Frederick Seymour
Encyclopedia
Frederick Seymour was a colonial administrator
. He served as the second Governor of the Colony of British Columbia
from 1864 to 1866, and the first governor of the union of the two colonies, also named the Colony of British Columbia
from 1866 to 1869.
Seymour was the son of Henry Augustus Seymour, who was himself the illegitimate son of Francis Seymour-Conway, 2nd Marquess of Hertford
. Upon the latter's death in 1822, Seymour's father was forced to surrender his civil service
position and property, and leave Ireland
for Belgium
. In 1842, Prince Albert helped secure a position for Seymour in the colonial service. For the next twenty years, he served in various positions in a series of colonies mired in political and economic difficulties: Van Diemen's Land
, Antigua
, Nevis
, British Honduras
, and the Bay Islands.
In 1864, Seymour attained the apogee of his colonial career as successor to Sir James Douglas
as Governor of the Colony of British Columbia. He inherited an administration deeply in debt, and a restless population of British colonists demanding responsible government
. Seymour continued his predecessor's initiative of building wagon roads into the gold mining
districts of the Cariboo
, and quickly responded to the First Nations attack on a party of road workers at Bute Inlet
, which may have been instigated. He resisted, however, pressure to amalgamate British Columbia with the Colony of Vancouver Island
to consolidate the revenue and debts of the two colonies and reduce administration costs. Eventually he relented, and the colonies were united in 1866. Seymour was named governor of the new united colony
.
The next three years were unhappy ones for Seymour as he battled a succession of illnesses and faced an increasingly restless population. After Canadian Confederation
in 1867, sentiment turned strongly towards the colony seeking admission as a province
of Canada
. Seymour was lukewarm to the proposal, but regained much of the goodwill he had lost by successfully improving both the economy and infrastructure of the colony, culminating in the construction of a graving dock at Esquimalt
.
His term slated to end in 1869, Seymour made one last journey as governor to the Nass River
, on the northwest coast of the colony, to mediate a dispute between First Nations tribes. While returning, he became ill with dysentery
and died at Bella Coola
.
Colonial Office
Colonial Office is the government agency which serves to oversee and supervise their colony* Colonial Office - The British Government department* Office of Insular Affairs - the American government agency* Reichskolonialamt - the German Colonial Office...
. He served as the second Governor of the Colony of British Columbia
Colony of British Columbia
The Colony of British Columbia was a crown colony in British North America from 1858 until 1866. At its creation, it physically constituted approximately half the present day Canadian province of British Columbia, since it did not include the Colony of Vancouver Island, the vast and still largely...
from 1864 to 1866, and the first governor of the union of the two colonies, also named the Colony of British Columbia
United Colonies of Vancouver Island and British Columbia
The Colony of British Columbia is a crown colony that resulted from the amalgamation of the two former colonies, the Colony of Vancouver Island and the mainland Colony of British Columbia...
from 1866 to 1869.
Seymour was the son of Henry Augustus Seymour, who was himself the illegitimate son of Francis Seymour-Conway, 2nd Marquess of Hertford
Francis Seymour-Conway, 2nd Marquess of Hertford
Francis Ingram-Seymour-Conway, 2nd Marquess of Hertford KG, PC , styled The Honourable Francis Seymour-Conway until 1750, Viscount Beauchamp between 1750 and 1793 and Earl of Yarmouth between 1793 and 1794, was a British peer and politician.-Background and education:A member of the Seymour family...
. Upon the latter's death in 1822, Seymour's father was forced to surrender his civil service
Civil service
The term civil service has two distinct meanings:* A branch of governmental service in which individuals are employed on the basis of professional merit as proven by competitive examinations....
position and property, and leave Ireland
Ireland
Ireland is an island to the northwest of continental Europe. It is the third-largest island in Europe and the twentieth-largest island on Earth...
for Belgium
Belgium
Belgium , officially the Kingdom of Belgium, is a federal state in Western Europe. It is a founding member of the European Union and hosts the EU's headquarters, and those of several other major international organisations such as NATO.Belgium is also a member of, or affiliated to, many...
. In 1842, Prince Albert helped secure a position for Seymour in the colonial service. For the next twenty years, he served in various positions in a series of colonies mired in political and economic difficulties: Van Diemen's Land
Van Diemen's Land
Van Diemen's Land was the original name used by most Europeans for the island of Tasmania, now part of Australia. The Dutch explorer Abel Tasman was the first European to land on the shores of Tasmania...
, Antigua
Antigua
Antigua , also known as Waladli, is an island in the West Indies, in the Leeward Islands in the Caribbean region, the main island of the country of Antigua and Barbuda. Antigua means "ancient" in Spanish and was named by Christopher Columbus after an icon in Seville Cathedral, Santa Maria de la...
, Nevis
Nevis
Nevis is an island in the Caribbean Sea, located near the northern end of the Lesser Antilles archipelago, about 350 km east-southeast of Puerto Rico and 80 km west of Antigua. The 93 km² island is part of the inner arc of the Leeward Islands chain of the West Indies...
