In the 1820 and 30s, crown land in the Lake George area was surveyed and granted to a number of people. Many of them were Irish Catholics with family names like Donnelly and Henry. At the same time, there were black people who were also granted land in the area now known as Donnelly Settlement. Two heads of those families were Joseph Francis and Adam Wise. The map shows their lots numbered 21 and 22 for Joseph Francis and 24 and 25 for Adam Wise. Lot 23 was granted to an Andrew Rush who may have been black as well as recounted below, though it has not yet been confirmed through other sources. The stories of these people highlight the momentous circumstances under which they ended up in a new settlement at that time.
Wilma Donnelly, who now lives on one of those properties provided this account of the settlement pieced together from stories told to her.
“According to records and deeds, the one hundred acres that I reside on was granted to Andrew Rush in 1830[1], and according to stories handed down through the generations he was a slave of the Loyalists. His master I do not know, some of the slaves took their masters name, but I cannot find Rush anywhere in the area.
Loyalists settled the St. John River, when freedom was granted the slaves were pushed into the back country and as this was not bad enough, they were pushed farther back from the main road. Thus creating a little block of black settlers. (Later Donnelly Irish settlers). They must have cleared land, built a cabin and survived. In the orchard behind the present house, shards of earthen would emerge through the ground when it was ploughed. My children brought pieces of old broken dishes to me, but of course I did not keep them. One of the sheds I believe was part of the house. It stands in the woods.
My husband’s father Bernard Donnelly worked in the woods in the State of Maine when he was a young man (circa 1900-1915). In a lumber camp men were discussing their homes, life styles and other things. After the talks and everyone was retiring, a black man came up to him asking questions, he was old but still in working group, apparently he was born in a log cabin on this property. (Side note – Would this this black man be DeBoise)
The grant adjacent to this property was granted to Isaac Francis, his descendants were still living a few years ago, but I did not know it then. On that property there are three graves, as word has it they were graves of the black people. My husband and his father always kept them cleared. I have been told they are now grown up, although my sons say they know exactly where they are.
Another piece of ground, one hundred and fifty acres was granted to Adam Wise, he was a slave of Col. Jacob Ellegood, of Norfolk, Virginia. He belonged to the Queens Rangers. Ellegoods are still in the area but the name Wise has gone on its way.
At the end of Lake George Road, where it met the old river road was a Baptist church. I am told it was the second one in the area, the first was in a field near the river, and black people across the river would come to services, their melodious voices could be heard on both sides of the river, but it was small. A new one was built approximately around 1850, bigger and nicer and with a barn to accommodate the horses for people that travelled a distance.
The black people were not allowed to sit at the front. I was told they had to sit in the balcony, but the building was small and I doubt if it had a balcony, so they must have sat at the back of the church. They must have felt degraded because they helped dig the foundation, saw the lumber, pound the nails. Frustration must have loomed around them.
Now the blacks that crossed the river by boat to attend church have a graveyard on the north side in Apple Lane, off Keswick Ridge, it has been cleared and I believe all of the graves have markers or headstones. Willie O’Ree’s ancestors are there.”
This fascinating account was enough to stimulate further investigation of the lives of the people that lived there. So, the next couple of blog entries will be about them and their families.
[1] Lot 23, granted 11 Oct 1830. http://archives.gnb.ca/Search/RS686/Details.aspx?culture=en-CA&Key=11589
