1st Parliament of the Province of Canada


The First Parliament of the Province of Canada was summoned in 1841, following the union of Upper Canada and Lower Canada as the Province of Canada on February 10, 1841. The Parliament continued until dissolution in late 1844.
The Parliament of the Province had two chambers: the elected lower house, the Legislative Assembly, and the appointed upper house, the Legislative Council. The first general election for the Legislative Assembly was held in April, 1841. Canada East and Canada West ) each had forty-two seats in the Legislative Assembly. The members of the Legislative Council, twenty-four in number, were appointed by the British Governor General, Lord Sydenham.
All sessions were held at Kingston, Canada West, with the first session of the Parliament called on June 1841. The Parliament had three annual sessions, but then was prorogued for close to a year due to a political crisis in the relations between the Legislative Assembly and the Governor General. The Parliament was dissolved in September, 1844, triggering the second general election for the Province.
In 1841, the District Councils Act was passed which established a system of local government in Canada West based on district councils. Prior to 1841, local affairs were dealt with by the District Court of Quarter Sessions.

First government and election

The Governor General, Lord Sydenham, appointed the first members to the Executive Council on February 13, 1841. All of the members were anglophones, with no francophones. They were appointed as advisors to the Governor General, who continued to exercise the executive powers of the government.
The first general election for the new Legislative Assembly was held in the spring of 1841. There was no single election date. The returning officer in each electoral district chose the date for the election in their district.
The Governor General, following the policy of assimilation set out in Lord Durham's Report, drew boundaries and chose the location of polling stations in Canada East in anglophone areas, in an effort to favour voters of British stock and to make it more difficult for francophone voters to exercise their franchise.
There was electoral violence during the elections. In one case, the threat of riots at the polling station forced Louis-Hippolyte Lafontaine, a proponent of responsible government, to withdraw his candidacy from the riding of Terrebonne in Canada East. In response, Robert Baldwin in Canada West, also a supporter of responsible government, proposed to his father, William Warren Baldwin, that they should assist Lafontaine's election. Baldwin senior was a candidate for a riding in the Toronto area. He withdrew his nomination to allow Lafontaine to stand for election. Lafontaine was elected. This was the beginning of the Lafontaine-Baldwin alliance which ultimately led to responsible government in the Province of Canada.
Candidates at this time would be loosely affiliated in early political parties, but party structure was not strong, and there were different party groups in Canada East and Canada West. The election resulted in a Legislative Assembly with no single party group with a majority.

Legislative Assembly

Canada East

Members elected in the general election

The following members were elected to the Legislative Assembly from Canada East in the 1841 general election.
RidingMemberParty
BeauharnoisDunscomb, John WilliamTory
BellechasseRuel, Augustin-GuillaumeAnti-unionist
BerthierArmstrong, David MorrisonGroupe Canadien-français; later Reformer
BonaventureHamilton, John RobinsonAnti-unionist; Independent
ChamblyYule, JohnUnionist; Tory
ChamplainKimber, René-JosephAnti-unionist; Groupe Canadien-français
DorchesterTaschereau, Antoine-CharlesAnti-unionist; Groupe Canadien-français
DrummondWatts, Robert NugentUnionist; Tory
GaspéChristie, RobertAnti-unionist
HuntingdonCuvillier, AustinAnti-unionist
KamouraskaBerthelot, AmableAnti-unionist
L'IsletTaché, Étienne-PascalGroupe Canadien-français
LeinsterRaymond, Jean-MoïseGroupe Canadien-français
LotbinièreNoël, Jean-Baptiste-IsaïeGroupe Canadien-français
MegantickDaly, DominickUnionist; Tory
MissiskouiJones, RobertTory
MontmorencyQuesnel, Frédéric-AugusteAnti-unionist; Groupe Canadien-français
Montreal
Holmes, BenjaminUnionist; Tory; later independent; later Groupe Canadien-français
Montreal
Moffatt, GeorgeUnionist; Tory
Montreal CountyDelisle, Alexandre-MauriceUnionist; Tory
NicoletMorin, Augustin-NorbertAnti-unionist; Groupe Canadien-français
Ottawa CountyDay, Charles DeweyUnionist; Tory
PortneufAylwin, Thomas CushingAnti-unionist; Groupe Canadien-français
Quebec City
Black, HenryUnionist; Tory
Quebec City
Burnet, DavidUnionist; moderate
Quebec CountyJohn NeilsonAnti-unionist; Groupe Canadien-français
RichelieuViger, Denis-BenjaminAnti-unionist; Groupe Canadien-français
RimouskiBorne, MichelGroupe Canadien-français
Rouvillede Salaberry, Melchior-AlphonseUnionist; Tory
SaguenayParent, ÉtienneAnti-unionist; Groupe Canadien-français
Saint HyacintheBoutillier, ThomasPatriote
Saint MauriceTurcotte, Joseph-ÉdouardAnti-unionist
SheffordFoster, SewellUnionist; Tory
SherbrookeHale, EdwardUnionist; Tory
Sherbrooke CountyMoore, JohnUnionist; originally Tory; later Groupe Canadien-français
StansteadChild, MarcusUnionist; Tory; later Groupe Canadien-français
TerrebonneMcCulloch, MichaelUnionist; Tory
Three RiversOgden, Charles RichardUnionist; Tory
Two MountainsRobertson, ColinUnionist; Tory
VaudreuilSimpson, JohnUnionist; Tory
VerchèresDesrivières, HenriGroupe Canadien-français
YamaskaJoseph-Guillaume BarthePatriote

