John Robson
Encyclopedia
John Robson was a Canadian
journalist
and politician
, who served as the ninth Premier
of the Province
of British Columbia
.
and Montreal
. In 1859, upon news of the Fraser Canyon Gold Rush
, Robson moved west to the then Colony of British Columbia
from Upper Canada
. Unsuccessful at prospecting
, Robson helped his brother, a Methodist
minister, complete construction of a church in New Westminster, the capital of the new colony. He settled there, and evidently began to become known in reformist circles as an articulate advocate of responsible government
, for he was shortly hired as editor
of a new newspaper, The British Columbian. His advocacy of devolution of power from the colonial governor, Sir James Douglas
, to a democratically-elected assembly brought him into conflict with the august and autocratic Douglas. Douglas governed both British Columbia and the Colony of Vancouver Island
from Victoria
, and this absence incurred further complaint from Robson and his paper.
Robson joined forces with other colonial-era editors such as Amor De Cosmos
in railing against the Governor and his officials, including Chief Justice Sir Matthew Baillie Begbie
. In 1862, Begbie cited contempt of court charges against Robson during the Cottonwood Scandal for publishing an unproven allegation that the Chief Justice had accepted a bribe from land speculators. Robson served on the New Westminster town council in the 1860s before being appointed to the British Columbia Legislative Council
.
By 1864, Douglas had retired and the colony finally had its own resident governor, Frederick Seymour
. By now, Robson had toned down his rhetoric about responsible government as the colonial assembly began to accrue more power. He was a reluctant supporter of the colony's union with Vancouver Island
in 1866, but by 1869, Robson had moved his newspaper's operations across the Strait
to Victoria. It was soon bought out by the rival Daily British Colonist (today the Victoria Times-Colonist
), which had been founded by De Cosmos. There Robson served as political editor for six years, and became a passionate advocate for the colony's union with Canada
, formed as a confederation
of four colonies of British North America
on July 1, 1867. Together with De Cosmos and Robert Beaven
(also future premiers), Robson founded the Confederation League which lobbied Seymour, as well as London
and Ottawa
, for British Columbia's entry into Confederation.
Robson's advocacy eventually paid off when British Columbia was admitted as the sixth province on July 20, 1871.
as a representative for Nanaimo. There he became an opponent of his former ally De Cosmos as well as Premier George Anthony Walkem
, and advocated reforms, including female suffrage. His support for Alexander Mackenzie
's Liberals
in the 1874 federal election
, won him a patronage appointment with the Canadian Pacific Railway
, a position he held for five years. Following this, Robson purchased a newspaper in New Westminster, which he published and edited for two years.
In 1882, after a seven year absence, Robson returned to the provincial legislature
as one of the members for New Westminster. He served in various high-profile cabinet portfolios under Premiers William Smithe
and A.E.B. Davie, where he earned a reputation as an advocate for public education
, accelerated settlement
, improved exploration
and surveys
, and subsidies to transportation providers, such as railways. He was also a vigorous opponent of land speculation
, seeing it as a hindrance to settlement and transforming land into economically viable resources. Perhaps his greatest success came as the leading advocate for constructing the Canadian Pacific Railway
terminus
at Granville, and his encouragement of the citizens there to incorporate their locality. It was Robson who was responsible for having the legislature name the new municipality Vancouver
upon its incorporation in 1886.
Upon Davie's death 1889, Robson was appointed premier. In 1890, in order to ease his workload, he moved from representing the busy, growing riding of New Westminster to becoming one of the members for the vast, frontier electoral district of Cariboo
in the province's Central Interior. His brief tenure is chiefly remembered for his continued actions to enable homesteading
, as well as his lobbying the federal government to construct a dry dock
at Esquimalt, just west of Victoria. Robson remained premier until his death in 1892, which occurred after he hurt his finger in the door of a carriage during a visit to London, and got blood poisoning.
John Robson is interred in the Ross Bay Cemetery
in Victoria, British Columbia
.
Not named for Robson
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...
journalist
Journalism
Journalism is the practice of investigation and reporting of events, issues and trends to a broad audience in a timely fashion. Though there are many variations of journalism, the ideal is to inform the intended audience. Along with covering organizations and institutions such as government and...
and politician
Politician
A politician, political leader, or political figure is an individual who is involved in influencing public policy and decision making...
, who served as the ninth Premier
Premier of British Columbia
The Premier of British Columbia is the first minister, head of government, and de facto chief executive for the Canadian province of British Columbia. Until the early 1970s the title Prime Minister of British Columbia was often used...
of 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 British Columbia
British Columbia
British Columbia is the westernmost of Canada's provinces and is known for its natural beauty, as reflected in its Latin motto, Splendor sine occasu . Its name was chosen by Queen Victoria in 1858...
.
