The Mingo Family

<body topmargin=0 leftmargin=0 marginheight=0 marginwidth=0> <table cellpadding=0 cellspacing=0 border=0><tr> <td valign="top" colspan=2 height=110 BGCOLOR="#FFFFFF" TEXT="#080000" bgproperties="fixed" background="097f0f21egerdp.jpg"> <div> <FONT SIZE="5" COLOR="#66334C" FACE="Arial" ><B>Our Family  Past and Present</B></FONT><B>      |     </B><A HREF="index.htm" TARGET="_top" TITLE="Our Family Past and Present"><U><B>home</B></U></A></div> <div> <A HREF="id383.htm" TARGET="_top" TITLE="MontbeliardPhotos and Maps"><U>Montbeliard-Photos and Maps</U></A>   |   <A HREF="id342.htm" TARGET="_top" TITLE="Mingo Genealogy"><U>Mingo Genealogy</U></A>   |   <B>The Mingo Family</B>   |   <A HREF="id343.htm" TARGET="_top" TITLE="Christopher Mingo, Swiss Soldier"><U>Christopher Mingo, Swiss Soldier</U></A>   |   <A HREF="id324.htm" TARGET="_top" TITLE="Matthew Mingo"><U>Matthew Mingo</U></A>   |   <A HREF="id325.htm" TARGET="_top" TITLE="John Mingo"><U>John Mingo</U></A>   |   <A HREF="id245.htm" TARGET="_top" TITLE="Mary Hynds"><U>Mary Hynds</U></A>   |   <A HREF="id326.htm" TARGET="_top" TITLE="Susan Mingo"><U>Susan Mingo</U></A>   |   <A HREF="id81.htm" TARGET="_top" TITLE="William Harrington"><U>William Harrington</U></A>   |   <A HREF="id323.htm" TARGET="_top" TITLE="Annie McKenzie Harrington"><U>Annie McKenzie Harrington</U></A></div> <div> </div> </td> </tr><tr> <td valign="top" width=210 BGCOLOR="#FFFFFF" TEXT="#080000" bgproperties="fixed" background="096f2f02egerdp.jpg"> <bR> <div> <A HREF="id383.htm" TARGET="_top" TITLE="MontbeliardPhotos and Maps"><U><B><IMG BORDER="0" SRC="Symb075c00b700f04c336600.gif" HEIGHT="16" WIDTH="24" ALIGN="bottom" HSPACE="0" VSPACE="0">Montbeliard-Photos and Maps</B></U></A></div> <div> <A HREF="id342.htm" TARGET="_top" TITLE="Mingo Genealogy"><U><B><IMG BORDER="0" SRC="Symb075c00b700f04c336600.gif" HEIGHT="16" WIDTH="24" ALIGN="bottom" HSPACE="0" VSPACE="0">Mingo Genealogy</B></U></A></div> <div> <B><IMG BORDER="0" SRC="Symb075c00b700f04c336600.gif" HEIGHT="16" WIDTH="24" ALIGN="bottom" HSPACE="0" VSPACE="0">The Mingo Family</B></div> <div> <A HREF="id343.htm" TARGET="_top" TITLE="Christopher Mingo, Swiss Soldier"><U><B><IMG BORDER="0" SRC="Symb075c00b700f04c336600.gif" HEIGHT="16" WIDTH="24" ALIGN="bottom" HSPACE="0" VSPACE="0">Christopher Mingo, Swiss Soldier</B></U></A></div> <div> <A HREF="id324.htm" TARGET="_top" TITLE="Matthew Mingo"><U><B><IMG BORDER="0" SRC="Symb075c00b700f04c336600.gif" HEIGHT="16" WIDTH="24" ALIGN="bottom" HSPACE="0" VSPACE="0">Matthew Mingo</B></U></A></div> <div> <A HREF="id325.htm" TARGET="_top" TITLE="John Mingo"><U><B><IMG BORDER="0" SRC="Symb075c00b700f04c336600.gif" HEIGHT="16" WIDTH="24" ALIGN="bottom" HSPACE="0" VSPACE="0">John Mingo</B></U></A></div> <div> <A HREF="id245.htm" TARGET="_top" TITLE="Mary Hynds"><U><B><IMG BORDER="0" SRC="Symb075c00b700f04c336600.gif" HEIGHT="16" WIDTH="24" ALIGN="bottom" HSPACE="0" VSPACE="0">Mary Hynds</B></U></A></div> <div> <A HREF="id326.htm" TARGET="_top" TITLE="Susan Mingo"><U><B><IMG BORDER="0" SRC="Symb075c00b700f04c336600.gif" HEIGHT="16" WIDTH="24" ALIGN="bottom" HSPACE="0" VSPACE="0">Susan Mingo</B></U></A></div> <div> <A HREF="id81.htm" TARGET="_top" TITLE="William Harrington"><U><B><IMG BORDER="0" SRC="Symb075c00b700f04c336600.gif" HEIGHT="16" WIDTH="24" ALIGN="bottom" HSPACE="0" VSPACE="0">William Harrington</B></U></A></div> <div> <A HREF="id323.htm" TARGET="_top" TITLE="Annie McKenzie Harrington"><U><B><IMG BORDER="0" SRC="Symb075c00b700f04c336600.gif" HEIGHT="16" WIDTH="24" ALIGN="bottom" HSPACE="0" VSPACE="0">Annie McKenzie Harrington</B></U></A></div> </td> <td valign="top" height=370 BGCOLOR="#FFFFFF" TEXT="#080000" bgproperties="fixed" background="099f0f03.jpg"> <div> <I>The Mingo Family</I></div> <DIV ALIGN="LEFT"></DIV> <div> <IMG SRC="11ac68a0.gif" border=0 