John Baird (1795–1858) was born and educated in Graffa,

Ireland Ireland ( ; ga, Éire ; Ulster Scots dialect, Ulster-Scots: ) is an island in the Atlantic Ocean, North Atlantic Ocean, in Northwestern Europe, north-western Europe. It is separated from Great Britain to its east by the North Channel (Grea ...

. He was a son of William Baird and Susan Teel. He was recruited there by the

British Army The British Army is the principal land warfare force of the United Kingdom, a part of the British Armed Forces along with the Royal Navy and the Royal Air Force. , the British Army comprises 79,380 regular full-time personnel, 4,090 Gurk ...

as a teacher.

Early life

He got education at Graffa and later in the town of

Monaghan Monaghan ( ; ) is the county town of County Monaghan, Republic of Ireland, Ireland. It also provides the name of its Civil parishes in Ireland, civil parish and Monaghan (barony), barony. The population of the town as of the 2016 census was 7 ...

. Then he entered the Seminary for School Masters in County

Kildare Kildare () is a town in County Kildare, Ireland. , its population was 8,634 making it the 7th largest town in County Kildare. The town lies on the R445, some west of Dublin – near enough for it to have become, despite being a regional cen ...

Career

In 1817 the 74th Foot was stationed in the County and their commander, Colonel Sir Robert Trench, visited the seminary in search for the student teachers to join his regiment, which sailed for British North America. Baird agreed and was supposed to serve for seven years as a teacher. He got the pay and rank of a sergeant, and after expiring of his term he would get a crown land. In 1818 they were stationed in

Fredericton Fredericton (; ) is the capital city of the Canadian province of New Brunswick. The city is situated in the west-central portion of the province along the Saint John River, which flows west to east as it bisects the city. The river is the do ...

, New Brunswick where he would teach the children of the regiment and the poor and black of the area. In 1823 he was released from the army and his family and other disbanded soldiers took up army granted land in the parish of Kent. Bairdsville was founded around this time by relatives of his from Ireland. He farmed and taught school there for 2 years, till 1825. In 1825, Baird became part of Lieutenant Governor

George Stracey Smyth George Stracey Smyth (4 April 1767 – 27 March 1823) was Commander-in-Chief, North America, Lieutenant Governor of Nova Scotia and Lieutenant Governor of New Brunswick. Biography Born in England, he was appointed an ensign in the East Norf ...

's Madras school system which provided education for the poor children of the province. He was one of the pioneer teachers who helped provide an education to the poor at a time when few such opportunities existed. In February 1836 his wife and two daughters died because of consumption and after their death the members of the Madras School Board expressed some dissatisfaction with the way the school was being operated. In May 1839 Baird was replaced from his position. In 1841 he left Fredericton and moved to land he had purchased near Tobique. He died there in 1858.

Private life

He got married on March 30, 1817 with Annie Diggin (1798–1836) of Dublin, and they had two sons and two daughters, including William Teel Baird, military officer and author. He married for the second time in 1836, and by that marriage had six children.

References

External links

* Highland Light Infantry soldiers Canadian educators Colony of New Brunswick people 1795 births 1858 deaths Irish emigrants to pre-Confederation New Brunswick Military personnel from County Mayo Irish soldiers in the British Army {{Edu-bio-stub