The Nelles Settlement
Text from the plaque
After receiving lands in the Grand River in 1784, the Six Nations Indians invited Captain Hendrick Nelles, a loyalist from the Mohawk Valley, to settle there with five of his sons. He and Robert, the eldest, established farms in what is now Seneca Township and built houses in which they lived until Captain Nelles's death in 1791 and Robert's removal to Grimsby. Their grants, confirmed in 1787, were later changed to 999-year leases and John Nelles leased 130 ha across the river. William, Warner and Abraham Nelles received Crown patents in 1836 for the original "Nelles Tract" in Seneca granted to their father and brother in 1787. The "Nelles Settlement" contained about thirty families in 1828.
Transcribed from the marker, not summarised.
Find the place
The County of Haldimand
In York, on the northeast corner of
Road 54 and Road 9 (Nelles Street)
Also recorded for this place: The County of Haldimand
N 43 01.439 W 79 53.432
Recorded August 2004. Check current access before visiting.
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Visitors' notes
September 22, 2015
My name is Stanley Trueman Nelles, nephew of Lillian Featherstone, my father's sister. As well as visiting Roy and Lillian Featherstone in Caledonia we often visited with my Uncle Hind and Aunt Enid Parker when I was a child. I remember my Aunt Enid showing me a military sword hanging on the living room wall. She told me it belonged to a Major Henry Nelles. At that time it did not mean a lot to me. But as I have been researching Nelles Family History, I am now very aware of the role played by Major Nelles. In fact, I am a direct descendant. I have been trying to find the whereabouts of that sword. Always wondered who could be in possession of it. I recently visited the Grimsby Heritage Centre to be told that Major Henry Nelles's uniform had been found during a building renovation. It would only seem right for the sword to be displayed with the uniform in the Grimsby Museum. If anyone who reads this has any idea where the sword could be, please respond. Best regards, Stan Nelles
August 16, 2011
My name is Robert Darrell Featherstone. My grandmother was Lillian Featherstone, maiden Name Nelles. Yes I grew up in York. I still havn't been to the museum but my cousin says it's nice. I'm interested in the paintings gramma used to paint. I have the one she did of Abraham Lincoln standing on the white house steps. As you know they landed in US, went to D.C. on there way to Upper Canada. The construction in the background shows the Lincoln Memorial being built.