John Classon Miller (December 16, 1836 – April 2, 1884) was an

Ontario Ontario ( ; ) is one of the thirteen provinces and territories of Canada.Ontario is located in the geographic eastern half of Canada, but it has historically and politically been considered to be part of Central Canada. Located in Central C ...

lumber merchant and political figure. He represented

Muskoka and Parry Sound Muskoka and Parry Sound was a federal electoral district represented in the House of Commons of Canada from 1883 to 1904. It was located in the province of Ontario. This riding was created from parts of Algoma and Muskoka ridings. It consisted ...

in the Legislative Assembly of Ontario from 1875 to 1882 as a Liberal member. He was born in Yonge Township,

Leeds County Leeds County is a historic county in the Canadian province of Ontario. The county was first surveyed in 1792 as one of the nineteen counties created by Sir John Graves Simcoe in preparation for the United Empire Loyalists to settle here. The count ...

Upper Canada The Province of Upper Canada (french: link=no, province du Haut-Canada) was a part of 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 t ...

in 1836 and entered business as a merchant at

Seeleys Bay Leeds and the Thousand Islands is a township in the Canadian province of Ontario, located within the United Counties of Leeds and Grenville. The township is located along the Saint Lawrence River, and extends north into rural hamlets and villages ...

. Miller served as deputy sheriff for the

United Counties of Leeds and Grenville The United Counties of Leeds and Grenville, commonly known as Leeds and Grenville, is a county in Ontario, Canada, in the Eastern Ontario subregion of Southern Ontario. It fronts on the Saint Lawrence River and the international boundary between ...

. In 1859, he married Adelaide Augusta Chamberlain. He moved to

Toronto Toronto ( ; or ) is the capital city of the Provinces and territories of Canada, Canadian province of Ontario. With a recorded population of 2,794,356 in 2021, it is the List of the largest municipalities in Canada by population, most pop ...

and was employed by the Ontario Crown Lands Department from 1868 to 1871, acting as superintendent of woods and forests. He then, with others, purchased

timber rights Lumber is wood that has been processed into dimensional lumber, including beams and planks or boards, a stage in the process of wood production. Lumber is mainly used for construction framing, as well as finishing (floors, wall panels, wi ...

and 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 ...

at Parry Sound, forming the Parry Sound Lumber Company. In 1877, he became the owner and general manager for the company, which soon grew to become one of the most important businesses in the region. Miller's election to the legislative assembly in 1875 was declared invalid on appeal; this decision was then overturned by the Court of Error and Appeal in 1876. He was reelected in 1879 but resigned in 1882 to contest the federal seat, losing to

William Edward O'Brien William Edward O'Brien (March 10, 1831 – December 21, 1914) was a lawyer, farmer, editor and political figure in Ontario, Canada. He represented Muskoka and Parry Sound in the House of Commons of Canada from 1882 to 1896 as a Conservativ ...

by three votes. He died of

tuberculosis Tuberculosis (TB) is an infectious disease usually caused by ''Mycobacterium tuberculosis'' (MTB) bacteria. Tuberculosis generally affects the lungs, but it can also affect other parts of the body. Most infections show no symptoms, in w ...

Colton, California Colton is a city in San Bernardino County, California, United States. Nicknamed "Hub City", Colton is located in the Inland Empire region of the state and is a suburb of San Bernardino, approximately south of the city's downtown. The population ...

in 1884 and was buried at Parry Sound. His son John Bellamy took over the operation of the lumber company which continued to operate until 1931.

External links

Biography at the ''Dictionary of Canadian Biography Online''
* {{DEFAULTSORT:Miller, John Classon 1836 births 1884 deaths Ontario Liberal Party MPPs