James Lyons Biggar was an 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....

 merchant and political figure. He represented Northumberland East

Northumberland East

Northumberland East was a federal electoral district represented in the Canadian House of Commons from 1867 to 1917. It was located in the province of Ontario. It was created by the British North America Act of 1867....

 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 1874 to 1878 as an Independent Liberal.

He was born in Carrying Place

Carrying Place, Ontario

Carrying Place is a community that serves as the gateway to Prince Edward County, Ontario, Canada. Situated northwest of Picton and just south of Trenton, it was named for its location on the portage between the Bay of Quinte and Weller's Bay on Lake Ontario. The Loyalist Parkway passes through the...

, Upper Canada

Upper Canada

The Province of Upper Canada was a political division in British Canada established in 1791 by the British Empire to govern the central third of the lands in British North America and to accommodate Loyalist refugees from the United States of America after the American Revolution...

 in 1824, the son of Charles Biggar, whose parents had come from Biggar

Biggar, South Lanarkshire

Biggar is a town and former burgh in South Lanarkshire, Scotland. It is situated in the Southern Uplands, near the River Clyde, around 30 miles from Edinburgh along the A702. The closest towns are Lanark and Peebles, and as such Biggar serves a wide rural area...

 in Scotland

Scotland

Scotland is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. Occupying the northern third of the island of Great Britain, it shares a border with England to the south and is bounded by the North Sea to the east, the Atlantic Ocean to the north and west, and the North Channel and Irish Sea to the...

. He was educated at Victoria College

Victoria University in the University of Toronto

Victoria University is a constituent college of the University of Toronto, founded in 1836 and named for Queen Victoria. It is commonly called Victoria College, informally Vic, after the original academic component that now forms its undergraduate division...

 in Cobourg. In 1846, he married Isabella Hodgins; his wife's brothers, Thomas

Thomas Hodgins

Thomas Hodgins was an Ontario lawyer and political figure. He represented Elgin West in the Legislative Assembly of Ontario as a Liberal member from 1871 to 1878....

 and John George, became prominent figures in the province. Biggar owned a general store and served as postmaster at Carrying Place. He also served as commissioner in the Court of Queen's Bench there. He represented East Northumberland in the Legislative Assembly of the Province of Canada

Legislative Assembly of the Province of Canada

The Legislative Assembly of the Province of Canada was the lower house of the legislature for the Province of Canada, which consisted of the former provinces of Lower Canada, then known as Canada East and later the province of Quebec, and Upper Canada, then known as Canada West and later the...

 from 1861 until 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...

. He was defeated by Joseph Keeler

Joseph Keeler

Joseph Keeler was an Ontario businessman and political figure. He represented Northumberland East in the Canadian House of Commons as a Liberal-Conservative member from 1867 to 1874 and from 1879 to 1881....

 for the federal seat in 1872 and then defeated Keeler in 1874; that election was appealed but Biggar won the by-election which followed. In the 1878 general election, he was again defeated by Keeler. Biggar served as a member of the Senate for Victoria College. He died in Clifton Springs, New York

Clifton Springs, New York

Clifton Springs is a village located in Ontario County, New York, United States. The population was 2,223 at the 2000 census. The village takes its name from local mineral springs....

 at the age of 55.

The Biggars had eleven children. First was Charles Robert Webster, a lawyer who married Jane Helen Mowat, the daughter of Oliver Mowat

Oliver Mowat

Sir Oliver Mowat, was a Canadian politician, and the third Premier of Ontario from 1872 to 1896, making him the longest serving premier of that province and the 3rd longest in all of Canadian history...

. Second was Frances Camilla, who married George R. Pattullo, a newspaper publisher from Woodstock, Ontario. Third was William Hodgins

William Hodgins Biggar

William Hodgins Biggar was an Ontario business lawyer and political figure. He represented Hastings West in the Legislative Assembly of Ontario as a Liberal member from 1890 to 1898.He also served on the parliamentary Committee overseeing the construction of the Legislative Assembly building for...

, a lawyer who served in the Ontario legislative assembly. Fourth was Alexander Murray, who died young. Fifth was James Lyons

James Lyons Biggar (general)

James Lyons Biggar, one of Canada's earliest senior military officers, was born 16 July 1856, the son of James Lyons Biggar M.P., at The Carrying Place, Ontario...

, a military figure who helped to establish the Canadian Army. Sixth was Edward Herbert, who died young. Seventh was Sarah Isabel, who married George Elliott Casey

George Elliott Casey

George Elliott Casey was an Ontario journalist and political figure. He represented Elgin West in the Canadian House of Commons from 1872 to 1900 as a Liberal member....

; the latter served in the House of Commons. Eighth was Mary Emmeline, who married George F. Burton. Ninth was George Coltman, a prominent Toronto businessman who married Ethel B. Tate. Tenth was Eliza Maria, who married Richard A. Bull. Lastly was Henry Percival, an authority on the history of New France, who served as chief archivist for Canada in Europe.

Mr. Biggar's sister Marie Eliza, married Herbert Charles Wilson

Herbert Charles Wilson

Herbert Charles Wilson was a Canadian politician and physician. He served as mayor of the Town of Edmonton and Speaker of the Legislative Assembly of the North-West Territories....

 who served in the legislative assembly for the Northwest Territories while Mr. Biggar's grandson, Oliver Mowat Biggar served as Canada's first Chief Electoral Officer.

Biggar Township in Nipissing District

Nipissing District, Ontario

Nipissing District, Ontario is a district in Northeastern Ontario in the Canadian province of Ontario. It was created in 1858. The district seat is North Bay.In 2006, the population was 84,688...

was named in his honour.