James O'Reilly, (September 16, 1823 – May 15, 1875) was a

Canadian Canadians (french: Canadiens) are people identified with the country of Canada. This connection may be residential, legal, historical or cultural. For most Canadians, many (or all) of these connections exist and are collectively the source of ...

lawyer and politician who represented

Renfrew South Renfrew South was a federal riding represented in the House of Commons of Canada from 1867 to 1968. It was located in the province of Ontario. The federal riding was created by the British North America Act of 1867 and was abolished in 1966, w ...

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 ...

from 1872 to 1874. He was born in

Westport, County Mayo Westport (, historically anglicised as ''Cahernamart'') is a town in County Mayo in Ireland.Westport Before 1800 by Michael Kelly published in Cathair Na Mart 2019 It is at the south-east corner of Clew Bay, an inlet of the Atlantic Ocean on th ...

Ireland Ireland ( ; ga, Éire ; Ulster Scots dialect, Ulster-Scots: ) is an island in the Atlantic Ocean, North Atlantic Ocean, in Northwestern Europe, north-western Europe. It is separated from Great Britain to its east by the North Channel (Grea ...

, the son of Peter O'Reilly, and came to

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 ...

in 1832 with his father. O'Reilly studied law with C. O. Benson in Belleville and later with

John Willoughby Crawford John Willoughby Crawford (26 August 1817 – 13 May 1875) served as the third Lieutenant Governor of Ontario, Canada from 1873 to 1875. Born in 1817 in Manorhamilton, County Leitrim, Ireland, the son of George Crawford, John Crawford came to ...

. He was called to the Ontario bar in 1847 and set up practice in Kingston. In 1850, he married Mary Jane Redmond. He was named a

Queen's Counsel In the United Kingdom and in some Commonwealth of Nations, Commonwealth countries, a King's Counsel (Post-nominal letters, post-nominal initials KC) during the reign of a king, or Queen's Counsel (post-nominal initials QC) during the reign of ...

in 1864 and was later called to the Quebec bar. O'Reilly prosecuted

Patrick James Whelan Patrick James Whelan (c. 1840 – 11 February 1869) was a suspected Fenian supporter executed following the 1868 assassination of Irish journalist and politician Thomas D'Arcy McGee. He maintained his innocence throughout the proceedings, but ...

who was convicted for the assassination of

D'Arcy McGee Thomas D'Arcy McGee (13 April 18257 April 1868) was an Irish-Canadian politician, Catholic spokesman, journalist, poet, and a Father of Canadian Confederation. The young McGee was an Irish Catholic who opposed British rule in Ireland, and was ...

and hanged. He served on

Kingston City Council Kingston City Council is the governing body for the City of Kingston, Ontario, Canada. The council consists of the Mayor of Kingston and 12 city councillors elected by voters in geographic districts. Members 2022–2026 ''Elected in the 2022 ...

as a municipal councillor from 1850 to 1855, was the city's Recorder from 1864 to 1869 and also was a director of the

Kingston and Pembroke Railway The Kingston and Pembroke Railway (K&P) was a Canadian railway that operated in eastern Ontario. The railway was seen as a business opportunity which would support the lumber and mining industries, as well as the agricultural economy in eastern On ...

. O'Reilly commanded a company of volunteer militia, reaching the rank of major. He died in Kingston, aged 51.

External links

Biography at the ''Dictionary of Canadian Biography Online''
*
''The Canadian parliamentary companion'', HJ Morgan (1873)
{{DEFAULTSORT:Oreilly, James 1823 births 1875 deaths 19th-century Irish people Conservative Party of Canada (1867–1942) MPs Irish emigrants to pre-Confederation Ontario Irish expatriates in Canada Kingston, Ontario city councillors Members of the House of Commons of Canada from Ontario Politicians from Belleville, Ontario Politicians from County Mayo Canadian King's Counsel