Loyalist Trails UELAC Newsletter, 2008 Archive

In this issue:
- 'Celebrate British Columbia 150'
- Molly Brant Remembered
- Is There a (Loyalist) Doctor in the House? by Stephen Davidson
- Toronto Branch Special Sale For Loyalist Lineages II
- GOONS and One Name Studies
- Loyalist Directory Update
- Last Post: HURST, Josephine Ellen
- Last Post: MOORE, Lawrence Dale
- Queries
      + Lance Corporal Fred Fisher, VC
      + Seamstress Wanted
      + Documents Describing UE Executive List Expulsions and Suspensions

'Celebrate British Columbia 150'

UELAC Pacific Region Celebrates BC's 150th Anniversary

Happy 150th Anniversary British Columbia! The colony of British Columbia was officially declared on a rainy November day at Fort Langley in 1858. We think the sesquicentennial is a great time to reflect on a rich and varied history, and we're asking you to join in. [Can you pronounce 'sesquicentennial'?]

How can British Columbia history be told through art and word? “This contest is a unique way to get your students/children to learn about historical events in B.C. in a really creative and fun way.”

The Discover Our BC History poster contest is part of the UELAC Pacific Region's BC 150 Year Celebrations. Students/children will illustrate a historical event that has occurred in their community in the past 150 years, and prepare a written description of the event they have depicted. A committee of judges, will choose one winner from each of four categories - Pre-School-Grade 3, Grade 4-6, Grade 7-9, and Grade 10-12. As retired teachers, the UELAC Pacific Regional Vice President and Pacific Regional Councillor have always had a passion for engaging students in learning. Both are thrilled about the opportunity this contest will offer students/children to dig into their local history.

“It’s important to celebrate B.C.’s 150th anniversary, and this contest will help teach students why history is important. In addition, it will give these children and students a sense of pride and ownership in their own communities.”

The winning posters, as well as two runners-up from each category, will receive a prize, and their work will be displayed at the Pacific Regional Mini Conference 2008 during May in Chilliwack, BC.

Deadline for Contest: 01 May 2008 Please forward Posters and Written Description to:

UELAC - 150th ABC Anniversary Poster Contest
c/o Carl Stymiest UE,
930 Cambie Street #2601,
Vancouver, BC, Canada, V6B 5X6

[submitted by Carl Stymiest]

Molly Brant Remembered

For those of us in the Bay of Quinte Region, one of the local newspapers is the "Mohawk Nation Drummer" based in Tyendinaga Mohawk Territory just east of Belleville. The February 2008 edition has an extensive article on Molly Brant titled "Molly Brant - True Mohawk Loyalist". It is practically a biography and it is illustrated with a number of pictures of Johnson Hall and Fort Niagara in particular. It covers what is known about her early years, life at Johnson Hall, the eventful American Revolutionary War period, and her last days in Kingston. The author is Carol Isaacs. It is good to see Molly Brant getting this kind of publicity.

...Peter W. Johnson UE, President, UELAC

Is There a (Loyalist) Doctor in the House? by Stephen Davidson

Among the many forgotten loyalist stories, some of the most fascinating ones are those that have to do with doctors and surgeons. Here are four of them.

Until 1772, Dr. Nathaniel Bullein earned £300 a year serving the people of Charleston, South Carolina as their physician and apothecary. When he sensed troubled times ahead, Bullein moved his family to Amelia, but nevertheless he was forced to join the staff of the local rebel hospital. When the loyalist doctor finally left Amelia, patriots seized his furniture, cattle, horses, and cart. However, better times were ahead for the loyalist doctor. After the British army captured Charleston in 1779, Dr. Bullein served his king as a surgeon in the city's Loyal Refugee Hospital. After the evacuation of Charleston's loyalists and British soldiers, Bullein and his family sailed for Nova Scotia in August 1783.

The loyalist doctor eventually settled near present day Wolfville, but he was far from being impoverished. Bullein came to Nova Scotia with eleven (!) African slaves, ranging in age from six months to sixty years. Such prosperity was not unusual among loyalist physicians and surgeons.

Dr. Archibald Campbell settled in Bermuda at the end of the American Revolution. This native of Scotland set up his medical practice in Virginia in 1744, but had enough business interests to own a wharf and warehouse. His brick house in Norfolk cost more than £1,250 to build. Campbell had shares in a distillery, a tannery and a rope factory, and he rented out several properties.

After the Battle of the Bridge, Campbell became a prisoner of war. He was released after four weeks on the condition that he would not assist the British any further. One of the doctor's African slaves, however, died in serving the British, but the circumstances are not known. Dr. Campbell fled to Bermuda with his family.

When he returned to Virginia in 1783 to make claims for his losses, Campbell found that most of his properties had been burned down during the British attack on Norfolk. Three years later, the doctor sailed from Bermuda to Halifax to petition for compensation, but the success of his claim is not recorded. Surely, living the rest of his life on an island covered in palm trees and bordered by pink sandy beaches must have been some form of solace.

