Developing A Community
Settling the land
Farming in Upper Canada was hard and endless work for the first generation of settlers. The government created a “fair” system of free land grants. Land grants were awarded to all settlers for their loyalty and/or service to the Crown and in the Military. The amount of land a settler would get depended on the amount of service and rank in the military.
Many were promised 100 acres for each head of household and 50 more acres for each family member, plus provisions. For a family of four this meant you would receive 250 acres. On average Black soldiers received half of what was promised.
Surveyor's Chain
This surveyor's chain belonged to Ebeneezer Birrell of Pickering, Ontario. Birrell was a surveyor and artist who moved to Pickering from Glasgow in 1834. During the 18th century, surveyor's chains were a common tool used to measure property lines. Surveyor's chains would be used in order to measure plots of lands during the 1800s. Many Black settlers during this time period only gained a small plot of land.
Pickering Museum Village artifact
Although land was free, land settlement duties needed to be met. If a settler failed to meet these duties they would risk losing their land.
Within the first 3 years settlers had to:
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Clear roads of trees and stumps around 3 sides of their property to a width of 10 feet in order to meet government standard of 20 foot wide roads. The other property owner would have to clear the other 10 feet;
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Each settler was also required to build a house at least 16 by 20 feet and live in it for a minimum of two years;
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Clear, fence and seed five acres (about 12 and a half hockey rinks) of land; and
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To commit to 6-12 days of free labour per year to help build and maintain the major transportation routes like Brock Road, Kingston Road, and Concession 6 (Highway #7). This would be assigned by the local path master.
Cant Hook
Is a strong wooden pole with a hooked iron bar that hinges. Helps in the turning of heavy logs or dislodging them from piles or after felling.
Pickering Museum Village artifact
Cleared land would have included stumps left to rot amongst which the seed was sown. Wheat, potatoes, and vegetables were likely planted in the first clearing. Cattle, hogs, and sheep browsed in the surrounding woods. At least 3 cleared acres (about 7 and half hockey rinks) were required to feed a family of four.
What do you think would be the most valuable item to grow? 1 – Wheat grains are ground down to make flour. Wheat harvests need to be large enough to feed the immediate residents, nearby cities, and to import flour farther away. 2 – Hay is harvested as livestock feed. Horses, cows, and sheep eat hay when there isn’t a grazing area, like in winter or droughts. It is also used as bedding material. 3 – Oats are a food source for both people and livestock. Oats can be used in porridge, to create flour, or used in horse feed for an extra energy boost. 4 – Potatoes are considered a staple food, and can be prepared in a variety of ways. 5 – Corn is native to the Americas, and travelled up from Central America through indigenous trade routes. It is used not only for food, but for products like corn syrup. 6 – Barley is mainly used in animal feed worldwide, but it is also fermented to make malt for food and distilled drinks for humans.
Those who were part of or associated with the Family Compact and Tories in Toronto were given preferential treatment when it came to getting their lots. In addition, many of these wealthy landowners were not held to the same rules and often were not required to build their road allowance or construct a house within the same timelines. This lead to frustration and anger amongst the famers of Pickering Township and Upper Canada.
Brand
This branding iron is an example of a tool used by farmers to identify their livestock – usually cattle. Farmers needed to brand their livestock in case they escaped the property, or were stolen. Farmers had to register their brand mark with the city council. Branding was so important that farmers’ brands were recorded before a census was taken of the people in Pickering! This branding iron in particular has a “D” shaped symbol, which stands for the original owner’s initials.
Pickering Museum Village artifact
"Petition of Free Negroes"
On June 29, 1794, Richard Pierpoint with 18 other Black residents of Upper Canada signed the "Petition of Free Negroes". The document was sent to Lieutenant Governor John Graves Simcoe. All 19 signatures were Loyalists who had been rewarded land for their service. Many freed men were isolated around white settlers. This petition requested that they would be able to settle near each other.
The government rejected this request.
Here is a transcription of the petition. (Please note that the transcription reflects the original spelling and grammar.) “To His Excellencey John Grave Simcoe Esq.L. Governor Upper Canada. Colonel Commanding the Forces in [?] Province The Petition of the Free Negroes Humbly Sheweth That there are a number of Negroes in this part of the Country many of whom have been Soldiers during the late ware between Great Britain and America, and others who were born free with a few who have come into Canada since the peace, -Your Petitioners are desirous of settling adjacent to each other that they may be enabled to give assistance (in work) to those amongst them who may most want it. Your Petitioners therefore humbly Pray that their situation may be taken into consideration, and if your Excellency should see fit to allow them a Tract of Country to settle on, separate from the white Settlers, your Petitioners hope their behaviour will be such as to shew, that Negroes are capable of being industrious, and in loyalty to the Crown they are not deficient. And your [?] will as in duty Ever Pray”
Day to day lives of Black settlers
Black Loyalists did not have the same opportunities as their white neighbours when they arrived in Canada. Although they were promised small land grants and a better life in Canada, some settlers ended up as tenants on other farms. Some Black settlers lived in poverty stricken towns located outside of the main cities, while others thrived as land owners. If you lived far from town, it meant that there was less access to resources and jobs.
Black settlers often worked as farmers on a plot of land, or worked in sawmills or gristmills. Earnings were much lower than those farmers who worked in the main towns. Some had to find extra work in neighbouring towns. Black settlers were often faced with discrimination and were taken advantage of because of their race.
Some settlers were successful. While most worked hard in the fields, some had careers as bakers, tailors, barbers, or shoemakers.
Courtesy: Wikimedia Commons
Community Building
Black settlers often found a community through church and worship gatherings. In 1826, the First Baptist Church was established in Toronto for the Black community. Around the same time, the St Paul’s African Methodist Episcopal Church was established in Hamilton. Many other Black organizations were founded around Ontario such as the British Methodist Episcopal Church in Owen Sound. These churches provided a safe haven for Black settlers.
Courtesy: British Methodist Episcopal Church
Pickering Connections
In the 1800s, there were few Pickering residents of Black ancestry in the official records. Most lived as tenant farmers, which means they worked on someone else’s land.
Moses Goodman was a labourer in Pickering Township. Moses, his wife Catharine, and their many children were Methodists. The family lived in a one-storey frame house. Moses and Catharine came from the United States. They were married in 1847 in Whitchurch-Stouffville, and by 1850, they were living in Pickering Township.
Courtesy: RG 63, Archives & Special Collections, Brock University Library
Others in Pickering who were known to be from the United States included Benjamin Ryder and Henry Smith. But when did they arrive? We don’t know for sure because these records don’t exist, or we don’t know where they first settled. Census records were only recorded every 10 years, and tenants are not listed on land records. Benjamin Ryder of Pickering was likely to have been involved in a militia.
Some of the known early Black settlers to Pickering likely travelled the Underground Railroad. George Chapman was enslaved in his youth in Virginia before settling in Pickering before the 1830s. George and his wife Katherine had two children – James and Eliza. They lived in a one-story log shanty which was typical of the time. Living in a log shanty rather than a framed house suggests that they lived in poverty.
James Chapman, son of George, eventually married Ellen Kearns. They had eight children – John, James, George, Margaret, Elizabeth, Agnes, Ellen J., and Esther. They raised their large family in the hamlet of Cherrywood in Pickering, and were the school’s caretakers.
Courtesy: Wikimedia Commons