Canadians 2 - Barnabas McGee and Nancy Carroll First Settlers of Merigomish, Nova Scotia, Canada

Barnabas McGee & Nancy Carroll of Merigomish, Nova Scotia, Canada

Birth

Barnabas McGee was born about 1742, believed to have been born in Northern Ireland (likely Ulster).

New World and Marriage

Barnabas immigrated to Pennsylvania where he married Ann (Nancy) Carroll of London, England.I'm fairly certain they departed for Canada from the port of Philadelphia.Prior to departing they lived in PA, New Jersey or nearby.

Move to Canada, to Pictou, Nova Scotia

Originally Pictou, Nova Scotia was awarded by the King of England to a handful of subjects who agreed to settle it for England.

The King's permission contained a complex mandate about clearing the land and planting crops, and establishing a town all within certain time parameters. 

Eastern Canada today

The very best land was already held by the earliest settlers (all British subjects) before Barnabas and Nancy even left for Canada.
The map above of Eastern Canada will give you an idea where Nova Scotia is relative to other provinces of E. Canada.
The settlement they left for had been nicknamed Pictou "New Scotland" for the many settlers of Scottish descent.

 THE MOVE

It was 1767 or 1768 that Barnabas and Nancy McGee packed up and moved to Nova Scotia from PA. 
Once there, Barnabas was awarded a large grant of land at Roger's Hill in Pictou.  However, Rogers Hill is a good way from the seacoast.
Where is Pictou?
Today Pictou is a town in Pictou County, Nova Scotia. That may not be particularly enlightening. You may know of or visited Halifax, Nova Scotia, the capital of the Province of Nova Scotia. The map below shows Pictou's location relative to Halifax.

Province of Nova Scotia. Halifax in south, Pictou to north/east.

The McGees had a daughter they called Polly in Pictou and the family remained there about nine years.

First White Settlers of Merigomish, Nova Scotia, Canada
But Barnabas was not content with his location on Rogers Hill. Though he had a good amount of land, I would guess he -or they-wanted to be nearer the shore. And in the fall of 1776 or the spring of 1777 he moved to Merigomish, NS, and settled not far from the shore, but on the eastern side of a river. Oh happy day!

 

Merigomish Train Depot 1900s

Shore Rd, Merigomish, NS

 

Turn off to Barneys Road in Merigomish, NS

 

 

 

 

 

How far is Merigomish from Pictou? 

If you travel overland, it’s 23 miles (38 KMS) by today’s roads from Pictou to Mergomish. However, if you go by boat, (I don’t have the nautical miles), but it looks like it’s not more than 6 miles south from Pictou to what is Mergomish. 

Yes, the McGees now had land near the shore. And while Barnabas McGee and Nancy Carroll were officially the first white settlers of Merigomish which comes with its own bit of wondefulness, but it could be a bit lonely. 

Barnaby's River, Merigomish - The river they settled by was later called Barney's River after Barnabas, some time around or after his death. 

From The History of Barneys River—Early Days in East Pictou by HH Bruce for the Eastern Chronicle.  18 September 1886

From the book, Place Names of Nova Scotia

Barnabas and Nancy had four* more children, and they were the first white settlers born in the area.

Work and Staying Fed
Barnabas (“Barney”) was said to be a cooper by trade (cooper makes barrels, casks and the like). He would likely have searched the northern forests for oak.
Eventually however, he (possibly for financial reasons?) turned to shipbuilding and fishing.
    "A record from September 1788 says that he sold a good shallop [sloop] 'Nancy' about twenty-two tons, to Hugh Denoon of Merigomish, trader, for the sum of 45 pounds."

