A recent CHH comment from reader Meredith Johanson brought an interesting local history newspaper article to my attention. It’s from page 8 of the Sherbrooke [Québec] Daily Record of May 13, 1911, now available as a digital image at BAnQ.

The article was compiled by H. I Bullock, of Beebe Junction, Stanstead county, Québec. The compiler was a descendant of one of the earliest white settler families in the Eastern Townships of Lower Canada, the Ruiter family and, as of 1911, s/he possessed a number of historic Ruiter family documents.

The contents of several of these documents are presented in detail in the article, and include discussions of Ruiter family settlement in the Stanstead area, how farms and homes were created in the heavily-timbered forests of the “New Townships,” various local trades and supplies and their respective wages and costs, and early military affairs, with local militia rosters from 1809 and 1817.

The article is focused on Ruiter family documents, but many other early settlers are mentioned by name, including one William Clark, and several men with the surname Merrill. As far as we know—at the moment—none of these men are directly related to our Jonathan Morrell/Merrill Clark. But the information in this 1911 article does give a hint of what life was like for the first Stanstead-area settlers—such as Jonathan M. Clark’s still-unknown parents—in the early 1800s.

Bartlett, W. H, artist, A First Settlement, drawing, brown wash on wove paper, c. 1840, National Gallery of Canada, public domain.

I have made no cuts to the article, and since the original is long, I have not included extra commentary. I have added more white space between paragraphs for ease of reading, made a few clarifications and citations in the Notes that follow, and added an illustration not found in the original. Here’s the complete transcription. I hope you find it interesting:

FACTS IN RELATION TO THE RUITER FAMILY / EARLY SETTLERS OF THE EASTERN TOWNSHIPS

(Contributed to the Record by H. I. Bullock, Beebe Jct.)

About 1784 John Ruiter with others came in the autumn from tbe Hudson and settled at Missisquoi Bay at a place since 1846 called Philipsburg, in honor of Col. Philip Ruiter. A Col. Henry Ruiter settled in Noyan about 1784 and in 1799 removed to Potton and built grist and saw mills. He had served in the British army during the war with the French and was living in Hoosac [sic]. N.Y., at time of the American Revolution.

In 1799 Capt. Jacob Ruiter came from New York and settled in Dunham township at a place called Nelsonville and built mills on the south branch of the Yamaska. He named the place from the naval hero of Trafalgar. This constituted the present bounds of both Sweetsburg and Cowansville.

Capt. John Ruiter. sr, came to Stanstead in 1796, located his farm, cleared a spot in the wilderness, erected a log house and returned to Colwell’s Manor [sic, Caldwell Manor]. His place there was about opposite Ash Island in the Richelieu River.

REMOVAL TO STANSTEAD.

In the spring of 1797 he started with his family and some of his stock, for his new home in Stanstead by way of Potton, over most wretched roads and through a dense forest full of all manner of obstructions.

CROSSING LAKE MEMPHPHREMAGOG.

He reached the western shore of Lake Memphremagog at a spot known as “The Revoir Place.” No means of crossing the lake presented itself, and a search for some boat in the shrubbery proving fruitless, he resolved to make a raft of tree trunks sufficiently large to convey himself and household over to Stanstead border. To most men of our days, such an expedient could not have been entertained for a moment. Lack of skill and resourcefulness would have deterred, but not to such as Mr. Ruiter or others of our forefathers who first assaulted our far-spread Canadian wilderness. Of iron resolution, unlimited patience and perseverance, and with magnificent muscular and bodily development, they came admirably prepared to meet and overcome all the obstacles and deprivations, fatigues and discouragements attending the settling of a new country When he had completed his raft he prepared a rude seat upon it for his wife and five children, attached a line to his oxen, led them into the water till they began to swim, at in this novel manner crossed the lake without accident.

Perhaps no other maritime feat on Memphremagog has ever rivalled this in danger or hardihood. A slight changing of the people on the raft or a stroke from the hoof of the swimming oxen, would have precipitated the occupants into the water, and one or more deaths were sure to have followed by drowning.

THE HOME IN THE FOREST.

After this experience, more laborious travel through underbrush, over fallen timber and rocks ensued, while they suffered much from clouds of mosquitoes and black flies in their way through the woods. Finally they reached the clearing the Captain had made the year before, and to the eyes of Mrs. Ruiter the log house, rough as it was, seemed to smile a welcome to her. They soon got well settled in their new home, and the Captain quickly turned his attention to putting in crops, enlarging his fields, erecting barns and out-houses, and preparing for an active and pros­perous future.