Journalist and activist
Robson spent his early life as a merchant in southern OntarioOntario
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....
and 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 1859, upon news of the Fraser Canyon Gold Rush
Fraser Canyon Gold Rush
The Fraser Canyon Gold Rush, began in 1858 after gold was discovered on the Thompson River in British Columbia at its confluence with the Nicoamen River. This was a few miles upstream from the Thompson's confluence with the Fraser River at present-day Lytton...
, Robson moved west to the then 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 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...
. Unsuccessful at prospecting
Prospecting
Prospecting is the physical search for minerals, fossils, precious metals or mineral specimens, and is also known as fossicking.Prospecting is a small-scale form of mineral exploration which is an organised, large scale effort undertaken by mineral resource companies to find commercially viable ore...
, Robson helped his brother, a Methodist
Methodism
Methodism is a movement of Protestant Christianity represented by a number of denominations and organizations, claiming a total of approximately seventy million adherents worldwide. The movement traces its roots to John Wesley's evangelistic revival movement within Anglicanism. His younger brother...
minister, complete construction of a church in New Westminster, the capital of the new colony. He settled there, and evidently began to become known in reformist circles as an articulate advocate of 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...
, for he was shortly hired as editor
Editing
Editing is the process of selecting and preparing written, visual, audible, and film media used to convey information through the processes of correction, condensation, organization, and other modifications performed with an intention of producing a correct, consistent, accurate, and complete...
of a new newspaper, The British Columbian. His advocacy of devolution of power from the colonial governor, 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...
, to a democratically-elected assembly brought him into conflict with the august and autocratic Douglas. Douglas governed both British Columbia and 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...
from Victoria
Victoria, British Columbia
Victoria is the capital city of British Columbia, Canada and is located on the southern tip of Vancouver Island off Canada's Pacific coast. The city has a population of about 78,000 within the metropolitan area of Greater Victoria, which has a population of 360,063, the 15th most populous Canadian...
, and this absence incurred further complaint from Robson and his paper.
Robson joined forces with other colonial-era editors such as Amor De Cosmos
Amor De Cosmos
Amor De Cosmos was a Canadian journalist, publisher and politician. He served as the second Premier of British Columbia.-Early life:...
in railing against the Governor and his officials, including Chief Justice Sir Matthew Baillie Begbie
Matthew Baillie Begbie
Sir Matthew Baillie Begbie was born on the island of Mauritius, thereafter raised and educated in the United Kingdom...
. In 1862, Begbie cited contempt of court charges against Robson during the Cottonwood Scandal for publishing an unproven allegation that the Chief Justice had accepted a bribe from land speculators. Robson served on the New Westminster town council in the 1860s before being appointed to the British Columbia Legislative Council
Legislative Council
A Legislative Council is the name given to the legislatures, or one of the chambers of the legislature of many nations and colonies.A Member of the Legislative Council is commonly referred to as an MLC.- Unicameral legislatures :...
.
By 1864, Douglas had retired and the colony finally had its own resident governor, Frederick Seymour
Frederick Seymour
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,...
. By now, Robson had toned down his rhetoric about responsible government as the colonial assembly began to accrue more power. He was a reluctant supporter of the colony's union with Vancouver Island
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...
in 1866, but by 1869, Robson had moved his newspaper's operations across the Strait
Strait of Georgia
The Strait of Georgia or the Georgia Strait is a strait between Vancouver Island and the mainland coast of British Columbia, Canada. It is approximately long and varies in width from...
to Victoria. It was soon bought out by the rival Daily British Colonist (today the Victoria Times-Colonist
Victoria Times-Colonist
The Times Colonist is an English-language daily newspaper in Victoria, British Columbia, Canada. It was formed by the merger, in 1980, of the Victoria Daily Times, established in 1884, and the British Colonist , established in 1858 by Amor De Cosmos, who was also British Columbia's second...
), which had been founded by De Cosmos. There Robson served as political editor for six years, and became a passionate advocate for the colony's union with 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...
, formed as a 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 four colonies of British North America
British North America
British North America is a historical term. It consisted of the colonies and territories of the British Empire in continental North America after the end of the American Revolutionary War and the recognition of American independence in 1783.At the start of the Revolutionary War in 1775 the British...
on July 1, 1867. Together with De Cosmos and Robert Beaven
Robert Beaven
Robert Beaven , son of James Beaven, was a British Columbia politician and businessman. Beaven moved to British Columbia from Toronto, where he had been educated at Upper Canada College, because of the gold rush. He entered business in Victoria, which was then the capital of the Colony of Vancouver...
