Draught Soldiers to the 27th Regiment

      ,    

In the summer of 1763, having received King George’s instructions regarding the reduction of the British armies in North America, the acting generals set in motion their plan to augment the three regiments that would remain to garrison Quebec. It was decided that the 15th Foot, the 27th Foot, and the 2nd Battalion of the 60th Royal American Regiment would be assigned this task.

An analysis of the official subsistence rolls of the 78th Regiment reveals that approximately 358 soldiers remained in North America for this duty. Some were volunteers; others were retained due to time remaining on their enlistment contracts.

At the conclusion of the war, the 27th (Inniskilling) Regiment experienced a significant reduction in its number of soldiers. To maintain the troop levels required for guarding Quebec, subsequent muster rolls include reinforcements from the 47th and 78th Foot, each contributing men to replenish the regiment.

By September 1765, the regiment was distributed as follows: four companies in the town of Quebec, three companies at Trois-Rivières, and two in Montreal, with Colonel Massey appointed to command the district.

In August 1767, the regiment embarked on board transports for Europe, landed at Cork, Ireland on September 29th, and proceeded to Dublin the following day. In the ensuing year, the regiment was quartered in Limerick, returning to Dublin in 1769, where it remained until 1774, when it returned once again to Limerick.

It is not known how many soldiers from this group remained in North America.

Draught Soldiers 
The following soldiers, most likely veterans of the 78th Foot, are identified as having joined the 27th Foot on 25 August 1763. This muster is for 183 days ending 24 October 1763, the earliest available rolls after 1 September 1763, the date by which most of Colonel Fraser's men had transferred.

Lieutenant-Colonel Massey's Company
Reporting at St. Peters on South River, 24 October 1763
1. Private Andrew Anderson
2. Private John Cameron
3. Private Robert Keith
4. Private Loughlin Mitchal
5. Private Daniel McIntosh
6. Private John McIntosh
7. Private William McKinzie
8. Private James Taveish

Major John Maunsell's Company
Reporting at St. Peters on South River, 24 October 1763
9. Private Allexr. Faquher
10. Private Keneth McLean
11. Private Angush McDonold

Captain James Holmes' Company
Reporting at Trois Rivieres, 29 October 1763
12. Private Malkam Fergison
13. Private John Kennady
14. Private Laughlin McGuire

Captain John Campbell's Company
Reporting at St. Francois, 2 November 1763
15. Private Bryan Cairy
16. Private Donald Camaron
17. Private Evan Camaron
18. Private Collin Campbell
19. Private John Campbell
20. Private John Fraser
21. Private Jeremiah Fraser
22. Private Allexander Fraser
23. Private John Hutcheson
24. Private William McGilveroy
25. Private John McDonald, Senr.
26. Private Donald McPhii
27. Private Christopher McKinzey
28. Private John McDonald, Junr.
29. Private Evan McBean
30. Private Evan McMullan
31. Private Donald McDonald
32. Private John McGibbans
33. Private Robert McKinn
34. Private Allexander Murray
35. Private Robert Pellypren [Bellypren?]
36. Private John Summers

Captain Apollos Morris' Company
Reporting at Point au Tremble, 25 October 1763
37. Private Dennis Carney
38. Private Duncan Campbell
39. Private James Filk
40. Private Hugh Grimes
41. Private John McGinnis
42. Private Bryan Murphy
43. Private William Morrow
44. Private Peter McIntire
45. Private William Noble

Captain Henry Pringle's Company
Reporting at De Chambo, 27 October 1763
46. Private Jno. Duff
47. Private Alexr. Fletcher
48. Private Danl. Frazer
49. Private Jno. Reed

Captain Philip Skene's Company
Reporting at St. Anns, 28 October 1763
50. Private Alexander Hackny
51. Private John Muster'd
52. Private Robert McFarling
53. Private Archibold Robinson

Captain William Stewart's Company
Reporting at Trois Rivieres, 29 October 1763
54. Private William Hearly
55. Private George Strachan