    Also, there are many records of sales of land by Barnabas McGee. One record of him says that he:

    "is still remembered for his hospitality to strangers and travellers."
Two Deaths & the Widow
Barney McGee and his son, Barnabas, set out one fall to sail to Newfoundland but never arrived.  
They were shipwrecked and drowned. Their bodies weren't found until spring -- on the shore of nearby Cape Breton.
His widow Nancy was then on her own. And she made a name for herself.
She always ministered to the medical needs of her neighbors. For example, there is one record where she removed frozen fingers from the survivors of a ship wreck.
Nancy was often called upon to help out at the most inconvenient times.
When there was too much snow, she'd don snowshoes to facilitate her trek to help those in need.
Land Granted to the Widow McGee
Nancy was given a grant of 500 acres of land for her "public services" (I'm not sure what that means). She sold the land for 250 pounds.
Barnabas McGee Facts
* Born in County Ulster, N. Ireland
* Emigrated to PA
* Married Ann (AKA Nancy) Carroll of London, England
* Moved to Pictou, Nova Scotia, Canada 1767/1768
and received a land grant on Rogers Hill in Pictou.
* Remained there for almost a decade.
* Moved in 1776 to become the first white family settled in Merigomish, Nova Scotia
* Death by drowning (he and son Barnabas)

Family
They had five children, including but not limited to Barnabas McGee and Polly McGee, as well as my husband’s 4th gr-grandfather, Charles McGee
Charles M McGee
B 24 Nov 1778 Merigomish,Pictou Co, Nova Scotia, Canada                                          D. 28 Sep 1876 Pictou, Nova Scotia, Canada 

New York to Quebec - Paternal 2 - John Savage and Ann Pratt. Loyalists and Canada's Paul Bunyan

 Loyalists or Turncoats? Pioneers in Canada: 

John Savage & Ann Pratt

John Johnson at his 5th gr-grandparents' gravestones, Bromont, Quebec

John Savage: Tory, Land Developer, Militia Officer, and JP; Canada’s Paul Bunyan

John Savage was  born abt 1740 in Ireland;
He married Ann Pratt, probably in Spencertown, N.Y.  He died 27 Sept. 1826 in West Shefford (Bromont), Lower Canada, and was buried there two days later.
 

His wife Ann Pratt, daughter of Elisha Pratt and Ann Porter. She was born abt  1740 in New London, CT, USA, lived in Spencertown, NY and died Jun 1822 in Shefford, Quebec, Canada. 

Both John Savage and his wife are buried in Bromont, Quebec, Canada

Their seven children:

1. John Savage Jr 1770–1858,
2. Abraham Savage 1770–?,
3. Lydia Savage 1772–1852 (ancestor)
   
4. Anna Savage 1774–1841,
5. Rhoda Savage 1776–1845,
6. Mary Savage ?
7. Olive Savage 1786–1820,
8. Joseph Plumer Savage 1794–1868

Portion of article below by Marie-Paule R. LaBrèque

"Before the American revolution the Savages owned land at Spencertown, where they had become quite influential.In 1775 John Savage refused command of the local company of the Continental Army, despite pressure from fellow citizens and two of his brothers-in-law.

As a result, he was considered to be an enemy, was ordered to put up a guarantee, and then was imprisoned.

Being daring and resourceful, he succeeded in escaping after several attempts and reached New York, where in 1776 he obtained a commission as a lieutenant in the Loyal Rangers.

He was captured again, narrowly missed being hanged, and was incarcerated for several months. After being freed, he served in the British army as a spy during the summer of 1782.

His zeal in the missions he carried out in the states of New York and Vermont earned him the highest praise.

However, republican hostility forced him to secure his family’s safety. Bearing a safe conduct, Savage and his family, with his brother James, left Crown Point, N.Y., and sought refuge in the province of Quebec in October 1783. Savage applied for lands east of Lake Champlain.

The Allen brothers, who commanded the Green Mountain Boys, were then trying to attract loyalists to Vermont, claiming that in so doing they were promoting the annexation of Vermont to Quebec.

Savage had served as an intermediary between the Allens and the military authorities in Quebec, and he supported this plan with the assent of some senior officers, despite the opposition of Governor Frederick Haldimand, who did not favour settlement near the American border.

In 1784 and for some years thereafter, Savage was living at Alburgh, south of the border, on what had been the seigneury of Foucault. The Allens, however, became supporters of Congress, and tried to make him take the oath of allegiance in 1791. Along with a number of other loyalists, he was forced to move to Caldwell’s Manor, a property in Lower Canada belonging to Henry Caldwell.

