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The Old U.E.L. Burying Ground Settlement
of Upper Canada, Wm. Canniff, 1869 No township is more rich in historic matters, pertaining to the U.E.
Loyalists than Adolphustown. Here
settled a worthy band of refugees whose lineage can be traced back to noble names
in France, Germany and Holland. Here was the birthplace of many of Canada’s
more prominent and worthy sons and here repose the ashes of a large number of
the devoted pioneers. As the steamboat enters to the wharf at Adolphustown, the observer may
notice a short distance to the west, upon the summit of a ridge, a small
enclosure in which are a number of second growth trees, maple and oak. He may
even see indistinctly a few marble tombstones. If he walks to the spot he
will find that the fence is rough, broken and falling down. Casting his eye
over the ground he sees the traces of numerous graves, with a few marble
headstones and a long iron enclosure within which are buried the dead of the
Casey family with a marble slab to the
head of each. The ground generally is covered with the debris of what once
formed enclosures of individual graves or family plots. When visited by the writer, one grave, that of Hannah Vandusen, had
growing out of its bosom a large poplar tree, while the wooden fence around
was falling and resting against the tree. The writer gazed on these
evidences, not alone of decay but neglect, with great regret and with a sigh.
For here, without any mark of their grave, lie many
who were not only noble U.E. Loyalists, but who were men of distinction and
the fathers of men well known in Canadian history. Mr. Joseph B. Allison,
accompanied us and pointed out the several spots where he had seen buried
these illustrious dead. In the north-west corner of the ground, with no trace even of a grave
to mark the spot, lies the old Major, who commanded the company. Mr. Allison
was present, although a little boy, at his burial. The event is fixed upon
his mind by the fact the militia turned out and buried him with military
honors. We stood on the spot overgrown with thorn trees and felt a pang that
his name was thus forgotten and his name almost unknown. Close by is a neat marble headstone to a grave, upon which is the
following: “Henry Hover, departed this
life, August 23rd, 1842, aged 79 years, 5 months and 17 days.”
Noble man! Imprisonment with chains for nearly two years, with many hardships
during and after the war, did not make his life short and we were thankful he
had left descendants who forgot not to mark his resting place. The entrance gate to the ground is at the east side. To the right on
entering, a short distance off, is an oak tree. Between the gate and tree was
laid the body of Nicholas Hagerman. Sad to say, nothing indicates the resting
place of the earliest lawyer of the Province and the father of Judge
Hagerman. In the middle of the ground rests the dead of the Casey family. The
two old couple whom we remember to have seen when a boy in their green old
age, lie here. “Willet Casey died age 86. Jane, his wife, aged 93.” We would say to all here buried, Requiescat
in pace. But the very crumblings of the
enclosures which were put around the graves by sorrowing friends when they
died cry out against the neglected state of the ground. The efforts which
have repeatedly been made to put the place in repair ought to be repeated and
a stone wall at least made to effectually enclose the sacred dust. |
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An
Old Burying Ground Weekly British Whig June
21 1883 The
Spot Where Our Forefathers Sleep It
is Neglected and Overgrown with Trees A Kingston paper remarked a few days ago that an attempt will probably soon be made to repair the surroundings of the old U.E. Burying Ground at Adolphustown. We sincerely trust, says the Belleville Ontario, that soon an attempt will be made, and that it will be more successful than previous attempts of a similar nature. Twenty years ago the fence that once surrounded the sacred spot had rotted away to such an extent that the place was a -------- . Second growth trees were then growing from the graves of the pioneers, and unsightly shrubs and bushes disfigured the ground. Since then little or nothing has been done to improve the appearance of the place. This old burying ground contains within its narrow limits the resting places of a number of noble men and women. It is related that soon after the company of Loyalists under Capt. Vanalstine landed on the shores of Adolphustown a small child died and was buried beneath some spreading maples. A few days later, one of the pioneers was killed by a falling tree, and his remains were laid near those of the little one. This was the beginning of the U.E. Burying Ground. At the present time it is difficult to distinguish the spots where the graves were made nearly one hundred years ago. The late Joseph B. Allison, a son of one of the noble band of pioneers, could point out the location of most of the resting places of the Loyalists. He could remember the burial of Capt. Vanalstine, although but a small boy at the time. The grave was in the north-west corner of the ground, and now there