Joseph Curran Morrison (August 20, 1816 – December 6, 1885) was a lawyer, judge and political figure in Canada West. He was born in Ireland in 1816 and came to

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 ...

with his family in 1830. He studied at

Upper Canada College Upper Canada College (UCC) is an elite, all-boys, private school in Toronto, Ontario, operating under the International Baccalaureate program. The college is widely described as the country's most prestigious preparatory school, and has produce ...

, studied law, articled with

Simon Ebenezer Washburn Simon may refer to: People * Simon (given name), including a list of people and fictional characters with the given name Simon * Simon (surname), including a list of people with the surname Simon * Eugène Simon, French naturalist and the genus ...

and was called to the bar in 1839. In 1848, he was elected to the Legislative Assembly for the West riding of

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 ...

. He was elected to represent

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 ...

in an 1852 by-election after

Francis Hincks Sir Francis Hincks, (December 14, 1807 – August 18, 1885) was a Canadian businessman, politician, and British colonial administrator. An immigrant from Ireland, he was the Co-Premier of the Province of Canada (1851–1854), Governor of Barb ...

was elected in both Niagara and Oxford; Morrison was reelected in 1854. He served on the Executive Council as solicitor general from 1853 to 1854. In 1856, he was named receiver general, serving until 1858. He served as director and later president for the

Ontario, Simcoe and Huron railway The Northern Railway of Canada was a railway in the province of Ontario, Canada. It was the first steam railway to enter service in what was then known as Upper Canada. It was eventually acquired by the Grand Trunk Railway, and is therefore a p ...

. He prosecuted the case against Grace Marks and James McDermott in 1853 and, in 1860, prosecuted James Brown for the murder of

John Sheridan Hogan John Sheridan Hogan (ca 1815 – December 1, 1859) was a journalist, lawyer and political figure in Canada West. He was born near Dublin, Ireland around 1815. He arrived in Toronto around 1827, having come to live with an uncle. He ran away and ...

. He was named a puisne judge in the Court of Common Pleas in 1862 and named to the Court of Queen's Bench the following year. He heard the case against 11 persons charged in the 1866 Fenian raids. In 1877, he became a member of the

Court of Appeal for Ontario The Court of Appeal for Ontario (frequently referred to as the Ontario Court of Appeal or ONCA) is the appellate court for the province of Ontario, Canada. The seat of the court is Osgoode Hall in downtown Toronto, also the seat of the Law Societ ...

serving until 1885. Morrison was chancellor of 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 ...

from 1863 to 1876. He died in Toronto in 1885. His brother

Angus Angus may refer to: Media * ''Angus'' (film), a 1995 film * ''Angus Og'' (comics), in the ''Daily Record'' Places Australia * Angus, New South Wales Canada * Angus, Ontario, a community in Essa, Ontario * East Angus, Quebec Scotland * An ...

was a member of the Canadian House of Commons and a mayor of Toronto. His daughter Mary Morrison married Arthur Sturgis Hardy, Ontario's fourth

Premier Premier is a title for the head of government in central governments, state governments and local governments of some countries. A second in command to a premier is designated as a deputy premier. A premier will normally be a head of governm ...

External links

Biography at the ''Dictionary of Canadian Biography Online''
{{DEFAULTSORT:Morrison, Joseph Curran 1816 births 1885 deaths Irish emigrants to pre-Confederation Ontario Judges in Ontario Members of the Legislative Assembly of the Province of Canada from Canada West Chancellors of the University of Toronto People of the Fenian raids