Loyalist Trails UELAC Newsletter, 2019 Archive

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“Loyalist Trails” 2019-46: November 17, 2019

In this issue:
- We Remembered on Nov. 11
- 1783: The Flight from New York City (Part Two), by Stephen Davidson
- A Long, Drawn-out Exercise in Costume Design Research
- Philip E. M. Leith Memorial Award 2019
- JAR: Captain John De Treville: Continental Officer and British Spy
- JAR: Lexington and Concord: A Case Study in Leadership and Direct Action
- Washington's Quill: Impeachment and the Constitutional Convention
- Ben Franklin's World: Treaty of Canandaigua
- Where in the World?
- Region and Branch Bits
+ Assiniboine Branch: New Twitter Account
+ The Battle of Johnstown and the Death of Walter Butler
+ Kingston & District: Saturday, Nov. 23, with Nathan Tidridge
+ Manitoba Branch: Saturday, Nov. 23, at The Gates, Winnipeg
+ Jamestown Settlement, Nov. 28-30
+ Fraunces Tavern Museum, NYC: Sunday, Dec. 15
- From the Twittersphere and Beyond
- Additions to the Loyalist Directory

Articles

We Remembered on Nov. 11

Regimental historian Captain David Hughes, social studies educator James Rowinski and military historian Gary Campbell tell us the stories of two Fredericton-area soldiers who will be honoured on Saturday – First World War veteran Lieutenant Charles Edward Blair, and War of 1812 veteran Ensign George Morehouse. Morehouse was the son of Daniel Morehouse, a United Empire Loyalist. Listen in... (Shift - NB with Vanessa Vander Valk: Nov 8, Fredericton soldier memorials)

...George Morehouse

On 11 Nov., Brian McConnell UE remembered those who served beside the Cairn to United Empire Loyalists in Middleton, Nova Scotia
Edmonton Branch Wreath
Jo Ann Tuskin with a wreath from Gov. Simcoe and Toronto Branches at the Memorial at Queen's Park in Toronto
Remembering the 'battle that saved Canada'. A group of area residents braved the cold on November 11, to commemorate the men who gave their lives during the War of 1812's Battle of Crysler's Farm. Capt. Mark Stubbs, of the 49th Hertfordshire Regiment of Foot (re-enactors) lays a wreath at the food of the Battle of Crysler's Farm monument, on Monday November 11, 2019 in Morrisburg, Ont. Read more...

1783: The Flight from New York City (Part Two)

On January 22nd, the newspaper carried two items that might have been somewhat heartening to the city's refugee population. Rev. Myles Cooper, the president of King's College who had to flee New York in 1775, was reported as having three rectories in the United Kingdom. (Was the Gazette assuring its readers that their future could be just as successful?)

The same edition listed the names of seven officers with the King's Rangers who were urging "Loyalist refugees ... to settle in Nova Scotia". The Royal Gazette's readers were being reminded of their options that also included the West Indies, Canada, and Great Britain. A week later they would also discover that Anthony George Kysh was "intending for Halifax". This kind of notice gave readers a last chance to settle any outstanding matters they might have with a departing refugee, and – over the next few months – would let them see which parts of the empire were attracting the most refugee settlers.

February's Royal Gazette pages carried stories of Capt. John Ward's Loyalist militia capturing a Patriot near Bergen as well as an account of six Pennsylvanian Loyalists who were fined £50 a piece for helping British prisoners escape jail in Philadelphia. While the revolution was in a ceasefire, such stories demonstrated that a true peace had not yet been established.

By March, the first fleet of evacuation vessels was being organized. David Armour, a shoemaker, gave notice that he was bound for Port Roseway. Since he placed a similar notice at the end of May, Armour clearly did not become a passenger right away. He was, however, the first person cited in the Royal Gazette with intentions to go to the Loyalist settlement of Port Roseway.

A baker named Andrew Inderwick gave notice that he was headed for Glasgow, Scotland, while Barnaby Caine was sailing for Ireland. Charles Lowe was a little more vague, stating that he intended to go to Europe in the "first fleet".

The Royal Gazette's content in the spring indicates that things were slowly unraveling within New York City. During April, a total of six apprentices ranging in age from 15 to 17 ran away from their employers. Two slaves also escaped from their Loyalist masters. As the city's middle class was becoming increasingly distracted by the need to see to its own survival, such times made it easier for both apprentices and slaves to flee their masters and seek new opportunities.