(also future premiers), Robson founded the Confederation League which lobbied Seymour, as well as London
London
London is the capital city of :England and the :United Kingdom, the largest metropolitan area in the United Kingdom, and the largest urban zone in the European Union by most measures. Located on the River Thames, London has been a major settlement for two millennia, its history going back to its...
and Ottawa
Ottawa
Ottawa is the capital of Canada, the second largest city in the Province of Ontario, and the fourth largest city in the country. The city is located on the south bank of the Ottawa River in the eastern portion of Southern Ontario...
, for British Columbia's entry into Confederation.
Robson's advocacy eventually paid off when British Columbia was admitted as the sixth province on July 20, 1871.
Provincial political career
During British Columbia's colonial days, Robson had briefly served in the colonial assembly, but otherwise his political activity was limited to editorializing and lobbying. Once the colony joined confederation in 1871, however, he ran and was elected to the new province's first legislative assemblyLegislative Assembly
Legislative Assembly is the name given in some countries to either a legislature, or to one of its branch.The name is used by a number of member-states of the Commonwealth of Nations, as well as a number of Latin American countries....
as a representative for Nanaimo. There he became an opponent of his former ally De Cosmos as well as Premier George Anthony Walkem
George Anthony Walkem
George Anthony "Boomer" Walkem was a British Columbian politician and jurist.Born in Newry, Ireland, Walkem moved to then Colony of British Columbia in 1862 and served as a member of the appointed Legislative Council of British Columbia from 1864 to 1870 and was a supporter of Canadian confederation...
, and advocated reforms, including female suffrage. His support for Alexander Mackenzie
Alexander Mackenzie
Alexander Mackenzie, PC , a building contractor and newspaper editor, was the second Prime Minister of Canada from November 7, 1873 to October 8, 1878.-Biography:...
's Liberals
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...
in the 1874 federal election
Canadian federal election, 1874
The Canadian federal election of 1874 was held on January 22, 1874, to elect members of the Canadian House of Commons of the 3rd Parliament of Canada. Sir John A...
, won him a patronage appointment with the Canadian Pacific Railway
Canadian Pacific Railway
The Canadian Pacific Railway , formerly also known as CP Rail between 1968 and 1996, is a historic Canadian Class I railway founded in 1881 and now operated by Canadian Pacific Railway Limited, which began operations as legal owner in a corporate restructuring in 2001...
, a position he held for five years. Following this, Robson purchased a newspaper in New Westminster, which he published and edited for two years.
In 1882, after a seven year absence, Robson returned to the provincial legislature
Legislative Assembly of British Columbia
The Legislative Assembly of British Columbia is one of two components of the Parliament of British Columbia, the provincial parliament ....
as one of the members for New Westminster. He served in various high-profile cabinet portfolios under Premiers William Smithe
William Smithe
William Smithe was a British Columbia politician.Smithe was born William Smith in England and moved to Canada in his youth, settling on Vancouver Island in 1862 as a farmer. In 1871, he ran in BC's first election and won a seat in the new provincial legislature...
and A.E.B. Davie, where he earned a reputation as an advocate for public education
Public education
State schools, also known in the United States and Canada as public schools,In much of the Commonwealth, including Australia, New Zealand, South Africa, and the United Kingdom, the terms 'public education', 'public school' and 'independent school' are used for private schools, that is, schools...
, accelerated settlement
Settler
A settler is a person who has migrated to an area and established permanent residence there, often to colonize the area. Settlers are generally people who take up residence on land and cultivate it, as opposed to nomads...
, improved exploration
Exploration
Exploration is the act of searching or traveling around a terrain for the purpose of discovery of resources or information. Exploration occurs in all non-sessile animal species, including humans...
and surveys
Surveying
See Also: Public Land Survey SystemSurveying or land surveying is the technique, profession, and science of accurately determining the terrestrial or three-dimensional position of points and the distances and angles between them...
, and subsidies to transportation providers, such as railways. He was also a vigorous opponent of land speculation
Speculation
In finance, speculation is a financial action that does not promise safety of the initial investment along with the return on the principal sum...
, seeing it as a hindrance to settlement and transforming land into economically viable resources. Perhaps his greatest success came as the leading advocate for constructing the Canadian Pacific Railway
Canadian Pacific Railway
The Canadian Pacific Railway , formerly also known as CP Rail between 1968 and 1996, is a historic Canadian Class I railway founded in 1881 and now operated by Canadian Pacific Railway Limited, which began operations as legal owner in a corporate restructuring in 2001...
terminus
Terminal Station
Terminal Station is a 1953 film by Italian director Vittorio De Sica. It tells the story of the love affair between an Italian man and an American woman. The film was entered into the 1953 Cannes Film Festival.-Production:...
at Granville, and his encouragement of the citizens there to incorporate their locality. It was Robson who was responsible for having the legislature name the new municipality Vancouver
Vancouver
Vancouver 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,...
upon its incorporation in 1886.
