George Brown (Canadian Politician)
   HOME

TheInfoList



OR:

George Brown (November 29, 1818 – May 9, 1880) was a British-Canadian journalist, politician and one of the
Fathers of Confederation The Fathers of Confederation are the 36 people who attended at least one of the Charlottetown Conference of 1864 (23 attendees), the Quebec Conference of 1864 (33 attendees), and the London Conference of 1866 (16 attendees), preceding Canadian ...
; attended the Charlottetown (September 1864) and Quebec (October 1864) conferences. A noted
Reform Reform ( lat, reformo) means the improvement or amendment of what is wrong, corrupt, unsatisfactory, etc. The use of the word in this way emerges in the late 18th century and is believed to originate from Christopher Wyvill#The Yorkshire Associati ...
politician, he is best known as the founder and editor of the ''
Toronto Globe ''The Globe'' was a newspaper in Toronto, Ontario, Canada, founded in 1844 by George Brown as a Reform voice. It merged with ''The Mail and Empire'' in 1936 to form ''The Globe and Mail''. History ''The Globe'' is pre-dated by a title of the same ...
'', Canada's most influential newspaper at the time, and his leadership in the founding of the
Liberal Party The Liberal Party is any of many political parties around the world. The meaning of ''liberal'' varies around the world, ranging from liberal conservatism on the right to social liberalism on the left. __TOC__ Active liberal parties This is a li ...
in 1867. He was an articulate champion of the grievances and anger of Upper Canada (Ontario). He played a major role in securing national unity. His career in active politics faltered after 1865, but he remained a powerful spokesman for the
Liberal Party The Liberal Party is any of many political parties around the world. The meaning of ''liberal'' varies around the world, ranging from liberal conservatism on the right to social liberalism on the left. __TOC__ Active liberal parties This is a li ...
. He promoted westward expansion and opposed the policies of Conservative Prime Minister
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 ...
.


Early life


Scotland

George Brown was born in
Alloa Alloa (Received Pronunciation ; educated Scottish pronunciation /ˈaloʊa/; gd, Alamhagh, possibly meaning "rock plain") is a town in Clackmannanshire in the Central Lowlands of Scotland. It is on the north bank of the Forth at the spot where ...
,
Clackmannanshire Clackmannanshire (; sco, Clackmannanshire; gd, Siorrachd Chlach Mhannainn) is a historic county, council area, registration county and Lieutenancy area in Scotland, bordering the council areas of Stirling, Fife, and Perth & Kinross and the hi ...
, Scotland, United Kingdom, on November 29, 1818. His father, Peter Brown, ran a wholesale business in
Edinburgh Edinburgh ( ; gd, Dùn Èideann ) is the capital city of Scotland and one of its 32 Council areas of Scotland, council areas. Historically part of the county of Midlothian (interchangeably Edinburghshire before 1921), it is located in Lothian ...
and managed a
glassworks Glass production involves two main methods – the float glass process that produces sheet glass, and glassblowing that produces bottles and other containers. It has been done in a variety of ways during the history of glass. Glass container ...
in Alloa. His mother was Marianne ( Mackenzie). George was their eldest son; he had two older sisters, two younger sisters and four younger brothers, although three of the brothers died in infancy. He was baptised in St. Cuthbert's Chapel of Ease. He lived in Alloa until he moved to Edinburgh before he turned eight. He attended Royal High School, then transferred to the Southern Academy of Edinburgh. Upon graduation his father wanted George to attend university but George convinced his father to let him work in the family's business. He briefly lived in London to be taught by agents of the business before returning to Edinburgh. He joined the Philo-Lectic Society of Edinburgh, where young men would meet and discuss topics in a parliamentary debate. Brown's father also worked as a collector of assessments. Some of the funds he collected for the municipality were mixed with his business bank accounts, and in 1836 some of the funds in these accounts were lost in business speculations. Peter was not accused of corruption, but he sought to repair his reputation and recoup the lost funds. He attempted to collect from people he lent money to but was unable to after the onset of the economic depression in 1837. Peter decided to emigrate to New York City to seek business opportunities and rebuild his reputation. George accompanied his father to North America, and they left Europe in May 1837.


