John R. Robinson & Mary Elizabeth Miller

What a time we have had to trace our Robinson lineage back from John Robinson (born about 1830) to his father, John R. Robinson (b. 1799)!

At the beginning, it was necessary to determine the location to where Charles H. Edward Robinson's father, John had moved. We surmised, in talking with Charles' daughter, Gladys, that John had gone to the Shubenacadie area in Hants County. And indeed a John Robinson of the right age was there with a large family and at the right time. However, later information proved that this was not the right John Robinson.

Through a fortunate circumstance, a clue to the right John Robinson was found. In the summer of 1987, a lady from Hants county, while visiting relatives in the Valley, called at the Sherman Robinson country store in Lakeville. She happened to reveal that her name was also Robinson and said, "Wouldn't it be strange if we are related?" Further conversation and follow up by Sherman and Joyce Robinson revealed that indeed such was the case. She was a descendent of John Robinson of Maitland, Hants County, who had married a Mary Cotter there and raised a large family - and this family knew that John had earlier left another family in the Valley. We have many half-cousins we never knew we had!

John and Mary (Cotter) Robinson were buried in Cokes Cemetery, Maitland, Hants County. Their tombstone reads:

John Robinson - born 1830 - died 1921
Mary Robinson - born 1841 - died 1929
Henry Robinson - born 1874 - died 1929

The death certificates for this John Robinson and his brother, William Henry Robinson, (called "Uncle Henry" by Gladys), provided us with the next critical information on their parents. These independent records each named John Robinson and Mary Miller as parents - and one specified John R. Robinson.

Fortunately we now had a middle initial, R, for this John Robinson which was extremely helpful in distinguishing him from several of his contemporaries with the John Robinson name. Our John R. Robinson was married at St. George's Parish in Falmouth to Mary Elizabeth Miller on 28th September 1826. Most of their children were born in Hants County. Sometimes after 1836, and before 1838, they moved to Horton Township in Kings County (1838 Census). All the children were baptized in the Methodist Church at horton in 1839. They moved again before 1851, this time to Lakeville, where John R. was recorded as a farmer. Census information shows that in 1861 they were in Centreville with only one child left (probably Margaret Jane- b. 1835), and in 1871 they were in Canaan.

Both John R. Robinson and Mary Elizabeth (Miller) Robinson were buried in Oak Grove Cemetery in Kentville. It is somewhat ironic that the tombstone for these lost ancestors was found so close to home. Their tombstone reads:

John R. Robinson - died 18 July, 1879 - age 80 years
Mary E. his wife died 28 Sept. 1872 - age 82 years

Current research has not yet revealed the parentage for John R. Robinson, but is likely that his immediate forebears came with the wave of United Empire Loyalists and other immigrants that were settling in this area in the 1780-1790's.

 

Indeed there is a connection with the Loyalists through George Miller, the father of Mary Elizabeth Miller, born in Douglas Township in 1791. George Miller was one of the original grantees of land on the Kennetcook River in the newly-formed Douglas Township. He had served in the British Army, in the 2nd Battalion of the 64th Highland Brigade, at the time of the Revolutionary War in America. * As a consequence, he with many others of his Battalion, received 400 acres of raw unsurveyed land in this new Township. There was considerable controversy then over some of these land grants and the Province of Nova Scotia escheated all these lands for some time. It was many years before the actual land deed accounts were settled. In spite of this, George Miller persisted and developed his land and raised there a large family. He married Margaret Elizabeth Kuhn of Lunenburg County.

* (Note - the descendants of this Battalion held a "reunion" In Hants County in 1992.)