Dilman Kinsey Erb was an educator, farmer and political figure in Ontario

Ontario

Ontario is a province of Canada, located in east-central Canada. It is Canada's most populous province and second largest in total area. It is home to the nation's most populous city, Toronto, and the nation's capital, Ottawa....

, Canada. He represented Perth South

Perth South

Perth South was a federal electoral district represented in the Canadian House of Commons from 1867 to 1935. It was located in the province of Ontario. It was created by the British North America Act of 1867 which divided the County of Perth into two ridings...

 in the Canadian House of Commons

Canadian House of Commons

The House of Commons of Canada is a component of the Parliament of Canada, along with the Sovereign and the Senate. The House of Commons is a democratically elected body, consisting of 308 members known as Members of Parliament...

 from 1896 to 1904 as a Liberal

Liberal Party of Canada

The Liberal Party of Canada , colloquially known as the Grits, is the oldest federally registered party in Canada. In the conventional political spectrum, the party sits between the centre and the centre-left. Historically the Liberal Party has positioned itself to the left of the Conservative...

 member.

He was born in Woolwich Township, Canada West, the son of Isaac Erb and Hannah Kinsey.
His family was of Swiss

Switzerland

Switzerland name of one of the Swiss cantons. ; ; ; or ), in its full name the Swiss Confederation , is a federal republic consisting of 26 cantons, with Bern as the seat of the federal authorities. The country is situated in Western Europe,Or Central Europe depending on the definition....

 descent and came to Waterloo County

Waterloo County, Ontario

Waterloo County, created in 1853 and dissolved in 1973, was the forerunner of the Regional Municipality of Waterloo in Ontario, Canada. It consisted of five townships: Woolwich, Wellesley, Wilmot, Waterloo, and North Dumfries...

 by way of Pennsylvania

Pennsylvania

The Commonwealth of Pennsylvania is a U.S. state that is located in the Northeastern and Mid-Atlantic regions of the United States. The state borders Delaware and Maryland to the south, West Virginia to the southwest, Ohio to the west, New York and Ontario, Canada, to the north, and New Jersey to...

. Erb was educated in Bridgeport, taught school for several years and was principal of the New Dundee

New Dundee, Ontario

New Dundee is a small community of about 1,500 people in the Township of Wilmot, Ontario, Canada, south-west of Kitchener.It is home to the Dundee Country Club golf course and the New Dundee Emporium, founded in 1887. Many small businesses are located within the community on Alder Lake. Some...

 public school. In 1881, he married Phoebe Huber. Four years later, he moved to Downie Township, where he became a farmer. Erb was a member of the school board and township council for Downie Township, also serving as deputy reeve. Around 1892, he was named a justice of the peace

Justice of the Peace

A justice of the peace is a puisne judicial officer elected or appointed by means of a commission to keep the peace. Depending on the jurisdiction, they might dispense summary justice or merely deal with local administrative applications in common law jurisdictions...

. Erb served four years as president of the Sebringville Flax Company. He died in Downie Township at the age of 78.