is not a post to mark the spot where the veteran commander "sleeps the sleep that knows no waking." It is doubtful if a dozen residents of the very neighborhood can lead a visitor to Capt. Vanalstine's grave. Stunted thorn trees and bushes cover the spot. Near by can be seen a neat marble slab recording the death and age of Henry Hoover, one of the pioneers who lived to see his four-score years. His children and grand-children did not forget his services in life, and so marked his resting place. Near the oak tree on the eastern side was laid the body of Nicholas Hagerman, one of the first lawyers of the province, and the father of Judge Hageman. His grave, too, is without a mark. We could mention others of the Loyalists who first settled in Adolphustown, whose bodies await the judgment call in the "old U.E. Burying Ground" near the shore of the beautiful Bay of Quinte. There noble services should be more suitable recognized, and their memories venerated by their descendants. We trust, therefore, that a speedy and successful effort will be made to properly enclose and preserve this ancient piece of "God's acre." |
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The
Monument Jan 29 1884 British Whig At a meeting held in Adolphustown Town Hall on Jan. 23rd for the purpose of arranging for the commemoration of the landing of the United Empire Loyalists in Adolphustown, Parker Allen, Esq., was elected Chairman and Joseph B. Allison, Secretary. Moved by M.L. Pearson and seconded by Dr. Clark, that the Committee appointed be instructed to take into consideration the erection of a suitable monument in honor of the U.E. Loyalists; that in the event of deciding that monument should be erected they secure a design; that their recommendation be presented to this meeting, which shall adjourn to the call of the chair, that the Committee be instructed to consider the propriety of repairing the fence around the U.E. Loyalist graveyard. Nov 13 1886 Daily British Whig The centennial memorial committee, Adolphustown, have awarded the contract for erecting the U.E. memorial monument to a Napanee firm. The monument is to be twenty feet high from the base and to cost about $500. July 26 1900 Daily British Whig V. Kouber, marble dealer, Napanee, is repairing the Casey family plot in the old U.E. Loyalist burying ground, Adolphustown.
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Toronto Star Nov 21 1931 |
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Cattle
Tramp Over First Tombstones of Pioneers at Adolphustown Toronto Star Nov 21 1931 Fast Forgotten Adolphustown, Nov. 20 – In the hallowed ground of their first cemetery – while present-day United Empire Loyalists meet throughout the province to celebrate their proud ancestry – groundhogs burrow through the bones of the original band of Loyalists who landed in Canada from the United States in 1784. Only a few rods from the United Empire Loyalists’ landing-place here is the desolate burying-ground of the loyal pioneers. On June 16, 1784, they landed from their rough bateaux. At their head was major Vanalstine appointed to lead them before they sailed from New York. Gray now as the memory of their axe-strokes, are the fence posts and the scantlings around their last resting place. Buried in the grass are half a dozen or more thin, old-fashioned tombstones. Longer remembered, stones of Caseys and Ingersolls, in the centre, surrounded by an iron railing, still remain standing. The graves of the Allison family in the northwest corner, had a railing in time to save them from pasturing cattle. The plots of the Hill family, too, latest to be buried there, are protected by a wire fence and gate, but not from moss and lichen sheltering in the sunken letters of their nameplates. Under the broken headstone of Mary, wife of Henry Hoover, a ground hog has one of his several doorways. An Early Death Cattle probably split the gray stone commemorating the death of Hannah VanDusen, “who deceased May 6 1791, aged 31 years, was the wife of Conrad VanDusen and faithfully discharged the duties of companion and parent and a citizen.” Toward the erection of the first Methodist church in Canada, there was no more generous subscriber than Hannah’s husband. Here, propped up by white marble stones, once marking the graves of Andrew Huffnail and Sarah, his wife, leans askew the memorial headpiece to Jacob Huffnail. He died February 22, 1880, in his 83rd year. “Being the son of a U.E. Loyalist, he retained his loyalty to the British crown to the end of his life.” The inscription reads. Doubly pathetic now above a warren of groundhog holes is the naïve rhyme at the bottom; “Our bodies lied beneath the sod, our spirits gone to live with God.” Near this very spot must have occurred the first burial of the Adolphustown Loyalists. On the Wednesday afternoon they landed here, a little child died from fatigue and exposure. Its name, according to J.B. Allison, oldest man in the village, was Huffnail. Pioneer Hazards “A few months later, one Caspar Hoover, a relative of Barbara Heck, was killed by a falling tree while engaged in clearing his land. His body was laid beside that of the little child. Walter