Edmund Mortimer McDonald (September 29, 1825 – May 25, 1874) was a

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 ...

journalist, publisher and political figure. He represented Lunenburg in the

House of Commons of Canada The House of Commons of Canada (french: Chambre des communes du Canada) is the lower house of the Parliament of Canada. Together with the Crown and the Senate of Canada, they comprise the bicameral legislature of Canada. The House of Common ...

as an

Anti-Confederate ''Anti-Confederation'' was the name used in what is now the Maritimes by several parties opposed to Canadian Confederation. The Anti-Confederation parties were accordingly opposed by the Confederation Party, that is, the Conservative and Liberal- ...

and then a

Liberal-Conservative Liberal conservatism is a political ideology combining conservative policies with liberal stances, especially on economic issues but also on social and ethical matters, representing a brand of political conservatism strongly influenced by libe ...

from 1868 to 1872.

Early life

He was born in

West River, Nova Scotia West River is a community in the Canada, Canadian province of Nova Scotia, located in Pictou County, Nova Scotia, Pictou County . It was formerly served by the Hopewell Subdivision of Canadian National Railway, which had a station in West Ri ...

in 1825.

Before politics

He worked as a journalist with

Joseph Howe Joseph Howe (December 13, 1804 – June 1, 1873) was a Nova Scotian journalist, politician, public servant, and poet. Howe is often ranked as one of Nova Scotia's most admired politicians and his considerable skills as a journalist and writer ha ...

on the ''

Novascotian The ''Novascotian'' was a newspaper published in Halifax, Nova Scotia, Canada. It became one of the most influential voices in the British North American colonies in its nearly one century of existence. The paper was founded as the ''Nova Scoti ...

'' during the 1840s. In 1847, he became the owner of the ''Eastern Chronicle'' at

New Glasgow New Glasgow is a town in Pictou County, in the province of Nova Scotia, Canada. It is situated on the banks of the East River of Pictou, which flows into Pictou Harbour, a sub-basin of the Northumberland Strait. The town's population was 9,075 ...

. He served as Queen's Printer for

from 1860 to 1863. In 1863, he founded the ''Halifax Citizen'' with

William Garvie William Garvie (1837 – December 15, 1872) was a lawyer, journalist and political figure in Nova Scotia, Canada. He represented Halifax County in the Nova Scotia House of Assembly as a Liberal from 1871 to 1872. He was born in the West Indi ...

; the paper favoured a maritime union but opposed

Confederation A confederation (also known as a confederacy or league) is a union of sovereign groups or states united for purposes of common action. Usually created by a treaty, confederations of states tend to be established for dealing with critical issu ...

. McDonald and Garvie also helped found the Anti-confederation League, which had the same aims.

Political career

In 1867, he was elected to the House of Commons and lobbied for the removal of Nova Scotia from the union and for repealing of the British North America Act for Nova Scotia. When Howe was able to negotiate better terms for the province in 1869, McDonald threw his support behind Sir

John A. Macdonald Sir John Alexander Macdonald (January 10 or 11, 1815 – June 6, 1891) was the first prime minister of Canada, serving from 1867 to 1873 and from 1878 to 1891. The dominant figure of Canadian Confederation, he had a political career that sp ...

Later life and death

In 1872, he was named customs inspector for the port of Halifax. He died at Halifax in 1874.

References

* * 1825 births 1874 deaths Anti-Confederation Party MPs Conservative Party of Canada (1867–1942) MPs Members of the House of Commons of Canada from Nova Scotia Canadian newspaper journalists 19th-century Canadian journalists Canadian male journalists 19th-century Canadian male writers {{NovaScotia-politician-stub