Management Board of Cabinet

Hon. George Smitherman, Toronto Centre--Rosedale (my MPP)

Hon. Dalton McGuinty, Premier

John Tory, Leader of the Progressive Conservative Party

Howard Hampton, Leader, New Democratic Party of Ontario

John Yakabuski, Conservative Critic, Management Board of Cabinet

Michael D. Prue, New Democratic Party of Ontario, Critic, Management Board of Cabinet

United Empire Loyalists' Association of Canada

George Brown House

50 Baldwin St. Suite 202

Toronto ON M5T 1L4

Hon. Gerry Phillips

Chair of Management Board of Cabinet

Dear Sir,

I wish to add my voice to what I am sure is a list of many others concerning the Archives of Ontario.

The arrival of the Loyalists during the American Revolutionary War in Niagara and Kingston areas, followed by the waves of refugees from that conflict who were granted lands in 1784 and years following, set the stage for the founding of Ontario. The Constitutional Act of 1791 and the appointment of Lt. Gov. John G. Simcoe then started a more rapid development of Ontario, typified by the perhaps unexpected ability to hold our own in the War of 1812.

As an Association, our mission is to understand, preserve and promote Canadian history, with an emphasis on the Loyalist era. As a genealogical organization, establishing and proving our ancestral lines enables those interested in early Ontario days to better understand the contribution of our ancestors to the settler's life and the growth of the Province.

Thus it is with sadness and regret that I note the problems at the Archives of Ontario, the repository for so much of the historical and ancestral information from those times and times immediately following.

For the members of our local Gov. Simcoe Branch, whom I advise on their family research, and in response to queries to the Association from around the world which I receive as recipient of emails from our web site at www.uelac.org, the Archives of Ontario are on often recommended, and often used, resource. For those in the local area, the TTC access to a central location is a real boon. For those from a greater distance, the same is true as a trip to Toronto invariably brings them by train, plane, bus or car to direct, or again a TTC-ride, access to the Archives.

The Archives are a wonderful asset, and an essential one for so many of our members and those who are just interested in our Loyalist and other early Ontario heritage.

On behalf of all our members and others interested in the era, I hope that a solution which addresses the best preservation of our history, the health of those who work there and those who visit, and easy access can be developed in a timely fashion.

I look forward to learning more about your plans.

Loyally,

Douglas Warner Grant, UE

President, United Empire Loyalists' Association of Canada

www.uelac.org

Genealogist and Newsletter Editor, Gov. Simcoe Branch, UELAC

www.uelgovsimcoe.org

doug.grant@insurance-canada.ca

Tel: (416) 921-7756   Fax: (416) 753-7202

315 Carlton St.,   Toronto, ON   M5A 2L6   Canada

Gilbert Hyatt Highway Update

There is no further news on our "Gilbert Hyatt Hwy." Local residents attended the Council Meeting last Monday evening, only to be given the feeling that,"we are hung out to dry". The Municipal Council continue to stand firm with their decision taken, while more letters of support along with copies of the signed petition by residents of this stretch of highway have been mailed to the Toponymy Commission. At long last, the Municipality of Waterville has submitted their letter to the Commission, which was never previously done, prior to ordering the residents to change their addresses along with the removal of the road signs "Rte. Gilbert Hyatt". Yesterday, Mr. Fourcaudot of the Commission in Quebec City, telephoned to inform me that a meeting will be held shortly and has promised to let me know of the decision taken.We, sincerely prey that we shall keep the designated name "Gilbert Hyatt" on our section of the provincial numbered highway Rte.143 and that politics will not play a role in their decision taken. If so, Loyalist Gilbert Hyatt will be better known locally than ever before! Throughout all of this scenario we have been able to spread the news , just who Gilbert Hyatt was and the important role that he played in opening up this part of the Townships. I have had local francophones requesting the website of the Dictionary of Canadian Biograpy Online so as to read about Gilbert Hyatt, along with other hand-outs, which is a plus!

