NameEsther Sayre
Birth17 Feb 1763, Philadelphia, PA
Death27 Jul 1827, Newmarket, Upper Canada
FatherRev. John Sayre (1738-1784)
MotherMary Bowes (1739-1789)
Misc. Notes
Seven Robinson children listed.

EEsther was baptized on March 6, 1763 at Christ Church and Saint Peters, Philadelphia, PA. "In 1763 Johan and Mary were living on the East Side of Front Street in the Northern Liberties (Philadelphia)."[1] The family moved around due to her father's vocation as an Anglican missionary Minister and as a result of their Loyalist sentiments after the American Revolutionary War. After their troubles in Connecticut, Reverend Sayre's family moved to the St John River Valley, newly settled with British Loyalists, in what was then considered Nova Scotia, soon to be New Brunswick.
In New Brunswick Esther met and married Christopher Robinson, a Loyalist from Virginia. Her first son, Peter was born in New Brunswick in 1785. Peter would later on be instrumental in the settlement of Catholic Irish migrants to what is now the town of Peterborough. Their daughter Mary was also born in New Brunswick. Mary married Captain Stephen Heward who served under Isaac Brock in the War of 1812.
Esther and Christopher moved to Lower Canada (Quebec), where in 1792 their son John Beverley was born. John also served under Isaac Brock in the War of 1812, would later become Chief Justice of Upper Canada, and a leader in the powerful Family Compact in York (Toronto). Their daughter Sarah Anne was also born in Quebec. She later married D'Arcy Boulton Jr, a lawyer and a wealthy merchant in York (Toronto), whose family was also part of the Family Compact.
In 1792, John Graves Simcoe, now Lieutenant Governor of Upper Canada, offered Christopher Robinson a post as a minor surveyor general and so the family moved to Kingston in Upper Canada. In 1794, Christopher received his license to practice law and, in 1796, he was elected to the 2nd Parliament of Upper Canada representing Ontario & Addington. In Kingston two more children were born to Christopher and Esther, William who married Elizabeth Ann Jarvis, and Esther who died at age 16.
The family moved to York (Toronto), but Christopher died shortly after arriving, in Nov 1798, leaving Esther in difficulties. As a loyalist and surveyor general of woods and forests, Christopher Robinson left his wife and six children an established place in York society. Unfortunately, he left little means to sustain it, and in 1800, eldest child Peter, at age 15, was given a position as clerk of the Home District Court of Requests, in recognition of his father's position and in order to help him support his mother and siblings.
Esther Robinson’s second marriage, in 1803 to Elisha Beman, widower, a York merchant and land speculator, eventually moved some of the family to the area of New Market, north of York. Sons William and Peter went into in business there or near there. Daughter Esther died there in 1811.
Esther and Elisha had a daughter together, Susan, who also married a Boulton. Elisha, considered a founder of Newmarket, died there in 1820.
Esther Beman died in 1827 in Newmarket and is buried in the Pioneer Burying Ground there, also known as the Eagle Street Cemetery.
Spouses
Birth1763, King William, Virginia
Death2 Nov 1798, York, Toronto, Canada
FatherFalse Chritopher Robinson
MarriageMay 1784, New Brunswick
ChildrenPeter (1785-1838)
 Mary (1787-1863)
 Sarah Anne (1789-1863)
 John Beverley (1791-1863)
 Esther (1795-1811)
 William Benjamin (1797-1873)
2Elisha Beman
Birthbef 24 Jun 1759
Death14 Oct 1821
Marriage21 Jun 1803, York, Upper Canada
ChildrenSusan (>1803-<1843)
Last Modified 22 Aug 2019Created 7 May 2020 using Reunion for Macintosh