Lesson Resource Kit:
Immigration and settlement of a gentlewoman
Grade 7: 1800–1850: Conflict and Challenges
Introduction
Designed to fit into teachers’ practice, this resource kit provides links,
activity suggestions, primary source handouts and worksheets to
assist you and your students in applying, inquiring, and understanding
Canada between 1800 and 1850.
Topic
Anne Langton and experiences of immigration and settlement in
Upper Canada
Source
Anne Langton: Gentlewoman, Pioneer, Settler and Artist online exhibit
Use the Archives of Ontario’s online exhibit on Anne Langton:
 As a learning resource for yourself
 As a site to direct your students for inquiry projects
 As a place to find and use primary sources related to the curriculum
Themes that can be addressed
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Use of primary sources
Experiences of immigration and settlement
Roles of women
Growth of community
Change and continuity
Perspective taking
Curriculum
Strand B. Canada, 1800–1850: Conflict and challenges
Overall Expectations
Historical Thinking Concepts
B1. Application: Changes
and Challenges
Continuity and Change;
Historical Perspective
B2. Inquiry: Perspectives in
British North Americans
Historical Perspective;
Historical Significance
Specific Expectations
B2.1, B2.2, B2.3, B2.5, B2.6
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B3. Understanding
Historical Context: Events
and Their Consequence
Historical Significance;
Cause and Consequence
B3.4, B3.5
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Assignment & Activity Ideas
Exploring Experiences of immigration and Settlement
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The attached handouts include primary sources with thinking questions that can either
be engaged with as a Jigsaw, Think/Pair/Share, or independent work
You can use the Gathering Information on Anne Langton handout as a way for students
to take some notes on what they have observed during their research and the Anne
Langton: Who is she handout to talk about significance of these records.
Inquiring into Experiences of Immigration and Settlement
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The historical inquiry process involves five steps:
 Formulating a question
 Gathering and organizing information or evidence
 Interpreting and analysing information or evidence
 Evaluating information or evidence and drawing conclusions
 Communicating findings
The curriculum highlights that these steps do not have to be completed sequentially nor
together. You may wish to explore specific steps based on your students’ readiness and
prior knowledge or your own resources and time. See pages 22-24 in the 2013 revised
Ontario Social Studies and History curriculum for more details.
Using a primary source handout from this kit, introduce your students to the topics of
immigration and settlement in the 19th century. Ask students to ask questions of the
primary source provided. Use these questions as a jumping off point to explore these
historical topics in more depth.
Use the Anne Langton: Gentlewoman, pioneer settler, and artist online exhibit as a
source to point your students for their own inquiry project. Here, they can view primary
sources and secondary information to gather and organize historical evidence to
interpret, evaluate, and communicate.
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Handouts & Worksheets
Introduction to Primary Sources ................................................................................................. 5
Anne Langton: Who is she? ....................................................................................................... 6
Anne Langton: Self-Portrait (1883) ............................................................................................. 7
Interior of John's House (1837) .................................................................................................. 8
Gathering Information on Anne Langton..................................................................................... 9
Anne Langton Assignment ........................................................................................................10
Anne Langton Primary Source 1 - Emigration, 1837 .................................................................11
Anne Langton Primary Source 2 - Emigration, 1837 .................................................................12
Anne Langton Primary Source 3 - Emigration, 1837 .................................................................13
Anne Langton Primary Source 4 - Emigration, 1837 .................................................................14
Anne Langton Primary Source 1 - Settlement, 1837-1852 ........................................................15
Anne Langton Primary Source 2 - Settlement, 1837-1852 ........................................................16
Anne Langton Primary Source 3 - Settlement, 1837-1852 ........................................................17
Anne Langton Primary Source 4 - Settlement, 1837-1852 ........................................................18
Anne Langton Primary Source 5 - Settlement, 1837-1852 ........................................................19
Anne Langton Primary Source 6 - Settlement, 1837-1852 ........................................................20
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Introduction to Primary Sources
A Primary Source is a document or object
from the past created by people who lived
during that time. Primary Sources provide a
view into an event or experience that only
people living during that time could have
experienced.
Archives collect and preserve Primary
Sources so that students can learn history
from the experiences of people who were
there. At Archives, Primary Sources are called
Records. At Museums, Primary Sources are
called Artefacts.
Have you ever used a Primary Source before?
Peterborough from White's Tavern, 1837
Anne Langton
Graphite on cream wove paper
18.0 cm x 23.3 cm (7" x 9¼")
Reference Code: F 1077-8-1-4-16
Archives of Ontario, I0008038
Primary Sources
Secondary Sources
Original material from the past
Example:
Letters
Diaries
Photographs
Paintings and other art work
Graphs
Maps
Material people today write about the past
Example:
Textbooks
Reference books
Websites such as Wikipedia
Current news articles
Documentaries and films
What are some other examples of Primary and Secondary Sources?
Can sources be both Primary and Secondary?
