Sir Alexander Campbell (March 9, 1822 – May 24, 1892) was an

English English usually refers to: * English language * English people English may also refer to: Peoples, culture, and language * ''English'', an adjective for something of, from, or related to England ** English national ide ...

-born, Upper Canadian statesman and a father of

Canadian Confederation Canadian Confederation (french: Confédération canadienne, link=no) was the process by which three British North American provinces, the Province of Canada, Nova Scotia, and New Brunswick, were united into one federation called the Canada, Dom ...

Life

Born in

Hedon Hedon is a town and civil parish in Holderness in the East Riding of Yorkshire, England. It is situated approximately east of Hull city centre. It lies to the north of the A1033 road at the crossroads of the B1240 and B1362 roads. It is ...

Yorkshire Yorkshire ( ; abbreviated Yorks), formally known as the County of York, is a Historic counties of England, historic county in northern England and by far the largest in the United Kingdom. Because of its large area in comparison with other Eng ...

, he was brought to Canada by his father, who was a doctor, when he was one year old. He was educated in French at St. Hyacinthe in

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 ...

and in the grammar school at

Kingston, Ontario Kingston is a city in Ontario, Canada. It is located on the north-eastern end of Lake Ontario, at the beginning of the St. Lawrence River and at the mouth of the Cataraqui River (south end of the Rideau Canal). The city is midway between Toro ...

. Campbell studied law and was

called to the bar The call to the bar is a legal term of art in most common law jurisdictions where persons must be qualified to be allowed to argue in court on behalf of another party and are then said to have been "called to the bar" or to have received "call to ...

in 1843. He became a partner in

John A. Macdonald Sir John Alexander Macdonald (January 10 or 11, 1815 – June 6, 1891) was the first prime minister of Canada, serving from 1867 to 1873 and from 1878 to 1891. The dominant figure of Canadian Confederation, he had a political career that sp ...

's law office. Campbell was a

Freemason Freemasonry or Masonry refers to fraternal organisations that trace their origins to the local guilds of stonemasons that, from the end of the 13th century, regulated the qualifications of stonemasons and their interaction with authorities ...

of St. John's Lodge, No. 3 (Ontario) of Kingston (now The Ancient St. John's No. 3). When the government was moved to Quebec in 1858, Campbell resigned. He was elected to the Legislative Council in 1858 and 1864, and served as the last Commissioner of Crown Lands 30 March 1864 – 30 June 1867. He attended the Charlottetown Conference and the Quebec City Conference in 1864, and at Confederation was appointed to the

Senate of Canada The Senate of Canada (french: region=CA, Sénat du Canada) is the upper house of the Parliament of Canada. Together with the Crown and the House of Commons, they comprise the bicameral legislature of Canada. The Senate is modelled after the B ...

. He later held a number of ministerial posts in the

Cabinet Cabinet or The Cabinet may refer to: Furniture * Cabinetry, a box-shaped piece of furniture with doors and/or drawers * Display cabinet, a piece of furniture with one or more transparent glass sheets or transparent polycarbonate sheets * Filing ...

of Prime Minister John A. Macdonald and was the sixth

Lieutenant Governor of Ontario The lieutenant governor of Ontario (, in French: ''Lieutenant-gouverneur'' (if male) or ''Lieutenante-gouverneure'' (if female) ''de l'Ontario'') is the viceregal representative in Ontario of the , who operates distinctly within the province bu ...

from 1887 to 1892. In 1883, he built his home on Metcalfe Street, Ottawa, now known as "Campbell House". Campbell House (Ottawa)

He died in office 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 ...

in 1892, and was buried at Cataraqui Cemetery in Kingston, Ontario. Campbell Crescent in Kingston, a street in the Portsmouth municipal district, is named in his honour.

Family

In 1855, Campbell married Georgina Frederica Locke, daughter of Thomas Sandwith of

Beverley, Yorkshire Beverley is a market town, market and minster (church), minster town and a civil parishes in England, civil parish in the East Riding of Yorkshire, England, of which it is the county town. The town centre is located south-east of York's centre ...

, and a niece of Humphrey Sandwith III (1792–1874) of

Bridlington Bridlington is a coastal town and a civil parish on the Holderness Coast of the North Sea in the East Riding of Yorkshire, England. It is about north of Hull and east of York. The Gypsey Race enters the North Sea at its harbour. The 2011 Cen ...

. He left two sons (the eldest was

Charles Sandwith Campbell Charles Sandwith Campbell, (1858–1923) was a wealthy corporate lawyer and benefactor who gave the City of Montreal the Campbell Concerts and Campbell Parks. He was a Governor of McGill University. Early life and education Born in 1858 at K ...

) and three daughters

References

External links

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Humphrey Sandwith
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Alexander Campbell fonds
Archives of Ontario {{DEFAULTSORT:Campbell, Alexander 1822 births 1892 deaths Anglo-Scots Canadian senators from Ontario Canadian people of Scottish descent English emigrants to pre-Confederation Ontario English Anglicans Fathers of Confederation Conservative Party of Canada (1867–1942) senators Canadian Knights Commander of the Order of St Michael and St George Canadian King's Counsel Lieutenant Governors of Ontario Members of the Legislative Council of the Province of Canada Members of the King's Privy Council for Canada People from Hedon People from Kingston, Ontario Postmasters General of Canada Anglophone Quebec people Persons of National Historic Significance (Canada) Immigrants to Upper Canada Canadian Freemasons