Soldiers' notes.
2. Later joined the 2nd Battalion, 60th Royal Americans by 9 October 1767.
4. Listed as Lachlin Mitchell on the 78th Regiment subsistence rolls.
5. Recorded as 78th veteran, but unable to properly verify.
6. Recorded as 78th veteran, but unable to properly verify.
7. Recorded as 78th veteran, and appears on a 1765 land grant submitted by veterans, but not listed on any known rosters for the 78th Regiment.
8. Listed as Tavish on the 78th Regiment subsistence rolls. Later joined the 52nd Foot by 9 October 1767.
9. Recorded as 78th veteran, but unable to properly verify.
10. Recorded as 78th veteran, but unable to properly verify.
11. Probably Angus McDonell, as listed on the 78th Regiment subsistence rolls.
12. Listed as Malcolm Ferguson on the 78th Regiment subsistence rolls. Later joined the 2nd Battalion, 60th Royal Americans by 9 October 1767.
13. Listed as Kennedy on the 78th Regiment subsistence rolls.
14. Recorded as 78th veteran, but unable to properly verify. Later joined the 52nd Foot by 9 October 1767.
15. Recorded as 78th veteran, but unable to properly verify. Later joined the 2nd Battalion, 60th Royal Americans by 9 October 1767; there recorded as Keary.
16. Listed as Cameron on the 78th Regiment subsistence rolls.
17. Listed as Cameron on the 78th Regiment subsistence rolls.
21. Later joined the 15th Foot by 9 October 1767.
22. Listed as Alexander on the 78th Regiment subsistence rolls.
23. Listed as Hutchinson on the 78th Regiment subsistence rolls. Later joined the 1st Battalion, 60th Royal Americans by 9 October 1767.
24. Listed as McGillivrae on the 78th Regiment subsistence rolls.
25. Listed as McDonell on the 78th Regiment subsistence rolls. Father to soldier #28.
26. Listed as McPhie on the 78th Regiment subsistence rolls.
27. Listed as McKenzie on the 78th Regiment subsistence rolls.
28. Listed as McDonell on the 78th Regiment subsistence rolls. Son to soldier #25.
30. Listed as McMillan on the 78th Regiment subsistence rolls.
32. Listed as Gibbons on the 78th Regiment subsistence rolls. Later joined the 15th Foot by 9 October 1767; there recorded as McGibbons.
34. Listed as Alexander on the 78th Regiment subsistence rolls. Later joined the 52nd Foot by 9 October 1767.
35. Recorded as 78th veteran, but unable to properly verify.
36. Listed as Summer on the 78th Regiment subsistence rolls.
37. Recorded as 78th veteran, but unable to properly verify. Name appears elsewhere as a veteran of the 47th Foot. Later joined the 15th Foot by 9 October 1767.
39. Recorded as 78th veteran, but unable to properly verify.
40. Possibly Hugh Graham, as listed on the 78th Regiment subsistence rolls.
41. Recorded as 78th veteran, but unable to properly verify.
42. Recorded as 78th veteran, but unable to properly verify. Later joined the 29th Foot by 9 October 1767.
43. Possibly William Moore or More, as listed on the 78th Regiment subsistence rolls. Later joined the 15th Foot by 9 October 1767; there recorded as Mourow.
44. Listed as McIntyre on the 78th Regiment subsistence rolls. Later joined the 2nd Battalion, 60th Royal Americans by 9 October 1767.
47. Later joined the 2nd Battalion, 60th Royal Americans by 9 October 1767.
46. Listed as Duffie on the 78th Regiment subsistence rolls.
48. Recorded as 78th veteran [possibly Donald Fraser], but unable to properly verify. See Forenames explanation below. A certificate of service for Donald Fraser, submitted on his behalf in 1765 for surveyed lands in Albany County, New York, reads, "...who formerly served in the 78th Regiment of Foot and was Drafted into the twenty Seven Regt. and who on finding a man in his room, got his discharge from said Regt. took his passage from Quebec to Greenock along with the 78th Regt..."
49. Listed as Ried on the 78th Regiment subsistence rolls.
50. Recorded as 78th veteran, but unable to properly verify. Later joined the 1st Battalion, 60th Royal Americans by 9 October 1767.
51. Recorded as "away on command." Listed as Mustard on the 78th Regiment subsistence rolls.
52. Recorded as "away on command." Listed as McFarlane on the 78th Regiment subsistence rolls. Later joined the 2nd Battalion, 60th Royal Americans by 9 October 1767.
53. Recorded as "away on command."
54. Listed as Harley on the 78th Regiment subsistence rolls.

Interchangeable Names
The following names were most likely used interchangeably:

Forenames
- Daniel & Donald are sometimes, but not always, interchangeable in Scotland, because Domhnall, the Gaelic version of Donald, may be Anglicised as Daniel.

 Surnames
- Graham/Grimes
- McDonald/McDonell

Works Consulted

War Office Records. 27th Foot, 1st Battalion. Commissary General of Musters Office and successors: General Muster Books and Pay Lists, 1759-1777. TNA, W.O. 12/4328.

War Office Records: Muster Books and Paylists: General, 47th Regiment, 1760-1763. LAC, W.O. 12/5871, Microfilm C-9202.

War Office Records: Return of Volunteers from the Inniskilling Regiment of Foot, given to the following Regiments. New York, 9 October 1767. In Letters, Military Despatches, Gen. Gage, 1767-1769, W.O. 1, vol. 8. LAC.

Trimble, William Copeland. The Historical Record of the 27th Inniskilling Regiment: from the Period of Its Institution as a Volunteer Corps till the Present Time. Clowes, 1876.

