the influence of the loyalists on british north america · the loyalist migrations concentrated on...

The Influence of the Loyalistson British North America

CHAPTER 5

Asymbol is an object that most people recognize asrepresenting a specific idea. The photos on these pagesshow symbols, such as the crown representing the

monarchy, and a town named after a king. Remember that theLoyalists opposed the formation of the American republic andwere loyal to the monarchy of England. When they created UpperCanada (later Ontario) in 1791, the Loyalists used symbols of themonarchy wherever they could, to show their devotion to theCrown. Many of these symbols survive today.

Making ConnectionsRead the paragraph aboutsymbols. With a team, create asymbol for your school. Beprepared to discuss what yoursymbol means.

Before READING

H 88 Unit 2: British North America

ON7_history_05.qxd 5/3/07 7:18 PM Page 88

What You Will Learn in This Chapter• Who were the Loyalists?

• When and why did they migrate toBritish North America, and to whichregions?

• Where, when, and why did they settle inUpper Canada?

• How did they influence the futuredevelopment of Lower and UpperCanada?

Inquiry questions help you to ask for furtherinformation, and help you to decide whichinformation is important. In this way, they helpwith note-taking. They also give a purpose to, orreason for, reading.

Read the “What You Will Learn in This Chapter”inquiry questions, and try to answer them. Revisitthe questions while you read this chapter, and seeif you can answer them by the end. Use a two-column chart to take notes on each of thequestions as you read. Remember to include pagenumbers and to put notes in your own words!

Thinking About LITERACY

Chapter 5: The Influence of the Loyalists on British North America H 89

Inquiry Questions Answers



Québec (divided into Lower and Upper Canada after 1791) wasnot the only British colony in North America after the UnitedStates became independent. There were also Nova Scotia, PrinceEdward Island, and (after 1784) New Brunswick. Together withQuébec, these colonies were often called British North America.Newfoundland, British Columbia, and territory south of the U.S.were also British colonies. But these were too far away to bethought of as being part of the group of colonies referred to asBritish North America.

You already learned a little about the Loyalists when youencountered them in Chapter 4. The table below gives you asummary of some of the numbers.

Who Were the Loyalists?

The nations claiming parts of North America before 1791.

R U P E R T ’ S L A N D

ATLANTICOCEAN

QUÉBEC

UNITED STATESOF

AMERICA

LOUISIANA

NEWFOUNDLAND

NOVASCOTIA

P.E.I. (after 1798)

NEW BRUNSWICK(after 1784)

0 500 1000 km

N

British territory

United Statesof America

Louisiana (Spain)

British North America four ofthe British colonies in NorthAmerica after the United Statesbecame independent: Québec,Nova Scotia, Prince EdwardIsland, and (after 1784) New Brunswick

WORDSMATTER

WEB LINK •For more information about the Loyalists, visitwww.pearsoned.ca/on7history.

CheckpointA chart helps us retrieveinformation easily by presentingit according to categories. In thischart, the second column showsthe number that is associatedwith each item in the first column.

Remember to scan theinformation. Why did theauthor make this informationpart of a table instead of part ofthe paragraph?

During READING

Opposition to the American Revolution (approximate figures)

Population of the Thirteen Colonies 2.5 million

Percentage opposed to the Revolution 15%

Number opposed to the Revolution 375 000

Number of Loyalists who left 100 000

Number who went to British North America 50 000


The Loyalists were a varied group. They had little in commonexcept that they were opposed to the American Revolution.Consider some of the different groups among them.

Many Loyalists sacrificed their entire way of life to move toBritish North America. One of the most severe difficulties theyencountered was isolation. One woman wrote about her arrival inSaint John, New Brunswick:

I climbed to the top of Chipman’s Hill and watched thesails in the distance, and such a feeling of loneliness cameover me that though I had not shed a tear through all thewar, I sat down on the damp moss with my baby on my lapand cried bitterly.

The Loyalists’ early years in their new home were difficult. But they received assistance from the Crown in resettling, andconditions improved for many of them. Their role in keepingBritish North America loyal to the Crown was highly valued. In1789, the governor of Québec, Sir Guy Carleton (by now LordDorchester), issued an order to honour the Loyalists.


