With all that she had, Eliza was not happy. She was deeply religious and felt that God had given her a purpose in life. "I feel impatient to be more useful - to be more entirely employed for the benefit of others," she wrote in her diary.
In 1830, Eliza met the man who would change her life. Peter Jones was in England to raise money for the missionary work that he was doing among the Indian tribes of Upper Canada. Peter's father, Augustus, was the first Surveyor of Lands in Upper Canada. Peter had been born in Burlington Heights in 1802. He lived with his Ojibwa mother and then went to live with his father when he was in his early twenties. He learned English and the ways of the "white man."
Eliza fell deeply in love with Peter. He wanted her to return with him to Upper Canada. He knew they would face social hardships. White settlers didn't believe in intermarriage with Indians. Peter told Eliza of the trials they would endure.
Eliza had problems of her own. Her family, especially her father, were against the marriage. Not only was Peter an Indian, he was illegitimate. At the time of his birth, Peter's father also had a "white" wife.
Eliza was not easily deterred. She loved Peter deeply and wanted only to be his wife. She knew nothing of housekeeping, cooking or living in poverty. She knew that she'd have much to learn.
Peter returned to Upper Canada with Eliza. A few months later he received a letter from her asking him to meet her in New York City. They were married in 1831. They settled in the Mississauga Indian village on the Credit River. Their home was a one-room cabin with meager furnishings. Eliza wrote, "a writing table, a few chairs, Indian mats on the floor, and 'round the bedstead - an open fireplace." This was an extreme change from what Eliza had grown up with in England.
Eliza had a hard time adjusting to life on the reservation. She did love to canoe and soon formed a strong friendship with Joseph Brant's granddaughter, Christine. She was accepted into the community and Peter's family. She helped Peter improve his English skills and aided him in his translations of the Bible. Eliza helped at the school and sewed clothes for the needy.
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