The History of These Graves

by Michael J. Rudman

This article first appeared in The York Pioneer, 1999 (vol. 94), and is reproduced on the Fort York website courtesy of the York Pioneer and Historical Society.

Old Cemetery Tomstones:[i] (Source: John Ross Robertson’s, Landmarks of Toronto, Vol.1)[/i]Victoria Square Memorial Park, at the corner of Portland and Wellington West (just east of Bathurst), contains within its boundaries the oldest surviving European burying ground in historic Toronto. The burying ground, opened under Lieutenant-Governor Simcoe in 1793 or 1794, is a rectangle of land (approximately 300 feet by 125 feet) oriented to true compass east, set diagonally across the modern park. A cluster of mostly illegible grave markers at the foot of the cenotaph in the centre of the park is the only above ground indication of the site. When the park was created in 1886, all the legible grave markers, both wood and stone, were moved to a specially created memorial terrace on the western side of the lot, and additional earth was added around the now unmarked grave mounds to level the surface of the ground, but the graves themselves were not disturbed. We actually know the position of each grave thanks to a plan of the site which was made before the removal of the markers. Over the years the memorial terrace deteriorated due both to vandalism, and the effects of weather. The wooden markers rotted away completely, while many of the stone ones were left as broken fragments. In 1935 the terrace was dismantled and the stones and fragments stored at Fort York where they remained until the early 1950s when they were placed in their present position at the base of the cenotaph.

I wonder how many of those who use this park today realize they are continuing an age-old tradition as they stroll along its shady walks, or enjoy their lunches at the picnic tables? Do they sometimes pause and think of those who lie buried beneath their feet? I like to think they do. It was a custom in the early days of Christianity, and indeed in pre-Christian times, to eat a meal at the burial place of a loved one on the anniversary of their death. Even as late as the 19th century, graveyards were favourite places for Sunday outings and picnics. The difference of course, at least in rural settlements, was that the dead were still thought of as part of the community. They would be remembered as individuals, not just names on stones. In fact, as Wordsworth illustrates in the dialogue between Leonard and the Priest from his poem "The Brothers," sometimes even markers were unnecessary.

 

Priest:

The stone-cutters, ‘tis true, might beg their bread 
If every English churchyard were like ours.
We have no need of names and epitaphs,
We talk about the dead by our firesides.
Leonard: Your dalesmen, then, do in each others thoughts
Possess a kind of second life. No doubt
You, sir, could help me to the history
Of half these graves?

 

Cemetery Photo: Victoria Square, view across the burying ground looking east, ca. 1884. On the right is a double marker on the graves of the Forsyth brothers. The large house in the background at the southeast corner of Wellington [Place] Street and Portland Street belonged to William A. Lee, a mortgage broker. [i](Source: Toronto Reference Library)[/i]


Most of the markers that survive in the Victoria Square Park have been worn smooth by the elements. For years there has been no one to speak their mute testimony. And what of all the markers that do not survive? Over the past several years I have spent a good deal of time at the Burying Ground researching its story, reviving the memory of its dead. Let me, then, help you to the history of at least a few of these graves.

Katherine Simcoe

Katherine, the seventh child and sixth daughter of Lieutenant Governor and Mrs. Simcoe, is the first recorded burial in the Old Garrison Burying Ground. She was born on January 16th, 1793 at Niagara/Newark, now Niagara-on-the-Lake. From a letter that Mrs. Simcoe wrote in February of that year we learn that Katherine was not born at Navy Hall, the residence of the Simcoes.

I was, the greatest part of the winter, in daily expectation of being confined. I have taken the canvas house we brought from England for my own apartment; it makes two very comfortable and remarkable warm private rooms; it is boarded outside to prevent snow lying on it. The comfort I derive from these apartments was extremely great when I lay in, because being in a manner separate from the rest of the house it was very quiet.

The canvas house was to be Katherine’s home for most of her short life. On July 29th, Katherine, her sister Sophia and brother Francis, with their parents left Niagara/Newark, (the canvas house dismantled and packed), and moved across the lake. We even know that a favourite cat, white with grey spots, came with them. Beyond a creek, just east of the Queen’s Rangers’ camp, was the knoll on which the canvas house was re-erected. For the length of their stay this canvas house on the knoll was the Simcoe’s home, and the heart of the new settlement–though the actual town site, which would one day grow into the City of Toronto, was about two miles down the bay to the east.

The two canvas rooms, according to accounts rendered in March and April of 1792, were made in frames, each 38 feet 4 inches long by 12 feet wide, and 7 feet 2 inches high at the sides, with six glazed windows and a partition to each room. They were papered on the inside, and painted in oil colour on the outside. The floor was in sections, and when unscrewed, formed the travelling case for the whole structure. Specially constructed for Captain James Cook twenty years before, the house was bought by Simcoe at an auction in London. It is interesting to note that Simcoe’s father and Captain Cook had been friends and fellow officers in the Royal Navy. In the winter the house was boarded up on the outside and banked with earth. Heat was provided by an iron stove. Apparently the rooms had removable ceilings of some sort beneath the canvas roof. From Mrs. Simcoe’s diary:

4th (March, 1794) Though I wore 3 fur tippets I was so cold I could hardly hold my cards this evening. This is the first time we have felt the want of a ceiling which we have not had made in our drawing room because the room was rather low.

5th Very cold. I divided the room by hanging across it a large carpet which made it warmer.

This is the first mention of the houses being inadequate for the cold of a Canadian winter. Little Katherine, just over a year old, must have been affected by the cold like everyone else. Then suddenly on the 21st of the month the weather changed. Mrs. Simcoe comments in her diary, "The weather extremely warm;" and on Sunday the 23rd, "A very hot day." On the 29th she notes, "Rain and damp weather." The move from extreme cold to unusual heat in such a short space of time, followed by the onset of the damp and rain, may well be contributing factors in Katherine’s unidentified final illness. On the morning of April 18th while playing in her mother’s room the child appeared listless. Mrs. Simcoe was not seriously concerned as Katherine had been feverish for the last day or two cutting teeth, but in the afternoon the child started having convulsions. Their regular doctor was not available and Mrs. Simcoe had little trust in the ability of the one sent. She stayed up with Katherine whose convulsions continued intermittently for the whole of the night. Just before seven the next morning the child died. From a letter Mrs. Simcoe wrote home to England about a month after Katherine’s death:

She was the sweetest tempered pretty child imaginable, just beginning to talk and walk, the suddenness of the event you may be sure shocked me inexpressibly.

Little Katherine was buried on Monday the 21st of April, Easter Monday, in a burying ground that had been cleared in the brush just north of the canvas house where she died. The following year a small marble tombstone, sent from England, was placed on her grave. It read: "Katherine Simcoe, January 16, 1793 - April 19, 1794. Happy in the Lord." The stone disappeared from the Burying Ground sometime before 1850.

Christopher Robinson

Most famous for being the father of Chief Justice Sir John Beverly Robinson, Christopher himself led a not uneventful life in the thirty-five years allotted to him. Born and brought up in Virginia, he was educated at William and Mary College in Williamsburg. From his son’s description we know that he was very tall, and had fair hair and a light complexion. He left the college to aid the loyalist cause, joining the Queen’s Rangers, Simcoe’s regiment, in 1781. After the surrender at Yorktown, Virginia, Robinson was settled with most of his regiment in New Brunswick. Retiring on half-pay, he and his wife and family moved to Quebec in 1788 where he may have begun articling to become a lawyer.

In 1792 they moved to Upper Canada, living in Kingston until 1798. He was called to the bar at this time and went into practice. Shortly after Robinson’s arrival in Kingston, Simcoe appointed him Surveyor-General of woods and forests, and in 1796 he had been elected member of the House of Assembly for Ontario and Addington. In October 1798 the Robinsons moved to York (Toronto) which had recently been made the seat of Government. He had arranged for a log cabin to be built for himself and his family a little east from where the river Don enters the bay.

Sadly, only three weeks later, on November 2nd 1798, he suddenly died after returning to York from a long trip on horseback. The exact cause of death was uncertain, though his son, John Beverly, claimed it was an acute attack of gout brought on by cold and exposure. One of young John’s earliest memories was following his father’s coffin along the Indian path to the Burying Ground. This path corresponds more or less with today’s Front Street, though in Robinson’s day, before modern landfill, it hugged the shoreline. Christopher Robinson’s memorial plaque may be seen in Saint James Cathedral beneath one of the windows to the left of the main altar.

Benjamin Hallowell

Died. On Thursday last Benj. Hallowell, esq; in the 75th year of his age. - The funeral will be on Tuesday next, and will proceed from the house of the Chief Justice to the Garrison burying-ground, at one o’clock precisely. The attendance of his friends is requested.

Thus was Captain Hallowell’s death announced in the Saturday March 30th 1799 issue of the Upper Canada Gazette and Oracle. As we read, he was buried from the Chief Justice’s house. John Elmsley, the Chief Justice of the time, was Hallowell’s son-in-law. Elmsley House, the suburban villa of the Chief Justice built in 1797 or 1798, stood near the southwest corner of King and Simcoe Streets–the present site of Toronto’s symphony hall. A pencil drawing of about 1800 exists which shows us the house and its grounds as it must have looked around this time. Hallowell’s funeral, in a period when church funerals were the exception rather than the norm, would probably have taken place in one of the reception rooms at Elmsley House. The coffin, set on two chairs, would have had the lid laid at an angle over the top, so that those who wished could lift the shroud and view the face of their departed friend. Wine and cake would have been served, and sprigs of rosemary distributed to all present. The hymn, Swan’s "China", so popular at funerals of the time, would have, in all likelihood, been sung. Then the men making their way down Graves (Simcoe) Street would have taken the shore path to the Burying Ground for the committal. Women rarely attended actual burials in this period.