A number of marriages were also victims of the events of New York's year of evacuation. Husbands posted ads absolving themselves of any debts that their wives might have incurred since their spouses had "behaved in a scandalous manner", "committed adultery", "eloped from the bed and board of her husband", or had "behaved in an unbecoming manner". Thomas Rawlings was understandably upset by the fact that his wife Margaret had "begotten a child by" a man from Delaware.

Men proved to be just as unfaithful. The Royal Gazette printed the story of Barbara Saunders who married a gunner in the British Artillery in 1777. Two years later he abandoned her and deserted from the army, eventually marrying a woman in Philadelphia.

Some Loyalists optimistically hoped that they might be able to maintain their businesses when Patriots reclaimed New York City. A shopkeeper named Andrew Snodgrass advertised that he had consigned all of his estate to his trustees no doubt in the hope that he would not lose everything were his shop to remain in his name.

Small matters also made it into print. John Le Chevalier Roome placed an ad to have his "books returned that he had lent as he is intending to leave New York City". A British captain decided to sell his black stallion before heading back to England.

The June 11th issue of the Royal Gazette is interesting in that it contained an advertisement for an 18th century version of "crowd funding". Seven Loyalists (including two Anglican clergymen) announced that "Contributions for the help of needy persons leaving for Nova Scotia" could be given to them.

This ad hints at a much larger – and untold – story. With a second fleet of evacuation vessels about to depart for Nova Scotia, Loyalists were streaming into New York in the hundreds. There were no international relief agencies in place to deal with so many displaced people, and so consequently there were no places where recent Loyalist arrivals could acquire free food or lodging. Charity – drawing on the resources of the city's inhabitants – was the only way to provide the necessities of life until the British-sponsored evacuation ships departed.

The Royal Gazette editions for the summer of 1783 show that final preparations in the Loyalist evacuation were gaining momentum week by week. The historian Judith Van Buskirk described how confusion reigned at the southern tip of Manhattan Island, the departure point for Loyalists.

Furniture and household goods were piled high in carts, waiting to be loaded onto transport ships. A crime wave ran rampant through the city, continuing until the fall. Sentries were posted on every street corner to minimize street brawls. "New York was a thoroughly uneasy place."

On June 25th, the companies of evacuees under the leadership of Peter Huggeford, Thomas Huggeford, Donald Drummond, John Mercereau, William Perrine, Nathaniel Horton, Robert Chillas, Jacob Cook and John Menzies were advised that "transports {are} ready for Loyal refugees". This fleet left New York City for the mouth of the St. John River on July 8, arriving there on the 24th. In total, 989 passengers made up what has since become known as the July Fleet. 132 of those were Black Loyalists and Blacks enslaved by Loyalists.

The Royal Gazette continued to carry ads of property for sale, creditor meetings, and departures for other parts of the British Empire throughout July and August, as the official date of the revolution's conclusion grew ever nearer. Developments outside of Manhattan Island demonstrated that Loyalists were still viewed as hated enemies. Patriots seized James Nixon when he visited Newport, Rhode Island on business in late July, seemingly on the basis of the fact that he was a Loyalist. At about the same time the Albany Gazetteer, a Patriot newspaper, had one of its articles reprinted in the Royal Gazette. This article listed the names of approximately eighty men who were all "persons indicted for adhering to the enemies of the State of New York". The message to Loyalists could not be clearer: you are no longer welcomed.

In August, "a party of armed men attacked "and abused" Captain Israel Young of Cold Springs, Long Island. The assault on the Loyalist was more than political – the Patriots also made off with "a large sum of money".

This three-part series will conclude in next week's Loyalist Trails.

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

A Long, Drawn-out Exercise in Costume Design Research

By Kelly Arlene Grant, Public Historian, 12 Nov. 2019

This degree boils down to me wondering how we can make a better effort in how we look at living history events in Nova Scotia. Since clothing is always the first impression a person gives to the world, it's doubly important to get that correct when doing living history. The visitor to your site may never enter into conversation with an interpreter, they may simply come to see, to watch. So what can we do when preparing for the next event? Make sure we have the details of our clothing and accoutrements as correct as we can get them.

This means constantly researching, constantly striving to improve.

If you have been following me for any length of time, you'll know I am taking this opportunity to completely overhaul our kit. This was mainly begun due to the simple fact that neither Pierre nor I had a whole lot of clothing and personal material culture to begin with.

Read what Pierre has now.

Philip E. M. Leith Memorial Award 2019

Established in 2006, the Vancouver Branch inaugurated the Phillip E. M. Leith Memorial Medal to be awarded annually to a person, from the Pacific Region, UELAC, as recognition for their outstanding volunteer work on behalf of the association.

