Charles Dickson Archibald FRS (October 31, 1802 – September 12, 1868) was a lawyer, businessman and political figure 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 ...

. He represented Truro Township in the

Nova Scotia House of Assembly The Nova Scotia House of Assembly (french: Assemblée législative de la Nouvelle-Écosse; gd, Taigh Seanaidh Alba Nuadh), or Legislative Assembly, is the deliberative assembly of the General Assembly of Nova Scotia of the province of Nova Scotia ...

from 1826 to 1830. He was born in

Truro, Nova Scotia Truro (Mi'kmaq: ''Wagobagitik''; Scottish Gaelic: ''Truru'') is a town in central Nova Scotia, Canada. Truro is the shire town of Colchester County and is located on the south side of the Salmon River floodplain, close to the river's mouth at ...

, the son of Samuel George William Archibald and Elizabeth Dickson, and studied at

Pictou Academy Pictou Academy (PA), founded in 1815 by Dr. Thomas McCulloch, is a secondary school in Pictou, Nova Scotia. Prior to the twentieth century, it was a grammar school; a liberal, nonsectarian degree-granting college; and then a secondary school. Picto ...

. He went on to study law in his father's office. In 1830, he became chief clerk and registrar for the

Supreme Court of Newfoundland The Supreme Court of Newfoundland and Labrador is the superior court for the Canadian province of Newfoundland and Labrador. The Supreme Court has jurisdiction to hear appeals in both criminal and civil matters from the Provincial Court and design ...

; he resigned this post in 1831 and was succeeded by his brother

Edward Mortimer Edward Mortimer (22 December 1943 – 18 June 2021) was a UN civil servant, journalist, author and academic. He was Distinguished Fellow of All Souls College, Oxford, from 2013. From 2001 to 2006, he was the Director of Communications in the ...

. In 1832, he married Bridget Walker, heiress to the Rusland estate in

Lancashire Lancashire ( , ; abbreviated Lancs) is the name of a historic county, ceremonial county, and non-metropolitan county in North West England. The boundaries of these three areas differ significantly. The non-metropolitan county of Lancashi ...

, England, and spent most of the remainder of his life in England. In 1840, Archibald became a fellow of the

Royal Society of London The Royal Society, formally The Royal Society of London for Improving Natural Knowledge, is a learned society and the United Kingdom's national academy of sciences. The society fulfils a number of roles: promoting science and its benefits, re ...

. He retained an interest in Nova Scotia, helping to raise funds to develop an iron mine near

Londonderry, Nova Scotia Londonderry is an unincorporated community located in Colchester County, Nova Scotia, Canada, formerly called Acadia Mines. A bustling iron ore mining and steel making town of some 5,000 in the late 19th century, the population today stands a ...

. The Arcadian Charcoal Iron Co was established with 20000 shares and Edward Wadham sent out to advise on the development of the company. He attended a conference 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 1851 regarding a railway linking the Maritimes to Upper and Lower Canada. He filed numerous patents while in England but was made bankruptLondon Gazette issue 25954
shortly before his death in London in 1868.

References

External links

Biography at the ''Dictionary of Canadian Biography Online''
1802 births 1868 deaths 19th-century Canadian people Canadian people of Ulster-Scottish descent Fellows of the Royal Society Nova Scotia pre-Confederation MLAs People from Truro, Nova Scotia {{NovaScotia-MLA-stub