The Hallowell family had originally come from England and settled in Boston where Benjamin Hallowell became a Commissioner of Customs at the port. At the outbreak of the War of Independence he and his family, as loyalists, were proscribed and banished, his estate in Roxbury and his property in Maine, seized. Accompanied by the British army, in March 1776, the Hallowells and over 900 other loyalists left Boston for Halifax. Later that year the family moved back to England. In 1796 Captain Hallowell returned to Boston with his daughter Mary, now Mrs. John Elmsley, whose husband had recently been appointed Chief Justice of Upper Canada. Shortly after this he decided to settle in York with his daughter and son-in-law. At the time of his death he was in possession of a significant amount of land in and around the town. He owned lots 23 and 24 on King Street, just west of Elmsley House, and a substantial park lot which ran from the 2nd concession road (Bloor) to the 1st (Queen) on the west side of modern Dufferin Street. This land had been granted to him by the British Government to compensate for all he had lost in his devotion to the loyalist cause.

Captain Neal McNeale

Sometime early in May 1829 a portion of shoreline at the eastern end of Humber Bay was washed away bringing to light some human remains. These remains were identified as those of Captain McNeale. The raised shoreline between the Old French Fort (at the foot of modern Dufferin Street) and the Humber River was notoriously unstable, and during the mid-19th century numerous skeletons were exposed to view as the sandy cliffs gave way. Military ornaments and fragments of firearms were also frequent finds in the area. For the most part, these appear to have been relics of the American attack on York, April 27th, 1813. The enemy had intended to land at the ruins of the French Fort, but had been blown westward. The actual landing may have taken place at Wolfe’s Cove just within the curve of Humber Bay. A company of soldiers attempted to repulse the attack, but as Ely Playter recorded in his diary, ".... . heard the Granideer Co. of the 8th Regt. was near all killed their Captn. also." It was Captain Neal McNeale who fell fighting at the head of his company that morning. From a letter Mrs. W. D. Powell wrote to her husband on May 12th, 1813, we learn that after the Americans had withdrawn, "Dr. Strachan and the gentlemen of the town proceeded to the melancholy spots where the remains of our brave defenders were deposited a few inches below the earth; - the good Dr. gave them a Christian burial, and all assisted to secure their graves from further disturbance." From the plural "spots" we see that the enemy had buried the British dead in a series of shallow pits more or less where they fell along the shoreline.

When Captain McNeale’s remains were identified in 1829, Major Winniett, the commanding officer at Fort York, authorized the necessary measures be taken for their removal and reinterment in the Garrison Burying Ground. This took place with great ceremony on the 9th of May: accompanied by a firing squad and band, the Captain’s remains were followed to their place of reinterment by the officers of the Garrison and a procession of people from the town and vicinity. According to the Colonial Advocate (May 14, 1829), "The Military and Brass Band played the Solemn dead march in Artaxerxes." So we even know that he was finally laid to rest to the strains of the beautiful Larghetto from the overture to Thomas Arne’s opera.

Battersby’s Horses

Twas in the springtime of the year
just as the ships were sailing
That Battersby, eyes set for home,
had laid aside campaigning.
 
Two horses that had served him well,
so brave in field and battle,
Were led by him to the Burying Ground,
for he’d one last thing to settle.
 
To strangers he was loath to leave
his faithful horses’ keeping,
He would not see them beaten, lame,
teamed to a farm cart’s creaking.
 
So with heavy heart, to the Burying Ground
he his faithful horses led,
And stroking their manes, and calling their names,
he shot the horses dead.
 
Some say that, in the spring, they hear,
close by the graveyard railing,
The sound of ghostly horses’ hooves,
and ghostly, plaintive neighing.

Lieutenant Colonel Francis Battersby of the Glengarry Light Infantry Fencibles assisted Major Maule in repulsing the Americans at Burlington Heights on July 13th 1813. After the war, according to local legend, he did indeed shoot his horses. Despite many offers of purchase, he preferred this fate for them to the uncertainty of their treatment in the hands of other owners. They were taken to the vicinity of the Garrison Burying Ground, shot, and their carcasses buried on the spot. The only reported haunting connected with the Burying Ground is the sound of their phantom hoof beats.

John Saumarez Colborne

Before leaving for Quebec City in 1803, Chief Justice John Elmsley sold Elmsley House. The Government purchased it, and, after the War of 1812, it became Government House. On the 4th of November, 1828, Sir John Colborne, the new Lieutenant-Governor of Upper Canada, moved in with his family, including his 2 1/2 year old son John. Little John was to live less than a year at Elmsley House, as it was still sometimes called. On the 30th of July, 1829 he died from what the Colonial Advocate (August 6th) termed "cholera infantum." Sir John and Lady Colborne had a handsome tombstone erected over their son’s grave. It was of darkish stone with many tiny shell inclusions, shaped at the top in graceful curves ending in small finials at either corner. This stone can still be seen, set in cement at the base of the modern cenotaph, though sadly the inscription is no longer legible. It originally read, as transcribed in about 1886:

John
Saumarez Colbome
Born May 4 1826
Died July 30 1829

His grave, not far from the eastern edge of the modern park, was once surrounded by a small picket fence, as were a number of graves in the Burying Ground.

Barbara Mary Hudson

Barbara Mary’s tombstone also survives. It is much simpler than little John Colborne’s, but it is made of the same darkish stone with shell inclusions as his. Only the word "Memory" is faintly visible when the light strikes it at a certain angle. According to the Garrison Burial Register at Saint James Cathedral she was 14 months old when she was buried on July 18th, 1831. Her father, the Rev. Mr. Joseph Hudson, was to preside at her committal, but his name is scratched out in the register and Archdeacon John Strachan’s substituted. Rev. Hudson was chaplain to the Forces at York during this period, and sometime preacher at Saint James’. Relations between him and Archdeacon Strachan were, more often than not, strained. Rev. Hudson favoured the building of a new church for the use of the Garrison. It was to be erected on the same lot as the Garrison Burying Ground but on the Bathurst side facing the street. Sir John Colborne was in favour of the plan but Archdeacon Strachan was bitterly opposed. The matter was dropped until many years later when the Garrison Church of Saint John was built just back from the corner of Portland and Stewart Streets, north of the Burying Ground. The church no longer exists, but the 1870 church school building does. Much altered, it is a private residence and studio/theatre. Strachan was also very critical of Rev. Hudson’s behaviour during the cholera epidemic that raged through York in 1832. Not so the congregation of Saint James’ Church. They presented Hudson with a silver cup commemorating his courage and compassion in dealing with those dying of the disease. A number of the victims were interred at the Garrison Burying Ground.

Immediately preceding Barbara Mary’s entry in the Garrison Burial Register is the only blank in the whole register. This minor mystery leads us to our next, and final history.

Lieutenant Zachariah Mudge

The tombstone of Lieutenant Zachariah Mudge [i](Source: John Ross Robertson’s, Landmarks of Toronto, Vol.1)[/i]One evening in early June 1831 Lieutenant Zachariah Mudge, Sir John Colborne’s private secretary, made his way home from Government House to his rooms. Lieut. Mudge’s residence was situated midway between Colonel Nathaniel Coffin’s house and Mr. Edward Wright’s tavern "The Greenland Fisheries," about 15 or 16 feet distant from each. This would place it somewhat in from the northwest corner of modern John and Front Streets—now, unfortunately a parking lot. Lieutenant Mudge made ready for bed. Undressing, he placed his clothes on a chair, his boots to one side, he wound up his watch, carefully placing it in its usual place at the head of the bed. The room in perfect order, he retired.

In the middle of the night, as June the 9th passed to June the 10th, Mr. Wright was up attending a sick child–he lived with his family above a wing of the Greenland Fisheries Tavern on John Street. The child’s room, at the back of the building, was opposite Lieutenant Mudge’s. At about midnight, Wright heard a report which he mistook for thunder until he looked out the window at the clear starlit night. Early the next morning the Rev. Mr. Matthews, first classics master at what was later to be Upper Canada College, and close friend of the Lieutenant, arrived at Mudge’s lodgings on an appointment for a morning’s bathing in the lake. The Lieutenant was dead, his whole head and face shattered beyond recognition—the rifle ball was eventually found in the bolster at the head of the bed. As a suicide, strictly speaking, one was denied Christian burial, though this was usually circumvented with a ruling of temporary insanity. In Lieutenant Mudge’s case it seems Archdeacon Strachan decided on the letter of the law and forbade a clergyman to be present at the burial. It is just possible that the blank in the Garrison Burial Register was Rev. Hudson’s way of honouring the Lieutenant without crossing Strachan. The blank appears between the April 27th entry for Anne Milton and the July 18th one for Barbara Mary Hudson. Nowhere else in the tightly written burial record is there a blank entry,  and Rev. Hudson, as chaplain to the Forces, was in charge of the register.

Lieutenant Mudge’s death created quite a sensation in the town of York. To this day it has never been satisfactorily explained. What do we know of the man? He was 31 years old, of middle height and very fair complexion. The obituary in the Colonial Advocate (June 16, 1831) states, “... his countenance though not what would be termed handsome was mild, agreeable, and  indicative of a contemplative mind.” Yet he knew how to enjoy himself - from Mary O’Brien’s Journal (September 3, 1829): "Fanny and Richard seemed very merry at the top of the table with the secretary." I think we can fairly say that he was a compassionate person. At the inquest it was discovered that for a long period he had allowed a former servant who had fallen into a lingering illness the same wages as when he was well and in his service.

