1801
The Hatfield Grant was issued on January 29,1801 in order to settle land
claims in what was then known as Annapolis County. The land in question had
previously been granted under the “Botsford Grant” in 1784 but the grantees
didn't fulfill the conditions of the grant and the property was forfeited to the
Crown. The lands in question had been settled by other people who had made
improvements and wanted to have legal title to their property. Many of those
included as grantees were given their property as a reward for military services
during the American Revolution or as compensation because their property in the
US had been confiscated because they had remained loyal to England. The “Hatfield
Grant” consisted of 91632 acres and was issued to 275 individuals and one
Church. It is also known as the Grant of Confirmation. The area was designated
by the name of the Township of Digby and was still part of the County of
Annapolis.
There were conditions attached to the grant and they were strictly enforced.
Each Grantee was required to:
1. Pay to the Receiver General two shillings per hundred acres. Payment was to
be made on the Feast of St. Michael and was to start ten years from the date of
the grant.
2. Agree to clear and work three acres of land for every 50 acres of
plantable land granted or clear and drain 3 acres of swampy or sunken ground or
drain 3 acres of marsh land within 3 years of the date of the grant
3. Keep three neat cattle upon each 50 acres of cleared land
4. Erect a dwelling house at least 20 feet in length and 16 feet in breadth
5. If the granted lands were stony or rocky ground and not fit for planting
or pasture to operate a stone quarry and hire one able hand for every 50 acres
6. Swear an Oath of Loyalty to the King within 12 months of the grant
The proclamation of this grant enabled those who had made improvements on the
lands they already occupied to obtain legal title and therefore sell or mortgage
their property as they saw fit. The King reserved for the Crown all white pine,
gold, silver, copper, lead and coal that might be found on the granted lands.
During the ensuing years the Township of Digby prospered and in January 1837
Digby County was declared as being separate from Annapolis County with the
division being made in the center of the Bear River. The following is a list of
Grantees from the original “Hatfield Grant” with a notation of the number of
acres received by each person. In transcribing this list an attempt has been
made to maintain the spellings used but the handwriting is very difficult to
read and there will be errors as a result
| Last Name
| First Name
| Acres
| Addington
| William
| 150
| Aikins
| John
| 750
| Amberman
| Paul
| 385
| Archibald
| John
| 520
| Archibald
| John(Jr)
| 100
| Armstrong
| Francis
| 419
| Armstrong
| William
| 125
| Arnold
| Stephen
| 144
| Baine
| George
| 150
| Barton
| Joseph (Heirs of)
| 1250
| Baxter
| James
| 496
| Baxter
| William (Heirs of)
| 239
| Bayeau
| Thomas
| 345
| Beeman
| Joseph
| 100
| Beeman
| (Widow)
| 147
| Betts
| Hiram
| 100
| Bishop
| Leveritt
| 292
| Black
| George
| 200
| Blacksford
| Martin
| 50
| Boise
| Jacob
| 300
| Bonnell
| Isaac
| 801
| Bowlsby
| Abraham
| 100
| Bowlsby
| Richard
| 400
| Brewer
| Jacob
| 100
| Brooks
| Abraham
| 200
| Brown
| Eleanor
| 113
| Budd
| Elisha
| 800
| Budd
| Tamar
| 250
| Budd
| Betsey
| 250
| Bull
| Elizabeth
| 100
| Burkett
| John
| 541
| Burns
| William
| 200
| Campbell
| Mungo
| 111
| Chryst
| Jacob
| 200
| Clark
| William (Jr)
| 230
| Colbourn
| Charles
| 815
| Colville
| John
| 160
| Conolly
| Joseph
| 200
| Cornwall
| Jacob
| 380
| Cornwell
| Thomas
| 178
| Cosman
| James
| 500
| Cosman
| John
| 700
| Cossaboom
| Samuel
| 201
| Cossaboom
| David
| 278
| Cossaboom
| James
| 145
| Cossins
| Thomas
| 100
| Covert
| John
| 100
| Covert
| John (Jr)
| 100
| Craig
| James
| 509
| Craig
| John
| 100
| Cronk
| Joseph
| 300
| Cross
| William
| 100
| Cunningham
| Elizabeth
| 252
| Cutler
| Ebenezer
| 1442
| Dakin
| Thomas
| 216
| Darling
| Daniel
| 450
| Delancey
| Stephen
| 1200
| Denniston
| Patrick
| 63
| Denton
| Joseph
| 210
| DesCourdres
| Louis (Heirs of)
| 119
| Dickson
| Robert
| 400
| Dillon
| Amos
| 200
| Ditmars
| John
| 500
| Dominic
| Francis
| 200
| Doucett
| Peter
| 500
| Dowling
| Dennis
| 144
| Drake
| William
| 230
| Duck & Dalton,
| Peter & Daniel
| 230
| Dunbar
| Jabez Woodroofe
| 167
| Dunbar
| Joseph
| 687
| Edison
| John
| 500
| Everitt
| Catharine
| 10
| Everitt
| James
| 262
| Faulkner
| John
| 300
| Fenwick
| William
| 500
| Ferguson
| Charles
| 100
| Fitzgerald
| Daniel
| 119
| Fitzgerald
| James
| 68
| Fitzgerald
| William
| 394
| Fitzrandolph
| Robert
| 158
| Fowler
| Jonathan
| 735
| Franklin
| James Botineau
| 6157 | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | 
