Loyalist Trails UELAC Newsletter, 2015 Archive

In this issue:
- Loyalist Nuggets in the Riverbed, by Stephen Davidson
- Anthony and Andrew Westbrook (Part 11), by Doug Massey
- Philip Embury: 1812 Veteran Marker Set For Hastings County
- War of 1812 Plaque for Private Isaac Corman
- School of the Loyalist, August 28-30, 2015
- UE Loyalist Certificates Issued January-June
- Where in the World is Jim McKenzie?
- Region and Branch Bits
- From the Twittersphere and Beyond
- Additions to the Loyalist Directory
- Last Post: Melba Merritt, UE (née Kellam)

Loyalist Nuggets in the Riverbed, by Stephen Davidson

As I chase down fascinating people and forgotten incidents in loyalist history, I often come across something that doesn't quite fit into a story -- or something that can't be stretched out into a full-length article. These nuggets of research need to have their day in the sun. Here are some of my more interesting discoveries.

Had the British won the war, a New Jersey man named Benjamin Worth could have been the Paul Revere of loyalist history. Given the nature of his service to the crown, it is no surprise that Worth was once the owner of a farm noted for its good stock of horses.

While under General Campbell on Staten Island, Benjamin Worth served as an express rider. For two years, he was part of a team of men that delivered messages for the crown. However, neither the routes they travelled nor the difficulties they encountered are mentioned in his testimony. If only he had shared one story of galloping through New Jersey and New York to spread the news that the patriots were coming!

There is much talk about the nature of the legacy that the loyalists left to modern-day Canada. The discussion usually revolves around democratic institutions, civic values, and a willingness to negotiate. However, the most lasting legacy may, oddly enough, have to do with the way in which we survey our immense landscape. Brian Cuthbertson, a Nova Scotia archivist and the author of The Loyalist Governor, looks back to the contributions of John Wentworth. This loyalist had been the governor of New Hampshire before the American Revolution. He was later appointed the surveyor-general of Nova Scotia and eventually became its first loyalist governor.

Wentworth was a meticulous man and took the job of surveyor-general very seriously. Despite the fact that tens of thousands of loyalists were flooding into Nova Scotia in the dying months of the American Revolution, Wentworth would not grant any land unless he had first inspected it to be sure that there were reserves for the crown.

Cuthbertson asserts "Wentworth's system of licencing, rather than the granting or selling of crown-owned forest lands, became the guiding principle for the administration of crown lands across Canada, and remains so to this day."

Perhaps one day there will be enough data on individual loyalists to write about those who had a change of heart with regard to their loyalties. When John McKee of Connecticut stood before the loyalist compensation board in November of 1786, he had the courage to admit that he had once been a rebel. His character witness at the hearing was Elias Scribner. He testified that McKee, an Irish immigrant, had kept a store in Norwalk, Connecticut where he wove and made leather breeches. McKee had been a member of the colony's militia and was "employed in disarming loyalists in New York Province".

Scribner recalled how he had told McKee that this was wrong. His words were obviously persuasive because McKee decided to side with the British government. In the years that followed, the weaver helped loyalists escape from Connecticut. Rebels took McKee to trial in 1777 and, in addition to seizing his property, had him imprisoned for a year. A small schooner was among the possessions that he had taken from him.

McKee, the loyalist convert, took his family to New York City after his release from jail. He ran a tavern for the rest of war before joining the evacuation fleet to Saint John. With McKee were his wife Juliana and their children Elizabeth, James, William, and Hanford. The family remained in Saint John where McKee became a grocer. He died almost three decades later in November of 1810.

If only he had remained a rebel, John McKee could certainly have had a much easier life as a merchant and weaver in Norwalk, Connecticut. And it makes one wonder. What did his friend Elias Scribner say that persuaded him to change his political views and suffer so much loss?

The female side of loyalist history is only just now becoming more widely appreciated. Part of the problem has been the lack of primary resources written by refugee women; part has been the failure to recognize women's role in the revolution. Even glimpses of female support and companionship are valuable nuggets to the historian.

