Major Benjamin Milliken – Veteran of the War of 1812

Major Ben Milliken

1812!, a very long time ago. Indeed the War of 1812 happened just as Ontario was starting to develop – in fact it was a major spur to development of both this area & the Country. Wartime itself by its’ nature often results in information being lost. So it is very fortunate indeed that we found two sisters living in Oshawa with direct ties to the war. Marg Power & Jean Brohm of our local Royal Canadian Legion Branch 43 are descendants of Major Benjamin Milliken who served as a private in the York Militia at the Battle of Queenston Heights.

Descendants of Major Milliken

Benjamin Milliken was born on Feb 28th, 1794 his ancestors had migrated from Scotland to Maine in the late 1600′s.  As Loyalists due to the American Revolution they moved to the Maritimes. Subsequently moved to what is now the Town of Markham.

As all able bodied men from the ages of 16 to 50 years were required to do the now old Benjamin joined the York Militia & the Muster Records of the period has signature documented. The only persons exempt from service were clergymen, crown officials, millers, & ferrymen. Each militiaman brought his own firearm & rounds of ammunition. Apparently a lot of the arms they brought were unusable & a cache of arms had to be supplied from the barracks in Quebec.

The militia had no training or uniforms, but a lot of the militia members were former British soldiers & experienced military service. However as the clouds of war in 1812 arose the young men were totally green. From 1807 the militia would assemble four times a year under the watchful eye of the local company captains.

According to a dispatch from the John McGill, Lieutenant of the Country the levy or fine to be imposed on those of the Quaker, Menonist or Tunker within your command [was] … four dollars composition money”. A failure to pay was an immediate fine of 20 shillings. It was expensive to try to stay out of the fray.

Leading up to the war over 11,000 militiamen & were obligated to train for 6 days per month. No provision for payment but some benefits did occur. These men were exempt from jury duty nor were they to “be liable for any personal arrest on any civil process”. Due to the high percentage of the militia being recent American immigrants the authority didn’t see it fitting to arm them all & subscribed that only 4,000 would be armed – one does have to be sure which way the guns might point.

According to family’s memories Major Milliken then a private with the York Militia fought at the battle of Queenston.

His original farmstead is located at 7710 Kennedy Road in Markham & is the home of the Major Milliken Pub House & Eatery

Milliken Family Descendents

To download a copy in PDF  Click below

1812Oshawa copy

War of 1812 Artifacts

Pictured are a few relics from the war. They are in the personal collection of a friend.

The information below is based on oral history & has not been confirmed. If you know anything to aid in our research please let us know.

The cannonball is made of concrete. We were told it came from the area of Lundy’s Lane. I did not weigh it but a guess would be it weighs about 8-10 pounds. We were told it would likely be filled with shrapnel: nails, glass etc. It is not perfectly round, I would not think it would be a terribly accurate projectile. One could imagine it being a ghastly anti personal weapon. The balls would shatter sending a hail of deadly shrapnel. Imagine the rush of men towards the opposing side facing a hail of musket fire, acrid clouds of smoke from the gunpowder, & the roar of cannon – cries of war, shock, & pain.

The sword is believed to date from the period. It was found at a yard sale in Toronto some time ago. No history is known of it. But it is a good illustration of the weaponry of the time. One side is sharp along its entire length. There are a couple of old small notches in the blade as if it had hit something hard. The first foot or so of the tip of the heel side is also sharp. A close examination revealed that the end of the sword has been repaired at some time in the distant past. The repair is almost invisible to the naked eye. One shudders to think what action might have broken off the tip necessitating its replacement. By the hilt there is some sort of marking but it was too faint to make out even under good light & with magnification.

Do you have any stories or artifacts? Please let us know.

Here is a story reported by Robert Bell, contributor to the War of 1812 Oshawa website

http://www-tc.pbs.org/video/media/swf/PBSPlayer.swf

Watch The War of 1812 Full Program on PBS. See more from The War of 1812.

RECOGNITION NEEDED!
BATTLE HONOURS FOR CANADIANS

Did you know that Battle Honours have not been awarded to Canadian Military units in regards to the War of 1812? Yes they have been awarded to both American & British forces. But in Canada this has not been done despite support from various officials over the years.

This is a situation that can & should be addressed. The War of 1812 was a significant conflict with many battles fought here on Canadian soil. It is a foundational event in the creation of a unique Canadian identity.

We need not go into the details here on this topic. Other sites have already done the job. Please support this effort, for more information go to:

* For an overview: http://www.warof1812.ca/heroes/summary.htm

* Check out the Editorial by Robert Henderson on this page: http://www.warof1812.ca/

* For an excellent detailed research report check out: http://www.warof1812.ca/heroes/Honour%20our%201812%20Heroes.pdf
 

LIVING CONFERENCE  CONFERENCE

http://www.livinghistoryconference.com/

Joe Marion and Glenn McKnight  attended The War of 1812  Living Conference in Guelph on Feb 25 where we have  gained substantial knowledge and connections to help us  honour the event .  We had lots of chooses but we had to make a choice per time slot  plus the merchants had great displays from  books, muskets, clothing and more which could drain your bankbook dry at hardtack!

We listened  to songs from a  musican specialized in music of the early 19th century.  A  passionate storytelling in honour of  Black History Month provided the life and times of Private Richard  Pierpoint, a former slave who served in the Coloured Corp fighting in Queenston Heights.  ( You can read our version of the story by Robert T Bell on our site )

Joe attended a session on Gen Isaac Brock  and the same presenter  gave  a wrap up putting the  North American theatre of war in context to the European war.

Glenn hard the tough job of attending the fashion show .  Some pictures below

It was a really full day and we will adding content in separate posts.

Bob Bell and Glenn McKnight  were on Rogers  Community 10  today promoting the 1812  War  Oshawa Website and inviting people to the Oshawa Centre to sign up to participate in the storytelling venture.

Dem Are Fighting Words

The conquest of Canada is in our power, I trust I shall not be deemed presumptive when I state that I verify that the militia of Kentucky are alone competent to place Montreal and Upper Canada at your feet,
Henry Clay to the United States Senate Feb 22, 1810