Loyalist Trails UELAC Newsletter, 2018 Archive

In this issue:
- Announcement: Royal Patron
- Sir Guy Carleton -- Lord Dorchester -- a Friend to the Loyalists
- Fall 2018 Loyalist Gazette
- Four Suntanned Loyalists in Halifax: Part Three of Three, by Stephen Davidson
- More About John Babcock, Mentioned in “Who Was Captain Marsh?”
- Bridge Annex Virtual Branch Launches Support for Johnson Hall Restorations
- Loyal American Regiment 1777-1783
- Borealia: Colonial Canada: Making the Familiar Dis/Comfortingly Strange
- JAR: The Sea Battle that Paid Off for the Continental Army
- Ben Franklin's World: Researching Biography
- Free Access to Canadiana Collections on January 1st, 2019
- Book: James Matthews UEL, 2nd Edition
- Book: The Consequences of Loyalism
- Book & Resource: Ottawa Branch News and The Ottawa Genealogist, Ontario Genealogical Society 2009-2017
- Where in the World?
- Region and Branch Bits
- From the Twittersphere and Beyond
- Queries
      + Dates of A British Flag
      + His Majesty's Royal Troops in the Hudson Valley

Announcement: Royal Patron

I am pleased to report that on October 16, 2018, a letter was received from the Office of the Governor General which stated:

I am pleased to be able to tell you that Her Excellency the Right Honourable Julie Payette is pleased to inform you that she agreed to accept your request to become Patron of the United Empire Loyalists' Association of Canada.

...Suzanne Morse-Hines, UE, President UELAC

Sir Guy Carleton -- Lord Dorchester -- a Friend to the Loyalists

By Roy Lewis, UE

He had received only limited education but would go on to become an outstanding British military officer as well as a distinguished administrator in the early history of Canada.

But Guy Carleton holds a special significance for United Empire Loyalists. Among his accomplishments, he assisted many of those remaining loyal to the British Empire to flee from the Thirteen Colonies following the American Revolution and he has left a legacy for Loyalists and their descendants which continues to this day.

Of course, there was no foreshadowing of the distinction Guy Carleton would achieve when he was born into a modest Protestant British military family on September 3, 1724, at Stabane in County Tyrone in what is now western Northern Ireland.

His own military career started early in life. At age 17, he received a commission as an ensign or junior ranked officer. A leader in conflict, Carleton's first military battle took place in 1747 when his regiment fought in the War of Austrian Succession. Carleton was friends with prominent British commander James Wolfe who had him appointed as his quarter-master in charge of provisioning the army and placement of cannons during the British attack on Quebec in 1759. Carleton was wounded in the Battle of the Plains of Abraham and returned to England. In March of 1761, he led an attack on Belle Ile off the French coast and was wounded again. He took part in the British Expeditionary Force against Cuba in 1762 and was wounded for a third time while leading an attack on a Spanish outpost.

In April of 1766, Carleton was named acting lieutenant governor and administrator of Quebec which encompassed lands between Labrador and westward along the St. Lawrence Valley to beyond the Great Lakes.

After returning to England he married Lady Maria Howard in May of 1772 and they had 11 children, six of whom eventually served in the military.

While in Britain, parliament passed the Quebec Act based on Carleton's recommendations. The legislation determined how the province was to be governed. Carleton returned to Quebec in 1774 to begin administering the act.

The following year Carleton was called upon to direct the defence of Quebec against American rebels. He later led a successful counter-attack against the Americans and commanded a British naval force on Lake Champlain which defeated another American force in October of 1776.

His exploits had not gone unnoticed in England and in June of 1776 he was appointed a Knight of the Bath.

At the end of the American Revolutionary War, Carleton carried out the British government's promise to free slaves who had joined British forces during the conflict. He also arranged for thousands of freedmen and Loyalists to leave New York City in 1783 as well as organized transportation for them to other British colonies.

Acutely aware of the sacrifices and hardships endured by the Loyalists in maintaining their loyalty to the Crown, Carleton introduced a resolution at the Council of the Chamber at Quebec on November 9th, 1789, for the distribution of lands to the Loyalists with an accompanying declaration:

"N.B. Those Loyalists who have adhered to the Unity of the Empire, and joined the Royal Standard before the Treaty of Separation in the year 1783 and all of their Children, and their Descendants, by either sex, are to be distinguished by the following Capitals affixed to the names U. E. Alluding to their great principle The Unity of Empire."