National Battlefields Commission, "Database of 1759-1760: Soldiers on the Plains of Abraham." Web. http://www.ccbn-nbc.gc.ca/en/history-heritage/battles-1759-1760/soldiers/. Accessed 17 December 2018.

Treasury Board Papers, "Subsistence Rolls of Fraser's Highlanders (the 78th), 1763." LAC, T.1, vol. 422.

Treasury Board Papers, "Subsistence Rolls of Fraser's Highlanders (the 78th), 1763." TNA, T.1, vol. 422.

Marie Fraser, "Subsistence Rolls of Fraser's Highlanders (the 78th), 1763." Clan Fraser Society, Toronto, Ontario, Canada, 2001.

McIntosh, Walter H. 78th or Colonel Simon Fraser's Regiment [Topsfield, Massachusetts, n.d.]

Donald Whyte, "Scottish Forenames." Details of a the forename Daniel. Web.
http://www.whatsinaname.net/male-names/Daniel.html. Accessed 17 December 2018.

Article last updated 27 July 2025.

Share:
Continue Reading →

Army Return of the Battle of Sainte-Foy, 28 Apr. 1760

      ,    
The Battle of Sainte-Foy, sometimes called the Battle of Quebec, was fought on April 28, 1760 near the British-held town of Quebec in the French province of Canada during the Seven Years' War (called the French and Indian War in the United States). It was a victory for the French under the Chevalier de Lévis over the British army under General Murray. The battle was notably bloodier than the Battle of the Plains of Abraham of the previous September, and it was considered the last French victory in North America.

Return of the Officers, that were Killed, Wounded, Taken Prisoners, Missing, on the 28th of April 1760
Amherst's 15th Regiment
Killed:
1. Lieut. Maxwell, Senr.
Wounded:
2. Capt. Lieut. Cockburn
3. Lieut. Mukins
4. Lieut. Maxwell, Junr.
5. Lieut. Cathcart
6. Lieut. Winter
7. Lieut. Irwin
8. Lieut. Lockhart
9. Ens. Moneypenny
10. Ens. Bartlett
11. Ens. Mills
12. Ens. Barker
Wounded Prisoner:
13. Lt. Hamilton
14. Ens. Montgomery

Non-commissioned officers
Killed:
- Serjeants: 4
- Rank & File: 21
Wounded:
- Serjeants: 9
- Rank & File: 82

Notes:
1 & 4: Lts. Maxwell: father/son
14. Ens. Montgomery would later expire at Montreal from his wounds.

Bragg's 28th Regiment
Wounded:
1. Colonel Walsh
2. Major Dalling
3. Capt. Spann
4. Capt. Mitchelson
5. Lt. & Adj. Tassell
6. Lieut. Brown
7. Lieut. Phibbs
8. Ens. Gilmer
9. Ens. Sheppard
10. Ens. Beal

Non-commissioned officers
Killed:
- Serjeants: 1
- Rank & File: 14
Wounded:
- Serjeants: 4
- Drummers: 4
- Rank & File: 100

Otway's 35th Regiment
Wounded Prisoner:
1. Captain Ince
2. Lieut. Brown
3. Ens. Lysaght

Non-commissioned officers
Killed:
- Rank & File: 12
Wounded:
- Serjeants: 3
- Drummers: 1
- Rank & File: 43

Notes:
1. Captain Ince would later expire at Montreal from his wounds.

Kennedy's 43rd Regiment
Wounded:
1. Captain Skey
2. Lieut. Clements
Prisoner:
3. Captain Maitland
Wounded Prisoner:
4. Ens. Maw

Non-commissioned officers
Killed:
- Rank & File: 5
Wounded:
- Rank & File: 16

Lascelle's 47th Regiment
Killed:
1. Major Hussey
Prisoner:
2. Lieut. Sheriff
Wounded:
3. Lieut. Forster
4. Lieut. Bassett
5. Lieut. Ewer
6. Lieut. Stratford
7. Ens. Ulstik
8. Ens. Handfield
Wounded Prisoner:
9. Captain Archbold

Non-commissioned officers
Killed:
- Serjeants: 1
- Rank & File: 10
Wounded:
- Serjeants: 3
- Drummers: 1
- Rank & File: 43

Notes:
9. Captain Archbold would later expire at Montreal from his wounds.

