- Call Number:
- HIL-MICL FC LFR .S4D3R4
- Category:
- Family
- Creator:
- Servos, Daniel, c.1748-1803.
- Material Description:
- 1 microfilm textual records (6 volumes) ; 35 mm
- Background:
- Daniel Servos lived in Tryon County, New York, before the American Revolution. His father, Christopher Servos, owned 1500 acres of land and operated a prosperous farm on the Charlotte River. Daniel Servos, his father and his brother, supported the British cause and were all imprisoned at various times during the early years of the war. In 1778, Christopher Servos was attacked and killed by a rebel party, and the rebels burned, confiscated and sold all the family's property and personal estate. In 1779, Daniel made his way to Fort Niagara where he received a lieutenant's commission in the Indian Department from General Haldimand and served throughout the remainder of the war.
When peace came, and the British government was receiving claims for compensation for the losses suffered by Loyalists, Daniel Servos submitted a claim on behalf of his deceased father, his mother Clara Servos, and his younger siblings. The claim for compensation has provided the details for this biographical sketch. Daniel Servos married Elizabeth Johnson (1747-1821), and after the war they settled at Palatine Hill, near Four-Mile Creek, Niagara, where he build a house and a mill. As time went on, Palatine Hill became an important trading centre for both settlers and Indians. The Servos Burial Ground contains the graves of both Daniel and Elizabeth Servos, along with several generations of the Servos family.
- Contents:
The Records consist of a microfilm copy of five, Mill Account Books, 1785-1826, and the Personal Account Book of Daniel Servos, 1779-1803. They provide details of transactions that were carried on between the settlers of the area, who were almost all Loyalists, and the business the Servos family established at Palatine Hill. The Mill Account Books are arranged in chronological order on the reel, and the individual Books are dated as follows: Volume 1, 1785-1795; Volume 2, 1797; Volume 3, 1798-1816; Volume 4, 1799-1801; Volume 5, 1824-1826. The Personal Account Book of Daniel Servos, 1799-1803, follows the other volumes at the end of the reel. The entries in the Mill Account Books provide an interesting glimpse into the lives of the people who were living at that time and in that area. Frequently mentioned are food stuffs, cloth, blankets and other household goods, as well as feed, lumber, rum and many other items. Each person's account is maintained as a separate record.
- Originals:
- The original records are held on permanent loan by the Niagara Historical Society, and were microfilmed by the Niagara Historical Resource Centre, Niagara-on-the-Lake Public Library, Ontario. The Archives of Ontario holds a copy of the microfilm.
- Archival Ref. No.:
- AO MS 538.
- Finding Aids:
An inventory description and a table of contents are available in print.
- PDF Finding Aid:
- Servos, Daniel Shelf List.pdf