Royal Highland Emigrants at Carleton Island

Officer Royal Highland Emigrants

Royal Highland Emigrants at Carleton Island

Raised in 1775 to defend British North America during the American Revolutionary War, the 84th Regiment of Foot (Royal Highland Emigrants) played a crucial role in securing the northern frontier. Recruited primarily from Scottish veterans and Highland immigrants who had settled in Quebec, Nova Scotia, and New York, the regiment’s 1st Battalion was dispatched to the head of the St. Lawrence River in 1778.

To safeguard the vital supply line between Montreal and the upper Great Lakes posts, British forces established a key naval and military post on Carleton Island and constructed Fort Haldimand. Soldiers of the 84th Regiment formed the backbone of this frontier garrison, serving alongside Loyalist provincial units, British regulars, and Native American allies.

From Carleton Island, the 84th guarded transshipment facilities, patrolled the waters of eastern Lake Ontario, and supported tactical raids into the Mohawk Valley and northern New York. Despite harsh frontier winters, isolation, and frequent supply delays, the garrison successfully maintained British control over the mouth of the St. Lawrence River throughout the conflict.

Following the Treaty of Paris in 1783, the regiment was officially disbanded in 1784. Many officers and soldiers of the 84th received land grants in Upper Canada (modern-day Ontario), settling along the St. Lawrence Valley as early Loyalist pioneers. Today, the earthworks and chimney ruins of Fort Haldimand on Carleton Island remain lasting markers of the 84th Regiment's wartime presence.

Officer Button - Royal Highland Emigrants

Cape Vincent's "Rose and Crown" Iron Gun

This Thousand Islands Life story show cases an artifact recovered from underwater, detailing its history and the joint efforts of state officials, local leaders, and private individuals to return it to Cape Vincent near where it came out of the water. It now can serve as an educational tool designed to spark interest in local tourism.

AI depiction of the "Rose and Crown" iron gun, on the ramparts of Fort Haldimand overlooking North Bay, Carleton Island.

Cape Vincent's "Rose and Crown" Iron Gun

Carleton Island Royal Shipyard (1778-1788)

Thousand Islands Life, Carleton Island Royal Shipyard (1778-1788)      Volume 20, Issue 6, June 2025

The Carleton Island Royal Shipyard, operating from 1778 to 1788, was a crucial British military and logistical hub during the American Revolutionary War.

Carleton Island’s Lost Burial Grounds of the American Revolution

 

1973 Fort Haldiamd last standing chimney

By Dennis McCarthy, St. Lawrence River Historical Foundation, Inc.

Benson J. Lossing noted in his 1868 Pictorial Field Book of the War of 1812 that "a little northward of the fort (Haldimand) was the garrison cemetery; beyond this, a fourth of a mile from the ramparts, lay an ancient Indian burial-ground in a grove of small trees on the verge of the river."

From the 1770s through the War of 1812, Fort Haldimand and Carleton Island served as a vital British hub, encompassing a military fort, naval yard, and a sanctuary for Loyalists fleeing the Mohawk Valley. Its population sometimes swelled to 1,000 individuals, including British and Hessian soldiers, Indigenous peoples, Loyalist regiments, and civilians. The island's history tells of three distinct burial sites: a military cemetery holding at least 25 soldiers, an Indigenous burial ground, and a Loyalist/settler/prisoner-of-war cemetery. This last cemetery is thought to be adjacent to the military site.

Though no specific records detail who rests on the island, it's reasonable to assume those who perished there were also interred there. Historical accounts whisper tales of loss and hardship. Chief Hawksbill, a respected Mississauga warrior, met a violent end in a drunken altercation. Separate artillery accidents claimed the arms of James Bennett and George Barnhard, with Barnhard later succumbing to his injuries. Captain George McDougall, who once commanded Carleton Island, died shortly after relinquishing his commission. Lieutenant Kenneth Mackenzie passed away suddenly, while soldiers like Jacob Best and Henry Fyker died during their service on the island. Even the most vulnerable were not spared, with at least one recorded instance of infanticide.

Carleton Island early 1900s, Kittle Collection TIM

History recounts that carved oaken planks once marked some graves, but by 1868, time had eroded all but one inscription. According to Lossing, the lone surviving marker read "J. Farrar, D. Fy., 1792." These burial grounds stand as silent witnesses to Carleton Island's past, safeguarding the stories of the soldiers, civilians, and families who lived, died, and were laid to rest upon its shores.

While the location of the Indigenous burial ground on Carleton Island is known and protected by a conservation easement, the site of the garrison cemetery remains lost to time.

As the 250th anniversary of the American War of Independence approaches, Carleton Island's soil holds the forgotten remains of soldiers, civilians, and even infants, their individual stories slowly fading into the mists of history.

Historic Shipwrecks of the Thousand Islands.

 Thousand Islands Life, Historic Shipwrecks of the Thousand Islands    Volume 20, Issue 2, February 2025

Haldimand by Chip Stevens

This article was written originally as a paper presented in 2019 at Portsmouth, England, at The Nautical Archaeology Society and the Ordnance Society co-hosting conference, examining how ship and ordnance remains found on land and under the sea help us understand our maritime past. It is the story of the iron guns found at Carleton Island and Niagara Shoal.

Carleton Island Past & Present - The Old Fort

Podcast by Julie Rogers

"Carleton Island has some mystery about it. When James H. Durham decided to take on uncovering the true origin of The Old Fort in 1889, he was diving into a not so clear path of discovering the easy answer.The island had several names, Buck, Deere, Isle aux Chevreuils and Carleton Island. I purchased the book titled, The Old Fort Carleton Island In The Revolution, written by James H. Durham in 1889. It was reintroduced and reprinted by the St. Lawrence River Historical Foundation in 2010."

2019 Drain the Oceans Visit to Cape Vincent.

 Thousand Islands Life, Drain the Oceans Visits Cape Vincent