In August of 1786, he was raised to the Peerage as Lord Dorchester, Baron of Dorchester in the County of Oxford and took his seat in the House of Lords in England in 1792. The Carletons returned to Canada in 1793 where he continued with administration duties in the colony but they finally returned to England in July 1796.

Sir Guy and Lady Maria Carleton moved eventually to Stubbings in the County of Berkshire, west of London where he died on November 10, 1808 at the age of 84.

Along with his honours from the British government, Carleton is also remembered elsewhere in Canada by having communities, streets, public buildings and educational institutions named after him. When The United Empire Loyalists' Association of Canada established a recognition program for members who had provided outstanding service to the organization, it was named the Dorchester Award after Sir Guy Carleton.

Because of his contributions to British North America and the special significance of his connection with the Loyalists, the Ottawa area branch, which is hosting the annual UELAC conference "The Capital Calls" from May 30 to June 3, 2019, selected the name Sir Guy Carleton for their organization. At Sir Guy Carleton Branch you will find several details about the conference.

Fall 2018 Loyalist Gazette

The Fall issue of the Loyalist Gazette is being printed. It should go into the mail within a week or so, but given the rotating walkouts at Canada Post, delivery time is more uncertain than would normally be the case due to distances.

The digital version should be distributed to those members and Gazette paid subscribers who have registered for it.

If you have not yet signed up for the digital version, you can still sign up to receive it; just click here and submit your request.

Four Suntanned Loyalists in Halifax: Part Three of Three

© Stephen Davidson, UE

A 1780 letter written to Richard Pearis from British headquarters in Charleston demonstrates the regard in which the Loyalist was held: he was the kind of man who could be trusted with a secret mission.

The commanders in chief of the army and navy sent Pearis into the parts of South Carolina --"this almost ruined and distracted country"-- where they thought it was most likely "inhabited by the loyal subjects" to have Pearis "hold them in readiness to assemble" to aid the British army. This force of Loyalists was then to "seize and secure" local rebels. It was also important for Pearis to "procure as many horses as possible" as well as "any provisions that belong to the rebels". He was not to leave women and children destitute, and he was not to destroy the corn crop.

The Loyalist militia that Pearis was to assemble was not to fight the rebels until they were joined by the king's troops. However, when they were in actual service, they could expect to receive the same pay and rations as British soldiers. Pearis was to keep headquarters informed of his progress on a regular basis. Secrecy was paramount. Whether the British actually put this proposal into action goes unrecorded in the documents bearing on Pearis' wartime service.

A year later, Pearis and 300 Loyalist militia soldiers were among the defenders of Fort Cornwallis, a British garrison in Augusta, Georgia. Surrendering after a two-week siege, Pearis narrowly escaped a rebel assassination attempt. Near the war's end, he became a lieutenant colonel in South Carolina's Loyalist militia.

At the end of the war, having reunited with his wife and children, Pearis settled on the St. John's River in East Florida with other Loyalists. When this territory was ceded to Spain, the Pearis family emigrated to Abaco, but finally settled in Nassau, New Providence.

By the time that Richard Pearis drew up his will ten years later, it was clear that he had done well in the Bahamas. He bequeathed 400 acres on Abaco to his wife, 400 acres on Rum Key to his daughter Margaret (Mrs. William Jones), and 400 acres on the Caicos to his son Richard. Thirty-one enslaved Africans were also parcelled out to his wife, children, and grandsons. In each case where he granted female slaves to his heirs, Pearis included the line that "the future issue and increase of the said female slaves" was also bequeathed to his family.

Apparently Pearis' Indigenous son, George, remained in the United States where he became the father of more than a dozen children. His half-sister Sarah married George Teeter and moved to Kentucky's Garrard County. Given that Richard Pearis was recognized as a Loyalist who bore arms by the British government, all of his widely scattered descendants retain the right to the title of United Empire Loyalist.

However, such future prosperity was only a dream when Richard Pearis stood before the Loyalist compensation board that had convened in Halifax in July of 1787. Along with Alexander Kidd, Major Henry Williams, and Martin Weatherford, three other loyalists who had settled in the Bahamas, Pearis had endured a 5,000 km round trip on the gamble that a grateful British government would reward them for their years of suffering and loss.

