Joseph Cawthra (14 October 1759 – 15 February 1842) was a Canadian

merchant A merchant is a person who trades in commodities produced by other people, especially one who trades with foreign countries. Historically, a merchant is anyone who is involved in business or trade. Merchants have operated for as long as indust ...

and

politician A politician is a person active in party politics, or a person holding or seeking an elected office in government. Politicians propose, support, reject and create laws that govern the land and by an extension of its people. Broadly speaking, a ...

. Cawthra arrived in

York York is a cathedral city with Roman origins, sited at the confluence of the rivers Ouse and Foss in North Yorkshire, England. It is the historic county town of Yorkshire. The city has many historic buildings and other structures, such as a ...

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 ...

, (now

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 ...

) from Yeadon,

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 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 ...

, in 1802. He was granted a tract of land in

Mississauga Mississauga ( ), historically known as Toronto Township, is a city in the Canadian province of Ontario. It is situated on the shores of Lake Ontario in the Regional Municipality of Peel, adjoining the western border of Toronto. With a popul ...

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 ...

(which at the time was undeveloped rural property) by the Crown, provided he built a home on it within four years. The land remained in the hands of the

Cawthra Family The Cawthra family of Toronto was famous for its business, social and cultural contributions to the city. It is one of the oldest families in Toronto, and many descendants of the family's founder, Joseph Cawthra, continue to play significant roles ...

up until the 1970s, and much of it is now retained by the City of Mississauga as parkland. Cawthra married Mary Turnpenny in 1801 and they had at least 9 children, 6 sons and three daughters, including: * William Cawthra (1801–1880) - Toronto City Alderman 1836, merchant and philanthropist *

John Cawthra John Cawthra (1789–1851) was a merchant, distiller and political figure in Upper Canada. He represented Simcoe from 1828 to 1830 in the Legislative Assembly of Upper Canada as a Reformer. He was born in England somewhere near Guiseley, the son ...

(1789–1851) - Newmarket merchant and member for Simcoe County in the

Legislative Assembly of Upper Canada The Legislative Assembly of Upper Canada was the elected part of the legislature for the province of Upper Canada, functioning as the lower house in the Parliament of Upper Canada. Its legislative power was subject to veto by the appointed Lis ...

(1828–1830) *twins Henry (1787-1854) and Joseph (1787-1790) *Jonathan Cawthra (1791-1868) - Private in Captain Cameron's Company of the 3rd Regiment of

York Militia The York Militia was a volunteer militia unit in Upper Canada formed after the passage of the Militia Act of 1793. Members of the York Militia were drawn from the settlers of York County, an area mostly made up of present-day Greater Toronto. Th ...

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 ...

Business and Wealth

Cawthra founded and ran several businesses in Yorkshire and New York before opening Toronto's first

apothecary ''Apothecary'' () is a mostly archaic term for a medical professional who formulates and dispenses '' materia medica'' (medicine) to physicians, surgeons, and patients. The modern chemist (British English) or pharmacist (British and North Ameri ...

shop, which would establish the base for his family's great wealth. Joseph's wealth grew enormously as a result of his involvement in profiteering during the War of 1812. Eventually Cawthra money was invested in other enterprises throughout the city, especially real estate. When he died, he left the bulk of his great estate and business interests to one of his sons, William Cawthra.

Politics and Philanthropy

Cawthra served one term as the Alderman for St. Lawrence Ward on the inaugural 1834

Toronto City Council Toronto City Council is the governing body of the municipal government of Toronto, Ontario. Meeting at Toronto City Hall, it comprises 25 city councillors and the mayor of Toronto. The current term began on November 15, 2022. Structure The cur ...

before being defeated by conservative candidates. His seat was re-taken for the reformers in 1836 by his son William. Joseph's spell of municipal office, his sole venture into electoral politics, reflected not only his prominence in reform circles but also his active engagement in civic affairs. Although Cawthra was a leading merchant, his attitude towards the

