United Empire Loyalist John Small, or "Johannes Wilhelmus Von der Schmall" was born in Philadelphia in 1756 to Johannes Wilhelmus (1731-1795) and Mary (?-1782) Von der Schmall. He entered the Bridgemaster's Department under Robert Fenwick, Captain of Artillery on 15 June 1778 and saw action during the American War of Independence at various locations such as Schulykil, Kingsferry, Fort Muterry, etc. Leaving New York on the 12 July 1783, John arrived in St. John, New Brunswick fourteen days later. He was given a grant of land and established a home in Carleton. Small married Jemime Ogden on the 6 November 1785, who died soon after the birth of their first son John Small Junior (1787-1876). On the 11 June 1790, John arrived at Bedeque, Prince Edward Island. He worked as a shipwright and built schooners and flats for the Schurman, Darby, Chappel, Baker, Mabey, Owen, and Green families. In 1803 he married Frances Brimble, daughter of loyalists Sarah Brimble and Benjamin Darby. They had one daughter Sarah (1804-1908). John was a freemason, initiated in New York in May 1783. He had at least one brother, Thomas, who lived in the Miramichi region of New Brunswick. John died on the 18 December 1830. He and Fanny are buried in unmarked graves on their farm in Bedeque.