Group Details

Merchants (store owners)and farmers

• abandoned property in the ThirteenColonies

Small landowners, former British soldiers,and people hoping forreligious tolerance

• had little more than their clothing andsome small possessions

• hoped to become richer in British NorthAmerica

Indentured servants • under contract to work for a family for anumber of years before becoming freepeople (refer to Chapter 2, page H 36)

Black slaves • accompanied their Loyalist owners

Escaped Black slaves • used the migration as a way of escapingfrom their owners and becoming free people


Those Loyalists who have adhered to the Unity of theEmpire, and joined the Royal Standard before the Treaty ofSeparation in the year 1783, and all their Children andtheir Descendants by either sex, are to be distinguished bythe following Capitals, affixed to their names: U.E.Alluding to their great principle The Unity of the Empire.

Even today, some descendants of Loyalists may put the letters U.E.after their names. This shows how important their contributionwas considered at the time.


Artist John David Kelly created this image around 1935, more than 150 years after theLoyalists landed at Saint John, New Brunswick. Why do you think it is important for his-torians to know when an image was created?

THINKING It Over

1. Approximately how many people left theThirteen Colonies because they were opposedto the Revolution? How many came to BritishNorth America?

2. Review the chart that lists the groups that werepart of the Loyalist migrations to British NorthAmerica. Theorize about how the differencesillustrated in the chart would affect the abilityof the Loyalists to act as a unified group.Explain your theory.

3. a) What conclusion can we draw from the factthat Carleton awarded the Loyalists and theirdescendants the right to place the lettersU.E. after their names?

b) If you were the descendant of Loyalists andtherefore had the right to put the letters U.E.after your name, would you do so? What areyour reasons? t

k

t

k



The Loyalist migrations concentrated on three locations. Onegroup went to Nova Scotia and New Brunswick. A second groupsettled in Québec. A third group started settlements in what wenow call Ontario.

Loyalist Migration to Nova Scotia and New BrunswickIn 1776, a shipload of Loyalists left New York for Nova Scotia.This was the first group to leave the Thirteen Colonies because ofthe revolution. As the Patriots began to win victories in the waragainst Britain, more Loyalists left. In all, about 30 000 Loyalistssettled in Nova Scotia (and in New Brunswick, which was part ofNova Scotia until 1784). Although some of the Loyalists who went toNova Scotia and New Brunswick were well-established professionals,many belonged to minority groups, particularly minority religiousgroups, who felt they needed protection. These included Huguenots(French Protestants) and Quakers (who were opposed to all forms ofviolence and war).

Many Black soldiers who had fought for the British in the waralso moved to Nova Scotia. When they joined the British forces,they were promised free land at the end of their service. But thepromises turned out to be empty ones. White society rejected theBlack Loyalists, so many founded their own separate communities.In 1783, Boston King and his wife Violet were part of a group thatformed Birchtown, a Black community near Shelburne, NovaScotia. It soon became the largest free Black community in NorthAmerica. It was named after General Samuel Birch, who hadhelped the Black Loyalists move from New York.

In addition to the Black Loyalists who lived in Birchtown,many other Black people remained as slaves in nearby Shelburne.Wealthy white Loyalists had settled there, bringing with themtheir property, which included slaves. These enslaved people wererented out as labourers. Free Black Loyalists from Birchtown andShelburne were paid lower than normal rates for the little workthey were able to find. Unemployed and poor white Loyalists anddisbanded soldiers vented their frustration and anger on theBlacks in Shelburne, and, in 1784, they attacked the Black settlers.

The Loyalist Migrations to British North America

Boston King, as portrayed byactor Derwin Jordan in the CBC production, Canada: A People’s History. Why are the memoirs that he wrote in1798 important?

CheckpointWhat did the Huguenots, theQuakers, and the Black people who joined the Loyalists havein common?

During READING


A 10-day riot began in which Blacks were beaten and their homesburned. The rioters literally chased any Black person they couldfind out of Shelburne. Fear filled the hearts of free Black Loyalistsand slaves alike.

Over time, for both Black and white Loyalists, it became clearthat Shelburne would not become a strong and thriving community.Many white Loyalists left to try their luck in New Brunswick,Prince Edward Island, or the new settlements west of Québec.