S. Herrington, K.C., historian of Lennox and Addington, has established. “Here,” Mr. Herrington pointed out, “lie mouldering the ashes of many of Adolphustown’s illustrious dead. Tombstones they had not and slabs of wood, long since decayed, were the only markers for the graves until in later years, stone monuments were introduced. But they, too, have crumbled away or the inscriptions have become so obliterated that few can now be deciphered.” All his long life, J.B. Allison has lived within sight of this place. At 92, in full possession of his faculties, he recalls his efforts to mark the place, at least, for future generations, at the time of the centenary celebrations. Largely through his efforts, as secretary, the monument how standing at the edge of the old burial ground was dedicated with Masonic honors before a great concourse of people from all over Canada. On the base of its granite shaft is inscribed the following legend. “In memory of the U.E. Loyalists who through loyalty to British institutions, left United States and landed on these shores on the 16th of June, 1784.” In spite of the fence that was put around it at the time of the centenary and in spite of the provisions made through the women’s institute to cut the grass from time to time, the approach of oblivion has been sure and steady. “Most of the graves never had tombstones,” said Mr. Allison. “And nobody has a record of the plots, but, at least, a plaque might tell some of the story of the forefathers of men like Sir Alan Aylesworth, Sir Richard Cartwright, Sir Gilbert Parker, Sir John A. Macdonald, R.S. McLaughlin and J.F. Hoover.” “The graves all sank down level or were tramped down by the cattle,” said Mr. Allison, “and the old cemetery was pastured. My mother’s father was that same Henry Hoover whose stone now lies broken in the ground.” |
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The
U.E. Loyalists’ Forgotten Monument Canadian Statesman Sept 8
1955 We have always held the United Empire Loyalists in high regard, but after a visit to the U.E. Loyalist burial ground at Adolphustown last week, our esteem for the descendants of these courageous pioneer Canadians was somewhat shattered. To say the least, the shocking sight of this historic burial ground was a disappointing and deplorable spectacle. These grounds are situated on a slight elevation of farm land which tapers south to the beautiful Bay of Quinte, south of Napanee. To reach this hallowed spot you drive through farm property, over an unbeaten path or road. Our pilgrimage was also hindered by several barbed wire fences. Abandoning our auto, we wended our way through fields of high grass to the 20 foot marble monument several hundred yards away. We have seen many deserted and unkempt cemeteries, but this historic one, without exception, was the most forlorn and wretched specimen we have seen. The large monument stands there neglected through the years and ready to topple over. The inscription reads: “In memory of the United Empire Loyalists who through loyalty to British institutions left the United States and landed on these shores on the 16th of June, A.D. 1784.” Within the enclosure, which was originally surrounded by an attractive iron fence, now corroded with rust and falling to pieces, the several family tombstones have fallen over and are settling in the ground, covered over with grass, weeds, moss and dirt, making it impossible to read some of the inscriptions. More could be written about this forgotten and consecrated shrine, but we hope enough has been said to stir up action before it is too late by members of the U.E. Loyalist Society. While making a mental survey of the landscape surrounding the burial ground, the thought came to us that it is admirably located whereby it could be converted into a National Park, with easy access for a road from the main highway and plenty of suitable level park land along the Bay of Quinte. In a future issue we might give a brief history of the emigration of the U.E. Loyalists to Canada around 1783, outlining some of the hardships and sacrifices they endured. Many have played a great part in Canada’s history. It has often been recorded “That no prouder Canadians live than those who can say they are of U.E. Loyalist descent. |
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Kingston Whig Standard Oct
16 1955 |
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Loyalists
to Restore Old Burial Grounds At Adolphustown Canadian Statesman Nov 3 1955 Statesman readers may recall that in our issue of Sept. 8th, after the editor had accompanied Dr. L.B. Williams on a trip to Adolphustown to see the U.E. Loyalist burial ground, he wrote an editorial describing the deserted condition of this historic cemetery. The editorial was reprinted and commented on by several other newspapers. This publicity evidently had a desirable effect for we learned this week that the Toronto Branch of the United Empire Loyalists Association plans to spend $12,000 in restoring these sacred grounds, overlooking the Bay of Quinte. In raising the above amount in less than two months, the Loyalists were greatly helped by generous donations from Col. and Mrs. R.S. McLaughlin, Oshawa, Dr. and