A series of writs for the election of the 4th General Assembly of Nova Scotia were issued February 2–19, 1765, returnable by March 13, 1765. The assembly convened on May 28, 1765, held eight sessions, and was dissolved on April 2, 1770.

Sessions

Dates of specific sessions are under research.

Governor and Council

Governor A governor is an administrative leader and head of a polity or political region, ranking under the head of state and in some cases, such as governors-general, as the head of state's official representative. Depending on the type of political ...

: Montague Wilmot -died May 23, 1766 **Lieutenant Governor: ''vacant'' *Administrator: Benjamin Green ''served as acting governor after Wilmot's death'' *Lieutenant Governor:

Michael Francklin Michael Francklin or Franklin (6 December 1733 – 8 November 1782) served as Nova Scotia's Lieutenant Governor from 1766 to 1772. He is buried in the crypt of St. Paul's Church (Halifax). Early life and immigration Born in Poole, England, ...

-named August 23, 1766, ''served as acting governor until Campbell arrived'' *Governor: Lord William Campbell -named November 27, 1766 **Lieutenant Governor:

The members of the

Council A council is a group of people who come together to consult, deliberate, or make decisions. A council may function as a legislature, especially at a town, city or county/shire level, but most legislative bodies at the state/provincial or natio ...

are currently under research.

House of Assembly

Officers

Speaker of the House The speaker of a deliberative assembly, especially a legislative body, is its presiding officer, or the chair. The title was first used in 1377 in England. Usage The title was first recorded in 1377 to describe the role of Thomas de Hungerf ...

: William Nesbitt of Halifax County *Clerk of the House:

Isaac Deschamps Isaac Deschamps (c. 1722 – 11 August 1801) was a Canadian judge, and politician. Born in Switzerland or England, Deschamps came to Nova Scotia in 1749. He participated in the Bay of Fundy Campaign (1755) at Fort Edward to remove the Acadia ...

of Falmouth Township

Division of seats

An order in Council on January 30, 1765 allocated seats as follows: *4 seats: Halifax County *2 seats each: Annapolis, Lunenburg, Kings, Cumberland, and Queens Counties, and Halifax Township *1 seat each: Horton, Cornwallis, Falmouth, Cumberland, Granville, Annapolis, Lunenburg, Liverpool, Onslow, Truro, and Newport Townships making a total of 27 seats. During the assembly, Sunbury County was created with 2 seats and Londonderry, Sackville, Yarmouth, and Barrington Townships were created with 1 seat each, for a total of 33 seats. (Cape) Breton County was also created, and 2 members were elected, but the seats were held not to exist due to insufficient freeholders.

Members

*Annapolis County **

Joseph Winniett Joseph Winniett (1726–1789) was a public official, judge and political figure in Nova Scotia. He was the first Acadian elected to the Nova Scotia House of Assembly. He represented Annapolis Township from 1761 to 1765 and Annapolis County from ...

** John Harris *Annapolis Township ** Jonathan Hoar *Barrington Township ** Francis White -initial by-election March 24, 1766, took seat July 1, 1767, seat declared vacant November 8, 1769. *(Cape) Breton County **initial by-election, writ issued December 16, 1765, returned March 21, 1766. Election declared invalid June 14, 1766 due to insufficient freeholders, and these two members were never seated. *** Gregory Townshend *** John Grant *Cornwallis Township **

John Burbidge John Burbidge (c.1718 – March 11, 1812) was a soldier, land owner, judge and political figure in Nova Scotia. He was a member of the 1st General Assembly of Nova Scotia in 1758 and represented Halifax Township from 1759 to 1765 and Cornwal ...

*Cumberland County **

Benoni Danks Benoni Danks ( 1716 – 1776) was a New England soldier and politician who acted as the representative of Cumberland County in the Nova Scotia House of Assembly from 1765 to 1770. He is best known as the commander of Danks' Rangers, a unit wh ...

-took seat June 21, 1766 **

Gamaliel Smethurst Gamaliel Smethurst (April 9, 1738 – July 20, 1826) was a New England Planter who wrote one of the rare captivity narratives from Nova Scotia and eventually became a politician in Nova Scotia. He represented Cumberland County in the Legislativ ...

*Cumberland Township ** Josia Troop -attended, seat declared vacant November 8, 1769 *Falmouth Township **

*Granville Township **

Henry Munroe Henry Munroe (c. 1727 – c. 1782) was a Scottish-born soldier and political figure in Nova Scotia. He represented the township of Granville in the Nova Scotia House of Assembly from 1765 to 1768. His surname also appears as Munro. Family Jan ...

-resigned June 21, 1768. ***

John Hicks Sir John Richards Hicks (8 April 1904 – 20 May 1989) was a British economist. He is considered one of the most important and influential economists of the twentieth century. The most familiar of his many contributions in the field of economic ...

-by-election, took seat October 31, 1768. *Halifax County ** William Nesbitt **

Benjamin Gerrish Benjamin Gerrish (October 19, 1717 – May 6, 1772) was a merchant and political figure in Nova Scotia. He was a member of the Nova Scotia House of Assembly from 1759 to 1768. He was born in Boston, Massachusetts, the son of John Gerrish and ...

