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Looking Back, Moving Forward: Documenting the Heritage of African Nova Scotians

Letter from Theophilus Chamberlain to Surveyor General Charles Morris regarding land relinquished at Preston for the use of the Black Refugees and lands to be granted in compensation
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locating the Blacks upon those lands.

      In regard to the lands relinquished that which belonged to Mr. Wallace and Mr. Tidmarsh forms the best part of the settlement in front of Wentworth Hill, as you yourself know, and what belonged to me, the best part of that in front of Woodsman's, the largest settlement of the whole; and none of the relinquished lands are inferior in quality to those that were escheated and settled by the blacks.

      As to the titles of those relinquished lands, the one hundred and fifty acres relinquished by Mr. Wallace, one hundred acres by Mr. Hughes, and three hundred acres I have relinquished were all purchased of Government at the Maroon sale by public auction, and held by such titles as we received from Government, which if not good we have a claim in common justice on the faith of Government to see it done, and not permit us to be sufferers by a want of correctness in the titles thus received.

      The land relinquished by Wm. Lawson Esqr. he held in right of his wife, Daughter of Mrs. Jno. Lawson (formerly Henderson) who was the original grantee, and that of Mr. Tidmarsh he held in right of his wife to whom it was granted before their marriage; Robt. Obrien's (deceased) was principaly (sic) a grant of land passed 14th Decr. 1784 to me and 163 others.

      The representation of my being a monopolizer of land of which you gave me a hint, without being at all anxious as to its author — I do not hesitate a moment to declare it to be a gross falsehood. Tis true indeed that I bought of the disbanded Soldiers that left Preston three lots of 100 acres each, but in the meantime I gave away several small lots, and sold for trifling considerations, several fifty acre lots, to accommodate and encourage settlers; on four of which are good buildings and improvements, and after building the House and outhouses where Mr. Miller is, that at Wentworth Hill where Jordan lives and two smaller houses, and making considerable improvements on Lands about them, sold them and so much land with them, that having relinquished those lands to accommodate the Blacks, I do not at this time possess half so much land as was granted me when I first came


Date: 16 November 1817

Reference: Commissioner of Public Records — Black Refugees series Nova Scotia Archives RG 1 volume 419 number 101

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