The Hunters' Lodge was the last of a series of secret organizations formed in 1838 in the United States during the

Rebellions Rebellion, uprising, or insurrection is a refusal of obedience or order. It refers to the open resistance against the orders of an established authority. A rebellion originates from a sentiment of indignation and disapproval of a situation and ...

in the Canadas. The organization arose in Vermont among Lower Canadian refugees (the eastern division or

Frères chasseurs The Frères chasseurs (French for "Hunter Brothers") were a paramilitary organization that fought in the Patriote Rebellion on the Patriote side, seeking to make Lower Canada, now Quebec, an independent and democratic republic. After the failure ...

) and spread westward under the influence of Dr

Charles Duncombe Charles Duncombe may refer to: *Charles Duncombe (English banker) (1648–1711), English banker, MP and Lord Mayor *Charles Duncombe, 1st Baron Feversham (1764–1841), English MP *Charles Duncombe (Upper Canada Rebellion) (1792–1867), American p ...

and Donald McLeod, leaders of the short lived Canadian Refugee Relief Association, and Scotland native

William Lyon Mackenzie William Lyon Mackenzie (March12, 1795 August28, 1861) was a Scottish Canadian-American journalist and politician. He founded newspapers critical of the Family Compact, a term used to identify elite members of Upper Canada. He represented Yor ...

, drawing in support from many different areas in North America and Europe. They also absorbed Henry S. Handy's 'Secret Order of the Sons of Liberty' in Detroit into a Grand Lodge in

Cleveland Cleveland ( ), officially the City of Cleveland, is a city in the U.S. state of Ohio and the county seat of Cuyahoga County. Located in the northeastern part of the state, it is situated along the southern shore of Lake Erie, across the U.S. ...

Lodge organization

The Hunters Lodges were modelled on masonic lodges, and adopted similar secret signs, hierarchical orders, and rituals. The four degrees of the Lodge were: Snowshoe, Beaver, Grand Hunter and Patriot Hunter. Soldiers without rank were of the first degree,

commissioned officers An officer is a person who holds a position of authority as a member of an armed force or uniformed service. Broadly speaking, "officer" means a commissioned officer, a non-commissioned officer, or a warrant officer. However, absent context ...

of the second,

field officers A senior officer is an officer of a more senior grade in military or other uniformed services. In military organisations, the term may refer to any officer above junior officer rank, but usually specifically refers to the middle-ranking group of ...

of the third, and the highest ranking commissioned officers of the fourth degree. They also utilized a secret code, sometimes printed in newspapers like the ''Buffalonian'', to communicate orders. Lodges existed across Vermont, western New York, Ohio and Michigan with particularly active sites being Watertown, Oswego, Salina (now Syracuse), Rochester, Buffalo, Cleveland, and Detroit.

Convention and the Republic of Canada

In September 1838, 70 delegates from the western Hunters' Lodges attended a secret, week-long "Patriot Congress" in Cleveland, Ohio. They appointed a provisional Canadian republican government that included: # President A.D. Smith, "chief justice of the peace at Cleveland" # Vice-President Colonel Nathan Williams, "a wholesale grocer" in Cleveland # Secretary of the Treasury Judge John Grant Jr, Oswego # Secretary of War Donald McLeod # Commander-in-chief of the "Patriot Army of the West," Lucius V. Bierce, "an attorney at Akron," mayor of

Akron, Ohio Akron () is the fifth-largest city in the U.S. state of Ohio and is the county seat of Summit County. It is located on the western edge of the Glaciated Allegheny Plateau, about south of downtown Cleveland. As of the 2020 Census, the city prop ...

. # Commodore of the Patriot Navy on Lake Erie, Gilman Appleby, former Captain of the '' Caroline'' # Commodore of the Patriot Navy on Lake Ontario,

Bill Johnston Bill or Billy Johnston may refer to: * Bill Johnston (cricketer) (1922–2007), Australian cricketer * Bill Johnston (golfer) (1925–2021), American golfer and golf course architect * Bill Johnston (tennis) William Marquitz "Little Bill" John ...

To fund the war, they formed a joint stock bank, the Republican Bank of Canada, with Secretary of the Treasury John Grant, Jr. as President. They printed bills with pictures of Rebellion martyrs

Samuel Lount Samuel Lount (September 24, 1791 – April 12, 1838) was a blacksmith, farmer, magistrate and member of the Legislative Assembly in the province of Upper Canada for Simcoe County from 1834 to 1836. He was an organizer of the failed Upper Can ...

and James Morreau on them. The official newspaper of the organization was the ''Bald Eagle'' published in Cleveland by Samuel Underhill.

Politics

The leadership of the Patriot movement appears to have belonged to the small Equal Rights Party (known more popularly as the Locofocos). The small party emerged in 1836 in New York with a platform emphasizing radical republicanism, an end to the "moneyed aristocracy", and " Free Banking". The Republican Bank of Canada was formed on this basis. Dr

was the author of ''Duncombe’s free banking: an essay on banking, currency, finance, exchanges, and political economy'' (Cleveland, Ohio, 1841); and ''Memorial to Congress upon the subject of Republican free banking'' (Cleveland, Ohio, 1841).

References

{{reflist 1838 establishments in Vermont Canada–United States relations Canadian-American history Organizations established in 1838 Republicanism in Canada Secret societies in Canada Upper Canada Rebellion

Lodge organization

Convention and the Republic of Canada

Politics

See also

References