John Beverley Robinson Bt (1791 - 1863)

Born 26 Jul 1791 in Berthier, Lower Canada

Ancestors

Husband of Emma (Walker) Robinson — married 5 Jun 1817 in St Marylebone, London, , England

Descendants

Died 31 Jan 1863 at age 71 in Toronto, York, Canada West

Problems/Questions Profile managers: Judith Robinson [send private message] and Hilary Robinson [send private message]

Biography

John Robinson Bt was awarded a Military General Service Medal in the War of 1812.

John Robinson Bt is Notable.

Sir John Robinson Bt served in the 3rd Regiment of York Militia, Canada in the War of 1812
Service started:
Unit(s):
Service ended:

John Robinson Bt is/was a significant Ontarian .

When the War of 1812 began, John was a young lawyer in York (now Toronto).

During the War of 1812, John Beverley Robinson served as a lieutenant and captain in the 3rd York Militia. In 1812, he served as a lieutenant in Capt. Stephen Heward’s 2nd Flank Company. ^[3]

In August, 1812, he served as a lieutenant at the Capture of Detroit where he received the General Service Medal. ^[4]

On Oct. 13, 1812, as the Americans began crossing the Niagara River, he had command of Capt. Heward’s Co. which was stationed below Queenston at Brown’s Point. ^[5]

From Nov. 25 to Dec. 24, 1812, he served in Capt. Heward’s Co. ^[6]

On his return to York with prisoners, he was informed that he had been made acting Attorney General of Upper Canada, although he was only 21 years of age. ^[7]

On Dec. 25, 1812, he was promoted to captain. ^[8]

On Apr. 27, 1813, he was taken prisoner at the Capture of York. ^[9]

From Sept. 25 to Oct. 3, 1813, he was absent from his company. ^[10]

On June 5, 1815, he was recorded as a captain. ^[11]

On March 30, 1820, he received a militia land grant, as the Attorney General in the Town of York and a former lieutenant in Capt. Heward’s Flank Company, of 500 acres on Lots 12 and 13, Con. 13, and the broken front of Lot 12, Con. 14, Innisfil Twp., Simcoe County. ^[12]

Born in Quebec in 1791 to a family of loyalist heritage, John Beverley Robinson was educated at Bishop Strachan’s school. He began to study law in 1807, and was articling with the Attorney General of Upper Canada, John Macdonell, when war broke out in 1812. After Macdonell was killed in June 1812, Robinson was named Acting Attorney General. He was a mere 21 years old at the time. He was not even qualified as a lawyer. He held the post for about two years.

The responsibilities of the Attorney General at that time were important. The Attorney General provided the government with legal opinions on a variety of issues and before the advent of Crown Attorneys in 1857, personally handled the crown prosecution of criminals. During the war Robinson prosecuted a number of people for treason, and some of them were hanged after their convictions.

After the war, Robinson was called to the bar in Upper Canada in 1815 and in England in 1823. Upon becoming a lawyer he held the position of Solicitor General of Upper Canada, and then served again as Attorney General from 1818 to 1829. In 1829 he became Chief Justice of Upper Canada.

Robinson is possibly best remembered as a member of the “Family Compact,” the small Toronto elite that ruled the colony for decades. Robinson died at Toronto in 1863.[6]

More at Wikipedia: [7]

There's an interesting story about Anne (Murray) Powell and her obsession with JBR.^[13].^[14]

While the Robinsons were visiting in England, the Duke of Wellington invited them to spend the Christmas holidays of 1840 with him. At this event they met Charles Dickens for the first time. When the Robinsons returned to Canada West, they invited Dickens to their home during his visit to Canada in May 1842. A banquet given in Dickens’ honour at the Robinson’s "Beverley House" was the highlight of Toronto's social season that year. [8]

Family motto is PROPERE ET PROVIDE which translates as 'Quickly and Cautiously'. For more heraldic information please see this link[9]

Sources

1. ↑ Canadian Encyclopedia entry [1]
2. ↑ Wikipedia entry [2]
3. ↑ Collections Canada, War of 1812: Upper Canada Returns, Nominal Rolls and Paylists, Microfilm t-10383, pages 100-104
4. ↑ L. Homfray Irving, Honorary Librarian, Officers of the British Forces in Canada during the War of 1812-1815, Canadian Military Institute, Welland Tribune Print, 1908, pages 67-69
5. ↑ L. Homfray Irving, Honorary Librarian, Officers of the British Forces in Canada during the War of 1812-1815, Canadian Military Institute, Welland Tribune Print, 1908, pages 67-69
6. ↑ Collections Canada, War of 1812: Upper Canada Returns, Nominal Rolls and Paylists, Microfilm t-10384, pages 395-397
7. ↑ Robert E. Saunders, “ROBINSON, Sir JOHN BEVERLEY,” in Dictionary of Canadian Biography, vol. 9, University of Toronto/Université Laval, 2003–, accessed September 17, 2015, [3]
8. ↑ L. Homfray Irving, Honorary Librarian, Officers of the British Forces in Canada during the War of 1812-1815, Canadian Military Institute, Welland Tribune Print, 1908, pages 67-69
9. ↑ Collections Canada, War of 1812: Upper Canada Returns, Nominal Rolls and Paylists, Microfilm t-10383, pages 1142-1144
10. ↑ Collections Canada, War of 1812: Upper Canada Returns, Nominal Rolls and Paylists, Microfilm t-10384, pages 647-648
11. ↑ Collections Canada, War of 1812: Upper Canada Returns, Nominal Rolls and Paylists, Microfilm t-10384, pages 262-263
12. ↑ Ontario Archives, Militia Land Grants Register, Microfilm MS693, Reel 140, Volume 132, Grant #140
13. ↑ Patrick Brode, “POWELL, ANNE,” in Dictionary of Canadian Biography, vol. 6, University of Toronto/Université Laval, 2003–, accessed June 30, 2021, [4]
14. ↑ A Life of Propriety: Anne Murray Powell and Her Family, 1755-1849, K. Mckenna Published 1994[5]

See also:

• 13 pictures of Beverley House: [10]

• The War of 1812 Militia Rolls and Payrolls can be accessed online at[11]

• Elmhirst, Philippa: 'The Saga of the Robinsons, 1520-2011: The Story of the Family from Its Origins in Yorkshire Through Colonial Life in Virginia and the War of Independence and Following a Line Which Settled in Canada, 1520-2011'. "This history, which is based on original deeds, documents and letters from archives in Yorkshire, Virginia and Canada, follows the family from its modest origins in England through its ventures and setbacks to success and eminence in the New World. It is amazing how such a human story has been drawn from consulting archives in so many different places. "[12]

• Jarvis, Julia. Three Centuries of Robinson: The Story of a Family. Toronto: T. H. Best Printing Co. Ltd., 1967.

• WikiTree profile Robinson-2598 created through the import of The Sammons Family Tree.ged on Jun 9, 2011 by Steve Sammons. See the Changes page for the details of edits by Steve and others.