Webb's 48th Regiment
Killed:
1. Ens. Nicholson
Wounded:
2. Capt. Sir James Cockburn
3. Capt. Lieut. Barbutt
4. Lieut. Waterhouse
5. Lieut. Royce
6. Lieut. Crowe
7. Lieut. Moore
8. Ens. Campbell
9. Ens. Johnson
Prisoner:
10. Lieut. Davers

Non-commissioned officers
Killed:
- Rank & File: 22
Wounded:
- Rank & File: 63

Anstruther's 58th Regiment
Killed:
1. Ens. Conway

Non-commissioned officers
Killed:
- Serjeants: 1
- Rank & File: 7
Wounded:
- Serjeants: 3
- Rank & File: 45

Monckton's 2d Bn. 60th Regiment
Wounded:
1. Ens. Snow Steel
2. Ens. Donald McDonald

Non-commissioned officers
Killed:
- Drummers: 1
- Rank & File: 1
Wounded:
- Rank & File: 9

Lawrence's 3d Bn. 60th Regiment
Wounded:
1. Capt. Faesch
2. Lieut. Faesch
3. Lieut. Campbell
4. Lieut. Grant
5. Lieut. Stephens
6. Lieut. Lewis Forbes
7. Ens. Pinckney
8. Ens. McGee
9. Ens. Hill
10. Ens. Stewart
Prisoner:
11. Colonel Young
12. Capt. Charteris

Non-commissioned officers
Killed:
- Serjeants: 1
- Rank & File: 9
Wounded:
- Rank & File: 32

Notes:
6. Lieut. Lewis Forbes would later expire at Montreal from his wounds.

Fraser's 78th Regiment
Killed:
1. Capt. Donald McDonnell
2. Lieut. Cosmo Gordon
Wounded:
3. Colonel Fraser
4. Capt. John Campbell
5. Capt. Alexr. Fraser
6. Capt. McLeod
7. Lieut. Archd. Campbell
8. Lt. Hector McDonnell
9. Lt. Donald McBean
10. Lt. Alexr. Fraser, Senr.
11. Lt. John Nairn
12. Lt. Arthur Rose
13. Lt. Alexr. Fraser, Junr.
14. Lt. Simon Fraser, Senr.
15. Lt. Archd. McAllister
16. Lt. Alexr. Fraser, Grenadiers
17. Lt. John Chissolm
18. Lt. Simon Fraser, Junr.
19. Lt. Malcolm Fraser
20. Lt. Donald McNeil
21. Ens. Henry Munroe
22. Ens. Robert Menzies
23. Ens. Charles Stewart
24. Ens. Duncan Cameron
25. Ens. William Robertson
26. Capt. Lt. Chas. McDonnell
Wounded Prisoner:
27. Ens. Alexr. Gregorson
28. Ens. Malcolm Fraser
Missing:
29. Lt. Alexr. Campbell

Non-commissioned officers
Killed:
- Serjeants: 3
- Drummers: 1
- Rank & File: 51
Wounded:
- Serjeants: 10
- Rank & File: 119

Notes:
8. Lt. Hector McDonnell expired 8 May 1760 from his wounds.
10 & 13: Lts. Fraser: father/son
14 & 18: Lts. Fraser: father/son
28. Ens. Malcom Fraser would later expire at Montreal from his wounds.

Artillery
Wounded:
1. Major Goodwin
2. 2d Lieut. Heathcoat
3. 2d Lieut. Scott
4. Lt. Fireworker Davidson
Wounded Prisoner:
5. Lt. Fireworker Cooke

Wounded:
- Bombardiers: 3
- Gunners: 1
- Matrosses: 6
Missing:
- Matrosses: 1

Chief Engineer
Wounded:
1. Major McKellar

Rangers
Wounded:
1. Capt. Hazzen

Sources:
James Wolfe, "Return of the officers, that were killed, wounded, taken prisoners, missing, on the 28th of April 1760." Northcliff Collection: Series 1: Robert Monckton Papers. LAC, Microfilm: C-366.

James Murray, "List of officers sent in Governor Murray’s return not included in the list of English prisoners returned from Canada, June 14, 1760." War Officer Records: Amherst Papers. Correspondence between French Officers in North America and the Commander-in-Chief, 1757-1761. LAC, W.O. 34, vol. 10.

Marie Fraser, "Lieutenant Hector McDonnell died of his wounds, 8 May 1760." Clan Fraser Society, Toronto, Ontario, Canada, 2001.

“Capt Ince and four officers died of their wounds.” The Pennsylvania Gazette, 3 July 1760.

“Battle of Sainte-Foy.” Wikipedia, Wikimedia Foundation, 2 Aug. 2018, en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Battle_of_Sainte-Foy.

©  Jeffrey Campbell, Fraser's 78th Regiment of Foot, 2018.

Share:
Continue Reading →

Transport Vessels for the Highland Battalions

         
Whitehall March 10, 1757.
Ldrs of the Admty. 