The Rev. J.S. Carroll of Toronto wrote a memoir of his life that gives us just a few minutes from his mother Molly's experiences. A loyalist who saw bloodshed and destruction, Carroll's father Joseph also survived the shipwreck of his evacuation vessel. No wonder he suffered from post-traumatic stress syndrome and relied on alcohol to medicate himself. Joseph Carroll married a Planter's daughter after arriving in Fredericton; their marriage was far from happy. With the prospect of more land in Upper Canada, Joseph uprooted his family (despite the fact that Molly was pregnant with twins) and moved them to York.

Mrs. Carroll's son records an incident that occurred just a few days after the family moved to York. While Maritimers meeting one another in Toronto is a "given" in the 21st century, Carroll's memoir gives us one of the first of these encounters. It certainly helps to put a human face on the loyalists who hoped for better lives in Upper Canada.

"A few mornings after our arrival, mother made an agreeable acquaintance. A comely young married woman, by the name of Barber, occupied a neat little house across the road from us. They met in the street, and found that both ... were from New Brunswick; and as they both knew, or at least knew of, many of the same persons, they began to question each other about this and that individual; and they soon found that they had a common knowledge and friendship of many people, which was, as we all know from experience, a source of pleasure.

At length, said mother, as the plot thickened, "I wonder whatever became of Sally Rodney?"

At this the young woman burst into tears (the first time I ever saw a person weep for joy,) and said, " Why she's my mother; and is alive, and living out on Yonge Street."

Sally Rodney was the {illegitimate} daughter of Lord Rodney, a naval officer, who spent some time in New Brunswick, and lured one of the handsomest young women of the country from the paths of propriety; and Sally Rodney was the result. Sally had married fairly well, and we afterwards often met her. ... Across the way from our place, mother renewed her acquaintance with the family of {the Connecticut loyalist} Stephen Jarvis, Esquire, respectable people, from Fredericton... This was a solace to her. She and old Mrs. {Amelia} Jarvis were life-long friends and intimates."

Pony express riders, land surveyors, political converts and women far from home are just some of the loyalist nuggets to be discovered in the riverbed of history.

To secure permission to reprint this article, email Stephen Davidson.

Anthony and Andrew Westbrook (Part 11), by Doug Massey

Copyright Doug Massey, UE

The same treatment was handed out to Benajah Mallory in Burford Township, Brant County. Mallory, the wealthiest man in his community, sought the position of deputy lieutenant of the county. But William Claus and others thought him indiscrete and denied him the position. Mallory would ultimately resign, as captain of militia, and in 1813 would go over to the American side.

Then too, there was the matter of how Talbot and his placeholders in the local government treated Ebenezer Allen. To be sure, Allen did not set the brightest example with respect to morals and deserved much of what he got in the courts. But to Westbrook and others, the list of arraignments for blackmail, bribery, forgery and larceny looked very much like persecution. Allen was acquitted of the forgery and larceny charges in 1801 because of lack of evidence. Then in 1804 and on into 1805, he was arrested, tried and found guilty of counterfeiting. Was Allen framed? Some thought so. But it didn't matter - Allen was trundled off to jail at Turkey Point where he was held until 1806. Westbrook was now convinced that the local elite, and specifically magistrate Springer, was both arbitrary and corrupt. When the American Col. Duncan McArthur appeared in Delaware on July 17, 1812 on a provisioning raid, Westbrook, Allen and Watson accompanied him back to Detroit and offered their services to General Hull. The three men may have done so out of support for republican ideals, but in Westbrook's case the decision to throw in his lot with the Americans was based more on a realistic assessment of the times: Talbot's machinations limited or threatened his horizons, while Hull and the Americans, most likely to be the victors in the coming war, would best protect his property and further his growing expectations. Returning to Delaware as a spy, Andrew may have helped distribute Hull's Proclamation to the People of Upper Canada. But he certainly did draw up and circulate a petition asking Hull to protect those in the settlement who did not want to take up arms against the Americans. This so angered General Brock that he ordered magistrate Daniel Springer to arrest Westbrook, Allen and all other "disaffected" in the area. Allen was sent to prison at Fort George, but Westbrook was able to escape. He returned to Detroit to become a spy for Lt.-Col. George Croghan. After the British defeat at Moravian Town, Captain Andrew Westbrook served as a guide with the Michigan Rangers, helping them raid the vulnerable settlements along the Thames River and on Lake Erie. These relentless fire raids beginning in February 1814, bear an uncanny resemblance to those of his father Anthony's with the Brant Volunteers some thirty-five years earlier.

