Stephen M. Burritt (1759 – January 13, 1844) was an early settler in eastern

Ontario Ontario ( ; ) is one of the thirteen provinces and territories of Canada.Ontario is located in the geographic eastern half of Canada, but it has historically and politically been considered to be part of Central Canada. Located in Central Ca ...

Canada Canada is a country in North America. Its ten provinces and three territories extend from the Atlantic Ocean to the Pacific Ocean and northward into the Arctic Ocean, covering over , making it the world's second-largest country by tot ...

Biography

Originally from

Connecticut Connecticut () is the southernmost state in the New England region of the Northeastern United States. It is bordered by Rhode Island to the east, Massachusetts to the north, New York to the west, and Long Island Sound to the south. Its cap ...

, he fought on behalf of the

British British may refer to: Peoples, culture, and language * British people, nationals or natives of the United Kingdom, British Overseas Territories, and Crown Dependencies. ** Britishness, the British identity and common culture * British English, ...

at the

Battle of Bennington The Battle of Bennington was a battle of the American Revolutionary War, part of the Saratoga campaign, that took place on August 16, 1777, on a farm owned by John Green in Walloomsac, New York, about from its namesake, Bennington, Vermont. A r ...

. He and his son were captured and imprisoned but were able to escape because the warden of the prison was a fellow mason. After the war, he came to

Upper Canada The Province of Upper Canada (french: link=no, province du Haut-Canada) was a part of British Canada established in 1791 by the Kingdom of Great Britain, to govern the central third of the lands in British North America, formerly part of the ...

along the

Saint Lawrence River The St. Lawrence River (french: Fleuve Saint-Laurent, ) is a large river in the middle latitudes of North America. Its headwaters begin flowing from Lake Ontario in a (roughly) northeasterly direction, into the Gulf of St. Lawrence, connectin ...

. In 1793, he travelled up the

Rideau River The Rideau River (french: Rivière Rideau) is a river in Eastern Ontario, Canada. The river flows north from Upper Rideau Lake and empties into the Ottawa River at the Rideau Falls in Ottawa, Ontario. Its length is . As explained in a writin ...

and settled with his family near the current site of the village of

Burritts Rapids Burritts Rapids is a small village located on the Rideau River in eastern Ontario. The hamlet was named after Stephen Burritt, whose family was the first to settle in this area. At one time, the hamlet prospered due to its location on the Rideau ...

. He became a justice of the peace in the Johnstown District in 1800. In 1808, he was elected to represent Grenville County in the Assembly of Upper Canada. He commanded

Fort Wellington Fort Wellington National Historic Site is a historic Fortification, military fortification located on the north shore of the Saint Lawrence River, St. Lawrence River at Prescott, Ontario. The military fortification was used by the British Army, a ...

at Prescott during the

War of 1812 The War of 1812 (18 June 1812 – 17 February 1815) was fought by the United States of America and its indigenous allies against the United Kingdom and its allies in British North America, with limited participation by Spain in Florida. It bega ...

. He died in

Marlborough Township Marlborough Township is a former incorporated and now geographic township in eastern Ontario, Canada. Marlborough was located in the southern part of Carleton County. It was bounded to the south by Oxford Township, to the southwest by Montague T ...

in 1844. His son

Henry Henry may refer to: People *Henry (given name) *Henry (surname) * Henry Lau, Canadian singer and musician who performs under the mononym Henry Royalty * Portuguese royalty ** King-Cardinal Henry, King of Portugal ** Henry, Count of Portugal, ...

later also served in the legislative assembly.

References

*''Carleton Saga'', Harry & Olive Walker (1968) *''Becoming Prominent: Leadership in Upper Canada, 1791-1841'', J.K. Johnson (1989) {{DEFAULTSORT:Burritt, Stephen 1759 births 1844 deaths Members of the Legislative Assembly of Upper Canada Burritt, Stpehen People from Connecticut People from Leeds and Grenville United Counties