An Empire Divided: The Loyalist Experience

1

• An Empire Divided The Loyalist Experience
• by Bev Ken Rees

2
Agenda

• Some Definitions
• The Loyalist Experience
• Research Strategy
• Repositories
• Primary Sources
• Secondary Sources

3
Some Definitions

• Pre-loyalists
• Early, First, United Empire Loyalists
• Late, Simcoe Loyalists
• Treasury Loyalists
• Military Claimants

4
Pre-loyalists

• Those who came to Nova Scotia from one of the
  rebelling colonies before the war broke out.

5
Early, First or United Empire Loyalists

• Those who adhered to the Unity of Empire. They
  lived in America before 1775, came to the Royal
  standard prior to the treaty of Separation
  (1783), and settled in areas remaining under the
  control of the Crown.

6
Late or Simcoe Loyalists

• Those who came to Upper Canada following the
  invitation of Lieutenant Governor John Graves
  Simcoe in 1791 to those who had not taken up arms
  against the Crown. This includes those living in
  what was then termed the United States of
  America, but also former military officers living
  in the Maritimes who were loyal to Britain.

7
Treasury Loyalists

• Those early loyalists who went to England, and
  were compensated there.

8
Military Claimants

• Members of regular British army units (or hired
  mercenaries) who remained in British North
  America and claimed land on behalf of their
  services

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A Brief Loyalist History

• 1775 - Start of the Rebellion
• 19 Oct. 1781 - Surrender at Yorktown
• 4 May 1783 Settlement in Nova Scotia Begins
  (30,000)
• 3 Sept. 1783 - Treaty of Paris Signed
• 25 Nov. 1783 New York Evacuated
• 22 May 1784 Settlement in Quebec Begins
  (10,000)
• 16 Aug. 1784 - Formation of New Brunswick
• 9 Nov. 1789 - Order in Council
• 19 June 1791 Constitutional Act

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Some Arithmetic

• The population in 1775 was about 2.5 million
  people
• About 1.0 million people opposed the rebellion
• About 500,000 people were actively opposed to the
  war
• About 100,000 were relocated after the end of the
  war
• About 19,000 men served in some 50 Loyalist
  units
• About 4,000 claims were made for compensation

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The Loyalist Experience

• Persecution
• Property Confiscated
• Military Service
• Claims Made
• Land Acquired
• Relief
• Celebration

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Research Strategy

• Start late work back
• Document everything meticulously
• Start with family and home sources
• Remember to use printed and secondary sources as
  finding aids
• Use primary sources to cement the case
• Use a variety of sources

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How Should an Index Be Used?

• Know the difference between an index, an
  abstract, and an extract.
• Search all possible spellings.
• Search for related individuals.
• Search for known associates.
• When an entry is found, consult the original
  record. (Always!)
• When an entry is not found, search the original
  records. (Always!)

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Finding Aids

• Finding aids give access to one portion of a
  group of records.
• Finding aids are similar to indexes, but they
  usually identify a larger area to search.

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Finding Aid Use

• Know what information is absolutely required in
  order to use the finding aid.
• Know what information might help in using the
  finding aid. (More is not always better!)
• Identify a strategy to get the required
  information.

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Repositories

• National Archives and Libraries
• Provincial Archives
• State Archives and Libraries
• Other Libraries
• Family History Library

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National Archives and Libraries

• Library and Archives Canada www.collectionscanad
  a.ca
• Public Record Office
• www.nationalarchives.gov.uk/default.htm
• British Library www.bl.uk
• National Archives and Records Administration
  www.archives.gov

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Provincial Archives

• Nova Scotia www.gov.ns.ca/nsarm
• New Brunswick archives.gnb.ca/Archives/Default.a
  spx?LEN
• Prince Edward Island www.edu.pe.ca/paro
• Quebec - http//www.anq.gouv.qc.ca/
• Ontario - http//www.archives.gov.on.ca/

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State Archives and Libraries

• New Hampshire - http//www.sos.nh.gov/archives/
• Massachusetts - http//www.sec.state.ma.us/arc/arc
  idx.htm
• Rhode Island - http//www.sec.state.ri.us/Archives
  /
• Connecticut - http//www.cslib.org/archives.htm

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State Archives and Libraries