 My Lords
I am commanded to signify to your Lordships His Majesty's Pleasure that you do forthwith cause a sufficient number of the Transport Vessels, (ordered by my Letters of the 22d past) to be fitted up, victualled, & provided with Bedding, for receiving on board, and conveying to North America, at the rate of two tons for each person, Two Highland Battalions of Foot, commanded by Lt. Col. Montgomery & Lt. Col. Fraser, Each Battalion consisting of 44 commission & Staff officers, 80 Non Commissioned officers, 20 Drummers, & 1000 private Men, together with the usual allowance of 6 Women, & 3 Servant to Each Company. And it's the Kings' further Pleasure that the said Transport Vessels so fitted up, be directed to repair to Cork in Ireland, under such convoy as your Lordships shall judge sufficient, where the Two Battalions above mentioned are to be embarked; and from whence such of the Transport Vessels, as shall have on board the Battalion, commanded by Lieut. Colonel Montgomery are to proceed to Charles Town in South Carolina, and the remainder, with the Battalion, commanded by Lieut. Colonel Fraser are to proceed to Halifax, in Nova Scotia, at which place they are to be respectively disembarked; And your Lordships will accordingly give the necessary Orders for this purpose to the Commanding Officer of the s Officer, commanding the said Convoy, & Transport Vessels.

Draft

Endorsed:
Draft to the Ldrs of the Admty
March 10th, 1757.
2 Tents, Baggage &c
Transports for Highlanders &c.

After arriving at Glasgow, Scotland, newspaper accounts depict the main body of Fraser's Highlanders, on or about 19 April 1757, proceeding southwest to Portpatrick en route to Donaghadee, Ireland, where they would continue their march some 400 miles south to Cork, Ireland, and depart for North America in transport vessels under the cover of HMS Enterprize, a 40-gun man of war. The merchant transport ships were contracted by the British Government for a period of about 13 months for service in North America. 

The makeup of ships in the Enterprize convoy to North America is revealed by Captain [John] Lewis, who accompanied the group from Cork Harbour, Ireland, on 30 June 1757, for the transatlantic voyage. While the captain's decision to depart from the convoy approximately 236 miles southwest of the Azores (or Western Islands) remains a mystery, he landed in New York in early September. A thorough ship count of the convoy is located in the following contemporary newspaper extract.

Annapolis Maryland Gazette  
15 September 1757
New York, September 5.
Friday last arrived here the Brig. Bell-Savage, Capt. Lewis, from Cork, and informs, That he sail'd from thence the 30th of June, in Company with eighteen Sail of Transports, having on board 2500 Highlanders, five Sail loaded with Powder and Ball, and seventeen Sail of Merchantmen for the West-Indies, Philadelphia, and Boston; all under Convoy of the Enterprize Man of War of 40 Guns, the Faulkland of 50 Guns, and the Stork Sloop of 10 Guns; and that on July 25, in Lat. 35 North, and Long. 30 West, he left the Convoy.

Captain Lewis' account of 18 transports assigned to the Highlanders reveals an even distribution of ships to both Colonels Fraser and Montgomery's battalions and is further confirmed in the official ship's logs of HMS Falkland, who accompanied nine of Montgomery's transports to South Carolina. And while the names of eight of Colonel Fraser's transports have been identified in the official ship's logs for HMS Enterprize, the ninth and unidentified final ship may have carried extra supplies, perhaps to include a small contingency of arms, ordnance, and camp necessaries such as tents, extra utensils, food, drinks, and clothing. It's also could have been used as a temporary hospital ship for any sick men in the battalion. The following list comprises all nine vessels which transported Colonel Fraser's men to Halifax, Nova Scotia, in the summer months of 1757.

Transports for Colonel Fraser's Second Highland Battalion
Ann
Owner: William Dodsworth
Tonnage/Parts: 391/19
Commencing/Ending: 8 March 1757-8 April 1758
Months/Days: 13/1
Freight: £3314:0:3
Employed: Carrying Forces to North America

Brotherly Love
Owner: John Richardson
Master: Armstrong
Tonnage/Parts: 357/18
Hired: 24 February 1757
Commencing/Ending: 7 March 1757-18 April 1758
Months/Days: 13/12
Freight: £3108:17:3
Employed: Carrying Forces to North America

Cecilia
Owner: John Brathery
Tonnage/Parts: 214/86
Hired: 24 February 1757
Commencing/Ending: 17 March 1757-8 April 1758
Months/Days: 12/23
Freight: £1781:19:3
Employed: Carrying Forces to North America

Cumberland
Owner: Thomas Boulby
Hired: 24 February 1757
Commencing/Ending: 11 March 1757-8 April 1758
Months/Days: 12/29
Freight: £2105:12:11
Employed: Carrying Forces to North America

Dutchess of Hamilton
Owner: Anthony Bacon
Tonnage/Parts: 379/72
Hired: 24 February 1757
Commencing/Ending: 29 March 1757-8 April 1758
Months/Days: 12/11
Freight: £3015:8:10
Employed: Carrying Forces to North America

