John Coffin (judge)

John Coffin (c. 1751 – May 12, 1838) was an army officer, merchant, judge and political figure in New Brunswick. He represented King's in the Legislative Assembly of New Brunswick from 1785 to 1816.

He was born in Boston, the son of Nathaniel Coffin and Elizabeth Barnes. Coffin entered the British Army and fought at the Battle of Bunker Hill. He became a major in the Orange Rangers in 1777, serving in New Jersey and New York, and later transferred to the New York Volunteers, which saw action in Georgia and South Carolina. In 1781, he married Ann Mathews. Coffin became a major in the King's American Regiment in 1782. In 1783, he was placed on half pay and brought his family to what is now New Brunswick. Coffin acquired a large estate from Beamsley Perkins Glasier, where he built a grist mill and a sawmill. He also sold fish, lumber and rum. Coffin was named a justice of the peace and a judge in the Inferior Court of Common Pleas. In 1812, he was named to the New Brunswick Council. Coffin raised the New Brunswick Fencibles during the War of 1812. In 1819, he was given the rank of full general. In 1817, Coffin moved to England but he retained his position on the New Brunswick Council until 1828. He later returned to New Brunswick and died in Westfield Parish.

His brother Isaac became a prominent land owner in Quebec.

References

• Elliott, Robert S (1988). "John Coffin". Dictionary of Canadian Biography Online. Retrieved 2011-02-02.