Boston King had escaped from slavery in South Carolina. Heand his wife, who had also escaped a life of slavery, worked hard toestablish a life for themselves in Nova Scotia. King worked as acarpenter, a fisher, and at any other job he could find, eventuallybecoming a Methodist preacher. But the couple becamedisheartened by the way they were treated and the hardships theyfaced. In 1791, the Kings left Nova Scotia for good, sailing for SierraLeone on the west coast of Africa. Many other Black Loyalists wereforced to give up their dreams of safety and success in Nova Scotia,as well, and they, too, went to Africa in hope of a better life.


ST. JOHN’SISLAND

MAINE(U.S.A.)

NEWBRUNSWICK

Fredericton

NOVA SCOTIA

QUÉBEC

ShelburneBirchtown

Bay of Fundy

St. Lawrence River

Gulf ofSt. Lawrence

ATLANTICOCEAN

N

Halifax

0 50 100 km

CAPE BRETONISLAND

Nova Scotia and New Brunswick, after 1784.



This Could Have Been Me This Could Have Been Me Hannah Ingraham


Loyalist Migrations to Québec Some Loyalists from the New England area migrated north to theSt. Lawrence region of Québec. Much of the land around Montréaland Québec City had already been settled by this time, so theylooked for newer areas to develop. If you look at a modern map ofQuébec, you will see that the majority of places have Frenchnames. But if you look at the places due east of Montréal, you willsee names based in English history, such as Drummondville,Sherbrooke, and Granby. These communities were founded by theLoyalists and are known today as the Eastern Townships.

Another group of Loyalists migrated to what is now Ontario. Youwill read about their experiences in the next section of this chapter.


St. L

awre

nce R

iver

Québec City

QUÉBEC

ONTARIO

Montréal

Granby

UNITED STATESOF AMERICA

N

0 40 80 km

SherbrookeWindsor

Drummondville

The Eastern Townships today. Note the English place names.

Eastern Townships the areaeast of Montréal that was settledby the Loyalists

WORDSMATTER

THINKING It Over

1. Give reasons why many of the Loyalists camefrom minorities—such as the Huguenots,Quakers, and Black people.

2. What conclusions can you draw from the storyof Boston and Violet King, who foundedBirchtown and eventually left Nova Scotia forSierra Leone?

3. Look at the extract from the map of modernQuébec. Note the English-sounding names ofthe Loyalist communities. Use this informationto write a paragraph predicting how theLoyalists and Canadiens would get along in thefuture. Use reasoning and evidence to supportyour predictions. ct

k

ON7_history_05.qxd 5/3/07 7:18 PM 6


The Loyalists had an enormous impact on the development of theLake Ontario and Lake Erie regions. Until the 1780s, these regionswere populated by First Nations people. There were few, if any,settlers of European background. But the region had lots of goodland, which Loyalist settlers were anxious to find.

Disbanded Loyalist RegimentsMany of the first Loyalists were the families of people who hadfought for the British in the war. Colonel John Butler was a richlandowner in upper New York. He had organized a regiment,known as Butler’s Rangers, to fight the Patriots. In 1784, Butler ledhis regiment to the Niagara region of southern Upper Canada, anddisbanded it there.

There were many other disbanded regiments that came to whatis now Ontario. The map below shows some of them, and the areasthey settled in.

The Lake Ontario and Lake Erie Regions

0 100 200 km

Lake Huron

Lake Erie

Lake Ontario

Detroit

Kingston(Cataraqui)

YorkSix Nationsreserve

Tyendinagareserve

Q U É B E C Montréal

N

UNITED STATESOF AMERICA

Loyalist regimental settlements

First Nationsreserves

King’s Royal Regiment of New York

Jessup’s Corps

King’s Rangers 2nd Battalion

Butler’s Rangers

Niagara region

The southern Ontario region in the 1780s, showing the settlements of Loyalist regimentsand First Nations reserves.

Colonel John Butler. The head-quarters of his Butler’s RangersLoyalist regiment, called Butler’sBarracks, is located in Niagara-on-the-Lake, Ontario, and is nowa national historic site.