width="198" height="138" ALIGN="BOTTOM" HSPACE="0" VSPACE="0"></div> <div> The Mingo Family</div> <div> Menegaux</div> <bR> <div>  The Mingos came from the area of Europe known as Montbéliard. It is a French speaking area located just north of Switzerland, west of the Rhine and of Alsace. The people of this area were influenced by the various cultures of the neighboring countries of France and Germany. In the year 1598, the Edict of Nantes allowed freedom of religion. All religions were tolerated. The Edict was revoked in 1685. Those who had converted to Protestantism, became the persecuted. Their lives were made miserable by the Catholic officials. These Huguenots had little to protect their themselves, their faith and their homes, often using sticks and stones against well armed troops of the state and church. Their homes, schools and churches were burned, and many were killed. Most of those who survived fled France and journeyed to the New World.</div> <bR> <div>  Christopher Mingo and his brother Jasper are said to have escaped from France early in the 1700s. They settled in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. William Penn, the Quaker had founded this colony on  the basis of freedom of religion. </div> <bR> <div>  Soon after their arrival, the Mingo brothers set up a foundry for making pots and pans. In addition, they were skilled finish carpenters. They taught their children the ornate and intricate woodworking methods traditional to their homeland. They began to build ships to carry their wares.</div> <bR> <div>  Business trading was their first love and the most convenient markets were  in the English colonies, now known as the United States, and the French colonies, now known as Canada. At the time, tensions were mounting between the two regions. Trading was difficult. Because Christopher’s son John spoke French, he was able to travel to the French colonies, many times with his son Matthew. Posing as fisherman, John and Matthew traded pots and pans with natives in the Atlantic area in exchange for furs, often staying in Halifax to work as bookkeepers until they were able to sail to Holland to sell their traded goods. They also traded  frequently on the Great Lakes in ships built in their own family shipyard.</div> <bR> <div>  Matthew knew Colonel DesBarres [1722-1824], a Swiss engineer, also from Montbéliard. DesBarres had spent many years in the England. He came to America as a lieutenant in the English army in 1756. He raised and commanded a corps of field artillery. In 1757, he gained a victory over the Indians who had attacked Fort Schenectady, and at the Siege of Quebec [1759] he was an aide-de-camp to General James Wolfe, commander of the English forces in the Canadian Expedition. It was said General Wolfe fell mortally wounded while DesBarres was making a report. He conducted an engineering operations of the English army during the subsequent conquest of Canada. He was the quartermaster general in the expedition that retook Newfoundland in 1762.</div> <bR> <div>  Between 1763-1773 he made and exhaustive hydrographic survey of the coast of Nova Scotia, often risking his life to get difficult soundings. He was also engaged by General Lord Richard Howe to prepare charts of the North American coast as far as the Gulf of Mexico. This work took the next 16 years of his life. He became lieutenant governor of Cape Brenton [1784-1805], and of Prince Edward Island [1805-1813]. He published his own book of surveys, which prove to be of lasting value to maritimers. His notes contained numerous charts and plates of  extraordinary quality. He died in Canada at the age of 102.