ILER FAMILY PAPERS
1820-1911
MS 28
Municipal Archives
Windsor Public Library
Acc. No. 1987-43 Mark Walsh
3 inches/7.6 cm Municipal Archivist
18 Sep 1989
Historical Note
Ms 28
John Coatsworth Iler was born on a Colchester Township farm in 1828. He initially took up farming and continued to hold Colchester property through most of his life. A deeply religious man, J.C. Iler was also a Methodist preacher and was much in demand as a speaker for meetings of that denomination in Essex and Kent Counties and Detroit.
In 1850 Mr. Iler married Adeline, daughter of John Buchanan. He served in municipal office, including a period as Colchester Township clerk. On County Council as Colchester’s reeve for 1873-1879, J.C. Iler became County Warden in 1879. He ran unsuccessfully in federal politics during the mid-1870’s. Returned to office as the reeve for Colchester South in 1883, John Iler became Sheriff for the County of Essex that year and confined in that post until his death in 1908.
Mr. and Mrs. J.C. Iler had three daughters: Margaret (m. Eli Wright); Josephine (m. Atkinson Wigle); and Myra (m. Albert Rumball). This collection was donated by Mrs. Muriel Irvine.
Content Note
MS 28
The documents found in this collection concern the Iler, Buchanan and Wright families. Three folders contain John Buchanan’s school practice book for 1820-1821, a mortgage account with J.C. Iler in the 1890s and a 1909 assessment notice to Eli Wright concerning the estate of his late father-in-law. These units provide a sample from each generation.
The fourth unit, the “Shakespeare Birthday Book” provides a glimpse of literacy in Essex County during the 1880/s and was a gift from one of Iler’s daughters and sons-in-law to another.
The last three units, bound volumes, are primarily concerned with John C. Iler’s tenure as sheriff. His deposit book often gives only amounts and balances, except in three cases of trusteeship. Two diaries cover 1894-1897 and 1907-1911, with the latter volume continued by Eli and Margaret Wright after Iler’s death in 1908. The diaries provide an insight into Iler’s personal life and record information on his duties as sheriff.
This collection will be of interest to patrons interested in the social and political history of Essex County in general and Sandwich, the County seat of the period in particular.
Description of the Records
MS 28
Unit Description Date Remarks
1 Youth’s arithmetic practice book 28 Mar 1820- Attributed to John
12 Feb 1821 Buchanan
2 J.C. Iler account re: mortgage 1 Oct 1893- Mortgagee not named
No. 7372 1 Mar 1898
3 Sandwich assessment notice to 19 Mar 1909 Estate of J.C. Iler
Eli Wright
4 “The Shakespeare Birthday Book” 1884 Inscribed “To Maggie
and Eli [Wright]
From Myra and
Albert
5 Canadian Bank of Commerce 1884-1886 “J.C. Iler Sheriff”
deposit book Includes trusteeship
accounts for Murdock
Bros., E. Gignac and
S. White in 1884
6 Diary of J.C. Iler 22 Jul 1894- Includes copy of 1896
31 Jul 1897 will (p. 188)
7 Diary of J.C. Iler, and others 8 Dec 1907- Entries by J.C. Iler
20 Jul 1911 until 21 Oct 1908
(d.13 Nov 1908);
additional entries
attributed to Mr. and
Mrs. Eli Wright