Dr. Joseph Clarke was already familiar with war's tragic toll on human life from his tour of duty as a surgeon with a provincial regiment during the Seven Years War. He could not have anticipated that there would be yet another war on American soil during his lifetime.

Dr. Clarke's house in quiet Stratford, Connecticut was once described by a friend as "genteely furnished"; the doctor "lived in good style". Clarke "had the best practice in the place" until his convictions compelled him to join the British troops in October of 1776. As soon as he left Stratford, rebels seized his home and all of his livestock. There was to be no turning back.

Dr. Clarke recruited 33 other loyalists for the Prince of Wales Volunteers during his three-month term as a captain. In 1777, the doctor crossed Long Island Sound to practice medicine within the refugee settlement that was growing up around Fort Franklin. Clarke offered his services "without any pay or reward during the war". Over the course of the revolution, vicious patriot raiders from across the Sound plundered Clarke's home in Lloyd's Neck and later in Huntington.

At the end of the war, Dr. Clarke settled in Maugerville, New Brunswick on the St. John River. Like Bullein and Campbell, he also had an African in his household. However, 40 year-old Philip was a free man who had served the British forces for three years. He accompanied Dr. Clarke as his hired man.

With a smallpox epidemic raging through the colonies, Dr. Azor Betts' skill in giving inoculations would have kept him busy enough during the war. However, the New Yorker's loyalty to King George III numbered him among "the first persecuted" and he was "continually harassed" in the opening years of the war. Rebels eventually arrested Dr. Betts for "carrying intelligence" to the British. While the loyalist doctor was in prison, patriots broke into his home, stealing books, medicine and furniture. Following banishment by the rebels, Betts snuck back to New York, and was imprisoned a second time. The loyalist doctor would have been executed as a traitor had the British not marched into New York and seized the city just in the nick time.

A free man once more, Betts became the staff doctor for General Howe's Queen's Rangers and later recruited men for the King's American Rangers. In the last 18 months of the revolution, the loyalist surgeon tended the wounded at the British garrison in Morrisina.

Dr. Betts, his wife Gloriany, and their children left New York in the spring of 1783, settling with other loyalists in Kingston, New Brunswick. Later the doctor moved his practice across the Bay of Fundy to Digby, Nova Scotia -- another loyalist settlement. Betts died there in 1810. Five years later Gloriany died and was buried in Saint John's loyalist burial ground, leaving nine children to mourn her passing.

These all-too-brief stories of four loyalist doctors provide intriguing glimpses into what it meant to serve one's king during a revolution -- and allow us to better imagine the men who helped to found a new nation.

Toronto Branch Special Sale For Loyalist Lineages II

Toronto Branch is pleased to offer to your Branch and its Membership a special sale price for the two volume sets of Loyalists’ Lineages II. These sets are hard bound, durable, and printed on acid-free paper. They are an excellent gift, and a valuable research tool. This is your opportunity to obtain sets at a most exceptional price. This sale price offering is valid for the 2008 year.

Terms: Set orders only
Taxes as applicable and shipping charges are extra and not included.
Sales Price: One set: $62.50; Three sets or more $31.25/set.
To order, contact Toronto Branch: Phone: (416) 489 – 1783,
Fax: (416) 489 - 3664; e-mail: TorontoUEL@bellnet.ca

...Ed Cass, UE, Toronto Branch, UELAC.

GOONS and One Name Studies

No, these are not a bunch of mob hit men. Goons’ stands for “The Guild of One Name Study”. This is a UK organization that individuals join to identify a specific surname they are researching. Guild members may be studying a particular surname, and its variants, in just the UK, other countries or worldwide.

UEL members should consider checking the GOONs website for possible surnames they are researching since many UEL members may have roots back to Britain. You can search for surnames at no cost and possibly find a link to a GOONs member researching a surname you are interested in.

Those interested may even consider joining GOONs which costs about $25.00 per year.

When you register a surname, we will ask you to agree in writing to the two conditions shown here:

1. You must agree to collect all references to your registered sumame(s) on a worldwide basis, and strive towards the goal of establishing a substantial body of worldwide data, in particular for countries where the name is relatively significant and where sources are readily available. A study restricted to one country, part of a country, or the descendants of a particular individual, does not meet our criteria.

2. You must agree to deal with all reply-paid enquiries and emails that you receive relating to your registered surname(s).

Goons have two Canadian representatives, Mr. Dick Chandler, Canada West and Dr. Graham Orpwood, Canada East.

...Paul R. Caverly, PLCGS, UE

Loyalist Directory Update

Carl Stymiest of Vancouver added three names - Timothy Hierlihy, George Tait Sr.and Alexander MacDonald - to our Loyalist Directory.

