James Peachey
James Peachey (d. 1797) was a survey draughtsman by training, who came to Canada initially under the direction of Samuel Holland, the Surveyor of General of Lands for the Province of Quebec and Northern District of North America. Although little is known of Peachey’s early life, his skill as a draughtsman and as an artist was recognized by Holland. Later Peachey was supported by the patronage of General William Tryon, and later General Sir Frederick Haldimand (1718-1791) Governor-in-Chief of Canada from 1778-1786. Peachey obtained a commission in the British Army prior to coming to Canada and was later promoted to lieutenant. Peachey made three visits to Canada between 1773 and 1795. The three views by Peachey in this exhibition date from his latter trips to Canada. Modern understanding of his work has largely been reconstructed from research using dated views, maps and various papers related to his second visit. Peachey’s assignments were connected with the surveying and laying out of lots and lands for the incoming discharged troops and refugee loyalists fleeing from the United States in the period following the American Revolution. In 1783 Peachey and fellow surveyors were instructed to survey the north shore of Lake Ontario where he wintered near Cataraqui (near Kingston). A view of Cataraqui can be viewed in this exhibition. Peachey died while in service with the military in Martinique, in the West Indies on November 24, 1797.
Link to bio from Dictionary of Canadian Biography Online
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