The manner of laying out and drawing lots in the townships, as first agreed on, did not work very well and led to a vigorous remonstrance on the part of Capt. William Spry, which is dated at New York, April 11th, 1768. The “remonstrance” appears to have been framed after consultation with others of the committee appointed by the Proprietors to carry on the settlement of the Townships, and its contents were approved at a meeting held the next day. The “remonstrance” was addressed to Rev.’d Dr. Oglevie and William Johnstone, Esq., and to such other Proprietors, or their attornies, as were then in New York. The document is of sufficient historic value to be quoted in full:—

THE REMONSTRANCE

Of Capt. William Spry, one of the said Proprietors, sets forth,—

“That the manner in which the Townships of Gage and Sunbury have been divided among the Proprietors, puts it out of their power to settle their respective 211 shares, the Lots being only sixty-five rods in breadth, and from four to six miles in depth; that therefore no family at the first settling of those lands will go so far back into the Woods as to be deprived of the advantages of the River, and that there is not breadth enough in the lots but for very few families to be accommodated even supposing the Proprietors under the necessity of granting away the most valuable part of their lands, which would probably be the case, as the time allowed to complete the settlement is nearly expired.

“That even granting those long narrow slips of land could be settled, their being situated in so many places (in the several townships) and so different from each other, makes it absolutely impossible for a Proprietor to look after them with that care and attention which the establishing of new settlements must require.

“That the inclosing those several lots must of course be attended with great expense and the fixing their boundaries be very liable to create disputes.

“Capt. Spry therefore proposes the following Plan to the Society, viz.:—

“1st. That every Proprietor shall have his proportion of all the lands in the several Townships (except Conway, as will be hereafter explained) in one Township only, that Townships to be fixed by Ballot.

“2nd. That when the Proprietors have drawn the Township their lot is to be in, they draw again for their particular lot in that Township.

“3rd. That the lots in each Township be divided so as to be as nearly of equal value with one another as possible, the expense of which to be defrayed by the Society in general, in case the division cannot be settled by the survey already taken.

“4th. That all the Islands be divided into sixty-eight lots and drawn for, except Perkin’s Island which is to remain in common among all the Proprietors.[76]

“5th. That the Saw Mill also remain in common among all the Proprietors for Twenty years from the date of the Grant, and then to devolve to the Proprietors of the Township it is in.

“6th. That as the Townships of Gage and Sunbury have been surveyed and the places for the Town Plots fixed by Charles Morris, Esq., surveyor of Nova Scotia, that as ten families were sent to the River last Fall and could get no farther than Fort Frederick, by reason of contrary winds, and therefore are not as yet fixed to any particular Township, and as several other families have been procured to be sent this Spring by different Proprietors, who without an immediate drawing for the respective Townships cannot know to what Township to send their settlers, it is proposed that there should be a drawing for these Townships without loss of time, and also for the lots in the Townships of Gage and Sunbury, in the presence of two Magistrates of this City, which said lots Capt. Spry will undertake to make as equal a division of as the nature of the thing will allow.

“The Division of the Townships among the Proprietors is proposed to be as follows, viz:—

212

“The Townships of Gage, Burton and Sunbury, containing 100,000 Acres each, to be divided among twenty Proprietors to each Township, which will be 5,000 acres to each Proprietor.

“The Township of Conway, containing 50,000 acres, being conveniently situated for the Fishery, to be divided among all the Proprietors in equal lots and drawn for, which will be about 735 acres to each.

“The tract northwest of Maugerville of 20,000 acres (granted separately) and that of 20,000 acres adjoining, granted with the Township of Sunbury, to be made one Township of 40,000 acres and to be called New-Town, and divided among eight Proprietors, which will be 5,000 acres to each Proprietor, the same as in the other Townships.

“By this method of dividing the townships all the lots will have a sufficient breadth upon the River, and the worst lot there can possibly be among them, will be of more value to any one Proprietor than the five best lots of the several Townships laid out as they are at present.”

Signed W. SPRY.

A meeting was immediately held at the house of George Burns, innholder, in New York, and it was unanimously decided by the proprietors of the townships and their agents, to annul the former division of lands and adopt the proposals of Capt. Spry. In accordance with this decision the proprietors or their representatives, held a meeting on Wednesday the 20th of April, 1768, and in the presence of Dirck Brinckerhoff and Elias Desbrosses, justices of the peace and aldermen of the City and County of New York, made a drawing of the townships in the manner proposed, the result of which appears below.