His was a nature that rebelled at the circumscribed life of the ordinary settler, and caused him to undertake other enterprises in connection with his farming duties.

NOTES FROM AN OLD DAY BOOK.

Among other means of adding to his income, he kept a store, a cobbler’s shop, took boarders, and accommodated travellers. From an old day book of his, lying before me, yellow with age and with ink now faded almost beyond the possibility of translation, I will select various entries to lay before the reader, that he may see how different in many re­spects business was then conducted, and in what manner the settlers managed to acquire the competence they left their children.

March 16th. 1796, is a charge of 10 shillings and 9 pence for 1,400 nails— sold by count and made by the blacksmiths. These hand-wrought nails can be found today in any very old barns or houses a hundred years of age.

Apl. 29th, 1796, Samuel De Mary has credit for sharpening Plow Irons 9 shillings, and is charged with 1/2 bushel of ashes, 3 pence.

May 24th, 1796, he is credited by “Shoeing span of Horses, 1 shilling and 6 pence”—equal to 30 cents, which would be extraordinarily cheap for these days.

Philip Derk has credit by “Weaving,” 9 shillings and 7 pence.

May 16th, 1796, is this entry “Settled with Thomas Filer from the beginning of the world ’till this day. Balance due John Ruiter, £0-9s-5d

May 27th, a hat was charged to Filer for 1 pound 2 shillings—probably a tall silk hat, as such were kept for sale by country merchants in those days.

By a charge to a neighbor, we find that coarse salt was sold at $1.50 per bushel.

Nov. 5th, 1796, Samuel Brown was charged to 2-1/2 pounds of indigo for £l-5s-0d.

Nov. 20th. the blacksmith was credited with making 54 nails, 1 shilling.

Dec. 27th, S. Brown purchased 4-1/4 pounds of indigo, £2-2s-6d.
Evidently Mr. Brown’s people were making up their wool into the blue and white frocking so much worn then, and also a certain portion into nice checked material for a new dress for Mrs. Brown and daughters, if he had any.

Apl. 4th, 1797, Winthrop Merrill is credited with “One day’s work,” 2 shillings (40 cents).

Hix Salls [sic] is charged with 60 bushels of ashes at 10 cents per bushel.

Jan 3rd, 1798, John Booth is credited with one yoke of steers, 18 dollars! This was certainly not in the day of any Beef Trust.

Aug. 20th. 1798, Asa Young had credit for “chopping one acre of land,” 10 shillings. This means cutting down all of the trees that stood upon an acre of land—likely with a six pound axe. Where is the fellow that can do this now, or would undertake to do it for only two dollars?

Aug. 28th, the same man was credited with reaping one acre of wheat, and took for his pay one bushel of wheat. This was another smart man’s day’s work.

Johnson “Tapling” had credit for weaving 24-3/8 yards frocking. Pay was 10 shillings 1-1/2 pence. The yarn for this would be prepared and colored at home, then sent to Mr. Taplin’s to be woven. A dye-tub was constantly kept by our grandmothers and often used by them. A spinning wheel was nearly a universal accessory, but looms not so common, so that often the greater portion of the annual wool crop would be woven by a neighbor who possessed a loom. Weaving was considered very hard work indeed. Price, 8 to 9 cents per yard.

Sept. 22nd, 1797. Philip Peasley bought 4 bushels wheat and agreed to bring in even exchange, corn at rate of 1-1/2 bushels for each bushel of wheat. Seba Beebe is charged to one martin skin, 2 shillings and 6 pence.

Zerea Beebe worked three weeks for one pair of shoes, according to an entry of March 3rd, 1798.

Dec. 11th, 1798, “This day reck­oned writh John Ruiter all book accounts from the beginning of the world to this day, as witness our hands.” Signed by Seba Beebe and John Ruiter. Another characteristic receipt in full.

Thomas Filer is credited with 2 pigs, 6 shillings and 8 pence.—Cheap for these days.

March 26th, 1799, Andrew Young has credit for “shoring” timber, 8 pence; falling one acre of timber, 12 shillings and 6 pence.

John Burt is credited with “Falling trees 3 days and piling logs one day.” Joseph Friott earned 2 shillings and 6 pence in “Lopping limbs.”

