Alexander McMartin (1788–July 12, 1853) was a businessman and political figure in

Upper Canada The Province of Upper Canada () was a Province, part of The Canadas, British Canada established in 1791 by the Kingdom of Great Britain, to govern the central third of the lands in British North America, formerly part of the Province of Queb ...

. He was the first person born in Upper Canada to serve in its Legislative Assembly.

Early life and career

He was born in Charlottenburgh Township in 1788, the son of a

United Empire Loyalist United Empire Loyalist (UEL; or simply Loyalist) is an honorific title which was first given by the 1st Lord Dorchester, the governor of Quebec and governor general of the Canadas, to American Loyalists who resettled in British North Ameri ...

who settled on the Raisin River. The settlement that formed around his father's mills was first known as MacMartin's Mills and later Martintown. McMartin served with the Glengarry militia during the

War of 1812 The War of 1812 was fought by the United States and its allies against the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland, United Kingdom and its allies in North America. It began when the United States United States declaration of war on the Uni ...

and the

Lower Canada Rebellion The Lower Canada Rebellion (), commonly referred to as the Patriots' Rebellion () in French, is the name given to the armed conflict in 1837–38 between rebels and the colonial government of Lower Canada (now southern Quebec). Together wit ...

in 1838. He was elected to the

6th Parliament of Upper Canada The 6th Parliament of Upper Canada was Opening of Parliament, opened 27 July 1812. Elections in Upper Canada had been held in June 1812. All Legislative session, sessions were held at York, Upper Canada. The first Parliament buildings (locate ...

in 1812 representing

Glengarry The Glengarry bonnet is a traditional Scots cap made of thick-milled woollen material, decorated with a toorie on top, frequently a rosette cockade on the left side, and ribbons hanging behind. It is normally worn as part of Scottish military ...

and represented the county until 1824. During the 1820s, McMartin took over the mill operations. In 1827, with a partner, he took on a contract to clear land for a section of the

Rideau Canal The Rideau Canal is a 202-kilometre long canal that links the Ottawa River at Ottawa with the Cataraqui River and Lake Ontario at Kingston, Ontario, Canada. Its 46 Lock (water navigation), locks raise boats from the Ottawa River 83 metres (272 ...

. As the project proceeded, he found that their costs were going to be much greater than the value of the bid. Despite verbal assurances from Colonel

John By Lieutenant-Colonel John By (7 August 1779 – 1 February 1836) was an English military engineer. He is best known for having supervised the construction of the Rideau Canal and for having founded Bytown in the process. It developed and was desi ...

, he was not compensated for his losses on the project. In 1828, he was elected again as Glengarry's representative and served until 1834. He also served as justice of the peace, postmaster for Martintown and sheriff for the Eastern District.

Death

He died at Martintown in 1853.

External links

Biography at the ''Dictionary of Canadian Biography Online''
{{DEFAULTSORT:McMartin, Alexander Members of the Legislative Assembly of Upper Canada 1788 births 1853 deaths Canadian justices of the peace