One cannot help but wonder if the four men took time to consider moving to Nova Scotia as an alternative to their newly established homes in the Bahamas. Other Loyalists from Georgia, Pennsylvania and the Carolinas had made the northern colony their postwar refuge, pinning great hopes on the prospect of a thriving transatlantic trade with Great Britain. The visit to Nova Scotia was a potential final turning point in the lives of four Loyalists who had endured much hardship for their convictions.

In the end Kidd, Williams, Weatherford and Pearis returned to the Bahamas, making their own individual contributions to the legacy the islands received from the thousands of Loyalists who settled there. In his 1975 book, The Story of the Bahamas, historian Paul Albury summarizes the impact of the loyalists on the West Indies.

Given their large numbers, their better education and their zeal to establish themselves, the loyalist refugees soon dominated the society, economy and politics of the Bahamas. Although they looked down their noses on the islands' original inhabitants, they needed the latter's wisdom to survive. Every island settled by the loyalists alone was abandoned within a generation; only those islands with a significant number of "old inhabitants" thrived.

The architecture of loyalist homes and public buildings enhanced Nassau, the capital city of the Bahamas. American refugees established the islands' first library, and they gave education a new priority. Loyalists published the first Bahamian newspaper, gave the courts a greater dignity, and conducted the work of the legislature with appropriate decorum. Thanks to the skills and worth ethic they derived from their enslavers, the black workers on Loyalist plantations fared better after emancipation than did the Africans captured from slave ships.

In some small way, each of the loyalist claimants who travelled to Halifax in the summer of 1786 contributed to this legacy. The compensation received by Alexander Kidd, Major Henry Williams, Martin Weatherford, and Richard Pearis would have allowed them to establish new lives and thereby enrich Bahamian society in one of the many colonies in the British Empire that was founded by America's Loyalist refugees.

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

More About John Babcock, Mentioned in “Who Was Captain Marsh?”

It's always a pleasure to see a reference to John Babcock UE and especially from Todd Braisted (see last week's issue: JAR: Who was Captain Marsh?). John Babcock's service in the New Jersey Volunteers may have been brief, but life went on. At the close of the Rev War, Babcock and several of his Loyalist-minded neighbours chose to remain in Bergen NJ until they packed up in 1791 and moved to Upper Canada, settling for a time in Adolphustown before establishing more permanent roots in Prince Edward County. He died there between 1804 and 1812 and his wife Catherine died in 1836. There are plenty of descendants including both Angela and me, as well as some other members of the UELAC.

...Peter Johnson, UE

Bridge Annex Virtual Branch Launches Support for Johnson Hall Restorations

UE Loyalists Bridge Annex, UELAC's first virtual branch, has undertaken a fund raising project on behalf of UELAC to support.

Johnson Hall was the 1763 Georgian-style estate of Irish immigrant Sir William Johnson (1715-1774) and Molly Brant, a Mohawk Indian, and their eight children. Johnson was the largest single landowner and most influential individual in the colonial Mohawk Valley. His success in dealing with the Six Nations of the Iroquois greatly influenced England's victory over France for control of colonial North America. For his service, the British Crown bestowed upon Johnson the title of Baronet, and later appointed him Superintendent of Indian Affairs, a position to which he devoted himself and held throughout his life.

Following the death of Sir William in 1774, Molly and her children left Johnson Hall, and his eldest son John inherited the property and title of Baronet. The Revolution would cause this Loyalist family to eventually flee to Canada, and the Johnson Hall property and most of its contents were subsequently sold at auction following the War. Johnson Hall remained a private residence through 1906, when it was acquired by the State of New York and opened to the public as a State Historic Site. Today, Johnson Hall continues to welcome visitors and interpret the Johnson family through guided tours of the period room settings and of the historic grounds, educational programs and special events."

The significance of Johnson Hall in telling the story of so many United Empire Loyalists cannot be underestimated. Key historical figures including: Sir William Johnson, Sir John Johnson and Molly konwatsitsiaienni Brant, among many others in relation to this historic site are not only interpreted in detail throughout the site itself, but also through the events that the Directors create to engage the public.

Visit Johnson Hall Restoration Fundraising Campaign (UELAC) for more details and to read about restorations already undertaken and those planned. All funds collected by UE Loyalists Bridge Annex (fundraising managers) will be donated on behalf of the members and friends of the United Empire Loyalists' Association of Canada (UELAC). While tax receipts are not available, we hope you'll consider contributing to ensure this site, so critical to the telling of the experience of the United Empire Loyalists, is preserved for generations to come.

