Planters, Paupers, and Pioneers

Book excerpt: The first-ever comprehensive book written on early English immigration to Canada, Planters, Paupers, and Pioneers introduces a series of three titles on The English in Canada. Focusing on factors that brought the English to Atlantic Canada, it traces the English arrivals to their various settlements in Nova Scotia, New Brunswick, Prince Edward Island, and Newfoundland, and considers their reasons for leaving their homeland. Who were they? When did they arrive? Were they successful? What was their lasting impact? Drawing on wide-ranging documentary sources, including passenger lists, newspaper shipping reports, and the wealth of material to be found in English county record offices and in Canadian national and provincial archives, the book provides extensive details of the immigrants and their settlements and gives details of more than 700 Atlantic crossings — essential reading for individuals wishing to trace English and Canadian family links or to deepen understanding of the emigration process.