Mrs. L.B. Williams, Bowmanville , Mr. A.R. Lundy and Mr. H.R. Pollock, Toronto and others. Two other Durhamites are associated with this commendable project, Wilton H. Elliott, President of the U.E.L.’s Toronto, whose father, the late John Elliott, B.A., was a former principal of Bowmanville High School and James P. Lovekin, Toronto, native of Newcastle, who has been the dynamic moving spirit as chairman of the Restoration Committee. This may seem like a lot of money to spend on a plot two hundred yards square, but on looking the plans over they do not seem to include anything not necessary for a permanent and finished piece of work fitting to the memory of the Loyalists. A pair of handsome wrought iron gates with wide stone piers open on to a flagstone terrace. A little off centre, the monument erected in 1884, has been made the focus of the design. On either hand, paths run parallel to the iron fence surround the property. Directly opposite the entrance and on the north site of the plot, a stone wall sixty feet long is being erected and the broken stones will be erected on it like memorial tablets. The planting includes borders of flowering shrubs and a bed of aromatic plants so that persons entering the garden will be greeted by colour and fragrance. All paths and beds will be curbed by Kingston limestone. One novel feature is aromatic mint interplanted in the flagstone terrace. It seems that in walking on it, it gives off a fresh aroma and is not injured by the traffic. A plaque on one of the entrance pillars tells by whom the plot was restored and gives as the reason “that Canadians may remember the sacrifices of the Loyalists to preserve our British heritage.” A plaque on the other pillar reads: “In memory of that band of Loyalists under the leadership of Major Peter VanAlstine who landed here the 16th of June, 1784, many of whom are buried within under unmarked graves.” And it ends with the text, “Put off thy shoes from off thy feet for the place whereon thou standest is holy ground.” A Provincial government official has stated to the editor that when the Loyalists complete their project, they are prepared to turn the entire peninsula into a provincial park which will be “a thing of beauty and a joy forever.” This park restoration was designed by one of Canada’s leading firms of landscape architects, Dunington-Grubb, Floyd and Stensson, Toronto, and is a unique garden design. When completed there will be a place where the memory of the Loyalists will be fittingly remembered and looked upon with pride and satisfaction by those who have been responsible for this project. It is hoped the official restoration ceremonies will be held next June on the anniversary of the landing of the Loyalists on June 16, 1784. |
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The Kingston Whig
Standard February 8 1956 |
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United
Empire Loyalist Adolphustown Cemetery Hold Ceremony June 16 Canadian Statesman June 7
1956 “A wise nation… fosters national pride and love of country by perpetual reference to the sacrifices and glories of the past.” – Joseph Howe. In a public ceremony at Adolphustown, on Saturday, June 16th, the Toronto Branch of the Untied Empire Loyalists’ Association is donating to Ontario a memorial to the Loyalists. Premier Leslie Frost will accept the donation on behalf of the Province and it will become the nucleus of a provincial park to be known as “The Bay of Quinte U.E.L. Park.” When the Loyalists landed at Adolphustown, they buried at the edge of the encampment, the victims of war and the privation of pioneering. This burial ground has been landscaped as a memorial and will be dedicated at a public service exactly 172 years after the landing of the same site, - 16th of June, 1784. The memorial at Adolphustown is of both historical and horticultural interest. It was from this point that the Loyalists fanned out to settle the Bay of Quinte district. Gardeners will be interested in the fact that this is the first time in Canada that landscape architects have been engaged to redesign a derelict burial ground. The design is based on the principles of colour, sound, and fragrance. Colour is furnished by flowering shrubs and sugar maple that will give a rotation of bloom from Spring to the turning of the leaves; sound, from white pine and aspen that move in a light breeze; and fragrance from beds of aromatic planting and interplanting on the terraces of thyme and mint. The broken stones were built into the wall in the manner of memorial tablets. The whole design was brought into relief by walks, stone piers, terraces and an ornamental iron fence and gates. The adjacent provincial park, bordering the Bay of Quinte, will contain a U.E.L. museum. On one of the bronze plaques at the entrance the Toronto Branch has given the reason for making this donation, “…. that Canadians may remember the sacrifices of the Loyalists to preserve our British heritage.” |
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The Kingston Whig
Standard June 13 1956
The Kingston Whig
Standard June 18 1956 |
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Solemn