Loyal American Regiment 1777-1783

Raised in mid-March of 1777 by wealthy Beverley Robinson, the Loyal American Regiment consisted almost entirely of New York loyalists from lower Dutchess and Westchester Counties. Robinson managed sixty thousand acres and 146 tenant farms in Dutchess County. Not surprisingly, his own tenants (and relatives)accounted for a large percentage of the soldiers and officers of the regiment. See a detailed sketch of Robinson & his signature.

Robinson, a childhood friend of George Washington, was one of the wealthiest men in the New York colony and like any good leader, he played the game of politics well by eventually gaining access to British Commander-in-Chief Sir Henry Clinton. Robinson quickly became Clinton's friend and trusted advisor.

Robinson's men were quick to distinguish themselves. The Loyal American Regiment participated in the storming of Fort Montgomery on October 6, 1777. First to enter Fort Montgomery was Captain George Turnbull of the Loyal American Regiment. Turnbull had taken command of Major Grant's company of New York Volunteers when Grant himself was killed before the attack on the fort commenced. Sir Henry Clinton subsequently made Turnbull Lieutenant-Colonel of the New York Volunteers.

The LAR was garrisoned variously at Kingsbridge (near present-day West 230th Street and Marble Hill Avenue) and Bloomingdale (close to present-day Columbia University) on Manhattan Island as well as a stint on Long Island at Flushing, NY (referred to as Flushing Fly in LAR muster rolls and various Loyalist orderly books).

Besides commanding his regiment, Colonel Beverley Robinson was also deeply involved in the treason of Benedict Arnold. Sometime in 1779, Robinson wrote a letter to Arnold which urged him to help England end the war.

After the British defeat at Yorktown in 1781, the war slowly ground to a halt as the inevitable outcome became apparent. The only battles left to fight were those at the negotiating table. During this time, many loyalists somewhat cowardly second-guessed their own loyalty to England. Not so with Colonel Beverley Robinson. On August 8, 1782, he wrote to Sir Henry Clinton.

When the war officially ended in defeat for the Crown in 1783, loyalists were forced to leave America. As part of the mass exodus to Canada, the Loyal American Regiment left New York City 6 in the transport ships Ann and Apollo and headed to Fredericton, New Brunswick where they received a land grant known as Block 12. Once there, the men of the regiment started their lives over. Some stayed (Thomas Spragg, for example). Some moved on to other parts of Canada.

See the Loyalist American Regiment – the above is extracted from their Regimental History page – read the complete page for the juicy parts.

Borealia: Colonial Canada: Making the Familiar Dis/Comfortingly Strange

By Daniel Samson, November 5, 2018

In my introductory colonial Canadian survey course, students sometimes complain that I spend "all" of my time on Nova Scotia. That's not actually true, but I understand their point. It may be true that I talk about Nova Scotia more than others might, but for the most part I follow the broad conventions of the story and spend much of the course discussing rebellions, state and cultural formation, and Indigenous dimensions of the colonial world -- and the literature (and most textbooks) mean that that is primarily a story of the Canadas, with asides on Maritime and western stories. But Nova Scotia's older different history allows me to stray from those broad conventions, and thus it's a good example of the problem I want to discuss here. Nova Scotia illustrates well the messy religious, ethnic, national, and imperial complexities of the early modern North Atlantic: the land of Mi'kma'ki, their sometimes uneasy co-existence with French Acadian settlers, the Wabanaki federation and its contestation of Northern New England, the first plural moment of Acadian-Mi'kmaw populations occupied by British colonial troops, of a global war that expelled the French population and brought in New Englanders and Germans, of Mi'kmaw representatives at Niagara, of a globe-shattering revolution that saw local republicans thwarted and "Loyalists" (white and black, plus their human property) instated, of trade routes that linked Nova Scotia ships, George's Bank fish, Caribbean sugar and rum, and enslaved African bodies. The story may be centred in Nova Scotia, but it extends to the corners of the Atlantic World, its peoples' worldviews astonishingly broad.

The course is called "Colonial Canada"; it's half of what we routinely refer to as "the Canadian survey".

Read more.