...Bev Loomis, President, Little Forks Branch

Little-Hyatt One-Room Schoolhouse

Dear Doug,

I wish to extend my heartfelt thanks along with all Little Forks Branch members, to the UEL Association of Canada for the Grant of $3,000., which will help us meet our operating expenses for 2005 of the Little Hyatt One-Room Schoolhouse. We shall continue to reach out to local businesses, but it is still with great sadness that our own municipality and MRC Coaticook are not interested in assisting us. I fear that it may be political. If we continue to hold tight and through educating those that listen, we shall build our strength. A Fall Municipal election is forthcoming, a possible change in Council could prove beneficial to our historical building! (Also a thank you letter has been received from treasurer, Grace E. Hyatt Cote U.E.)

...Bev Loomis, UE, Little Forks Branch President

Friends of the Loyalist Collection at Brock University

Dear Doug, and members of the United Empire Loyalists' Association of Canada,

The Friends of the Loyalists Collection at Brock University thank you for your very generous donation. We appreciate your continuing support for this project and your commitment to the preservation of our Loyalist history.

As you know, our goal is to purchase approximately 1500 reels of microfilm that contain copies of original records of the United Empire Loyalists created at the time of the American Revolution from the Public Record Office in England, the National Archives in Canada and the National Archives in the United States. We have started the Collection by purchasing two groups of microfilm. The first - Public Record Office (PRO) - T-50 Miscellaneous Documents Relating to Refugees, 1780-1836, American Loyalists [7 reels] includes pay lists, Loyalist Quarterly Pension Lists, and the case of 55 uncompensated loyalists. The second collection is the Sir Guy Carleton Papers (30 reels). Obtaining the Carleton Papers was a priority because the index/finding aid compiled by Sir Guy Carleton Branch UELAC to assist researchers using this collection is available at Brock University Library. Recently we purchased four microfilms containing the maps that accompany the Carleton Papers. Hamilton Branch UELAC donated “The Inspector General's List” of Loyalists and we received a private donation of John Butler's Speeches to the Indians. These microfilms are now available for research in the Brock University Library Special Collections.

The History Department at Brock University is excited about our project and we are discussing future purchases with them.

Thank you again for your continuing support.

...Beverly Craig, UE Secretary/Treasurer, Friends of the Loyalist Collection at Brock University

Added Comment on James "Demon" Dunlop (issue 2005-10)

Just as a matter of interest, there is no need for the "sic". A piano was known as a fortepiano at first. This was to differentiate from the previously popular instrument of similar appearance (the harpsichord) which, if I recall correctly, had no ability to modify volume. Or perhaps it was just less abilitiy to modify volume. In musical notation, Italian words are used. "Forte" means loud; "piano" means quiet. Therefore the name fortepiano referred to the fact that both the piano's pedals, and how hard the keys are struck, enable the player to adjust the volume.

...Dwayne & Lynne Brigant

Added questions about widow's future children being Loyalists

Regarding the query to the genealogist: I wonder if anyone questioned the answer given to whether the children of Mrs. Williams' second marriage would be UE. If she married her first husband in the US and went with him to Canada would she not be a Loyalist herself? Both she and her husband must have lost property, fought for the cause and resettled north, which is the usual definition of Loyalist. I suppose her name wasn't on land titles or petitions, but that would be because she was a married woman. I know normally we trace back to the male Loyalist because he is the one who got in the records, but it seems to me if he was married during the appropriate time period then in actuality it is the couple who were loyalist. I would have thought any children of the woman married to John Williams are loyalist descendants through their mother, whether or not the father was loyalist.

Just curious - has anyone ever claimed descent from a married couple, instead of just the man? It seems silly to have two separate certificates for a married couple, but one to both of them makes sense. The idea never occurred to me before this. I know you can get a certificate to the woman's father, etc. Are there many certificates for descent from a female ancestor? or from a husband and wife separately?

I am not too sure what the usual practice is when the man (on the British side) dies in the war before he actually settles in Canada, but his widow does go there. Is she called a loyalist? I hope so. In that case too, her children from later marriages should be considered loyalist descendants.

...Ivy Trumpour

Responses re Heritage Fair Project

We have forwarded a copy of Sarah's Diary, by Doris Wilson, to Sharla.

