Rose

John Rose, for those of you who are related to him, or lived in Gaspe, you have probably been told a story or two about him. For instance, how John and his sister Mary were adopted by Sir Isaac Brock, and John was Brock’s Aide de Camp in the War of 1812, or that John was Brock’s butler during the war. I have heard these stories from many different people and have even found two books with one of these stories in it.

In the book “The Quiet Adventurer in North America” by Mrs. Marion G. Turk it states, “John Rose's parents were killed in an accident in Scotland, and he and his sister Mary were adopted by Sir Isaac Brock, came to Canada with him, and John served in the British Army until ca 1812.” And in the book of St. Majorique it states, “The first to clear land in Roseville was John Rose and Mary Major Rose of Scottish Origin. John Rose married Mary on Guernsey Island. Coming to Canada as aide de camp to General Isaac Brock, he served in the army until 1812.” But there are major problems with these stories. The first is that Sir Isaac Brock’s aide de camp was Lieutenant-Colonel John Macdonell and Brock came to Canada in 1802. In any book on Brock I have not yet found any mention of the any adopted children.

This is what I know for a fact about John Rose. He settled in Gaspe sometime between 1819 -1825. The land he lived on was by White Creek. He named his estate Roseville which has become the town of Rosebridge. He was born in St. Martins, Guernsey, Channel Islands in 1789. His father’s name was also John. He married Mary Mauger of St. Peter’s Point, Guernsey in 1811. They lived in St. Peter’s Point where they had John Jr., Rachel, Henry, George, Charlotte, and Nicholas. They may have also had Harriette and Frederick in Guernsey, but I am not sure. They then had Benjamin, Abraham, Peter and Elias in Roseville. John and his family are in the 1825 and 1831 censuses. John worked as a Mason in Gaspe.

If you are related to John Rose please e-mail me at parobert@telusplanet.net

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