Stephen Seburn U.E. (1758-1828), his wife, Mary Haney (1765-1830), and their babe-in-arms, Nancy, were part of a large movement of Loyalist refugees who traveled on foot from New Jersey and arrived in Niagara in 1787. The family settled on Lot 50 in Stamford Township. Stephen farmed, kept a small amount of livestock, and also kept bees, did some carpentry, and made brooms for Fort Niagara. Like other pioneer families, they supplemented their diet by hunting game and foraging for edible plants. By 1797 the Seburns had obtained a Crown Patent for 100 acres in Stamford Township and 300 acres in Thorold Township and were in sufficient financial circumstances that they had contributed to the building of the first Anglican Church in St. Catharines in 1795.

The Seburns had seven children: Nancy Ann (1787-1856), who first married Jacob Wilkerson (1778-1814) who was killed at the Battle of Chippawa, and later married Nathan Hixon (1781-1856); John (1788-1863) who first married Elizabeth Bessey (1791-1816) and later married Sarah Dolson (1793-1855); Margaret (1790-1872?) who first married George Hoover Junior (1781-1812) and later married Jacob Vanderburg (1780-1860); Matthew (1791-1859) who married Elizabeth Ann Forbes (1794-1861); William (1793-1843) who married Catherine Lampman (1793-1865?); Jaocb (1795-1869) who married Hannah Ann Forbes (1799-1883); and Mary (1797-1870) who married John Hudson (1788-?), a former British soldier from Ireland who settled on land obtained from Col. Talbot in London Township. The other Seburn children settled in the Niagara area. All the Seburn men fought and remained loyal during the War of 1812. In total, Stephen and Mary Seburn had 55 grandchildren.

Tim Seburn U.E.

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