Upon Davie's death 1889, Robson was appointed premier. In 1890, in order to ease his workload, he moved from representing the busy, growing riding of New Westminster to becoming one of the members for the vast, frontier electoral district of Cariboo
Cariboo (provincial electoral district)
Cariboo was one of the twelve original electoral districts created when British Columbia became a Canadian province in 1871. Roughly corresponding to the old colonial electoral administrative district of the same name, it was a three-member riding until the 1894 election, when it was reduced...
in the province's Central Interior. His brief tenure is chiefly remembered for his continued actions to enable homesteading
Homesteading
Broadly defined, homesteading is a lifestyle of simple self-sufficiency.-Current practice:The term may apply to anyone who follows the back-to-the-land movement by adopting a sustainable, self-sufficient lifestyle. While land is no longer freely available in most areas of the world, homesteading...
, as well as his lobbying the federal government to construct a dry dock
Dry dock
A drydock is a narrow basin or vessel that can be flooded to allow a load to be floated in, then drained to allow that load to come to rest on a dry platform...
at Esquimalt, just west of Victoria. Robson remained premier until his death in 1892, which occurred after he hurt his finger in the door of a carriage during a visit to London, and got blood poisoning.
John Robson is interred in the Ross Bay Cemetery
Ross Bay Cemetery
Ross Bay Cemetery is located at 1516 Fairfield Road in Victoria, British Columbia, on Vancouver Island, Canada.-History:The cemetery was opened in 1873. The 27.5 acre cemetery is part of a public park and its south side faces Ross Bay on the Pacific Ocean...
in Victoria, British Columbia
Victoria, British Columbia
Victoria is the capital city of British Columbia, Canada and is located on the southern tip of Vancouver Island off Canada's Pacific coast. The city has a population of about 78,000 within the metropolitan area of Greater Victoria, which has a population of 360,063, the 15th most populous Canadian...
.
Places named for Robson
- Robson Cove is located near the entrance 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...
. - Robson StreetRobson StreetRobson Street is a major southeast-northwest thoroughfare in downtown and West End of Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada. Its core commercial blocks from Burrard Street to Jervis are also known as Robsonstrasse. Its name honours John Robson, a major figure in British Columbia's entry into the...
, a major east-west thoroughfare in downtown Vancouver. - Robson SquareRobson SquareRobson Square is a landmark civic centre and public plaza of modernist concrete, located in Downtown Vancouver, British Columbia. It is the site of the Provincial Law Courts, UBC Robson Square, government office buildings, and public space connecting the newer development to the Vancouver Art...
, along the street of the same name. - RobsonRobsonRobson may refer to:*Robson , a surname and list of people with that name*Robson, British Columbia, a small community*Robson, West Virginia, an unincorporated village in Fayette County, West Virginia, United States...
town near Castlegar. - John Robson Building on Robson StreetRobson StreetRobson Street is a major southeast-northwest thoroughfare in downtown and West End of Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada. Its core commercial blocks from Burrard Street to Jervis are also known as Robsonstrasse. Its name honours John Robson, a major figure in British Columbia's entry into the...
- John Robson Elementary School in New Westminster
Not named for Robson
- Robson BightRobson BightRobson Bight is a small Vancouver Island bay at the west end of Johnstone Strait across from West Cracroft Island in British Columbia, Canada that includes a protected killer whale habitat famous for its whale-rubbing beaches...
, on 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...
, off Johnstone StraitJohnstone StraitJohnstone Strait is a channel along the north east coast of Vancouver Island in British Columbia, Canada. Opposite the Vancouver Island coast, running north to south, are Hanson Island, West Cracroft Island, the mainland British Columbia Coast, Hardwick Island, West Thurlow Island and East...
is not named for him, but for a Royal NavyRoyal NavyThe Royal Navy is the naval warfare service branch of the British Armed Forces. Founded in the 16th century, it is the oldest service branch and is known as the Senior Service...
officer. - Mount RobsonMount RobsonMount Robson is the most prominent mountain in North America's Rocky Mountain range; it is also the highest point in the Canadian Rockies. The mountain is located entirely within Mount Robson Provincial Park of British Columbia, and is part of the Rainbow Range. It is commonly thought to be the...
, on the border between British ColumbiaBritish ColumbiaBritish Columbia is the westernmost of Canada's provinces and is known for its natural beauty, as reflected in its Latin motto, Splendor sine occasu . Its name was chosen by Queen Victoria in 1858...
and AlbertaAlbertaAlberta is a province of Canada. It had an estimated population of 3.7 million in 2010 making it the most populous of Canada's three prairie provinces...
, is not named for him, but likely for a North West CompanyNorth West CompanyThe North West Company was a fur trading business headquartered in Montreal from 1779 to 1821. It competed with increasing success against the Hudson's Bay Company in what was to become Western Canada...
guide.