Four Years on the Great Lakes, 1813-1816. Don Bamford
PREFACE BY PAUL CARROLL
Collaborating on a second book with Don Bamford has been an edifying experience. It has further expanded my knowledge and understanding of Canadian history as well as provided me with another opportunity to share a passion for maritime heritage with a knowledgeable, thoughtful, and studious mariner who has been a sailing mentor and a good friend for more than three decades. It is an honour to pool resources in such a project designed to bring one more aspect of Canadian history to the attention of the general reader who shares more than a passing interest in our intricate heritage.
The first project with Don was to assist with the completion of the manuscript for Freshwater Heritage: A History of Sail on the Great Lakes, 1670–1918 and to research visuals and supplementary materials for the text. Its publication was a highly successful venture and supported Don’s effort to bring a comprehensive history of sailing on the Great Lakes to the attention of a popular readership. Prior to that partnership, I assisted Robert C. Lee with additional research, visuals, and technical and promotional support for his book The Canada Company and the Huron Tract, 1826–1853, as published by Natural Heritage Books in 2004.
My first contact with Natural Heritage came almost two decades ago, around 1990, when I acted as editor for the re-publication of a book by local author and raconteur, Gavin Green. The Old Log School has been a popular title with those who want to recall the way of life in pioneer times in rural areas of Ontario similar to Huron County.
My earlier efforts in writing Canadian history have been limited to the publication of short articles in local history and the authoring, editing, and publication of several successive volumes of the annual Historical Notes, as part of the Huron County Historical Society, of which I am a life member. I have also written much about the marine history of the local community along the shores of eastern Lake Huron and have gathered major research information, as yet unpublished, about the shipwreck Wexford, one of the long-lost vessels that fell victim to the Great Storm of November 1913. Its wreckage was only discovered in the year 2000, offshore, near Bayfield, in some twenty-five metres of water, while I was part of an underwater search and survey team with David L. Trotter, the well-known Great Lakes shipwreck aficionado, who has discovered more Great Lakes shipwrecks than any other person.
“The David Wingfield Diary,” as it is described by Library and Archives Canada, has rested — the original out of circulation because of its fragile nature — in our national archives for the better part of a century, since it was first donated to be held there by a descendant of the junior officer, in late 1932. The journal notes have been consulted by historians from time to time, mainly for their contributions to our understanding of certain events in the War of 1812. To the best of our knowledge, this is the first time the complete journal has been transcribed, and that any effort has been undertaken, on a broader scale, to learn more about the author and his contributions to this era in our history.
Don Bamford acquired a photocopy of the sixty-eight-page, handwritten notes in 1972. He has painstakingly transcribed the entire set of pages, preserving as much as has been practicable the authenticity of the original documentation, with only a few technical changes designed for the ease of the modern-day reader, as noted elsewhere. My own contribution to that transcribing task has been nominal and more technical in nature. Because of my own experience with the transliteration of documents related to land acquisition and leases in Upper Canada, in the same era, I hope I have been able to reduce the number of undecipherables in the journal to a minimum, thus supporting the ease of reading for our audience of current day heritage enthusiasts. I have also assisted Don with the expansion of his text and historical notes, and have compiled the biographical information about Wingfield himself. Finally, given Don’s ripeness at age 89, I have been able to provide technical and literary support throughout, to supplant tired eyes, failing keyboard fingers, and other needs when necessary.
Let it be understood though, that Don, in spite of advancing years and failing health, is as sharp as the proverbial tack when it comes to the need for analysis and consideration of the best way to express a necessary point. Sometimes, he is unnecessarily intimidated by the reputation of the professional historians with whom, at times, he may offer a different opinion or set out an alternate interpretation of certain events or their locations. I have always encouraged that he speak out based on his own meticulous review of the evidence. Where we have chosen to speculate, beyond the availability of facts, we have both tried to indicate our shortcomings.
Don believes strongly that Canadian history should be presented in a manner that makes it as widely available as possible to the “common man,” as he calls us. Further, it is his hope as an amateur historian, and my own wish as a retired educator, that such volumes can also find their way into the hands of students at the elementary and secondary school level. Such an introduction, it is hoped, will lead students forward to a more formal study of our history through the contributions of well-known professionals such as the Malcomsons and authors such as Barry Gough, and others listed in our bibliography for this text.
We have tried, not only to present an accurate rendition of Wing-field’s writings, but also to amplify with extensive notes, the political and military situation of the time. Wingfield’s writings convey, quite well, his perceptions of the social and cultural nature of the times in the northeastern United States. His observations offer a candid perception of life and survival techniques in the more isolated areas of Upper Canada during his postings on the Georgian Bay and Mackinac Island areas of northern Lake Huron.
With the assistance of key members of the Wingfield Family Society, we have been able to glean much information about David Wingfield’s family, and have been able to speculate a little about his life in England during his post-service retirement years. There are a number of questions yet to be answered, but the current exercise has shed some additional light on a little-known Canadian historic figure for whom more attention is warranted. Information about the Wingfield Family Society is included in Appendix B.
If you were to visit the Cabot Head area of the northern Bruce Peninsula in Ontario, you would come across a point of land and a small, protected basin carrying Wingfield’s name from 1816. Wingfield Basin, guarded by Wingfield Point and the Cabot Head Lighthouse, circa 1896, is nurtured by a small and enthusiastic group called Friends of Cabot Head, where this story and other tales from the immediate area are celebrated. Wingfield Basin remains a popular small boat anchorage, visited annually by countless yachters who often use this secluded harbour as a stopping point while transiting Georgian Bay. A piece about the Friends group and its work is also included as Appendix F.
Cabot Head Light, circa 1896. A watercolour painting with ink, showing the light station as it appeared when it was new.
Four Years on the Great Lakes, 1813–1816: The Journal of Lieutenant David Wingfield, Royal Navy is an easy but informative read. It is one way to get a glimpse of life and attitudes as seen by a young, enthusiastic junior naval officer, serving in the Great Lakes naval service at a time when our country was at loggerheads with our southern neighbour, where he had an opportunity to consider the perspectives from both sides of the border during his tenure in Upper Canada, including time as a well-treated prisoner of war. Wingfield was present here from May 15, 1813, until September 30, 1816.
As a final note, the concluding major edit of this manuscript took place while I travelled on board a small sailboat, plying those same waters surrounding Manitoulin Island as travelled by David Wingfield on his voyages in this same area. I have searched out the ruins of old Fort La Cloche, an isolated north shore outpost, similar to those established at the time of Wingfield and earlier, as supply depots and trading posts for those who ventured further beyond into the wilderness areas. It has been an inspirational and memorable experience — especially as I have swatted the descendants of those same pesky and oversized mosquitoes as described in Wingfield’s own words in the pages of his journal.
— Paul Carroll