Absalom Greeley (April 18, 1823 – October 28, 1885) was the Member of Provincial Parliament (MPP) for Prince Edward in the

1st Legislative Assembly of Ontario The 1st Parliament of Ontario was in session from September 3, 1867, until February 25, 1871, just prior to the 1871 general election. This was the first session of the Legislature after Confederation succeeding the Legislative Assembly of the ...

from 1867 to 1870. Greeley ran on the political platform of the

Reform movement Reformism is a type of social movement that aims to bring a social system, social or also a political system closer to the community's ideal. A reform movement is distinguished from more Radicalism (politics), radical social movements such as re ...

; however he was thought to be a ''Yankee Tory''; a conservative with American origins in the American Whig Party. He is also supportive of the

Family Compact The Family Compact was a small closed group of men who exercised most of the political, economic and judicial power in Upper Canada (today's Ontario) from the 1810s to the 1840s. It was the Upper Canadian equivalent of the Château Clique in L ...

which is not consistent with a Reform platform.

Origins

Absalom Greeley is believed to have emigrated from Maine, U.S., with his parents in the early half of the 19th century. His father had been a surveyor there. Although largely self-educated, he is credited with good learning and significant intellect. His place of residence after 1881 is unknown.

Political history

In 1869, he is reported in Toronto newspapers as supporting the extravagant expenses at the Governors residence in an attempt to curry favour with the

. He is also reported to have tried to sell his party nomination for a county seat as Reeve; an attempt which eventually failed and became public knownledge. Greeley did not run in the 1871 election. In 1881, Greeley was charged with forgery in the town of Picton, Prince Edward County.

Parliamentary Work

As an MPP, he worked on the following Committees:

Standing Committees

* Standing Committee on Printing * Standing Committee on Standing Orders

Select Committees

* Select Committee to inquire into and report upon the endowment and utility of Upper Canada College and its relationship to the educational system * Select Committee to enquire into the usefulness and cost of wooden railways as a means of furthering the settlement of the country * Select Committee to consider Bill 33 Respecting Union Houses and Religious Worship * Select Committee to consider Bill 14 registration of births and deaths and marriages * Select Committee appointed to examine in to the working of the common and grammar school system of Ontario * Select Committee to consider Bill 30, An Act for the Encouragement of Agriculture, Horticulture, Arts and Manufactures * Select Committee to Revise the Standing Orders of this House Affecting Bills relating to Railways, Canals and Telegraphs * Special Committee to consider the Municipal and Assessments Act

Electoral history

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Greeley, Absalom Ontario Liberal Party MPPs Members of the Legislative Council of the Province of Canada Forgers 1823 births 1885 deaths 19th-century members of the Legislative Assembly of Ontario