Kent
Owner: Thomas Brown
Master: Henry Lawson
Tonnage/Parts: 218/89
Hired: 24 February 1757
Commencing/Ending: 2 March 1757-8 April 1758
Months/Days: 13/7
Freight: £1882:17:0
Employed: Carrying Forces to North America

Matilda
Owner: Elidad Blackwell
Tonnage/Parts: 166/34
Hired: 24 February 1757
Commencing/Ending: 22 March 1757-8 April 1758
Months/Days: 12/18
Freight: £1361:12:3
Employed: Carrying Forces to North America

Mertilla
Owner: David Trinder
Tonnage/Parts: 241/42
Hired: 24 February 1757
Commencing/Ending: 10 March 1757-8 April 1758
Months/Days: 12/30
Freight: £2038:1:6
Employed: Carrying Forces to North America. 

Note: Other documents record her as Myrtilla.

Neptune
Owner: Robert Harrison
Master: John Williams
Tonnage/Parts: 192/58
Hired: 24 February 1757
Commencing/Ending: 9 March 1757-8 April 1758
Months/Days: 13/0
Freight: £1627:12:3
Employed: Carrying Forces to North America. Discharged at Deptford.

Total passengers include 32 serjeants, 19 drummers, 869 rank & file, 150 supernumeraries, 22 deserters, 33 invalids, 110 women & 29 children. [TNA, GD122/22/17, p. 18-20]. 

It's worth noting Matilda is recorded as having arrived from America to the Downs, London, on 11 April 1757, with Duchess of Hamilton, Myrtilla, Brotherly Love, Neptune, and Kent. [Lloyds List, No. 2219, 12 April 1757].

Note: Originally commissioned Norwich in May 1718, she was later renamed Enterprize on 23 May 1744.

Source: Lists of Transports, 1754-1773. TNA, ADM 49/126; the shipmasters of Kent and Neptune (Lawson and Williams) are located in Captain John Donkley's Journal (HMS Enterprize), while the shipmaster of the Brotherly Love (Armstrong) is located in Lloyd's List, 1757.

Colonel Simon Fraser
From aboard the Ann transport ship in Cove Harbour, Colonel Fraser wrote on June 28th, 1757:

My Dr Sir,
Tho I have been long hurryd I am not less so than ever & have but just time to tell you that we marched safe and sound thro Ireland without the loss of a man since we landed they hardly gave us time to cool our bloods when they embarked us & here we are all alive and merry.

I don’t know if I said anything in answer to yours about the meal but it must be sent for & distributed first to the widows, then to the wives & so on to the third and fourth generation of them that loved me well enough to follow me. As to the Deserters I woud have them be sent by the first troops to Glasgow & Mr Geo Buchanan Junr there will send them by some Capt transporting convicts to Halifax where we are destined to & this I would have done with the rest if any are taken. God bless you my Dr Sir, the Wyfie poor beoch, the bairns, Hopefull &c &c I shall find time to write you at sea.  

[signed]
Yrs S. Fraser

Sergeant James Thompson
The following is an excerpt from Sergeant James Thompson's diary on the sailing to North America.

Our Regiment rendezvou'd at Cork, there to embark for Service, somewhere or other in North America. We sail'd with seal'd orders, which were only to be open'd when we reach'd a certain latitude. The hir'd vessel I was embark'd in was call'd the Martello, a beautiful new ship, and it was her first voyage. The Captain did not know her trim, and the first few days after our sailing she would run away from the Commodore in no time, in spite of our short'ning sail, and for this high offense, which he couldn't help, the Captain had frequently a shot fired at him, to make him keep under the wing of the Commodore, the shot however, did no further injury than subject the Captain to a fine of six and eight pence for every shot. One day we had a fine stiff breeze and our ship actually outsailed the whole of the Fleet altho' only under bare poles. When the Commodore saw this he was satisfied it wasn't the Captain's fault, and he made him pay no more six-and-eight pence per shot. The ship was so tight that she didn't require pumping the whole of the voyage, which was a lucky circumstance indeed.

At last, we discover'd the Commodore's Signal for the whole of the Fleet to heave-to, and when we had done this as cleverly as we could, the Signal was made for all Commanding Officers of Corps to go on board the Commodore's ship. This was to make known our Destination, and to receive their Orders accordingly. We soon after found out that our place of destination was Halifax. As good luck would have it, the Fleet was safe, and soon after we cast our Anchor, our Captain was anxious to try the tightness of his ship and gave his orders to have her pump'd. The men had difficulty in getting the pumps to draw, and when, at last, water came, it was as black as my Bonnet, and it produced such a stench, that it would soon have poison'd all the men on board. It turn'd out that instead of pumping out, 'afaith they were obliged to pump in, to prevent the Troops getting sick.