The two recipients in 2019 are:

• Diane Faris, UE (Vancouver Branch).

• Karen Borden, UE (Victoria Branch).

Congratulations Karen and Diane. See photo.

The UELAC and the Branches have a number of awards – learn more at UELAC Honours and Recognition.

JAR: Captain John De Treville: Continental Officer and British Spy

By Douglas R. Dorney, Jr.; 12 Nov. 2019

In late June 1780 a messenger arrived in Charleston, South Carolina, with intelligence for Lt. Gen. Charles, Earl Cornwallis. The messenger, Capt. John La Boularderie De Treville, was a South Carolina Continental artillery officer and prisoner of war on parole. He was also a British spy. On at least four occasions, from June 1780 to January 1781, De Treville was sent into North Carolina to gather intelligence on American force levels and movements. By all accounts, he was successful on these missions and delivered actionable intelligence to British leadership, often at critical periods before their advances northward. His status as a British spy soon came to be discovered by American leadership. He was arrested and narrowly avoided being hanged, somehow escaping back to British-occupied Charleston. Remarkably, for someone wanted on the executable offense of being a spy, De Treville chose not to evacuate with the British but remain in South Carolina. With his "secret" more or less out, the post-war period was anything but tranquil as De Treville quite literally fought to restore his public character as a loyal American.

The pre-war life of John De Treville is certainly unique among Continental officers. John La Boularderie De Treville was born at Port d 'Orléans, French Acadia (present day Nova Scotia, Canada) in January 1742. John's father, Antoine Le Poupet de La Boularderie, of noble French descent and a captain in the French army, defended Louisbourg from the British during the War of Austrian Succession. With the capitulation of the fort in 1745, Antoine was sent to Boston, eventually paroled, and then returned to Acadia. In 1749 he participated in the French re-taking of Louisbourg and later in its final surrender to the British in 1758. With the transfer of power went all of the family land and most of their property. Later that year, Antoine was in England seeking indemnification for his losses. His requests denied, he relocated to France where he lived on pensioner handouts for the rest of his life.

Given the family's financial and property losses during the previous fifteen years at the hands of the British it would seem highly unlikely that John De Treville, in 1760, would become an officer in a unit serving under British command. While seemingly implausible it nonetheless turns out to be true.

Michael Oberg, a Distinguished Professor of History at the State University of New York-Geneseo and the author of Peacemakers: The Iroquois, the United States, and the Treaty of Canandaigua, joins us to investigate how the United States worked with the Haudenosaunee or Six Nations peoples to create peace through the Treaty of Canandaigua, 1794.

As we investigate the Treaty of Canandaigua, Michael reveals why the Six Nations and United States needed a treaty agreement in 1794; The different cultural and political viewpoints both sides negotiated in the treaty making process; And, the 1794 Treaty of Canandaigua, its seven articles, and the work the treaty has done to bring and keep peace.

Listen to the podcast.

Where in the World?

Where are Gerry Hartley, Marie Ablett, Pat Kelderman, Mavis MacPherson, Robyn Kendall and Sandy Farynuk, of Thompson-Okanagan 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.

Assiniboine Branch: New Twitter Account

Follow at twitter.com/AssiniboineUEL

The Battle of Johnstown and the Death of Walter Butler

Thurs. 21 Nov. Fort Plain Museum. 6:30PM

Col. Willett wrote several letters about the Oct. 25, 1781 "Hall Battle" as it was sometimes called, having taken place adjacent to the baronial mansion John Johnson inherited from Sir William. We will examine his letter to Lord Stirling, as well as other written accounts of the battle and the skirmish five days later that sent Walter Butler to meet his maker.

Speaker: Terry McMaster is an independent researcher.

More details.

Kingston & District: Saturday, Nov. 23, with Nathan Tidridge

1:00 pm at St. Paul's Anglican Church Hall, 137 Queen Street.

UELAC Honorary Fellow Nathan Tidridge, published author and historian, will talk on "Exploring Kinship Through Her Majesty's Chapels Royal." These very special chapels were established by Queen Anne among Indigenous Loyalist settlements.

Do join us for a "Sandwich 'n Square" lunch beforehand – 11:30 am for 12:00 noon seating. Those not asked to contribute food are asked for a $4.00 donation for lunch, 50 cents for tea or coffee. Contact Hospitality Chair Maureen Long at 613-384-9190 if willing to bring food.

