James Rea Benson
James Rea Benson | |
|---|---|
 | |
| Member of Parliament for Lincoln | |
| In office 1867–1868 | |
| Succeeded by | Thomas Rodman Merritt |
| Canadian Senator from Ontario | |
| In office 1868–1885 | |
| Appointed by | John A. Macdonald |
| Personal details | |
| Born | January 21, 1807 Ireland |
| Died | March 18, 1885 (aged 78) |
| Party | Liberal-Conservative |
James Rea Benson (January 21, 1807 – March 18, 1885) was a Canadian businessman and politician. He represented Lincoln in the 1st Canadian Parliament as a Liberal-Conservative member until March 14, 1868, when he was named to the Senate of Canada.[1]
Background
[edit]He was born in Ireland in 1807[1] and came to Kingston in Upper Canada with his family in 1819. He later moved to St. Catharines, where he was a hardware merchant,[2] also operating mills and ships in partnership with Thomas Rodman Merritt.[3] Benson was president of the Niagara District Bank, the Welland Loan Company and the St. Catharines Gas Company.[2] He served on the town council for St. Catharines and on the council for Lincoln County.[1] He died in 1885 in Ottawa while still in office.[4]
The city of St. Catharines purchased his residence and used it for some time as the city hall.[5]
Benson married the daughter of Charles Ingersoll.[2] His daughter Helen married Calvin Brown, the first mayor of St. Catharines.[5] His son Sir Frederick William Benson was a British Army officer. His niece, Mary Benson, the daughter of his brother Thomas, married Thomas Rodman Merritt.[6]
Electoral record
[edit]| 1867 Canadian federal election: Lincoln | ||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Party | Candidate | Votes | ||||||
| Liberal–Conservative | James Rea Benson | acclaimed | ||||||
References
[edit]- 1 2 3 The Hon. James Rea Benson, M.P., Senator – Parliament of Canada biography
- 1 2 3 Morgan, Henry J., ed. (1872). The Canadian Parliamentary Companion (Seventh ed.). Montreal: John Lovell. p. 42.
- ↑ Warwick, Peter D. A. (1994). "Thomas Rodman Merritt". In Cook, Ramsay; Hamelin, Jean (eds.). Dictionary of Canadian Biography. Vol. XIII (1901–1910) (online ed.). University of Toronto Press. Retrieved 15 September 2009.
- ↑ Johnson, J.K., ed. (1968). The Canadian Directory of Parliament 1867-1967. Public Archives of Canada. p. 38.
- 1 2 St. Catharines : Canada's Canal City, JN Jackson, SM Wilson (1992) Archived 2011-05-16 at the Wayback Machine
- ↑ The Canadian Biographical Dictionary and Portrait Gallery of Eminent and Self-made Men. Vol. Ontario. Toronto: American Biographical Publishing Company. 1880. p. 107.
 | This article about a historical Conservative Party of Canada Member of the Parliament of Canada is a stub. You can help Wikipedia by adding missing information. |
- 1807 births
- 1885 deaths
- Canadian senators from Ontario
- Conservative Party of Canada (1867–1942) MPs
- Conservative Party of Canada (1867–1942) senators
- Irish emigrants to pre-Confederation Ontario
- Members of the House of Commons of Canada from Ontario
- St. Catharines city councillors
- Hardware merchants
- Immigrants to Upper Canada
- 19th-century members of the House of Commons of Canada
- 19th-century members of the Senate of Canada
- Conservative Party of Canada (1867–1942), Ontario MP stubs