Case of the Silver Spoons by David Brewster

It may sound like an Agatha Christie thriller, but the case of the silver spoons is in fact yet another story of the Ulster Scots influence on Canada.  It began in 1769 at Drumnaha, near Magilligan in Co. Londonderry, on the farm of Joseph Allison.

When the landlord’s agent called at the Allison farm for the rent, he was provided with a meal served on the best crockery and with six silver spoons, which had recently been given to Joseph’s wife.  At the end of the meal the agent informed Joseph that he would have to pay more rent next year because anyone who could afford silver spoons could afford higher rent. 

Infuriated, Joseph said that he would emigrate before paying more, and true to his word, he did.

Joseph took his family, and his goods - spoons included, and booked a passage for Philadelphia.  However, the ship foundered near Sable Island on the Canadian coast, and the Allisons landed in Nova Scotia.  Joseph abandoned his plans to go to Philadelphia, and bought a farm at Gaspereaux.

The family prospered and Joseph’s grandson Charles Frederick Allison, born in 1795, ran a successful shipbuilding and mercantile business in Sackville, New Brunswick. 

Charles Allison was converted at a Methodist revival meeting and in 1839 he offered to build and endow a college to educate Methodist students.  His only requirement was that “pure religion is not only taught, but constantly brought before the youthful mind”.

Charles retired from his business to devote himself to the project.  He laid the foundation stone on July 9, 1840, and saw the first students admitted in 1843.  The New Brunswick university has the unique distinction of being the first in the British Empire to confer a degree on a woman Grace Annie Lockhart, who graduated with a Bachelor of Science in 1875. 

The university remains to the forefront of third level education in New Brunswick.  Visitors to the university can view an unusual exhibit in the library- Joseph Allison’s silver spoons, brought from Ulster and preserved by the family.

• David Brewster is a solicitor from Limavady and a relation of the Allison family, which still farms the lands in Magilligan