Loyalist Trails UELAC Newsletter, 2016 Archive

In this issue:
- Conference 2016
- Branch Genealogists or Representatives at UELAC Conference, July 7
- Unpacking the Name in a Loyalist Diary: John Barbarie, by Stephen Davidson
- "Old Mills of the Loyalists," by A. M. Going
- Attention Ontario Drivers: Canada Day Licence Special
- JAR: A General's Funeral: The Burial of Enoch Poor
- Certificates Issued in March, April and May
- Archiving the Internet: How Historians Can Help #SaveTheWeb
- Where in the World?
- Region and Branch Bits
- From the Twittersphere and Beyond
- Additions to the Loyalist Directory
- Last Post: Alberta M. “Pat” (Robinson) Calder, UE

Conference 2016

The 2016 UELAC Conference in Summerside PEI will be hosted by the Branches of the Atlantic Region: Abegweit, New Brunswick and Nova Scotia on July 7-10.

Information about the conference, including the registration form, is now available read here.

Branch Genealogists or Representatives at UELAC Conference, July 7

At the UELAC Conference in Summerside, a meeting for Branch Genealogists (or someone who is representing the Branch Genealogist) will be held on Thursday July 7 in the afternoon.

A special issue of Executive Notes will be sent out within the next day or two to all the people who receive Executive Notes. This note will have more details about the meeting, what to bring, and what to expect. Watch for this special issue.

If you are the person who is representing your branch at this meeting and you do NOT normally receive Executive Notes, then please contact Anne Redish at ar11@queensu.ca for details and instructions.

...Anne Redish, Genealogists' Committee

Unpacking the Name in a Loyalist Diary: John Barbarie

© Stephen Davidson, UE

Have you ever found just one piece of a jigsaw puzzle and wanted to complete the entire picture? Probably not. However, after I found a name in an entry in a loyalist soldier's 1780 diary, curiousity got the better of me. I wanted to know as much as I could about the person and where he ended his days. That's an awful lot to ask of the documents of the loyalist era, but in this case, I found most of the missing pieces. Here's what happened when I “unpacked” a reference penned in a diary written over 235 years ago.

It all started with a name: Captain John Barbarie. On Thursday, November 23, 1780 this loyalist officer went to the door of his quarters at Fort Ninety-Six in South Carolina. Standing before him was Lt. Anthony Allaire, a loyalist prisoner of war who had escaped confinement in Moravian Town, North Carolina. After 18 days of walking 300 miles, Allaire and two companions found sanctuary at the British garrison commanded by Captain John Barbarie.

Allaire recorded the day's events in his diary, concluding the story of his amazing escape with a single sentence: “Arrived at Capt. John Barbarie's quarters, about eight o'clock in the evening.” He wrote nothing more about Fort Ninety-Six's commanding officer. (And this is odd for Barbarie was Allaire's cousin.) Within two days' time, Allaire set off to Charleston on the coast. Further details of his stay at Barbarie's quarters went unrecorded. If future generations wanted to learn more about the man who found his way into Allaire's diary, other sources would have to be consulted.

The first clue to John Barbarie's identity is the fact that he served with the loyalist corps known as the 2^nd Battalion of the New Jersey Volunteers. John was one of nine children born to John and Gertrude (Johnston) Barbarie of Perth-Amboy, New Jersey. The family were of Huguenot (French Protestant) descent.

Persecuted in their own country, they became refugees and –initially-- settled in the colony of New York. The senior Barbarie became the collector of customs for Perth-Amboy's port. He was remembered as being “a gentleman of pleasing manners and address, occasionally marred by exhibitions of temper, and extremely proud of his birth and family connections.”

Growing up in the home of a customs official during the tempestuous years leading up to the American Revolution must have difficult for young John. As New Jersey's citizens railed against the Stamp Act, the Townshend Act, and the Intolerable Acts of the late 1760s and the early 1770s, the Barbarie family would have been the object their neighbours’ hostility. But the government that had provided their ancestors with sanctuary commanded their loyalty despite its flawed legislation. John Barbarie senior died in 1770, never knowing how far the opposition to the crown's taxes would go. His children would bear the brunt of Britain's flawed empirical policy.

When he was 25 years old, John Barbarie made his loyalty very evident. In 1776, as his rebel neighbours celebrated the Declaration of Independence, he organized a company for Brigadier-General Courtlandt Skinner, the commander of the New Jersey Volunteers. Sometimes referred to as Skinner's Greens, this regiment received Barbarie as one of its lieutenants.

John was not the only loyalist in the Barbarie family. His younger brother Oliver was an ensign in the New Jersey Volunteers. Barbarie's sister Susanna married Dr. John Lewis Johnston, a man who shared the family's loyalist convictions. Although he was compensated for his losses by the British government, he and Susanna remained in the new republic following the revolution. Andrew Barbarie, seven years younger than John, joined the British Navy. He died at sea, being shot in a naval battle during the course of the revolution. He was the only Barbarie to die during the war.

