Jabez Bunting Snowball (24 September 1837 – 24 February 1907) was a businessman, the

11th 11 (eleven) is the natural number following 10 and preceding 12. It is the first repdigit. In English, it is the smallest positive integer whose name has three syllables. Name "Eleven" derives from the Old English ', which is first atteste ...

Lieutenant Governor of New Brunswick The lieutenant governor of New Brunswick (, in French: ''Lieutenant-gouverneur'' (if male) or ''Lieutenante-gouverneure'' (if female) ''du Nouveau-Brunswick'') is the viceregal representative in New Brunswick of the , who operates distinctly wit ...

, Canada, and politician from the Town of

Chatham, New Brunswick Chatham is an urban neighbourhood in the city of Miramichi, New Brunswick, Canada. Prior to municipal amalgamation in 1995, Chatham was an incorporated town in Northumberland County along the south bank of the Miramichi River opposite Douglasto ...

. He operated a number of businesses in the eastern part of the

province A province is almost always an administrative division within a country or state. The term derives from the ancient Roman '' provincia'', which was the major territorial and administrative unit of the Roman Empire's territorial possessions ou ...

and was one of its most prominent citizens.

Early life

Snowball came to the

Miramichi Valley The Miramichi Valley is a Canadian river valley and region in the east-central part of New Brunswick. It extends along both major branches of the Miramichi River and their tributaries, however it is generally agreed that the much larger Southw ...

from

Lunenburg, Nova Scotia Lunenburg is a port town on the South Shore of Nova Scotia, Canada. Founded in 1753, the town was one of the first British attempts to settle Protestants in Nova Scotia. The economy was traditionally based on the offshore fishery and today ...

when his father, a

Methodist Methodism, also called the Methodist movement, is a group of historically related denominations of Protestant Christianity whose origins, doctrine and practice derive from the life and teachings of John Wesley. George Whitefield and John's ...

Minister, answered a call to St. Luke's Church in Chatham. Snowball attended Wesleyan Academy in Sackville, New Brunswick, and was dissuaded by his family from going to

California California is a state in the Western United States, located along the Pacific Coast. With nearly 39.2million residents across a total area of approximately , it is the most populous U.S. state and the 3rd largest by area. It is also the m ...

to seek his fortune.

Entrepreneur

Snowball started his working life as a clerk in a dry goods store in Chatham, owned by John MacDougall whose daughter Margaret he married. When MacDougall died in 1866, Snowball, at the age of 27, took over the business and expanded it. In 1871, he was a founder of the Miramichi Steam Navigation Company which soon built and operated six small steamers on the river. On his own account he purchased and operated several others. The next year he built the largest steam sawmill in the Province, milling some 170,000 board feet (400 m³) of lumber per day. He soon opened sawmills in Tracadie, Bay du Vin and Red Bank, operating a grist mill in the last community as well. Fish attracted his attention as well, and soon Snowball had canneries on Shippegan Island and

Miscou Island Miscou Island (french: Île Miscou) is a Canadian island in the Gulf of St. Lawrence at the northeastern tip of Gloucester County, New Brunswick. It is separated from neighbouring Lamèque Island to the southwest by the Miscou Channel with bot ...

. In 1879, he sent 200,000 lb. of lobster to the

United Kingdom The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland, commonly known as the United Kingdom (UK) or Britain, is a country in Europe, off the north-western coast of the continental mainland. It comprises England, Scotland, Wales and North ...

. Snowball was a tough master, hard working and expecting the same from all his employees. He vigorously put down any attempts to unionize.

Magnate

By the 1880s, Snowball was the second largest exporter of lumber in New Brunswick, and employed 1,000 men in his various enterprises. In 1886, Snowball constructed the Chatham Branch Railway connecting the town with the

Intercolonial Railway The Intercolonial Railway of Canada , also referred to as the Intercolonial Railway (ICR), was a historic Canadian railway that operated from 1872 to 1918, when it became part of Canadian National Railways. As the railway was also completely ow ...

some six miles away. Along with Alexander Gibson, Snowball constructed an extension of the railway to Gibson, N.B., some 95 miles away. In 1893, he sold his interest to Gibson. In 1887, he was a founding member of the Chatham Telephone Exchange which was later expanded into nearby Kent, Gloucester and Restigouche counties. This enterprise was sold in 1905 to the Central Telephone Company. Next was the Chatham Electric Light Company, founded in 1888.

Political life

He represented his area 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 a member of the

Liberal Party of Canada The Liberal Party of Canada (french: Parti libéral du Canada, region=CA) is a federal political party in Canada. The party espouses the principles of liberalism,McCall, Christina; Stephen Clarkson"Liberal Party". ''The Canadian Encyclopedia'' ...

from 1878 to 1882. After a period in the

Senate of Canada The Senate of Canada (french: region=CA, Sénat du Canada) is the upper house of the Parliament of Canada. Together with the Crown and the House of Commons, they comprise the bicameral legislature of Canada. The Senate is modelled after the B ...

, he served from 1902 – 1907 as

. Snowball was active in securing incorporation for the town of Chatham, and when he ran to be its first mayor in 1896, he was defeated by a local doctor by two votes.

Local Grandee

Snowball and his wife (called "Lady Snowball" by the locals) maintained a splendid town residence called "Wellington Villa" at the town's most important intersection, and lived in great style, often entertaining with many servants and fine furniture.

Legacy

Snowball died in 1907 at the age of 69, a wealthy and influential man. But, changing fortunes and a lack of the same great entrepreneurial flair in the next generation prevented a dynasty being established. His businesses were divided among his children and gradually frittered away. Snowball's mill in Chatham was caught up in the postwar depression of 1919 and closed.

Electoral record

References

Biography at the ''Dictionary of Canadian Biography Online''
* {{DEFAULTSORT:Snowball, Jabez Bunting 1837 births 1907 deaths Canadian senators from New Brunswick Liberal Party of Canada MPs Liberal Party of Canada senators Lieutenant Governors of New Brunswick Members of the House of Commons of Canada from New Brunswick Pre-Confederation Canadian businesspeople People from Miramichi, New Brunswick