According to the Canadian Freeman (June 16, 1831), “. . . no man, we believe, that ever entered this colony, was more universally beloved, by all parties, than Mr. Mudge.” He was very much respected for the manner in which he discharged his duties as private secretary to the Lieutenant-Governor. Always prompt and fair-handed, he "studiously avoided all interference in party politics." The Lieutenant’s income, about 600 pounds a year, was evidently far beyond his expenditures, so financial embarrassment would not have been a contributing factor in his death. On the day of his death, a certain Captain Blois, recently returned from England, delivered a letter to him. Mr. Augustus Jones told the jury at the inquest that "he understood the deceased had, not long before, received tidings of the death of a dearly beloved friend in Europe, who had put a period to his own existence." He spent his last evening dining in company at Government House, where, at about eight o’clock it was observed that his mood changed abruptly. This gave rise to rumours that he had been insulted at table. So many clues, but no answers.

On Saturday the 11th of June, 1831, Lieutenant Zachariah Mudge was privately laid to rest in Garrison Burying Ground. Sometime later a large marble tombstone, still to be seen at the base of the cenotaph, was placed over his grave.

These and so many others now rest beneath the pleasant walks of Victoria Square Park in Toronto. If you ever chance to visit the park I hope you will take a moment to remember them, for it is in our remembering that they, like Wordsworth’s dalesmen, will “possess a kind of second life.”

[In the five years since this article was written there have been a number of changes at the Old Garrison Burying Ground and surrounding area: the grave markers have been removed from the foot of the cenotaph and taken away for conservation and eventual reinstallation in another location in the park; the church schoolhouse north of the site has been demolished to make way for a condominium; and plans are fairly far advanced for the relandscaping of the park. Research continues to turn up new information on the history and significance of the site.]

Michael J. Rudman is a composer and writer living in Toronto.

Select Sources

Brother Alfred. Catholic Pioneers in Upper Canada. Toronto: The Macmillan Co. of Canada Ltd., 1947.

Dictionary of Canadian Biography. Toronto: University of Toronto Press, Vols. 1-13, 1966-1974.Firth, Edith G. (ed.). The Town of York, 1793-1815. Toronto: University of Toronto Press, 1962.

----- The Town of York, 1815-1834. Toronto: University of Toronto Press, 1966.

Innis, Mary Q. (ed.). Mrs. Simcoe’s Diary. Toronto: Macmillan of Canada, 1965.

Lieutenant Zachariah Mudge Death Notices. York: Christian Guardian, 11 June 1831; Colonial Advocate, 16 June 1831; Canadian Freeman, 16 June 1831.

Martyn, Lucy Booth. Toronto: 100 Years of Grandeur. Toronto: Pagurian Press Ltd., 1978.

Military Burial Ground Commission. RG 251, City of Toronto Archives.

Miller, Audrey Saunders (ed.). The Journals of Mary O’Brien. Toronto: Macmillan of Canada, 1968.

Parks and Recreation Files. RG 12A, City of Toronto Archives.

Robertson, J. Ross. Landmarks of Toronto. Vols. 1-6. Toronto: 1894/96/98/1904/08/14.

Robinson, C.W. Life of Sir John Beverly Robinson. Toronto: Morang & Co. Ltd., 1904.

Rudman, Michael J. "The Old Garrison Burying Ground." Unpublished monograph, Fort York Archives, Toronto, 1996.

Rudman, Michael J. "The Burying Ground: An Historical Fantasy in Two Acts." Unpublished opera libretto inspired by the last days of Lieut. Zachariah Mudge, 1997.

Rudman, Michael J. "The Graveyard Shift," Historic Toronto, Vol. 2 Issue 3, Spring 1998, pp. 3, 10.

Scadding, Henry. Toronto of Old. Toronto: Adam, Stevenson & Co., 1873.

Stuart, Jacqueline. "The Old Military Burial Ground - Toronto,” The York Pioneer, Vol. 70, No. l, Spring 1983, pp. 1-7.

Veterans’ Monument. Toronto: The Globe, 2 July, 1902.

Wordsworth, William. The Ruined Cottage, The Brothers, Michael. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 1985

The Strachan Avenue Military Burying Ground

by Stephen A. Otto, 15 January 2005

Located a short distance west of Fort York, this burying ground occupies an area of 1.82 acres bounded by Strachan Avenue on the west, the tracks of the Canadian National Railway on the north, a surveyed line on the east, and a former railway right-of-way on the south.(1)

It is the city's third military cemetery. The first had been the old graveyard on Portland Street (Victoria Square) whose use from 1794 to 1863 has been well documented by Michael Rudman.(2) By 1863, however, it was full and no further burials were permitted. The last soldier laid to rest at Portland Street may have been James McQuarrick of the 63rd Regiment, who passed away in late April 1863.(3) When Sgt John Taylor of the 30th Regt. of Foot died on 19 June 1863 he was buried instead in the Necropolis, a public cemetery.(4) Presumably, the choice of a location for the new cemetery had not yet been approved.

The second military burying ground was situated on the Garrison Common within the present CNE Grounds near the Dufferin Gate. Likely the first person interred there, even before the ground was consecrated, was Pte James Walsh of the 30th Regt. whose funeral took place from "the Old Garrison" on 9 July 1863.(5) Unlike the Portland Street cemetery, the new one had Protestant and Roman Catholic sections. The former was dedicated by Bishop John Strachan on 4 August 1863, while the Catholic part was consecrated the following day by Bishop John J. Lynch.(6)

John Ross Robertson said only five or six interments took place there before the soil was found to be too wet and unsuitable for a cemetery. In late August 1863 a private of the 30th Regiment assigned to dig a grave for Pte John Mitchell was almost buried alive when the excavation collapsed around him.(7) Likely the last soldier to be buried in this ground was Pte John Harlow who died 21 Oct. 1863.(8)

Then, for a second time within four months, the military authorities had to pick a new burying ground. By mid-October, 1863, the lands on the east side of Strachan Avenue had been chosen and guidance was being sought from religious leaders on how to deal with the few burials in the second cemetery.(9) In early November Toronto City Council was asked if it had any objection to the opening of another military graveyard.(10) By the latter part of December a number of coffins had been moved to the new place.(11) The remains of Pte Walsh were among those transferred, since a gravestone bearing his name survives in the Strachan Avenue cemetery today. 

The third cemetery, like its predecessor, was divided into Protestant and Roman Catholic sections: the north half was reserved for Protestant burials and the south for the interment of Roman Catholics.(12) The former was consecrated on 18 December 1863 by Benjamin Cronyn, Anglican Bishop of Huron. Present at the ceremony were the Garrison choir and glee club, 100 strong, who marched round the ground three times under the direction of General Napier. The Roman Catholic section was dedicated on 22 December 1863 by Bishop Lynch.(13)

Unfortunately, no register of burials pertaining to the cemetery is known to exist. Hence, the information needed to compile a record of people interred there has had to be drawn from inscriptions on the markers that survive, from newspapers, regimental returns and archival records. The result is a list of 97 soldiers, veterans, their wives and children who died between 1862 and 1911. (Appendix A) A majority died from natural causes like asthma, consumption and aneurisms, but significant numbers drowned. (Appendix B) Most burials took place before 1870, when the British army turned Fort York over to the Canadian military and returned home. The religious affiliations of about forty-two are known: thirteen were Roman Catholic, nine were members of the Church of England, while the rest were "Protestant" or were buried in the Protestant part of the cemetery. 

This list is incomplete, since none of the documentary sources examined reported routinely on the deaths of soldiers' wives and children. Yet, as Michael Rudman has shown in his analysis of the Burial Record for the Old Garrison Burying Ground between 1825 and 1850, the number of adult females and children laid to rest there during that period (122) slightly exceeded the number of men (118).(14) Applying these ratios to the number of soldiers known to be buried in the Strachan Avenue ground (75), it follows that some 76 women and children may be interred there, though only 22 are known by name. In total, therefore, the cemetery may contain about 150 graves.

However, this number falls short of the approximately 200 graves John Ross Robertson said were there in 1888 after he counted the mounds of earth. His statement might be thought excessive but is corroborated somewhat by a memoir written about 1910 by a anonymous veteran who had served at Fort York in the 1860s.(15) The latter said that in 1863/4 a fatigue party from the 16th Regiment was assigned to help the military train transfer "60 or 70 bodies from Garrison Commons to Strachan Avenue, the men receiving 1s. 6d per day." Unless the old soldier erred in recalling that the second cemetery contained 60 or 70 burials, rather than only five or six, his account may explain the difference between the 150 burials extrapolated from known interments, and Robertson's count of 200 graves. More importantly, the 60 or 70 bodies he spoke of may have been the remains of soldiers who fell during the taking of York by the Americans in April, 1813. 

