Jonathan Saxton Campbell Würtele, (January 27, 1828 – April 24, 1904) was a

Quebec Quebec is Canada's List of Canadian provinces and territories by area, largest province by area. Located in Central Canada, the province shares borders with the provinces of Ontario to the west, Newfoundland and Labrador to the northeast, ...

seigneur A seigneur () or lord is an originally feudal title in France before the Revolution, in New France and British North America until 1854, and in the Channel Islands to this day. The seigneur owned a seigneurie, seigneury, or lordship—a form of ...

, lawyer, judge and political figure. He represented Yamaska in the

Legislative Assembly of Quebec A legislature (, ) is a deliberative assembly with the authority, legal authority to make laws for a Polity, political entity such as a Sovereign state, country, nation or city on behalf of the people therein. They are often contrasted with th ...

from 1875 to 1886.

Biography

He was born at

Quebec City Quebec City is the capital city of the Provinces and territories of Canada, Canadian province of Quebec. As of July 2021, the city had a population of 549,459, and the Census Metropolitan Area (including surrounding communities) had a populati ...

in 1828, the son of merchant Jonathan Würtele. He attended Quebec High School, studied law privately with Jean Chabot, and was called to the bar in 1850. He practised law at

Montreal Montreal is the List of towns in Quebec, largest city in the Provinces and territories of Canada, province of Quebec, the List of the largest municipalities in Canada by population, second-largest in Canada, and the List of North American cit ...

with Henry Hague Judah. After the death of his father in 1853, he inherited the seigneuries of Deguire (also known as Rivière-David), Bourg-Marie-Est, Saint-François and La Lussaudière. He settled at Saint-David-d'Yamaska, where he served as justice of the peace, chairman of the school board and mayor. He helped found the Société Saint-Jean-Baptiste there and also served as its president. In 1854, he married Julia, the daughter of

Wolfred Nelson Wolfred Nelson (10 July 1791 – 17 June 1863) was the mayor of Montreal, Quebec, from 1854 to 1856. Biography Nelson was born in Montreal. His father, William Nelson, was an immigrant to Colonial America from Newsham, North Yorkshire, Eng ...

. He founded the Yamaska Navigation Company in 1858 which transported goods along the Yamaska and

Saint-François River The Saint-François River (, ) is a right tributary of the St. Lawrence River in Quebec, Canada. Its source is Lake Saint-François in Chaudière-Appalaches, southeast of Thetford Mines. It flows southwest towards Sherbrooke, where it changes ...

s. Würtele was chief clerk of the Seigneurial Commission, charged with settling the claims for compensation following the abolition of seigneurial tenure in 1854. He returned to his law practice in partnership with

John Abbott Sir John Joseph Caldwell Abbott (March 12, 1821 – October 30, 1893) was a Canadian lawyer and politician who served as the third prime minister of Canada from 1891 to 1892. He held office as the leader of the Conservative Party. Abbo ...

from 1866 to 1868 and then with Frederick Thomas Judah. He also taught commercial law at

McGill College McGill University (French: Université McGill) is an English-language public research university in Montreal, Quebec, Canada. Founded in 1821 by royal charter,Frost, Stanley Brice. ''McGill University, Vol. I. For the Advancement of Learning, ...

. He received the degree of B. C. L. from McGill in 1870, and of D. C. L. in 1882. In 1873, he was named

Queen's Counsel A King's Counsel (Post-nominal letters, post-nominal initials KC) is a senior lawyer appointed by the monarch (or their Viceroy, viceregal representative) of some Commonwealth realms as a "Counsel learned in the law". When the reigning monarc ...

. He married Sarah Braniff in 1875, after the death of his first wife. He was made an officer of public instruction in 1880 and an officer of the

Legion of Honour The National Order of the Legion of Honour ( ), formerly the Imperial Order of the Legion of Honour (), is the highest and most prestigious French national order of merit, both military and Civil society, civil. Currently consisting of five cl ...

in France in 1882. Würtele negotiated a loan in France for the province of Quebec in 1880, and organized at the same time the Credit foncier Franco Canadien, of which he was a director. He has been counsel of the German Society of Montreal, and has held the offices of chief clerk of the seignioral commission, mayor of St. David, and president of the school commissioners of that place. Würtele was elected to the legislature of Quebec, reelected in 1878 and in 1881, and again in 1882 on his being appointed provincial treasurer. He served as provincial treasurer from 1882 to 1884 and speaker for the legislative assembly from 1884 to 1886. In 1886, he was named judge in the

Quebec Superior Court The Superior Court of Quebec () is a superior trial court in the Province of Quebec, in Canada. It consists of 157 judges who are appointed by the federal government. Appeals from this court are taken to the Quebec Court of Appeal. Jurisdictio ...

, first for Ottawa district and, in 1888, for Montreal district. In 1891, he was named associate judge in the Court of Queen's Bench and, in 1892, puisne judge in the same court. He wrote ''Manual of the Legislative Assembly of Quebec'' (Quebec, 1885). He died at Montreal in 1904 and was buried in the

Notre Dame des Neiges Cemetery Notre Dame des Neiges Cemetery (, ) is a rural cemetery located in the borough of Côte-des-Neiges-Notre-Dame-de-Grâce, Montreal, Quebec, Canada, which was founded in 1854. The entrance and the grounds run along a part of Côte-des-Neiges Ro ...

Notes

References

* * * {{DEFAULTSORT:Wurtele, Jonathan Saxton Campbell 1828 births 1904 deaths Conservative Party of Quebec MNAs Presidents of the National Assembly of Quebec Judges in Quebec 19th-century mayors of places in Quebec Canadian people of German descent Canadian people of Scottish descent Politicians from Quebec City Lawyers in Quebec Canadian King's Counsel Academic staff of McGill University Burials at Notre Dame des Neiges Cemetery 19th-century members of the Legislative Assembly of Quebec