When we landed at Halifax, we found our Commander-in-Chief General Wolfe there, drilling away the men, and making fight sham-battles at a place round the Town called Deptford, where the ground is level. We were not long at Halifax when we received Orders to set sail for the River Saint Lawrence, and in a few days we came to anchor opposite the harbour of Louisbourg which we knew it was our business to try and take.

Further research indicates the hired vessel Martello that Serjeant Thompson spoke of may have actually been named Myrtilla, as recorded on October 17, 1757 with the Second Highland Battalion in Halifax Harbour. Thompson describes her as "...a beautiful new ship," and early records confirm she was originally built in 1754. Because Thompson's diary was recorded some years later, it would not be uncommon, due to advanced age, to have erred in his recollections.

On 21 October 1757, it was reported a ship named Myrtilla [Capt. March] foundered in the Gulf of Florida on her way from Jamaica to London, "but the Crew are got to South Carolina." [Lloyds List, 21 October & 1 November 1757]. It has not been established if this was Serjeant Thompson's vessel or not.

Transports for Colonel Montgomery's First Highland Battalion
Britannia
Owner: William Coates
Tonnage/Parts: 371/75
Commencing/Ending: 11 March 1757-2 January 1759
Months/Days: 21/23
Freight: £5257:15:6
Employed: Carrying Forces to North America

Dolphin
Owner: Peter Tearon
Tonnage/Parts: 258/22
Commencing/Ending: 22 March 1757-10 November 1758
Months/Days: 19/20
Freight: £3299:11:1
Employed: Carrying Forces to North America

Duke William
Owner: Thomas Gibson
Tonnage/Parts: 404/75
Commencing/Ending: 58 March 1757-3 January 1759
Months/Days: 21/30
Freight: £5785:0:0
Employed: Carrying Forces to North America

Lyon
Owner: Adam Boulby
Tonnage/Parts: 293/81
Commencing/Ending: 10 March 1757-25 November 1758
Months/Days: 20/16
Freight: £3920:13:16
Employed: Carrying Forces to North America

Ruby
Owner: Robert Middleton
Tonnage/Parts: 381/67
Commencing/Ending: 8 March 1757-5 December 1758
Months/Days: 20/28
Freight: £5190:13:3
Employed: Carrying Forces to North America

Success
Owner: William Thompson
Tonnage/Parts: 231/53
Commencing/Ending: 11 March 1757-27 June 1758
Months/Days: 15/17
Freight: £2341:17:4
Employed: Carrying Forces to North America

Tamerlane
Owner: Robert Rogers
Tonnage/Parts: 214/14
Commencing/Ending: 10 March 1757-21 February 1759
Months/Days: 23/12
Freight: £3256:8:9
Employed: Carrying Forces to North America

William and Ann
Nominal Guns: 20
Operator: Royal Navy
Acquired: 5.1757
First Commissioned: 23.5.1757
Category: Hired Vessel
Commander: Thomas Gordon

Note: William and Ann belonged to the British Royal Navy.

Wye River
Owner: William Anderson
Tonnage/Parts: 246/41
Commencing/Ending: 10 March 1757-2 December 1757
Months/Days: 8/23
Freight: £1402:11:10
Employed: Carrying Forces to North America and Discharge at So. Carolina

Source: Lists of Transports, 1754-1773. TNA, ADM 49/126.

Transport Vessels Depart Louisbourg, 1759
In the early summer of 1759, the British Fleet set sail from Louisbourg for Quebec, in all approximately 9,000 soldiers strong. The regiments were divided into three divisions/brigades [white - 1st brigade, red - 2nd brigade, blue - 3rd brigade], and to further distinguish between regiments the ships were dressed with color-coded vanes. Colonel Fraser's transport vessels for this voyage were as follows:

 White Division - 1st Brigade
Colonel Fraser, 78th Foot
Vanes: white, and two blue balls

Ship: Ann & Elizabeth
Shipmaster: Wm. Robinson
Tons: 215
Troops: 113
Taken up: London
With one cutter boat

Ship: Argyle
Shipmaster: Alexr. Morrison
Tons: 300
Troops: 193
Taken up: Boston
With three whale boats

Ship: Jane
Shipmaster: Jno. Garnett
Tons: 273
Troops: 97
Taken up: London
With one cutter boat

Ship: James & Henrietta
Shipmaster: Jno. Meeke
Tons: 357
Troops: 196
Taken up: London
With one flat boat

Ship: Resolution
Shipmaster: Zachy Marshall
Tons: 238
Troops: 122
Taken up: London
With one cutter boat

Ship: Thornton
Shipmaster: Jno. Ekshaw
Tons: 331
Troops: 221
Taken up: New York

Ship: Venus [2]
Shipmaster: Wm. Duffield
Tons: 317
Troops: 208
Taken up: London
With two cutter boats

Total troops: 1150

Note: Venus [2] was the second of two vessels by the same name operating for the British Fleet at this time. The first Venus transport vessel operating in the area was commanded by Shipmaster Johnson.