First Nations PeopleMohawks and other groups of the Iroquois Confederacy fought onthe side of the British during the American Revolution. After thewar, about 2000 Mohawk people relocated from their ancient landsin Upper New York to the Lake Ontario region. One of their best-known leaders is Thayendanegea, also known as Joseph Brant. Hewas a Mohawk leader in New York who believed that the future ofhis people lay in British North America. But the lands of his peoplewere signed away by the British in the second Treaty of Paris in1783. Brant’s people had been betrayed by the British. Wherecould they go?

The British commander in Québec, Sir Frederick Haldimand,felt that the loyal service they had provided to the Crown deservedrecognition. Some of the land that Haldimand acquired for the Six Nations allies was originally First Nations land. Followingthe Royal Proclamation of 1763, the Crown had reachedagreements, called the Upper Canada Treaties, with some FirstNations. Under these treaties, land was transferred from peoplessuch as the Ojibwe,Mississauga, andothers to the Crown in exchange for cashpayments.

Thayendanegeasettled his followers ona long tract of landabout 10 kilometreswide on each side ofthe Grand River. It wasabout 2750 squarekilometres in area. TheSix Nations Reserve(see the map on page H 97) was supposed tobe Six Nations landforever, a reward forthe loyalty thatThayendanegea andhis people had showntoward the Crown.


Thayendanegea.

Six Nations Reserve the tractof land along the banks of theGrand River where Mohawkleader Thayendanegea settledhis followers

WORDSMATTER


Succeeding governors had different ideas about the service of First Nations allies. Land freely given to First Nations allies in the1780s has, over time, been eroded away. Roads, towns, and settlementby non-Aboriginals have taken land away bit by bit. Today, less thanone-tenth of the Six Nations Reserve’s original allotment is still withinthe reserve. Cities like Brantford and Cambridge stand on what wassupposed to be Six Nations land forever.

Across Canada similar erosions have occurred. First Nationshave begun to take action to preserve what is left of their land.

One such action, near the Six Nations Reserve in Caledonia,caught media attention in 2006. A 40-hectare plot of land waspurchased from the government to build a housing development.Representatives of the Six Nations chose this place to make a standto draw attention to the many land claims disputes across Canada.This land was part of the original Loyalist grant. Today, SixNations claims state that it was never freely given away.

The Development of the RegionButler’s followers started the town of Newark, now called Niagara-on-the-Lake. It became Upper Canada’s first capital city, from 1792until 1796, when the capital was moved to York. The reason forthe change was that Newark was too close to the United Statesborder. This concern proved to be well founded; in 1813, Newarkwas occupied and later destroyed by the Americans.


Loucks Farm in Upper Canada Village, in Eastern Ontario, is a re-creation of a typical 1860s farm.


Butler’s Loyalists planned and developed a settlement with neathouses and well-kept businesses. Other communities were foundedby civilian Loyalists. Burlington, between present-day Hamiltonand Toronto, is an example of this type of settlement. Loyalistsfrom Burlington, Vermont, came through the river systems to thearea. Kingston (originally King’s Town, to honour King GeorgeIII), farther along Lake Ontario, is another Loyalist settlement.

Loyalists came from all walks of life. This meant that newsettlements often had a variety of skilled citizens providing supportas blacksmiths, merchants, builders, bankers, farmers, and doctors.This wide variety of skilled citizens ensured that the UnitedEmpire Loyalists would succeed in their new communities despitethe losses they had suffered in the war.

Some, like Butler’s Rangers and the Six Nations, had travelleddirectly north from their original homes to occupy the land northof the Great Lakes. Others came by ship, up the St. LawrenceRiver, past Québec and Montréal, to settle beyond the extent ofFrench settlement. Kingston was one of these settlements.Communities sprang up all along the north shores of the lakes, anda new society, based on British traditions, was established.

By the late 1790s, there were about 12 000 Loyalists settled inwhat was to become southern Ontario. They felt that theycontinued to deserve special favours from the Crown, because oftheir efforts to support it. Now they began to ask the governmentto change the law of Québec to make it more like the British-basedlaw they were used to. In the next section, you will read about howthis led to major changes in government and law.