The records show that 130 men died in the attack on York: 55 Americans, 62 British regulars, 5 militia and 8 native allies. In his diary Ely Playter noted, "The Yankies had buried all the Dead & I perceived they had done it very ill."(16) Most were buried hurriedly in shallow graves. A month after the attack Mrs. W. D. Powell reported in a letter to her husband that Dr. Strachan and others had gone to "the melancholy spots where the remains of our brave defenders were deposited a few inches below the earth" to give them Christian burials and secure their graves.(17)

Among the casualties, an estimated 44 American and British soldiers were killed in an explosion of Fort York's grand powder magazine. Probably they were buried in one or more mass graves dug near the fort. Others who fell in battle were buried singly or in small numbers close to where they died. This could have been anywhere between where the invaders landed near the foot of present day Dowling Avenue and Fort York itself. In 1860 the remains of fifteen British and U.S. soldiers, identified from their buttons, were found in a trench grave near the intersection of Front Street with Bathurst by workmen excavating the footings there for a new bridge to the fort.(18) Scadding spoke of numerous skeletons being exposed as portions of the bank along the lakeshore fell away, but conceded some remains may have been those of early French and Indian traders. Only one washout is known by name: Capt. Neal McNeale of the Grenadier Co., 8th Regiment, whose bones came to light and were reinterred in 1829.(19) The bones of five American soldiers, identified by coins found among them, were uncovered in 1903 during the demolition of the fort's southeast bastion and eastern rampart to make way for an addition to a nearby pork-packing plant.(20)

Among the records of the City Parks department is a plan of the cemetery dated October 5, 1918. It locates 38 graves that had markers at that time; a majority of those markers still exist today. The plan also corroborates the description in a newspaper of the location of stones marking the graves "just inside the gate" of Colour Sgt John Hanney and Pte James Walsh, and of Denis Simpson "down in the corner."(21)

Pictures of the burying ground are rare. The earliest view, a pen-and-ink sketch made for John Ross Robertson in the 1880s, looks east across the cemetery towards Fort York. (Plate 1) A 1904 photograph was from a similar point of view. (Plate 2) Not reproduced here is a newspaper article of 1921 that was accompanied by a photograph of Hanney's and Walsh's stones.(22) The following year the City's Parks department prepared a sketch plan to illustrate a proposal to landscape the cemetery and assemble most of the stones in an artificial plot (Plate 3). This plot was depicted in a photograph taken in 1928 (Plate 4). A separate officers' plot containing four stones in good preservation was mapped on the sketch plan but does not show in the photo. It was left in situ until perhaps 1970.

  • Plate 1
  • Plate 2
  • Plate 3
  • Plate 4

Probably the withdrawal of the British army from Canada in 1870 had something to do with the speed with which the ground became overgrown and neglected. Few relatives of those interred there continued to live in Toronto and were able to pressure the authorities into maintaining the cemetery properly. A campaign to restore dignity to the site was sparked by a 1921 newspaper article describing the cemetery's condition as pitiful. The following year the Parks Department was authorized to level the mounds, collect the broken tablets into a square plot at the east end, replace the iron bars missing from the fence around the officers' plot, construct a cinder pathway across the ground and erect a flagpole, as shown in the sketch plan. The IODE traces its interest in the Strachan Avenue burying ground to 1922, when it presented a bronze tablet that was unveiled by the Mayor on 11 November. The IODE has held a ceremony at the cemetery on Remembrance Day annually since 1952, in recent years in co-operation with Heritage Toronto.

The grouping of broken tablets created in 1922 survived for less than fifty years. In 1970 City Council allowed the Toronto Historical Board, which had been given jurisdiction over the cemetery in 1961, to mount the markers in a brick wall in their present configuration.(23)

Notes to Text
  1. Charles Unwin, O. L. S., "Plan Shewing Exhibition Park and Garrison Commons," Toronto 12th Sept. 1906. Scale 150 ft. to 1 inch, Attached to grant of Garrison Common lands to City of Toronto, 17 May 1909. City of Toronto Archives [hereafter CTA].
  2. Michael J. Rudman, The Old Garrison Burying Ground. (1794-1862), rev. April, 1997. Privately published.
  3. The Globe [Toronto], 28 April 1863, p. 1, c. 9. McQuarrick's remains were reported to have been interred in the cemetery attached to St. John's Church, Bathurst Street, leaving little doubt his resting place was the Portland Street graveyard.
  4. Globe, 22 June 1863, p. 2, c. 4.
  5. Globe, 9 July 1863, p. 2, c. 5.
  6. The Canadian Freeman [Toronto], 6 August 1863, p. 2, c. 1.
  7. Globe, 25 August 1863, p. 2, c. 7.
  8. Public Record Office, London [hereafter PRO]: WO/3372, Quarterly Returns for 16th Regt. of Foot.
  9. Lt. Col. George Peacock to the Rt. Rev. J. J. Lynch, D. D., 21 October 1863, (LAHO8.12); same to same, 26 October 1863 (LAHO8. 13), Archives of the Roman Catholic Archdiocese of Toronto [hereafter ARCAT].
  10. The Leader [Toronto], 10 Nov. 1863.
  11. Globe, 19 Dec. 1863, p. 2, c 4.
  12. Anon., "Military Burying Grounds," n.d. MU 2095, misc. colln. #44, box 1, Ontario Archives
  13. The Canadian Freeman [Toronto], 24 Dec. 1863, p. 2, c. 1.
  14. Rudman, pp. 22, 32.
  15. Anon., "Military Burying Grounds."
  16. Diary of Ely Playter, 2 May 1813, Ontario Archives, reprinted in Edith Firth, The Town of York. 1793-1815, p. 282. Toronto: University of Toronto Press, 1962
  17. Mrs. Powell to W. D. Powell, 12 May 1813, Powell Papers, Toronto Reference Library.
  18. Globe, 13 Aug. 1860, p. 2, c. 7
  19. U.E. Loyalist [York], 9 May 1829
  20. Globe, 27 Oct. 1903
  21. Fred G. Griffin, "Old Soldiers in a Neglected Corner," Star Weekly, 20 Oct. 1921, p.9
  22. Griffin.
  23. City of Toronto by-law No. 84-70, passed March 4, 1970

Appendix A 
List of Persons Buried in Strachan Avenue Cemetery By Year

1863
Jul 7 Pte James Walsh, 30th Regt.

Aug 24 Pte John Mitchell, 30th Regt.
Oct 21 Pte John Harlow, 16th Regt.

Dec 28 Gunner Donald McTavish, 5th Batt, 10th Brigade, R.A

1864
Jan 25 Henry Smith, 5th Batt., 10th Brigade, R.A.
Feb 4 Pte James Henniker, 16th Regt.
Feb 29 Pte Michael Murphy, 16th Regt.
Mar 21 John McFee, 5th Batt., 10th Brigade, R.A.
Apr 1 Pte Myles Killegar, 16th Regt.
Apr 9 Ensign J. Ramsay Akers, 16th Regt.
Apr 23 Pte Cornelius Ryan, 16th Regt.
Aug 31 Margaret Common, infant daughter of Colour Sgt. James Common, RCR
Sept 9 Asst Commissary-Gen John Moira McLean Sutherland
Oct 18 Pte Joseph Walton, 16th Regt.
Nov 12 Charles Henry Leslie, son of Capt. George Leslie, R.A.
Nov 22 Pte George Hyde, 16th Regt.
Nov 28 Pte Christopher Toole, 16th Regt.
— Mary Anne Smith 
 
1865
Jan 18 Lance-Corp Thomas Eagan, 16th Regt.
Feb 14 Michael McCarthy, "D" Batt., 4th Brigade, R.A.
Feb 16 Ellen Lehene, infant daughter of Sgt Jeremiah Lehene, 1st Batt. 16th Regt.
Feb 20 Pte Patrick Gready, 16th Regt.
Mar 12 Pte Daniel Carroll, 16th Regt.
Mar 14 John Campbell, infant son of Serjt John Campbell, 16th Regt.
Jun 3 Colour Sgt John Hanney, H.M. 47th Regt.
Jul 20 Pte. John Gallagher, Royal Cdn. Rifles
Sept 10 Drummer John Shannaghan, 47th Regt.
Oct 15 Elizabeth Carmody, infant daughter of Pte Thomas Carmody, 47th Regt.
Oct 26 Pte Michael McCoy, Company E, 47th Regt. 
 
1866
Apr 1 Wm. John Smith
Apr 29 Pte Joseph Cocker, 47th Regt.
May 20 Michael James Cahill, son of Michael and Mary Ann Cahill, 17th Regt.
Jul 9 David Mills, "G" Batt., 4th Brigade, R.A.
Aug 2 Pte John Travers, 47th Regt.
Aug 11 Pte Mark Buxton, 17th Regt.

Aug 16 Rachel Ross, wife of Sgt-Maj Wm. Ross, 4th Artillery
Sept 3 Deputy Asst Commissary-Gen John Manley Rattle
Sept 16 Minnie Jane Ormsby, infant daughter of Supr Barrack Serj Thomas Ormsby
Oct 1 Pte Thomas Davis, 17th Regt.
Oct 10 William Sudbury, "D" or Grey Battery, 4th Brigade, R.A.
— Eliza J. Smith
 
1867
Jan 3 Pte Thomas Croft, 2nd Batt., 17th Regt.
Jan 16 James Ifield, driver, "D" Batt., 4th Brigade, R.A.
Jan 31 James Brown, labourer, "G" Batt., 4th Brigade, R.A.
Feb 15 William Smith, "D" Batt., 4th Brigade, R.A.
Apr 1 William Alexander Wood, son of William and Elizabeth Wood
Apr 6 Pte Joseph Simkins, 17th Regt.
Jun 14 Pte George Hutchinson, 17th Regt.
Jul 17 — Fitzgerald, tailor, formerly 4th Brigade, R. A.
Jul 23 Cpl John Smeeton, 13th Hussars
Jul 29 Charles Frederick Smith
Jul 29 Pte Samuel Callaway, 17th Regt.
Jul 29 Gunner Henry Robinson, "G" Batt., 4th Brigade, R.A.
Aug 9 Samuel B. Dummitt, infant son of Serj Samuel Dummitt, 17th Regt.
Oct 27 Pte John Connell, 17th Regt.
Nov. 29 Gunner F.D. Chapman, "F" Batt., 4th Brigade, R.A.
Dec 1 — Butler, infant son of Serj Alfred Butler, 2nd Batt., 17th Regt.
Dec. 4 Gunner John Phillips, "F" Batt., 4th Brigade, R.A.
Dec 25 [Pte?] William Smith, "H" Batt., 4th Brigade, R.A.
 
