Ward Chipman (July 30, 1754 – February 9, 1824) was a

New Brunswick New Brunswick (french: Nouveau-Brunswick, , locally ) is one of the thirteen provinces and territories of Canada. It is one of the three Maritime provinces and one of the four Atlantic provinces. It is the only province with both English and ...

lawyer, judge, and political figure. He briefly served as administrator for New Brunswick from 1823 until his death in 1824.

Early life

He was born in

Marblehead, Massachusetts Marblehead is a coastal New England town in Essex County, Massachusetts, along the North Shore (Massachusetts), North Shore. Its population was 20,441 at the 2020 United States Census, 2020 census. The town lies on a small peninsula that extends ...

in 1754 and studied at

Harvard College Harvard College is the undergraduate college of Harvard University, an Ivy League research university in Cambridge, Massachusetts. Founded in 1636, Harvard College is the original school of Harvard University, the oldest institution of higher lea ...

. He taught school in

Boston Boston (), officially the City of Boston, is the state capital and most populous city of the Commonwealth of Massachusetts, as well as the cultural and financial center of the New England region of the United States. It is the 24th- mo ...

, then articled in law with

Jonathan Sewall Jonathan Sewall (August 24, 1729 – September 27, 1796) was the last Colonial attorney general of Massachusetts. He was born in Boston on August 24, 1729 to Jonathan Sewall Sr. and Mary (Payne) Sewall. Sewall's father was an unsuccessf ...

. He practiced law in the Vice-Admiralty Court and also was a clerk-solicitor in the Boston customhouse. However, he remained loyal to

Britain Britain most often refers to: * The United Kingdom, a sovereign state in Europe comprising the island of Great Britain, the north-eastern part of the island of Ireland and many smaller islands * Great Britain, the largest island in the United King ...

during the

American Revolution The American Revolution was an ideological and political revolution that occurred in British America between 1765 and 1791. The Americans in the Thirteen Colonies formed independent states that defeated the British in the American Revolut ...

and withdrew to Halifax and then

London London is the capital and largest city of England and the United Kingdom, with a population of just under 9 million. It stands on the River Thames in south-east England at the head of a estuary down to the North Sea, and has been a majo ...

. In 1777, he became deputy to muster master general

Edward Winslow Edward Winslow (18 October 15958 May 1655) was a Separatist and New England political leader who traveled on the ''Mayflower'' in 1620. He was one of several senior leaders on the ship and also later at Plymouth Colony. Both Edward Winslow and ...

; at the same time, he was admitted to the bar in

New York New York most commonly refers to: * New York City, the most populous city in the United States, located in the state of New York * New York (state), a state in the northeastern United States New York may also refer to: Film and television * '' ...

and resided for a time in

Staten Island Staten Island ( ) is a borough of New York City, coextensive with Richmond County, in the U.S. state of New York. Located in the city's southwest portion, the borough is separated from New Jersey by the Arthur Kill and the Kill Van Kull an ...

Career

At the end of the war, he returned to London and lobbied for a grant of land in

Nova Scotia Nova Scotia ( ; ; ) is one of the thirteen provinces and territories of Canada. It is one of the three Maritime provinces and one of the four Atlantic provinces. Nova Scotia is Latin for "New Scotland". Most of the population are native Eng ...

. He became part of a group of loyalists urging that Nova Scotia be partitioned, which led to the creation of New Brunswick. Chipman was named solicitor general for the new province. He prepared a charter for the city of Saint John for Governor

Thomas Carleton General Thomas Carleton (c. 1735 – 2 February 1817) was an Irish-born British Army officer who was promoted to colonel during the American Revolutionary War after relieving the siege of Quebec in 1776. After the war, he was appointed as L ...

and served as recorder for the city from 1785 to 1809, which also made him a justice of the peace. In 1785, he was one of the founders of the New Brunswick bar and set up practice in Saint John. Chipman's clients included

Benedict Arnold Benedict Arnold ( Brandt (1994), p. 4June 14, 1801) was an American military officer who served during the Revolutionary War. He fought with distinction for the American Continental Army and rose to the rank of major general before defect ...

. Also in 1785, he ran as a pro-government candidate for the Legislative Assembly and was elected, although he is said to have the support of the local sheriff in the inspection of the ballots; he was defeated in the 1793 election for the 2nd New Brunswick Legislature, but returned in Northumberland County. He was defeated again in 1795. In 1800, he pleaded the case of Nancy Morton, an enslaved Black woman, in ''

R v Jones Reginald Victor Jones , FRSE, LLD (29 September 1911 – 17 December 1997) was a British physicist and scientific military intelligence expert who played an important role in the defence of Britain in by solving scientific and technical pr ...

''; the court was divided with respect to Chipman's assertion that

slavery Slavery and enslavement are both the state and the condition of being a slave—someone forbidden to quit one's service for an enslaver, and who is treated by the enslaver as property. Slavery typically involves slaves being made to perf ...

was illegal in New Brunswick, so no decision was made and the woman was returned to her master. Chipman also supported the settlement of several hundred Black refugees in the province following 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 was also a gentleman farmer and was known for the quality of his

potato The potato is a starchy food, a tuber of the plant ''Solanum tuberosum'' and is a root vegetable native to the Americas. The plant is a perennial in the nightshade family Solanaceae. Wild potato species can be found from the southern Unit ...

crops. Chipman represented the British in the negotiations held to establish the province's boundary with the state of

Maine Maine () is a state in the New England and Northeastern regions of the United States. It borders New Hampshire to the west, the Gulf of Maine to the southeast, and the Canadian provinces of New Brunswick and Quebec to the northeast and north ...

. In 1806, he was named to the Council. He was named a

puisne judge A puisne judge or puisne justice (; from french: puisné or ; , 'since, later' + , 'born', i.e. 'junior') is a dated term for an ordinary judge or a judge of lesser rank of a particular court. Use The term is used almost exclusively in common law ...

in the province's Supreme Court in 1808. In 1815, he was named to a second commission charged with settling the boundary with Maine as it applied to islands in

Passamaquoddy Bay Passamaquoddy Bay (french: Baie de Passamaquoddy) is an inlet of the Bay of Fundy, between the U.S. state of Maine and the Canadian province of New Brunswick, at the mouth of the St. Croix River. Most of the bay lies within Canada, with its w ...

. In 1823, Chipman was named colonial administrator after the death 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 ...

; he died in office at

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 ...

in 1824.

Legacy

The Ward Chipman Library at the

University of New Brunswick The University of New Brunswick (UNB) is a public university with two primary campuses in Fredericton and Saint John, New Brunswick. It is the oldest English-language university in Canada, and among the oldest public universities in North Americ ...

was named in his honour.

External links

Biography at the ''Dictionary of Canadian Biography Online''The Ward Chipman Slavery Brief
{{DEFAULTSORT:Chipman, Ward 1754 births 1824 deaths Harvard College alumni Members of the Legislative Assembly of New Brunswick Clerks United Empire Loyalists People from Marblehead, Massachusetts Colony of New Brunswick judges Attorneys General of the Colony of New Brunswick