</div> <bR> <div>  DesBarres, at this time offered land to Matthew Mingo. He owned thousands of acres of land which had been confiscated from the Acadians on the Northumberland shore extending from River John to Tatamagouche. The British government gave the land to DesBarres. Never-the-less, he found himself deeply in debt. Matthew loaned him some money. In repayment, DesBarres gave Matthew a parcel of land from his grant. It was agreed that Matthew’s three sons, George, John and David would settle there. For some reason, they did not do so until later. The Mingo’s land was lost.</div> <div>  </div> <div>  Other Montbéilard immigrants, including more  Mingo family members had sailed directly to Halifax and Lunenburg, Nova Scotia in 1751. Here they received land, and they survived until 1771 when they also moved to the North Shore with JWF DesBarres .</div> <bR> <div>  These people soon adopted the language and characteristics of Canada. They understood and could speak French. Their bibles and other books were written in that language. They were industrious, sober and practical. In a remarkably short time they were making a comfortable living. As may be expected of people who gave up their homeland for the sake of their faith, they were devoutly religious. In the old country, they had been Lutherans, but here most of them allied with the Presbyterian Church, as it was the first Protestant Church to send a minister to Tatamagouche. </div> <bR> <div>  They, as a rule, showed good judgment in the selection of their farms, taking advantage of the clearings that had been made by the Acadians. They made a little money from  lumbering. In later years, shipbuilding proved to be a profitable enterprise, as they were skilled workers in wood, and had an abundant supply of lumber. In addition, a splendid harbor was close at hand. By 1775, they were a self supporting community. They were able to supply other new settlements with potatoes in that year.</div> <bR> <div>  In 1809, the three Mingo brothers and their father came from Philadelphia to finally settle on the back road to River John. This was the area of Tatamagouche , which means place where two rivers meetin the language of the MicMac Indians. The Mingos  were the first white settlers at that place. Many of their descendants still farm there. These brothers were instrumental in establishing the Episcopal church at River John. In 1814, he bought a parcel of land in Middleton, on the back road from River John to Tatamagouche, two and a half miles from Denmark and four and one half miles from Tatamagouche.</div> <div>  The land was and still is a gentle area of the province with rolling hills, rich red farming soil and  the warmest waters north of the Carolinas. There is plenty of game and the fishing is excellent. To this day, the region between Tatamagouche and River John on or near the Northumberland Strait is largely unspoiled and under developed except for scattered cottages along its shores. It is easy to imagine how people lived a century or two ago, despite the electric wires and paved roadways. Most of the farm houses are as old as the first settlers.  It is a healthy land and men of  eighty or ninety years old can still be seen baling hay in the sunshine of the fields and meadow.</div> <bR> <div> The old burying ground of these pioneers lies along the shore a little below the junction of  the French and Waugh Rivers.</div> <div> There on that beautiful wooded point silently sleep the heroes of the fight around old Montbeliard.Time and tide, working incessantly, have carried away over half of this historic spot where forever the forefathers of the hamlet sleep.</div> <div> Rugged spruce keep silent watch over their quiet secluded graves. These same trees saw when they first touched our shores, watched as they struggled on, and finally, when lifes work was done,saw their bodies returned to the earth from whence they came.</div> <div> Colchester Sun article, July 31, 1893 </div> <bR> <bR> </td> </tr></table></body>