Sir William Glenholme Falconbridge, (May 12, 1846 – February 8, 1920) was a

Canadian Canadians (french: Canadiens) are people identified with the country of Canada. This connection may be residential, legal, historical or cultural. For most Canadians, many (or all) of these connections exist and are collectively the source of ...

lawyer and judge in

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 ...

, Canada. Born in Drummondville (now

Niagara Falls, Ontario Niagara Falls is a city in Ontario, Canada. It is on the western bank of the Niagara River in the Golden Horseshoe region of Southern Ontario, with a population of 88,071 at the 2016 census. It is part of the St. Catharines - Niagara Census M ...

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 ...

, he was the son of John Kennedy Falconbridge, an

Irish Irish may refer to: Common meanings * Someone or something of, from, or related to: ** Ireland, an island situated off the north-western coast of continental Europe ***Éire, Irish language name for the isle ** Northern Ireland, a constituent unit ...

immigrant, and Sarah Fralick. Falconbridge studied at the Richmond Hill grammar school, Barrie grammar school, and at the Model Grammar School in

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 ...

. He received a BA degree in 1866 from

University College, University of Toronto University College, popularly referred to as UC, is a constituent college of the University of Toronto, created in 1853 specifically as an institution of higher learning free of religious affiliation. It was the founding member of the universit ...

. He served as the chair of modern languages at Yarmouth Seminary in

Nova Scotia Nova Scotia ( ; ; ) is one of the thirteen provinces and territories of Canada. It is one of the three Maritime provinces and one of the four Atlantic provinces. Nova Scotia is Latin for "New Scotland". Most of the population are native Eng ...

for his health and then returned to Toronto where he was a lecturer in Spanish and Italian at University College. At the same time, he studied law with the law firm Morphy, Sullivan, and Fenton. He also studied with the firm of Patton, Osler, and Moss before being called to the Ontario Bar in 1871. He practiced law in the firm of Harrison, Osler, and Moss. In 1879, he was made a partner of the firm. In 1870, he received an MA degree from the University of Toronto and was registrar of the University from 1872 to 1881. In 1873, he married Mary Phoebe, the daughter of

Robert Baldwin Sullivan Robert Baldwin Sullivan, (May 24, 1802 – April 14, 1853), was an Ireland, Irish-Canadians, Canadian lawyer, judge, and politician who became the second Mayor of Toronto, Upper Canada. Career In 1835, he was elected to Toronto City Council of ...

. He was made a

bencher A bencher or Master of the Bench is a senior member of an Inn of Court in England and Wales or the Inns of Court in Northern Ireland, or the Honorable Society of King's Inns in Ireland. Benchers hold office for life once elected. A bencher can ...

of the

Law Society of Upper Canada The Law Society of Ontario (LSO; french: Barreau de l'Ontario) is the law society responsible for the self-regulation of lawyers and paralegals in the Canadian province of Ontario. Founded in 1797 as the Law Society of Upper Canada (LSUC; frenc ...

and created a

Queen's Counsel In the United Kingdom and in some Commonwealth of Nations, Commonwealth countries, a King's Counsel (Post-nominal letters, post-nominal initials KC) during the reign of a king, or Queen's Counsel (post-nominal initials QC) during the reign of ...

in 1885. In 1887, he was appointed a judge in the Queen's Bench division of Ontario's High Court of Justice. In 1900, he was appointed Chief Justice of the King's Bench, High Court of Justice of the Province of Ontario. From 1905 to 1908 he served as Chair of the Toronto Public Library Board. In 1908, he was made a

Knight Bachelor The title of Knight Bachelor is the basic rank granted to a man who has been knighted by the monarch but not inducted as a member of one of the organised orders of chivalry; it is a part of the British honours system. Knights Bachelor are the ...

. Falconbridge died of

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 ...

in Toronto at the age of 73. The geographic township of

Falconbridge Falconbridge may refer to: *Falconbridge Ltd., a Canadian mining company *Falconbridge, Middlesex County, Ontario *Falconbridge, Greater Sudbury, Ontario People: *Lord Falconbridge, an alternative title for barons, viscounts, and earls of Fauconbe ...

was named in his honour.

References

Bibliography

External links

William Glenholme Falconbridge archival papers
held at th
University of Toronto Archives and Records Management Services
{{DEFAULTSORT:Falconbridge, William 1846 births 1920 deaths Canadian Knights Bachelor Judges in Ontario Lawyers in Ontario University of Toronto alumni Canadian King's Counsel Deaths from pneumonia in Ontario Burials at St. James Cemetery, Toronto