John Ross Matheson (14 November 1917 – 27 December 2013) was a Canadian politician, lawyer, and judge, who helped develop both the national flag of Canada and the

Order of Canada The Order of Canada () is a Canadian state order, national order and the second-highest Award, honour for merit in the system of orders, decorations, and medals of Canada, after the Order of Merit. To coincide with the Canadian Centennial, ce ...

Early life

John Matheson was born in

Arundel, Quebec Arundel is a township municipality in Quebec, Canada, located south of Mont Tremblant. Arundel was settled by Scottish and Irish immigrants in the mid-19th century who established subsistence farming operations and worked the forests in wint ...

, the son of the Reverend Dr. A. Dawson Matheson and his wife, Gertrude Matheson (née McCuaig). Matheson underwent training at the

Royal Military College of Canada The Royal Military College of Canada (), abbreviated in English as RMC and in French as CMR, is a Military academy#Canada, military academy and, since 1959, a List of universities in Canada#Ontario, degree-granting university of the Canadian ...

in 1936. He graduated from Queen's University in 1940, winning the prestigious Tricolour Award in that year for distinguished achievement.

Military career

Matheson served as an officer with the 1st Field Regiment, Royal Canadian Horse Artillery, 1st Canadian Infantry Division in Italy during

World War II World War II or the Second World War (1 September 1939 – 2 September 1945) was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War II, Allies and the Axis powers. World War II by country, Nearly all of the wo ...

. Matheson participated in the Battle of Ortona, where an air bursting German shell sent shrapnel into his head and caused damage similar to a stroke. He was left paralyzed from the neck down and unable to speak. He recovered after returning to Canada, but never regained the use of his right leg. His injuries caused him lifelong pain, and afterwards, he usually walked with the assistance of a cane. Matheson held honorary militia appointments with the 30th Field Artillery Regiment, Royal Regiment of Canadian Artillery from 1972 to 1982. Afterwards, he retired with the rank of Colonel.

Family and legal career

After the war, Matheson met Edith Bickley, a radiologist's assistant, in St. Anne de Bellevue Hospital in

Montreal, Quebec Montreal is the List of towns in Quebec, largest city in the Provinces and territories of Canada, province of Quebec, the List of the largest municipalities in Canada by population, second-largest in Canada, and the List of North American cit ...

. He said they would never have met if she hadn’t been such a curious nurse. The couple married and eventually had six children. He received a

Bachelor of Laws A Bachelor of Laws (; LLB) is an undergraduate law degree offered in most common law countries as the primary law degree and serves as the first professional qualification for legal practitioners. This degree requires the study of core legal subje ...

degree from

Osgoode Hall Law School Osgoode Hall Law School, commonly shortened to Osgoode, is the law school of York University in Toronto, Ontario, Canada. It is home to the Law Commission of Ontario, the ''Journal of Law and Social Policy'', and the ''Osgoode Hall Law Journal ...

, a

Master of Arts A Master of Arts ( or ''Artium Magister''; abbreviated MA or AM) is the holder of a master's degree awarded by universities in many countries. The degree is usually contrasted with that of Master of Science. Those admitted to the degree have ...

degree from

Mount Allison University Mount Allison University (also Mount A or MtA) is a Canadian primarily undergraduate liberal arts university located in Sackville, New Brunswick, founded in 1839. Mount Allison was the first university in the British Empire to award a baccal ...

, and a

Master of Laws A Master of Laws (M.L. or LL.M.; Latin: ' or ') is a postgraduate academic degree, pursued by those either holding an undergraduate academic law degree, a professional law degree, or an undergraduate degree in another subject. In many jurisdi ...

degree from the

University of Western Ontario The University of Western Ontario (UWO; branded as Western University) is a Public university, public research university in London, Ontario, Canada. The main campus is located on of land, surrounded by residential neighbourhoods and the Thame ...

. He was

called to the Bar The call to the bar is a legal term of art in most common law jurisdictions where persons must be qualified to be allowed to argue in court on behalf of another party and are then said to have been "called to the bar" or to have received "call to ...

of Ontario in 1948 and was created a Queen's Counsel in 1967. He practiced law with the firm of Matheson, Henderson & Hart in

Brockville Brockville is a city in Eastern Ontario, Canada, in the Thousand Islands region. Although it is the seat of the United Counties of Leeds and Grenville, it is politically Independent city, independent of the county. It is included with Leeds and ...

, Ontario. A member of the

United Church of Canada The United Church of Canada (UCC; ) is a mainline Protestant denomination that is the largest Protestant Christian denomination in Canada and the second largest Canadian Christian denomination after the Catholic Church in Canada. The United Chu ...

, Matheson resided in

Kingston, Ontario Kingston is a city in Ontario, Canada, on the northeastern end of Lake Ontario. It is at the beginning of the St. Lawrence River and at the mouth of the Cataraqui River, the south end of the Rideau Canal. Kingston is near the Thousand Islands, ...

until his death in December 2013.

Political career

John Matheson was elected as a Liberal Member of Parliament in the Ontario riding of

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 ...

in a 1961

by-election A by-election, also known as a special election in the United States and the Philippines, or a bypoll in India, is an election used to fill an office that has become vacant between general elections. A vacancy may arise as a result of an incumben ...