Sarah's Diary

I inquired of my eldest brother about our family's Loyalist roots and just received an email from him. He advises that my mother's family is of Loyalist descent and she has the 230 year lineage. We believe that the family migrated from Philadelphia to Albert County, New Brunswick (where I grew up) at the time of the Revolution.

It turned out that there is no recorded lineage. The two family names from about 1900 are Hicks and Eagle.

...Sharla and her Dad, Grant

A Bibliography of materials from another Heritage Project

I'm not sure whether I can be of help to Sharla as she asks for "Diary" notes but I will enclose our 10 year old grand-daughter's bibliography for her Heritage Fair project, with the exception of a family book from each side of her family.

I sent her my UEL pin, also the flag pin. The explanation of the pin, also the Loyalist flag is in the book, "Loyalists of the Maritimes" and the Teacher's guide that was printed for Maritime schools. It is not listed in Sarah's list but I was able to copy some of the pages for her. She tried to locate the book in her school but I learned from a query that Nova Scotia Dept. of Education put them in schools for grade 11 although it is written in language for younger children.

My parents always flew the Union Jack so our daughter also got a "flag" lesson. I didn't realize that she thought that was the UEL flag--close but not correct. I live in Fredericton and Sarah lives in Dartmouth, N.S. Her Mother also made a costume from very light weight cotton fabric.

Here are some of the books and websites used for Sarah's project. The most useful ones came from the school library and the children's section of the public library.

Bibliography

- Escape, Adventures of a Loyalist Family, by Mary Beacock Fryer, Copyright © 1976

- Life of the Loyalists by Rosemary Neering and Stan Garrod, Published by Fitzhenry and Whiteside, Copyright © 1975

- Loyalist Dress in Nova Scotia, by Mary Archibald, Elizabeth deMolitor and Cathy Holmes (Drawings by Finn Bower), Published 1982 by the Shelburne County Museum with the assistance of the Nova Scotia Museum, Halifax, Nava Scotia

- Revolution, War, and the Loyalists, by Douglas Baldwin, Published by Weigl Educational Publishers Limited 6325, Copyright © 2003

- The Loyal Refugees, by Robert Livesey & A. G. Smith, Published 1999 by Stoddart Kids, Copyright © 1999

- Loyalists in Nova Scotia, by members of the Nova Scotia Branch of the Canadian Authors' Association, as a contribution to the Loyalist Bicentennial Celebrations, Published 1983 by Lancelot Press

- The Story of the United Empire Loyalists, by A. W. Trueman, Copyright © 1946 (By The Copp Clark Co. Limited Toronto Canada)

- Loyalist Food in Today's Recipes, by Eleanor Robertson Smith, Published 1983 by Lancelot Press Limited

- Refuge: The Loyalists Come to Nova Scotia, by Doris Hilchey, Published 1985 by Four East Publications Ltd., Copyright © 1985

- The UEL (United Empire Loyalist) Association Of Canada Website

- Canada in the Making: Pioneers and Immigrants Website

...Shirley Thorne UE, Fredericton Branch

The story of Joseph Knapp, UE

His story has been included in several history books. The story was forwarded to Sharla.

...Gerry Knapp UE, Oakville, On

John Stewart in NS

This might sound strange to you but I am looking for information on a Loyalist from 1783. A member of my fiance's family did the family history and "John Stewart/Stuart" lived in Morris Town New Jersey (USA) and in 1783 he joined the Empire Loyalists and moved to Nova Scotia. My fiance's Great Uncle told him that one of his ancestors lived in the United States in the 1700's and in 1783 joined the Loyalists and left. Any information or pointers to getting more information would be appreciated.

...Nelly Hernandez, Andover NJ {NHernandez AT TheGaleCompany DOT com} how do I email her?

To protect the people who send in queries from unwanted spam email, the online edition of Loyalist Trails no longer uses direct hyperlinks for their email addresses. Simply rewrite "name AT website DOT net" as name@website.net and sent your email to that address. For example, "doug DOT grant AT insurance-canada DOT ca" is doug.grant@insurance-canada.ca. Contact Doug with questions, or to be put in touch with someone whose email address is not listed.