1868
Jan 1 Pte George Miller, 13th Hussars
Jan 12 Cpl Charles Bull, 13th Hussars
Jan 30 Gunner Augustus Thomas, "F" Batt., 4th Brigade, R.A.
Feb 21 Daniel Maher, driver, "H" Batt., 4th Brigade, R.A.
May 23 Trumpeter James McMahon, 13th Hussars
May 29 Pte F.C. Mulcahy, 17th Regt.
Jun 1 Serj Josh. Hewlett, 13th Hussars
Jun 2 Serj Alex Ballies, 13th Hussars
Jun 8 Pte Hugh Cannon, 29th Regt.
Jul 5 Pte George Matthews, 13th Hussars
Aug 18 Hospital Serj-Maj William Wilmot, 13th Hussars
Sept 27 Frances M. Jones, infant daughter of Serj-Maj and Agnes Jones, 29th Regt.
Oct 4 Walter Toronto Lewis, infant son of Frederick Lewis
Oct 6 Pte Richard Kilfoil, 29th Regt.
Nov 11 Pte James Lamb, 13th Hussars 

1869
Feb 8 Troop Serj-Major Joseph Coulter, 13th Hussars
4 Mar Corp John Galloway, 13th Hussars
May 20 Pte John Wilkinson, 29th Regt. 
 
1870
26 Mar Harriet Isabella Ormsby, dau. of Supr Barrack Serj Thomas Ormsby 
 
1875
Aug 12 Denis Simpson [Sampson] 
 
1880
Jan 3 Frederick Walter Gathercole, Jr., infant son of Serg-Maj Frederick W. Gathercole, Cdn. School of Infantry, and his wife Catherine Whelan 
 
1885
Feb 13 Sgt-Maj Frederick W. Gathercole, Cdn. School of Infantry
Apr 2 Pte Edward A. Heath, Cdn. School of Infantry 
 
1888
Catherine Carey 
 
1890
May 31 Cpl James William Craig 
 
1891
Apr 3 [Cpl?] Henry Holding, Infantry School Corps 
Dec. 12 Sgt-Major — Woodman, Toronto Field Battery
 
1892
Mar 4 Marguerite Restall, daughter of Pte William Restall, Infantry School Corps, and his wife Margaret Douglas 
 
1893
Oct 26 Lance-corp Donald McDonald, Royal Regt. of Cdn. Infantry
Dec 20 —, aged 2 yrs. 4 mos. 
 
1899
Aug 26 Pte Hugh Owen, Royal Canadian Dragoons 
 
1901
Jun 1 Walter Gathercole, son of the late Serg-Maj Frederick W. Gathercole and his wife Catherine Whelan 
 
1903
Dec 18 Pte George Adams, Ordnance Store Corps, late Royal Horse Artillery 
 
1905
Jul 31 Pte John Dobbie 
 
1911
Dec 22 Pte Robert Connell, Royal Canadian Regt. 
 
No date
Jane Connarton [Connorton]
Isabella Thomson
Infant 
 
List of Persons Buried in Strachan Avenue Cemetery by Name

Markers in varying states of decay survive for the names bolded below. In some cases the inscriptions cannot be read completely or with confidence. Transcriptions have been made on several occasions, first in 1922 by an anonymous reporter for The Telegram; then in June, 1953, by John A. McGinnis; and most recently in 1992 by J. Brian Gilchrist and William J. Patton. The readable portions of the inscriptions are reproduced in the endnotes. 

Underlying this list is an assumption that, unless there is evidence to the contrary, any soldier who was reported in his regiment's return to have died while on duty in Toronto was interred here. 

Adams, Pte George, Ordnance Store Corps, late Royal Horse Artillery, d. Toronto, 18 Dec. 1903, age 54. Protestant.1
Akers, Ensign J. Ramsay, 16th Regt., a native of Tunbridge Wells, Kent, drowned at Toronto, 9 April 1864, age 232
Ballies, Serj Alex, 13th Hussars, b. Ayr, Scotland, d. Toronto, 2 June 1868 of consumption3
Brown, James, "G" Batt., 4th Brigade, R.A., enlisted Bishop Staunton, Devon, d. Toronto 31 Jan 18674
Bull, Cpl Charles, 13th Hussars, b. Cirencester, England, d. Toronto, 12 Jan. 18685
Butler ---, newborn son of Serj. Alfred Butler, 2nd Batt., 17th Regt., d. Toronto, 1 Dec. 1867 of asthma, aged 2 days. Relig. C. of E.6
Buxton, Pte Mark, 17th Regt., d. Toronto, 11 Aug. 18667
Cahill, Michael James, infant son of Michael and Mary Ann Cahill, 17th Regt., b. 11 Aug 1865, d. 20 May 1866, aged 9 mos. 11 days. Roman Catholic.8
Callaway, Pte Samuel, 17th Regt., b. Wradburn, [England?], d. Toronto, 29 July 18679
Campbell, John, infant son of Serjt. John Campbell of 16th Regt., d. Toronto, 14 Mar 1865, aged 1 yr, 9 mos. Protestant.10
Cannon, Pte Hugh, 29th Regt., b. Glasgow, Scotland, d. Toronto, 8 June 186811
Carey, Catherine, d. .....1888. Roman Catholic12
Carroll, Pte Daniel, 16th Regt. of Foot, b. Borrisokane, Tipperary, Ireland, d. Toronto, 12 Mar. 186513
Carmody, Elizabeth, infant daughter of Pte Thomas Carmody, 47th Regt., d. Toronto, 15 Oct. 1865, age 2 mos. Roman Catholic.14
Chapman, Gunner F.D., "F" Batt., 4th Brigade, R.A., enlisted Banff, Scotland, d. Toronto, 29 Nov. 186715
Cocker, Pte Joseph, 47th Regt., b. Ashton, [England?] d. Toronto, 29 Apr. 186616
Common, Margaret, youngest daughter of Colour Sgt James Common Royal Cdn. Rifles, d. 31 August 1864, aged 1 yr 136 dys.17
Connell, Pte John, 17th Regt., b. Clonmel, Ireland, drowned in Toronto Bay, 27 Nov 186718
Connell, Pte Robert, Royal Canadian Regt., d. 22 Dec. 1911, age 43 yrs. Protestant.19
Connarton [Connorton], Jane. Protestant.20
Coulter, Troop Serj-Major Joseph, 13th Hussars, b. Dundalk, Scotland, d. Toronto, 8 Feb. 1869 of heart disease, aged 38 yrs. 5 mos. Relig. C. of E.21
Craig, Cpl. James William, b. Ireland, d. Toronto, 31 May 1890 of cerebral meningitis, age 24. Relig. C. of E.22
Croft, Pte Thomas, 2nd Batt., 17th Regt., b. St. Andrew's, Devon, England, d. Toronto, 3 Jan. 1867 from "injuries received from a rupture."23
Davis, Pte Thomas, 17th Regt., d. Toronto, 1 Oct. 186624
Dobbie, Pte John Hamilton, drowned 31 July 1905, age 33. Protestant.25
Dummitt, Samuel B., infant son of Serj. Samuel Dummitt, 17th Regt., d. Toronto, 9 August 1867, aged 1 yr. 81 days. Protestant.26
Eagan, Lance-Corp Thomas, 16th Regt., b. Athlone, Westmeath, Ireland, d. Toronto, 18 Jan. 1865 of burst blood vessel near heart. Roman Catholic27
Fitzgerald, —, formerly tailor in 4th Brigade, Royal Artillery, d. Toronto, 17 July 1867 by suicide, age about 3628
Gallagher, Pte John, Royal Cdn. Rifles, b. Kildare, Ireland, d. Toronto, 20 July 186529
Galloway, Corp. John, 13th Hussars, b. Antrim, Ireland, d. Toronto, 4 Mar. 186930
Gathercole, Sgt-Maj Frederick Walter, Infantry School Corps, d. Toronto, 13 Feb. 1885, age 42. Roman Catholic31
Gathercole, Frederick Walter, Jr., son of Sgt-Maj F.W. Gathercole and Catherine Whelan, his wife; b. Collingwood, d. Toronto, 3 Jan. 1880 of bronchitis, age 2 yrs. 5 mos. Roman Catholic.32
Gathercole, Walter, son of late Sgt-Maj F.W. Gathercole and Catherine Whelan, his wife; b. Toronto, d. Toronto, 1 June 1901 of consumption, age 19. Roman Catholic.33
Gready, Pte Patrick, 16th Regt. of Foot, b. Castlebar, Mayo, Ireland, d. Toronto, 20 Feb. 186534
Hanney, Colour Sgt John, 47th Regt., b. Woolwich, Kent, England, d. Toronto, 3 June 1865, age 36. Roman Catholic.35
Harlow, Pte John, 16th Regt. of Foot, b. St. James, Dublin, Ireland, d. 21 Oct. 186336
Heath, Pte Edward A., cadet in Infantry School Corps, born England, d. Toronto, 2 Apr. 1885 of phthesis, age 24. Relig. C. of E.37
Henniker, Pte James, 16th Regt. of Foot, b. Little Chart, Kent, d. Toronto, 4 Feb. 186438
Hewlett, Serj. Josh., 13th Hussars, b. Marylebone, London, d. Toronto, 1 June 1868 of consumption39
Holding, [Cpl?] Henry, Infantry School Corps (ISC), b. England, d. Toronto, 3 Apr. 1891 of debility after pleuropneumonia, age 20. Relig. C. of E.40
Hutchison, Pte George, 17th Regt. Infantry, b. Bradford, England, d. Toronto, 14 Jun 186741
Hyde, Pte George, 16th Regt. of Foot, b. Coddington, Hereford, England, d. 22 Nov. 186442
Ifield, Driver James, "D" Batt., 4th Brigade, R.A., enlisted Shadoxhurst?, England, d. Toronto, 16 Jan 186743
Jones, Frances M., infant daughter of Sgt-Major James and Agnes Jones, 29th Regt., d. Toronto, 27 Sept. 1868. Protestant.44
Kilfoil, Pte Richard, 29th Regt., b. Worcester, England, d. Toronto, 6 October 1868 of febris typhoid, aged 21 yrs. Relig. C. of E.45
Killegar, Pte Myles, 16th Regt. of Foot, b. Castlebar, Mayo, Ireland, d. Toronto, 1 Apr. 186446
Lamb, Pte James, 13th Hussars, b. Kelso, Scotland, d. 11 Nov. 1868 after being hit by railway train47
Lehene, Ellen, infant daughter of Sgt Jeremiah Lehene of 1st Batt. 16th Regt., and Margaret Casey, b. Toronto, Dec. 1863, d. Toronto, 16 Feb. 1865, aged 1 yr., 2 mos. Roman Catholic.48
Leslie, Charles Henry, son of Capt. George Leslie, R.A., d. 12 Nov. 1864, aged 6 yrs. 4 mos.49