• New York - http//www.archives.nysed.gov/aindex.sh
  tml
• New Jersey - http//www.state.nj.us/state/darm/lin
  ks/archives.html
• Pennsylvania - http//www.phmc.state.pa.us/bah/dam
  /overview.htm?secid31
• Delaware - http//www.state.de.us/sos/dpa/

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State Archives and Libraries

• Maryland - http//www.mdarchives.state.md.us/
• Virginia - http//www.lva.lib.va.us/
• North Carolina - http//www.ah.dcr.state.nc.us/
• South Carolina - http//www.state.sc.us/scdah/home
  page.htm

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State Archives and Libraries

• Georgia - http//www.sos.state.ga.us/archives/

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Other Libraries

• Buffalo Historical Society (Buffalo, New York)
• Buffalo and Erie County Historical Society
• Detroit Public Library (Detroit, Michigan)
• Herkimer County Historical Society
• Huntington Library (San Marino, California)
• New Jersey Historical Society (Newark, New Jersey)

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Other Libraries continued. . . . . .

• Buffalo Historical Society (Buffalo, New York)
• Buffalo and Erie County Historical Society
• Detroit Public Library (Detroit, Michigan)
• New York Public Library (New York City, New York)
• New York State Library (Albany, New York)
• William L. Clements Library (Ann Arbor, Michigan)

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Family History Library

• Go to any Family History Centre
• Visit http//www.familysearch.org

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Primary Record Sources

• Military Records
• Claims for Compensation
• Land Petitions and Grants
• United Empire Loyalist Lists
• Confiscation Records

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Military Record Types

• Muster Rolls
• Operations Records

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Muster Rolls

• Types of Loyalist Units
• List of some Loyalist Units

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Types of Loyalist Units

• Provincials - mustered for pay
• American Establishment - mustered for pay (higher
  status provincials (5 units 1st through 5th
  American Regiments))
• Militia - not mustered for pay
• Volunteer Local Corps not mustered for pay
• Refugees and Associators not mustered for pay

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Some Loyalist Units

• Adams' Corps of Royalists
• American Legion
• Associated Loyalists
• Brandt's Volunteers
• British Legion

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Some Loyalist Units continued. . . . . .

• Bucks County Light Dragoons
• Bucks County Volunteers
• Butler's Rangers
• Carolina King's Rangers
• Company of Select Marksmen

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Some Loyalist Units continued. . . . . .

• De Lancey's Brigade
• East Florida Rangers
• Emmerick's Chasseurs
• Georgia Light Dragoons
• Governor Wentworth's Volunteers

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Some Loyalist Units continued. . . . . .

• Guides and Pioneers
• Hazard's Corps
• King's American Dragoons
• King's American Regiment
• King's Loyal Americans

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Some Loyalist Units continued. . . . . .

• King's Militia Volunteers
• King's Orange Rangers
• King's Rangers
• King's Royal Regiment of New York
• Loyal American Association

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Some Loyalist Units continued. . . . . .

• Loyal American Regiment
• Loyal Associated Refugees
• Loyal Foresters
• Loyal New Englanders
• Loyal Refugee Volunteers

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Some Loyalist Units continued. . . . . .

• Maryland Loyalists
• McAlpin's Corps of American Volunteers
• New Hampshire Volunteers
• New Jersey Volunteers
• New York Volunteers

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Some Loyalist Units continued. . . . . .

• Newfoundland Regiment
• North Carolina Independent Company
• North Carolina Volunteers
• Northern Indian Department
• Nova Scotia Militia

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Some Loyalist Units continued. . . . . .

• Nova Scotia Volunteers
• Pennsylvania Loyalists
• Prince of Wales American Regiment
• Provincial Light Infantry
• Queen's American Rangers

39
Some Loyalist Units continued. . . . . .

• Queen's Loyal Rangers
• Queen's Own Loyal Virginia Regiment
• Queen's Rangers
• Roman Catholic Volunteers
• Royal American Reformers

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Some Loyalist Units continued. . . . . .

• Royal Fencible American Regiment
• Royal Garrison Battalion
• Royal Highland Emigrants (the 84th Regt. Of Foot)
  
• Royal Yorkers
• South Carolina Dragoons

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Some Loyalist Units continued. . . . . .