Although there is no record of any military service on his part, John's oldest brother Peter remained loyal to the crown as shown by a notice in a New Jersey newspaper in 1779. It announced “the lands, tenements and all the estates” belonging to Peter, John and Oliver Barbarie “will be exposed to sale at public vendue”. The local rebels had seized the brothers’ property and sold it in aid of the patriot cause. The reason? The rebels considered the Barbaries to be traitors.

Within a year of joining Skinner's Greens, patriots captured John Barbarie on Staten Island and imprisoned him at Trenton, New Jersey. He eventually escaped, rejoined his battalion, and was made a captain on December first, 1778. Within two years, Barbarie was commanding his own company in the 3^rd Battalion. The muster roll of those who served under him during the battalion's time in South Carolina has survived to this day.

The New Jersey Volunteers were in the southern colonies as part of the British strategy to defeat the American rebellion by winning victories in colonies where they felt there was a larger loyalist component in the population. The war in the New England and Middle colonies had not gone well.

Six months after Barbarie entertained his cousin Anthony Allaire in his quarters, patriot forces surrounded Fort Ninety-Six. From May 22 to June 18, one thousand rebels lay siege to the fort that sheltered 550 loyal men. In what was later described as a “desperate contest”, Barbarie sustained serious but unspecified wounds. A later history of his regiment would note “he enjoyed the reputation of being a brave and gallant soldier”. The loyalist forces held Fort Ninety-Six until Lord Rawdon's Volunteers of Ireland drove off the rebels.

Barbarie's company later saw action at the Battle of Eutaw Springs in September of 1781. This costly conflict resulted in the defeat of rebel forces under General Nathanael Green. British forces lost more men than the patriots, and in the end, they withdrew to Charleston. Captain James Shaw of the 1^st Battalion was mortally wounded and Captain John Barbarie received “serious wounds”.

How long it took for John Barbarie to recover from his wounds goes unrecorded. His battles in the southern colonies may have been his last occasion for taking up arms. Barbarie's 3^rd Battalion was renumbered as the 2^nd Battalion; he was still one of its captains when the New Jersey Volunteers gathered in New York City for their evacuation to Nova Scotia in the fall of 1783.

As we have seen, the story of Captain John Barbarie extends far beyond a single mention in a loyalist soldier's diary. But what of his life after becoming a refugee? That remains to be told in next week's Loyalist Trails.

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

"Old Mills of the Loyalists," by A. M. Going

From a regular reader comes images of a magazine article - a magazine which had been donated to a food bank's thrift store. As it was in bad shape, it would probably have been discarded, but sharp eyes found this nugget of Loyalist history.

It was the January 1935 edition of the Canadian Geographical Journal. The six-page article "Old Mills of the Loyalists" written by A. M. Going. Loyalist names mentioned in the article include: Grass, Clark, Van Alstyne, and McGuin. Named communities are: Kingston, Napanee, Adolphustown, Collins Bay, Glenora, Millhaven, and Odessa.

Read the article & view the photos.

Attention Ontario Drivers: Canada Day Licence Special

There is still time to share your pride in United Empire Loyalist heritage before you begin your 2016 road trip. (It will definitely impress the folks at the UELAC Conference in PEI.) You may remember the special centenary Ontario Licence Plate project that kicked off the 2014 celebrations. With less than fifty plates, each beginning with "02UE", you still have a chance to get a plate that you will remember when the parking lot attendant or parking kiosk asks for the licence on your car.

SAVE: for the rest of the month of June, you can save ten dollars when you place your order. That means we will ship your request FREE!

Take these two steps now:

1. Email public.relations@uelac.org with your preferred number chosen from the following: 16-19, 23,24, 26-34, 36-38, 40, 42, 47,49, 52-55, 57,59, 67, 69, 72-75, 79, 81, 90-95, 97-99 (your choice will be appended to "02UE" to make your full licence number).

2. Send your cheque for $100.00 and this completed UELAC Ontario Graphic Licence Plates Order Form to the George Brown House office.

Show your support of the UELAC and your pride in your Loyalist heritage.

...Fred H. Hayward, UELAC Public Relations

JAR: A General's Funeral: The Burial of Enoch Poor

(By Todd W. Braisted, May 30, 2016) Untold thousands died during the American Revolution, some by bullets or bayonets, cannon balls or cutlasses, but the vast majority were carried away from life by the innumerable diseases present in both armies. Death came to privates as well as generals, but few accounts of their interment are as detailed as that of Brig. Gen. Enoch Poor of New Hampshire.