JAR: The Sea Battle that Paid Off for the Continental Army

by Bob Ruppert, November 13, 2018

As the Revolutionary War was coming to an end, financial problems came to the forefront: to name a few, the country's debts to France, Spain, and Holland, the payment of war reparations, the establishment of public credit, the states' inability to meet their financial requisitions, and the most immanent, back pay to the disbanding Continental Army's officers and soldiers.

Payment to the officers and soldiers had been problematic for the entire war. Loans from European nations were slow in materializing, states' revenue payments were inconsistent at best, the five percent impost was a failure, and devaluation of states' currencies as well as the Continental dollar left the Congress groping for money constantly. There were only two times when payment in any form was extended to the officers or soldiers: September 1781, when a month's pay was provided to that part of the main army participating in the Yorktown campaign; and February 1782, when a supply of clothing was sent to officers in lieu of pay. Washington warned Alexander Hamilton that disbanding the army without granting their back pay would produce "Civil commotion and end in blood." It was only following the Newburgh Affair and the "address and petition" presented by a delegation of army officers to the Grand Committee of the Continental Congress that the situation was given serious consideration.

On January 13, 1783, a subcommittee made up of Alexander Hamilton, James Madison, and John Rutledge was appointed "to report arrangements in concert with the Superintendent of Finance for their consideration." The subcommittee listened to the officers' grievances; they included not only back pay but also unpaid allowances for rations, forage and clothing, and the promised half-pay pensions for the officers. The subcommittee quickly realized that immediate action was necessary to prevent a rebellion in the ranks. The superintendent of finance, Robert Morris, however, maintained that it was "imprudent to give any assurances with respect to future pay until certain funds should be previously established." To further support his position, the next day, he presented to the subcommittee the projected cost of one month's back pay ($253,232).[3]He did, though, confide in them that he had taken some measures to provide pay "which depended on events not within our command . . . [and had] communicated these measures in cipher to Genl Washington under an injunction of Secrecy."

Read more.

Ben Franklin's World: Researching Biography

Erica Dunbar, the Charles and Mary Beard Professor of History at Rutgers University and author of Never Caught: The Washingtons' Relentless Pursuit of Their Runaway Slave Ona Judge, takes us into the archives to show us how she recovered the life of Ona Judge.

During our foray into the archives, Erica reveals information about Ona Judge and how Erica discovered her in the archive; The records the historical archive had about Judge and how historians and biographers like Erica have to read and interpret those records to get at the details of Judge's life; And, how and why Erica thinks biography makes history and the past more accessible.

Listen to the podcast.

Free Access to Canadiana Collections on January 1st, 2019

The Canadiana collections of archival material, government publications, periodicals, monographs, annuals, and newspapers will be free to access as of January 1, 2019.

November 15, 2018, Ottawa, Ontario -- As of January 1, 2019, 60 million pages of Canadian digital documentary heritage will be available at no charge to users. The Canadiana collections are the largest online collections of early textual Canadiana in the world. The removal of the subscription paywall will allow unimpeded access to this unique historical content for researchers, students, faculty, and all users in Canada and around the world.

Making the Canadiana collections available at no cost to users is a result of the recent merger between Canadiana.org, a not-for-profit charity, and the Canadian Research Knowledge Network (CRKN), a not-for-profit partnership of 75 Canadian universities, finalized in April 2018.

"When our members outlined the vision and goals of a merged organization, ensuring the widespread access to the Canadiana collections was of vital importance," states Alan Shepard, Chair of the CRKN Board of Directors and President and Vice-Chancellor of Concordia University. "Expanding access to this content encourages the study of Canada, both within and outside of the country," continued Dr. Shepard. "We are proud to have followed through on our commitment to the community in our first year of operations as a merged organization."

Read more.

Book: James Matthews UEL, 2nd Edition

James Matthews, United Empire Loyalist, served with the 1st New Jersey Volunteers during the American Revolution, and also served to help drive the Americans out of Canada during the War of 1812. Settling in Woodhouse Township of Norfolk Co., he and his wife had 10 children, 9 of whom are producing offspring today.

The book will contain about 280 pages and compiles the known descendants to the 7th generation, with those born with the Matthews surname continuing beyond that. Despite the 3100 or so enumerated descendants, it is believed another 1,000 or so remain untraced. The Other Names index contains about 3,600 names, Some pictures and maps are also included.

Pre-publication cost to U.S. - $17, includes mailing.