On the night of Jan. 31/Feb. 1, 1814, Westbrook and his force made a bold move against the Delaware settlement, crossing the frozen Thames to swoop down and capture the hated Capt. Daniel Springer, (1st Oxford) but also four other militia officers -- Col. François Baby (1st Kent), Capt. Belah Brigham (1st Oxford), and Lt. John Dolson (1st Kent). With these men safely arrested, Westbrook proceeded to burn down his own house and lead his wife and family to safety in Detroit. (Unfortunately his wife would die in an accident on the way across the St. Clair River). Shades of Minisink in 1779 as we have seen. On Feb. 5, 1814, he returned to raid the Essex settlement. On April 5, it was the turn of Oxford to feel his wrath. This raid was particularly gratifying for Andrew because of the capture that night of Major Sykes Tousley. And the raids just continued throughout the rest of the year:

• May 14, 1814 - Westbrook provides the intelligence to help Col. J. B. Campbell lay waste Dover Mills and the Long point settlement.
• May 20, 1814 - Port Talbot raid. The big prize Thomas Talbot, Col. of the Middlesex Militia is absent but they capture Capt. Leslie Patterson and Capt. Gilman Wilson of the Middlesex Militia, only to have to release them.
• July, 1814 - Port Talbot raid
• Aug. 16, 1814 - Port Talbot raid. Thomas Talbot barely escapes capture, but Talbot's second in command, Lt.-Col. Mahlon Burwell is taken. Westbrook was possibly there.
• Aug. 30, 1814 - Oxford raid. Capt. Ichabod Hall, John Carrol and David Curtis of the 1st Oxford are captured.
• Sept. 9, 1814 - Port Talbot raid. The settlement is utterly destroyed.
• Sept. 20, 1814 - Port Talbot raid.

Like the raids of Joseph Brant and his Volunteers, these actions were often totally unexpected, devastating, relentless and cruel. Raiders were often painted and dressed as "ferocious Indian warriors", perhaps to hide identity, as the insurgents were often former members of the settlements they attacked. Mills were targeted, yes, but like with Brant, the terror was also aimed at the settlers themselves: their houses, barns and crops were burnt, their horses and movable possessions were stolen, and they were left with only the clothes on their backs. On the Sept. 20th raid against Port Talbot this happened not only in the settlement itself but also for sixteen miles to the east along the Talbot road. Revenge taking happened and some settlers were murdered to settle old scores. These raids in 1814 were all part of the American strategy to denude the countryside so that it would not feed a British occupying army -- echoes of the raids on the Mohawk and Schoharie Valleys by Brant in the American Revolution to starve Washington's armies.

...Doug Massey

Philip Embury: 1812 Veteran Marker Set For Hastings County

No sooner finish with one 1812 Veteran Marker Ceremony (or 4 in the case of the Ketchesons), when it's time for another! This time we are honouring Philip Embury who served in the 1st Hastings County Militia. He was born c1785 in Fredericksburgh Township and the son of Andrew Embury UE and Jane Bell DUE. Philip was named after his great-uncle Philip Embury Sr well known as a founder of Methodism in America. The 'Philip' name has persisted and even my own son carries it. My wife Angela is the descendant. The Emburys were part of the so-called "Irish Palatines".

In 1807 Philip married Martha Van Tassel daughter of a Rev War Rebel and of a family with ties to Fishkill NY and even Sleepy Hollow. By 1812 Philip and Martha were living in Sidney Township, Hastings County hence his service in that County militia. Sometime after 1832 and perhaps c1840 the Emburys moved to Madoc Township where their story had an unhappy ending. On July 7, 1845 Philip was killed by a falling tree. He was buried at Hazzards Cors Cemetery north of Madoc where he has a marker. Martha died beteween 1852 and 1860 and although she is undoubtedly buried at Hazzards Cors too, there is no marker.