New York City

The Browns landed in New York in June 1837. Peter opened a dry goods store on
Broadway Broadway may refer to: Theatre * Broadway Theatre (disambiguation) * Broadway theatre, theatrical productions in professional theatres near Broadway, Manhattan, New York City, U.S. ** Broadway (Manhattan), the street **Broadway Theatre (53rd Stree ...
and George worked as his assistant. The following year, Brown's mother and sisters immigrated to New York and the family lived in a rented home on
Varick Street __NOTOC__ Varick Street runs north–south primarily in the Hudson Square district of Lower Manhattan in New York City, United States. Varick Street's northern terminus is in the West Village, where it is a continuation of Seventh Avenue South ...
. When the store grew larger, George traveled to New England, upstate New York, and Canada to continue growing their business. In July 1842 Peter published the first edition of a newspaper called the ''British Chronicle'', which advocated a Whig-
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 ...
political ideology and published articles on British news and politics. As circulation increased in Canada, the paper devoted articles to the political news in the
Province of Canada The Province of Canada (or the United Province of Canada or the United Canadas) was a British North America, British colony in North America from 1841 to 1867. Its formation reflected recommendations made by John Lambton, 1st Earl of Durham ...
. George became the paper's publisher in March 1843 and traveled to New England, upstate New York, and Canada to promote the paper. While in Canada, Brown spoke with politicians and editors in
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 ...
, Kingston, and
Montreal Montreal ( ; officially Montréal, ) is the List of the largest municipalities in Canada by population, second-most populous city in Canada and List of towns in Quebec, most populous city in the Provinces and territories of Canada, Canadian ...
. Brown might have also been writing articles for the paper; J.M.S. Careless, a historian, notes that a series of articles called "A Tour of Canada" were published in the same writing style of Brown's later articles while Brown was in Canada. Peter Brown supported the evangelical faction during the
Disruption of 1843 The Disruption of 1843, also known as the Great Disruption, was a schism in 1843 in which 450 evangelical ministers broke away from the Church of Scotland to form the Free Church of Scotland. The main conflict was over whether the Church of S ...
within the
Church of Scotland The Church of Scotland ( sco, The Kirk o Scotland; gd, Eaglais na h-Alba) is the national church in Scotland. The Church of Scotland was principally shaped by John Knox, in the Scottish Reformation, Reformation of 1560, when it split from t ...
. These members separated from the Church of Scotland in May 1843 and formed the Free Church of Scotland. While George was touring Canada, they asked him to present an offer to his father: to move publication of the ''British Chronicle'' to Upper Canada in exchange for a bond of $2500. George supported the proposal, as he felt there were more opportunities to succeed in Canada. He thought that there was hostility towards the paper in New York because of the paper's focus on Britain. Upon meeting
Reform Reform ( lat, reformo) means the improvement or amendment of what is wrong, corrupt, unsatisfactory, etc. The use of the word in this way emerges in the late 18th century and is believed to originate from Christopher Wyvill#The Yorkshire Associati ...
politicians in his travels through Canada, George felt that they would support his paper should it relocate to the province. George convinced his father to move to Canada and they published the last issue of the ''British Chronicle'' on July 22, 1843.


Canada

George and Peter rented a storefront in Toronto and on August 18, 1843, they published the first edition a new paper called ''Banner''. George managed the secular department of the newspaper, commenting on non-religious issues. ''Banner'' initially did not commit to any political causes, although it supported many policies advocated by Reformers. This changed when the governor-general of the province, Charles Metcalfe,
prorogued A legislative session is the period of time in which a legislature, in both parliamentary and presidential systems, is convened for purpose of lawmaking, usually being one of two or more smaller divisions of the entire time between two elections ...
the Reform-dominated Canadian assembly when several Reform politicians resigned from the government. George published an editorial on December 15 that was critical of the governor-general's actions. In the subsequent weeks, ''Banner'' published editorials that disputed political accusations against Reformers and called for unity behind
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 ...
candidates in future elections. In 1844, Reformers were concerned that Tories, in the upcoming election for the legislature of the Province of Canada, would appeal to the citizen's sense of loyalty to the British monarch and thus not vote for Reformers. They wanted to establish newspapers that would publish their ideas and offered Brown £250 () to begin a new paper. In March, Brown published the first issue of ''The Globe'' as its editor and publisher. Two months later, Brown bought a
rotary press A rotary printing press is a printing press in which the images to be printed are curved around a cylinder. Printing can be done on various substrates, including paper, cardboard, and plastic. Substrates can be sheet feed or unwound on a continuo ...
, the first press of this type used in Upper Canada. This purchase increased his printer's efficiency and allowed Brown to create a book publishing and printing office business. Although George was focused on politics, he still wrote articles for the ''Banner'' and traveled in July to Kingston to report on the Canadian Synod for the Church of Scotland. After the meeting, Brown sat on the committee of Free Kirks in Kingston who wanted to secede from the Church of Scotland. In the fall, Brown campaigned for Reform candidates in communities surrounding Toronto. In Halton, Reformers asked Brown to convince one of the three Reform candidates to end their campaign as the county would only elect two candidates and Reformers did not want to split the vote; Brown convinced Caleb Hopkins to end his campaign. Brown declined to run as a candidate because he wanted to help his father pay off his financial debts and focus on improving his newspapers. Reformers were mostly unsuccessful in the election, with many prominent members not returning to the legislature. In the summer of 1845, Brown put his father in charge of ''The Globe'' and traveled to
Southwestern Ontario Southwestern Ontario is a secondary region of Southern Ontario in the Canadian province of Ontario. It occupies most of the Ontario Peninsula bounded by Lake Huron, including Georgian Bay, to the north and northwest; the St. Clair River, Lake St. ...
to increase subscriptions to his paper. He discovered that a rival Reform newspaper called ''Pilot'' was selling copies at a lower rate and people did not want to subscribe to more than one paper. Brown appealed to Reform leaders, who convinced
Francis Hincks Sir Francis Hincks, (December 14, 1807 – August 18, 1885) was a Canadian businessman, politician, and British colonial administrator. An immigrant from Ireland, he was the Co-Premier of the Province of Canada (1851–1854), Governor of Bar ...
, the editor of ''Pilot'', to raise the cost of his paper. In October, Brown published the first edition of ''Western Globe'' in London, Canada West, which combined editorials from ''The Globe'' with local stories from the southwestern region. In 1846, Brown began publishing the ''Globe'' semi-weekly, proclaiming that he was the first Reform-newspaper in Toronto to do so. During the 1848 Province of Canada legislative election, Hincks was in
Montreal Montreal ( ; officially Montréal, ) is the List of the largest municipalities in Canada by population, second-most populous city in Canada and List of towns in Quebec, most populous city in the Provinces and territories of Canada, Canadian ...
attending to business concerns and did not go to Oxford county to campaign for his re-election as the constituency's representative. Brown spoke at the nomination meeting on Hincks's behalf and Hincks was successfully reelected. Reformers won the majority of seats in the election to form an administration led by Baldwin and
Louis-Hippolyte Lafontaine Sir Louis-Hippolyte Ménard '' dit'' La Fontaine, 1st Baronet, KCMG (October 4, 1807 – February 26, 1864) was a Canadian politician who served as the first Premier of the United Province of Canada and the first head of a responsible governmen ...
. In July 1848 Brown and his father closed the ''Banner'' to focus on expanding ''The Globe'' and their publishing business. In the summer of 1848, Brown was appointed by the administration to lead a Royal Commission to examine accusations of official misconduct in the Provincial Penitentiary in Portsmouth, Canada West. The commission's report, drafted by Brown in early 1849, documented abuse within the penitentiary perpetrated by its staff members. He recommended changes in the jail's structure such as separating juvenile, first-time, and long-term prisoners and hiring prison inspectors. While the commission was conducting its investigation, the prison's Board of Inspectors resigned and Brown, along with Adam Fergusson and William Bristow. Although initially volunteers, Brown and Bristow were later paid for their work, becoming the first government inspectors to be employed in this role. In October 1853 ''The Globe'' started printing new issues daily and claimed that the paper had the largest circulation in
British North America British North America comprised the colonial territories of the British Empire in North America from 1783 onwards. English overseas possessions, English colonisation of North America began in the 16th century in Newfoundland (island), Newfound ...
.