Last Post: HURST, Josephine Ellen

(nee O'Hearn) 90, a long-time resident of Granville Ferry, Annapolis County,Nova Scotia passed away Tuesday, February 12, 2008 in the Valley Regional Hospital, Kentville. Born in Dartmouth, she was a daughter of the late Richard and Josephine (Gifford) O’Hearn. She was the loving mother of son, Ronald (Martha), Windsor, Ontario; daughter, Deann (Gerald) Gomes, Mississauga, Ontario; grandchildren include Kimberly Hurst and great grandchildren Sarah Hurst. She is also survived by a sister, Olive Horne, Dartmouth. She was predeceased by husband, Allen (1986). Josephine was born on 9 August 1917 in Dartmouth, Nova Scotia. She was a survivor of both Halifax Explosions (1917 and 1945). She was very proud of her Loyalist heritage and was a descendant of Loyalist William Scoles. On-line inquiries may be directed to whitefamilyfuneralhome.com.

Last Post: MOORE, Lawrence Dale

Passed away suddenly in Grand Ledge, Michigan, Wednesday February 13th, 2008 at the age of 67. Larry is survived by his wife Norma, sons Dwayne, John and Charles and daughters Julie and Holly. Brother of Martha (Ronald) Hurst UE, Carol (late husband Leonard) Hodges UE, Marlene (Rubin) Cruse and Joanne Moore. Uncle of several including Kimberly Hurst and Great Uncle of several including Sarah Hurst. Larry was born 17 March 1940 in Leamington, Ontario and is a former member of the Bicentennial Branch.He was a descendant of Benjamin Knapp and was extremely proud of his Loyalist roots. Larry will be laid to rest on Saturday February 16th in Grand Ledge, Michigan.

[submitted by Joyce Stevens UE]

Lance Corporal Fred Fisher, VC

Did Fred Fisher have Loyalist ancestors?

Fisher was a son of William Henry Fisher. The 1901 Census of Canada states that William was born 3 November 1862, while the 1911 Census records his birth as January 1864. William died in 1935. In all likelihood William was born in the Montreal area.

Fisher's mother was Alice S. McGibbon. The 1901 Census states she was born 8 December 1866 while the 1911 Census records her birth as December 1869. She died 1946. She was the daughter of Alexander McGibbon (1829-1904) and Harriet Davidson (d. 1879) Alexander was the son of John McGibbon and Isabella Mackinson. The McGibbon family was from the Montreal area.

Alice S. McGibbon had a number of brothers, amongst whom were Robert Davidson McGibbon (a prominent Montreal lawyer); and Douglas Lorne McGibbon (founder of the Laurentian Society for the treatment of tuberculosis).

Fisher had two brothers and one sister: Duncan Alexander Fisher; William Henry Fisher, MC; and Alice Mary Fisher.

Since the family was in Montreal so early in the 1800s, it is very possible that one of Fred Fisher's ancestors was a Loyalist. Any information would be appreciated.

...Bill Smy {bill_smy AT yahoo DOT com} how do I email him?

Seamstress Wanted

I would like to have a Loyalist dress made. I am interested in finding someone with seamstress skills who could make one for me.

...Donna Magee {dmagee02 AT sympatico DOT ca} how do I email her?

Documents Describing UE Executive List Expulsions and Suspensions

When the Revolutionary War was winding down after 1781, there were many Loyalists in refugee camps in the central part of the Colony of Quebec. The land in the western part of Quebec, what is now southern Ontario from the current Quebec border to Windsor, down into Ohio and beyond, had been set aside at the end of the Seven Years War, as protected land for First Nations people and European settlement was not permitted there. In order to find a place for the Loyalist Refugees, permission was granted for settlement in that area and surveying began.

The Loyalists were recorded on the Old UE List, and later on the UE List. By the 1790's and in 1791 when Quebec was divided into Lower and Upper Canada, it was realized that many "Loyalist" land grants had been given to people who did not qualify as UE Loyalists according to the original intent. For example, some of there were professional soldiers who had disbanded and settled in Canada. They should have sought and been granted military land grants rather than Loyalist land grants.

To clean up the records, the government began a process of marking those on the UE List who should not have received Loyalist Land grants. These were either suspended or expunged from the list. However, those who chose to pursue the matter could apply for reinstatement, and quite a number were returned to the list.

The UE List continued as a record-keeping device until the Loyalist grants to Loyalists and their sons and daughters ended in the mid-1800's.

In some cases, people were removed from the list because their name had been spelled incorrectly, and were reinstated with the proper spelling. There were many reasons one could be expunged or expelled.

Also, keep in mind that there were probably many loyalists who qualified but who never submitted petitions for land. There were also many who were suspended or expunged who never bothered to appeal - so one's ancestor being marked as such need not be the end of the matter. They may well qualify as a UE Loyalist, but proving the matter is more difficult.

In order to understand the reason why a person was expunged or suspended, there must be records somewhere.

I am looking for the source of those "expunged, suspended and reinstated" records and where copies might be kept that are accessible to researchers. Can anyone point us to those sources. Thanks for your help.

...Doug Grant