James Sampson (1789 – November 9, 1861) was an Irish-born physician, educator and politician in Canada. He served as mayor of

Kingston Kingston may refer to: Places * List of places called Kingston, including the five most populated: ** Kingston, Jamaica ** Kingston upon Hull, England ** City of Kingston, Victoria, Australia ** Kingston, Ontario, Canada ** Kingston upon Thames, ...

from 1839 to 1840 and in 1844. He was born in Banbridge,

County Down County Down () is one of the six counties of Northern Ireland, one of the nine counties of Ulster and one of the traditional thirty-two counties of Ireland. It covers an area of and has a population of 531,665. It borders County Antrim to the ...

, the son of Reverend William Sampson and Alicia Brush, was educated in

Dublin Dublin (; , or ) is the capital and largest city of Republic of Ireland, Ireland. On a bay at the mouth of the River Liffey, it is in the Provinces of Ireland, province of Leinster, bordered on the south by the Dublin Mountains, a part of th ...

and trained in medicine at Middlesex Hospital. He came to Canada in 1811 as named assistant surgeon for the

85th Regiment of Foot The 85th (Bucks Volunteers) Regiment of Foot was a British Army line infantry regiment, raised in 1793. Under the Childers Reforms it amalgamated with the 53rd (Shropshire) Regiment of Foot to form the King's Shropshire Light Infantry in 1881. H ...

. The following year, he was transferred to the Royal Newfoundland Fencible Infantry, serving during the

War of 1812 The War of 1812 (18 June 1812 – 17 February 1815) was fought by the United States of America and its indigenous allies against the United Kingdom and its allies in British North America, with limited participation by Spain in Florida. It bega ...

. In 1815, he was transferred to the

104th Regiment of Foot The 104th Regiment of Foot (Bengal Fusiliers) was a regiment of the British Army, raised by the Honourable East India Company in 1765. Under the Childers Reforms it amalgamated with the 101st Regiment of Foot (Royal Bengal Fusiliers) to form th ...

. In May 1817, he was retired on half pay and married Eliza Chipman, the daughter of judge Edward Winslow. Sampson set up practice at

Niagara Niagara may refer to: Geography Niagara Falls and nearby places In both the United States and Canada *Niagara Falls, the famous waterfalls in the Niagara River *Niagara River, part of the U.S.–Canada border *Niagara Escarpment, the cliff ov ...

later that year. In 1820, he moved to Kingston. The following year he was named magistrate for the

Midland District Midland District was one of four districts of the Province of Quebec created in 1788 in the western reaches of the Montreal District and partitioned in 1791 to create the new colony of Upper Canada. Historical evolution The District, originally ...

. From 1841 to 1844, he was consulting surgeon to three governors general:

Sydenham Sydenham may refer to: Places Australia * Sydenham, New South Wales, a suburb of Sydney ** Sydenham railway station, Sydney * Sydenham, Victoria, a suburb of Melbourne ** Sydenham railway line, the name of the Sunbury railway line, Melbourne un ...

, Bagot and Metcalfe. Sampson served as chair of the board of governors for

Kingston General Hospital The Kingston General Hospital (KGH) site is an acute-care teaching hospital affiliated with Queen's University located in Kingston, Ontario, Canada. Along with the Hotel Dieu Hospital (HDH) site, these hospitals deliver health care services to ...

. He was chair of the committee which organized the medical faculty at Queen's College and was president of that faculty from 1854 to 1860. From 1835 to 1861, Sampson served as the first physician for the

Kingston Penitentiary Kingston Penitentiary (known locally as KP and Kingston Pen) is a former maximum security prison located in Kingston, Ontario, Canada, between King Street West and Lake Ontario. History Constructed from 1833 to 1834, and opened on June 1, 1 ...

. From 1829 to 1849, he was inspector of licenses. He also served as magistrate of the Court of Quarter Sessions and as associate judge of the Court of Oyer and Terminer. Sampson was a member of the Midland District Grammar School Board and of the Kingston Board of Health. Sampson was commander of the Kingston town guard until the militia was called up during 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 ...

in 1837. He also served as major in the Frontenac militia until 1839. He became mayor of Kingston following the death of mayor Henry Cassaday in 1839. He was reelected in 1840, refused another term in 1841 but was elected again in 1844. He suffered a serious fall in 1860 and died at home in Kingston the following year after a short illness.

References

1789 births 1861 deaths Mayors of Kingston, Ontario Canadian military doctors 19th-century Canadian physicians 85th Regiment of Foot (Bucks Volunteers) officers Royal Newfoundland Regiment officers Irish emigrants to Canada British Army personnel of the War of 1812 Canadian magistrates {{Ontario-mayor-stub