Joseph Webster I

Nothing is known about Joseph Webster I prior to 1794 when he became the Quartermaster of The 113th Regiment Of Foot of the British Army. By his own statement in an advertisement which appeared in July 1827, he gave his age as 68 years making the year of his birth 1769 or 1770.

The infamous history is given elsewhere but it is fair to say here that Joseph was one of the better officers in the Regiment. Following the Mutiny, Court Marshall, and disbandment of the 113th Regiment in 1795, Joseph was retired on full pay (age c35y). He may have served for a short time with the 39th Regiment, who were handling the details of the disbandment of The Royal Manx Fencibles, as by 1800 he had retired to half pay on the list of the R.M.F. and appeared to be living on The Isle of Man. In 1812 Joseph Webster and Mary Rounds christened their child Mary Ann at Kirk German.

The next document found is a letter from Henry Goulburn at Downing St London to the Lt. Governor of Canada confirming that Joseph had been granted permission to proceed to Canada as a settler and to receive the grant of land to which he was entitled through his army service (see appendix a).

By 17 July 1817 he had arrived in Montreal and received his warrant from The Quartermaster General for 500 acres of land at Perth on the Ridout River (see appendix b). It would seem that he was dissatisfied after viewing his grant as he then wrote from York (Toronto) on 27 September 1817 asking to have it changed (appendix c). On October 10 of the same year his petition (see appendix c) acknowledges receipt of the relocated land and additionally begs a further grant for "his only son/much under age". We have no reply to this request but although Joseph was still living at Westminster (London, Ontario) in 1825, he had apparently purchased land at West Flamborough in 1819.

By 1827 he had become very homesick and wished to see his homeland once more and so advertised his property for sale. It is believed that he eventually left Canada in the early 1830's accompanied by his son, Joseph Webster II, but did not return to Canada when his son returned with his mother, Margaret. Joseph I stayed in England until he embarked from Liverpool about 1 April 1835. Although other family records show that he was lost at sea when on this voyage the facts are that he left the ship at Cork when he became ill and died there on 3 October 1835. He was buried by I.N.Lombard , Rector at St. Nicholas Church churchyard on 4 October 1835 (Appendices d-e-f).