David Enos worked one day “Dressing Flax,” 2 shillings and 6 pence; “Spinning yarn 15 runs,” 9 shillings and 2 pence.

One skein was two runs. Price for spinning yarn for warp was 12 cents per skein, and for filling was 10 cents, for the reason that the latter did not require to be twisted so hard and so took less time and labor.

Andrew Young has credit for “Threading cains,” 9 pence. These are reeds for the loom.

Thos. Filer is charged May 22nd, 1800, with “Rent of flax ground,” 1/2 acre, 10 shillings.

Gordon Lawrence has credit for 3-1/2 days’ threshing (with flail), 2-1/2 laying up fence, 4 piling logs, 4 piling brush, and 3 days shearing. This would indicate a big flock of sheep, also that the Captain’s clearing was being greatly enlarged.

April 19th, 1801. Ephraim Hopping is charged, “Going to Missisquoi River, hauling him and half bbl. pork, 4 dollars.” This was perhaps the Hopping located at “Hopping Falls,” now known as Smith’s Mills.

Nov. 6th, Winthrop Merrill is charged with 3 yds. “Tow Linen, 6 shillings.”

May 16th, 1801, Joseph Fr[i]ott is charged with 1 peck salt, 5 shillings —a big price.

July 16tb, 1800, Martha Putney is credited with weaving 36 yards of cloth, 15 shillings, and 10 yards for 4 shillings and 2 pence.

These transcriptions will give a fair idea of the various transactions that constituted the daily avocations of our forefathers who settled what was then known as “The New Townships.” Their aim at first was to get a comfortable log house, one that would be impervious to storm or cold; and the next, to clear enough land to grow a crop sufficient to feed the family through the succeeding winter. It may well be imagined that they had to be very industrious to do this, our seasons are so short. Where they could do as Captain Ruiter did, make his opening and erect his cabin the year before he moved his family, then much of the hurry would be avoided, though plenty re­mained to be done in the following years.

EARLY MILITARY AFFAIRS.

From “Forests and Clearings”¹ I will copy a few lines that well ex­plain the situation of military affairs in these Townships a few years after they were partially settled by our forefathers.

“In 1802, Sir John Johnson was appointed Lieut.-Colonel of the third battalion, Eastern Townships Militia. The able men were gathered, companies were formed, and officers appointed. They met once or twice in a year. Their ‘trainings’ were usually held in the largest openings in the settlements. The men appeared upon parade in their homespun, everyday clothing. Some with old army guns, some with old fowling pieces, and some with guns ‘without locks, stocks, or barrels.’ Some of the officers of these companies had had experience in military affairs; but most of the others, like the privates, might have presented the appearance of ‘the awkward squad’ in a regular drill. Three compan[i]es were organized in Stanstead in 1803. The officers were Charles Kilborn, John Ruiter and Thomas Friott, captains; Andrew Young and Thomas Fyler, lieutenants; Johnson Taplin, ensign; Benjamin Kilhorn and Richard Copp, sergeants. ”

CAPT. RUITER’S COMPANY.

I do not know if this company was kept in existence very long or allowed to neglect its drill until all semblance of military formation had lapsed. I am inclined to believe the latter, as I have the roster of Captain John Ruiter’s company dated Jule [sic] 26th, 1809, but none earlier. This list is as follows:

“Officers: Captain, John Ruiter.
Lieutenant, Thomas Filer.
Ensign, Ed. Boyington.
Sergeants, Benjamin Kilborn, Johnathan Rogers, Dudley Davis, Peter Little.
Corporals, Thomas Beebe, Johnathan Bachelder, Thomas Turner, Selvenis Claflin.
Music, Francis House, Enoch Quimby, Moses Heath, age 26; Levi Gasset. age 28.

Privates, Ebenezer Baley, Ebenezer Baley jr., Reuben Howe. Shulbel Carpenter, Amos Carpenter, Ebenezer Stoddart, Thomas Turner, Samuel Dillaware, Linsford Morey, Asa Glidden, Amos Perkins, Gad Kempfield, William Perkins, William Perkins jr., Moses Norris, Mesheck Norris, Benjamin Morey, Joel Claflin, Nathan Cross, David Annis, John S. Davis, Josiah Lamb, Sampson Davis, David Beebe, Stephen Walvert, Silvanus Claflin, Daniel Beebe, Jediah Ruggles, John Merrill, Joseph Gould, Roger Fletcher . Ebenezer Dodge, John Ober, Israel Ober, John Ober jr., Moses Merrill, Asa May, James Stickney, Samuel Pinkham, William Roger, George Little, Samuel Scott, John Berry, Edward Worth, Jonathan Bachelder, John Moses, Richard Maynard, John Pike, Abner Daygh.

