John Hetherington is our immigrant ancestor. According to the story I was originally told, we had a Heatherington ancestor who lost his leg in the Battle of Waterloo and was given land in Canada as compensation. Research has shown that the truth was stretched a bit over the generations.
John Hetherington was born sometime between 1784 and 1787 (1,2,11). Although a letter written by his granddaughter in 1930 states his birthplace as Manchester, England (3), military discharge papers clearly record it as Aghaloo, Tyrone County, Ireland. Aghaloo is a parish in southeastern Tyrone County, Ulster Province, whose church town is Caledon. At the moment, we do not know the names of John's parents or any siblings. It is possible that the Manchester reference refers to the birthplace of his parents. In any case, "He(a)therington" is an North English name, and clearly the family ultimately originated in England. During the 17th and 18th centuries, emigration of English (particularly northern English) and Scottish settlers to Ulster province was strongly encouraged and, in some cases, even mandated by the British government, which had a vested interest in establishing a loyal, Protestant population in Ireland.
John Hetherington joined the Royal Tyrone Militia, a county militia unit, sometime between 1803 and 1804 (4,6). The Irish Militia units were primarily used for "home defense", and during this period were considered an important component of national security, as Britain was under threat of invasion from the forces of Napoleon Bonaparte, and the regular army was busy fighting battles on the continent (5). Each county had its own militia, but the units were commonly garrisoned in counties other than their own, and marched frequently from county to county about the country. On June 4, 1808, the Tyrone Militia forces "composing the garrison in Limerick fired a feu-de-joie in honor of His Majesty's birthday" (12). (A feu-de-joie entails firing weapons in a salute.) During this celebration, John Hetherington injured his ankle, an event which seems to have ultimately led to his emigration. As stated by discharge papers dated 30 May 1810, he was rendered "unfit for Service in consequence of a fall he received on wheeling backwards when the Regiment was undergoing a Review by Major General Michell (? name not very legible) at Limerick on the 4th June 1808 which injured his ankle joint as to render amputation necessary (11). The attached Surgeon's Certificate states "... John Hetherington of the Royal Tyrone regiment whilst wheeling backwards in consequence of a fall, received a compound dislocation of the ankle joint- after many months confinement in Hospital was at length obliged to submit to Amputation whereby he is rendered incapable of further Service and a fit Object of His Majesty's Royal Bounty of Kilmainham Hospital", indicating a pension was granted (11). "Wheeling backwards" is a marching manuever in which a line of men march backwards about a pivot point; the outermost men must take large steps while the innermost man simply rotates in place. John was a tall man for his times, standing 5 feet 11 inches (11). This leads me to speculate that perhaps with his long legs, he was assigned to the outermost position on the marching "wheel" and therefore the most vunerable to tripping! Obviously this is only speculation and is unlikely ever to be proven or disproven.
Marriage and Emigration
At some point, John Hetherington married Margaret (probably MacMorran, 3). They had five children prior to their emigration to Canada. They arrived at the Port of Quebec in June of 1823. John began working as a miller in the town of York (now Toronto), and on 27 August,1823 applied for a grant of land (4):
In Ireland
Militia records give John's actual discharge date as 24 July, 1809 (6), in conflict with the date of 30 May, 1810 on the discharge documents. Possibly it took from July to the following May to get the final paperwork in order to authorize the pension. The total time of his service was six years during which he remained at the rank of private (4,11).
The Petition of John Hethrington (sic) now of York Miller
Humbly Sheweth
That your Petitioner is a Native of the County of Tyrone, Ireland, from whence he emigrated to Quebec, with a Wife and five Children, in June last. That he served 6 years in the Royal Tyrone Militia, in which service he lost a Leg, and as will appear by the accompanying papers, is an Out-Pensioner of the Royal Hospital Chelsea (note: the word "Chelsea" is written above the word "Kilmainham", which is crossed out ). That he has taken the Oath of Allegiance, Certificate whereof is annexed, and having received no Land from the Crown, and being desirous to obtain a farm Lot for actual Settlement, humbly Prays that your Excellency will be pleased to grant Your Petitioner 100 acres of Land as a discharged Soldier.
Your Petitioner under the circumstance of his having lost a Leg in the Service humbly prays further that Your Excellency will be also pleased to indulge him with ?( unreadable) to locate a Lot forfeited by non-performance of Settlement duties, if he can find a Lot of that description.
And as in duty bound he will ever pray,
John Hetherington his mark ( an "X" is marked between the first and last name;
evidently John could not write)
York 17 August 1823
The petition was approved on 17 September 1823. John was given 100 acres in West Gwillimbury Township (North half of Lot 7, Concession I) and evidently got his wish to receive land that had already been settled (and presumably worked) (4).The land is located near what is now the town of Bond Head, Simcoe County, Ontario. Some time between 1823 and 1826, John and Margaret had a sixth child (1). In 1826, John petitioned to purchase an additional 50 acres adjacent to his original property (Tecumseth Township, northeast quarter of Lot 24 , Concession VII). His neighbors vouched for him (1):
We hereby certify that John Hetherington has cleared upon the Lot on which he now resides upward of twenty acres- that he has a good house and Barn built-also a part of the Road cleared- we further certify that the Road which passes his Lot is not particularly required and little doubt but that it will be completed by the time it is necessary.
Scarborough and Later Life
In 1832, John, Margaret and their family moved closer to York (now Toronto). They purchased about 200 acres of land (Lot 2 and the south half of Lot 4, Concession IV)) in Scarborough Township, from James Gough for the sum of 225 pounds (7). The property is now part of Rouge Park, a nature preserve, and is located just northeast of the Toronto Zoo. There is some evidence that the Hetheringtons operated a mill on the Little Rouge River (8).
Since the 1826 land petition mentions six children, and Thomas was not born until 1830, there should be one other child, but his/her name is not known.
Nicholas Willoughby
Edward Matchett
Witness W.B. Robinson
John and Margaret's children that we know of, were as follows ( 2,3,8):
John Hetherington left a will( 2 ), leaving his property to his sons, with detailed instructions for the youngest son, Thomas Alexander, to take care of the widow Margaret. (Link to the will...)
John died 13 June, 1851 and was buried at Grace Anglican Church, Markham, Ontario, with the tombstone inscription "Precious in the sight of the Lord are the deaths of his saints" (9). Rumor has it that the wooden leg lived on, residing in the attic of a relative in Canada (10).
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