James Morris (Canada West politician)

James Morris (November 1, 1798 – September 23, 1865) was a businessman, banker and political figure in Canada West. He was a member of the Legislative Assembly of the Province of Canada, as a Reformer. He was later a member of the Legislative Council, serving as the Speaker of the Legislative Council. He was also a member of the Executive Council of the province.

James Morris
Member of the Legislative Assembly of Upper Canada for Leeds County
In office 1837–1841
Monarch	Victoria
Lieutenant Governor	Sir Francis Bond Head (1836–1838) Sir George Arthur (1838–1840)
Succeeded by	Position abolished
Member of the Legislative Assembly of the Province of Canada for Leeds
In office 1841–1844
Governor General	Lord Sydenham (1841) Sir Charles Bagot (1842–1843) Sir Charles Metcalfe (1843–1845)
Preceded by	New position
Member of the Legislative Council of the Province of Canada
In office 1844–1865
Speaker of the Legislative Council
In office 1853 – 1854, 1858
Postmaster General for the Province of Canada
In office 1851–1853
Preceded by	New position
Succeeded by	Malcolm Cameron
Receiver-General
Incumbent
Assumed office 1862
Personal details
Born	November 1, 1798 Paisley, Renfrewshire, Scotland
Died	September 9, 1865 (aged 66) Brockville, Canada West
Political party	Reform
Relations	William Morris (brother) Edmund Murney (brother-in-law)
Occupation	Business and banking

Family and early life

Morris was born in Paisley, Renfrewshire, Scotland in 1798. The family emigrated to British North America, eventually settling with his family at Elizabethtown (later Brockville) in Upper Canada in 1808. He was educated at Sorel in Lower Canada, at a school operated by the father of Wolfred Nelson, who was later one of the leaders of the Lower Canada Rebellion.[1]

Morris married Emily Rosamond Murney of Kingston, sister of Edmund Murney, who was later elected to the Legislative Assembly for Hastings.[1]

Business career

By 1820, Morris was involved in various business activities with his older brothers, including William Morris, who would also be involved in politics. He was active in banking throughout his career. By 1836, he was the cashier at the Commercial Bank of the Midland District in Brockville.[2] He also formed working relationships with William Hamilton Merritt and Isaac Buchanan, two successful businessmen who would also serve in the Legislative Assembly.[1]

At that time, communications were mainly by boats plying the Saint Lawrence River from Quebec City and Montreal to York on Lake Ontario. However, there were stretches of the Saint Lawrence that had dangerous rapids. Morris became involved in projects to build canals and locks north of the Saint Lawrence, allowing shipping to bypass the dangerous stretches. In 1838, he was appointed to a commission which administered funds raised for canal building. After he was elected to the Legislative Assembly, he was involved in measures to fund canals.[1]

The town of West Williamsburg, which benefited from the canals, changed its name to Morrisburg to recognise his role in the town's development.[3]

Morris was involved in the founding of Queen's College, later Queen's University, at Kingston. He was one of the four original trustees of the university funds.[1]

Political career

Morris was appointed justice of the peace in 1825. He was elected in a by-election to represent Leeds County in the Legislative Assembly of Upper Canada from 1837 to 1840. He stated that he was a conservative, wishing to maintain the British connection.[1] Following the merger of Upper Canada and Lower Canada in 1841, he again represented Leeds in the first Legislative Assembly of the Province of Canada from 1841 to 1844.[4][5]

Morris was a consistent vote for Reform. In the first session of the first Parliament, he joined most of the moderate Reformers in voting in support of the union of the Canadas, but also voted with the more radical Reformers under Robert Baldwin in opposing the government of the Governor General, Lord Sydenham. In subsequent sessions of the first Parliament, he generally voted with Baldwin's group, opposing the positions of the Governors General.[6]

In 1844, he was appointed to the Legislative Council.[7] He was speaker of the Legislative Council from 1853 to 1854 and in 1858.[8]

From 1851 to 1854, in 1858, and from 1862 to 1863, Morris was a member of the Executive Council of the Province.[9]In 1851, he became the first Postmaster General for the Province of Canada,[10] serving ex officio on the Board of Railway Commissioners and representing the government on the board of the Grand Trunk Railway. He served as receiver general from 1862 until 1863.

Death

Morris was forced to retire from political life in 1863, when he suffered a debilitating stroke. He died at Brockville in 1865.[1]

References

1. Paul G. Cornell, "Morris, James", in Dictionary of Canadian Biography, Vol. IX (1861–1870).
2. Queen's Encyclopedia: "Commercial Bank of the Midland District".
3. "A Glimpse of Morrisburg’s History".
4. "Return of the names of the Members chosen to serve in the Legislative Assembly of Canada", Office of the Clerk of the Crown in Chancery, Kingston, 14th. June, 1841, Journals of the Legislative Assembly of the Province of Canada, 1st Parliament, 1st Session, 1841, pp. xi–xii.
5. Côté, Political Appointments and Elections, pp. 43-45: "First Parliament. 8th April 1841 to 23rd September 1844".
6. Paul G. Cornell, Alignment of Political Groups in Canada, 1841-67 (Toronto: University of Toronto Press, 1962; reprinted in paperback 2015), pp. 93–97.
7. Côté, Political Appointments and Elections, pp. 27–28: "Alphabetical List of Members of the Legislative Council of the Province of Canada".
8. Côté, Political Appointments and Elections, p. 64: "Speakers of the Legislative Council".
9. Côté, Political Appointments and Elections, pp. 14–15: "Executive Council".
10. Côté, Political Appointments and Elections, pp. 67: "Postmasters General".