A Short Lesson On Land Tenure (that involves John Hoffman and Levi Carroll).

Thank you to Amber for your comment about the maps and their origins. Funny, I was already working on this post when I received your comment! Hope this helps...

Land tenure for the Berlin property where the log schoolhouse was before it moved to Waterloo Park (and its significance to some of the founding fathers and early land development):

1816—Abraham Erb establishes a grist mill in Waterloo (at the edge of present day Waterloo Park).

1820—Abraham Erb’s log school is built (located to the east of the grist mill, but still on Erb land (located c. at the corner of Central and King Streets, Waterloo, today).

1828—Abraham Erb dies.

1829—Jacob C. Snider buys the mill and land from Erb’s estate and adds steam power to it in 1835. (Prior to this it was water-powered). This land that he purchased comprises much of the land that encompassed the growing settlement of Waterloo.

1835—J.C. Snider starts a distillery to process surplus grain and to make use of the added power source. (How is that for an excuse to start a distillery! I suppose it is as good as any...)

The village of Waterloo was really beginning to take shape. As historian Elizabeth Bloomfield tells us “a small village developed on the higher ground to the north of the mill complex...began to attract some of the German artisans who were emigrating from Europe. Abraham Erb’s school, established in 1820 and endowed under the terms of his will, gave the village a special function” (Bloomfield, 2006:84).

I take this to mean, in part, that in addition to the growing commerce within the village of Waterloo, the schoolhouse, as the first school established in Waterloo, further established this early community as an educational centre by providing local education opportunities for the incoming German-speaking immigrants’ children.

1842—The schoolhouse is moved to Abraham Weber's land. Weber, who owned GCT16 (the lot adjacent to the land owned by Jacob Snider, in part lots GCT14 (part of this lot) and GCT15), at some point "....gave Levi Carroll a piece of land for a garden and a cabin”.  Frank Uttley in A History of Kitchener tells us that Carroll was an employee of Weber and that following an accident, Carroll was given this land. I have not yet found definitive information to say whether Weber bought the former 1820 log schoolhouse building as such before it was moved but we do know that Weber owned the land when and where the schoolhouse was moved to in Berlin in 1842. Personal speculation tells me that Carroll probably did not buy the land or the cabin/schoolhouse but further research is needed.

1847—Abraham C. Weber, youngest child of Abraham Weber the pioneer, received the title for his father’s land (481 acres, most of which was within GCT16 in Greenbush/Berlin where the 1820 log schoolhouse was located).

Over time, land owners were also selling off occasional lots and sometimes larger parcels for speculation and development as land values were increasing. Things continued to change for Waterloo and Berlin by the early 1850’s and land speculation was a growing and viable business interest. This “was most intense along the east-west zone of the Grand Trunk Railway line, with Grange’s Survey across the north of Berlin, Hoffman’s Survey in Waterloo, the Shantz and Moyer subdivision, and also various pocket surveys west of Berlin” (Bloomfield, 2006:177).  In the next several years, a lot happens to the land tenure between the lands that joined Waterloo and Berlin as land is surveyed and sold.

See below for a newspaper ad from 1855 advertising lots for sale.

1853—With the advent of the Grand Trunk Railway’s imminent arrival in 1856 (today the CN Railway that runs parallel to Victoria Street, Kitchener), Abraham C. Weber sells all but six acres of his land to Sheriff George John Grange of Guelph who had his land holdings surveyed (“Grange’s Survey of Berlin”) and Weber moves out to the Freeport area (near Chicopee area in Kitchener, today). Apparently, Weber was not happy that the train was slated to run the length of GCT16 and so he decided to sell. I can’t say I blame him.

1853—Jacob C. Snider sells the land he had purchased from Abraham Erb's estate (and the mill) to his son (320 acres in total). His son, Elias Snider—apparently did not like the notion of the distillery.

 It is interesting to note that the still for the distillery was moved after this land transaction to his father’s farm—father Snider clearly did not object to whiskey. (This is a great point of contention for some people as a common belief prevails that Mennonites “don’t drink alcohol,” however, it is clear historically that judging by the number of Mennonite-owned and operated distilleries (and grist mills) that some did and some didn’t. It was quite common at the time for workers—both farm labourers and those working in other occupations—to be given a day’s share of alcohol in conjunction with their wages. There were certainly those who were opposed to the practice of paying workers with alcohol as well as the consumption of it, like Elias Snider). In 1850 Elias becomes the first deputy reeve of the Township of Waterloo and later, he was ordained as a minister in 1874.

c. 1853—Elias sells most of the land that he purchased from his father to John Hoffman (for more information about Hoffman,see previous posting "Paging...John Hoffman." Also, there is an interesting post on the Mary-Allen Blog concerning street names...this post has some information for Elias Snider, John Hoffman and their family members. Please see this post on the Mary-Allen Blog: http://www.maryallenstories.blogspot.ca/2013/01/who-were-mary-and-allen.html). 