The picturesque Hazzards Cors Church holds two services a year - one in the summer and a Christmas one. This year the annual Service is Sunday August 16th and will be followed at 3:00 pm by the 1812 Veteran Marker ceremony by Philip's original marker. The folks who organize the Hazzards Cors Service are very keen about the 1812 ceremony on the same day, and we are hoping for good attendance. All welcome!

...Peter W. Johnson, UE

War of 1812 Plaque for Private Isaac Corman

There will be a War of 1812 Plaque unveiling at Stoney Creek Municipal Cemetery, King Street, Hamilton for Private Isaac Corman on Saturday August 22, 2015 at 11:00 am. - 11:30 am with a social time following at Battlefield Museum. More information on the plaques at www.1812veterans.ca. I'm the 3rd great granddaughter of Private Isaac Corman; below is his story, created with the help of David Clark, UE.

...Brenda Denyes, UE

Isaac CORMAN was born 1777 in Frederick, Maryland, USA to Hans Johannes Jerrick KORMAN/KORNMANN, also known as George CORMAN, and Sarah HARRISON, who married 1763 in Frederick, Maryland. They lived in Maryland on a 700 acre tract until the Revolution. They moved to British Kentucky until the hostilities reached there, then they moved onto Pennsylvania and eventually to Canada in 1792. Isaac's father, George CORMAN, petitioned for land and was given a land grant for Lots 21 and 22, Conc. III, Saltfleet Twp., Wentworth County, Upper Canada. (Source: LAC RG1, L3, Vol.283, L Bundle 1, Petition 5 film C-2124)

Isaac's sister, Catherine CORMAN, married John YEAGER Sr. (born Johannes JAGER). Isaac and his brother-in-law John YEAGER both served in Captain James DURAND Company of the 5th Lincoln Militia during the War of 1812. During the Battle of Stoney Creek, the attack left the Battlefield strewn with American dead and wounded. Isaac CORMAN, his brother-in-laws, Billy GREEN, and John YEAGER were among the settlers who cleared the battlefield and buried the dead.(SOURCES: The Yeager Family Album - R. Robert Mutrie; Annals of the Forty - R. Janet Powell; "Billy Green the Scout"- Mabel Thompson; Ontario History,1952; Battlefield House & Museum)

Another sister, Hannah CORMAN, married James LEE, a British Soldier who served under General CORNWALLIS during the American Revolution. James and Hannah immigrated to Upper Canada and settled on lots 21 and 22, Concession 4 in Saltfleet Township. A story is told that John LEE, a son of James, fought by the side of Sir Isaac BROCK at the battle of Queenston Heights in October of 1812. When BROCK was wounded John LEE helped to carry him off the battlefield and later he was a pallbearer at his funeral. The LEE family has also been connected with the Battle of Stoney Creek. Sgt LEE is mentioned in the Billy GREEN story.

Isaac's brother, Abraham CORMAN, married Mary REITTER; a sister, Mary CORMAN, married a Mr. VERNER;. a sister, Elizabeth CORMAN, married Mr. ALLEN; and a sister, Sarah CORMAN married Captain Thomas PETTIT of Saltfleet Township (their son Sgt. George PETTIT served in the War of 1812 with 4th Lincoln Regiment)

After Isaac's father, George CORMAN, died in 1804, at age 72 years, Isaac CORMAN inherited part of the home farm, as in 1808, he was settled on Lot 21, Conc. III, Saltfleet Township. During the war, Isaac CORMAN lived at the foot of the escarpment near the native trail that was to become King Street. He married Keziah GREEN, the daughter of Ensign Adam GREEN UEL and Martha SMITH, on May 11, 1801 in Stoney Creek, Ontario, Canada. Adam GREEN UEL who was a recruiter for the New Jersey Volunteers, acting under Colonel (Judge ) Nathaniel PETTIT during the Revolutionary War, had Lot 24 of Concession 4, Saltfleet Township, and petitioned for additional land in 1794, after which he received an additional 300 acres (Lots 24, 25 and 26, Concession 5) adjoining.