Lewis, Walter Toronto, infant son of Frederick Lewis, d. Toronto, 4 October 1868. Protestant.50
McCarthy, Michael, "D" Batt., 4th Brigade, R.A., enlisted Buttevant?, Cork, Ireland, d. Toronto, 14 Feb 186551
McCoy, Pte Michael, Company E, 47th Regt., b. Dundalk, Scotland, drowned in Toronto Bay, 26 Oct. 1865, aged about 3252
McDonald, Lance-Corp Donald, Royal Regt. of Cdn. Infantry, b. 24 Sept 1863, d. Toronto, 26 October 1893, age 30. Protestant.53
McFee, John, 5th Batt., 10th Brigade, R.A., d. Toronto 21 Mar 186454
McMahon, Trumpeter James, 13th Hussars, b. Thomastown (??), Roscommon, Ireland, d. Toronto, 23 May 186855
McTavish, Gunner Donald, 5th Batt., 10th Brigade, R. A., d. Toronto, 28 Dec.1863, age 2656
Maher, Driver Daniel, "H" Batt., 4th Brigade, R.A., enlisted Cranbrook, Kent, d. Toronto 21 Feb 186857
Matthews, Pte George, 13th Hussars, b. Brecon, Wales, drowned 5 July 1868, aged 32 yrs. 5 mos. Relig. C. of E.58
Miller, Pte George, 13th Hussars, b. Poole, England, d. Toronto, 1 January 1868, age 30. Protestant.59
Mills, David, "G" Batt., 4th Brigade, R.A., enlisted Lanark, Scotland, d. Toronto, 9 Jul 186660
Mitchell, Pte John, 30th Regt. of Foot, b. Edinburgh, d. Toronto, 24 Aug. 186361
Mulcahy, Pte F.C., 17th Regt., d. Toronto, 29 May 186862
Murphy, Pte Michael, 16th Regt. of Foot, b. Myshall, Carlow, Ireland, d. Toronto, 29 Feb. 186463
Ormsby, Harriet Isabella, daughter of Supr. Barrack Serj Thomas Ormsby, late 91st Regt., d. Toronto, 26 March 1870, age 6 years, 4 months and 10 days. Protestant.64
Ormsby, Minnie Jane, infant daughter of Supr. Barrack Serj Thomas Ormsby, late 91st Regt., d. Toronto, 16 Sept 1866, aged 2 mos., 12 days. Protestant.65
Owen, Pte Hugh, Royal Canadian Dragoons, a native of Todcaster, Yorkshire, drowned Toronto, 26 August 1899, aged about 30. Protestant.66
Phillips, Gunner John, "F" Batt., 4th Brigade, R.A., enlisted Dorset, England, d. Toronto 4 Dec 186767
Rattle, Deputy Asst Commissary-Gen John Manley, M.A., Christ Church, Oxford, drowned at Port Hope, 3 Sept. 1866, aged 3968
Restall, Margaret, daughter of Pte William Restall, musician in the Infantry School Corps, and his wife Margaret Douglas, b. Toronto, 12 Nov. 1889 d. Toronto, 4 Mar 1892 of laryngial diphtheria, age 2 yrs 4 mos. Relig. C. of E.69
Robinson, Gunner Henry, "G" Batt., 4th Brigade, R.A., enlisted York, England, d. Toronto 29 Jul 186770
Ross, Rachel, wife of Sgt-Maj Wm. Ross, 4th Artillery, d. 16 August 1866, aged 89. Protestant.71
Ryan, Pte Cornelius, 16th Regt. of Foot, b. Kilfinnane, Limerick, Ireland, d. Toronto, 23 Apr 1864. [Roman Catholic?]72
Simpson [Sampson], Denis, d. 12 Aug 1875. Roman Catholic.73
Shannaghan, Drummer John, 47th Regt. of Foot, b. Malta, d. Toronto 10 Sept. 186574
Simpkins, Pte Joseph, 17th Regt. of Infantry, b. Wolverhampton, England, d. Toronto, 6 Apr. 186775
Smeeton, Cpl John, 13th Hussars, b. Nottingham, England, drowned 23 July 1867, aged 30. Protestant.76
Smith, Charles Frederick, d. 29 July 1867. Protestant.77
Smith, Eliza J., d. 1866. Protestant.78
Smith, Henry, 5th Batt., 10th Brigade, R. A., d. Toronto 25 Jan 186479
Smith, Mary Anne, d. ..... 1864. Protestant.80
Smith, Wm. John, d. 1 April 1866. Protestant.81
Smith, William, "D" Batt., 4th Brigade, R.A., enlisted Armagh, d. Toronto, 15 Feb 186782
Smith, William, "H" Batt., 4th Brigade, R. A., enlisted York, England, d. Toronto 25 Dec. 186783
Sudbury, William, "D" or Grey Battery, 4th Brigade, R. A., enlisted London, England, drowned in Toronto Bay, 10 October 186684
Sutherland Asst Commissary-Gen John Moira McLean, d. 9 Sept. 186485
Thomas, Gunner Augustus, "F" Batt., 4th Brigade, R.A., enlisted Woolwich, England, d. Toronto 30 Jan. 186886
Thomson, Isabella87
Toole, Pte Christopher, 16th Regt. of Foot, b. Boyle, Roscommon, Ireland, d. 28 Nov. 186488
Travers, Pte John, 47th Regt., b. Castlecomer, Kilkenny, Ireland, d. Toronto, 16 July 1866. Roman Catholic.89
Walsh, Pte James, 30th Regt. of Foot, b. Cork, Ireland, drowned in Toronto Bay, 7 July 1863, age 26. Roman Catholic.90
Walton, Pte Joseph, b. Westown, Bedford, England, d. Toronto 18 Oct. 186491
Wilkinson, Pte John, 29th Regt., b. Ellesmere, England, d. Toronto, 20 May 186992
Wilmot, Hospital Serj-Major William, 13th Hussars, b. St. Pancras, London, d. Toronto, 18 Aug. 1868 of aneurism of aorta, aged 42 yrs. 5 mos. Relig. C. of E.93
Wood, William Alexander, son of Wm. and Elizabeth Wood, b. Halifax, 14 June 1866, d. Toronto, 1 Apr 1867. Protestant.94
Woodman, Sgt-Major —, Toronto Field Battery, d. Toronto, — Dec. 189195
[Infant], died 20 Dec. 1893, aged 2 yrs. 4 mos.
[Infant], died ——, aged 1 yr. & 4 ds.96 