THINKING It Over

1. Why might the British government beespecially happy to have former military peoplesettle in the region?

2. From what you have read in this section, didall Loyalists who came to the Great LakesRegion that later became Ontario receive fairtreatment? Explain your answer.

3. Do you think First Nations should be able tochallenge ownership of land that changedhands more than a century ago? Why or why not?

4. Once they were settled in what was to becomeOntario, what did the Loyalists ask thegovernment to change for their benefit? k

t

k

k

CheckpointHow does information in thissection answer any of yourinquiry questions?

During READING



What the Loyalists Found When They Came to Québec When the Loyalists arrived in Québec, they quickly took up theirfree land and built communities. But they were shocked by some ofthe differences between their new home and what they had knownin the United States. The following chart summarizes some ofthese differences.

The Loyalists regarded themselves as heroes. They had givenup their homeland because of their attachment to the Crown. Theyhad frequently been abused by the Patriots. Many had fought inthe British army, and some had lost family members.

“Is this any way to treat heroes?” they asked. “We came here tolive in freedom. You give us French land laws and no elections.”They demanded, “You have to change the system.” And the Britishgovernment listened.

How the Loyalists Changed the Face of Québec

CheckpointIn one sentence, state thebiggest difference you seebetween Québec and theUnited States in the 1780s.

During READING

freehold private ownership ofland (rather than land leasedfrom the Crown)

WORDSMATTER

Item In Québec In the United States

The legal system

French civil law governedproperty. Under theseigneurial system, landcould only be leased fromthe Crown. You could workand live off the land, butnot profit from selling it.

English civil law governedproperty. Land could beheld as private property. Ifyou improved your land,you could sell it andpocket the cash. This isknown as the freeholdsystem.

Church support

Roman Catholics werelegally required to pay atithe (tenth of their earn-ings) to their local church,and could be imprisonedif they refused. There wasno support for otherchurches.

Churches generally com-peted on an equal basis.People were not legally required to pay taxes totheir church. No onechurch was favoured bythe government.

Government There was a council appointed by the governorto pass laws and run thegovernment. There wereno elections.

Practices varied, but there were elections in all the colonies. Peoplevoted for representativesto pass laws and run thegovernment.

Differences Between Québec and the United States in the 1780s


How the British Changed the System in QuébecEventually, the British agreed to change the system of governmentand law in Québec. They passed the Constitutional Act, whichtook effect in 1791. The Act made some changes to the Québec Actof 1774, but the British did not want to give the Loyalists toomuch. Doing this might reduce the Canadiens’ and First Nationspeoples’ support for the British. Here is a summary of the majorchanges the Constitutional Act introduced.

• It divided Québec into two parts. Lower Canada includedthose parts of New France from the eastern edge as far west as the Ottawa River. Upper Canada contained thearea from the Ottawa River to the boundary formed byLakes Ontario, Erie, and Huron, and the north shore ofLake Superior.

• There would be a lieutenant-governor for each Canada.

• Landholders in Lower Canada could hold land under theseigneurial or the freehold system. In Upper Canada, allland would be held under the freehold system.

• Existing First Nations’ grants of land were not available forsettlers to move into.


R U P E R T ’ S L A N D

ATLANTIC OCEAN

Hudson Bay

James Bay

LABRADOR SEA

0 250 500 km

N

L OW

E R CA N A D A

NEWBRUNSWICK

PRINCEEDWARDISLAND

NOVASCOTIA

NEWFOUNDLAND

Lake Huron

Lake Erie

Montréal

York Lake Ontario

OttawaRiver

Lake Superior

Québec City

UNITED STATES OF AMERICA

U

P P E R C A N A D A St. L

awrence

River

Lake

Mic

higa

n

Lower and Upper Canada in 1791. Upper Canada began upstream from Lower Canadaalong the St. Lawrence River; hence its name.

Lower Canada those parts ofNew France from the easternedge as far west as the OttawaRiver

Upper Canada the area fromthe Ottawa River to LakesOntario, Erie, and Huron, and the north shore of Lake Superior

WORDSMATTER


• Catholics in Lowerand Upper Canadahad to pay the titheto their church. TheChurch of Englandwas given one-seventh of all new lands assigned.

