Land, power and economics on the frontier of Upper Canada / John Clarke.

Format:

Book

Author/Creator:

Clarke, John, 1943-

Series:

Carleton library series ; 194.

Carleton Library Series ; 194

Language:

English

Subjects (All):

Land settlement patterns--Ontario--Essex (County)--History--19th century.

Land settlement patterns.

Essex (Ont. : County)--Historical geography.

Essex (Ont. : County).

Physical Description:

xxxvii, 747 p. : ill., maps, ports.

Edition:

1st ed.

Place of Publication:

Montreal & Kingston : McGill-Queen's University Press, 2001.

Language Note:

English

Summary:

The prevailing ideology in Ontario at the time was a conservative culture that rejected everything American and attempted to preserve the best of the British world in the new Eden. Those building the state believed that a social and political hierarchy composed of those possessing a "natural virtue" would serve society best. In consequence, a few individuals at the top of the hierarchy, through their access to power, came to control the bulk of the land, the basis of the economy. At the other end of the spectrum from the elite were those transforming the land and themselves through their own labour. How did the physical environment and government land policy affect the pattern of settlement and the choice of land for a viable farm? What was the price of land, and how common was credit? Did the presence of reserved lands hinder or promote development? How extensive was land speculation and how did it operate? Clark brings these issues and more to the forefront, integrating concepts and substantive issues through a problem-oriented approach. Blending qualitative and quantitative approaches, he weaves together surveyors' records, personal and government correspondence, assessment rolls, and land records to measure the pulse of this pre-industrial society.

Contents:

Machine generated contents note: 1 The Land Revealed: The Physical Background / 3

2 Peace, Order, and Good Government:

The Organization of a Landscape / 35

3 Acquiring Indian Land in the Era

of the Land Boards / 94

4 European Land Acquisition after the First

Land Board / 155

5 The Market for Land: Sales in Essex to

Mid-century / 208

6 Buying on Credit: The Upper Canadian

Dilemma / 264

7 Who Were the Speculators and How Extensive

Was Speculation? / 295

8 The Strategies of Speculators / 336

9 Land and Power / 379

10 The Corporate Sector / 424

11 Context and Conclusion / 443

Appendices

1. Essex Soil Quality and Drainage / 469

2.1 Survey Documents / 471

2.2 Documentary Sources for the Reconstruction of the

Crown and Clergy Reserves / 474

2.3 Documentary and Map Sources of Patent Data for Essex

County, Ontario / 476

2.4 McKee Treaty of 1790 / 477

2.5 Survey Systems of Essex County and Dates of

Survey / 479

2.6 Number and Type of Establishment in Each

Centre / 480

2.7 List of Speculators with at Least 400 Acres in

One Period or Three Parcels of Unknown Acreage

or at Least Three Transactions / 481

7.2 Membership in Clusters, Based upon Measures

of Similarity of Acreage Owned, Total Number

of Transactions, and Length of Time Held / 485

7.3 Essex Biographical Research / 486

8.1 Sheriff's Deeds in Essex County, 1818-52 / 513.

Notes:

Bibliographic Level Mode of Issuance: Monograph

Includes bibliographical references (p. [651]-706) and index.

ISBN:

1-282-85869-6

9786612858697

0-7735-6850-6

OCLC:

929120806