Daniel McLachlin (July 17, 1808 – February 6, 1872) was a businessman and political figure in Canada West. He represented

Renfrew South Renfrew South was a federal riding represented in the House of Commons of Canada from 1867 to 1968. It was located in the province of Ontario. The federal riding was created by the British North America Act of 1867 and was abolished in 1966, w ...

in the

1st Canadian Parliament The 1st Canadian Parliament was in session from November 6, 1867, until July 8, 1872. The membership was set by the 1867 federal election from August 7 to September 20, 1867. It was prorogued prior to the 1872 election. It was controlled by a ...

as a

Liberal Liberal or liberalism may refer to: Politics * a supporter of liberalism ** Liberalism by country * an adherent of a Liberal Party * Liberalism (international relations) * Sexually liberal feminism * Social liberalism Arts, entertainment and m ...

from 1867 to 1869.Michael S. Cross, “McLACHLIN, DANIEL,” in Dictionary of Canadian Biography, vol. 10, University of Toronto/Université Laval, 2003–, accessed October 3, 2023, http://www.biographi.ca/en/bio/mclachlin_daniel_10E.html.

Early life and family

McLachlin was born in

Pointe-Fortune Pointe-Fortune () is a village municipality in southwestern Quebec, Canada, on the Ottawa River (Rivière des Outaouais) in Vaudreuil-Soulanges Regional County Municipality, northwest of Montreal. The population at the 2021 Census was 582. H ...

Lower Canada The Province of Lower Canada (french: province du Bas-Canada) was a British colony on the lower Saint Lawrence River and the shores of the Gulf of Saint Lawrence (1791–1841). It covered the southern portion of the current Province of Quebec an ...

on 17 July, 1808, to Hugh McLachlin and Janet (née McLean).(Baptism Record) Archives Nationales du Quebec a Montreal, Canada Quebec District Judiciaire de Montreal, Registres d'Etat Non-Catholique; No. de Projet: QUEB 49010 (Item 2). Montreal St. Gabriel Presbyterian Church, Folio 13, p. 58. He had many siblings; Mary (born 1795), Alexander (b. 1796), John (b. 1798), Flora (b. 1800), Janet (b. 1802), Dorothy (b. 1804), Ann (b. 1806), Catharine (b. 1810), William (b. 1813), Hugh (b. 1816), Sara (b. 1820), and Christina. The family lived in

Argenteuil Argenteuil () is a Communes of France, commune in the northwestern suburbs of Paris, France. It is located from the Kilometre Zero, center of Paris. Argenteuil is a Subprefectures in France, sub-prefecture of the Val-d'Oise Departments of France, ...

, Lower Canada. McLachlin married Maria Harrington in 1837. They had eight children together; Jessie, William, Harriet, Hugh, John, Daniel, Eric, and Claude. The family moved to Arnprior in 1857.

Career

Daniel entered the timber trade in the Ottawa Valley by November 1834 with his brother William. In 1837, McLachlin moved to

Bytown Bytown is the former name of Ottawa, Ontario, Canada. It was founded on September 26, 1826, incorporated as a town on January 1, 1850, and superseded by the incorporation of the City of Ottawa on January 1, 1855. The founding was marked by a Grou ...

and purchased cutting rights along the

Ottawa River The Ottawa River (french: Rivière des Outaouais, Algonquin: ''Kichi-Sìbì/Kitchissippi'') is a river in the Canadian provinces of Ontario and Quebec. It is named after the Algonquin word 'to trade', as it was the major trade route of Eastern ...

, Madawaska River and Indian Rivers. He built

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 ...

s and

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 ...

s at the

Chaudière Falls , image = Ottawa Chaudiere Falls.jpg , image_size = 300px , caption = Chaudière Falls in June 2006, at summer water levels , map_image = , map_size = , coordinates = , coords_ref = , location ...

on the Ottawa. He also operated a general store in Bytown with his brother Hugh until 1855. In 1851, he relocated his timber business to the nearly deserted village of Arnprior, using the power of the Madawaska River to operate his mills. He also helped promote the development of the settlement there. He had bridges built, helped to bring people in, and took a leading role in promoting public improvements. Two of these involved the Madawaska River Improvement Association (later Company) and a wagon road on the Madawaska River from Arnprior to the Long Rapids. The same year, he was elected to the Legislative Assembly for Bytown; he did not run in 1854 but was elected in 1861 for

Renfrew Renfrew (; sco, Renfrew; gd, Rinn Friù) is a town west of Glasgow in the west central Lowlands of Scotland. It is the historic county town of Renfrewshire. Called the "Cradle of the Royal Stewarts" for its early link with Scotland's former ...

. By 1865, he was running the lumber business with his sons (Hugh, John, and Daniel) under the name "McLachlin Brothers." In 1867, he was elected by acclamation to the

for Renfrew South. He resigned from politics and his business in 1869, leaving the business to his sons, who he'd brought into the business in 1865. He died in Arnprior on February 6, 1872.

References

Biography at the ''Dictionary of Canadian Biography Online''
* {{DEFAULTSORT:McLachlin, Daniel 1810 births 1872 deaths Members of the Legislative Assembly of the Province of Canada from Canada West Members of the House of Commons of Canada from Ontario Liberal Party of Canada MPs Pre-Confederation Canadian businesspeople People from Renfrew County