Early political career


Election win and opposition member

In 1848, Reformers won the majority of seats in the Province of Canada legislature and an administration was formed with
Robert Baldwin Robert Baldwin (May 12, 1804 – December 9, 1858) was an Upper Canada, Upper Canadian lawyer and politician who with his political partner Louis-Hippolyte Lafontaine of Lower Canada, led the first responsible government ministry in the Province ...
and
Louis-Hippolyte Lafontaine Sir Louis-Hippolyte Ménard '' dit'' La Fontaine, 1st Baronet, KCMG (October 4, 1807 – February 26, 1864) was a Canadian politician who served as the first Premier of the United Province of Canada and the first head of a responsible governmen ...
serving as co-premiers. By the following year, two factions formed among the Reformers over disagreements among secularising
clergy reserve Clergy reserves were tracts of land in Upper Canada and Lower Canada reserved for the support of "Protestant clergy" by the Constitutional Act of 1791. One-seventh of all surveyed Crown lands were set aside, totaling and respectively for each Pro ...
s, whether the Province of Canada should be annexed by the United States, and how much influence should be given to Reformers who participated in the
Upper Canada Rebellion The Upper Canada Rebellion was an insurrection against the oligarchic government of the British colony of Upper Canada (present-day Ontario) in December 1837. While public grievances had existed for years, it was the rebellion in Lower Canada (p ...
. Brown remained aligned with the Reform party while others split off to form the
Clear Grit Clear Grits were reformers in the Canada West district of the Province of United Canada, a British colony that is now the Province of Ontario, Canada. Their name is said to have been given by David Christie, who said that only those were wanted ...
movement. He joined the Toronto Anti-Clergy Reserves Association in May 1850 to advocate for the abolition of clergy reserves; he did not think French-Canadian reformers would support these measures, but thought that promoting this policy would prevent further Reform defections to the Clear Grits. In April 1851, Brown ran in a byelection to represent
Haldimand County Haldimand County is a rural city-status single-tier municipality on the Niagara Peninsula in Southern Ontario, Canada, on the north shore of Lake Erie, and on the Grand River. Despite its name, it is no longer a county by definition, as all m ...
in the Canadian parliament but lost to
William Lyon Mackenzie William Lyon Mackenzie (March12, 1795 August28, 1861) was a Scottish Canadian-American journalist and politician. He founded newspapers critical of the Family Compact, a term used to identify elite members of Upper Canada. He represented Yor ...
. In the following session of parliament, Baldwin and Lafontaine announced their retirement from politics, and Hincks assumed leadership of the western Reform movement. Hincks renewed his rivalry with Brown, critising the ''Globe'' for opposing state support for religious institutions. In the fall of 1851, Brown bought agricultural land in Kent county, Upper Canada, to begin work as a farmer. Later that year, Reformers in Kent county, including Alexander Mackenzie and
Archibald McKellar Archibald McKellar (3 February 1816 – 11 February 1894) was briefly leader of Canada's Ontario Liberal Party from 1867 to 1868 and, unofficially, the first Leader of the Opposition in Ontario's new provincial legislature (though he was ...
, encouraged Brown to run in the upcoming Canadian parliament election for the constituency of Kent county. Brown accepted their offer and was nominated as a Reform candidate, even though he planned to campaign against the current Reform ministry's state support for religious institutions. He also campaigned in support of representation by population, free trade agreements with British colonies and the United States, and the development of transportation infrastructures like rail lines and canals. Brown won the election as an independent Reform candidate, defeating Arthur Rankin, the Reformer's ministry-approved candidate, and a Tory opponent. Brown supported an administration led by Hincks and
Augustin-Norbert Morin Augustin-Norbert Morin (October 13, 1803 – July 27, 1865) was a Canadien lawyer and judge. Born in Saint-Michel-de-Bellechasse, Lower Canada, into a large Roman Catholic farming family, Morin was identified by the parish priest at a young ...
as successors to the Baldin-Lafontaine government, though he criticised the government for abandoning liberal ideals. Brown worked to end state support for religious institutions, opposed government funding for a religious separate school system and endorsed representation by population in the legislature. His newspaper, the ''Globe'', still had widespread circulation and on October 1 started publishing every day as the ''Daily Globe'' to compete with other newspapers who had previously started to publish daily. Brown's support deteriorated when scandals against Hincks were reported in the fall of 1853 and Brown toured Canada West, demanding new leadership for the Reform party. For the 1854 general election, the constituency he represented was split into two and he decided to run in Lambton, as he was not confident that he could win the other Kent constitutency. At the election's conclusion, Hincks formed a new Liberal-Conservative administration with
