John Hamilton (Ontario politician)
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- For other individuals with the same name, including the Canadian Senator representing Quebec, see John HamiltonJohn Hamilton- Nobility :*John Hamilton of Cadzow, 4th Laird of Cadzow Scottish nobleman and soldier*John Hamilton, 1st Marquess of Hamilton , Scottish nobleman*John Hamilton, 2nd Lord Bargany - Nobility :*John Hamilton of Cadzow, 4th Laird of Cadzow (before 1370 – c. 1402) Scottish nobleman and soldier*John...
John Hamilton (1802 – 10 October 1882) was a businessman, a political figure in 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...
and member of the Canadian Senate
Canadian Senate
The Senate of Canada is a component of the Parliament of Canada, along with the House of Commons, and the monarch . The Senate consists of 105 members appointed by the governor general on the advice of the prime minister...
.
He was born in Queenston
Queenston, Ontario
Queenston is located 5 km north of Niagara Falls, Ontario in the Town of Niagara-on-the-Lake. The community is bordered by Highway 405 and the Niagara River; its location on the Niagara Escarpment led to the establishment of the now-defunct Queenston Quarry in the area...
in 1802, the son of Robert Hamilton. He was educated in Queenston and Edinburgh
Edinburgh
Edinburgh is the capital city of Scotland, the second largest city in Scotland, and the eighth most populous in the United Kingdom. The City of Edinburgh Council governs one of Scotland's 32 local government council areas. The council area includes urban Edinburgh and a rural area...
, 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...
and first worked as a clerk in Montreal
Montreal
Montreal is a city in Canada. It is the largest city in the province of Quebec, the second-largest city in Canada and the seventh largest in North America...
. In 1824, with his stepbrother Robert, he established the Queenston Steamboat Company which operated a number of ships transporting goods on Lake Ontario
Lake Ontario
Lake Ontario is one of the five Great Lakes of North America. It is bounded on the north and southwest by the Canadian province of Ontario, and on the south by the American state of New York. Ontario, Canada's most populous province, was named for the lake. In the Wyandot language, ontarío means...
. In 1831, he was appointed to the Legislative Council of Upper Canada
Legislative Council of Upper Canada
The Legislative Council of Upper Canada was the upper house governing the province of Upper Canada. Modelled after the British House of Lords, it was created by the Constitutional Act of 1791. It was specified that the council should consist of at least seven members. Members were appointed for...
and, in 1841, he was re-appointed to its successor, the Legislative Council of the Province of Canada
Legislative Council of the Province of Canada
The Legislative Council of the Province of Canada was the upper house 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 province of Ontario...
. In the 1840s, due to increasing competition, he moved to Kingston
Kingston, Ontario
Kingston, Ontario is a Canadian city located in Eastern Ontario where the St. Lawrence River flows out of Lake Ontario. Originally a First Nations settlement called "Katarowki," , growing European exploration in the 17th Century made it an important trading post...
, where he operated a business moving goods between Kingston and Montreal. In 1857, after his former competitors had gone bankrupt, he began operating on Lake Ontario again. In 1847, he became president of the Commercial Bank of the Midland District. Although his relationship with the bank was useful to his shipping business, his lack of attention to the bank's business may have contributed to its failure.
He was a co-founder of Queen's College at Kingston, later Queen's University
Queen's University
Queen's University, , is a public research university located in Kingston, Ontario, Canada. Founded on 16 October 1841, the university pre-dates the founding of Canada by 26 years. Queen's holds more more than of land throughout Ontario as well as Herstmonceux Castle in East Sussex, England...
, and became chairman of the board of trustees in 1842.
A Conservative
Conservative Party of Canada (historical)
The Conservative Party of Canada has gone by a variety of names over the years since Canadian Confederation. Initially known as the "Liberal-Conservative Party", it dropped "Liberal" from its name in 1873, although many of its candidates continued to use this name.As a result of World War I and the...
, he was appointed to the senate on 23 October 1867 by royal proclamation following the 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...
of 1867. He served in that capacity, representing the 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 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....
until his death. He died at Kingston in 1882.