Anthony Manahan (ca 1794 – January 21, 1849) 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 born in

County Galway County Galway ( ; ) is a Counties of Ireland, county in Republic of Ireland, Ireland. It is in the Northern and Western Region, taking up the south of the Provinces of Ireland, province of Connacht. The county population was 276,451 at the 20 ...

Ireland Ireland (, ; ; Ulster Scots dialect, Ulster-Scots: ) is an island in the North Atlantic Ocean, in Northwestern Europe. Geopolitically, the island is divided between the Republic of Ireland (officially Names of the Irish state, named Irelan ...

around 1794 and went to

Trinidad Trinidad is the larger, more populous island of the Republic of Trinidad and Tobago, the country. The island lies off the northeastern coast of Venezuela and sits on the continental shelf of South America. It is the southernmost island in ...

around 1808. In 1820, he moved to

Kingston Kingston may refer to: Places * List of places called Kingston, including the six most populated: ** Kingston, Jamaica ** Kingston upon Hull, England ** City of Kingston, Victoria, Australia ** Kingston, Ontario, Canada ** Kingston upon Thames, ...

in Upper Canada and began business as a merchant. In 1824, he became manager of the iron works at Marmora which were then owned by

Peter McGill Peter McGill (August 1789 – September 28, 1860) was a Scots-Quebecer businessman who served as the second mayor of Montreal from 1840 to 1842. Biography He was born Peter McCutcheon in the village of Creebridge, Wigtownshire (now Dum ...

; he returned to Kingston in 1831. He became a major in the Hastings militia in 1826 and was made a colonel in 1830. In 1829, he was appointed justice of the peace in the

Midland District Midland District was one of four districts of the Province of Quebec created in 1788 in the western reaches of the Montreal District and partitioned in 1791 to create the new colony of Upper Canada. Historical evolution The District, originally ...

. In 1836, he was elected to the

Legislative Assembly of Upper Canada The Legislative Assembly of Upper Canada was the elected part of the legislature for the province of Upper Canada, functioning as the lower house in the Parliament of Upper Canada. Its legislative power was subject to veto by the appointed Li ...

. During his time in office, Manahan promoted the development of a canal along the Trent River. He also brought forward allegations of discrimination of Irish

Catholic The Catholic Church (), also known as the Roman Catholic Church, is the List of Christian denominations by number of members, largest Christian church, with 1.27 to 1.41 billion baptized Catholics Catholic Church by country, worldwid ...

s in the province. Manahan was crown lands agent in the Midland and

Prince Edward District A prince is a male ruler (ranked below a king, grand prince, and grand duke) or a male member of a monarch's or former monarch's family. ''Prince'' is also a title of nobility (often highest), often hereditary, in some European states. The fema ...

s from 1837 to 1844. He was elected to the

1st Parliament of the Province of Canada The First Parliament of the Province of Canada was summoned in 1841, following the union of Upper Canada and Lower Canada as the Province of Canada on February 10, 1841. The Parliament continued until dissolution in late 1844. The Parliament ...

in 1841 but resigned to allow Samuel Bealey Harrison, appointed secretary for

Canada West The Province of Canada (or the United Province of Canada or the United Canadas) was a British colony in British North America from 1841 to 1867. Its formation reflected recommendations made by John Lambton, 1st Earl of Durham, in the Report ...

, to be elected to the assembly. Manahan was then appointed customs collector in

Toronto Toronto ( , locally pronounced or ) is the List of the largest municipalities in Canada by population, most populous city in Canada. It is the capital city of the Provinces and territories of Canada, Canadian province of Ontario. With a p ...

. He resigned in 1843. An audit found that he had made unauthorized expenditures while in the post and he was forced to sell his property to cover these costs. He died in Kingston in 1849.

External links

Biography at the ''Dictionary of Canadian Biography Online''
{{DEFAULTSORT:Manahan, Anthony 1790s births 1849 deaths 19th-century Irish people Irish expatriates in Canada Members of the Legislative Assembly of Upper Canada Members of the Legislative Assembly of the Province of Canada from Canada West Irish emigrants to pre-Confederation Ontario Politicians from County Galway Immigrants to Upper Canada Canadian justices of the peace