Allan MacNab Sir Allan Napier MacNab, 1st Baronet (19 February 1798 – 8 August 1862) was a Canadian political leader who served as joint Premier of the Province of Canada from 1854 to 1856. Early life He was born in Newark (now Niagara-on-the-Lake) to All ...
, causing Brown to become a member of the opposition. Brown assumed an unofficial leadership position with the
Clear Grits Clear Grits were reformers in the Canada West district of the Province of United Canada, a British colony that is now the Province of Ontario, Canada. Their name is said to have been given by David Christie, who said that only those were wanted ...
and worked with the
Parti Rouge The Red Party (french: Parti rouge, or french: Parti démocratique) was a political group that contested elections in the Eastern section of the Province of Canada. It was formed around 1847 by radical French-Canadians inspired by the ideas of L ...
to oppose provisions in legislation and investigate government corruption. Later that year the Canadian legislature passed a bill creating a separate school board in Upper Canada without the support of the majority of Upper Canadian legislators. Although Upper Canadians called for the dissolution of the Province of Canada, Brown used the event to campaign for representation by population, in which electoral districts would be divided so that each one contained a roughly equal number of electors. Brown's pursuit of that goal of correcting what he perceived to be a great wrong to Canada West was accompanied at times by stridently critical remarks against French Canadians and the power exerted by the Catholic population of Canada East over the affairs of a predominately anglophone and Protestant Canada West. He referred to the position of Canada West as "a base vassalage to French-Canadian Priestcraft." In 1856, Liberals in the Hincks-MacNab administration defected to the opposition, and MacNab was replaced by
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 ...
to become the new joint-premier of the province with Hincks. Macdonald accused Brown of falsifying evidence and coercing witnesses in the Royal Commission on the Kingston Provincial Penitentiary in 1848. A committee of inquiry was formed that heard evidence exonerating Brown, but the inquiry produced a report that was non-committal and damaged Brown's political reputation. This caused the political rivalry between Brown and Macdonald to deepen.


1857 election and subsequent legislature

Brown organized a political convention on January 8, 1857, to unite his followers with Liberals who left the Hincks administration and Clear Grits. This convention marked the Reform party's transition away from a radicalism and towards a political ideology more closely aligned with the liberal ideology in Britain. An election for the Parliament of the Province of Canada was held in November 1857. Brown was elected in two constituencies: Toronto and North Oxford. Although Brown's reformers won the majority of seats in Canada West, their allies in the Parti Rouge were unsuccessful in Canada East and Brown returned as an opposition member. On July 28, 1858, the cabinet of the Macdonald-
Cartier Cartier may refer to: People * Cartier (surname), a surname (including a list of people with the name) * Cartier Martin (born 1984), American basketball player Places * Cartier Island, an island north-west of Australia that is part of Australia' ...
administration resigned when the legislature rejected
Ottawa Ottawa (, ; Canadian French: ) is the capital city of Canada. It is located at the confluence of the Ottawa River and the Rideau River in the southern portion of the province of Ontario. Ottawa borders Gatineau, Quebec, and forms the core ...
as the new permanent capital of the province.
Edmund Walker Head Sir Edmund Walker Head, 8th Baronet, KCB (16 February 1805 – 28 January 1868) was a 19th-century British politician and diplomat. Early life and scholarship Head was born at Wiarton Place, near Maidstone, Kent, the son of the Reverend Sir J ...
, the governor-general of Canada, asked Brown to form a new administration. Although Brown did not have a majority of support in the legislature, he nevertheless proposed a cabinet under a co-premiership with Antoine-Aimé Dorion. The Brown-Dorion administration was rejected by the legislature on August 2. Brown resigned on August 4 when Head refused to call a general election, and Macdonald and Cartier were able to form a new ministry with
Alexander Tilloch Galt Sir Alexander Tilloch Galt, (September 6, 1817 – September 19, 1893) was a politician and a father of the Canadian Confederation. Early life Galt was born in Chelsea, England on September 6, 1817. He was the son of John Galt, a Scottish ...
. In 1859 the ''Globe'', influenced by Brown's encouragement, published articles in favour of a new federal government. This would allow Canada East and Canada West to govern their own affairs in their own provincial legislatures and the federal legislature would pass bills concerning mutual concerns. The newspaper also supported representation by population within this proposed federal government. On April 30, 1860, Brown proposed a bill in the Province of Canada's legislature to form a convention that would discuss federalism. The bill was defeated, but the Reform party's support for federalism was documented in the vote.


