John Simpson (December 27, 1807 – September 19, 1878) was a businessman and political figure in

Canada West The Province of Canada (or the United Province of Canada or the United Canadas) was a British colony in North America from 1841 to 1867. Its formation reflected recommendations made by John Lambton, 1st Earl of Durham, in the Report on the ...

. He was born in

Helmsley Helmsley is a market town and civil parish in the Ryedale district of North Yorkshire, England. Historically part of the North Riding of Yorkshire, the town is located at the point where Ryedale leaves the moorland and joins the flat Vale of Pi ...

Yorkshire Yorkshire ( ; abbreviated Yorks), formally known as the County of York, is a Historic counties of England, historic county in northern England and by far the largest in the United Kingdom. Because of its large area in comparison with other Eng ...

, England in 1807 and came to

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 ...

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 1835 where he entered business as a bookseller. With

George Menzies George Menzies (30 September 1930 – 16 March 2016) was a New Zealand rugby league player and coach who represented New Zealand at three World Cups and coached New Zealand at another World Cup. In 2007 he was named the greatest New Zealand had ...

as a partner, he began publishing the ''Niagara Chronicle'' in 1837. He also published some other works, including ''The Canadian mercantile almanack'', and became sole owner of the newspaper in 1839. He took on other business interests and also served as customs collector at Niagara. Simpson served on the council for

Niagara District The Niagara District was a historic district in Upper Canada. Created in 1798 from the Home District, it existed until 1849. Historic evolution The District was formed by an Act of the Parliament of Upper Canada in 1798, and was described as con ...

and the town council for Niagara, serving as mayor from 1852 to 1855. In 1857, he was elected to the Legislative Assembly for Niagara; he was reelected in 1861 and 1863. In March 1864, he was named to the Executive Council as provincial secretary. Later that year, he resigned his seat, allowing William McDougall to enter the cabinet and the newly-formed

Great Coalition The Great Coalition was a grand coalition of political parties that brought an end to political deadlock in the Province of Canada. It existed from May 1864 until Confederation in 1867. Prelude Four different ministries had failed in the pre ...

. He was appointed deputy auditor general and served in that post until his death 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 1878.

References

Biography at the ''Dictionary of Canadian Biography Online''
{{DEFAULTSORT:Simpson, John 1807 births 1878 deaths Members of the Legislative Assembly of the Province of Canada from Canada West 19th-century Canadian civil servants Mayors of places in Ontario People from Helmsley