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Anne Langton: Who is she?
 Anne Langton was born in 1804, into an aristocratic
family in Yorkshire, England
 Anne Langton was a gentlewoman who lived in
Britain with her father Thomas, mother Ellen, and
her two brothers William & John.
 In 1833 her brother John moved to Upper Canada
and wanted his sister and parents to join him.
Anne Langton: self-portrait,
1833
Archives of Ontario,
I0008560
 In 1837 Anne, her parents, and her aunt made the voyage to
Canada, stopping in New York
 Upon arriving in Ontario, they settled in Sturgeon Lake just outside of
Peterborough and lived in the small log cabin John built until their
bigger, two-storey house was ready.
 The family was very prominent in the community and in 1851 John
was elected to the Provincial Legislature for Peterborough and
District.
 John owned several mills in Peterborough and
their family became quite financially
comfortable.
Thomas Langton and son,
John, 1833
Archives of Ontario, I0008575
 John moved up in government, eventually
becoming Auditor of Upper and Lower Canada
in 1851. Because of his new role, the family
moved to Toronto where John was closer to the
government.
 Anne Lived with John, his wife Lydia, and their children during this
time. She sketched, wrote letter and diaries, and entertained her
other nieces and nephews when they came to visit.
How are the Langton family’s experiences the same or different from
other Canadian settlers you have heard about?
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Anne Langton: Self-Portrait (1883)
Anne Langton: self-portrait, 1833
Anne Langton
Reference Code: F 1077-7-1-0-2
Archives of Ontario, I0008560
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Interior of John's House (1837)
Interior of John's house [looking south], 1837
Anne Langton
Graphite on cream wove paper
18.0 cm x 23.5 cm (7" x 9¼")
Reference Code: F 1077-8-1-4-22
Archives of Ontario, I0008045
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Gathering Information on Anne Langton
Imagine what it was like to leave everything familiar and journey across the
Atlantic Ocean in a wooden sailing ship in order to clear land for farming in
the middle of Canadian forest.
Anne Langton was one of those settlers. She left us valuable records
consisting of letters, journals and paintings that tell us about her journey,
life on a pioneer farm and changes in Upper Canada in the years leading
up to Confederation.
Look carefully at the images and diary entries
provided and try to imagine yourself in the picture,
either as someone journeying across the ocean by
sailing ship, settling in the wilderness, or moving into
town after years on a wilderness farm.
Topic of your research:
Emigration, 1837
Settlement, 1837-1852
Peterborough and Toronto, 1852-1859
What did you see in the pictures you looked at?
What did you read about in the letters or diaries?
How did you respond to the questions provided?
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Anne Langton Assignment
Imagine yourself in Anne or John’s place. Your job is to tell people in
England about your experiences as a settler in Upper Canada.
Tell them why the fields are full of stumps. Tell your friends about the inn
you stayed at during your journey or the fine house you are building to
replace your first log cabin. Tell them about the difference between city life
and rural life.
Don’t be afraid to use your imagination in composing your letter.
Remember to include:
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Date
Address
Greeting
Content – three paragraphs!
Closing and Signature
Notes:
Langton, William and family, ca. 1855
Langton family papers
Ambrotype
Reference Code: F 1077-11-0-6
Archives of Ontario, I0008506
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Anne Langton Primary Source:
Emigration, 1837
The Expectations of Settlement
In 1834, Anne sketched this picture of what she
imagined John’s farm looked like.
She would not see the farm for another three years
John Langton's cabin with surrounding buildings, 1834
Anne Langton
Graphite on cream wove paper
Reference Code: F 1077-9-1-17
Archives of Ontario, I0008465
 Question to think about:
Do you think that Anne had a realistic idea about what life on an
Upper Canadian farm would look like?
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Anne Langton Primary Source:
Emigration, 1837
The family travelled to New
York before coming to
Canada
Anne’s father wrote about the
difficulties of travel in his diary:
“Yesterday was a trying day.
We were going before the wind
about fourteen miles an hour, with a rolling sea
that occasioned many trifling and laughable accidents [...] We
were not without our share in the mischances of the day. Whilst
we were sitting quietly in the ladies’ room, our room nearly turned
topsy-turvy, and the egg-basket having been compelled to part
with the remains of its cargo, the eggs were tossed backwards
and forwards till the carpet was quite ready to put in the frying
pan, where it would have made a delicious and magnificent
omelet. The state of the room was not discovered till your mother
was going to bed, about eleven o’clock, and a long purification
had then to be commenced”
- Thomas Langton
 Questions to think about:
Thomas laughed about this incident, but he could have been very
annoyed too. Have you ever had a funny time while travelling?
How is travel different today than it was in 1837?
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Anne Langton Primary Source:
Emigration, 1837
Arriving on the Farm
“... on the fifteenth of August, 1837, we reached our new home.