Isaac and Keziah CORMAN had eleven children- Rebecca, Alpheus, Mary, John G, Bathsheba, Desire, Isaac, George A, Elizabeth, Abraham and James F.

During the war of 1812, Isaac CORMAN fought under Captain G. CARPENTER in the 2nd Flank Company, 5th Regiment Lincoln Militia. (source- "Militia & Defence" RG 9, IB7, Vol. 1 page 135 of National Archives of Canada; Wilfred Lauber's "An Index of Land Claim Certificates of Upper Canada Militiamen who served in the War of 1812-1814", RG9, IB4, Vol. 19, File 21 pp. 888-889;" Soldiers of the King" by William Gray page 144; and L.A.C. -- RG9, IB7, Vol. 24, Digital page 1046, Film Roll T-10386., )

Isaac CORMAN and his brother-in-law, William GREEN (Billy the Scout), became famous during the War of 1812 for an incident that led up to the Battle of Stoney Creek. In June 1813, when the Americans invaded the Niagara Peninsula and advanced to Stoney Creek, arriving on the east bank of the creek, they came upon Isaac CORMAN's farm and started to question him about the location of the British troops and Indians. When he refused to comply, he was taken prisoner. His interrogator thought that Isaac was a cousin of one of the American generals, William Henry HARRISON. So the interrogator, who was a second cousin of HARRISON, decided to let Isaac go. To Isaac's surprise, the American told him that the password was Wil-Hen-Har, the first three letters of each word in the name of William Henry HARRISON. As Isaac was walking home, he met brother-in-law, Billy GREEN. After telling Billy the story and giving him the password, Billy got on his brother, Levi's horse "Tip", and rode to Lt. Col. HARVEY at Burlington Heights, and told him the story, which, with the information from Lt. FITZGIBBON, (spurious -- written long after by a decendant and not accurate) convinced Harvey that a night attack was needed.

Abraham CORMAN (1823-1912) wrote down his father Isaac's story of his adventures during the Battle of Stoney Creek on the 5th and 6th of June, 1813. That story is in the Hamilton Library and is extracted below:

Isaac CORMAN was working on setting fence posts on his farm, near the road from Burlington Heights to Niagara, when he was arrested by Yankee soldiers on the 5th of June, 1813. "When we heard them [Yankees] going through the Creek we all went out on the hill to see them. Some of them spied us and fired, one ball struck the bars where Teenie (writer's note - Levi GREEN's wife Christina COOK) was sitting holding Hannah [GREEN] on her arm. We all went back on the mountain to one of Jim STONY's old trapping huts. Teenie went to the house. After a little while two officers came up and asked her if she had seen some Indians around there. She said there was a band back on the mountain. They left and Teenie came out where we were hid and whistled, I [Billy GREEN] answered. I told her I would go down to Isaac's. When I got there I whistled and out came Kezi (Billy's sister and Isaac CORMAN's wife). I asked where Isaac was and she said they had taken him prisoner and taken the trail to the Beach (writer's note - where 2 regiments of Yankees were stationed). I wanted to know how she knew. She said Alph (writer's note - Isaac's son) had followed them to the swamp. Where is Alph? In the cellar with Becca and Kezi. I went down and he told me where to go. I started and ran, every now and then I would whistle until I got across the Creek when I heard Isaac hoot like an owl. I thought they had him there but he was coming back. I was going to raise an Indian war whoop and scare them when I saw Isaac coming. I asked how he got away. He said their major and he got a talking and said he was a second cousin to HARRISON (writer's note - General William Henry HARRISON). I said I was a first cousin. After talking a little longer a message came for him. He said I must go, you may go home. Isaac said "But I can't get through the lines. I will give you the countersign" and he did. That countersign was Wil-Hen-Har, which Isaac passed on to Billy GREEN who rode to Albion Mills and then descended the escarpment to Burlington Heights to give it to General VINCENT. The Yankees, having realized their terrible indiscretion in releasing the countersign, sent five soldiers to the CORMAN farm and held Isaac and his family hostage through the night of the 5th and into the 6th of June. At the coming of the British night attack on the American camp, on the 6th, and the routing of the Yankees, the soldiers fled the CORMAN house leaving behind a number of personal articles which were donated to the Dundurn Castle Museum in 1938 and eventually to the Hamilton Military Museum.

