John Burbidge (c.1718 – March 11, 1812) was a soldier, land owner, judge and political figure in

Nova Scotia Nova Scotia ( ; ; ) is one of the thirteen provinces and territories of Canada. It is one of the three Maritime provinces and one of the four Atlantic provinces. Nova Scotia is Latin for "New Scotland". Most of the population are native Eng ...

. He was a member of the

1st General Assembly of Nova Scotia The General Assembly of Nova Scotia was established by a proclamation of the Governor in Council on May 20, 1758. A writ for the election of the 1st General Assembly of Nova Scotia was issued by May 22, returnable at the convening of the assembly o ...

in 1758 and represented Halifax Township from 1759 to 1765 and Cornwallis Township from 1765 to 1775 in subsequent assemblies. He was born in Cowes,

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 ...

, and was at Louisbourg in 1747 and at

Halifax, Nova Scotia Halifax is the capital and largest municipality of the Provinces and territories of Canada, 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 ...

in 1749, when it was founded. In 1761, he became a justice of the peace for Halifax County and, in 1762, became captain in the local militia. Around 1764, he settled at

Cornwallis Charles Cornwallis, 1st Marquess Cornwallis, (31 December 1738 – 5 October 1805), styled Viscount Brome between 1753 and 1762 and known as the Earl Cornwallis between 1762 and 1792, was a British Army general and official. In the United S ...

where he acquired a large farm. Rebecca Dudley Gerrish, by John Singleton Copley

He married Rebecca Dudley, the widow of

Benjamin Gerrish Benjamin Gerrish (October 19, 1717 – May 6, 1772) was a merchant and political figure in Nova Scotia. He was a member of the Nova Scotia House of Assembly from 1759 to 1768. He was born in Boston, Massachusetts, the son of John Gerrish and ...

, in 1775; his first wife was named Elizabeth. Burbidge became a major in the local militia, a justice of the peace and a customs collector in King's County. In 1776, he was named a judge for the Inferior Court of Common Pleas. Burbidge donated land and money to build an Anglican church in Cornwallis. In 1790, he freed his slaves, also providing them with clothes and having them taught to read. He died in Cornwallis in 1812.

References

Biography at the ''Dictionary of Canadian Biography Online''
1718 births 1812 deaths Nova Scotia pre-Confederation MLAs People from Cowes Colony of Nova Scotia judges {{NovaScotia-MLA-stub

See also

References