Joseph Willcocks

Joseph Willcocks (1773 – September 4, 1814) sometimes spelt Wilcox[1] was a publisher and political figure in Upper Canada. He was elected to the Parliament of Upper Canada in 1807 representing York, 1st Lincoln and Haldimand. He was re-elected twice and frequently opposed government policies. He became disillusioned with Upper Canada after a military rule was introduced to Upper Canada during the War of 1812 and defected to the United States. He was mortally shot on September 4, 1814, and buried in Buffalo, New York.

Joseph Willcocks
Legislator for 1st Lincoln and Haldimand
In office
1808 – July 1813
Legislator for West York, 1st Lincoln and Haldimand
In office
1807–1808
Preceded bySolomon Hill
Succeeded byabolished
Sheriff of York
In office
1804–1807

Early life

He was born in Palmerstown, Ireland in 1773. He was the second son to Robert Willcocks and Jane Powell.[1] During the Irish Rebellion of 1798 he was loyal to the British Empire.[2]

He came to York on March 20, 1800.[1]

Career

York

On May 1, 1800 he was hired to be the private clerk of Peter Russell, who was a distant cousin. He later became a receiver and payer of fees for the Office of the Surveyor General.[1] He was dismissed from this role when Russell's half-sister revealed their romantic relationship.[3] Henry Allcock hired Willcocks as a clerk[3] and William Jarvis employed him to engrave deeds. On May 9, 1803, he was appointed as registrar of the probate court and marshall for the courts of assizes.[1]

In 1804, Willcocks became sheriff for the Home District.[1] He was active in an 1806 by-election for Robert Thorpe, a friend and neighbour. Willcocks and Thorpe were concerned about changes in government policies regarding land grants, which were controlled by the Executive Council, an appointed body. As a result of these criticisms, Lieutenant Governor Francis Gore removed Thorpe from office and withdrew Willcocks' appointment as sheriff in 1807, citing "general and notorious bad conduct".[4]

Niagara

Willcocks moved to Niagara where he began to publish The Upper Canada Guardian; or Freeman's Journal. He used the newspaper to criticise the government and voice his opposition to Upper Canada's land laws. In 1807, he was elected in a by-election for West York, 1st Lincoln & Haldimand after the death of Solomon Hill. During the 4th Parliament, he was jailed for contempt of the house. He was re-elected in 1808 to 1st Lincoln and Haldimand and became the leader of the parliamentary opposition. His political positions in this session included lower salaries for public servants, less regulations for loyalists and military personal to obtain land and more regulation on election procedures. During the last session of the 5th Parliament, Willcocks and his group successfully resisted efforts by Isaac Brock to pass a number of measures preparing for the expected war with the United States.[1]

Willcocks was a member of the Freemasonry in the Niagara Lodge.[5]

Brock called an election in 1812 to obtain a legislature that would support his war preparations. Willcocks was reelected for the rising of 1st Lincoln and Haldimand. In June 1812 he sold his printing press to Richard Hatt. Brock enlisted Willcocks's help to secure the loyalty and participation of the Six Nations peoples to the British Crown in the upcoming war and Willcocks was successful despite his poor health.[1] He fought in the Battle of Queenston Heights and recruited for the Canadian militia.[6]

In early June 1813 hardline loyalists were upset with Willcock's opposition to giving extended powers to the government. They spread a rumour that Willcocks was working with American forces in their invasion to Stoney Creek.[7]

Defection to United States

Willcocks was disturbed when military rule and harsh measures against people expressing disloyal opinions were introduced in the province. Willcocks saw this as an abandonment of democratic principles in the province.[1] In July 1813 he committed treason and travelled to the United States to join the Americans. He was made a major in the American army and commanded a company of Canadian Volunteers consisting of expatriate Canadians fighting on the American side.[8]

In the fall of 1813 George McClure appointed Willcocks as the police officer of Newark. In this capacity, Willcocks regulated the movements of the city's citizens and interrogated prisoners. During a scouting mission on December 9, one of the Canadian Volunteers was killed and Willcocks burned the town in revenge.[9]

In the spring of 1814 fifteen Upper Canadians, including Willcocks, were charged with high treason as part of the Ancaster Bloody Assize.[10]

Death

On September 4, 1814, while leading a skirmish during the Siege of Fort Erie, Willcocks was fatally shot in the chest.[10] His body was buried initially in "the circle or open square of that village (Buffalo, New York)" and reburied in Forest Lawn Cemetery in the 1830s.[11]

Further reading
  • William Renwick Riddell (1927) Joseph Willcocks: Sheriff, Member of Parliament and Traitor, Toronto.
  • Donald Graves (1982) Joseph Willcocks and the Canadian Volunteers: An Account of Political Disaffection in Upper Canada during the War of 1812, Carleton University.
  • Pierre Berton (1980), The Invasion of Canada, 1812—1813, Toronto: McClelland and Stewart.
  • Pierre Berton (1981), Flames across the Border, 1813—1814, Toronto: McClelland and Stewart.

Notes
  1. Jones, Elwood H. (1983). Willcocks, Joseph. University of Toronto/Université Laval.
  2. Taylor, Alan (2010). The Civil War of 1812: American Citizens, British Subjects, Irish Rebels, and Indian Allies. Alfred A. Knopf. p. 95. ISBN 978-1-4000-4265-4.
  3. Taylor, Alan (2010). The Civil War of 1812: American Citizens, British Subjects, Irish Rebels, and Indian Allies. Alfred A. Knopf. p. 96. ISBN 978-1-4000-4265-4.
  4. Johnson, J. K. (1988-07-01). Becoming Prominent: Regional Leadership in Upper Canada, 1791-1841. McGill-Queen's Press - MQUP. ISBN 978-0-7735-6157-1.
  5. Graves, Donald E. (December 2007). Lawless banditti: Joseph Willcocks, his Canadian Volunteers and the Mutual Destruction on the Niagara during the Winter of 1813-Part I. Journal of the Old Fort Niagara Association. p. 5.
  6. Taylor, Alan (2010). The Civil War of 1812: American Citizens, British Subjects, Irish Rebels, and Indian Allies. Alfred A. Knopf. p. 238. ISBN 978-1-4000-4265-4.
  7. Taylor, Alan (2010). The Civil War of 1812: American Citizens, British Subjects, Irish Rebels, and Indian Allies. Alfred A. Knopf. p. 239. ISBN 978-1-4000-4265-4.
  8. Taylor, Alan (2010). The Civil War of 1812: American Citizens, British Subjects, Irish Rebels, and Indian Allies. Alfred A. Knopf. pp. 239–240. ISBN 978-1-4000-4265-4.
  9. Taylor, Alan (2010). The Civil War of 1812: American Citizens, British Subjects, Irish Rebels, and Indian Allies. Alfred A. Knopf. p. 252. ISBN 978-1-4000-4265-4.
  10. Graves, Donald E. (1997). Where Right and Glory Lead!: The Battle of Lundy's Lane, 1814. Robin Brass Studio. p. 23. ISBN 978-1-896941-03-5.
  11. Graves, Donald E. (December 2007). Lawless banditti: Joseph Willcocks, his Canadian Volunteers and the Mutual Destruction on the Niagara during the Winter of 1813-Part II (Conclusion). Journal of the Old Fort Niagara Association. p. 9.
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