Isaac is commemorated on a monument placed in the Stoney Creek Municipal Cemetery in 1938. He died 1863 in Stoney Creek at age 86 years.

School of the Loyalist, August 28-30, 2015

The American Revolution can rightly be described as America's first Civil War. The fledgling country was far from unanimous in its drive for independence, with hundreds of thousands of Americans wishing to maintain their allegiance to the British Crown. Bergen County boasted more Loyalists than any other in New Jersey, leading the state's governor, William Livingston to declare in 1777 that it was "almost totally disaffected!" That is reflected here at the headquarters of the Bergen County Historical Society, Historic New Bridge Landing, the home of Loyalists John Zabriskie and Abraham Van Buskirk.

Join historical reenactors from across the United States and Canada as they learn and practice various aspects of life in the Loyalist military, including camping, cooking, artillery, drills and sailing at Historic New Bridge Landing. Historic New Bridge Landing, located in River Edge, Teaneck and New Milford, was the sight of no less than ten battles and encampments during the American Revolution and is today the home of the Bergen County Historical Society. Perhaps discover your Loyalist ancestor at the Ciarco Learning Center in Hackensack, home of the Bergen County Historical Society's Library, as we welcome United Empire Loyalist Association of Canada Dominion Genealogist Kathryn Lake Hogan to start things off that Friday Night.

For complete information on guest speakers and schedule, please visit the event website, and find out how you can witness history!

We are pleased to announce special hours for the Bergen County Historical Society's Library for the School of the Loyalist! Located at the Ciarco Learning Center in Hackensack, the library will be open on Friday, August 28, from 1-5 in the afternoon, and 6-7 at night, prior to Kathryn Lake Hogan's presentation in the same building. For those visiting the area for the first time, its a great opportunity to check out some of the society's fantastic collections! Details here.

The Bergen County Historical Society (BCHS), a 501(c)(3) non-profit volunteer organization, founded in 1902, promotes preservation, study and appreciation of civil, political, military and the general history of the United States of America, particularly of Bergen County.

...Todd Braisted, HVP, UELAC

UE Loyalist Certificates Issued January-June

Many of you readers have UE Loyalist ancestors; a good number have genealogically proven their descent and been awarded a Loyalist Certificate stating that fact. We attempt to note the new certificates issued every month or two. This year, due to a number of factors, we have been delayed in this. Over the last two weeks the certificates approved between January and June inclusive have been noted on the website in two place.

Late in 2012, the certificate application form was revised so that those people who would like their name, branch and ancestor to be listed on the UELAC website and in the Loyalist Gazette could authourize that on their application. These have been listed since late 2012 at List of Certificates.

Also, when authorized, the descendant's name is included in the ancestor's record in the Loyalist Directory.

Check these out for more details. Many of these same people have given approval to post their certificate application (pages one to nine, after removing personal information) in the Loyalist Directory. In order to do that though, we need the computer version of the application (pages 1 - 9); if you have a computer version of your application form which has not yet been posted, please email it to the editor loyalist.trails@uelac.org so that it too can be added.

Where in the World?

Where is Jim McKenzie of New Brunswick Branch?

To participate, submit a photo of yourself in UELAC promotional gear at a place of some note and tell us where it is. If you are a member of a branch, please indicate that as well – send to Jennifer Childs.

Region and Branch Bits

From the UELAC branches, news and events of interest to others.