• South Carolina Militia
• South Carolina Rangers
• South Carolina Royalists
• Two troops of cavalry raised in Georgia by
  Governor Wright in 1781
• United Pennsylvania and Maryland

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Some Loyalist Units continued. . . . . .

• Volunteers of Ireland
• Volunteers of New England
• West Florida Royal Foresters

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Muster Roll Contents (Typical)

• Names and ranks
• Notation if absent or if status has changed since
  last muster
• Notation of circumstances that affect pay or
  absence (death, injury, prisoner, desertion,
  absent without leave, on duty elsewhere)

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Muster Roll Availability

• Muster rolls exist in varying degrees of
  completeness for most of the units that mustered
  for pay.
• However, many units were irregular and did not
  muster for pay
• There are few or no muster rolls for those units.
• British units mustered about every 182 days.
• Loyalist units mustered about every 61 days.

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Muster Roll Locations

• Muster rolls are housed in four collections in
  three repositories.
• MG 23 Chipman Family Papers (Library and Archives
  Canada)
• RG 8 C Series Military Papers (LAC)
• War Office 28 Volumes 2-10 (Public Record Office,
  Kew, Richmond, Surrey, UK also LAC)
• Haldimand Papers Additional Manuscripts (British
  Library, London, England, UK also LAC)

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Ward Chipman, Muster Master General
47
General Sir Frederick Haldimand
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Operations Records

• Operations records contain accounts of battles,
  skirmishes, movements, retreats, exchanges,
  memorials, etc.
• Names of individuals may be mentioned in such
  records.
• The movements of Loyalist units may give clues as
  to the area in which a soldier was recruited.
• This is turn, may indicate an area to search for
  pre-rebellion residence of an ancestor.

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Operations Records Location

• Operations records will be found at Library and
  Archives Canada in the following record and
  manuscript groups
• RG 8 C Series
• Carleton/British Headquarters Papers (MG 23 B1)
• Other repositories (such as Provincial Archives,
  academic libraries, etc.) may have correspondence
  relating to military operations.

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Guy Carleton, First Baron Dorchester
51
Claims for Compensation

• Only a few of those who suffered losses in the
  rebellion make claims on the British government.
• The British government investigated these claims,
  and in some cases, made compensation.

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Compensation Claims Contents

• Former place of residence
• Income
• Property
• Details of military service
• Details of loss
• Decision

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Compensation Claims Location

• Audit Office 12 and 13 records may be found at
  Library and Archives Canada
• A nominal index exists for these records

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Land Petitions and Grants

• Major Settlement Areas
• Land Grant Process
• Location of Records

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(No Transcript)
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Major Settlement Areas

• Nova Scotia
• West of Amherst (now New Brunswick)
• Lunenburg, Shelburne, Digby, etc.
• Quebec
• South Shore of St Lawrence (Gaspé, Sorel,
  Missisquoi Bay, Eastern Townships)
• North Shore of Lake Erie and Lake Ontario (now
  Ontario)

57
(No Transcript)
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Where to Look for Land Petitions and Grants

• LAC
• Nova Scotia Search Page - http//www.gov.ns.ca/nsa
  rm/databases/land/
• New Brunswick Search Page - http//archives.gnb.ca
  /APPS/GovRecs/RS108/?LEN
• Ontario Computerized Land Record Index (on
  microfiche)
• Quebec indexed by Quebec Family History Society
  http//www.cam.org/qfhs/

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Research Tips

• Ontario before 1791 look in Lower Canada
• Quebec after 1841 look in Upper Canada
• Lower Canada petitions were usually filed by a
  group
• Upper Canada petitions were usually filed
  individually

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Lower Canada Land Records

• Petitions for grants or leases of land or for
  commutation of tenure
• Reports from the Surveyor General or the Attorney
  General
• Submissions to the Land Committee
• Administrative records
• Certificates and other documentation submitted in
  support of individual requests
• Copies of committee minutes
• Microfilm index at LAC

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Lower Canada Index Contents

• Name
• Date
• Page number
• Reference to proceedings of the Gaspé Land
  Commissioners

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Upper Canada Land Records

• Petitions for grants or leases of land
• Reports from the Surveyor General or the Attorney
  General
• Certificates and other documentation submitted in
  support of individual requests
• Some Canada Company lists
• Some lists of settlers by place
• Microfilm index at LAC