Service Marks Burial Ground The Kingston Whig
Standard June 18 1956 Intrepid Spirit of Loyalists is Recalled by Premier
L. Frost Adolphustown – On a sun-drenched grassy slope facing the lovely blue Bay of Quinte, an audience of 1,100 people paid reverent tribute here Saturday afternoon to the loyalty, faith and stern purpose of their Loyalist ancestors. It was the occasion of the religious and semi-military service of consecration of the 172-year-old burial ground established a few days after the party of Loyalists from the Hudson River Valley disembarked here after a hazardous voyage up the St. Lawrence. These were “the real founders of this Canada of ours,” Premier Leslie M. Frost, head of the Ontario Government, observed in reference to the hardy band of pioneers. Saturday afternoon’s service was the climax to months of planning and organization, mostly by a committee spearheaded by the Toronto Branch, United Empire Loyalists’ Association. As the result of a revival of interest in the old burying ground, after neglect for years, a campaign was started to restore and improve the cemetery and if possible, establish the surrounding land as a park. Outstanding success was obtained by the UEL campaigners. Three months ago, the cemetery was tattered and torn, full of weeds and bare of any sign of loving care. The fence was ragged and most of the gravestones were broken and strewn around. Bulwarks of the committee were Mrs. R.S. McLaughlin of Oshawa and Mrs. W.H. Gutzeit, of Bath; James P. Lovekin, chairman of the Toronto group and Arthur L. Davies, publisher of the Whig-Standard and chairman of the Kingston area committee. The impressive spectacle, created almost overnight, that met the eyes of the interested visitors Saturday afternoon included a new wrought iron fence around the burial ground, with a fine stone entrance; a stone fence at the rear, which is faced with a dozen of the better-preserved tombstones and a well-cropped greensward setting off the granite monument, erected in 1884, which is about the only familiar relic of the neglected graveyard of a year ago. Even more important, Premier Frost announced in his address, the Ontario Government is about to acquire by purchase, the small farm of 34 acres on which the cemetery is situated, from J. Baker. Cemetery and farm are to become part of a great system of provincial parkland running along the northern shore of the Bay of Quinte and the St. Lawrence seaway area to the Quebec boundary. Not only were these brave men, women and children among the first citizens of Canada, Premier Frost declared in the main speech of the afternoon, but their example “has become one of the great inspirations for Canadians through the succeeding generations to the present day.” He expressed doubt that Canada could have survived through the fateful, dangerous years from the American Revolution to quite a few years after 1812 if it had not been for the continuing loyal spirit of the Loyalists and their families. “This is hallowed ground we are standing on,” the Hon. Mr. Frost declared. He recalled the long voyage of the Loyalist party from New York and the privations of their winter in Quebec. They had left New York City on Sept. 8, 1783, in seven small vessels. After the long winter in tents and other rude shelters, they started up the St. Lawrence on May 21 and arrived at what was to become Adolphustown on June 16, 1784. Soon after disembarking a child died of hunger and privation and the plot where she was buried on the hillside became the settlement’s cemetery. Within a few weeks, the second burial took place after a man had been killed when crushed by a large tree he was helping to fell. The premier pointed out that the settlement established one of the first municipal governments up to that time in any part of Canada. New entrance gates have been presented by Mrs. W.H. Gutzeit, of Bath, and many of the original grave stones erected on the face of a stone fence at the north boundary of the cemetery. Mrs. R.S. McLaughlin, of Oshawa, who was lauded for her assistance in the restoration, unveiled one of the two plaques at the gate. The other was unveiled by G.R. Stalker, reeve of Adolphustown Township. A trumpeter of the Queen’s York Rangers, Toronto, L.Cpl. Joseph Bruno, sounded “Last Post” and “Reveille.” Among the flags flown from the platform were the Queen’s Color and Regimental Color of the Queen’s York Rangers, which dates back to Loyalist times. The plaque on the right of the cemetery gate bears the following inscription: “In memory of the band of Loyalists, under the leadership of Maj. Peter VanAlstine, who landed here 16th June, 1784, many of whom are buried within in unmarked graves.” On the plaque on the left, the inscription reads: “This burial ground was restored 16 June 1956 by the United Empire Loyalists’ Association (Toronto Branch) and Adelaide Mowbray McLaughlin, UE. LLD., that Canadians may remember the sacrifices of the Loyalists to preserve our British heritage.” |
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Also
See: Includes a list of burials The Adolphustown U.E.L. Burying Ground Thos. W. Casey Thos. W. Casey Website |
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