Thomas Smith of England and Toronto, Canada (ca. 1802-1888)

Innkeeper at Norway, East York (Toronto). (info from St. John's Anglican Church, Norway East Toronto
Spouse: Eliza James  (married 24 May 1827 in Town of York, Canada) (also Ann Camach 1 May, 1830)

   1. Thomas' father may have been a United Empire Loyalist that made the following claim for property.
(Smith,  Thomas   Kingston   OC 19 Feb 1808(7) OC 2Aug 1797 (restored)).  This suggests that the first claim was 1797 followed by a lapse with a further claim in 1808.

    2. Thomas may  have been a Chelsea Pensioner.  A record for a Thomas Smith in 1831 is a good match for him and coincides nicely with his marriage date in East York.  The marriages with Eliza James and Ann Camach are both reasonable matches for Thomas.  

   3. Thomas Smith may have immigrated into Canada close to the time of his marriage.  A 27 year old Thomas Smith, carpenter, is listed as arriving aboard the vessel, Siroc, in 1829.  This is a perfect match for Thomas who by several census records appears to have been born in 1801 or 1802.

 I suspect he lived in the Simcoe area until about 1840, then moved to East York. (village of Norway)  I have reason to believe he might have been a tradesman in the early days (blacksmith, carpenter) but later became a farmer/innkeeper. There was a Thomas Smith, blacksmith, in the first census of Barrie in 1837 and his youngest daughter was born there.  The connection with Barrie is further strengthened since Thomas was living with his eldest daughter, Elizabeth Cundle, in Barrie in 1881.  His death was also recorded in Barrie.