Election defeat and marriage

Brown's health deteriorated and in the winter of 1861, he stayed in his bed for two months to recover. He did not attend the 1861 parliamentary session and lost his re-election campaign in the constituency of Toronto in the June 1861 general election. His newspaper supported the union in the American Civil War and opposed the influence of the
Grand Trunk Railway The Grand Trunk Railway (; french: Grand Tronc) was a railway system that operated in the Canadian provinces of Quebec and Ontario and in the American states of Connecticut, Maine, Michigan, Massachusetts, New Hampshire, and Vermont. The rai ...
in Canadian politics. In 1862 Brown's illness was still affecting him and he decided to recover in Great Britain. He spent a month in London before moving to Edinburgh. He met Anne Nelson, the sister of his friends from the High School, and they wed on November 27 at the Nelson's home. The couple returned to Toronto the following month.


Return to legislature

With his health recovered, Brown won a by-election for the constituency of South Oxford in March 1863 and returned to a leadership position within the Reform party. He won re-election during the July 1863 general election, and Reformers won the majority of seats in Canada West while Conservatives won the majority of seats in Canada East. This created a deadlock in the legislature that made governing the province difficult. Brown proposed a select committee to investigate the sectional problems in Canada and try to find a solution, and the bill for this committee's creation passed in spring 1864. Under his chairmanship, the committee reported on June 14 a strong preference for a new federal system of government. That same day, the MacDonald- Taché administration was dissolved. Brown stated that he would support any administration that committed to solving the deadlock in the legislature. Brown, MacDonald, Taché, and
George-Étienne Cartier Sir George-Étienne Cartier, 1st Baronet, (pronounced ; September 6, 1814May 20, 1873) was a Canadian statesman and Father of Confederation. The English spelling of the name—George, instead of Georges, the usual French spelling—is explained ...
agreed to form an administration later called the
Great Coalition The Great Coalition was a grand coalition of political parties that brought an end to political deadlock in the Province of Canada. It existed from May 1864 until Confederation in 1867. Prelude Four different ministries had failed in the pre ...
to seek a federal union with the
Atlantic provinces Atlantic Canada, also called the Atlantic provinces (french: provinces de l'Atlantique), is the region of Eastern Canada comprising the provinces located on the Atlantic coast, excluding Quebec. The four provinces are New Brunswick, Newfoundlan ...
. Brown became the president of the council, a cabinet-level position, under the premiership of Taché.


