Alexander Thom (October 26, 1775 – September 26, 1845) was a military surgeon, judge and political figure in Upper Canada. He was born in Scotland in 1775, the son of a farmer named Alexander Thom, and studied at

King's College King's College or The King's College refers to two higher education institutions in the United Kingdom: *King's College, Cambridge, a constituent of the University of Cambridge *King's College London, a constituent of the University of London It ca ...

in Aberdeen. He joined the British Army and became a surgeon in 1799. He served with the

41st Foot The 41st (Welch) Regiment of Foot was an infantry regiment of the British Army, raised in 1719. Under the Childers Reforms it amalgamated with the 69th (South Lincolnshire) Regiment of Foot to form the Welch Regiment in 1881. History Early hi ...

in Lower Canada from 1803 to 1813. He married Harriet E. Smythe (Hannah Smith?) at

Niagara Niagara may refer to: Geography Niagara Falls and nearby places In both the United States and Canada *Niagara Falls, the famous waterfalls in the Niagara River *Niagara River, part of the U.S.–Canada border *Niagara Escarpment, the cliff ov ...

in 1811. Thom was taken prisoner during the War of 1812. He was chosen as the surgeon for the military settlement at Perth in Upper Canada in 1815 and served as the doctor there until 1822. Thom built a sawmill and gristmill on the

Tay River The Tay River is a river in Lanark County in Eastern Ontario, Canada. Shows the course of the river on a topographic map. It is in the Saint Lawrence River drainage basin and is a left tributary of the Rideau River. The Tay River watershed, co ...

at Perth. After the death of his first wife, he married Eliza Montague and then Betsy Smythe after Eliza died in 1820. He was named a justice of the peace and became a judge in the district court in 1835. Thom was elected to the Legislative Assembly of Upper Canada in a February 1836 by-election but defeated in the general election that followed later that year. He died at Perth in 1845. His daughter Harriett married Perth lawyer

James Boulton James is a common English language surname and given name: *James (name), the typically masculine first name James * James (surname), various people with the last name James James or James City may also refer to: People * King James (disambiguati ...

, the son of judge

Henry John Boulton Henry John Boulton, (1790 – June 18, 1870) was a lawyer and political figure in Upper Canada and the Province of Canada, as well as Chief Justice of Newfoundland. Boulton began his legal career under the tutelage of John Beverly Robin ...

. Another daughter Catherine Rosamund married Chief Justice

John Godfrey Spragge John Godfrey Spragge (September 6, 1806 – April 20, 1884) was a Canadian lawyer and judge. Born in New Cross, Lewisham, England, he emigrated to Upper Canada in 1820 with his father, Joseph Spragge. He was called to the bar of Upper Canada ...

External links

Biography at the ''Dictionary of Canadian Biography Online''''The medical profession in Upper Canada, 1783-1850 ...'', W Canniff (1894)
{{DEFAULTSORT:Thom, Alexander 1775 births 1845 deaths Members of the Legislative Assembly of Upper Canada Scottish emigrants to pre-Confederation Ontario Scottish emigrants to pre-Confederation Quebec Alumni of the University of Aberdeen British Army regimental surgeons Scottish surgeons Place of birth missing 19th-century Canadian physicians 19th-century Scottish medical doctors Upper Canada judges Immigrants to Upper Canada Canadian justices of the peace