Macdonald

Aside from being for many years a prominent public character, and one who has filled many offices of trust and emolument, with honor and credit to himself and his native province, the subject of this sketch is deserving of a conspicuous place in this volume, as an eminent example of a man who has successfully fought his way from a comparatively small beginning, to his present high position, by the employment of his own resources, and almost wholly relying upon integrity of purpose and the indomitable energy bequeathed him from his Highland forefathers. The Hon. Donald Alexander Macdonald, Lieutenant-Governor of … Read more

Descended from an old Highland family which had early settled in Glengarry, Ontario, John Sandfield Macdonald was born at St. Raphael’s, December 12, 1812. A sketch of his younger brother, Hon. D. A. Macdonald, Lieut.-Governor, appears on another page in this volume. The younger days of the subject of this sketch were tinged with a spice of romance. Early chafing under the restraints of paternal control, he made several ineffectual attempts to escape from home. Finally, after a brief experience in merchandising, he was induced, by a lawyer who had become interested in him, to begin the study of law. … Read more

John Alexander MacDonald, Prime Minister of Canada, was born in Sutherlandshire, Scotland, January 11, 1815. He is the eldest son of Hugh Macdonald, of Kingston, Ont., and formerly of Sutherlandshire, Scotland. He was educated at the Royal Grammer School, Kingston, under Dr. Wilson, a fellow of the Oxford University; read law with the late George Mackenzie, and was called to the Bar, U.C., at Hilary term, in 1836. He was created Queen’s Counsel in 184G; is a Bencher, ex-officio, of the Law Society of Ontario. He early distinguished himself in civil law, and, in 1839, in a very important criminal … Read more