, British Honduras
British Honduras
British Honduras was a British colony that is now the independent nation of Belize.First colonised by Spaniards in the 17th century, the territory on the east coast of Central America, south of Mexico, became a British crown colony from 1862 until 1964, when it became self-governing. Belize became...
, and the Bay Islands.
In 1864, Seymour attained the apogee of his colonial career as successor to Sir James Douglas
James Douglas (Governor)
Sir James Douglas KCB was a company fur-trader and a British colonial governor on Vancouver Island in northwestern North America, particularly in what is now British Columbia. Douglas worked for the North West Company, and later for the Hudson's Bay Company becoming a high-ranking company officer...
as Governor of the Colony of British Columbia. He inherited an administration deeply in debt, and a restless population of British colonists demanding responsible government
Responsible government
Responsible government is a conception of a system of government that embodies the principle of parliamentary accountability which is the foundation of the Westminster system of parliamentary democracy...
. Seymour continued his predecessor's initiative of building wagon roads into the gold mining
Gold mining
Gold mining is the removal of gold from the ground. There are several techniques and processes by which gold may be extracted from the earth.-History:...
districts of the Cariboo
Cariboo
The Cariboo is an intermontane region of British Columbia along a plateau stretching from the Fraser Canyon to the Cariboo Mountains. The name is a reference to the woodland caribou that were once abundant in the region...
, and quickly responded to the First Nations attack on a party of road workers at Bute Inlet
Bute Inlet
Bute Inlet is one of the principal inlets of the British Columbia Coast. It is 80 km long from its head at the mouths of the Homathko and Southgate Rivers to the continental headlands at its mouth, where it is nearly blocked by Stuart Island, and it averages about 4 km in width...
, which may have been instigated. He resisted, however, pressure to amalgamate British Columbia with the Colony of Vancouver Island
Colony of Vancouver Island
The Colony of Vancouver Island , was a crown colony of British North America from 1849 to 1866, after which it was united with British Columbia. The united colony joined the Dominion of Canada through Confederation in 1871...
to consolidate the revenue and debts of the two colonies and reduce administration costs. Eventually he relented, and the colonies were united in 1866. Seymour was named governor of the new united colony
United Colonies of Vancouver Island and British Columbia
The Colony of British Columbia is a crown colony that resulted from the amalgamation of the two former colonies, the Colony of Vancouver Island and the mainland Colony of British Columbia...
.
The next three years were unhappy ones for Seymour as he battled a succession of illnesses and faced an increasingly restless population. After Canadian Confederation
Canadian Confederation
Canadian Confederation was the process by which the federal Dominion of Canada was formed on July 1, 1867. On that day, three British colonies were formed into four Canadian provinces...
in 1867, sentiment turned strongly towards the colony seeking admission as a province
Provinces and territories of Canada
The provinces and territories of Canada combine to make up the world's second-largest country by area. There are ten provinces and three territories...
of Canada
Canada
Canada is a North American country consisting of ten provinces and three territories. Located in the northern part of the continent, it extends from the Atlantic Ocean in the east to the Pacific Ocean in the west, and northward into the Arctic Ocean...
. Seymour was lukewarm to the proposal, but regained much of the goodwill he had lost by successfully improving both the economy and infrastructure of the colony, culminating in the construction of a graving dock at Esquimalt
Esquimalt, British Columbia
The Township of Esquimalt is a municipality at the southern tip of Vancouver Island, in British Columbia, Canada. It is bordered to the east by the provincial capital, Victoria, to the south by the Strait of Juan de Fuca, to the west by Esquimalt Harbour and Royal Roads, to the northwest by the...
.
His term slated to end in 1869, Seymour made one last journey as governor to the Nass River
Nass River
The Nass River is a river in northern British Columbia, Canada. It flows from the Coast Mountains southwest to Nass Bay, a sidewater of Portland Inlet, which connects to the North Pacific Ocean via the Dixon Entrance...
, on the northwest coast of the colony, to mediate a dispute between First Nations tribes. While returning, he became ill with dysentery
Dysentery
Dysentery is an inflammatory disorder of the intestine, especially of the colon, that results in severe diarrhea containing mucus and/or blood in the faeces with fever and abdominal pain. If left untreated, dysentery can be fatal.There are differences between dysentery and normal bloody diarrhoea...
and died at Bella Coola
Bella Coola, British Columbia
Bella Coola is a community of approximately 600 at the western extremity of the Bella Coola Valley. Bella Coola usually refers to the entire valley, encompassing the settlements of Bella Coola proper , Lower Bella Coola, Hagensborg, Saloompt, Nusatsum, Firvale and Stuie...
.
