Jeremiah Bancroft
Encyclopedia
Jeremiah Bancroft was born in Reading, Massachusetts
, on July 27, 1725 and died there from smallpox on November 25, 1757. Bancroft was an ensign in the French and Indian War
. Bancroft is best known for the diary he kept of his account of the fall of Fort Beausejour
and the Expulsion of the Acadians at Grand-Pré
.
Jeremiah was the third generation to have roots in Reading. Jeremiah was an uncle of Judge Samuel Bancroft who moved with his family from Reading to the Annapolis Valley in 1762 and who is the progenitor of some, if not all, of the Bancroft families currently resident in Nova Scotia. In 1749 Jeremiah married Elizabeth Nichols and by the spring of 1755 when he embarked for Chignecto, Jeremiah and his wife had one daughter, a second child having died in infancy. Nothing is known of Jeremiah’s schooling. However, judging by his diary, it seems fair to conclude that he had received a basic education, being moderately literate and with a writing ability not unlike that of some other junior officers in the American colonial troops. His periodic reference to religious matters suggests that he was a man of faith, but that was probably the norm among mid-18th century New Englanders. Jeremiah was apparently not a wealthy man since the value of his estate was only a little over 66 pounds.
of Massachusetts. The Battalion was commanded by Lieutenant-Colonel John Winslow (British Army officer)
of Marshfield, Massachusetts. It and a Second Battalion had been raised in New England, chiefly Massachusetts, in the early months of 1755 by Governor Shirley and Lieutenant Colonel Robert Monckton
. At the time that Captain Osgood’s Company embarked at Boston on the Swan for Chignecto, it numbered 103 officers and men. All together, the Anglo-American force consisted of approximately 1,950 New England provincial troops and 270 British regulars.
The first entry of Bancroft's diary relates to the successful Battle of Fort Beauséjour
by an Anglo-American military force. The capture of Fort Beauséjour
was the only instance in which New France was compelled to yield ground in 1755, a year which was generally disappointing for Great Britain in its undeclared war with France.
Bancroft’s second entry in his dairy relates to a gloomy chapter in Maritime history—the Expulsion of the Acadians of Nova Scotia. More specifically, it relates to operations at Grand-Pré
. While several other diaries chronicle events during and after the siege of Fort Beauséjour, including the deportation of Acadians from the Chignecto area, only one other diary is known to record events attending the deportation in 1755 of Acadians living farther south in Nova Scotia.
Reading, Massachusetts
Reading is an affluent town situated in Middlesex County, Massachusetts, United States, some north of central Boston. The population was 24,747 at the 2010 census.-Settlement and Independence:...
, on July 27, 1725 and died there from smallpox on November 25, 1757. Bancroft was an ensign in the French and Indian War
French and Indian War
The French and Indian War is the common American name for the war between Great Britain and France in North America from 1754 to 1763. In 1756, the war erupted into the world-wide conflict known as the Seven Years' War and thus came to be regarded as the North American theater of that war...
. Bancroft is best known for the diary he kept of his account of the fall of Fort Beausejour
Fort Beauséjour
Fort Beauséjour, was built during Father Le Loutre's War from 1751-1755; it is located at the Isthmus of Chignecto in present-day Aulac, New Brunswick, Canada...
and the Expulsion of the Acadians at Grand-Pré
Grand-pre
Grand-Pré National Historic Site is a park set aside to commemorate the Grand-Pré area of Nova Scotia as a centre of Acadian settlement from 1682 to 1755, and the deportation of the Acadians which began in 1755 and continued to 1762...
.
Family
His father Samuel was a captain in Reading. The Bancroft family had emigrated from England to Massachusetts in 1632 andJeremiah was the third generation to have roots in Reading. Jeremiah was an uncle of Judge Samuel Bancroft who moved with his family from Reading to the Annapolis Valley in 1762 and who is the progenitor of some, if not all, of the Bancroft families currently resident in Nova Scotia. In 1749 Jeremiah married Elizabeth Nichols and by the spring of 1755 when he embarked for Chignecto, Jeremiah and his wife had one daughter, a second child having died in infancy. Nothing is known of Jeremiah’s schooling. However, judging by his diary, it seems fair to conclude that he had received a basic education, being moderately literate and with a writing ability not unlike that of some other junior officers in the American colonial troops. His periodic reference to religious matters suggests that he was a man of faith, but that was probably the norm among mid-18th century New Englanders. Jeremiah was apparently not a wealthy man since the value of his estate was only a little over 66 pounds.
French and Indian War
Jeremiah Bancroft was the ensign in Captain Phineas Osgood’s Company, one of eleven companies comprising the First Battalion of the Regiment of Governor William ShirleyWilliam Shirley
William Shirley was a British colonial administrator who served twice as Governor of the Province of Massachusetts Bay and as Governor of the Bahamas in the 1760s...
of Massachusetts. The Battalion was commanded by Lieutenant-Colonel John Winslow (British Army officer)
John Winslow (British army officer)
Major-General John Winslow , descendant of Pilgrim Edward Winslow, was an officer during the French and Indian War....
of Marshfield, Massachusetts. It and a Second Battalion had been raised in New England, chiefly Massachusetts, in the early months of 1755 by Governor Shirley and Lieutenant Colonel Robert Monckton
Robert Monckton
Robert Monckton was an officer of the British army and a colonial administrator in British North America. He had a distinguished military and political career, being second in command to General Wolfe at the battle of Quebec and subsequently being the Governor of New York State...
. At the time that Captain Osgood’s Company embarked at Boston on the Swan for Chignecto, it numbered 103 officers and men. All together, the Anglo-American force consisted of approximately 1,950 New England provincial troops and 270 British regulars.
The first entry of Bancroft's diary relates to the successful Battle of Fort Beauséjour
Battle of Fort Beauséjour
The Battle of Fort Beauséjour was fought on the Isthmus of Chignecto and marked the end of Father Le Loutre’s War andthe opening of a British offensive in the French and Indian War, which would eventually lead to the end the French Empire in North America...
by an Anglo-American military force. The capture of Fort Beauséjour
Fort Beauséjour
Fort Beauséjour, was built during Father Le Loutre's War from 1751-1755; it is located at the Isthmus of Chignecto in present-day Aulac, New Brunswick, Canada...
was the only instance in which New France was compelled to yield ground in 1755, a year which was generally disappointing for Great Britain in its undeclared war with France.
Bancroft’s second entry in his dairy relates to a gloomy chapter in Maritime history—the Expulsion of the Acadians of Nova Scotia. More specifically, it relates to operations at Grand-Pré
Grand-pre
Grand-Pré National Historic Site is a park set aside to commemorate the Grand-Pré area of Nova Scotia as a centre of Acadian settlement from 1682 to 1755, and the deportation of the Acadians which began in 1755 and continued to 1762...
. While several other diaries chronicle events during and after the siege of Fort Beauséjour, including the deportation of Acadians from the Chignecto area, only one other diary is known to record events attending the deportation in 1755 of Acadians living farther south in Nova Scotia.