ANOTHER COMPANY LIST.

Another company list of his dated July 25th, 1817, contains the following names:

Sergeants—Nathaniel Gilman, Daniel Davis.
Music—Francis House, John Ruiter, jr., Charles Carpenter.

Privates—Jonas Hines, Thomas Williams, Jabez Page, John A. Chapin, Eliphalet Little, Jacob Worth, Silas Danford, Caleb Carpenter, Ezra Carter, Gidead [sic] Goodspeed, John Merrill, Peter Little, John Linsey, Mishack Norris, Henry B. Perkins, Thomas Beebe, James Steel, Nathaniel Foss, Daniel Williams, Joel Williams, John Cevea, Erastus Thomas, Isaac Kindrel, David Norris, Samuel Jacobs, Silas Mack, Charles Carpenter 2nd, William Glidden, William Clark.

Almost an entire change in the members of this second company, and a material reduction in the number composing it.

THE 1813 MEMORIAL.²

I will close this paper with a copy of a letter from “Mr. Brenton (Secretary to His Excellency the Governor) to McGale of Farnham, in answer to the Memorial from the New Townships,” as it is docketed.

“Castle of St. Lewis, Quebec, 2nd Feby., 1813.

“Sir,—I am commanded by His Excellency the Governor in Chief to acknowledge the receipt of your letter to him of the 26th ult., with the Memorial accompanying it from the New Townships in the Eastern District, and I am directed by His Excellency to acquaint you that previous to the receipt of the Memorial he had given orders that 120 men only should he required from the whole of the Townships to be formed into two companies to serve as light Troops under their own Captains and Subalterns in the vicinity of Isle aux Noix,³ and that directions had been given to Lieutenant-Colonel Johnson to that effect. The proportion as well as the nature of the service His Excellency trusts will he considered as light by the Memorialists when compared with what will be required under the next Draft for the militia from the other parts of the Province. His Excellency has the fullest confidence in the loyalty of the Memorialists and in their disposition to make every effort for the defence of the country and hopes they will be satisfied that in the measures he has adopted respecting the Townships he has consulted their interests as far as he could consistently with the safety of the Province at large.

“You will please to communicate this letter to the Memorialists, and believe me to be.

“Sir, your Obedient Servant,
“(Signed) E. B. BRENTON.
“S. Gale, Esq.
“True Copy (Sig.) S. Gale.”

As Captain Ruiter was one of the memorialists, he was sent a copy as directed.

Coming up…

I hope you enjoyed today’s article and its depiction of various aspects of life in the vicinity of Jonathan M. Clark’s purported birthplace of Stanstead, Lower Canada in the late-18th and early-19th centuries. My thanks again to Meredith Johanson for guiding me to this unique source.

I have many more related documents to show you as we continue our Search for JMC’s roots, and I plan to have those published here shortly. And by the way, I’ve also been making changes and updates to the official Jonathan Clark House website. Click the link and take a look at what’s going on at the Jonathan Clark House Museum this summer!

I’ll be back soon with more Clark House history!

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NOTES:

1. Hubbard, B F, and John Lawrence. Forests and Clearings: The History of Stanstead County, Province of Quebec, with Sketches of More Than Five Hundred Families. Montreal: Printed for the publisher by Lovell Print. & Pub. Co, 1874. For more on this book, and its usefulness in our search for JMC’s roots in the Stanstead area, see my 2020 post, Your Weekend Reading: Forests and Clearings.
   
   
2. In the 19th-century, a memorial, written and signed by one or more memorialists, was “a statement of facts, especially as the basis of a petition.” (New Oxford American Dictionary)
   
   
3. The Îsle aux Noix [Isle of Nuts or Nut Island], is an island in Lower Canada/Québec’s Richelieu River, near the north end of Lake Champlain. The French built a fort there in 1759, and the island and its fortifications have played a role in the Seven Year’s War, the American Revolution, and the War of 1812. For more info, you can start with the Wikipedia articles for Îsle aux Noix and the Fort Lennox National Historic Site.