The Pioneers of Westmorland.

Newspaper
Year
1886
Month
1
Day
14
Article Title
The Pioneers of Westmorland.
Author
----
Page Number
2
Article Type
Language
Article Contents
The Pioneers of Westmorland. Judge Botsford’s Lecture.-The German Settlers.-Contest between the Acadians and DesBarres.-The Yorkshire Influx.-The Landing of the American Loyalists.-The Emigrant Road Settlers.-Sackville Census.-The First Baptist Church here.-Tolar Thompson and his Great Undertaking. After a passing reference to the early struggle between England and France in this country, the Judge continued: I shall now direct your attention to the period from 1763 to the present time. At the close of the war some of the Acadians remained and settled in this county, suffering great privation and misert. They now number about two-fifths of the population of Westmorland, occupying chiefly the banks of the Memramcook river, the left bank of the Petitcodiac as far as Moncton, and the Gulf Shore from the Parish of Botsford to the northwest. The next emigrants, who settled in Westmorland, came to Petitcodiac. They left the Rhine is the year 1749 and proceeded to Pennsylvania, then a British colony. They ascended the Delaware and purchased and improved lands on the Schuylkill, about 12 miles above Philadelphia. After remaining about 14 years they removed to this county, under the impression that they could easily obtain large tracts of land. It is said that these immigrants consisted of eleven families, but after much enquiry I can only identify nine, being Steeves, Luts, (now Lutes) Smith, Richies, Summers, Trites, Johns, (now Jones) Wortman, and Copple. They left the Deleware in the year 1763, and touched at Digby, Nova Scotia. That part of the country at thatr time was the point to which settlers were first attracted, as Port Royal (now Annapolis) was a large garrison town and was well-known over this continent. They remained there but a few days and proceeding up the Bay landed finally at Hall’s Creek, (port of Moncton) at that time called Panacada Creek. Hall was master of the ship which brought the immigrants and landing gave his name to the creek. This, I had from one of the eoldest inhabitant,s who is now dead, and with him perished a large amount of information. Old Mr. Steeves settled in Hillsborough, then a part of the county of Westmorland, and some of his sons on the Petitcodiac. In fact, all these families settled in the then county of Westmorland, and to them a large portion of the population of the River Petitcodiacm may trace their origin. The only family of the nine which landed at Hall’s Creek of which I can find no trace is that of the Copples. Old Mr. Steeves family on his his arrival consisted of seven sons, and I have been informed their descendants now living in that county and the adjoining county of Albert number 1600, and to which number may be added the fast number of 250 who were residing in Canada, United States and England, making the total 1,900. In October 1765, Joseph Gingham obtained a grant from the Province of Nova Scotia for all that promontory situated between the rivers of Memramcook and Petitcodiac, commencing at Fort Folly Point, and the confluence of the rivers and extending a distance of eleven miles on both rivers and containing 20,000 acres. (This tract includes the extensive and valuable free stone quarries owner and worked by American companies) Gingham sold to the late Joseph Frederick Walter Desbarres (who was Governor of Prince Edward Island in 1789.) This grant not being recorded in the office of the Secretary and Registrar of this Province pursuant to the requirements of the act of Assembly was considered invalid. DesBarres in order to remove all doubt concerning the validity of his title, in February 1805, obtained from the Government of New Brunswick a grant of the same tract and had in the mean time through his agent, Polly Cannon, granted long leases to the French Acadians, whose descendants now own and occupy principally all the fertile tract on the adjoining marshes on the banks of both rivers, and induced them to settle there under conditions and solemn promises of assistance, which the French people asserted were never fulfilled. They continued to improve and cultivate the soil, and through their industry and enterprise have made it one of the most fertile agricultural districts in this county. In fact, the extensive view which meets the eye as you descend the road leading to Charter’s, of the Memramcook Valley, with its river winding through the marsh, embracing as it does the shire town of Dorchester, Dorchester Island, Shepody Bay, Grindstone Island and the shire town of Albert in the distance, with the neat and substantial looking cottages studding the farms on both sides of the river, and the large French stone chapel, St. Joseph’s College, and the convent in their midst. I think it is one of the most beautiful landscapes I have ever seen in this province, and I have often wondered why it has not attracted the attention of some distinguished artist. Governor DesBarres died in the year 1824, leaving his son, the late Augustus DesBarres, his sole surviving devises. Long before, and after his death, difficulties occurred between him and his son with the French, people, who finally refused to pay any rent, and the very name of DesBarres became distasteful and obnoxious to this simple minded people, who, it is said, was treated with great harshness and severity, and the very name of DesBarres became an object of terror, whenever he made his appearance among these timid and inoffensive inhabitants. To such a height was this terror, whenever he made his appearance among these timid and inoffensive inhabitants. To such a height was this terror carried that I have frequently seen the children of these first people, while playing in the post road, suddenly seem par and hide themselves with fear and consternation, depicted in their countenances, when their parents would, with their peculiar gestures and voice, exclaim in their patols: “Here come DesBarres.” This state of affairs continued until the year 1826, when the French, acting under the advice of eminent counsel, absolutely refused to acknowledge Augustus DesBarres as their proprietor, and in the year 1840 he commenced legal proceedings against those who had not previouisly purchased their lands. Some 50 or 60 actions were brought against the heads of families, and one suit, to test the question involved, was tried at Dorchester before the late Chief Justice Carter in the year 1841. DesBarres employed Mr. Hall, and E. B. Chandler, with whom were associated Mr. Cote, and Alex Stewart, Master of the Rolls of Nova Scotia. The French retained William Young now Sir William, and Chief Justice of the Supreme Court of Nova Scotia, and the late George Frederick Streets, who, when he died, was a Judge of the Supreme Court. Great excitement prevailed during the trial, as in the event of an adverse verdict, the French would have been dispossessed and deprived of their farms, upon which some of them had toiled for more than 50 years. However, the French proved successful, but the case was afterwards argued before the Sjupreme Court at Fredericton, and it was determined that DesBarres had a right to recover all the wilderness land in the tract which had not been improved, and the result was that they were compelled to compromise with DesBarres and purchase, as their homesteads would have been valueless without the woodland, as they would have had no fire wood or fencing for carrying on their farming operations, and obtained both from DesBarres, through the late Hon. Mr. Chandler, who paid a large sum for that purpose. This incumbrance on their farms has for some time since liquidated, and the French are now a happy and prosperous people, and some of the most frugal are in very independent circumstances. May 21, 1772, another lot of immigrants came from Yorkshire, England. The late Charles Dixon with a few families, 62 persons in all, men, women and children, arrived at Fort Cumberland, and in the following year some forty families joined them. Their names as stated by the late Judge Botsford were: Metcalf, Thompson, Weldon, Bulmer, Dixon, Ripley, Kelller, Brown, Humphrey, Carter, Fairweather, King, Harper, Siddal, Ballou, Trueman, Wells, Tower, Roberts, Robinson, Watson, Smith, Grace, Lewerison, Stone, Lushy, Harrison, Black, Richardson, Cha. Thompson, Chapman, Turner, Cook, Wry, Dobson, Snowden, Foster, Fawcetts (2), Fraser, Atkinson, Oulton, Trenholm, Colpitts, Coates, Fenton, Blinkhorn, Mitton, Pipes, They settled principally in Sackville; some in Dorchester; the Colpitts, Fentons and Mittons in Petitcodiac, and others in Cumberland. In Oct. 1782, the last Amos Botsford arrived at Digby, N. S., moved to Fort Cumberland in 1785, and finally settled in Sackville. The Chandlers also arrived at the same time. To be Continued.