Thomas White, (August 7, 1830 – April 21, 1888) 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 ...

journalist and politician.

Life

He was born in

Montreal Montreal ( ; officially Montréal, ) is the second-most populous city in Canada and most populous city in the Canadian province of Quebec. Founded in 1642 as '' Ville-Marie'', or "City of Mary", it is named after Mount Royal, the triple ...

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 1830, the son of Thomas White, a leather merchant who came to Canada from

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 ...

in 1826. White was educated at the

High School of Montreal The High School of Montreal was an English-language high school founded in 1843, serving Montreal, Quebec, Canada, in the area eventually known as the Golden Square Mile. It was less formally known as Montreal High School and from 1853 to 1870 was ...

after it opened in 1843, then worked at a number of jobs before entering the printing trade with the

Queen's Printer The King's Printer (known as the Queen's Printer during the reign of a female monarch) is typically a bureau of the national, state, or provincial government responsible for producing official documents issued by the King-in-Council, Ministers o ...

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 anch ...

around 1850. He moved to

Quebec City Quebec City ( or ; french: Ville de Québec), officially Québec (), is the capital city of the Canadian province of Quebec. As of July 2021, the city had a population of 549,459, and the metropolitan area had a population of 839,311. It is t ...

in 1851 when that office moved there. In 1852, he assisted Stewart Derbishire in editing the ''Canada Gazette''. He married Esther Vine at Quebec in 1853. Later that year, he founded the ''Peterborough Review'' with his brother-in-law. He also served as reeve of

Peterborough Peterborough () is a cathedral city in Cambridgeshire, east of England. It is the largest part of the City of Peterborough unitary authority district (which covers a larger area than Peterborough itself). It was part of Northamptonshire until ...

. From 1860 to 1864, he studied law with Sidney Smith at Cobourg but soon returned to journalism. In 1864, he moved to Hamilton and took over the operation of the '' Daily Spectator and Journal of Commerce''. In 1870, with his brother Richard, he bought the ''

Montreal Gazette The ''Montreal Gazette'', formerly titled ''The Gazette'', is the only English-language daily newspaper published in Montreal, Quebec, Canada. Three other daily English-language newspapers shuttered at various times during the second half of th ...

''. White was first elected to the House of Commons of Canada in the

1878 Events January–March * January 5 – Russo-Turkish War – Battle of Shipka Pass IV: Russian and Bulgarian forces defeat the Ottoman Empire. * January 9 – Umberto I becomes King of Italy. * January 17 – Bat ...

elections representing the riding of Cardwell. A Conservative, he was re-elected in

1882 Events January–March * January 2 ** The Standard Oil Trust is secretly created in the United States to control multiple corporations set up by John D. Rockefeller and his associates. ** Irish-born author Oscar Wilde arrives in t ...

and

1887 Events January–March * January 11 – Louis Pasteur's anti-rabies treatment is defended in the Académie Nationale de Médecine, by Dr. Joseph Grancher. * January 20 ** The United States Senate allows the Navy to lease Pearl ...

. He served in two ministerial positions in 1887 and in 1888:

Minister of the Interior An interior minister (sometimes called a minister of internal affairs or minister of home affairs) is a cabinet official position that is responsible for internal affairs, such as public security, civil registration and identification, emergency ...

and Superintendent-General of Indian Affairs. White 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 severi ...

in Ottawa in 1888. His son

Robert Smeaton White Robert Smeaton White (March 15, 1856 – December 5, 1944) was a Canadian journalist and political figure. He represented Cardwell from 1888 to 1895, Mount Royal from 1925 to 1935 and Saint-Antoine—Westmount from 1935 to 1940 as a Conservat ...

also served in the House of Commons.

References

* *
''The Canadian biographical dictionary and portrait gallery of eminent and self-made men : Quebec and the Maritime provinces volume'' (1881)Thomas White fonds, Library and Archives Canada
{{DEFAULTSORT:White, Thomas 1830 births 1888 deaths Conservative Party of Canada (1867–1942) MPs High School of Montreal alumni Members of the House of Commons of Canada from Ontario Members of the King's Privy Council for Canada Anglophone Quebec people