Map of the River St John in the province of Nova Scotia.
Exhibiting The Grants to Officers &c. in 1765 with other patents.
From the Survey of Mr Chas Morris and other surveyors.

TOWNSHIP OF GAGE.

Lot. No.

  1. John Lewis Gage.
  2. Daniel Disney.
  3. John Fenton, Esq.
  4. Beamsley Glasier, Esq.
  5. Dr. Thomas Blair.
  6. James Finlay.
  7. Jacob Jordan.
  8. George Johnstone.
  9. Thomas Clapp.
  10. Oliver Delancey, jr., Esq
  11. Col. Frederick Haldimand.
  12. William Keough.
  13. Rev. Phillip Hughes.
  14. Charles Morris, jr., Esq.
  15. William Johnstone, Esq.
  16. Synge Tottenham.
  17. William Spry, Esq.
  18. George Gillman.
  19. Frederick Haldimand, jr.
  20. Guy Johnstone.

TOWNSHIP OF SUNBURY.

Lot. No.

  1. Alexander John Scott.
  2. Dr. Robert Bell.
  3. Thomas Hutchinson, Esq.
  4. John Collins, Esq.
  5. John Irving, jr., Esq.
  6. John Desbruyeres. Esq.
  7. Francis Greenfield.
  8. Daniel Carleton.
  9. Thomas Smelt, Esq.
  10. Richard Shorne.
  11. George Fead.
  12. Edward Bulkely, Esq.
  13. John Leake Burrage.
  14. Oliver Shorne.
  15. Isaac Caton.
  16. John Norberg.
  17. Hugh Parker.
  18. James Allen.
  19. James Simonds.
  20. Nathaniel Rogers, Esq.

213

TOWNSHIP OF BURTON.

“The Town Plot not being fixed this Township could not as yet be divided into lots, but is to be as soon as possible: the Proprietors who drew the Township were: John Porteus, Thomas Falconer, sen’r, Esq., John York, Esq., Daniel Robertson, Joseph Peach, Esq., William Parker, Charles Pettit, Ralph Christie, Esq., Daniel Claus, Esq., William Evins, Esq., John Campbell, Esq., Joseph Howard, John Cox, Thomas Falconer, jun’r, John Treby, Esq., James Porteus, Richard Burton, John Livingston, Esq., Samuel Hollandt, Esq., Benjamin Price, Esq.

TOWNSHIP OF NEW TOWN, OR THE FORTY THOUSAND ACRE TRACT.

“This Township is under the same circumstances with that of Burton; the Proprietors who drew the Township were: Thomas Moncrief, Esq., Rev. John Ogelvie, D. D., Moses Hazen, James Jameson, William Hazen, Richard Williams, Charles Tassel, Esq., and James Hughes.”

  1. John Lewis Gage.
  2. Daniel Disney.
  3. John Fenton, Esq.
  4. Beamsley Glasier, Esq.
  5. Dr. Thomas Blair.
  6. James Finlay.
  7. Jacob Jordan.
  8. George Johnstone.
  9. Thomas Clapp.
  10. Oliver Delancey, jr., Esq
  11. Col. Frederick Haldimand.
  12. William Keough.
  13. Rev. Phillip Hughes.
  14. Charles Morris, jr., Esq.
  15. William Johnstone, Esq.
  16. Synge Tottenham.
  17. William Spry, Esq.
  18. George Gillman.
  19. Frederick Haldimand, jr.
  20. Guy Johnstone.
  1. Alexander John Scott.
  2. Dr. Robert Bell.
  3. Thomas Hutchinson, Esq.
  4. John Collins, Esq.
  5. John Irving, jr., Esq.
  6. John Desbruyeres. Esq.
  7. Francis Greenfield.
  8. Daniel Carleton.
  9. Thomas Smelt, Esq.
  10. Richard Shorne.
  11. George Fead.
  12. Edward Bulkely, Esq.
  13. John Leake Burrage.
  14. Oliver Shorne.
  15. Isaac Caton.
  16. John Norberg.
  17. Hugh Parker.
  18. James Allen.
  19. James Simonds.
  20. Nathaniel Rogers, Esq.

It was agreed that the various islands in the River St. John belonging to the townships should be surveyed as soon as possible and divided into 68 lots. It was also agreed that the Saw Mill, erected or in course of erection in the Township of New Town should remain the common property of all the members of the society for the space of twenty years from the date of the grant, expenses attending the building or repairing of the mill to be borne by all the proprietors of the several townships, and after the expiration of twenty years to become the property of the grantees of New Town.