Confederation

Brown attended the
Charlottetown Conference The Charlottetown Conference (Canada's Conference) was held in Charlottetown, Prince Edward Island for representatives from colonies of British North America to discuss Canadian Confederation. The conference took place between September 1 thro ...
where Canadian delegates outlined their proposal for
Canadian Confederation Canadian Confederation (french: Confédération canadienne, link=no) was the process by which three British North American provinces, the Province of Canada, Nova Scotia, and New Brunswick, were united into one federation called the Canada, Dom ...
with the Atlantic provinces. On September 5, 1864, Brown outlined the proposed constitutional structure for the union. The conference accepted the proposal in principle and Brown attended subsequent meetings in
Halifax, Nova Scotia Halifax is the capital and largest municipality of the Canadian province of Nova Scotia, and the largest municipality in Atlantic Canada. As of the 2021 Census, the municipal population was 439,819, with 348,634 people in its urban area. The ...
and
Saint John, New Brunswick Saint John is a seaport city of the Atlantic Ocean located on the Bay of Fundy in the province of New Brunswick, Canada. Saint John is the oldest incorporated city in Canada, established by royal charter on May 18, 1785, during the reign of Ki ...
to determine the details of the union. During the Quebec Conference, Brown argued for separate provincial and federal governments. He hoped the provincial government would remove local concerns from the federal government, which he thought were more politically divisive. He also argued for an appointed
Senate A senate is a deliberative assembly, often the upper house or chamber of a bicameral legislature. The name comes from the ancient Roman Senate (Latin: ''Senatus''), so-called as an assembly of the senior (Latin: ''senex'' meaning "the el ...
because he saw upper houses as inherently conservative and believed they protected the interests of the rich. He wished to deny the Senate the legitimacy and power that naturally follow with an electoral mandate. He was also concerned that two elected legislative bodies could create a political deadlock, especially if different parties held a majority of seats in each body. The result of the Quebec Conference was the
Quebec Resolutions The Quebec Resolutions, also known as the seventy-two resolutions, are a group of statements written at the Quebec Conference of 1864 which laid out the framework for the Canadian Constitution. They were adopted by the majority of the provinces of ...
. Brown presented the Quebec Resolutions in a speech in Toronto on November 3. Later that month, he traveled to England to begin discussions with British officials about Candian confederation, the integration of the
North West Territories The Northwest Territories (abbreviated ''NT'' or ''NWT''; french: Territoires du Nord-Ouest, formerly ''North-Western Territory'' and ''North-West Territories'' and namely shortened as ''Northwest Territory'') is a federal territory of Canada. ...
into Canada, and the defense of British North America from possible American invasion. Brown realized that satisfaction for Canada West could only be achieved with the support of the French-speaking majority of Canada East. In his speech in support of Confederation in the Legislature of the Province of Canada on February 8, 1865, he spoke glowingly of the prospects for Canada's future, and he insisted that "whether we ask for parliamentary reform for Canada alone or in union with the Maritime Provinces, the views of French Canadians must be consulted as well as ours. This scheme can be carried, and no scheme can be that has not the support of both sections of the province." Although he supported the idea of a legislative union at the Quebec Conference, Brown was eventually persuaded to favour the
federal Federal or foederal (archaic) may refer to: Politics General *Federal monarchy, a federation of monarchies *Federation, or ''Federal state'' (federal system), a type of government characterized by both a central (federal) government and states or ...
view of Confederation, which was closer to that supported by
Cartier Cartier may refer to: People * Cartier (surname), a surname (including a list of people with the name) * Cartier Martin (born 1984), American basketball player Places * Cartier Island, an island north-west of Australia that is part of Australia' ...
and the Bleus of Canada East, as it was the structure that would ensure that the provinces retained sufficient control over local matters to satisfy the need of the French-speaking population in Canada East for jurisdiction over matters that it considered to be essential to its survival. Brown remained a proponent of a stronger central government, with weaker constituent provincial governments. Waite (2001), p. 140 In May and June, Brown was part of a delegation sent to London to continue discussions about confederation with British officials. The British government agreed to support Canadian confederation, defend Canada if attacked by the US, and help with establishing a new trade agreement with the US. In September, Galt and Brown represented the Province of Canada at the Confederate Trade Council, a meeting of Canadian colonies to negotiate common trade policies after the colonies' reciprocity trade agreement with the United States was terminated. During the meeting, Brown spoke with Maritime delegates to gather support for the Canadian confederation, as support for the project was decreasing in New Brunswick and Nova Scotia. He supported the council's resolution to pursue trade policies that reduced tariffs with the US. The administration for the Province of Canada disagreed and sought to increase tariffs on American goods. Brown, frustrated with his cabinet colleagues over this issue, resigned from the Great Coalition on December 19. Brown renewed relationships with Rouge colleagues to strengthen the Reform party's political prospects in Canada West. He lost an election in Southern Ontario for a seat in the new legislature. He determined that too many Reformers joined Macdonald and the Conservatives during the Great Coalition, and the public supported this non-partisan administration. He declined to run in safer constituencies and went on a holiday to Scotland.


