Robert Duncan Wilmot

Robert Duncan Wilmot

Robert Duncan Wilmot (born October 16, 1809 in Fredericton , New Brunswick , † February 13, 1891 in Sunbury County , New Brunswick) was a Canadian politician . As one of the fathers of the Confederation , he was one of the pioneers of the Canadian state founded in 1867. From 1867 to 1880 he was a Senator , then until 1885 Vice Governor of the Province of New Brunswick.

biography

Wilmot was the son of wholesaler and shipyard owner John McNeil Wilmot and moved to Saint John at the age of five . He worked for his father's company and was its representative in Liverpool from 1835 to 1840 . It was there that his son, Robert Duncan Wilmot junior , who would later become MP , was born. After his return he was involved in the construction of mills, ships and railway lines. He was also director of the European and North American Railway .

In 1846, Wilmot was elected to the New Brunswick Legislative Assembly . He served as Mayor of Saint John in 1849 and 1850, and Provincial Secretary in John Hamilton Gray's short-lived Conservative government from 1856 to 1857 . After he was voted out in 1861, he was re-elected in 1865 as a member of the newly formed Anti-Confederation Party , which was against New Brunswick's accession to the Canadian Confederation . Wilmot was a minister with no portfolio in the government of Albert James Smith , which failed in April 1866 after only seven months. By now he had changed his mind about joining the Confederation.

In December 1866, Wilmot was a delegate at the London Conference , where the final details of the founding of the Canadian state were negotiated. By royal proclamation he was named Canadian Senator on October 23, 1867 . From November 1878 he headed the Senate as speaker and was an ex officio member of the federal government of John Macdonald . He resigned on February 10, 1880 and was sworn in as Lieutenant Governor of New Brunswick the following day . He held this representative office until November 11, 1885.

Web links

• Robert Duncan Wilmot . In: Dictionary of Canadian Biography . 24 volumes, 1966–2018. University of Toronto Press, Toronto ( English , French ).
• Robert Duncan Wilmot - biographical information on the website of the Canadian Parliament (English)