Winthrop Sargent was a merchant and political figure in Nova Scotia

Nova Scotia

Nova Scotia is one of Canada's three Maritime provinces and is the most populous province in Atlantic Canada. The name of the province is Latin for "New Scotland," but "Nova Scotia" is the recognized, English-language name of the province. The provincial capital is Halifax. Nova Scotia is the...

. He represented Shelburne County in the Nova Scotia House of Assembly

Nova Scotia House of Assembly

The Nova Scotia Legislature, consisting of Her Majesty The Queen represented by the Lieutenant Governor and the House of Assembly, is the legislative branch of the provincial government of Nova Scotia, Canada...

 from 1836 to 1840.

He was born in Barrington, Nova Scotia

Barrington, Nova Scotia

Barrington is a municipal district in western Shelburne County, Nova Scotia.Barrington forms the southernmost part of the province and contains Cape Sable, the eastern boundary between the North Atlantic Ocean and the Gulf of Maine.- Demographics :...

, the son of John Sargent

John Sargent (Loyalist)

John Sargent was an American Loyalist during American Revolution. A Methodist merchant from Salem, Massachusetts, he was the second son of Colonel Epes Sargent, by his second wife, the widow Catharine Browne...

, who also served in the provincial assembly, and Margaret Whitney. In 1819, he married Mary Jane Allison. In 1849, he was named a justice of the peace

Justice of the Peace

A justice of the peace is a puisne judicial officer elected or appointed by means of a commission to keep the peace. Depending on the jurisdiction, they might dispense summary justice or merely deal with local administrative applications in common law jurisdictions...

 for Shelburne. Sargent served as customs collector from 1859 to 1866. He was named custos rotulorum

Custos rotulorum

Custos rotulorum is the keeper of an English county's records and, by virtue of that office, the highest civil officer in the county...

 in 1857 but refused the position. He served as a consul for the United States

United States

The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...

. He died in Barrington at the age of 72.

His brothers John

John Sargent (merchant)

John Sargent was a farmer, merchant and political figure in Nova Scotia. He represented Barrington township in the Legislative Assembly of Nova Scotia from 1736 to 1740 as a Conservative....

 and William Browne

William Browne Sargent

William Browne Sargent was a fish merchant and political figure in Nova Scotia. He represented Barrington township in the Nova Scotia House of Assembly from 1818 to 1826....

also served in the provincial assembly.