Charles Fortescue Ingersoll (September 27, 1791 – August 18, 1832) was a businessman and political figure in

Upper Canada The Province of Upper Canada (french: link=no, province du Haut-Canada) was a part of British Canada established in 1791 by the Kingdom of Great Britain, to govern the central third of the lands in British North America, formerly part of the ...

. He was born in

Great Barrington, Massachusetts Great Barrington is a town in Berkshire County, Massachusetts, United States. It is part of the Pittsfield, Massachusetts, Metropolitan Statistical Area. The population was 7,172 at the 2020 census. Both a summer resort and home to Ski Butternut, ...

in 1791, the son of

Thomas Ingersoll Thomas Ingersoll (1749–1812) was an early settler in Upper Canada, later Ontario. He is best known as the father of Laura Secord, who warned the British of an impending American attack on Upper Canada during the War of 1812. He was born in West ...

and younger half-brother of Laura Ingersoll (later

Laura Secord Laura Secord ( Ingersoll; 13 September 1775 – 17 October 1868) was a Canadian heroine of the War of 1812. She is known for having walked out of American-occupied territory in 1813 to warn British forces of an impending American atta ...

). The family moved to Upper Canada in 1795. He began work as a clerk for merchants at

Queenston Queenston is a compact rural community and unincorporated place north of Niagara Falls in the Town of Niagara-on-the-Lake, Ontario, Canada. It is bordered by Highway 405 to the south and the Niagara River to the east; its location at the eponymo ...

. Ingersoll served as lieutenant in a troop of

dragoon Dragoons were originally a class of mounted infantry, who used horses for mobility, but dismounted to fight on foot. From the early 17th century onward, dragoons were increasingly also employed as conventional cavalry and trained for combat w ...

s during the

War of 1812 The War of 1812 (18 June 1812 – 17 February 1815) was fought by the United States of America and its indigenous allies against the United Kingdom and its allies in British North America, with limited participation by Spain in Florida. It bega ...

. In 1816, he married Anna Maria, the sister of

William Hamilton Merritt William Hamilton Merritt (July 3, 1793July 5, 1862) was a businessman and politician in the Niagara Peninsula of Upper Canada in the early 19th century. Although he was born in the United States, his family was Loyalist and eventually settled ...

who was captain in the same unit and became Ingersoll's partner in business after the war. Ingersoll helped found the town of

Ingersoll Ingersoll may refer to: People *Ingersoll (surname) *Ingersoll Lockwood (1841–1918), American lawyer and writer Places Canada * Ingersoll, Ontario United States * Ingersoll, Oklahoma * Ingersoll, Wisconsin * Ingersoll Township, Michigan * ...

which he named after his father. With his brother James, he built a

sawmill A sawmill (saw mill, saw-mill) or lumber mill is a facility where logs are cut into lumber. Modern sawmills use a motorized saw to cut logs lengthwise to make long pieces, and crosswise to length depending on standard or custom sizes (dimensi ...

gristmill A gristmill (also: grist mill, corn mill, flour mill, feed mill or feedmill) grinds cereal grain into flour and Wheat middlings, middlings. The term can refer to either the Mill (grinding), grinding mechanism or the building that holds it. Grist i ...

potash Potash () includes various mined and manufactured salts that contain potassium in water-soluble form.

plant and distillery there, also establishing a general store and serving as postmaster. Ingersoll also became lieutenant-colonel in the local militia and served as

justice of the peace A justice of the peace (JP) is a judicial officer of a lower or ''puisne'' court, elected or appointed by means of a commission ( letters patent) to keep the peace. In past centuries the term commissioner of the peace was often used with the sa ...

for the

London District London District (LONDIST) is the name given by the British Army to the area of operations encompassing the Greater London area. It was established in 1870 as ''Home District''. History In January 1876 a ‘Mobilization Scheme for the forces in ...

. He was elected to the

Legislative Assembly of Upper Canada The Legislative Assembly of Upper Canada was the elected part of the legislature for the province of Upper Canada, functioning as the lower house in the Parliament of Upper Canada. Its legislative power was subject to veto by the appointed Lis ...

for Oxford County in 1824 and 1830; serving in the 9th Parliament and 11th Parliament respectively. He died of

cholera Cholera is an infection of the small intestine by some strains of the bacterium ''Vibrio cholerae''. Symptoms may range from none, to mild, to severe. The classic symptom is large amounts of watery diarrhea that lasts a few days. Vomiting and ...

in 1832, while still in office. His eldest daughter married

James Rea Benson James Rea Benson (January 21, 1807 – March 18, 1885) was an Ontario businessman and political figure. He represented Lincoln in the 1st Canadian Parliament as a Liberal-Conservative member until March 14, 1868, when he was named to the Sen ...

, who served in the Canadian House of Commons and Senate.

References

''The story of Laura Secord : and Canadian reminiscences'', EA Currie (1900)''Becoming Prominent: Regional Leadership in Upper Canada, 1791-1841'' (1989)
Johnson, JK {{DEFAULTSORT:Ingersoll, Charles 1791 births 1832 deaths People from Great Barrington, Massachusetts Members of the Legislative Assembly of Upper Canada History of Oxford County, Ontario