Vacancies during the First Parliament

By-elections during the First Parliament

The following members were elected in by-elections during the First Parliament.
RidingMembers Elected in By-ElectionsPartyReason for VacancyBy-election date
BeauharnoisWakefield, Edward GibbonGroupe Canadien-français; later ToryIncumbent resigned following appointment as Warden, Trinity House, MontrealNovember 9, 1842
BellechasseTurgeon, AbrahamGroupe Canadien-françaisIncumbent resigned following appointment as Registrar, district of RimouskiJune 6, 1842
ChamblyLacoste, LouisGroupe Canadien-françaisIncumbent resigned seatOctober 23, 1843
ChamplainJudah, HenryIndependent liberalIncumbent appointed to Legislative CouncilSeptember 22, 1843
LeinsterDe Witt, JacobGroupe Canadien-françaisIncumbent resigned to take appointment as District Registrar of LeinsterAugust 8, 1842
MontrealBeaubien, PierreGroupe Canadien-françaisIncumbent resigned to protest movement of provincial capital from Kingston to MontrealNovember 22, 1843
Montreal CountyJobin, AndréGroupe Canadien-français and ReformerSeat vacated when incumbent appointed Clerk of the Crown, Montreal Sessions of the Peace, a civil service positionOctober 26, 1843
NicoletViger, Louis-MichelGroupe Canadien-françaisIncumbent appointed to the benchFebruary 15, 1842
Ottawa CountyPapineau, Denis-BenjaminGroupe Canadien-françaisIncumbent appointed to the benchAugust 17, 1842
Quebec CityChabot, JeanGroupe Canadien-françaisIncumbent resigned on bankruptcy.September 18, 1843
RimouskiBaldwin, RobertReformerIncumbent resigned to allow Baldwin to stand for electionJanuary 30, 1843
Rouville
Walker, WilliamAnti-unionist; ToryIncumbent accepted office of profit under the CrownJuly 7, 1842
Rouville
Franchère, TimothéeGroupe Canadien-françaisIncumbent resigned due to ill-healthSeptember 25, 1843
SaguenayMorin, Augustine-NorbertGroupe Canadien-françaisIncumbent resigned to take government positionNovember 28, 1842
Saint MauriceTurcotte, Joseph-ÉdouardAnti-unionistRequired to resign seat on accepting two offices of profit under the Crown; re-elected in by-electionJuly 8, 1842
Two MountainsForbes, Charles JohnToryDeath of incumbentApril 18, 1842
VerchèresJames LeslieAnti-union; ReformerResignation of incumbent to allow Leslie to stand for electionDecember 28, 1841

Canada West

Members elected in the general election

The following members were elected to the Legislative Assembly from Canada West in the 1841 general election.
RidingMemberParty
BrockvilleGeorge SherwoodTory
BytownStewart DerbishireConservative
CarletonJames JohnstonReformer
CornwallSolomon Yeomans ChesleyConservative
DundasJohn Cook
DurhamJohn Tucker WilliamsTory
EssexJohn Prince
FrontenacHenry Smith, JrConservative
GlengarryJohn Sandfield MacdonaldReformer
GrenvilleSamuel CraneReformer
HaldimandDavid ThompsonReformer
East HaltonCaleb HopkinsReformer
West HaltonJames Durand, Jr.Reformer
HamiltonAllan Napier MacNabConservative
HastingsRobert BaldwinReformer
Edmund Murney Conservative
HuronJames McGill StrachanConservative
William DunlopConservative
KentJoseph WoodsConservative
KingstonAnthony ManahanConservative
Samuel Bealey Harrison Reformer
LanarkMalcolm CameronReformer
LeedsJames MorrisReformer
Lennox & AddingtonJohn Solomon CartwrightConservative
North Lincoln CountyWilliam Hamilton MerrittReformer
South LincolnDavid Thorburn
LondonHamilton Hartley Killaly
Lawrence Lawrason
MiddlesexThomas ParkeReformer
Niagara Edward C. Campbell
Henry John Boulton Independent
NorfolkIsrael Wood Powell
North NorthumberlandJohn GilchristReformer
South NorthumberlandGeorge Boswell
OxfordFrancis HincksReformer
PrescottDonald Macdonald
Prince EdwardJohn Philip RoblinReformer
RussellWilliam Henry DraperConservative
William Stewart Conservative
SimcoeElmes Yelverton SteeleReformer
StormontAlexander McLeanConservative
TorontoIsaac BuchananReformer
Henry Sherwood Conservative
TorontoJohn Henry DunnReformer
WentworthHarmannus Smith
1st YorkJames Hervey Price
2nd YorkGeorge DugganConservative
3rd YorkJames Edward SmallReformer
4th YorkLouis Hippolyte LaFontaineReformer