John Lorn McDougall (November 6, 1838 – January 15, 1909) was an

Ontario Ontario ( ; ) is one of the thirteen provinces and territories of Canada.Ontario is located in the geographic eastern half of Canada, but it has historically and politically been considered to be part of Central Canada. Located in Central Ca ...

businessman and political figure. He 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

Legislative Assembly of Ontario The Legislative Assembly of Ontario (OLA, french: Assemblée législative de l'Ontario) is the legislative chamber of the Canadian province of Ontario. Its elected members are known as Members of Provincial Parliament (MPPs). Bills passed by ...

from 1867 to 1871 and 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

Liberal Liberal or liberalism may refer to: Politics * a supporter of liberalism ** Liberalism by country * an adherent of a Liberal Party * Liberalism (international relations) * Sexually liberal feminism * Social liberalism Arts, entertainment and m ...

from 1869 to 1872 and from 1874 to 1878. He was born in

Golden Lake, Ontario North Algona Wilberforce is a township municipality in Renfrew County, Ontario, Canada. It has a population of 2,873. The township was formed in 1999 when the North Algona and Wilberforce townships were amalgamated. Wilberforce Township was named ...

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 1838, the son of John Lorn McDougall, Sr. He studied at the

High School of Montreal The High School of Montreal was an English-language high school founded in 1843, serving Montreal, Quebec, Canada, in the area eventually known as the Golden Square Mile. It was less formally known as Montreal High School and from 1853 to 1870 was ...

and then at the

University of Toronto The University of Toronto (UToronto or U of T) is a public research university in Toronto, Ontario, Canada, located on the grounds that surround Queen's Park. It was founded by royal charter in 1827 as King's College, the first institution ...

. He entered his father's business in Renfrew, taking over the operation of the business in 1860 when his father died. He served several terms as reeve of Renfrew and also was warden for

Renfrew County Renfrew County is a county in the Canadian province of Ontario. It stands on the west bank of the Ottawa River. There are 17 municipalities in the county. History Bathurst District When Carleton County was withdrawn from Bathurst District in 183 ...

. His lumber business failed in 1878 and, shortly afterward, he was named to the post of

Auditor General of Canada The Auditor General of Canada is an officer of the Parliament of Canada to aid accountability and oversight by conducting independent financial audits of federal government operations. These audits provide members of parliament with objective e ...

. The ''Public Accounts Audit Act'' of 1878 established an auditor general who was independent of government financial operations and had some degree of independence from the party in power. His attention to detail, efforts to tighten controls on government spending, and persistence ruffled some feathers, but ultimately helped establish the importance of this role. Unfortunately, because his office relied on information provided by government departments, some instances of fraud went undetected. Despite resistance from government departments, he helped improve financial control by parliament and established annual reports on government spending. He resigned in 1905 and opened a private company that performed audits for companies and municipalities. He died in

Ottawa Ottawa (, ; Canadian French: ) is the capital city of Canada. It is located at the confluence of the Ottawa River and the Rideau River in the southern portion of the province of Ontario. Ottawa borders Gatineau, Quebec, and forms the core ...

in 1909 after suffering a series of

stroke A stroke is a medical condition in which poor blood flow to the brain causes cell death. There are two main types of stroke: ischemic, due to lack of blood flow, and hemorrhagic, due to bleeding. Both cause parts of the brain to stop functionin ...

s. He was appointed CMG in the

1897 Diamond Jubilee Honours The Diamond Jubilee Honours for the British Empire were announced on 22 June 1897 to celebrate the Diamond Jubilee of Queen Victoria on 20 June 1897. The recipients of honours are displayed here as they were styled before their new honour, and ar ...

References

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* {{DEFAULTSORT:McDougall, John Lorn 1838 births 1909 deaths 19th-century Canadian civil servants 20th-century Canadian civil servants Canadian auditors Canadian Companions of the Order of St Michael and St George Canadian people of Scottish descent High School of Montreal alumni Liberal Party of Canada MPs Members of the House of Commons of Canada from Ontario Ontario Liberal Party MPPs People from Renfrew County