• On Sat. August 15 noon until 4:30pm, join The Brome County Historical Society (in Knowlton Quebec) for a 200-Year-Anniversary Celebration of the Paul Holland Knowlton House! Grand opening of the house, BBQ picnic, games, music, skits, and fun. Free!
• 19 Sept. Norfolklore 2015. The Norfolklore Family History Fair is the oldest genealogy fair in Ontario and is the one annual event that should not be missed if you are interested in Norfolk history and genealogy. Each year since 1976 it has attracted dozens of genealogical resource providers/exhibitors and hundreds of genealogists researching their Upper Canada/Ontario/Norfolk roots.
• Planning ahead: UELAC 2017 Conference (date TBA) will be in London Ontario. Not sure where this photo was taken!)

From the Twittersphere and Beyond

• A lesson in 18th century colonial English. So how do you do that? We asked Cathy Hellier, Colonial Williamsburg historian and author of Eighteenth-Century English as a Second Language. With her help we came up with some easy steps for sounding like an 18th-century resident of Duke of Gloucester Street. Learn more.
• Thomas Jefferson arrived in Paris during 1784 in the middle of a French revolution--a culinary revolution. A no-holds-barred Gallic food fight was in full swing, and a centuries-old ancien régime in the kitchen was being chopped, diced, sliced, puréed, and flambéed into oblivion. With whisks, cleavers, and radical ideas about nutrition and style, avant-garde chefs were creating for the aristocracy nouvelle cuisine, the great-grandfather of today's fine dining. Good article from Colonial Williamsburg.
• Everyday and Work Clothing. People from every social level owned everyday clothing. For relaxing at home and going about daily business, wealthy men and women chose clothes that were more comfortable than their fashionable or formal garb. Manual laborers dressed in garments suited to their activity. From Colonial Williamsburg.
• Robust floral pattern, for this silk sack back dress, c. 1720-1750 (British?)
• During the 18th century, when women's skirts were huge, they wore large pockets underneath in which they carried everything that would later be carried outside the dress in purses. The pocket gave its name to variety of accessories carried within it, including the pocket case. The term was used interchangeably with letter case and pocketbook to describe small envelope-style purses that would have been slipped inside a pocket. (from Regency World)
• In case you've ever wondered how much booze cost in 18th century taverns
• Last weekend Brian McConnell took the oath to King George III and then jumped into the action with the 84th Regiment at Fort Anne, N.S.

Additions to the Loyalist Directory

As time permits, we add information to the Loyalist Directory. The latest additions and updates are as follows:

• Thorn (Thorne), Melancthon - from Shirley Thorne (note that there are two certificate applications, as Shirley's husband Gordon is descended through two different lines).

Please help us build the directory by contributing more information for it. Contact loyalist.trails@uelac.org for instructions and guidance.

Last Post: Melba Merritt, UE (née Kellam)

Peacefully on July 29th, 2015, at Charlotte Villa Retirement Home, in her 102nd year. Beloved wife of the late Gordon Merritt. She will be dearly missed by her children Anne (Frank) Fairchild, Clark (Kathy), Keith and Vi (the late Steve) Harris. Dear sister-in-law of Marion (the late Clarence) Kellam. Dearly missed by her much loved grandchildren, great-grandchildren, nieces and nephews. Predeceased by her brothers Dalton, Gordon, Lloyd, Clarence and Howard.

She was an active member of the Mt. Pleasant United Church for 95 years. She was a proud member of the United Empire Loyalists. She was an avid family and local historian. Service was held at the BECKETT - GLAVES FAMILY FUNERAL CENTRE on Tuesday, August 4th. Private interment Mt. Pleasant Cemetery. In lieu of flowers, donations to the Mt. Pleasant United Church or a charity of your choice would be greatly appreciated. A tree will be planted in memory of Melba in the Beckett - Glaves Memorial Forest.

Melba has been a member of the Grand River Branch UELAC since 1982 and was a descendant of Isaac Gilbert. She and her late husband, Gordon Merritt UE, attended meetings regularly. She was proud of her Loyalist heritage. She attended meetings until 2011 or 2012, still driving herself from Mount Pleasant to Brantford.

...Ellen Tree, UE, Grand River Branch