Bank of Upper Canada The Bank of Upper Canada was established in 1821 under a charter granted by the legislature of Upper Canada in 1819 to a group of Kingston merchants. The charter was appropriated by the more influential Executive Councillors to the Lt. Governor, t ...

was for a long time consistent with his politics. In evidence given to the House of Assembly's select committee on the state of the provincial currency in 1830, he decried its privileged position as the only chartered bank in the colony and advocated a more competitive financial market. Later that year, however, he acquired his first shares in the bank, possibly in order to stand as an "anti-establishment" candidate for its directorate, along with Jesse Ketchum,

Thomas David Morrison Thomas David Morrison ( 1796March 19, 1856) was a doctor and political figure in Upper Canada. He was born in Quebec City around 1796 and worked as a clerk in the medical department of the British Army during the War of 1812. He studied m ...

, and

Robert Baldwin Robert Baldwin (May 12, 1804 – December 9, 1858) was an Upper Canada, Upper Canadian lawyer and politician who with his political partner Louis-Hippolyte Lafontaine of Lower Canada, led the first responsible government ministry in the Province ...

. He was elected to the directorate in 1835, and re-elected in 1836 and 1837. Cawthra was an anomalous and enigmatic figure in early Toronto society: a wealthy Anglican merchant who was involved in the Mackenzieite reform politics of Toronto who left no surviving evidence of his reasons. Family tradition records his antipathy for the

family compact The Family Compact was a small closed group of men who exercised most of the political, economic and judicial power in Upper Canada (today’s Ontario) from the 1810s to the 1840s. It was the Upper Canadian equivalent of the Château Clique in L ...

and ascribes his adherence to the

Church of England The Church of England (C of E) is the established Christian church in England and the mother church of the international Anglican Communion. It traces its history to the Christian church recorded as existing in the Roman province of Britain ...

to the personal advice of

John Wesley John Wesley (; 2 March 1791) was an English people, English cleric, Christian theology, theologian, and Evangelism, evangelist who was a leader of a Christian revival, revival movement within the Church of England known as Methodism. The soci ...

, the father of

Methodism Methodism, also called the Methodist movement, is a group of historically related denominations of Protestant Christianity whose origins, doctrine and practice derive from the life and teachings of John Wesley. George Whitefield and John's br ...

, not to leave it. It seems plausible that Cawthra was simply a man of independent views, with sufficient financial independence to indulge them.

Legacy

Cawthra Road Cawthra is a surname. Notable people with the surname include: * John Cawthra (1789–1851), merchant, distiller and political figure in Upper Canada * Joseph Cawthra (1759–1842), Canadian merchant and politician *Joseph Hermon Cawthra Joseph ...

(

Peel Regional Road 17 This page lists all of the numbered regional roads in Peel Region, Ontario. See also * List of roads in Brampton *List of roads in Mississauga The following is a list of non-numbered and numbered ( Peel Regional Roads) in Mississauga, O ...

) and

Cawthra Park Secondary School Cawthra Park Secondary School, also known as CPSS, is a public high school built-in 1972 located in Southeast Mississauga, Ontario, Canada. It is one of two Regional Arts Schools in the Peel District School Board. Cawthra Park provides instructi ...

in Mississauga are named for him. Cawthra Avenue in

The 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 ...

is not named for Cawthra but rather for the Cawthra Estate with linkage to Sir

William Mulock Sir William Mulock (January 19, 1843 – October 1, 1944) was a Canadian lawyer, businessman, educator, farmer, politician, judge, and philanthropist. He served as vice-chancellor of the University of Toronto from 1881 to 1900, negotiating th ...

whom had a son named Cawthra Mulock or his mother Mary Cawthra, daughter of

References

External links

Biography at the ''Dictionary of Canadian Biography Online''
{{DEFAULTSORT:Cawthra, Joseph Joseph Cawthra 1759 births 1842 deaths English emigrants to pre-Confederation Ontario Immigrants to Upper Canada People from Yeadon, West Yorkshire Pre-Confederation Ontario people Toronto city councillors