• There was to be alegislative assembly topass laws in each Canada. Voters, which meant only menwho owned property, could choose their representatives atelections. These elected representatives could suggest lawsbut did not have the power to pass them.

• There would also be a legislative council in Lower andUpper Canada, appointed by the lieutenant-governor, topass laws.

The Constitutional Act was a success. It kept the competinggroups happy. Lower and Upper Canada entered a period of rapid growth.


John Graves Simcoe, lieutenant-governor of Upper Canada, addresses the first meeting of parliament in September, 1792, in this 1955 painting by F.S. Challener. The first session took place in a humble wooden military barracks in what is nowNiagara-on-the-Lake.

Upper Canada’s first parliament building, constructed in York (now Toronto) in 1794,was actually two brick buildings joined by a covered walkway. In 2001, the remains ofthe building were discovered near the corner of Front and Parliament Streets.

CheckpointOnly men were allowed to vote.What does this say about therole of women during this time?

During READING


The Loyalist Influence in Upper Canada Another organizational method that the Loyalists brought withthem from America was the township system. Under this system,surveyors divided large sections of land into individual lots. Unlessthe landscape prevented it, all roads were drawn in straight lines,and all lots were rectangular. Here is a diagram of a typical township.

Notes about this township:

• Concessions (Con.) run west to east.

• Side roads (S.R.) run north to south.

• All intersections are at 90º angles.

• It is laid out in imperial measurements—miles, yards, and acres.

• It is 6 miles (9.7 kilometres) from north to south and east towest.

• It is 36 square miles (93.2 square kilometres) in area.

Generally, surveyors aligned a township with the nearest majorlake. Townships between modern Toronto and Hamilton runparallel to the Lake Ontario shoreline, roughly southwest tonortheast. Townships slightly farther north aligned with LakesHuron and Georgian Bay. This gave them a more east–west andnorth–south alignment. Sometimes, when you cross a townshipboundary today, you’ll find that all the roads suddenly change theirdirection slightly. But you’ll probably find that they still intersectwith the other roads in the township at 90º angles.


township system a method oforganizing large sections of landinto individual lots

WORDSMATTER

1st in Canada

English Comes to OntarioUntil the arrival of theLoyalists, the English languagewas virtually unknown in whatwe now call Ontario. FirstNations languages and someFrench were spoken there. TheLoyalists brought English withthem. But this was AmericanEnglish, which had developeda new accent and some worddifferences from the Englishspoken in Britain. Forexample, • People in England say that

the weather gets cooler inthe autumn. People inCanada generally call thisseason the fall.

• British people use a flannelto wash themselves with. InCanada, we call it awashcloth.

The British introduced Englishto Australia and New Zealand.But American English came toOntario. So some differenceshave lasted until today.

Con. 1

Con. 2

Con. 3

Con. 4

Con. 5

Con. 6

Con. 7

S.R. 1 S.R. 2 S.R. 3 S.R. 4 S.R. 5 S.R. 6 S.R. 7

Diagram of a typical township in Upper Canada.


The Loyalist Heritage in Upper CanadaThe Loyalists brought to Upper Canada their ideas aboutelections, freehold land, and systematic planning of townships.They also brought the English language. They worked hard toestablish a few key communities. Later, immigrants would pour infrom Britain and Europe. They too added their contribution to thedevelopment of Upper Canada. But the Loyalists had begun theprocess. Upper Canada would probably not have developed as fastas it did without them.

This was very important. You will see in the next chapter thatBritain and the United States went to war again in 1812. Much ofthe fighting took place in Upper Canada. If the Loyalists had notdeveloped it as quickly as they did, the United States might havewon the war. So you can see, Canadians owe a lot to the Loyalistsand their efforts.


THINKING It Over

1. In your own words, summarize the differencesbetween what the Loyalists left in America andwhat they found in Québec. Why would thismake them unhappy?

2. Look at the map on page H 102. Use it toexplain how each of the Canadas got its name.Why do people today often mix up the twonames?

3. Write down the following, with your reasons:

a) Two things that the Loyalists would haveliked about the Constitutional Act

b) Two things that the Canadiens would haveliked

c) One thing that the First Nations would have liked

4. Draw and label a neat sketch of a typicalLoyalist township in your notebook. Below your

sketch, make a list of differences between thissurvey system and the system used in NewFrance (page H 15).

