1 Rev. Robert Addison

Born in Westmoreland, England (now spelled Westmorland), Robert Addison was a Church of England clergyman who settled in Newark (Niagara-on-the-Lake) in 1792. At that time, Newark was the seat of the government of Upper Canada. Addison became chaplain of the legislature. The third Protestant clergyman to settle in Upper Canada, Addison was the only Anglican minister west of Kingston, and the sole pastor of any denomination in the Niagara Region. For this reason Addison regularly ministered to communities as far away as the Six Nations settlement along the Grand River, where his friend Joseph Brant translated the sermons he preached in the Mohawk Chapel. Addison oversaw the construction of St. Mark’s Church in Newark, which was completed in 1809. St. Mark’s was the first Anglican church in Upper Canada to hold regular services. Addison’s congregation included many luminaries, such as General Isaac Brock and Colonel John Butler. It was Addison who conducted Brock’s funeral service. During the War of 1812, he added military chaplain to his duties. When Newark was captured by American forces in 1813, Addison was held as a prisoner of war and St. Mark’s Church was partially burned. A highly educated man, Addison contributed significantly to the Common Schools Act of 1816.

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