Post-parliamentary career and death

In 1866, Brown bought an estate near
Brantford Brantford (Canada 2021 Census, 2021 population: 104,688) is a city in Ontario, Canada, founded on the Grand River (Ontario), Grand River in Southwestern Ontario. It is surrounded by County of Brant, Brant County, but is politically separate with ...
, Upper Canada, and herded
shorthorn cattle The Shorthorn breed of cattle originated in the North East of England in the late eighteenth century. The breed was developed as dual-purpose, suitable for both dairy and beef production; however, certain blood lines within the breed always em ...
. He continued writing and editing the ''Globe'' and was consulted by Grit officials in issues concerning provincial and Canadian politics. Brown fought numerous battles with the typographical union from 1843 to 1872. He was forced to pay union wages after tense negotiations and strikes. In 1874, Prime Minister Alexander Mackenzie asked Brown to negotiate a new reciprocity treaty with the US. He negotiated with the
United States Secretary of State The United States secretary of state is a member of the executive branch of the federal government of the United States and the head of the U.S. Department of State. The office holder is one of the highest ranking members of the president's Ca ...
Hamilton Fish Hamilton Fish (August 3, 1808September 7, 1893) was an American politician who served as the 16th Governor of New York from 1849 to 1850, a United States Senator from New York from 1851 to 1857 and the 26th United States Secretary of State fro ...
from February until June 18, when a draft of their treaty was proposed in the US Congress. The Congress did not pass the bill into law and it was set aside when Congress adjourned four days after the treaty was proposed. Brown was appointed to the Canadian senate in 1874 and attended his first session the following year. He supported Mackenzie when
Edward Blake Dominick Edward Blake (October 13, 1833 – March 1, 1912), known as Edward Blake, was the second premier of Ontario, from 1871 to 1872 and leader of the Liberal Party of Canada from 1880 to 1887. He is one of only three federal permanent Li ...
and the Canada First movement expressed their frustrations with Mackenzie's leadership. His attendance in the senate was sporadic as he focused on the business affairs at his ranch. He traveled to England in February 1876 to raise capital to create a new company based on raising cattle, and obtained a
charter A charter is the grant of authority or rights, stating that the granter formally recognizes the prerogative of the recipient to exercise the rights specified. It is implicit that the granter retains superiority (or sovereignty), and that the rec ...
for the new company upon his return to Canada in May. His company struggled to be financially successful and two fires in December 1879 destroyed many of the buildings on the property. In 1880 the ''Globe'' was also struggling financially as Brown paid for updating the newspaper's printing press in order to produce multi-page and machine-folded papers. On March 25, 1880, a former ''Globe'' employee, George Bennett, burst into Brown's office; he was recently fired by a foreman and wanted a certificate that showed he had worked for the paper for five years. Brown did not recognise the man, so asked him to speak with the foreman. The two men argued and Bennett pulled out a gun. Brown grabbed for the gun, but it fired a bullet into Brown's thigh. Bennett was secured by other men and the wound was deemed minor. Brown left the office and stayed in his Toronto home to recover. His leg became infected and he obtained a fever and
delirium Delirium (also known as acute confusional state) is an organically caused decline from a previous baseline of mental function that develops over a short period of time, typically hours to days. Delirium is a syndrome encompassing disturbances in ...
. On May 9, 1880, Brown died in his Toronto home. Brown was buried at
Toronto Necropolis Toronto Necropolis is a non-denominational cemetery in Toronto, Ontario, Canada. It is located on the west side of the Don River valley, to the north of Riverdale Farm in the Cabbagetown neighbourhood. The cemetery was opened during the 1850s to ...
. Bennett was subsequently charged and hanged. His wife, Anne Nelson, returned to Scotland thereafter where she died in 1906. She is buried on the southern terrace of
Dean Cemetery The Dean Cemetery is a historically important Victorian cemetery north of the Dean Village, west of Edinburgh city centre, in Scotland. It lies between Queensferry Road and the Water of Leith, bounded on its east side by Dean Path and on ...
in
Edinburgh Edinburgh ( ; gd, Dùn Èideann ) is the capital city of Scotland and one of its 32 Council areas of Scotland, council areas. Historically part of the county of Midlothian (interchangeably Edinburghshire before 1921), it is located in Lothian ...
. The grave also commemorates George Brown. In 1885 his daughters Margaret and Catherine were two of the first women to graduate from the University of Toronto.


Political philosophy and views

Brown was raised as a member of the
Church of Scotland The Church of Scotland ( sco, The Kirk o Scotland; gd, Eaglais na h-Alba) is the national church in Scotland. The Church of Scotland was principally shaped by John Knox, in the Scottish Reformation, Reformation of 1560, when it split from t ...
. Canadian historian J. M. S. Careless described the family's faith as further from the
Calvinist Calvinism (also called the Reformed Tradition, Reformed Protestantism, Reformed Christianity, or simply Reformed) is a major branch of Protestantism that follows the theological tradition and forms of Christian practice set down by John Ca ...
interpretation of the bible and more closely followed the tenants of the evangelical movement of the 1800s. Brown advocated for a
Puritan The Puritans were English Protestants in the 16th and 17th centuries who sought to purify the Church of England of Catholic Church, Roman Catholic practices, maintaining that the Church of England had not been fully reformed and should become m ...
separation between politics and religion; he believed that political liberty could only be achieved if religious institutions were not involved in politics, and while he believed everyone should be Christian, he thought religion should not be influenced by political institutions. In 1850, although he was against giving state money to religions in
clergy reserves Clergy reserves were tracts of land in Upper Canada and Lower Canada reserved for the support of "Protestantism, Protestant clergy" by the Constitutional Act of 1791. One-seventh of all surveyed Crown lands were set aside, totaling and respectivel ...
, he was willing to tolerate it in order to maintain an allegiance between the Upper Canadian Reformers and French Canadian Catholic Reformers. Brown was against slavery and believed that the largest fault of the United States was the enslavement of people in American southern states. He was part of the Elgin Association, a group of mostly Free Kirk people that purchased land in Kent county for escaped slaves to live on. He also wrote editorials in ''The Globe'' defending a settlement of escaped slaves in Buxton from hostile white inhabitants in
Kent Kent is a county in South East England and one of the home counties. It borders Greater London to the north-west, Surrey to the west and East Sussex to the south-west, and Essex to the north across the estuary of the River Thames; it faces ...
. He was also an executive member of the Anti-Slavery Society of Canada.


