William Weekes (died October 11, 1806) was a lawyer and political figure in

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 ...

. Weekes was born in

Ireland Ireland ( ; ga, Éire ; Ulster Scots dialect, Ulster-Scots: ) is an island in the Atlantic Ocean, North Atlantic Ocean, in Northwestern Europe, north-western Europe. It is separated from Great Britain to its east by the North Channel (Grea ...

and emigrated first to the

United States The United States of America (U.S.A. or USA), commonly known as the United States (U.S. or US) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It consists of 50 states, a federal district, five major unincorporated territorie ...

, working in the law office of

Aaron Burr Aaron Burr Jr. (February 6, 1756 – September 14, 1836) was an American politician and lawyer who served as the third vice president of the United States from 1801 to 1805. Burr's legacy is defined by his famous personal conflict with Alexand ...

,W.S. Wallace, ''The Family Compact''
Toronto 1915 before settling in York (

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 ...

) in 1798.Weekes, William in the Dictionary of Canadian Biography
/ref> He quickly entered politics, campaigning on behalf of

Henry Allcock Henry Allcock (baptised January 26, 1759 – February 22, 1808) was a judge and political figure in Upper and Lower Canada. His family was from Edgbaston and he was born in Birmingham, England in 1759 and studied law at Lincoln's Inn in Lon ...

in 1800, where he arranged to have the poll closed early while Allcock was in the lead. This led to his candidate losing his seat on appeal.

Time in the Upper Canada Legislature

In 1804, Weekes stood for election in the riding of

Durham Durham most commonly refers to: *Durham, England, a cathedral city and the county town of County Durham *County Durham, an English county * Durham County, North Carolina, a county in North Carolina, United States *Durham, North Carolina, a city in N ...

Simcoe Simcoe may refer to: Geography Canada * Simcoe, Ontario, a town in southwestern Ontario, near Lake Erie, Canada * Simcoe County, a county in central Ontario, Canada * Lake Simcoe, a lake in central Ontario, Canada * Simcoe North, a federal and pro ...

, and 1st

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 ...

, but was defeated by

Angus Macdonell Angus Macdonell of Collachie (died October 8, 1804) was a lawyer and political figure in Upper Canada. He was born in Inverness-shire, Scotland, the son of Allan McDonell and brother of Alexander Macdonell (Ontario MPP), Alexander Macdonell of ...

. In February, 1805, however, he was elected in a by-election as a result of the death of Macdonnell aboard . As soon as he took his seat in the House, Weekes introduced a motion "that it is expedient for this House to enter into the consideration of the disquietude which prevails in the Province by reason of the administration of Public Offices." The motion was defeated, and the next day Lieutenant Governor Peter Hunter prorogued the House. Hunter died shortly thereafter, and his

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 ...

allies led by John McGill, the Inspector General, and

Thomas Scott Thomas Scott may refer to: Australia * Thomas Hobbes Scott (1783–1860), Anglican clergyman and first Archdeacon of New South Wales * Thomas Scott (Australian politician) (1865–1946), member of the Queensland Legislative Assembly * Thomas Sco ...

, then Attorney General for Upper Canada, successfully installed Alexander Grant as Hunter's successor. When the House reassembled a year later, Weekes had organized his committee on the state of the province. This committee investigated and condemned the administration of the land-granting department, and "''championed the cause of those

United Empire Loyalists United Empire Loyalists (or simply Loyalists) is an honorific title which was first given by the 1st Lord Dorchester, the Governor of Quebec, and Governor General of The Canadas, to American Loyalists who resettled in British North America duri ...

and military claimants who found it difficult to get justice in the allotment of lands.''" Weekes also uncovered £617 of misspent public funds that the newly appointed provincial administrator

Francis Gore Francis Gore, (1769 – 3 November 1852) was an English military officer and British colonial administrator in Bermuda and Upper Canada. Gore was born in Blackheath, London, England in 1769 the son of Francis Gore and Caroline Beresford. ...

felt compelled to reimburse. Weekes counted as allies David McGregor Rogers and Philip Dorland, fellow representatives in the House. Beyond the House, Weekes enjoyed support from Judge Robert Thorpe and Charles Burton Wyatt, the surveyor-general. In 1806, in court, Weekes' dissatisfaction with the

came to a boil when he referred to the recently deceased Lieutenant Governor

Hunter Hunting is the human activity, human practice of seeking, pursuing, capturing, or killing wildlife or feral animals. The most common reasons for humans to hunt are to harvest food (i.e. meat) and useful animal products (fur/hide (skin), hide, ...

as a "gothic barbarian". After a dispute with William Dickson on this remark, Weekes challenged him to a

duel A duel is an arranged engagement in combat between two people, with matched weapons, in accordance with agreed-upon Code duello, rules. During the 17th and 18th centuries (and earlier), duels were mostly single combats fought with swords (the r ...

. On October 10, Weekes was mortally wounded and died the next day. His friend,

Robert Thorpe The name Robert is an ancient Germanic given name, from Proto-Germanic "fame" and "bright" (''Hrōþiberhtaz''). Compare Old Dutch ''Robrecht'' and Old High German ''Hrodebert'' (a compound of ''Hrōþ, Hruod'' ( non, Hróðr) "fame, glory ...

, was elected to his seat in a by-election.

References

External links

Biography at the ''Dictionary of Canadian Biography Online''
{{DEFAULTSORT:Weekes, William 1806 deaths Members of the Legislative Assembly of Upper Canada Canadian lawyers Year of birth missing