How anxiously we looked for it as we were being rowed up
Sturgeon Lake; but it does not come into sight until you are quite
close to it. Certainly my brother had fixed upon one of the most
attractive spots, where a creek finds its way into the lake in almost
a bay, for a beautiful point of land projects into the water on one
side, and the ground rises considerably at a little distance from
the lake. There on the hill stood our still unfinished house ... There
was nothing to dishearten in the aspect of things, and we had had
it fully described to us. The only thing that did startle me was the
extreme roughness of the ground. My fear was for my old people.
I felt as if there was no spot where they could take a little turn
without stumbling upon a stone, or catching their feet in a root.”
- Anne Langton, Blythe, Sturgeon Lake, 1837
 Questions to think about:
Anne saw both good and bad things about her new home. What
are some of the positives and negatives that she wrote about?
How do you think they overcame the negative parts about her
new home?
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Anne Langton Primary Source:
Emigration, 1837
Arriving on the Farm
Look at this first view of the farm. What re things you notice?
End view of John's house, Canada,1837
Anne Langton
Graphite on cream wove paper
17.5 cm x 23.8 cm (7" x 9½")
Reference Code: F 1077-8-1-4-19
Archives of Ontario, I0008042
 Question to think about:
If this was your first view of your new home, would you feel
excited or scared?
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Anne Langton Primary Source:
Settlement, 1837-1852
The House
“At last after all delays and
disappointments, our long journey is accomplished. John looked
very proud when he handed his mother into his little mansion. His
arrangements for our accommodation are very snug ... My mother
and I sleep in the larger bedroom behind, Aunt Alice in the small
one John used to occupy at first. My father has the hammock put
up every night in the sittingroom, and John himself has
a tiny apartment curtained
off by a sail from the anteroom. Here we expect to
make ourselves
comfortable for perhaps a
couple of months, or maybe
more, if as many
unexpected delays occur as
have occurred in the
preparations at ‘the big house,’ as our future habitation is
elegantly denominated.”
- Anne Langton, letter 22 August, 1837
 Questions to think about:
Draw a picture of each person and where they would sleep. Anne
seemed very positive about this arrangement. Where do you think
you would sleep if you were there. How would you feel?
How do you think Anne’s experience would have been the same
and different to the experience of her elderly parents?
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Anne Langton Primary Source:
Settlement, 1837-1852
The House
Interior of John's house looking north, 1837
Anne Langton
Graphite on cream wove paper
18.0 cm x 23.5 cm (7" x 9¼" )
Reference Code: F 1077-8-1-4-20
Archives of Ontario, I0008043
 Questions to think about:
What room do you think this is? What activities do you think took
place in this room? Where do you think they would have got the
funishings and objects pictured in this room?
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Anne Langton Primary Source:
Settlement, 1837-1852
Community Life
Communities are built by people like Anne Langton. She worked
at her local church, educated young people, and created the first
library in the area.
Church at Fenelon Falls, Ontario, 1837
Anne Langton
Graphite on cream wove paper
18.0 cm x 23.5 cm (7" x 9¼")
Reference Code: F 1077-8-1-4-17
Archives of Ontario, I0008040
 Questions to think about:
The community looks very sparse in this picture. What buildings
would you build and how would you contribute to the community
life if you were a settler?
Why do you think it would have been important to be active in the
community as a settler?
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Anne Langton Primary Source:
Settlement, 1837-1852
Landscape
 Question to think about:
Anne painted this picture fifteen years after she arrived in
Canada. What do you think she is expressing about her home in
this picture?
On the Otonabee near Peterborough, ca. 1852
Anne Langton
Watercolour
13.8 cm x 27.0 cm (5½" x 10½")
Reference Code: F 1077-8-1-2-27
Archives of Ontario, I0008399
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Anne Langton Primary Source:
Settlement, 1837-1852
House
Blythe farm, Ontario, ca. 1851
Anne Langton
Watercolour
13.7 cm x 23.6 cm (5½" x 9¼")
Reference Code: F 1077-8-1-2-53
Archives of Ontario, I0008417
 Question to think about:
Fifteen years after arriving to Canada, the
Langton family lived in this house.
What makes this illustration of the house
different from and similar to her earlier
illustration of their house?
End view of John's house, Canada,1837
Anne Langton
Graphite on cream wove paper
17.5 cm x 23.8 cm (7" x 9½")
Reference Code: F 1077-8-1-4-19
Archives of Ontario, I0008042
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Anne Langton Primary Source:
Settlement, 1837-1852
Growth of Business
John Langton built and bought flour mills in Peterborough.
Blythe Mills near Peterborough, ca. 1852
Anne Langton
Watercolour, graphite, pen and ink
13.8 cm x 23.5 cm (5¼" x 9½")
Reference Code: F 1077-8-1-2-28
Archives of Ontario, I0008400
 Question to think about:
What kinds of businesses do you think would be important to
invest in after coming to a new country?
Is this the same for people who immigrate to Canada today?
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