Thomas Chase-Casgrain, (28 July 1852 – 29 December 1916), also known as Thomas Casgrain, was a

French-Canadian French Canadians (referred to as Canadiens mainly before the twentieth century; french: Canadiens français, ; feminine form: , ), or Franco-Canadians (french: Franco-Canadiens), refers to either an ethnic group who trace their ancestry to Fr ...

lawyer A lawyer is a person who practices law. The role of a lawyer varies greatly across different legal jurisdictions. A lawyer can be classified as an advocate, attorney, barrister, canon lawyer, civil law notary, counsel, counselor, solic ...

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 ...

. As a young attorney he became famous for his participation in the

prosecution A prosecutor is a legal representative of the prosecution in states with either the common law adversarial system or the civil law inquisitorial system. The prosecution is the legal party responsible for presenting the case in a criminal trial ...

Louis Riel Louis Riel (; ; 22 October 1844 – 16 November 1885) was a Canadian politician, a founder of the province of Manitoba, and a political leader of the Métis people. He led two resistance movements against the Government of Canada and its first ...

. He was born at

Detroit Detroit ( , ; , ) is the largest city in the U.S. state of Michigan. It is also the largest U.S. city on the United States–Canada border, and the seat of government of Wayne County. The City of Detroit had a population of 639,111 at th ...

in 1852, the son of Charles Eusèbe Casgrain, and studied at the

Petit Séminaire de Québec Petite or petite may refer to: *Petit (crater), a small, bowl-shaped lunar crater on Mare Spumans * ''Petit'' (EP), a 1995 EP by Japanese singer-songwriter Ua * Petit (typography), another name for brevier-size type *Petit four * Petit Gâteau *P ...

and the

Université Laval Université Laval is a public research university in Quebec City, Quebec, Canada. The university was founded by royal charter issued by Queen Victoria in 1852, with roots in the founding of the Séminaire de Québec in 1663 by François de Montmo ...

. He was admitted to the

Quebec Bar The Bar of Quebec (french: Barreau du Québec) is the regulatory body for the practice of advocates in the Canadian province of Quebec and one of two legal regulatory bodies in the province. It was founded on May 30, 1849, as the Bar of Lower Ca ...

in 1877 and received the Dufferin Silver Medal
History of the Administration of the Earl of Dufferin in Canada
'' by

William Leggo William Augustus Leggo (25 January 1830 – 21 July 1915) was a Canadians, Canadian inventor, engraving, engraver and businessperson. He is noted for co-inventing the half-tone engraver with George-Édouard Desbarats. He had several patents to ...

, Toronto: Lovell Printing and Publishing Company (1878), pg. 877 in the same year. He was named professor of law at Université Laval two years later. In 1885, he was named to the legal team representing the Crown in the trial of Louis Riel. Although the crown was represented by a large team including

George Burbidge George Wheelock Burbidge (6 February 1847 – 18 February 1908) was a Canadian lawyer, judge and author. After being called to the bar of New Brunswick in 1872, he became a partner in the Saint John, New Brunswick law firm of Harrison and Burbidge. ...

, Christopher Robinson,

Britton Bath Osler Britton Bath Osler, KC (19 June 1839 – 5 February 1901) was a Canadian lawyer and prosecutor. The eldest of three prominent brothers (the other two being Sir Edmund Osler and Sir William Osler), he was born in Bond Head, Upper Canada. Bac ...

and others, Casgrain was the only French-Canadian in the group. Pro-Riel sentiment in the

province A province is almost always an administrative division within a country or sovereign state, state. The term derives from the ancient Roman ''Roman province, provincia'', which was the major territorial and administrative unit of the Roman Empire ...

Quebec Quebec ( ; )According to the Canadian government, ''Québec'' (with the acute accent) is the official name in Canadian French and ''Quebec'' (without the accent) is the province's official name in Canadian English is one of the thirtee ...

was so strong that he was burned in effigy during at least one demonstration. However, this did not prevent him from being elected in the

Legislative Assembly of Quebec The Legislative Assembly of Quebec (French: ''Assemblée législative du Québec'') was the name of the lower house of Quebec's legislature from 1867 to December 31, 1968, when it was renamed the National Assembly of Quebec. At the same time, t ...

. He was elected for Quebec County in 1886 and for Montmorency in 1892. He was attorney general in the provincial cabinet from December 1891 to November 1892 and again from December 1892 to May 1896. He represented Montmorency as a

Conservative Conservatism is a cultural, social, and political philosophy that seeks to promote and to preserve traditional institutions, practices, and values. The central tenets of conservatism may vary in relation to the culture and civilization i ...

Member of Parliament A member of parliament (MP) is the representative in parliament of the people who live in their electoral district. In many countries with bicameral parliaments, this term refers only to members of the lower house since upper house members of ...

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 ...

from 1896 to 1904 and Quebec County from 1914 until his death from

pneumonia Pneumonia is an inflammatory condition of the lung primarily affecting the small air sacs known as alveoli. Symptoms typically include some combination of productive or dry cough, chest pain, fever, and difficulty breathing. The severity ...

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 1916. He was entombed at the

Notre Dame des Neiges Cemetery Notre Dame des Neiges Cemetery (french: Cimetière Notre-Dame-des-Neiges) is a rural cemetery located in the borough of Côte-des-Neiges-Notre-Dame-de-Grâce, Montreal, Quebec, Canada which was founded in 1854. The entrance and the grounds run a ...

in Montreal. He served as

Postmaster General A Postmaster General, in Anglosphere countries, is the chief executive officer of the postal service of that country, a ministerial office responsible for overseeing all other postmasters. The practice of having a government official respons ...

from October 1914 until his death.

Electoral record

References

General *
Biography from Assemblée nationale du Québec
* Inline citations Beaubien-Casgrain family 1852 births 1916 deaths Lawyers in Quebec Canadian legal scholars Members of the House of Commons of Canada from Quebec Conservative Party of Canada (1867–1942) MPs Members of the King's Privy Council for Canada Postmasters General of Canada Conservative Party of Quebec MNAs Academics in Quebec Université Laval alumni Politicians from Detroit Burials at Notre Dame des Neiges Cemetery {{Conservative18671942-Quebec-MP-stub