COFFIN, JOHN, army officer, businessman, politician, jp, judge, and office holder; b. c. 1751 in Boston, son of Nathaniel Coffin, the last receiver general and cashier of British customs for Boston, and Elizabeth Barnes; brother of Isaac Coffin and nephew of John Coffin*; m. 21 Oct. 1781 Ann Mathews (Matthews) of Johns Island, S.C., and they had ten children; d. 12 May 1838 in Westfield Parish, N.B.

Born into a prosperous mercantile family that had connections with the governing élite of colonial Massachusetts, John Coffin spent his childhood in Boston, where he received a respectable education and was introduced to the doctrines of the Church of England. Coffin and his family probably had many reasons for remaining loyal to the British crown during the American revolution; certainly the family’s prosperity depended on a continued attachment to the existing order.

John Coffin launched his military career on 17 June 1775 at the battle of Bunker Hill. His activities thereafter are unclear until 19 Jan. 1777, when he was commissioned a captain in a newly formed provincial corps, the King’s Orange Rangers. After serving with the Rangers in New Jersey and New York, he exchanged into the New York Volunteers on 19 July 1778. This regiment was transferred late in 1778 to the southern colonies, where Coffin saw action in both Georgia and South Carolina. His distinguished service at the battle of Eutaw Springs in September 1781 led to his promotion as major of the King’s American Regiment on 28 Aug. 1782. When his unit was disbanded in 1783, he was placed on half pay. Even though he would see only a brief period of military service following the Revolutionary War (during the War of 1812 he raised the New Brunswick Fencibles), he received regular promotions, becoming a full general on 12 Aug. 1819.

Following the withdrawal of British troops from the southern colonies, Coffin spent much of 1783 in New York attempting to secure his future once the war had officially ended. He was to relocate in territory destined to become New Brunswick. Edward Winslow* obtained property for him on the west side of what would be named Saint John Harbour, and Henry Nase, formerly under Coffin’s command in the King’s American Regiment, received a contract to construct the major’s house. After making these preparations, Coffin and his family embarked for Parrtown (Saint John), where they landed on 26 Sept. 1783. At least three enslaved Africans – Paul (aged 29), Harry (23), and Pheobe (21) – were sent from New York to Port Roseway (Shelburne, N.S.) and then to New Brunswick to join the Coffin household.

Coffin immediately set about establishing himself. Probably taking advantage of his position as one of the loyalist land agents, he acquired from a fellow loyalist officer, Beamsley Perkins Glasier*, an interest in Glasier’s Manor, a 5,000-acre estate situated at the confluence of the Nerepis and Saint John rivers. In 1790 he obtained ownership of Glasier’s property, by then enlarged to 6,000 acres. Coffin was involved in numerous other land transactions, primarily in Kings County, and erected both a grist-mill and a sawmill on the manor. Not confining his business ventures to real-estate speculation and agricultural pursuits, he also retailed fish, lumber, and rum. His shrewd business sense, drive, and financial resources ensured him considerable success, although he was never able to enjoy an aristocratic way of life or to accumulate a vast fortune.

Despite his active participation in the campaign for the partition of Nova Scotia and his association with many of the loyalist élite, Coffin had not achieved immediate political success when New Brunswick became a reality in 1784. He was not offered a high-ranking government appointment, though he would later become a justice of the peace and a judge of the Inferior Court of Common Pleas. On the fringe of political preferment, he was obliged to seek election to the House of Assembly to have a voice in provincial affairs. Returned as a representative of Kings County in November 1785, he served for 25 years. He was twice accused of manipulation: in 1796 he was charged with distributing provisions to voters, and in 1810 his seat was declared vacant because of irregularities in his election the preceding year. As a member of the assembly, Coffin emerged as a leading defender of the principles of church and state and revealed his contempt for the champions of democracy. During the legislative session of 1802, eight assembly members under his leadership passed a revenue bill despite the fact that a quorum was not present [see Samuel Denny Street*]. Coffin’s fiery disposition involved him in several duels, one of them with the radical James Glenie*.

In Kings County, an oligarchy was established with Coffin and George Leonard* as dominant members. Beginning in 1786, when he was appointed to the bench, Coffin accumulated many county positions, including that of chief magistrate. In company with Lieutenant Governor Thomas Carleton*, Chief Justice George Duncan Ludlow*, and others, he was a founding member of the New England Company’s New Brunswick committee in 1786. In 1807 he became superintendent of the company’s school for Indigenous children at Sussex Vale (Sussex) [see Oliver Arnold*]. The institution had been closed for three years and Coffin, in his new position, played a central role in refining its purpose. Micmac (Mi’kmaw) and Malecite (Wolastoqiyik) children would no longer be taught to read and write; instead, the school would act as broker of “child apprenticeships.” Students would now be assigned to settler families until their 21st birthday. The sponsoring family would receive a generous £20 annuity and what amounted to an indentured servant. Coffin argued that the program would more effectively isolate them from the objectionable aspects of their culture, provide them with a more practical education, and increase the number of converts in the Church of England. In a letter to the company’s council, he explained that “if you do not take the children early they are not only complete Indians but complete Catholics.” However, the program was expensive, there was widespread abuse of all kinds, and persuading Indigenous families to enrol their children proved difficult. Detailed reports exposing the school’s many failures were produced by British social reformer Walter Bromley in 1822 and missionary John West in 1825 [see Molly Ann Gell*]. Less than a year later, the New England Company abandoned the scheme.

John Coffin’s many positions, including that of assemblyman, gave him great power in all matters both secular and religious within Kings County. In 1812 he received an appointment that he must have felt was long overdue: he became a member of the New Brunswick Council. As usual, controversy dogged his footsteps. In 1824 a situation arose that led the members of the Council to consider whether he had forfeited his seat. Coffin had moved to England in 1817 but had not relinquished his seat or received official permission to be absent. The matter was referred to the colonial secretary, who concluded that Coffin had indeed forfeited his position. After giving Lieutenant Governor Sir Howard Douglas* the impression that he would return, however, Coffin was reinstated. Though he made periodic visits to the colony thereafter, he remained inattentive to his duties and was removed from the Council in 1828. The next year he returned to New Brunswick permanently, but it was too late – John Coffin’s seat on the Council was gone and his political career had ended. Appointment to the Council was perhaps the high point of a life that had been marked by a determination to succeed in every endeavour.

Robert S. Elliot