Sir Pierre-Amand Landry, (May 1, 1846 – July 28, 1916) was an

Acadian The Acadians (; , ) are an ethnic group descended from the French who settled in the New France colony of Acadia during the 17th and 18th centuries. Today, most descendants of Acadians live in either the Northern American region of Acadia, ...

lawyer, judge and political figure in

New Brunswick New Brunswick is a Provinces and Territories of Canada, province of Canada, bordering Quebec to the north, Nova Scotia to the east, the Gulf of Saint Lawrence to the northeast, the Bay of Fundy to the southeast, and the U.S. state of Maine to ...

. He represented Westmorland County in the

Legislative Assembly of New Brunswick The Legislative Assembly of New Brunswick () is the deliberative assembly of the New Brunswick Legislature, in the province of New Brunswick, Canada. The assembly's seat is located in Fredericton. It was established in Saint John ''de jure'' ...

from 1870 to 1874 and from 1878 to 1883. He represented

Kent Kent is a Ceremonial counties of England, ceremonial county in South East England. It is bordered by Essex across the Thames Estuary to the north, the Strait of Dover to the south-east, East Sussex to the south-west, Surrey to the west, and Gr ...

in the

House of Commons of Canada The House of Commons of Canada () is the lower house of the Parliament of Canada. Together with the Monarchy of Canada#Parliament (King-in-Parliament), Crown and the Senate of Canada, they comprise the Bicameralism, bicameral legislature of Ca ...

from 1883 to 1890 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.

Early life and education

He was born in

Memramcook, New Brunswick Memramcook, sometimes also spelled Memramcouke or Memramkouke, is a village in Westmorland County, New Brunswick, Canada. Located in south-eastern New Brunswick, the community is predominantly people of Acadian descent who speak the Chiac de ...

, the son of Amand Landry and Pélagie Caissie, and was educated in Memramcook and

Fredericton Fredericton (; ) is the capital city of the Provinces and territories of Canada, Canadian province of New Brunswick. The city is situated in the west-central portion of the province along the Saint John River (Bay of Fundy), Saint John River, ...

. He taught school for a time, articled in the law office of

Albert James Smith Sir Albert James Smith (March 12, 1822 – June 30, 1883) was a New Brunswick politician and opponent of Canadian Confederation. Smith's grandfather was a United Empire Loyalist who left Massachusetts to settle in New Brunswick after the A ...

and was called to the bar in 1871, becoming the first Acadian lawyer in the province.

Legal career

Landry set up practice in Dorchester. In 1872, he married Bridget Annie McCarthy. In 1875, he helped defend nine Acadians charged with killing an English protester at a demonstration by Acadians against a public school tax. Landry served in the province's Executive Council as Commissioner of Public Works from 1878 to 1882 and provincial secretary from 1882 to 1883. As Commissioner of Public Works, he was responsible for the construction of a new provincial building for the assembly; the old building had burned in 1880. In 1881, he was named

Queen's Counsel A King's Counsel (Post-nominal letters, post-nominal initials KC) is a senior lawyer appointed by the monarch (or their Viceroy, viceregal representative) of some Commonwealth realms as a "Counsel learned in the law". When the reigning monarc ...

Political career

Landry was elected to the House of Commons in an 1883 by-election after Gilbert-Anselme Girouard accepted the position of customs collector. In 1890, he was named judge in the county court of Westmorland and Kent and, in 1893, was appointed to the Supreme Court of New Brunswick. Landry was knighted in June 1916, the first and only Acadian to be so honoured. He died in Dorchester later that year at the age of 70.

Electoral record

References

* * {{DEFAULTSORT:Landry, Pierre-Amand 1846 births 1916 deaths Politicians of Acadian descent Canadian Knights Bachelor Conservative Party of Canada (1867–1942) MPs Judges in New Brunswick Members of the House of Commons of Canada from New Brunswick Members of the Executive Council of New Brunswick Persons of National Historic Significance (Canada) Progressive Conservative Party of New Brunswick MLAs Canadian King's Counsel Provincial secretaries of New Brunswick 19th-century members of the Legislative Assembly of New Brunswick 19th-century members of the House of Commons of Canada