Places named for Seymour
- Mount SeymourMount SeymourMount Seymour is a mountain located in Mount Seymour Provincial Park in the District of North Vancouver, British Columbia. It is a part of the North Shore Mountains, rising to the north from the shores of Burrard Inlet and Indian Arm to a summit of above the Indian River and Deep Cove neighbourhoods...
is a peak, a provincial parkMount Seymour Provincial ParkMount Seymour Provincial Park is a 35 km² park in Vancouver, British Columbia's North Shore Mountains. It is located approximately 15 km from Downtown Vancouver.-History and Geography:...
, and ski hill located in the Coast MountainsCoast MountainsThe Coast Mountains are a major mountain range, in the Pacific Coast Ranges, of western North America, extending from southwestern Yukon through the Alaska Panhandle and virtually all of the Coast of British Columbia. They are so-named because of their proximity to the sea coast, and are often...
northeast of VancouverVancouverVancouver is a coastal seaport city on the mainland of British Columbia, Canada. It is the hub of Greater Vancouver, which, with over 2.3 million residents, is the third most populous metropolitan area in the country,...
, British Columbia. There are two other, much lower, Mount Seymours; one on Quadra IslandQuadra IslandQuadra Island is an island off the eastern coast of Vancouver Island, British Columbia, Canada, part of the Discovery Islands. It is separated from Vancouver Island by Discovery Passage, and from Cortes Island by Sutil Channel...
, offshore from the town of Campbell RiverCampbell River, British ColumbiaCampbell River is a coastal city in British Columbia on the east coast of Vancouver Island at the south end of Discovery Passage, which lies along the important coastal Inside Passage shipping route...
, the other on Moresby IslandMoresby IslandMoresby Island is a large island that forms part of the Haida Gwaii archipelago in British Columbia, Canada, located at . Gwaii Haanas National Park Reserve and Haida Heritage Site includes Moresby and other islands...
in the Queen Charlotte IslandsQueen Charlotte IslandsHaida Gwaii , formerly the Queen Charlotte Islands, is an archipelago on the North Coast of British Columbia, Canada. Haida Gwaii consists of two main islands: Graham Island in the north, and Moresby Island in the south, along with approximately 150 smaller islands with a total landmass of...
. - There are two watercourses named the Seymour River. One flows from Mt. Seymour to Burrard InletBurrard InletBurrard Inlet is a relatively shallow-sided coastal fjord in southwestern British Columbia, Canada. Formed during the last Ice Age, it separates the City of Vancouver and the rest of the low-lying Burrard Peninsula from the slopes of the North Shore Mountains, home to the communities of West...
, and the other into Shuswap LakeShuswap LakeShuswap Lake is a lake located in south-central British Columbia, Canada that drains via the Little River into Little Shuswap Lake. Little Shuswap Lake is the source of the South Thompson River, a branch of the Thompson River, a tributary of the Fraser River...
. - Seymour Arm is an arm of Shuswap Lake, British Columbia.
- Seymour InletSeymour InletSeymour Inlet is one of the lesser traveled of the principal inlets of the British Columbia Coast. Unlike larger inlets such as Knight or Bute, it is not flanked by mountains but by relatively low, but still rugged, coastal hill-country and forms a maze of complex, narrow waterways and tidal pools...
is located in a maze of inlets on the north flank of Queen Charlotte StraitQueen Charlotte StraitQueen Charlotte Strait is a strait between Vancouver Island and the mainland of British Columbia, Canada. It connects Queen Charlotte Sound with Johnstone Strait, Discovery Passage and then to the Strait of Georgia and Puget Sound...
. - Frederick Sound are located on the northern British Columbia coastBritish Columbia CoastThe British Columbia Coast or BC Coast is Canada's western continental coastline on the Pacific Ocean. The usage is synonymous with the term West Coast of Canada....
opposite the Queen Charlotte IslandsQueen Charlotte IslandsHaida Gwaii , formerly the Queen Charlotte Islands, is an archipelago on the North Coast of British Columbia, Canada. Haida Gwaii consists of two main islands: Graham Island in the north, and Moresby Island in the south, along with approximately 150 smaller islands with a total landmass of...
. - There are two bands of mountains named the Seymour Range in British Columbia. One is located on Southern Vancouver IslandVancouver IslandVancouver Island is a large island in British Columbia, Canada. It is one of several North American locations named after George Vancouver, the British Royal Navy officer who explored the Pacific Northwest coast of North America between 1791 and 1794...
, and the other north of Shuswap Lake in the upper reaches of the Seymour River, at the head of which there is a Seymour Pass. - Seymour Street is a major north-south artery in downtown Vancouver, bounded to the south by the Granville Street BridgeGranville Street BridgeThe Granville Street Bridge is an eight lane bridge in Vancouver, British Columbia. It spans False Creek and is 27.4 metres above Granville Island. It is part of Highway 99.-History:...
, and to the north by Cordova Street. - Seymour Landing on Seymour Bay, on the southeast coast of Bowen Island, just west of West Vancouver.
- Seymour Island, an islet in Sunderland Channel on the north coast of Hardwicke Island, in the Johnstone Strait area between Vancouver Island and the mainland to the north of it.