William Allan, JP (1770 – July 11, 1853), was a

Scottish Canadian Scottish Canadians are people of Scottish descent or heritage living in Canada. As the third-largest ethnic group in Canada and amongst the first Europeans to settle in the country, Scottish people have made a large impact on Canadian culture s ...

banker, businessman and politician.

Life and career

Allan was born at "the Moss", near

Huntly Huntly ( gd, Srath Bhalgaidh or ''Hunndaidh'') is a town in Aberdeenshire, Scotland, formerly known as Milton of Strathbogie or simply Strathbogie. It had a population of 4,460 in 2004 and is the site of Huntly Castle. Its neighbouring settlemen ...

, Scotland. He came to the British province of Quebec around 1787 under the auspices of family friend John Forsyth (of Forsyth,

Richardson Richardson may refer to: People * Richardson (surname), an English and Scottish surname * Richardson Gang, a London crime gang in the 1960s * Richardson Dilworth, Mayor of Philadelphia (1956-1962) Places Australia * Richardson, Australian Cap ...

& Company), and he settled at

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 ...

a year later. In 1795, he moved to

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 ...

(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 ...

) as the agent for Forsyth, Richardson & Company. In 1797, he opened a general store with Alexander Wood, later becoming sole owner. In 1800, Allan was named a justice of the peace in the Home District and, in 1801, became the postmaster at York. 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 ...

, he served as major in the York militia and negotiated the terms of surrender when York was first captured by the American forces. His store was looted during this period. Allan also served as supplier to the British forces. He later served on the commission responsible for reviewing claims for losses during the war, including his own. Allan served as an associated judge at the 1818 trial of several members of the

North West Company The North West Company was a fur trading business headquartered in Montreal from 1779 to 1821. It competed with increasing success against the Hudson's Bay Company in what is present-day Western Canada and Northwestern Ontario. With great weal ...

charged with the murder of Governor Robert Semple after the

Battle of Seven Oaks The Battle of Seven Oaks was a violent confrontation in the Pemmican War between the Hudson's Bay Company (HBC) and the North West Company (NWC), rivals in the North American fur trade, fur trade, that took place on 19 June 1816, the climax of ...

. In 1818, he became the agent for the

Bank of Montreal The Bank of Montreal (BMO; french: Banque de Montréal, link=no) is a Canadian multinational investment bank and financial services company. The bank was founded in Montreal, Quebec, in 1817 as Montreal Bank; while its head office remains in ...

at York. In 1821, he was part of the group that established 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 ...

, and he was its first president (from 1822 to 1835). During the

Types Riot The Types Riot was the destruction of William Lyon Mackenzie's printing press and movable type by members of the Family Compact on June 8, 1826, in York, Upper Canada (now known as Toronto). The Family Compact was the ruling elite of Upper ...

Allan watched from his property immediately east of the printing press, speaking with Stephen Heward. Multiple witnesses reported that Allan did not assist in ending the riots and recognised some of the perpetrators. Allan also served as a director of the

Canada Company The Canada Company was a private British land development company that was established to aid in the colonization of a large part of Upper Canada. It was incorporated by royal charter on August 19, 1826, under an act of the British parliament,, ...

, which was formed to develop and sell property within the province. In 1834, he became governor of the British America Fire and Life Assurance Company. From 1829 to 1831, he was chairman of the

Home District Council The Home District Council was the municipal governing body for York, Upper Canada (now Toronto, Ontario) from 1792 to 1849. It was established by Lieutenant Governor of Ontario John Graves Simcoe. The leader of the council was known as the Chairm ...

. Allan was a friend of the Reverend

John Strachan John Strachan (; 12 April 1778 – 1 November 1867) was a notable figure in Upper Canada and the first Anglican Bishop of Toronto. He is best known as a political bishop who held many government positions and promoted education from common sc ...

, and his close connections to 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 ...

led to an appointment on the Legislative Council in 1825. He became the first president of the Toronto Board of Trade in 1834. In 1836, he was named to the Executive Council for the province after the existing council resigned ''en masse'' to protest new Lieutenant Governor

Francis Bond Head Sir Francis Bond Head, 1st Baronet KCH PC (1 January 1793 – 20 July 1875), known as "Galloping Head", was Lieutenant-Governor of Upper Canada during the rebellion of 1837. Biography Head was an officer in the corps of Royal Engineers of ...

's autocratic style of government. Allan retired from the two councils after the union of Upper and

Lower Canada The Province of Lower Canada (french: province du Bas-Canada) was a British colony on the lower Saint Lawrence River and the shores of the Gulf of Saint Lawrence (1791–1841). It covered the southern portion of the current Province of Quebec an ...

in 1841. Allan died in Toronto in 1853. His one surviving son,

George William Allan George William Allan, , (January 9, 1822 – July 24, 1901), was a Canadian lawyer and politician. He served as the 11th Mayor of Toronto and later as Speaker of the Senate of Canada. Life and career Allan attended Upper Canada College an ...

, would become

mayor of Toronto The mayor of Toronto is the head of Toronto City Council and chief executive officer of the municipal government. The mayor is elected alongside city council every four years on the fourth Monday of October; there are no term limits. While in ...

and a senator.

References

External links

Moss Park Home of William Allan
– Lost Rivers {{DEFAULTSORT:Allan, William 1770s births 1853 deaths Canadian Anglicans Judges in Ontario Canadian justices of the peace Pre-Confederation Canadian businesspeople Members of the Legislative Council of Upper Canada Scottish emigrants to pre-Confederation Ontario People from Niagara-on-the-Lake People from York, Upper Canada People from Huntly Canadian bank presidents Bank of Montreal people 18th-century Canadian businesspeople Upper Canada judges Immigrants to the Province of Quebec (1763–1791)