where were my ancestors in 1776?
well, there would have been a lot of them alive at the time, and they would have been in a lot of different places.
my direct patrilineal descent is actually not clear; we're all pretty sure that there was some cree in there at some point, and these tribes would have been independent, still, and loosely aligned with the loyalists, albeit quite a distance from any fighting. there may also be some african in there (two of my aunts married fully black africans and i have completely black cousins), but to what depth is not clear, either. 1776 is long enough ago these potential ancestors may have still been in africa. if they were in america, these ancestors would have likely been enslaved, but on what side of the conflict is not clear to me. my grandfather was a mason, as was his own grandfather, apparently. i have no meaningful memory of him. that may suggest a northern ancestry is more likely. but, african-canadians were rare things in the first half of the twentieth century, too, and hard to place anywhere near bytowne. the two most likely paths would have been either from nova scotia (settled by black loyalists) or from detroit, via the underground railroad. this is all pure supposition...
besides some native ancestry, the only other certainty on my paternal grandfather's side is that somebody married a french woman at some point. i do not know if these french ancestors would have been in canada or france in 1776, and keep in mind that french canada stretched from montreal to new orleans at the time. regardless, they are the most likely candidates to have aligned with the united states, up to this point, via proxy with a common enemy or not. but, perhaps they had a personal entente cordiale. i can't know.
my paternal grandmother's ancestors would have certainly been scattered across the eastern mediterranean, mostly in italy and sicily. however, she would also have had some ashkenazi ancestors somewhere as well, most likely in eastern europe.
my maternal grandmother's ancestors would have been across a crescent in northern europe: ireland, norway, sweden and finland. i suspect, at this time, that my ancestors may have existed even further east, as well, stretching through russia and into ukraine. they would have been light-skinned, with flaxen hair and blue eyes. but, i do not suspect that they would have held strong opinions about the revolutionary war in the colony.
my maternal grandfather's ancestors may have actually been in canada, and served as loyalists, but i do not know. they would have been of mixed scottish/welsh heritage, and british citizens since the acts of union. there is some evidence that my maternal grandfather was in a line of petty, distant aristocrats that held office through law enforcement. but, i never found the missing link to demonstrate as much.
we are not our ancestors. but, when i say i would have found little in the american revolution to support, and much to directly oppose, i speak on behalf of my own. if i was on this continent at the time, i would have certainly been a loyalist.
sorry.