5. Obtain an Ontario road map or a street atlasthat shows your local area. Look closely at thepattern of roads and communities.

a) What characteristics of the township surveycan still be seen in your area?

b) Which aspects of the original survey havebeen changed?

c) To what extent has the township surveyshaped i) the road pattern? ii) the population pattern?

See page S 6 in the Skills Tool Kit for help.

t

t

k

tk

k


PLAY

Equipment

• a game board

• two dice (different colours or sizes)

• a calculator

• a scoring sheet

How To PlayA. With three other people, play the roles of

family leaders trying to plan a township andget the best free land for themselves.

B. The game board represents the layout of the new township. Each lot has a value from 1 to 10, depending on its distance from theriver system and the quality of the soil. Yourfirst task is to assign the lots that will belongto the Crown and the lots that will belong tothe Church of England. According to theConstitution Act of 1791, each must receiveone-seventh (or 5 each) of the total number oflots in the township.

Decide which die represents columns A to F (1 = A, 2 = B, etc.), and which one representsrows 1 to 6. Player A rolls the two dice. Findthe lot at the intersection of the row and thecolumn indicated, and mark it on the gameboard as a Crown lot. Roll again, and mark theindicated lot as a Church lot. Take turns rollingthe dice until you have assigned 5 lots to theCrown and 5 lots to the Church. If a roll

selects a lot that you have already assigned,roll again until you select a vacant lot.

C. You now have 26 lots available for thefamilies. Player A rolls the dice and claims thelot on the board. Player B rolls, and so on. If aplayer selects a lot that has already beenassigned, the player passes the turn withoutgetting a lot.

Go through ten rounds, or until all the lotson the board are taken—whichever comes first.

D. Add up the values of the lots that each playerowns at the end of the game. The winner isthe one with the most points. Add up thevalues for the lots owned by (a) the Crown, and(b) the Church of England.

The Loyalist Land Scramble


THINKING It Over

Work with your game opponents to answer thefollowing questions.

1. Was what happened in the game predictableor unpredictable? Give a few examples toillustrate your point.

2. How well did the Crown and the Church ofEngland do in the land grab? Do you think itwas right that they should have been givenland in this way? Why or why not? t

k

1 1

2

3

4

5

6

A B C D E F

3 4 5 7 8

2 3 5 7 7 7

4 5 7 10 8 7

5 7 9 5 7 8

7 10 8 7 6 5

8 5 5 5 5 5



PUTTING It All Together

Imagine that you are a journalist time-travellingback to Upper Canada in the 1790s. Carry outone of these two research projects.

A. Research Loyalist Life

1. Use some primary and some secondarymaterials to research some of the challengesthat Loyalist families faced in Upper Canada inthe 1790s. See page S 10 in the Skills Tool Kitfor help.

2. Choose three major difficulties. Describe eachone and identify how it affected the lives of theLoyalists.

B. Research the Historical Development of Your Own Community

1. Use some primary and some secondarymaterials to research its origins, keypersonalities, and the contributions of variouscultural groups. See page S 10 in the SkillsTool Kit for help.

2. Find out whether Loyalists were part of yourcommunity history.

3. Find out what First Nations historicallyoccupied your area.

Follow your teacher’s instructions about theformat in which you are to present yourfindings.

a

t

You learned about a new group of people—the United EmpireLoyalists. You saw how they opposed the American Revolution,and migrated to Québec and Nova Scotia. You read about theimpact on First Nations. You examined the Loyalists’ influence onthe development of Québec: having it divided into Lower andUpper Canada in 1791, introducing the township system ofsurveying, holding elections to select representatives to thelegislature, and establishing the English language and common lawsystem in Upper Canada. In this way, they gave present-dayOntario many of its modern features.

CHAPTER IN BRIEF

Tie It TogetherWrite any missing answers intothe inquiry question chart youcreated at the beginning of thechapter. Use these and yourmap notes to write a summaryof what you have learned.

After READING

Inquiry Questions Answers


the influence of the loyalists on british north america · the loyalist migrations concentrated on...

Documents