To Frances, Claire, and Lee—with love
I began my long journey researching this book by looking at archival documents. Many thanks to the archivists at the Law Society of Upper Canada in Toronto and the National Archives in Ottawa who supplied me with boxes of John White’s letters and his diaries. I also thank the archivists of the Baldwin Collection at the Toronto Reference Library for facilitating my reading of the letters and journals of Elizabeth Russell, most of which were first drafts scribbled on scraps of paper.
Many books enabled me to recreate the world that John White was part of. I am especially thankful for these historical accounts: Murder Among Gentlemen by Hugh Halliday; Muddy York: A History of Toronto Until 1834 by Richard Fiennes-Clinton; Crime and Punishment in Upper Canada by Janice Nickerson; The Colonial Century, ed. by A.J. M. Smith; Spadina by Austin Seton Thompson; The Diary of Mrs. John Graves Simcoe, ed. with notes by John Ross Robertson; The Capital Years: Niagara-on-the-Lake 1792-1796, ed. by Richard Merritt, Nancy Butler, and Michael Power; The Town of York 1793-1815 by Edith Firth; Elizabeth Postuma Simcoe 1762-1850 by Mary Beacock Fryer; A Cooking Legacy by Virginia T. Elverson and Mary Ann McLanahan; Empire Fashion by Tom Tierney; and 18th Century Clothing by Bobbie Kalman.
I am grateful to the people who stayed with me for the many years leading to publication. Novelist Barbara Kyle offered wise advice and intensive editing. My husband Nicholas and sons John and Hugh gave support at all times. Carolyn Thompson helped with nitpicking details. She even went through the tailors’ bills for White’s fine clothes!
Finally, I thank the amazing folk at Books We Love Publishing Ltd, especially Nancy Bell, Michelle Lee, and Judith Pittman. They moved me through the process of publishing this book with skill, speed, and wisdom.