John Taylor Gilmour (March 8, 1855 – July 29, 1918) was a Canadian physician, journalist and politician. He represented

York West York is a cathedral city with Roman Britain, Roman origins, sited at the confluence of the rivers River Ouse, Yorkshire, Ouse and River Foss, Foss in North Yorkshire, England. It is the historic county town of Yorkshire. The city has many hist ...

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 1886 to 1894 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 ...

member. He was born in Clarke Township, Durham County,

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 ...

in 1855, the son of Thomas Gilmour. He studied in Port Hope and at

Trinity College Trinity College may refer to: Australia * Trinity Anglican College, an Anglican coeducational primary and secondary school in , New South Wales * Trinity Catholic College, Auburn, a coeducational school in the inner-western suburbs of Sydney, New ...

Toronto Toronto ( ; or ) is the capital city of the Canadian province of Ontario. With a recorded population of 2,794,356 in 2021, it is the most populous city in Canada and the fourth most populous city in North America. The city is the ancho ...

, receiving an

M.D. Doctor of Medicine (abbreviated M.D., from the Latin ''Medicinae Doctor'') is a medical degree, the meaning of which varies between different jurisdictions. In the United States, and some other countries, the M.D. denotes a professional degree. T ...

He set up practice in King Township, moving to

Toronto Junction The Junction is a neighbourhood in Toronto, Ontario, Canada, that is near the West Toronto Diamond, a junction of four railway lines in the area. The neighbourhood was previously an independent city called West Toronto, that was also its own fed ...

in 1884 where he served as surgeon for the

Canadian Pacific Railway The Canadian Pacific Railway (french: Chemin de fer Canadien Pacifique) , also known simply as CPR or Canadian Pacific and formerly as CP Rail (1968–1996), is a Canadian Class I railway incorporated in 1881. The railway is owned by Canadi ...

from 1885 to 1894. He established the Junction's first weekly newspaper, the ''York Tribune'' and served as its editor for two years. He also served as chairman of the high school board for Toronto Junction, and in this capacity was instrumental in the town acquiring its first high school which later became

Humberside Collegiate Institute Humberside Collegiate Institute (also known as Humberside CI, HCI, or Humberside), formerly known as Toronto Junction High School and Toronto Junction Collegiate Institute is a public high school located in Toronto, Ontario, Canada. It serves the ...

. Following his stint in politics, Gilmour became active in

prison reform Prison reform is the attempt to improve conditions inside prisons, improve the effectiveness of a penal system, or implement alternatives to incarceration. It also focuses on ensuring the reinstatement of those whose lives are impacted by crimes. ...

, being named warden for the

Central Prison Central Prison is a prison operated by the North Carolina Department of Public Safety in Raleigh, North Carolina. The prison, west of Downtown Raleigh, is on of land and is bounded by a double wire fence with a razor ribbon on top. The Departm ...

at Toronto in 1896, a position he left to become Warden of the Ontario Reformatory at

Guelph Guelph ( ; 2021 Canadian Census population 143,740) is a city in Southwestern Ontario, Canada. Known as "The Royal City", Guelph is roughly east of Kitchener and west of Downtown Toronto, at the intersection of Highway 6, Highway 7 and Wel ...

. At the time of his death he was the Ontario Parole Commissioner, and had the distinction of being the only Canadian prison official ever to serve as president of the

American Prison Association The American Correctional Association (ACA; called the National Prison Association before 1954) is a private, non-profit, non-governmental trade association and accrediting body for the corrections industry, the oldest and largest such associati ...

(as Canada did not yet have its own prison association).

Personal life

In 1878, Gilmour married Emma Hawkins with whom he had two children, including a son Charles who later became the Junction's coroner. Following her death in 1886, he married Margaret Edgar in 1889.

Honours

When the Junction was annexed by Toronto in 1909, a street in the new ward was renamed "Gilmour Avenue" in his honour; it runs north–south from Maria Street to Woodside Avenue.

External links

*
''The Canadian men and women of the time : a handbook of Canadian biography''
HJ Morgan (1898)
''Commemorative biographical record of the county of York, Ontario ...'' (1907)''Spadunk : or, From paganism to Davenport United ...'', WP Bull (1935)
{{DEFAULTSORT:Gilmour, John Taylor 1855 births 1918 deaths Ontario Liberal Party MPPs Physicians from Ontario Trinity College (Canada) alumni University of Toronto alumni