Hugh Graham, 1st Baron Atholstan
Encyclopedia
Hugh Graham, 1st Baron Atholstan (July 18, 1848 – January 28, 1938), was a Canadian
newspaper publisher.
, Quebec
, Graham was the son of Robert Walker Graham, a Scottish
land owner, and his wife, Marion, daughter of Colonel Thomas McLeay Gardner.
He was educated at the Huntingdon Academy until the age of fifteen. After terminating school, he served his apprenticeship as office boy and later business manager under his uncle, E. H. Parsons, a journalist, who published the Commercial Advertiser, and afterwards the Evening Telegraph in Montreal.
In 1865, he was appointed Secretary-Treasurer of the Gazette Printing Company.
In 1869, along with George T. Lanigan and Marshall Scott he founded the Evening Star
(later The Montreal Star), a one cent daily. At first The Star's specialty was sensational news and scandals, and did not win favour with the educated public of Montreal. After it gained good circulation among workers, Graham, with some business ability, gradually changed it into a decent, powerful, and lucrative newspaper. Graham soon acquired full control of the paper.
Later Graham founded two weeklies, the Family Herald
and Weekly Star, with a national circulation in rural districts, as well as the Montreal Standard
, which catered to Montreal's urban population.
He also gained control of the Montreal Herald, a liberal
daily, and was president of the Montreal Star Publishing Company.
Graham's publishing business prospered and he became one of the most powerful media executives in Canada. His newspaper's editorials greatly influenced the federal government's decision in 1900 to send troops to participate in the British
offensive in the Second Boer War
. In 1905, Graham expanded his publishing business with the establishing of the Montreal Standard
newspaper.
In 1908, he was invested as a Knight Bachelor
(K.B.) by King Edward VII
in 1908 and was awarded an honorary Doctor of Law (LL.D.) from the University of Glasgow
. In May 1917 he was created Baron Atholstan, of Huntingdon in the Province of Quebec in the Dominion of Canada and of the City of Edinburgh, by King George V
. He is the last person to be granted a peerage
on the recommendation of the Canadian government (see Nickle Resolution).
In 1925, the 77-year-old Graham sold his publications to John W. McConnell
. In 1936 he donated the Atholstan Trophy, emblematic of cricket
supremacy in eastern Canada and in 1924 the Atholstan Trophy to the Canadian Football (Soccer) Association. He died on January 28, 1938.
in Montreal.
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...
newspaper publisher.
Biography
Born in Athelstan (now Hinchinbrooke), Huntingdon CountyHuntingdon County, Quebec
Huntingdon County, is an historical county in southwestern Quebec, Canada. It is named after the town and county of the same name in east central England. It is situated in the Montreal South Shore region of Montérégie, one of the roughly 12 regions of Quebec...
, Quebec
Quebec
Quebec or is a province in east-central Canada. It is the only Canadian province with a predominantly French-speaking population and the only one whose sole official language is French at the provincial level....
, Graham was the son of Robert Walker Graham, a Scottish
Scots-Quebecer
The Scot-Quebecers , are Quebecers who are of Scottish descent.-Background:Few Scots came to Quebec before the Seven Years War. Those who did blended in with the French population...
land owner, and his wife, Marion, daughter of Colonel Thomas McLeay Gardner.
He was educated at the Huntingdon Academy until the age of fifteen. After terminating school, he served his apprenticeship as office boy and later business manager under his uncle, E. H. Parsons, a journalist, who published the Commercial Advertiser, and afterwards the Evening Telegraph in Montreal.
In 1865, he was appointed Secretary-Treasurer of the Gazette Printing Company.
In 1869, along with George T. Lanigan and Marshall Scott he founded the Evening Star
Montreal Star
The Montreal Star was an English-language Canadian newspaper published in Montreal, Quebec, Canada. It folded in 1979 following an eight-month pressmen's strike....
(later The Montreal Star), a one cent daily. At first The Star's specialty was sensational news and scandals, and did not win favour with the educated public of Montreal. After it gained good circulation among workers, Graham, with some business ability, gradually changed it into a decent, powerful, and lucrative newspaper. Graham soon acquired full control of the paper.
Later Graham founded two weeklies, the Family Herald
Family Herald
The Family Herald: A Domestic Magazine of Useful Information & Amusement was a weekly story paper established by James Elishama Smith in 1843. Initially a penny weekly, it later sold at 2d...
and Weekly Star, with a national circulation in rural districts, as well as the Montreal Standard
Montreal Standard
The Montreal Standard was a newspaper in Montreal, Quebec from 1905-1951 and founded by Hugh Graham, 1st Baron Atholstan. It began in 1905 as a Saturday-only newspaper on the model of the Illustrated London News; that is, current events using photographs and news stories. The Standard became more...
