Author Background
Discover the family roots, fieldwork, and passion that drive this Loyalist grave restoration.
About
Honouring Our Loyalist Matriarchs
John Sliter grew up in Cornwall, Ontario, spending his childhood near his grandparents’ farm in Pleasant Valley, north of Osnabruck — just a short distance from the creek that would eventually change his life.
After a career with the Royal Canadian Mounted Police, John returned to the Ingleside area where he had grown up. His passion for environmental protection led him to establish the Friends of Hoople Creek Society, a not-for-profit
corporation dedicated to protecting the small creek and its surrounding watershed.
It was this work — tenacious research into the history of the creek and the people who lived along it — that led John to a remarkable discovery. The stories of the women. Eighteen United Empire Loyalist women whose families had settled
along Hoople Creek after the American Revolution, whose courage and determination had helped build Upper Canada, and whose names were in danger of being lost to history.
Matriarchs of the Hoople Creek Loyalists is the result of years of research into those 18 lives. It is John’s way of making sure they are not forgotten. John is also a member of the UELAC — the United Empire Loyalists’ Association of Canada — and a regular speaker at heritage and Loyalist events across Ontario.
Updates
Follow new research findings and grave restoration progress reports.
Milestones In A Living Archive
From the first weathered headstone uncovered along Hoople Creek to mapping entire family plots, each discovery deepens understanding of these matriarchs’ lives and hardships, guiding ongoing archival work, community partnerships, and on-the-ground restoration projects.