Eastman, Benjamin

(submitted by Anne Wight)

Benjamin Eastman (1804 - 1852) was born in Grenville County. He married Mahetabel Minor in 1827. 

Benjamin's father, Amherst Eastman, had lived in Upper Canada at intervals since 1785, having returned to Vermont to marry and start his family. By 1801 Amherst had settled on grant land in Augusta Twp., Grenville County. 

Two of Amherst's sons settled in Warwick, his fourth son Nadab and his fifth son Benjamin. Benjamin arrived on Lot 19, Con. 2 SER, Warwick Twp. about 1834 and stayed for about five years. Two of his four sons were born while the family was in Warwick. 

By 1840, the family was living in Middlesex County, the last of four counties in which Benjamin pioneered. Often he farmed for his father-in-law. After Benjamin died in 1852, Mahetabel married Joseph Cooper in 1858. Known as Grandma Cooper, she died in 1903. 

In the short time Benjamin lived in Warwick, he served the area in two ways. In 1836, he signed a petition with 73 other "Inhabitants, Householders and Freeloaders of the Township of Warwick in the Western District," requesting that a new court centre be located closer to Warwick than Sandwich (later Windsor). To conduct such legal business as registration deeds, people in Kent County, which then included counties now known as Lambton, Essex and Kent, had to make an arduous journey to Sandwich. They either trekked to Sarnia and went by boat or journeyed overland, making a wide detour around a vast swampy area, to reach the court. In 1883, Benjamin was registered with the militia on the Volunteer Soldier's Pay List for Warwick Twp. 

Benjamin's daughter Elizabeth married Moses Holden, a shoemaker in Strathroy. 

After farming in Adelaide Twp., Benjamin's oldest son, Elijah, moved to Warwick Twp., to Lot 24, Con. 3 NER, where he lived from 1884 to 1890. Elijah (1832 - 1890) was born in North Gower. He married Abigail Martin (1830 - 1910) in 1853. Two of his sons, Willard and Truman, moved to Warwick Twp. and raised families here. 

Elijah was described by a grandson as a big man, and very agile. Although he had limited schooling, he was said to have a remarkable ability for estimating the weight of livestock and wagonloads of grain. Among Elijah's descendants are several who have used their mathematical ability as an occupation. 

Elijah and Abigail's oldest son, Wesley (1855 - 1936), who married Mary Stoney (1861 -1936), moved west to Saskatchewan with his daughter and three sons. 

Elijah Eastman. Courtesy L Bryson.

Their next oldest son, Willard (1857 - 1939), farmed on the south half of Lot 24, Con. 4 NER, Warwick Twp., where he moved in 1883. Willard's first wife was Charlotte Macklin (1856 - 1896). By her he had two sons and a daughter who grew to adulthood. Willard's son Ernie operated a fruit farm near Blenheim with a retail store that developed over the years from a roadside stand. Willard had two sons and a daughter by his second wife, Annie Love (1867 - 1943). They all moved away. 

Elijah and Abigail's son, Albert (1863 - 1943), who married Mabel Whitmer (1870 - 1950), worked as a tailor in Michigan. 

Their son Truman (1866 - 1950) married Cassie Muma (1870 - 1942) and farmed on Lot 23, Con. 4 NER, the lot next to his brother Willard. Several descendants of Truman and Cassie still live in Warwick Township. 

Elijah and Abigail Eastman's daughter Annie died young and Minerva remained single. The other daughter, Effie (1868 - 1944), married Tom Reycraft (1863 - 1922), who farmed in Kent County. 

Another of Benjamin's sons, Solomon, farmed in Adelaide Township. Two other sons, Silas and Chester, operated "The Montreal Store" in Arkona, serving customers from Warwick and Bosanquet. Tragically, in 1865 Silas died of tuberculosis. In 1884 fire destroyed the store; Chester died of tuberculosis in 1890. 

Chapter 24 of 25 - Eastman, Benjamin

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