For Canada - $14 + $16 mailing in US funds (In Canada, payment can be made without mailing – email for instructions). After 3 Dec 2018 the regular price will be $20 + postage.

Order and payment by mail, Cheques payable to Ross and send to:

Ross W. McCurdy, 114 Mayflower Terrace, So. Yarmouth, MA, 02664

...Ross W. McCurdy

Book: The Consequences of Loyalism

The Consequences of Loyalism: Essays in Honor of Robert M. Calhoon. Edited by Rebecca Brannon and Joseph S. Moore, University of South Carolina Press.

The Consequences of Loyalism offers a bold, new reinterpretation of Loyalism. This book brings Loyalist dilemmas alive, digging into their personalities and postwar routes. The essays discuss not only Loyalists' experiences during the Revolution, but also their coping and even reintegration in the aftermath. Loyalists from all facets of society fought for what they considered their home country: women wrote letters, commanders took to the battlefield, and thinkers shaped the political conversation. This volume complements Calhoon's influential work, expands the scope of Loyalist studies, and opens the field to a deeper, perhaps revolutionary understanding of the king's men.

Read more, with contributions by Taylor Stoermer, member of UELAC Scholarship committee, and Chris Minty, 2012 UE Scholar.

Book & Resource: Ottawa Branch News and The Ottawa Genealogist, Ontario Genealogical Society 2009-2017

(Complete newsletters / journals) edited by Ed Kipp, Ottawa Branch, Ontario Genealogical Society. Ed also a long time member of the Sir Guy Caleton Branch, UELAC.

This fully searchable digital pdf is a 2170 page collection of all Ottawa Branch News and The Ottawa Genealogist issues that were published by the Ottawa Branch of the Ontario Genealogical Society and distributed to members between January 2009 and December 2017. There is a separate collection available for 1970 to 2008. The first question many would ask is 'why is a series of old journals useful to me?'. These Ottawa Branch News issues are filled with lists and family history information for those researching their Ottawa Valley roots (Ontario & Quebec) Available as book on CD or pdf download.

Read more.

Where in the World?

Where is Fran Rose of Victoria 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 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.

• November 22, 2018 7:30 pm Hamilton Branch meeting with Speaker is Elaine Cougler: "The Rebellion that Never Happened", focusing on rebellion in 1837 and MacNab's part (built Dundurn Castle, etc.)
• December 1, 2018 The Hamilton Branch annual Christmas luncheon will take place at St. James United Church in Waterdown at noon. All are welcome; tickets must be ordered in advance.

