Fraser, Thomas

  • DICTIONARY OF CANADIAN BIOGRAPHY ARTICLE: Catherine Shepard, “FRASER, THOMAS,” in Dictionary of Canadian Biography, vol. 6, University of Toronto/Université Laval, 2003–. https://www.biographi.ca/en/bio/fraser_thomas_6E.html
  • DCB profile notes:
    • Army officer, colonizer, landowner, jp, office holder, politician, and militia officer; b. 1749 in Strath Errick, Scotland, son of William Fraser; m. first Mary MacBean, and they had at least four sons and three daughters; m. secondly 7 Feb. 1795 Mary MacDonell; m. thirdly Cornelia Paterson, a widow, and daughter of John Munro; d. 18 Oct. 1821 in Matilda Township, Upper Canada.
    • The Fraser family emigrated about 1767 and by 1770 had settled in Tryon County, N.Y., as tenants of Sir William Johnson. At the outbreak of the American Revolutionary War Thomas Fraser was operating the original Fraser tenant farm, his father and elder brother, William, having moved to a larger one. In May 1777 the brothers were captured by rebels while fleeing to Quebec with a company of men. Imprisoned at Albany, the Frasers and their men escaped custody in August and joined Major-General John Burgoyne’s forces at Fort Edward. They were commissioned lieutenants and served until the British surrender at Saratoga (Schuylerville) the following month. They were later allowed to escape to Quebec.
    • In 1779 Thomas and William took command of the loyalist blockhouses on the Rivière Yamaska. They were responsible for scouting patrols sent to the American colonies and occasionally joined in these expeditions. While still serving on the Yamaska, in 1781 the Frasers were attached to the Loyal Rangers. In June 1782 Fraser became a captain in the unit. On the basis of this reputation, they were able to obtain a pension for their father shortly after his arrival in Quebec in 1780.
    • During his life Fraser was a prominent office holder and politician. He served as a justice of the peace from 1786. In March 1792 he was appointed to the land board for Leeds and Grenville, becoming its president the following year. Fraser was the first sheriff of the Johnstown District, erected in 1800, and held the post until April 1803 when he was succeeded by his eldest son, William. In 1808 he became a road commissioner; four years later he was appointed a commissioner under the Sedition Act. Finally, in 1816, he was named to the Board of Militia Pensions for the Eastern District. From 1797 to 1800 he sat in the House of Assembly for Dundas County.
  • Proven United Empire Loyalist listed in Loyalist Directory: https://uelac.ca/loyalist-directory/detail/?wpda_search_column_id=2956
  • Find a GRAVE: https://www.findagrave.com/memorial/224786875/thomas-fraser