1854—Hoffman has the land he acquired in Waterloo (and the village, for that matter) surveyed by M.C. Schofield. This becomes known as “the Hoffman Survey of Waterloo.”  It was this survey that helped me to ascertain the probable location for the schoolhouse when Levi was living in it after it moved to Greenbush/Berlin. 

Compare, then, with the Grange Survey of Berlin, ON., that was compiled after Grange's acquisition of lands in Berlin that included much of Weber's farm on GCT16.

Paging....John Hoffman

Quoting an earlier post on this blog, I introduced some information that related to the log schoolhouse when it was in Berlin (near present day KCI) and its relationship (at least land use wise) to the former Mount Hope Cemetery and a man by the name of John Hoffman:

"... 1868 The town of Berlin buys two acres of land from John Hoffman (a self-made man and local political figure who owned a great deal of land in both Waterloo and Berlin--more on him in upcoming posts) in order to establish a municipal (Mount Hope) Cemetery.

Note:  In 1871 Berlin purchases an additional 10.5 acres from him to expand the cemetery (which is really two cemeteries-- the newer one as a Roman Catholic cemetery that was originally operated by Sacred Heart Church and the original (older one) that was located where modern day Grand River Hospital and KCI High School are. This would have also been near where the 1820 log schoolhouse or Levi’s “cabin” was located). As early as 1855 the first Mount Hope Cemetery (originally called Greenbush Cemetery) is listed on the map of Waterloo and was considered to be a protestant cemetery. In 1871 the Ontario legislation regarding schools changed, allowing for upper level grammar schools to become known as “high schools”. Around 1872 transfer of burials from the older Mount Hope Cemetery to the newer section began to take place.....(end of quote)

First of all, who was John Hoffman?

Now this is a real mover and shaker. John Hoffman was born January 17, 1808 in Lancaster County, Pennsylvania (two years after Abraham Erb arrived here and established what was to become the city of Waterloo). When Hoffman arrived here in the early 1830's, he said that he arrived with "half a dollar to [his] name..."

As stated, Hoffman was indeed a self-made man and perhaps, more significantly, he was a leader within both of the communities of Berlin (serving as mayor from 1872-73) and Waterloo (where he was one of the first councillors and later Waterloo’s reeve from 1863-67). This was a man who stood out from the crowd--within twenty years of arriving here, he had become the largest land owner in the Berlin-Waterloo area when, in 1853, he purchased four hundred acres for $37,500 (a princely sum in those days, to be sure).  

Hoffman started with a small furniture business as a chair and cabinet maker, in Berlin, On (along with his brother Jacob who was also a strong character). John Hoffman was an ambitious man whose keen business mind served him well, allowing him to become quite prosperous and influential (both in local business and politics).  Hoffman was also a strong-willed man who got what he wanted--but he was patient and shrewd.  For example, when he first tried to purchase the swampy land in Greenbush near where the 1820 log schoolhouse stood (today the land between KCI/Grand River Hospital up to the corner of King and Erb Streets), he was turned down by the owner, Elias Snider (owner of the prosperous Snider Grist Mill). Hoffman promptly left the area to look for other investment prospects in the US. While he was gone, he received a telegram from his son-in-law, Isaac Weaver, saying that Snider had changed his mind and the land was now for sale. Hoffman jumped on it and quickly purchased the land. Hoffman's business interests were evolving and he established a grain and cattle market in the town of Waterloo, a strategic move that solidified the area as a lucrative agricultural hub. Some time later, Hoffman further developed Snider's former grist mill into what would later become Seagram Distillery. (let's face it, when you have grain and a means to grind it...., good water......and are thirsty.......).

A portion of this land, had been used as a cemetery--the earliest Mount Hope Cemetery (formerly Greenbush Cemetery). The bodies were eventually moved to the present day Mount Hope Cemetery, thereby incorporating the two cemeteries.

So, also quoting an earlier post, I said: "...on the land ownership over time of "Greenbush",...think Abraham Weber, John Hoffman and Joseph Emm Seagram or, what does a Conestoga wagon, a Mayor and a bottle of booze have in common)... ? "

Well, the answer, finally: We know a Mennonite named Abraham Weber came to lot 16 of the the German Company Tract (in a Conestoga wagon) in 1806. Lot 16 encompassed, in part, where the University of Waterloo School of Pharmacy is today along King and Victoria Streets--where older residents of the area would remember the BF Goodrich Tire plant used to be. This was part of Greenbush, where the 1820 log schoolhouse used to sit between 1842-1894. We also now know that John Hoffman, local business and land owner, (and former mayor of Berlin) purchased some of this land in 1855 (and more, entering into the town of Waterloo up to King and Erb Streets), developing the former Snider grist mill into what would eventually become Seagram's Distillery.....hence, a Conestoga wagon, a Mayor and a bottle of booze....

I love how history continues to interweave and then backs onto itself..... In fact, Joseph Emm Seagram eventually purchased that land after Hoffman's death in 1878 and later donated part of it (where the original Mount Hope cemetery was) in 1894 for a hospital--present day Grand River Hospital.

For more information on the Seagram operations and the collection at the City of Waterloo, see:

http://www.city.waterloo.on.ca/seagramcollection/history/plant_timeline.html