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Upper Canada Index Contents

• Entries from the Land Books (RG 1 L1)
• Name
• Date
• Land book
• Page number.
• Entries for land petitions (RG 1 L3)
• Name
• Place
• Date
• Bundle
• Petition number

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Upper Canada Land Petition
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Example Land Grant Process (New Brunswick)

• The settler who wished to obtain a grant of Crown
  land submitted a petition to the Lieutenant
  Governor (later to the Crown Land Office)
  describing his or her circumstances, need,
  family, and any service (usually military)
  rendered the Crown which would reflect favorably
  and put the petitioner in the good graces of the
  Administration.
• The Lieutenant Governor in Council, acting as a
  Committee of Council on Land would approve or
  disallow the petition.

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Example Land Grant Process (New Brunswick)

• If the petition was allowed, an Order/Warrant of
  Survey would be issued to the deputy-surveyor who
  had to establish the boundaries of the grant to
  be issued.
• Field notes made by the deputy-surveyors describe
  the boundaries.
• From those notes a Return of Survey was prepared
  to show in detail the location, size, and other
  survey-related information concerning the land to
  be granted.

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Example Land Grant Process (New Brunswick)

• Correspondence between the Surveyor General and
  his deputies may be found in the records.
• The Returns of Survey were kept by the Surveyor
  General by county or on subjects such as
  railways, Indians, etc..
• The Returns were used to draw up the official
  Land Grant which form the official record and
  final authority of granted Crown land.

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Example Land Grant Process (New Brunswick)

• A copy of the Grant was issued to the petitioner
  (cum grantee) and became his proof of ownership.
• All subsequent transactions such as selling,
  leasing, or mortgaging between individuals
  required registration at the county registry
  offices.
• However, in the case where the Crown reclaimed
  the property by escheatment for non-compliance
  with granting regulations, the original grant was
  cancelled and the land re-granted.

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United Empire Loyalist Lists

• UE List from the Executive Council Office. This
  list contains annotations.
• Crown Lands Department Loyalist List. It was
  published in 1885 as Appendix B in The Centennial
  of the settlement of Upper Canada by the United
  Empire Loyalist, 1784-1884.

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United Empire Loyalist Lists

• Available on Ancestry
• Also available at http//www.ourroots.ca/e/toc.asp
  x?id815
• And various other places

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Confiscation Records

• Records kept in the rebel jurisdictions
• By act of the assembly, properties were
  confiscated from loyalists
• Records of these acts may have been kept and may
  be filed in the archives of the state
• Look under confiscations and forfeitures
• Example http//www.archives.nysed.gov/aindex.sht
  ml

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Secondary Record Sources

• Some of the many, many books about Loyalist
  family history research.
• The Loyalists in Ontario, William D. Reid
• Data on United Empire Loyalists, William D. Reid
• The Old United Empire Loyalists List
• Loyalist Lists, E. Keith Fitzgerald
• The Kings Royal Regiment of New York, Brig. Gen.
  Ernest A. Cruikshank
• Early Ontario Settlers, A Source Book, Norman K.
  Crowder

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Secondary Record Sources

• Loyalist Lineages of Canada 1783-1983, Toronto
  Branch U.E.L Association of Canada
• Loyalist Lineages of Canada Volume II, Parts 1
  2, Toronto Branch U.E.L. Association of Canada
• United Empire Loyalists, Second Report of the
  Bureau of Archives for the Province of Ontario,
  Alexander Fraser
• Loyalist Settlements 1783-1789, New Evidence of
  Canadian Loyalist Claims, W. Bruce Antliff

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Secondary Sources

• The Loyalists of New Brunswick, Esther Clark
  Wright
• New Brunswick Loyalists, A Bicentennial Tribute,
  Sharon Dubeau
• Early New Brunswick Probate Records 1785-1835, R.
  Wallace Hale
• Loyalist Families, Cleadie B. Barnett Elizabeth
  S. Sewell
• Carletons Loyalist Index, John E. Ruch and
  Elizabeth Kipp

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Questions?
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Beverley A. Kenneth W. Rees 15 Heritage Point
West Lethbridge, AB T1K 7B7 Phone
403.328.9366 Email ancestor-find_at_familyhistree.c
om