. He was re-elected in

1962 The year saw the Cuban Missile Crisis, which is often considered the closest the world came to a Nuclear warfare, nuclear confrontation during the Cold War. Events January * January 1 – Samoa, Western Samoa becomes independent from Ne ...

1963 Events January * January 1 – Bogle–Chandler case: Commonwealth Scientific and Industrial Research Organisation scientist Dr. Gilbert Bogle and Mrs. Margaret Chandler are found dead (presumed poisoned), in bushland near the Lane Cove ...

, and

1965 Events January–February * January 14 – The First Minister of Northern Ireland and the Taoiseach of the Republic of Ireland meet for the first time in 43 years. * January 20 ** Lyndon B. Johnson is Second inauguration of Lynd ...

. Matheson lost his seat in Parliament when he was defeated by 4 votes (a margin of 0.0137%) in the 1968 Federal Election. This was the first election after the riding of Leeds absorbed the traditionally conservative-voting townships of North Burgess, North Elmsley and Montague. He was the only incumbent Liberal not to be re-elected in the 1968 "

Trudeaumania Trudeaumania was the term used throughout 1968 to describe the excitement generated by Pierre Elliott Trudeau's entry into the April 1968 Liberal Party of Canada leadership election. Trudeau won the leadership election and was sworn in as prim ...

" election. Matheson was a leading member of the multi-party parliamentary committee whose mandate was to select a new flag design for Canada. He and Dr. George Stanley (then Dean of Arts at the Royal Military College) collaborated on the design which was ultimately approved by Parliament and by Royal Proclamation adopted as the National Flag of Canada as of the 15th of February 1965. Matheson wrote a book, ''Canada's Flag: A Search for a Country'', about the creation of the new flag. Matheson later played an important role in the creation of the

, as one of its founders. He also influenced the design of the order's insignia, created by Bruce W. Beatty. Matheson was portrayed by Peter MacNeill in a Heritage Minute television commercial about his involvement in the Flag committee.

Judicial appointment

In 1968, Matheson was appointed a judge of the Judicial District of Ottawa-Carleton. In 1984, he was appointed a judge of the County Court of Lanark. In 1985, he was appointed a judge of the District Court of Ontario. From 1990 to 1992, he was a justice of the

Ontario Court of Justice The Ontario Court of Justice is the provincial court court of record, of record for the Canadian province of Ontario. The court sits at more than 200 locations across the province and oversees matters relating to family law, criminal law, and prov ...

(General Division). One of Matheson's most notable decisions was in ''Clark v. Clark'', a case that heavily influenced the law regarding the capacity of differently-abled persons. Matheson ruled that 20-year-old Justin Clark, who suffered from cerebral palsy, was mentally competent to make his own decisions and should not be forced into the guardianship of his parents. The case has been described as "a pivotal moment in the Canadian disability rights movement" and lead to a widespread re-examination of provincial guardianship laws. Matheson later described giving this decision as his proudest moment.

Honours

* Officer of the

(1993) * Inaugural recipient of the Distinguished Service Award from the Canadian Association of Former Parliamentarians, awarded to a former parliamentarian "who has made an outstanding contribution to the country and its democratic institutions." (1999) Distinguished Service Award
, Canadian Association of Former Parliamentarians. Retrieved 2011-01-19. * Knight of Justice Venerable Order of Saint John * Knight Commander of Merit Order of Saint Lazarus * Canadian Centennial Medal (1967) * Queen Elizabeth II Silver Jubilee Medal (1977) * 125th Anniversary of the Confederation of Canada Medal (1992) * Queen Elizabeth II Golden Jubilee Medal (2002) * Queen Elizabeth II Diamond Jubilee Medal (2012) *

Canadian Forces' Decoration The Canadian Forces' Decoration (post-nominal letters "CD") is a Canadian award bestowed upon members of the Canadian Armed Forces who have completed twelve years of military service, with certain conditions. By convention, it is also given to t ...

(1977)

Memorials

The John Matheson Sword is awarded annually to the Preparatory Year cadet at the

Royal Military College Saint-Jean The Royal Military College Saint-Jean (), commonly referred to as RMC Saint-Jean and CMR, is a Canadian Military academy, military college and university. It is located on the historical site of Fort Saint-Jean (Quebec), Fort Saint-Jean, in Sai ...

who achieved the highest results in all four components of the College’s program, namely Academics, Leadership, Athletics and Bilingualism.

Arms

References

External links

* *
"The maple leaf has symbolized Canada for 50 years, but its origins are still misunderstood," ''National Post'', 15 December 2014
{{DEFAULTSORT:Matheson, John 1917 births 2013 deaths Canadian non-fiction writers Knights of Justice of the Order of St John Liberal Party of Canada MPs Members of the House of Commons of Canada from Ontario Members of the United Church of Canada Fellows of the Royal Heraldry Society of Canada Flag designers Judges in Ontario Lawyers in Ontario Canadian lawyers Canadian King's Counsel Officers of the Order of Canada Queen's University at Kingston alumni Mount Allison University alumni University of Western Ontario alumni People from Brockville Western Law School alumni Osgoode Hall Law School alumni Politicians from Laurentides Anglophone Quebec people Canadian Army personnel of World War II Canadian Army officers Royal Regiment of Canadian Artillery officers Royal Military College of Canada alumni 20th-century members of the House of Commons of Canada