Benjamin Tett (Feb 14, 1798 - May 15, 1878) was an

Ontario Ontario is the southernmost Provinces and territories of Canada, province of Canada. Located in Central Canada, Ontario is the Population of Canada by province and territory, country's most populous province. As of the 2021 Canadian census, it ...

businessman and political figure. He represented Leeds South as a

Conservative Conservatism is a cultural, social, and political philosophy and ideology that seeks to promote and preserve traditional institutions, customs, and values. The central tenets of conservatism may vary in relation to the culture and civiliza ...

member of the

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

. He was born in Hinton St. George in

England England is a Countries of the United Kingdom, country that is part of the United Kingdom. It is located on the island of Great Britain, of which it covers about 62%, and List of islands of England, more than 100 smaller adjacent islands. It ...

in 1798, the son of John Tett who manufactured cloth for ships' sails, and came to

Perth Perth () is the list of Australian capital cities, capital city of Western Australia. It is the list of cities in Australia by population, fourth-most-populous city in Australia, with a population of over 2.3 million within Greater Perth . The ...

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 ...

in 1820, later moving to Newboro. He served on the district council of the Johnstown District representing North Crosby. Around 1830, he set up a

sawmill A sawmill (saw mill, saw-mill) or lumber mill is a facility where logging, logs are cut into lumber. Modern sawmills use a motorized saw to cut logs lengthwise to make long pieces, and crosswise to length depending on standard or custom sizes ...

north of

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, ...

at Bedford Mills, anticipating the completion 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 ...

. In partnership with the Chaffey family and others, he established a booming timber business in the area. He also constructed a

gristmill A gristmill (also: grist mill, corn mill, flour mill, feed mill or feedmill) grinds cereal grain into flour and Wheat middlings, middlings. The term can refer to either the grinding mechanism or the building that holds it. Grist is grain that h ...

and opened a general store. In 1833, he married Julianna Poole. Tett ran unsuccessfully in Leeds for a seat in the legislative assembly of

in 1838. He was again unsuccessful when he ran for the South

Leeds Leeds is a city in West Yorkshire, England. It is the largest settlement in Yorkshire and the administrative centre of the City of Leeds Metropolitan Borough, which is the second most populous district in the United Kingdom. It is built aro ...

seat in the

Legislative Assembly of the Province of Canada The Legislative Assembly of the Province of Canada was the lower house of the Parliament of the Province of Canada. The Province of Canada consisted of the former province of Lower Canada, then known as Canada East (now Quebec), and Upper Canada ...

in 1854 but went on to represent South Leeds in the assembly from 1858 to 1863. In 1863, he was defeated by Albert Norton Richards for the same seat. Tett also served as a justice of the peace. His daughter Elizabeth married doctor Robert Henry Preston, who later represented South Leeds in the provincial assembly. His great-grandson

John Tett John Kearns Tett, & (1916 – 1974) was a Canadian athlete, wartime military pilot, physical fitness educator, and public servant. In the 1950s, he fathered the 5BX (Five Basic Exercises) fitness program developed for the Royal Canadian Air Fo ...

is the namesake of Kingston's Tett Centre for Creativity and Learning.

Electoral history

References

External links

* '' History of Leeds and Grenville, Ontario'' by

Thaddeus William Henry Leavitt Thaddeus William Henry Leavitt (1844 – 21 June 1909) was an American-Canadian teacher, journalist, author and editor, public servant. He was the author of a number of books and the founder of the ''Brockville Daily Times''. Early life Lea ...

*
Member's parliamentary history for the Legislative Assembly of Ontario
1798 births 1878 deaths Progressive Conservative Party of Ontario MPPs Members of the Legislative Assembly of the Province of Canada from Canada West 19th-century Canadian businesspeople English emigrants to pre-Confederation Ontario Politicians from Somerset People from Leeds and Grenville United Counties Immigrants to Upper Canada 19th-century members of the Legislative Assembly of Ontario {{ProgressiveConservative-Ontario-MPP-stub