Notes to Appendix B
Telegram, 18 Dec. 1903, p. 3, c. 1.
  1. Public Record Office, London [hereafter PRO]: WO 12/3373, Quarterly Returns for 16th Regt. of Foot; Globe, 21 May 1864, p. 2, c. 5; ibid., 26 May 1864, p. 2, c. 5. A surviving marker is inscribed, "In memory of [J. Ramsay] Akers . . . [illegible]." Akers drowned with another soldier, Ensign B.O. Brownrigg, whose body was preserved, placed in a metallic coffin and sent to England instead of being buried in the Garrison Cemetery.PRO: WO 12/1132, Quarterly Returns for 13th Hussars; Globe, 6 June 1868, p. 2, c. 6.
  2. PRO: WO 10/2506, Quarterly Returns for "G" Batt., 4th Brigade, R.A.
  3. PRO: WO 12/1131, Quarterly Returns for 13th Hussars.
  4. Diocese of Toronto Archives, Anglican Church of Canada [hereafter ADTA], Records of St. John the Evangelist, Toronto, military death reports, 1867-69.
  5. PRO: WO 12/3490, Quarterly Returns for 17th Regt. of Infantry.
  6. Archives of the Roman Catholic Archdiocese of Toronto [hereafter ARCAT], Baprtismal Register for St. Mary's Parish, Toronto. A surviving marker is inscribed, "In Memory of / Michael James Cahill / son of / Michael & Mary Anne / Cahill / 47th Regiment / Born Aug. 11, 1865 / Died May 20, 1866 / Aged 9 months & 11 Days."
  7. PRO: WO 12/3491, Quarterly Returns for 17th Regt. of Infantry.
  8. A surviving marker is inscribed, "This stone was erected by armory Serjt. John Campbell / I.B. / 16 Regt. / In memory of his son / John / Who Died / Mar. [14?] 1865 / Ae. 1 yr & 9 mo's / Suffer little children to come / unto me and forbid them not for / of such is the kingdom / of Heaven."
  9. PRO: WO 12/4552, Quarterly Returns for 29th Regt. of Infantry.
  10. "Remember Dead of 1812," Telegram [Toronto], 11 Nov. 1922.
  11. PRO: WO 12/3373, Quarterly Returns for 16th Regt. of Foot.
  12. ARCAT, Baptismal Register for St. Mary's Parish, Toronto. Also, Leader [Toronto], 18 Oct. 1865, p. 2, c. 7; ibid., 19 Oct. 1865, p. 2, c. 6; ibid., 20 Oct. 1865, p. 1, c. 8.
  13. PRO: WO 10/2509, Quarterly Returns, "F" Batt., 4th Brigade, R.A.
  14. PRO: WO 12/5938, Quarterly Returns for 47th Regt. of Foot; Leader, 1 May 1866, p. 2, c. 5.
  15. A surviving marker is inscribed, "Sacred / To the Memory of / Margaret Youngest Daughter / of Col Serg. James Common / R.C. Rifles, who died on the / 31 August 1864 aged 1 Year / and 136 Days / The Lord gave and the Lord Hath Taken / Away Blessed be the name of the Lord."
  16. PRO: WO 12/3491, Quarterly Returns for 17th Regt. of Infantry; Leader, 27 Nov. 1867, p. 2, c. 8; Globe, 28 Nov. 1867, p. 2, c. 7.
  17. A surviving marker is inscribed, "In / Memory of / Pte. Robert Connell R.C.R. / Died / Dec 22nd 1911 / Aged 43 Years / Erected by his Comrades."
  18. "Remember Dead of 1812," Telegram, 11 Nov. 1922. A surviving marker is inscribed, "Jane / Beloved daughter / Henry & Anne [?] / Connarton [?]."
  19. PRO: WO 12/1132, Quarterly returns for 13th Hussars; ADTA, Parish records of St. John the Evangelist, Toronto, military death reports, 1867-69.
  20. Ontario Archives [hereafter OA], RG 80-10, #021494 (1890). A newspaper n article ("Remember dead," Telegram, Nov. 11, 1922), says Cpl James W. Beaty who died May 31, 1890, is buried in the cemetery. A search of death records for York County in that year turned up no record for James W. Beaty but did uncover one for Cpl James William Craig who died on that date. A footstone bearing the initials "JWC" is found in the cemetery today.
  21. PRO: WO 12/3490, Quarterly Returns for 17th Regt. of Infantry; Globe, 4 Jan. 1867, p. 2, c. 4; Daily Telegraph [Toronto], 4 Jan, 1867, p. 2, c. 9.
  22. PRO: WO 12/3490, Quarterly Returns for 17th Regt. of Infantry.
  23. Telegram, 1 Aug. 1905, p. 6, c. 5; Star, 1 Aug. 1905, p. 7, c. 5. A surviving marker is inscribed, "[In] Memory of Pte. / John Dobbie / No. 4438 / drowned / July 31, 1905 / Aged 33 yrs / [illeg. line]."
  24. "Remember dead of 1812," Telegram, 11 Nov. 1922. In 1953 McGinnis documented a marker inscribed, "Samuel . . . Aug 9 18 . . 1 yr 81 days . . . in this and . . . for until thy mother . . . in therein thy joy and to . . .17th Regt." Although the stone is not found in the cemetery today, likely it was the one that marked the grave of infant Samuel B. Dummitt. The spelling of the surname has been checked in PRO: WO 12/3490.
  25. PRO: WO 12/3373, Quarterly returns for 16th Regt. of Foot; Globe, 19 Jan. 1865, p. 2, c. 5; ibid., 20 Jan. 1865, p. 2, c. 7; Daily Leader, 19 Jan. 1865, p. 2, c. 8; ibid., 20 Jan. 1865, p. 2, c. 7.
  26. Globe, 19 July 1867, p. 2, c. 5; Leader, 18 July 1867, p. 2, c. 9
  27. PRO: WO 12/5937, Quarterly Returns for 47th Regt. of Foot.
  28. PRO: WO 12/1132, Quarterly Returns for 13th Hussars.
  29. Daily Mail [Toronto], 14 Feb. 1885, p. 9, c. 2, p. 16, c. 1; "Landmarks of Toronto: The Military Cemeteries," Telegram, 4 Oct. 1888, p. 4, c. 4-5. A surviving marker is inscribed, "Sacred / . . . / [Sergeant-Major F.W. Gathercole / of the C School of Infantry] / at New Fort Toronto / Feb. 13th 1885; / Aged 42 Years / Erected / in affectionate remembrance by his Comrades."
  30. OA, RG 80-4, #019375 (1880). The existence of a small marker inscribed "FWG" that matches another inscribed "Walter" and is separate from Sgt-Maj F.W. Gathercole's monument suggests that F.W. Gathercole, Jr. is interred here too.
  31. OA, RG 80-10, Registration of Deaths, #002557 (1901)
  32. PRO: WO 12/3373, Quarterly Returns for 16th Regt. of Foot.
  33. PRO: WO 12/5937, Quarterly Returns for 47th Regt. of Foot; "Landmarks of Toronto: The Military Cemeteries," Telegram, 4 Oct. 1888; Fred G. Griffin, "Old Soldiers in a Neglected Corner," Star Weekly, 20 Oct. 1921, p. 9, il. A surviving marker is inscribed, "IHS / In Memory of / John Hanney / of H.M. [47th] Regt / Died [3 June] / 1865 / Aged 36 yrs / This stone has been erected by his brother [Sergeants?]."
  34. PRO: WO 12/3372, Quarterly Returns for 16th Regt. of Foot, 1st Batt.
  35. OA, RG 80-10, Registration of Deaths, #020354 (1885). A surviving marker is inscribed, "Sacred / to the [Memory of?] / Private E.A. Heath / . . . April 2, 1885 / ... / Erected / in affectionate rem[embrance] / By his [Comrades]."
  36. PRO: WO 12/3372, Quarterly Returns for 16th Regt. of Foot.
  37. PRO: WO 12/1132, Quarterly Returns for 13th Hussars; Globe, 6 June 1868, p. 2, c. 6.
  38. OA, RG 80-10,Registration of Deaths, #020021 (1891). In "Remember dead," Telegram, 1922, Holding's rank is given as Colonel but in view of his age at death (20) he probably held a lesser rank. A footstone inscribed "H.H." survives.
  39. PRO: WO 12/3491, Quarterly Returns for 17th Regt. of Infantry.
  40. PRO: WO 12/3373, Quarterly Returns for 16th Regt. of Foot.
  41. PRO: WO 10/2506, Quarterly Returns for "D" Batt., 4th Brigade, R.A.
  42. A marker survives and is inscribed, "Sacred / to the memory of Frances M. / daughter of / Serg't Major & Agnes / Jones 29 Reg't / Who departed this life / Sept. 27, 1868 / Ae. 1 Y'r & 3 D'ys." It bears the stonecarver's name, N.L. Steiner. A surviving footstone inscribed "F? M.J." may be related.
  43. PRO: WO 12/4552, Quarterly Returns for 29th Regt. of Infantry; ADTA, Parish records of St. John the Evangelist, Toronto, military death reports, 1867-69.
  44. PRO: WO 12/3373, Quarterly Returns for 16th Regt. of Foot.
  45. PRO: WO 12/1132, Quarterly returns for 13th Hussars; Globe, 12 Nov. 1868, p. 4, c. 1; ibid., 13 Nov. 1868, p. 1, c. 8; Leader, 13 Nov. 1868, p. 2, c. 8.
  46. ARCAT, Baptismal Register for St. Mary's Parish, Toronto; also "Remember dead," Telegram, 11 Nov. 1922. A surviving marker is inscribed, "This stone was / erected by / Jeremiah Lehene / Searg't IB 16th Reg. / In Memory of / his daughter / Ellen / Who Died / Feb. 16, 1865: / Ae. 1 yr. & 2 mo's. / Hark they whisper angels say(??) / Little sister's gone away."
  47. A notice on 12 Nov. 1864 announcing the death of Charles Henry, second son of Capt. George Leslie, R.A., aged six years and nearly four months, appeared in The Globe, 14 Nov. 1864, p. 2, c. 9. The surviving marker is illegible except for the boy's first two names, but before 1970 when the markers were moved into the present configuration it was located in the "West" or Officer's plot. Fred G. Griffin, "Old Soldiers in a Neglected Corner, A Military Cemetery Crushed by City," Star Weekly, 29 Oct. 1921, p. 9, c. 2-4; "Remember Dead of 1812," Telegram, 11 Nov. 1922.
  48. "Landmarks of Toronto: the Military Cemeteries," Telegram, 4 Oct. 1888; "Remember dead, " Telegram, 11 Nov. 1922. A surviving marker is inscribed, "Sacred / to the Memory of / Walter Toronto [Lewis]."
