Sgt. Ebenezer Washburn, Esq., J.P., U.E.br>
'' (April 8, 1756 – November 12, 1826) 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 Attleboro, Massachusetts in 1756 and settled on a farm in what is now Rutland, Vermont. In 1777, he joined Major-General

John Burgoyne General (United Kingdom), General John "Gentleman Johnny" Burgoyne (24 February 1722 – 4 August 1792) was a British Army officer, playwright and politician who sat in the House of Commons of Great Britain from 1761 to 1792. He first saw acti ...

's troops. He was captured but released to visit his father, who supported the rebels, in

Keene, New Hampshire Keene is a city in Cheshire County, New Hampshire, United States. The population was 23,047 at the 2020 United States census, 2020 census, down from 23,409 at the 2010 United States Census, 2010 census. It is the county seat and the only city in ...

. He left on the pretext of getting his sister and escaped to

Quebec Quebec is Canada's List of Canadian provinces and territories by area, largest province by area. Located in Central Canada, the province shares borders with the provinces of Ontario to the west, Newfoundland and Labrador to the northeast, ...

, where he joined Edward Jessup's Loyal Rangers. After the war, he settled on a farm in Township No. 2 ( Ernestown). Later, he moved to Hallowell Bridge ( Picton), where he became a merchant and forwarder of goods. He was elected to the 3rd and 4th Parliaments representing Prince Edward County. He helped introduce the District School Act of 1807 which established a school system in the province. Washburn aligned himself with the reformers in the Assembly on many issues, but found himself disagreeing with them on other issues. In 1808, he was appointed justice of the peace. He was one of the largest land-holders in the area at the time. Near the end of his life, he suffered from

edema Edema (American English), also spelled oedema (British English), and also known as fluid retention, swelling, dropsy and hydropsy, is the build-up of fluid in the body's tissue (biology), tissue. Most commonly, the legs or arms are affected. S ...

. He died at Hallowell in 1826. His son, Simon Ebenezer, became a lawyer, an alderman 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 ...

and the clerk of the peace for the Home District.

External links

Biography at the ''Dictionary of Canadian Biography Online''
{{DEFAULTSORT:Washburn, Ebenezer 1756 births 1826 deaths Immigrants to pre-Confederation Quebec Members of the Legislative Assembly of Upper Canada Deaths from edema People from Rutland (city), Vermont