Born at Andover, Massachusetts in 1736, Poor joined the revolutionary forces in May 1775, and after serving as colonel of the 2nd New Hampshire Regiment was promoted to brigadier general on February 21, 1777.[1] After serving in numerous battles and campaigns in both the Northern Army and Washington's command, the summer of 1780 found this New England officer in command of one of the battalions of light infantry under Maj. Gen. the Marquis de Lafayette. Read more.

Certificates Issued in March, April and May

A list of UE Certificates issued since late in 2012 – showing the Loyalist ancestor, name of descendant (when permission is granted), branch and date – has been updated with the certificates issued in March, April and may of this year. The same updates have been applied to the Loyalist Directory.

Archiving the Internet: How Historians Can Help #SaveTheWeb

Imagine you're a historian of the 21st century living and working in the 23rd century. You have an archive containing millions of documents related to an event (say, the Arab Spring), but you cannot read them---all you see is a number. It's the ID number of a tweet, but only the number was saved, and the code no longer exists to display the content.

This was the hypothetical example posed by Katrin Weller (Leibniz Inst.) to demonstrate the importance and complexity of archiving today's digital artifacts. Rather than record our lives on paper, we use e-mail, send Facebook messages, tweet, and leave comments on our favorite blogs. Websites have become our chief sources of information, and online games a prominent feature of human socialization. Which of these digital artifacts will be available for historians looking to decipher our lives years from now? Read more.

Where in the World?

Where is Bob Tordiff of London & Western Ontario Branc?

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 your submission to the editor at loyalist.trails@uelac.org.

Region and Branch Bits

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

• "We chose Vittoria this time because it's really a Loyalist hotbed – this whole Norfolk/Long Point Area," said Bill Terry U.E., the chair of the branch's Loyalist Day festivities. "We've been here before but we wanted to come back and have a reunion sort of thing."
• The real Loyalist Statue in Hamilton, with UELAC President Barb Andrew and Fred Hayward

From the Twittersphere and Beyond

• Lovely view uelac from United Empire Loyalist graves of Col. James DeLancey and family at Round Hill, Nova Scotia
• Sir John Johnson House National Historic Site, located in the historic town of Williamstown, is one of the oldest surviving houses in present day Ontario. Today (June 13) Parks Canada announced an infrastructure investment of more than $450 000 for Sir John Johnson Manor House.
• A new Loyalist Landing mural will soon be outside Loyalist House in Saint John NB. A silent auction for a 3x4 duplicate is underway. To bid, call 506-634-7783.
• The Ontario Historical County Map Project: a great resource for pinpointing farm owners in 19th century. An Interesting complement to the McGill project of a few years ago digital.library.mcgill.ca/countyatlas/
• In a ground-breaking addition to its Heritage Minute collection, Historica Canada released on June 21 a pair of new Minutes that explore vital moments in Indigenous history: treaty-making (Naskumituwin) and residential schools (Chanie Wenjack). The Minutes highlight darker chapters of Canadian history and come a year after the conclusion of the Truth and Reconciliation Commission. Play them near the bottom of https://www.historicacanada.ca

Last Post: Alberta M. “Pat” (Robinson) Calder, UE

Colonel John Butler (Niagara) Branch is saddened to announce the passing of long-time member Alberta M. "Pat" (Robinson) Calder, UE on Monday, June 20th. She leaves behind her grieving husband Cam and four wonderful children, Jane (Bert Tarini, deceased), Ann (Jerry Wright), Jean (aka Dee) (Blake Reid) and Peter and 6 grandchildren, Josh, Adam, Kate and Matt Tarini and Jake and Nick Reid. Her parents were W. A. Lorne Robinson and Jean Milling. She is predeceased by her brother Lin and sister in law, Joy Robinson (Dell). She is survived by her nephew Phil Robinson and nieces Virginia (McGrath) and Valerie Robinson and numerous cousins.

Pat's great strength was her love of family (and cats!) and her happy, pleasant, quiet love of people captivated all that she met. She lived happily in Stamford, Ontario, Montreal and Wyckoff, New Jersey for many years as well as in her beautiful home in Niagara on the Lake. In her early life she loved her family cottage at Sand Lake.

Pat was a consummate mother devoting her efforts to seeing that her children had the care and guidance that gave them the freedom to live full and rewarding lives. She was a member of several Women's groups at the Presbyterian (and Reformed) Churches she attended and was a life time member of the Stamford Presbyterian Church where the family had a long tradition of service. She was very proud of her Loyalist ancestors and proved her descent from Loyalist John Brown of Butler's Rangers.

A service of remembrance will be held in Stamford Presbyterian Church, 3121 St Paul Ave., Niagara Falls, at 11 a.m. Monday June 27th. Cremation has taken place. In lieu of flowers memorial donations may be made to the Stamford Presbyterian Church or to the Heart & Stroke Foundation.

Memories, photos and condolences may be shared at www.morseandson.com.

...Bev Craig UE, Col. John Butler Branch