1778 Newport garrison duty might be the reason Stephen Sands' son was born RI
This is an update of what I know:
My gggg grandfather, Stephen Sands, was a Loyalist during the Revolutionary War.Another Sands researcher recently found the following information at the British Archives website:STEPHEN SANDS Born CONNECTICUT, North America Served in 104th Foot Regiment; 10th Royal Veteran Battalion; Queen's Rangers Discharged aged 53 Covering Dates 1776-1814.www.catalogue.nationalarchives.gov.uk
1761-Stephen was born in Connecticut
1776-his military service begins; regiment unknown
1778-son Stephen born in RI (Eaton Grant, ME 1850 census)
1780-listed on Capt. McCrea's Queen's Rangers muster rolls
1781-taken prisoner at Yorktown on October 19
1783-Queen's Rangers disbanded in Canada on October 13
1785-first New Brunswick land petition
1804-joined NB 104th Regiment of Foot under Martin Hunter
1813-transferred to 10th Royal Veteran Battalion
1814-discharged at the age of 53
1823-married second wife, Mary Wood/widow
1830-died in Waterborough, Queens County, NB
I have yet to find any connection between my Stephen and the Sands family descended from James Sands of Block Island.Since Stephen the son was born in Rhode Island, I really thought that would be the family of Stephen the Loyalist.
However, I just learned that in 1777, loyalist soldiers (specifically the Prince of Wales American Regiment made up of many Connecticut Loyalists) were sent to Newport, Rhode Island for garrison duty.They arrived in June and were there until 1779."Another hardship was that the corps would only be allowed to bring thirty women with them, and therefore had to leave behind a number of the soldiers wives and children. . .Rhode Island was evacuated on 11 October 1779.They. . .had increased their number of women and children considerably since their arrival in Newport" (www.rootsweb.com/~canmil/uel/pwar.htm).