From the Twittersphere and Beyond

• Remembering the War of 1812. While communities across Canada were marking Remembrance Day with largely the same basic ceremony --- cenotaphs, parades, The Last Post, and laying of wreaths --- and reflecting almost exclusively about the wars and conflicts of the 20th Century and early 21st Century, a small group of Canadians and Americans gathered at the hilltop memorial at the Crysler's Farm battlefield outside of Morrisburg. This memorial wasn't erected to commemorate the First World War, and the people standing guard around it were not wearing modern Canadian military or police uniforms. The memorial at Crysler's Farm is dedicated to those who fought and died on that battlefield in the War of 1812, between the United States, and British-controlled Canada. Interestingly, the Battle of Crysler's Farm took place on Nov. 11, 1813, so not only was the ceremony held on Remembrance Day, but also 205th anniversary of the battle itself. Read more.
• Interesting article from the Chronicle-Herald newspaper, July 4, 1983 "Loyalists' arrival guaranteed Canada's survival"
• From race and class to gender and politics, it seems that Americans can't see eye-to-eye. On this episode, we look at other times in history when Americans were split. At BackStory's "Divided Stats of America", explore two segments:
  • Benjamin Franklin's first son, William, was born around 1730. The identity of his mother is still unknown. But despite being an illegitimate child, Benjamin adopted William and the two became inseparable -- that is, until the outbreak of the Revolutionary War.
  • The Revolutionary War was a civil war that pitted Patriots against Loyalists. Oftentimes American colonists took up arms against their own neighbours. After independence many former Loyalists fled the country. But most stayed put in America. With historian Rebecca Brannon, learn how the new nation healed its divisions and reintegrated former Loyalists into society.
• Charlotte of Mecklenburg-Strelitz died 17 November in 1818. She had been Queen alongside George III for a monumental 57 years, through good times and bad.
• Today in History: Lars D.H. Hedbor @LarsDHHedbor (see his page for associated photos):
  • 16 Nov 1776 Ft Washington NY falls to British under Hessian Knyphausen.
  • 15 Nov 1777 After debating for 16 months, the Continental Congress agreed to adopt the Articles of Confederation and Perpetual Union. Not until March 1, 1781, would the last of the 13 states, MD, ratify the agreement.
  • 15 Nov 1777 After six days' bombardment by British fleet, Americans abandon Ft. Mifflin PA.
  • 15 Nov 1775 Lord Dunmore, Royal Gov of Virginia issues a proclamation offering freedom to "all indented Servants, Negroes, or others, (appertaining to rebels,) . . . that are able and willing to bear Arms, they joining His Majesty's Troops."
  • 14 Nov 1775 Tories assassinate North-Carolina militia leader Capt Francis Bradley.
  • 14 Nov 1775 George III notifies Lord North that he has contracted 4,000 German recruits for Great Britain.
  • 14 Nov 1776 London's St. James Chronicle denounces Ben Franklin as "head of the rebellion."
  • 13 Nov 1775 General Montgomery takes Montreal without a significant fight.
  • 12 Nov 1776 North-Carolina elects delegates to Provincial Congress, begins writing Bill of Rights and Constitution.
  • 11 Nov 1778 Loyalists and Indian allies massacre over 40 Patriots at Cherry Valley NY.
  • 11 Nov 1776 Congress orders Board of War to lay plans for the defense of Philadelphia, should Howe's army attack.
  • 10 Nov 1776 First reports of Battle of White Plains arrive in Philadelphia, raising fears British might soon arrive.
• Townsends:
  • From Tree to Canoe Part 1 - Chopping and Burning, The first step in our journey to make an Early American Dugout Canoe.
  • 600 Year Old Stone Axe vs. Steel Axe
• An elegant pair of brocaded silk buckle shoes, with leather sole and carved wood heel, were London-made by John Hose & Son, c. 1760 and likely worn by an American bride. Hose shoes were incredibly popular in British-America. These shoes are believed to be the wedding shoes of Elizabeth Lord. She was born in 1735 in Lyme, CT, and married at the age of 25 in 1760 to Jared Eliot in nearby Killingworth, CT. Note the excellent pattern matching at the toes. Read more...
• Quilted silk petticoat panels w/openings for pockets! Nifty find from Trouvais pale blue silk. Mid 18th c panels are very worn---interior wadding flattened, stains scattered over surface, evidence of refashioning --- which makes it that much more interesting.
• Striped brocaded silk robe à la Française (sack back) 1770s "blue & white striped, figured & rose-sprigged satin, engageants, pleated & ruffled robings edged in silk fly fringe/floss, w/matching petticoat."
• Getting dressed in 1816.In comparison to the more structured clothing of the 18thc, perhaps it was; but as this video shows, there were still a good many layers involved, and a lady's maid continued to be useful.
• 18th Century women's dress, 1770's & men's waistcoat & coat, 1790's. In China yellow was associated with the Emperor, as chinoiserie gained popularity in Europe so did the colour
• 18th Century Royal Naval uniform of 1774, sleeve detail
• 18th Century men's 3 piece suit, 1770's England
• What does a c1718 pine shingled roof look like? Something like this. The valley of an M-shaped roof. Covered since the early 1720s and hidden until the 1930s.

Dates of A British Flag

When I moved into my grandparents home this British Flag was hanging in the closet.

There were other flags -- small ones; I noticed reviewing my family's photograph inventory that these flags were used in a town parade; there are World War 1 tanks rolling through the main street and people are waving these flags.

The one enclosed in the image is I believe 100% cotton; I would like to just find out a definitive time period, a proper description and the royalty interpretation.

Thanks in advance for any help or direction.

...Arthur Pegg

His Majesty's Royal Troops in the Hudson Valley

There is a book entitled Catalogue of Maps and Surveys in the Offices of the State Engineer and Surveyors published in Albany NY by Weed Parsons and Company in the NY State Library. The index states that most of the landowner/grantees down the Hudson River near where my Murrays lived in Fort Edward/Argyle Area of New York were previously soldiers of His Majesty's Royal Troops.

Is there a list for Units and those who served and what battles they fought in? (Might this time frame be pre Rev War ie battles of the Seven Years War (or French and Indian War)?

Some of these maps are online but others are not.

...Nancy Robinson