Donald Bethune (July 11, 1802 – June 19, 1869) was a lawyer, judge, entrepreneur 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 Williamstown in Upper Canada in 1802, the son of Reverend John Bethune. Donald was part of a prominent family which included four brothers of note: Alexander Neil, became bishop of the diocese of Toronto,

James Gray Bethune James Gray Bethune (April 1, 1793 – October 13, 1841) was born in Upper Canada. He was the son of the Reverend John Bethune of Williamstown, Ontario, the founding Church of Scotland minister for Upper Canada (Ontario). James Gray was from a lar ...

was a businessman,

Angus Bethune Angus Bethune may refer to: * Angus Bethune (fur trader) (1783–1858), Canadian fur trader * Angus Bethune (politician) (1908–2004), Australian politician * Angus Bethune, the titular character from the 1995 film, Angus Angus may refer to: M ...

was prominent in the fur trade and John Bethune was an Anglican clergyman and acting principal of McGill University. He studied with his brother John, in Augusta Township and with

John Strachan John Strachan (; 12 April 1778 – 1 November 1867) was a notable figure in Upper Canada and the first Anglican Bishop of Toronto. He is best known as a political bishop who held many government positions and promoted education from common sch ...

Cornwall Cornwall (; kw, Kernow ) is a historic county and ceremonial county in South West England. It is recognised as one of the Celtic nations, and is the homeland of the Cornish people. Cornwall is bordered to the north and west by the Atlantic ...

. He articled in law with

Jonas Jones Jonas Jones (May 19, 1791 – July 30, 1848) was a lawyer, judge, farmer, and political figure in Upper Canada. Life Jones was born in Augusta Township, Upper Canada in 1791, the son of Ephraim Jones. He was educated at John Strachan's sch ...

and was called to the bar in 1823. He served as judge in the Bathurst and Prince Edward District courts. 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 the town of

Kingston Kingston may refer to: Places * List of places called Kingston, including the five most populated: ** Kingston, Jamaica ** Kingston upon Hull, England ** City of Kingston, Victoria, Australia ** Kingston, Ontario, Canada ** Kingston upon Thames, ...

in 1828; he was defeated in 1830. In 1833, he became involved in shipping goods on

Lake Ontario Lake Ontario is one of the five Great Lakes of North America. It is bounded on the north, west, and southwest by the Canadian province of Ontario, and on the south and east by the U.S. state of New York. The Canada–United States border sp ...

, buying a

steamboat A steamboat is a boat that is marine propulsion, propelled primarily by marine steam engine, steam power, typically driving propellers or Paddle steamer, paddlewheels. Steamboats sometimes use the ship prefix, prefix designation SS, S.S. or S/S ...

. In 1840, he was awarded the contract for delivering mail and expanded his fleet of steamboats. He was originally based in

Cobourg Cobourg ( ) is a town in the Canadian province of Ontario, located in Southern Ontario east of Toronto and east of Oshawa. It is the largest town in and seat of Northumberland County. Its nearest neighbour is Port Hope, to the west. It is ...

, but moved to

Toronto Toronto ( ; or ) is the capital city of the Canadian province of Ontario. With a recorded population of 2,794,356 in 2021, it is the most populous city in Canada and the fourth most populous city in North America. The city is the ancho ...

in 1843. After fierce competition with Hugh Richardson to control the shipping business in the region, Bethune's business failed in 1848 and again in 1851, after the banks allowed him to lease back his boats. Bethune left for England in 1853; after his return in 1858, he returned to the practice of law at Port Hope. He died in Toronto in 1869.

External links

Biography at the ''Dictionary of Canadian Biography Online''''Steamboat Promotion and Changing Technology: the Careers of James Sutherland and the Magnet'', Walter Lewis''"Until Further Notice": The Royal Mail Line and the Passenger Steamboat Trade on Lake Ontario and the Upper St. Lawrence River, 1838-1875'', Walter Lewis
{{DEFAULTSORT:Bethune, Donald 1802 births 1869 deaths Members of the Legislative Assembly of Upper Canada Upper Canada judges Canadian people of American descent