Sources:

Baugh, Daniel A. The Global Seven Years War, 1754–1763: Britain and France in a Great Power Contest. Routledge, 2011.

Earl John Chapman, “Troop Transport Martello.” Received by Rootsweb.com, Rootsweb, 10 Apr. 2010, newsarch.rootsweb.ancestry.com/th/read/MARINERS/2010-04/1271681061. Accessed 2 July 2017.

Rodger, N. A. M. The Command of the Ocean: A Naval History of Britain, 1649–1815. W. W. Norton & Company, 2005.

Syrett, David. Shipping and the American War, 1775–83: A Study of British Transport Organization. Athlone Press, 1970.

“Transport Vessels for the Highland Battalions.” Letter received by Lords of Admiralty, 10 March 1757. America and West Indies, Original Correspondence, etc. Despatches to governors and others, 1756-1757, C.O. 5 ed., vol. 212, pp. 423-426. Public Archives Canada. Print.

"Transports in the White Division." Northcliffe Collection: Series 1: Robert Monckton Papers. LAC, Microfilm C-366.

Col. Simon Fraser, "Colonel Fraser in Cove Harbour, 28 June. 1757." Clan Fraser Society, Toronto, Ontario, Canada, 2001.

"Halifax Harbour Transporte List." Elizabeth Rose Family papers. NAS, GD125-22-17, p. 18.

Lloyd's Register Group, “Lloyd's Register of Ships.” Lloyd's Register Group Limited, 2017, www.lrfoundation.org.uk/public_education/reference-library/register-of-ships-online/.

Andrew Welsh, "Enterprize departs Cork, Ireland, 30 June 1757." The Magazine of magazines, compiled from original pieces, with extracts from the most celebrated books and periodical compositions published in Europe, vol. 13, p. 575. London. Printed for W. Owen, 1757.

British Fourth Rate Ships of the Line, "Norwich Renamed Enterprize, 1744." Three Decks, Warships in the Age of Sail, 2017. https://threedecks.org/index.php?display_type=show_ship&id=559#BWAS-1714. Accessed 2 July 2017. Web.

©  Jeffrey Campbell, Fraser's 78th Regiment of Foot, 2018.  All rights reserved.

Last updated 21 May 2025.


Share:
Continue Reading →

Companies of the 78th Regiment, 1763

      ,    
Scottish Highlanders in Battle






In the frozen silence of a snow-laced forest, four Highland soldiers press forward, their breath sharp in the biting air. A Union Jack unfurls defiantly above the scene, gripped by a screaming officer whose coat flutters like a banner of vengeance. Behind them, a log cabin erupts in flame—its blaze a shocking defiance against the cold, mirrored in the icy stream that slices through the snow. Rifles are raised, kilts stiffened by frost, their eyes locked on unseen foes. Fire and frost converge in this charged moment—an unyielding clash of loyalty, destruction, and survival at the edge of an empire’s wilderness. (Jeffrey Campbell, Echoes of Fire and Frost, 2025)

Companies of the 78th Regiment, 1763

As early as March 1759, Colonel Fraser’s 78th Highlanders numbered over 1,500 men and women, organized into 14 companies, each led by a commissioned officer. By 1763, that figure had decreased significantly, with the regiment reduced to just under 900 personnel. While comprehensive muster rolls from the early years—including full lists of soldier names—are no longer available, it is during the later stages of the war that we finally begin to see documentation identifying the individuals who served in what is now regarded as one of the most pivotal military campaigns in early North American history.

For centuries, muster rolls have played a central role in military administration. Beyond simply listing names within a company, battalion, or regiment, they often included a “record of events” summarizing a unit’s activities. Their primary purpose was to capture key information such as personnel identity, numbers, condition, equipment status, and pay eligibility—critical data used for effective oversight of the British Army. Rolls were typically generated at the time of a regiment’s formation and updated on a monthly, bimonthly, or semiannual basis until the unit was disbanded. There are even accounts of officers “padding the rolls”—reporting more men than were actually present—in order to draw additional rations at month’s end.

The earliest surviving subsistence rolls for the 78th Highlanders, which recorded discharge dates and rations allocated to each soldier, are dated 19 July 1763, followed by a second set in August. Though not without errors—hardly surprising when accounting for nearly 900 names—these documents represent the official discharge roster at the time of the regiment’s disbandment and remain a vital resource for researchers today.

Colonel Fraser's 78th Regiment of Foot, 1763

Works Cited:

“Revolutionary War Rolls, 1894-1913.” National Archives Catalog, War Department, National Archives, Washington, D.C., 1947, catalog.archives.gov/id/602384.

©  Jeffrey Campbell, Fraser's 78th Regiment of Foot, 2018.

Share:
Continue Reading →