-resigned June 27, 1768 after being appointed to the Council. ***

John Fillis John Fillis (c. 1724 – July 16, 1792) was a merchant and political figure in Nova Scotia. He was a member of the 1st General Assembly of Nova Scotia and later represented Halifax County from 1768 to 1770, Barrington Township from 1772 to 17 ...

-by-election, took seat October 22, 1768. ** John Butler ** William Best *Halifax Township **

Charles Procter Charles Procter (died December 21, 1773) was a ship owner and political figure in Nova Scotia. He represented King's County from 1759 to 1760 and Halifax Township from 1765 to 1773 in the Nova Scotia House of Assembly. He was one of the founding ...

** Richard Wenman *Horton Township ** William Welch -attended, seat declared vacant August 1, 1767. *** Charles Dickson -by-election, writ issued September 28, 1767, took seat June 18, 1768. *Kings County **

Winckworth Tonge Winckworth Tonge (4 February 1727 – 2 February 1792) was an Anglo-Irish soldier who served in North America, where he became a land owner and political figure in Nova Scotia after his military service. He represented Cumberland County f ...

Charles Morris (1731–1802) Charles Morris (December 31, 1731 – January 26, 1802) was a surveyor, judge and political figure in Nova Scotia. He represented Kings County from 1761 to 1770 and Sunbury County from 1770 to 1784 in the Legislative Assembly of Nova Scotia ...

*Liverpool Township **

Elisha Freeman Elisha Freeman (December 9, 1701 – May 19, 1777) was a merchant, judge and political figure in Nova Scotia. He represented Liverpool township in the Nova Scotia House of Assembly from 1765 to 1767. He was born in Eastham, Massachusetts, ...

-attended, resigned due to age October 19, 1767. *** Ephraim Dean -by-election, August 17, 1768, but election disputed October 28, 1768. Apparently did not serve. *Londonderry Township ** Alexander McNutt -initial by-election, October 26, 1767, seat declared vacant November 8, 1769. *Lunenburg County **

Joseph Pernette Joseph Pernette (1728–1807) was a German-born merchant and political figure in Nova Scotia. He represented Lunenburg County in the Nova Scotia House of Assembly from 1761 to 1770. He was born in Strasbourg, served in the Breton Volunteers an ...

** Philip Augustus Knaut *Lunenburg Township ** Archibald Hinshelwood *Newport Township ** John Day -attended, seat vacated in 1769, but no record in the journal why. Other sources indicate he left for Philadelphia. *** Henry Denny Denson -by-election October 7, 1769, took seat October 16, 1769. *Onslow Township **

James Brenton James Brenton (November 2, 1736 – December 3, 1806) was a lawyer, judge and political figure in Nova Scotia. He represented Onslow Township from 1765 to 1770 and Halifax County from 1776 to 1785 in the Nova Scotia House of Assembly . He ...

*Queens County ** William Smith ** Simeon Perkins -seat apparently declared vacant July 1766, but not directly noted in the journal. ***

John Doggett FBI Special Agent John Jay Doggett is a fictional character in the Fox science fiction-supernatural television series ''The X-Files''. With his FBI partners Dana Scully (season 8) and Monica Reyes (season 9), they work on the X-Files together, ...

-by-election, August 17, 1768, but its not clear if he ever took the seat. *Sackville Township ** Benjamin Mason -initial by-election 1766, took seat October 27, 1766; seat declared vacant November 8, 1769 *Sunbury County **

Beamsley Perkins Glasier Beamsley is a village and civil parish in the Craven district of North Yorkshire, England. It is just within the boundary of the Yorkshire Dales National Park, and about six miles east of Skipton and two miles north of Addingham. The village l ...

-initial by-election, writ issued May 30, 1765, returned Aug. 1, 1765 but never took seat. **

Thomas Falconer Thomas Falconer (25 June 1805 – 28 August 1882) was an English jurist and explorer. Born in Bath, England on 25 June 1805, Falconer was admitted to Lincoln's Inn in 1823, and to the bar in 1830. He practised for a number of years as an ...

-initial by-election, writ issued May 30, 1765, returned August 1, 1765 but never took seat. *** Richard Shorne -by-election, September 20, 1768 *** Phineas Nevers -by-election, September 20, 1768 *Truro Township **

-elected for both Kings County and Truro Township, gave up this seat. *** David Archibald -by-election, writ issued February 19, 1766, returned May 24, 1766, took seat June 5, 1766. *Yarmouth Township **

Malachy Salter Malachy Salter (February 28, 1715 – January 13, 1781), a Nova Scotian merchant and office-holder, who was convicted of sedition for betraying the Loyalists during the American Revolution. Business career He operated a successful Boston di ...

-initial by-election, took seat October 24, 1766; did not attend after 1768. Note: Unless otherwise noted, members were elected at the general election, and took their seats at the convening of the assembly. By-elections are special elections held to fill specific vacancies. When a member is noted as having taking their seat on a certain date, but a by-election isn't noted, the member was elected at the general election but arrived late.

References

* *''A Directory of the Members of the Legislative Assembly of Nova Scotia, 1758–1958'', Public Archives of Nova Scotia (1958) * {{DEFAULTSORT:4th General Assembly Of Nova Scotia 04 1765 establishments in Nova Scotia 1770 disestablishments in Nova Scotia