Legacy

Brown's residence, formerly called Lambton Lodge and now called George Brown House, at 186 Beverley Street, Toronto, was named a
National Historic Site of Canada National Historic Sites of Canada (french: Lieux historiques nationaux du Canada) are places that have been designated by the federal Minister of the Environment An environment minister (sometimes minister of the environment or secretary of t ...
in 1974. It is now operated by the
Ontario Heritage Trust The Ontario Heritage Trust (french: link=no, Fiducie du patrimoine ontarien) is a non-profit agency of the Ontario Ministry of Tourism and Culture. It is responsible for protecting, preserving and promoting the built, natural and cultural herita ...
as a conference centre and offices. Brown also maintained an estate, Bow Park, near
Brantford, Ontario Brantford ( 2021 population: 104,688) is a city in Ontario, Canada, founded on the Grand River in Southwestern Ontario. It is surrounded by Brant County, but is politically separate with a municipal government of its own that is fully independ ...
. Bought in 1826, it was a cattle farm during Brown's time and is currently a seed farm. Toronto's
George Brown College George Brown College is a public, fully accredited college of applied arts and technology with three campuses in downtown Toronto (Ontario, Canada). Like many other colleges in Ontario, GBC was chartered in 1966 by the government of Ontario and ...
(founded 1967) is named after him. A statue of Brown can be found on the front west lawn of Queen's Park and another on
Parliament Hill Parliament Hill (french: Colline du Parlement, colloquially known as The Hill, is an area of Crown land on the southern banks of the Ottawa River in downtown Ottawa, Ontario, Canada. Its Gothic revival suite of buildings, and their architectu ...
in
Ottawa Ottawa (, ; Canadian French: ) is the capital city of Canada. It is located at the confluence of the Ottawa River and the Rideau River in the southern portion of the province of Ontario. Ottawa borders Gatineau, Quebec, and forms the core ...
(sculpted by
George William Hill George William Hill (March 3, 1838 – April 16, 1914) was an American astronomer and mathematician. Working independently and largely in isolation from the wider scientific community, he made major contributions to celestial mechanics and t ...
in 1913). He was portrayed by
Peter Outerbridge Peter Outerbridge (born June 30, 1966) is a Canadian actor, best known for his role as Ari Tasarov in the CW action series ''Nikita'', Dr. David Sandström in the TMN series ''ReGenesis'', Henrik "Hank" Johanssen in ''Orphan Black'', Bob Corbett ...
in the 2011
CBC Television CBC Television (also known as CBC TV) is a Canadian English-language broadcast television network owned by the Canadian Broadcasting Corporation, the national public broadcaster. The network began operations on September 6, 1952. Its French-l ...
film '' John A.: Birth of a Country''. George Brown appears on a Canadian postage stamp issued on August 21, 1968.


References


Citations


Works Cited

*


Further reading

* Bélanger, Claude. "George Brown", in ''L’Encyclopédie de l’histoire du Québec / The Quebec History Encyclopedia''. (Marianopolis College, March 2006
online
*Careless, J.M.C. ''Brown of the Globe: Volume Two: Statesman of Confederation 1860-1880.'' (Vol. 2. Dundurn, 1996
excerpt
* Careless, J.M.C. "George Brown and Confederation," ''Manitoba Historical Society Transactions,'' Series 3, Number 26, 1969-7
online
* Caron, Jean-François. ''George Brown: la Confédération et la dualité nationale'', Québec: Les Presses de l'Université Laval, 2017. * Creighton, Donald G. "George Brown, Sir John Macdonald, and the "Workingman"." ''Canadian Historical Review'' (1943) 24#4 pp: 362-376. * Gauvreau, Michael. "Reluctant Voluntaries: Peter and George Brown: The Scottish Disruption and the Politics of Church and State in Canada." ''Journal of religious history'' 25.2 (2001): 134–157. * Mackenzie, Alexander. ''The life and speeches of Hon. George Brown'' (Toronto, Globe, 1882)


External links

*
Meet the Browns: A Confederation Family
'', online exhibit on Archives of Ontario website
George Brown family fonds
Archives of Ontario *
A website for an upcoming documentary film on George Brown
(Biography by
John Lewis John Robert Lewis (February 21, 1940 – July 17, 2020) was an American politician and civil rights activist who served in the United States House of Representatives for from 1987 until his death in 2020. He participated in the 1960 Nashville ...
) *
Photograph: Hon. George Brown in 1865. McCord MuseumPhotograph: Hon. George Brown in 1865. McCord Museum
{{DEFAULTSORT:Brown, George 1818 births 1880 deaths 1880 murders in Canada 19th-century Canadian newspaper publishers (people) Assassinated Canadian politicians Canadian abolitionists Canadian murder victims Canadian newspaper founders Canadian Presbyterians Canadian senators from Ontario Candidates in the 1867 Canadian federal election Fathers of Confederation Immigrants to the Province of Canada Leaders of the Ontario Liberal Party Liberal Party of Canada candidates for the Canadian House of Commons Liberal Party of Canada senators Members of the Legislative Assembly of the Province of Canada from Canada West People from Alloa People murdered in Toronto Persons of National Historic Significance (Canada) Politicians from Toronto Premiers of the Province of Canada Presbyterian abolitionists Scottish emigrants to pre-Confederation Ontario Deaths from gangrene Burials at Toronto Necropolis