Manitoba Branch: Saturday, Nov. 23, at The Gates, Winnipeg

• 10:30 AM: General Meeting, Installation of Officers

• Lunch

• Afternoon: Loyalism and the War of 1812 presented by Bruce and Alice Walchuk

Jamestown Settlement, Nov. 28-30

This American Thanksgiving holiday, explore 17th- and 18th-century foodways and centuries-old cooking techniques during "Foods & Feasts of Colonial Virginia," a three-day event Nov. 28-30 at Jamestown Settlement & the American Revolution Museum at Yorktown.

Fraunces Tavern Museum, NYC: Sunday, Dec. 15

Dine like a patriot at Winter Tavern night! Join us for a cozy winter evening of authentic 18th century food tastings and a lecture on the history of early American cookery with culinary historian Lavada Nahon. Details and tickets.

From the Twittersphere and Beyond

This Week in History
- 10 Nov 1769, Boston's merchants wrote to their peers in Salem, propose to boycott imports until Parliament rescinded the 1764 & 1766 revenue acts. That proposal went nowhere, and the next month Boston went back to focusing on the Townshend duties.
- 12 Nov 1770, Gen. Thomas Gage wrote to Capt. Thomas Preston to suggest he "have printed in London all the materials in his possession to inform the British public of the facts" about the Boston Massacre. Preston had just been acquitted of murder.
- 13 Nov 1775, General Montgomery takes Montreal without a significant fight.
- 13 Nov 1775, Continental schooner captains Nicholson Broughton on the "Hancock" & John Selman on the "Franklin" captured the sloop "Speedwell." Unfortunately, that ship turned out not to be British. In fact, it was owned by Gen. Nathanael Greene.
- 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.
- 16 Nov 1775, Gen. George Washington's instructions to Henry Knox: inspect the artillery, see what we need, go to New York City for meetings and arrange for the needed items, then head north to Lake Champlain to General Schuyler to obtain what is still needed. Read the "orders".
- 11 Nov 1776, Congress orders Board of War to lay plans for the defense of Philadelphia, should Howe's army attack.
- 12 Nov 1776, North-Carolina elects delegates to Provincial Congress, begins writing Bill of Rights and Constitution.
- 14 Nov 1776, London's St. James Chronicle denounces Ben Franklin as "head of the rebellion."
- 15 Nov 1777, After six days' bombardment by British fleet, Americans abandon Ft. Mifflin PA.
- 11 Nov 1778, Loyalists and Indian allies massacre over 40 Patriots at Cherry Valley NY.
- 9 Nov 1780, British attack Patriot encampment, resulting in wounding and capture of commander Major Wemyss, 20 dead.
- 15 Nov 1787, Sir Samuel Cunard (d. 1865) was born in Halifax on this date. Cunard would later go on to create many enterprises, including the British and North American Royal Mail Steam-Packet Company (1839), later named the Cunard Steamship Company.
Townsends:
- Happy "American" Thanksgiving! Pumpkin Pie From 1839
Clothing and Related:
- Jan. 1765, Philadelphia shoemaker Alexander Rutherford alerted his customers "resolved to distinguish themselves by their patriotism & encouragement of American manufactures, that he makes & sells all sorts of worsted or wool shoes...as neat and cheap as any imported fr England"
- A 1760s Silk Brocade Court Dress Has Timeless Appeal. I was again attracted to the blue and cream/white Court dress, with its glorious textile and abundance of hand knotted floss or fly fringe. The luscious blue & white silk brocade was woven in Lyon, France, about 1760. The panniers (hoops or baskets) are expansive but by no means the largest protuberances we have seen. Indeed, as far as court dresses are concerned, there are numerous extant examples which exhibit far greater detail and expense. Perhaps this is in part why I find this garment so appealing - there is an accessibility to it.
- 18th Century dress, this "robe parée", is a ball dress, the decoration consists of appliqué painted flowers, gauze flounces & extremely refined embroideries, 1780-85, French, via Musée des Tissus de Lyon
- 18th Century men's frock coat, silver striped silk with bright blue buttons, c.1790
- 18th Century men's waistcoat, embroidered with silk leaves and fruits, 1780-1800
- 18th Century men's silk coat in acid green, 1750-70
Miscellaneous:
- Postcard showing historic Fire Pumper presented to Town of Shelburne, Nova Scotia by King George III, 1787

Additions to the Loyalist Directory

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

Jones, John - by volunteer Jo Ann Tuskin
Van Dusen, Conrad - by volunteer Jo Ann Tuskin

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

Loyalist Trails UELAC Newsletter, 2019 Archive

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