On 16 July 1792 Savage petitioned for the grant of Shefford Township. Like most of those signing petitions, he completed the many formalities at great expense: securing permission for a survey, drawing up a list of associates, taking various steps with the commissioners, as well as making several trips to Quebec, Chambly, and Missisquoi Bay.

Once he had taken the oath of allegiance in 1792, he busied himself opening up roads and completing the survey of the township, always at his own expense and even though he had no title to the land.

His family had to make do with a log cabin, and in the first winter he lost nearly all his livestock.

Quarrels between Governor Robert Prescott and the Executive Council were to paralyse land granting for some years. Tired of parading his service record and demanding fair compensation for his losses during the American revolution, he joined other dissatisfied people, among them Samuel Willard, in sending an agent to London to plead their cause.

In February 1800 Samuel Gale presented a report on their behalf, which caused some commotion in high places at Quebec. On 10 Feb. 1801 the letters patent for Shefford Township were formally granted; Savage and his 38 associates, a group including his son John and three of his sons-in-law, were then able to divide up about 34,000 acres.

To ensure financing for his undertaking Savage had engaged in real estate transactions even before the official grant was made, and he continued to make deals afterwards.

In 1805 Savage received a captain’s commission in the 2nd battalion of the Eastern Townships Militia.

The following year he obtained a commission as justice of the peace for the district of Montreal, which was renewed in 1810 and 1821. His home was long the scene of the principal events in the township; even religious services were held there. Anglican minister Charles James Stewart came to Shefford in 1808 and met Savage and his family.

Later he never failed to visit him when making pastoral rounds, and he held Savage in high esteem.

Despite his 72 years Savage wanted to play a part in the War of 1812. When on 10 Jan. 1813 Lieutenant-Colonel Sir John Johnson created the Frontier Light Infantry, Savage obtained a captain’s commission in the regiment.

On 13 August the Frontier Light Infantry was attached to the Voltigeurs Canadiens, under Charles-Michel d’Irumberry de Salaberry; it formed the 9th and 10th companies in that regiment at the end of the war.

By then, Shefford Township had a population of about 500. There were still no roads, despite efforts by Savage, who had cleared the first path from Missisquoi Bay in 1792.

In 1799 he turned his attention to the construction of a road to Montreal through Dorchester (Saint-Jean-sur-Richelieu) or the seigneury of Saint-Hyacinthe. Government grants would allow the construction of real roads, which Savage supervised, around 1816.

The establishing of regular religious services and the building of a church meant a great deal to Savage.

Early in 1818 he told Stewart of his plan, and on 14 Oct. 1819 he gave him four acres near his home for a church, as well as 800 acres worth £200.

Savage, who by then was 80, supervised the construction of the church in the summer of 1820, and he supplemented with his own money the small grant from the Anglican diocese. Perhaps he was too generous, since on 20 March 1824 he was taken to court by Saint-Hyacinthe merchant Joseph Cartier, who as his supplier since 1801 was claiming £42 from him. Savage could only give him two heifers in payment, and on 4 July 1825 two of his lots were seized by the sheriff and sold.

Like a true patriarch John Savage passed away in the midst of his family, a son and five daughters, their spouses, and 47 grandchildren all born in Shefford Township.

Savage had identified himself with this corner of the country which he had made his own by enterprise and perseverance. He had never swerved from his path, and his name remains associated with a lasting work."

FROM:  -Marie-Paule R. LaBrèque - © 1987–2019 University of Toronto/Université Laval
Marie-Paule R. LaBrèque, “SAVAGE, JOHN,” in Dictionary of Canadian Biography, vol. 6, University of Toronto/Université Laval, 2003–, accessed March 22, 2019, http://www.biographi.ca/en/bio/savage_john_6E.html. Permalink: http://www.biographi.ca/en/bio/savage_john_6E.html
Author:Marie-Paule R. LaBrèque
Title:SAVAGE, JOHN
Publication:Dictionary of Canadian Biography, vol. 6
Publisher:University of Toronto/Université Laval
Year of publication:1987
Access Date:March 22, 2019

 

 

Location of Concord in Columbia Co, NY, USA

1790 John Savage Claim (front)

 

1790 John Savage Claim (back)

 

 

  

Death Record, John Savage

 

Home of John Savage in Bromont, Quebec, Canada