, which catered to Montreal's urban population.
He also gained control of the Montreal Herald, a liberal
Liberalism
Liberalism is the belief in the importance of liberty and equal rights. Liberals espouse a wide array of views depending on their understanding of these principles, but generally, liberals support ideas such as constitutionalism, liberal democracy, free and fair elections, human rights,...
daily, and was president of the Montreal Star Publishing Company.
Graham's publishing business prospered and he became one of the most powerful media executives in Canada. His newspaper's editorials greatly influenced the federal government's decision in 1900 to send troops to participate in the British
Great Britain
Great Britain or Britain is an island situated to the northwest of Continental Europe. It is the ninth largest island in the world, and the largest European island, as well as the largest of the British Isles...
offensive in the Second Boer War
Second Boer War
The Second Boer War was fought from 11 October 1899 until 31 May 1902 between the British Empire and the Afrikaans-speaking Dutch settlers of two independent Boer republics, the South African Republic and the Orange Free State...
. In 1905, Graham expanded his publishing business with the establishing of the Montreal Standard
Montreal Standard
The Montreal Standard was a newspaper in Montreal, Quebec from 1905-1951 and founded by Hugh Graham, 1st Baron Atholstan. It began in 1905 as a Saturday-only newspaper on the model of the Illustrated London News; that is, current events using photographs and news stories. The Standard became more...
newspaper.
In 1908, he was invested as a Knight Bachelor
Knight Bachelor
The rank of Knight Bachelor is a part of the British honours system. It is the most basic rank of a man who has been knighted by the monarch but not as a member of one of the organised Orders of Chivalry...
(K.B.) by King Edward VII
Edward VII of the United Kingdom
Edward VII was King of the United Kingdom and the British Dominions and Emperor of India from 22 January 1901 until his death in 1910...
in 1908 and was awarded an honorary Doctor of Law (LL.D.) from the University of Glasgow
University of Glasgow
The University of Glasgow is the fourth-oldest university in the English-speaking world and one of Scotland's four ancient universities. Located in Glasgow, the university was founded in 1451 and is presently one of seventeen British higher education institutions ranked amongst the top 100 of the...
. In May 1917 he was created Baron Atholstan, of Huntingdon in the Province of Quebec in the Dominion of Canada and of the City of Edinburgh, by King George V
George V of the United Kingdom
George V was King of the United Kingdom and the British Dominions, and Emperor of India, from 6 May 1910 through the First World War until his death in 1936....
. He is the last person to be granted a peerage
Peerage
The Peerage is a legal system of largely hereditary titles in the United Kingdom, which constitute the ranks of British nobility and is part of the British honours system...
on the recommendation of the Canadian government (see Nickle Resolution).
In 1925, the 77-year-old Graham sold his publications to John W. McConnell
John Wilson McConnell
John Wilson McConnell was a Canadian businessman, newspaper publisher, humanitarian, and the most significant philanthropist in the history of the province of Quebec, Canada.-Early life:...
. In 1936 he donated the Atholstan Trophy, emblematic of cricket
Cricket
Cricket is a bat-and-ball game played between two teams of 11 players on an oval-shaped field, at the centre of which is a rectangular 22-yard long pitch. One team bats, trying to score as many runs as possible while the other team bowls and fields, trying to dismiss the batsmen and thus limit the...
supremacy in eastern Canada and in 1924 the Atholstan Trophy to the Canadian Football (Soccer) Association. He died on January 28, 1938.
Legacy
Eventually this trophy was awarded to the champions of the National Soccer League of Canada from 1926 to 1941 and then from 1947 to 1950, when it was retired.Personal life
Graham married Annie Beekman Hamilton in 1892, with whom he had a daughter, Alice Hamilton Graham. Because he had no male issue, on his death in 1938 the barony of Atholstan became extinct. He is interred with his wife in the Mount Royal CemeteryMount Royal Cemetery
Opened in 1852, Mount Royal Cemetery is a 165-acre terraced cemetery on the north slope of Mount Royal in the borough of Outremont, Montreal, Quebec, Canada. The burial ground shares the mountain with the much larger adjacent Roman Catholic cemetery -- Cimetière Notre-Dame-des-Neiges...
in Montreal.