Hugh Richardson, (June 12, 1784 – August 2, 1870) was a

Canadian Canadians () are people identified with the country of Canada. This connection may be residential, legal, historical or cultural. For most Canadians, many (or all) of these connections exist and are collectively the source of their being ''C ...

shipowner A shipowner, ship owner or ship-owner is the owner of a ship. They can be merchant vessels involved in the shipping industry or non commercially owned. In the commercial sense of the term, a shipowner is someone who equips and exploits a ship, us ...

and

captain Captain is a title, an appellative for the commanding officer of a military unit; the supreme leader or highest rank officer of a navy ship, merchant ship, aeroplane, spacecraft, or other vessel; or the commander of a port, fire or police depa ...

. Richardson was born 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 ...

and went to sea at a young age. He and his wife came to Canada in 1821. Soon after his arrival in Canada, Hugh became part of the militia at

York York is a cathedral city in North Yorkshire, England, with Roman Britain, Roman origins, sited at the confluence of the rivers River Ouse, Yorkshire, Ouse and River Foss, Foss. It has many historic buildings and other structures, such as a Yor ...

(Toronto), and by 1825 was also beginning his involvement in the shipping business by having the steamer ''Canada'' constructed for the York–Hamilton–Niagara run. It began operation the next year. In the next years his business grew and he also became involved in the improvement of Toronto harbour. By the early 1840s, Richardson's business had expanded further. However, there was hard competition from American interests and a Canadian competitor, Donald Bethune. By 1846, he declared bankruptcy. His assets were sold and he worked in the industry as a captain. Then, in 1850, he became the first

harbourmaster A harbourmaster (or harbormaster, see spelling differences) is an official responsible for enforcing the regulations of a particular harbour or port, in order to ensure the safety of navigation, the security of the harbour and the correct opera ...

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 ...

. With this appointment, he gained a good salary and important social position. Hugh remained in the position until his death.

References

* 1784 births 1870 deaths 19th-century Canadian businesspeople British emigrants to Canada {{Canada-business-bio-stub