Charles Morris (November 18, 1759 – December 17, 1831) was a surveyor and political figure in

Nova Scotia Nova Scotia ( ; ; ) is one of the thirteen provinces and territories of Canada. It is one of the three Maritime provinces and one of the four Atlantic provinces. Nova Scotia is Latin for "New Scotland". Most of the population are native Eng ...

. He represented Halifax County in the

Legislative Assembly of Nova Scotia The Nova Scotia House of Assembly (french: Assemblée législative de la Nouvelle-Écosse; gd, Taigh Seanaidh Alba Nuadh), or Legislative Assembly, is the deliberative assembly of the General Assembly of Nova Scotia of the province of Nova Scotia ...

from 1788 to 1793 and from 1797 to 1806. He was born in

Hopkinton, Massachusetts Hopkinton is a town in Middlesex County, Massachusetts, United States, west of Boston. The town is best known as the starting point of the Boston Marathon, held annually on Patriots' Day each April, and as the headquarters for the Dell EMC corpo ...

, grandson of Charles Morris (1711-81), the son of

Charles Morris (1731-1802) Charles or Charlie Morris may refer to: People Musicians * Chuck Morris (1974–2023) and son Charley Morris of Lotus (American band), died together in 2023 Soldiers * Charles Morris (surveyor general) (1711–1781), Canadian army officer, ...

and Elizabeth Bond Leggett, and probably first came to Halifax in 1760 with his parents. He was named a lieutenant in the

Royal Nova Scotia Volunteer Regiment The Royal Nova Scotia Volunteer Regiment, also known as the Loyal Regiment of Nova Scotia Volunteers and Loyal Nova Scotia Volunteers, from 1775-1780, the Royal Regiment of Nova Scotia Volunteers, from 1780-1783, and the Royal Nova Scotia Volun ...

in 1778 and transferred to the 70th Foot the following year. In 1783, he retired on

half pay Half-pay (h.p.) was a term used in the British Army and Royal Navy of the 18th, 19th and early 20th centuries to refer to the pay or allowance an officer received when in retirement or not in actual service. Past usage United Kingdom In the Eng ...

. Some time later, he began assisting his father who was surveyor general for Nova Scotia. In 1786, he married Charlotte Pernette, daughter of

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 ...

. Morris was elected to the assembly on Feb. 22,1788 in a by-election held after

Sampson Salter Blowers Sampson Salter Blowers (March 10, 1742 – October 25, 1842) was a noted North American lawyer, Loyalist and jurist from Nova Scotia who, along with Chief Justice Thomas Andrew Lumisden Strange, waged "judicial war" in his efforts to free Bl ...

was named to the Nova Scotia Council. He took his seat March 12, 1789. He did not run for reelection in 1793 but was elected again in a 1797 by-election held after the death of James Michael Freke Bulkeley. He succeeded his father as surveyor general in 1802. In 1808, Morris was named to the

Nova Scotia Council Formally known as "His Majesty's Council of Nova Scotia", the Nova Scotia Council (1720–1838) was the original British administrative, legislative and judicial body in Nova Scotia. The Nova Scotia Council was also known as the Annapolis Counci ...

and served until his death in 1831. He also served as a

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 ...

, as a captain then major in the Halifax militia, as registrar of wills and probate, as surrogate general of the court of probate and as registrar of the Vice-Admiralty Court. Morris died in Halifax at the age of 72 and is buried in the

Old Burying Ground (Halifax, Nova Scotia) The Old Burying Ground (also known as St. Paul's Church Cemetery) is a historic cemetery in Halifax, Nova Scotia, Canada. It is located at the intersection of Barrington Street and Spring Garden Road in Downtown Halifax. History The Old Buryi ...

. In 1831, his son John Spry Morris succeeded him as surveyor general.

References

* 1759 births 1831 deaths Nova Scotia pre-Confederation MLAs {{NovaScotia-MLA-stub