  49. PRO: WO 10/250, Quarterly Returns for "D" Batt., 4th Brigade, R.A.
  50. PRO, WO 12/5937, Quarterly Returns for 47th Regt. of Foot; Globe, 9 Nov. 1865, p. 2, c. 5; ibid., 10 Nov. 1865, p. 2, c. 5; Leader, 9 Nov. 1865, p. 2, c. 6.
  51. Telegram, 27 Oct. 1893, p. 2, c. 5. A surviving marker is inscribed, "In Memory of / Lce. Corp'l / Donald McDonald / Royal Regiment / of Canadian Infantry / Born 24th Sep. 1863 / Died 26 Oct. 1893 / Erected by the Officers / of his Corps in Recognition of his long and faithful / service in the Officers' Mess."
  52. PRO: WO 10/2606, Quarterly Returns, 5th Batt., 10th Brigade, R.A. Also NAC, RG 8, C-2642, v. 74, p. 107. It appears that either John McFee or Henry Smith was the unnamed Royal Artilleryman who died in the quarter ending 31 Mar. 1864, as reported by George C. Williams, Chaplain to the Forces at Toronto.
  53. PRO, WO 12/1132, Quarterly Returns for 13th Hussars. A surviving marker is inscribed, "Sacred / To the Memory of / Trumpeter [James McMahon] / 13th Hussars / Died May 23, 1868 / Aged . . ."
  54. PRO: WO 10/2606, Quarterly Returns for 5th Batt., 10th Brigade, R.A. Also, "Remember dead," Telegram, 1922, where the date of death is given in error as 1862.
  55. PRO: WO 10/2511, Quarterly Returns, "H" Batt., 4th Brigade, R.A.
  56. PRO: WO 12/1132, Quarterly Returns for 13th Hussars; ADTA, Parish records of St. John the Evangelist, Toronto, military death reports, 1867-69; Globe, 7 July 1868, p. 2, c. 4. In 1888 Robertson reported seeing a small marker or footstone inscribed "G.M." that may have been related but does not survive.
  57. PRO: WO 12/1131, Quarterly Returns for 13th Hussars. A surviving marker is inscribed, "Sacred / to the Memory of / Private George Miller / 13th Hussars: / Who Departed this life / Jan. 1st 1868. / Aged 30 years." It bears the stonecarver's name, N.L. Steiner. The footstone inscribed "G.M." (See endnote 58) may be related.
  58. PRO: WO 10/2506, Quarterly Returns for "G" Batt., 4th Brigade, R.A.
  59. PRO: WO 12/4626, Quarterly Returns for 30th Regt. of Foot; Globe, 25 August 1863, p. 2, c. 7.
  60. PRO: WO 12/4552, Quarterly Returns for 29th Regt. of Infantry. Mulcahy's own 17th regiment, which departed from Toronto on 13 May 1868, must have left him behind on account of his health.
  61. PRO: WO 12/3372, Quarterly Returns for 16th Regt. of Foot.
  62. A surviving marker is inscribed, "In Memory / of / Harriet Isabella, / daughter of / Sup'r. B'k. Serjt. Ormsby / who died / 26 March, 1870 / Aged 6 years, / 11 months & 10 days."
  63. "Remember dead," Telegram, 1922. As late as 1953 McGinnis was able to document a marker inscribed, "In memory of Minnie daughter of Thomas Ormsby who died Sept. 16, 1866, aged 2 months 12 days." The marker does not survive in the cemetery today.
  64. Telegram, 28 August 1899, p. 5, c. 1; Star 28 August 1899, p. 2, c. 4. A surviving marker is inscribed, "Erected / by his comrades / in / Memory of / Hugh Owen / Royal Canadian Dragoons / Accidentally drowned / Aug. 26 1899."
  65. PRO: WO 10/2509, Quarterly Returns, "F" Batt., 4th Brigade, R.A.
  66. Globe, 7 Sept. 1866, p. 2, c. 4. Apparently Rattle jumped off the vessel Kingston into Lake Ontario near Port Hope. A surviving marker in the cemetery is inscribed, "In Memory of / John Manley Rattle / M.A. Christ Church, Oxford / Deputy Assistant Commissary / General / Who was acc[identally dr]owned / at [Port Hope] [C]anada / on the 3rd Sept [1866] / Aged 39 years / His brother officers in Canada / regretting his loss have thus / marked his last earthly / resting place."
  67. OA, RG 80-4, Registration of Births, #046873 (1889); ibid. RG 80-10, Register of Deaths, #021534 (1892); also "Remember dead," Telegram, 1922.
  68. PRO: WO 10/2509, Quarterly Returns, "G" Batt., 4th Brigade, R.A.
  69. "Landmarks of Toronto: The Military Cemeteries," Telegram, 4 Oct. 1888; "Remember dead" Telegram, 1922. Rachel Ross, a coloured woman, was the Commanding Officer's cook and the wife of Serj-Maj William Ross, 4th Artillery.
  70. PRO: WO 12/3373, Quarterly Returns for 16th Regt. of Foot; Globe, 26 Apr. 1864, p. 2, c. 6; Irish Canadian, 27 Apr. 1864.
  71. Griffin, Star Weekly, 29 Oct. 1921; also "Remember dead," Telegram, 1922. Griffin says Simpson was a Crimean War veteran who fought at Alma, Inkerman and Sebastopol. Therefore, he must have been older than age 28 when he died in 1875, as alleged by The Telegram. In 1921 a marker was noted that was inscribed in part, "He was a brave soldier and a kind husband." It may be the marker surviving today on which can be read, "This stone erected . . . /his bereaved . . ."
  72. PRO: WO 12/5937, Quarterly Returns for 47th Regt. of Foot.
  73. PRO: WO 12/3491, Quarterly Returns for 17th Regt. of Infantry.
  74. PRO: WO 12/1131, Quarterly Returns for 13th Hussars; Globe, 24 Jul. 1867, p. 2, c. 6; ibid., 25 Jul. 1867, p. 2, c. 5-6. A surviving marker is inscribed, "Sacred / to the Memory of / Corporal John Smeeton, / 13th Hussars. / Who was accidentally drowned / in Lake Ontario on the / 23rd July, 1867, Aged 30 years. / This stone erected by the Officers of the Regiment as a / Mark of respect for his long / And faithful services." It bears the name of the stonemason Pearse.
  75. "Remember Dead of 1812," Telegram, 11 Nov 1922.
  76. Her grave is located on the 1918 plan, and 1866 is noted as the year of death.
  77. PRO: WO 10/2606, Quarterly Returns, 5th Batt., 10th Brigade, R.A. Also NAC, RG 8, C-2642, v. 74, p. 107. It appears that either Henry Smith or John McFee was the unnamed Royal Artilleryman who died in the quarter ending 31 Mar. 1864, as reported by George C. Williams, Chaplain to the Forces at Toronto.
  78. "Remember dead," Telegram, 11 Nov 1922. Her grave is located on the 1918 plan.
  79. His grave is located on the 1918 plan, but no year of death is noted. In "Remember dead," Telegram, 1922, a Major John Smith was reported to be among those whose markers were still standing. Since Smith's marker did not stand within the officers' plot in 1918, however, he is unlikely to have been a Major. The stone may have been misread.
  80. PRO: WO 10/2506, Quarterly Returns for "D" Batt., 4th Brigade, R.A.
  81. PRO: WO 10/2509, Quarterly Returns, "H" Batt., 4th Brigade, R.A. Also Globe, 27 Dec. 1867, p. 2, c. 4. Smith was found dead in his bed.
  82. PRO: WO 10/2506, Quarterly Returns for "D" Batt., 4th Brigade, R.A. See also Daily Telegraph, 17 October 1866, p. 2, c. 7; Globe, 18 Oct. 1866, p. 2, c. 5. The newspapers reported his name in error as James Sidrich.
  83. Globe, 10 Sept 1864, p. 2, c. 8. A surviving marker is inscribed, "In / Sacred Memory of / [John Moira] McLean Sutherland /"
  84. PRO: WO 10/2511, Quarterly Returns, "F" Batt., 4th Brigade, R.A.
  85. "Landmarks of Toronto: The Military Cemeteries," Telegram, 4 Oct. 1888.
  86. PRO: WO 12/ 3373, Quarterly Returns, 16th Regt. of Foot.
  87. PRO: WO 12/5938, Quarterly Returns for 47th Regt. of Foot; Daily Telegraph, 3 August 1866, p. 3, c. 1; Globe, 4 August 1866, p. 2, c. 8. The Globe says Travers was buried in the Catholic cemetery; presumably the Catholic portion of the military burying ground was meant.
  88. PRO: WO 12/4626, Quarterly Returns for 30th Regt. of Foot; Globe, 8 July 1863, p. 2, c. 5; ibid., 9 July 1863, p. 2, c. 5; Fred G. Griffin, "Old Soldiers in a Neglected Corner," Star Weekly, 29 Oct. 1921, p. 9, il. A surviving marker is inscribed, "Sacred / To the Memory of / James Walsh / Private in [H.M. 30th Regiment] of Foot / He was alone and drowned in the Harbour / 7 July 1863 / in the [25 / 26] year of his age [illeg. lines] / Take heed, watch and pray / for ye know not when the time / is. Mark XIII, 33." It bears the name of the stonecarver, [N.L.] Steiner. There is also a surviving footstone inscribed "J.W."
  89. PRO: WO 12/3373, Quarterly Returns for 16th Regt. of Foot.
  90. PRO: WO 12/4553, Quarterly Returns for 29th Regt. of Infantry.
  91. PRO: WO 12/1132, Quarterly Returns for 13th Hussars; ADTA, Parish Records of St. John the Evangelist, Toronto, military death reports, 1867-69.
  92. A surviving marker is inscribed, "In memory of / Our Dear Little / William Alexander / Son of Wm. & Eliz'th Wood / Born in Halifax, N.S. / June 14, 1866 / Died April 1, 1867. / [illeg. 4-line verse]."
  93. Globe, 12 Dec. 1891, p.20
  94. A surviving marker is inscribed, ". . . [illeg.] / Died / Ae. 1 yr. & 4 ds. / Sleep on my loved one sleep / Sleep until th... / To join them in ... / In Heaven." It bears the name of the stonecarver, N.L. Steiner