Christian Hennigar, who settled in Douglas Township, Hants County, Nova Scotia, was born in Hatten, Alsace on January 26, 1755. Alsace was part of France on the German border at the time and its citizens were German speaking., He came to Philadelphia with family members when he was 14 years old. He joined the American forces in the fight against the British, until he was taken prisoner at Long Island (Battle of Long Island, 27th August 1776). Rather than remaining imprisoned, he then joined the men of the British 84th Regiment ("Royal Highland Emigrants"-Christian was in the 7th Company, 2nd Battalion).
Christian Hennigar received his discharge at Fort Edward, Windsor, N.S. on the 14th day of October 1783. The following is a transcript of his discharge papers:
Lieutenant Colonel Commandant to the second Battalion of his Majesty's Eighty-fourth Battalion of Foot, Whereof his excellency General Sir Guy Carlton K.B.C.C.C. is Colonel-in- Chief.
I, Christian Hennigar, do acknowledge that I have received all my clothing, pay, arrears of pay and every other just due and demand whatsoever from the time of my enlistment in the Battalion and Company mentioned on the other side to this present day of my discharge, also fourteen days pay to carry me to my proposed place of residence.
Witness my hand this 14th day of October, 1783.
X (Christian Hennigar)
Witness: Alex Fraser, Sr. Major.
He received a grant of land in Douglas Township in the area now known as Upper Kennetcook, where he settled on the Kennetcook River. Christian added to his grant lands by purchasing 900 acres adjacent to his property. He improved the land with buildings and cleared the forest and owned orchards, and erected a grist mill.
On 22 April 1789 he married Mary Cannon at Windsor, Nova Scotia by Rev. William Ellis. They had ten children, including five sons.
Christian likely had a home, barn and some of his land cleared prior to his marriage. Mary's father, James Cannon, was a stone mason and during the late 1750's he worked for a contractor in Halifax before moving to Kings County and was in Windsor by 1768, the year of Mary Ann's birth. Who her mother was is not known at this time. James Cannon died a pauper in late 1805 in Windsor. Christian was responsible for his father-in-law's burial and subsequently presented a township meeting with the bill for Cannon's funeral. The local officials were suitably annoyed to find that the total of £3.18s.6d that included 4s.6d for pipes and tobacco, 16s. for rum during Cannon's illness and 32s. for rum consumed by the mourners. They rejected the charges "as truly inadmissible and as being a very dangerous precedent".
Christian had a mill on the Kennetcook River that had been built around 1790. Christian Hennigar owned the grist mill that serviced the area of northern Hants County through the latter 1700's and early 1800's. It was originally a water-powered grist mill. Over time it was equipped to mill lumber and shingles as well. His sons and heirs operated it until 1920.
The stones from this grist mill are the ones that were moved in 1983 to Upper Kennetcook to the old one room school house property where they form the major part of a monument that was erected to Christian Hennigar by his many descendants. It was in this school that many of his descendants received their education. The dedication of this monument took place on July 24, 1983.
The Monument was deeded to the Hants East Historical Society for perpetual care.
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| Bill Compton and Lyman Densmore in 2008 at the monument |
Christian's date of death is unknown at this time. I could not locate a headstone in the Upper Kennetcook Anglican Church Cemetery. Years ago, the cemetery committee "cleaned up" the graveyard of many broken and scattered headstones and unfortunately simply discarded them.
The St. Peter's Anglican Church in Upper Kennetcook has a stained glass window on the wall behind the pulpit:
To The Glory of God and In Loving
Memory of Christian Hennigar and his sons,
James, George, John, Jacob, and Christian.
