Henry Allcock (baptised January 26, 1759 – February 22, 1808) was a judge and political figure in Upper and

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 ...

. His family was from

Edgbaston Edgbaston () is an affluent suburban area of central Birmingham, England, historically in Warwickshire, and curved around the southwest of the city centre. In the 19th century, the area was under the control of the Gough-Calthorpe family a ...

and he was born in

Birmingham Birmingham ( ) is a City status in the United Kingdom, city and metropolitan borough in the metropolitan county of West Midlands (county), West Midlands in England. It is the second-largest city in the United Kingdom with a population of 1. ...

England England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Wales to its west and Scotland to its north. The Irish Sea lies northwest and the Celtic Sea to the southwest. It is separated from continental Europe b ...

in 1759 and studied law at Lincoln's Inn in

London London is the capital and List of urban areas in the United Kingdom, largest city of England and the United Kingdom, with a population of just under 9 million. It stands on the River Thames in south-east England at the head of a estuary dow ...

. He was called to the bar in 1791. In 1798, he was appointed judge in the Court of King's Bench of

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 th ...

. In 1800, he was elected to the

3rd Parliament of Upper Canada The 3rd Parliament of Upper Canada was opened 28 May 1801. Elections in Upper Canada had been held in July 1800. All sessions were held at Parliament Buildings of Upper Canada in York, Upper Canada. This parliament was dissolved 14 May 18 ...

representing

Durham Durham most commonly refers to: *Durham, England, a cathedral city and the county town of County Durham *County Durham, an English county * Durham County, North Carolina, a county in North Carolina, United States *Durham, North Carolina, a city in N ...

, Simcoe and 1st

York York is a cathedral city with Roman origins, sited at the confluence of the rivers Ouse and Foss in North Yorkshire, England. It is the historic county town of Yorkshire. The city has many historic buildings and other structures, such as a ...

. However, a petition was raised citing irregularities on the part of his agent and he was unseated. Angus Macdonell won the seat in a by-election. He presided over the trial of John Small for the murder of John White in a duel. Small was set free. In 1802, he became chief justice for Upper Canada succeeding

John Elmsley John Elmsley (1762 – April 29, 1805) was Chief Justice of Upper Canada and afterwards Lower Canada. In both of the Canadas he served as President of the Executive Council and Speaker of the Legislative Council. During the Hunter administr ...

and, in 1803, he was appointed to the Executive Council for the province. In 1805, he became Chief Justice of Lower Canada and a member of the

Executive Council of Lower Canada The Executive Council of Lower Canada was an appointive body created by the Constitutional Act of 1791. Its function was to advise the Governor or his representative on the administration of the colony's public affairs. It was replaced by the Execu ...

despite support for another candidate,

Jonathan Sewell Jonathan Sewell (born Jonathan Sewall; June 6, 1766 – November 11, 1839) was a lawyer, judge and political figure in Lower Canada. Early life He was born in Cambridge, Massachusetts, the son of Jonathan Sewall, the last British attorney ge ...

, by the upper class of the province and the lieutenant governor. He was named speaker for the

Legislative Council of Lower Canada The Legislative Council of Lower Canada was the upper house of the bicameral structure of provincial government in Lower Canada until 1838. The upper house consisted of appointed councillors who voted on bills passed up by the Legislative Assembly ...

in January 1808. He died of a fever at

Quebec City Quebec City ( or ; french: Ville de Québec), officially Québec (), is the capital city of the Canadian province of Quebec. As of July 2021, the city had a population of 549,459, and the metropolitan area had a population of 839,311. It is t ...

in 1808, while in office.

References

*
"ALLCOCK, HENRY," by Frederick H. Armstrong, Dictionary of Canadian Biography, vol. 5, University of Toronto/Université Laval, 2003–
{{DEFAULTSORT:Allcock, Henry Chief justices of Upper Canada Chief justices of Lower Canada Members of the Legislative Council of Upper Canada Members of the Legislative Council of Lower Canada English barristers English emigrants to pre-Confederation Ontario People from Birmingham, West Midlands 1759 births 1808 deaths Immigrants to Upper Canada infectious disease deaths in Quebec