William Barber (Ontario politician)

William Barber
William Barber
Ontario MPP
	In office; 1867–1875
Preceded by	New riding
Succeeded by	William Durie Lyon
Constituency	Halton
Personal details
Born	March 1808; County Antrim in Ulster, Ireland
Died	August 25, 1887; Streetsville, Ontario, Canada[1]
Nationality	Canadian
Political party	Liberal
Occupation	Businessman

William Barber (March 1808 – August 25, 1887) was a Canadian businessman and politician.

Early life

His family came to Canada from County Antrim in Ulster, Ireland in 1822. The four Barber brothers built a woollen mill, foundry and sawmill in Georgetown, Ontario. In 1854, they built a paper mill on the Credit River near Streetsville, Ontario. In 1888, his nephew, John Roaf Barber, upgraded the mill to use hydroelectricity power, one of the early industrial applications of electricity in Canada.

In 1862, Barber built a brick home near Streetsville, Ontario now known as The Old Barber House.

Political career

He was a member of the Legislative Assembly of Ontario for Halton from 1867 to 1875. In 1871 the Liberal Party dropped Barber as their candidate in the upcoming election, due to his support for Premier J. Sandfield Macdonald's self-described "Patent Combination" government.[2] In his stead, the party selected William Durie Lyon and the radical 'Clear Grits' platform he championed. Despite the withdrawal of Liberal support, Barber ran as an independent and successfully fended off Lyon's challenge, largely thanks to the significant Conservative support he had acquired.[3]

Four years after initially deselecting Barber, the Liberal Party readopted him at the 1875 election, thus preventing Lyon from contesting the riding of Halton on behalf of the party.[3]

Following the 1875 election, he was disqualified for having induced a voter to stay home,[4] and a byelection was held on November 15, 1875 which was won by William Durie Lyon.

Electoral record

1867 Ontario general election: Halton
Party		Candidate	Votes	%
	Liberal	W. Barber	1,556	56.62
	Conservative	Simcoe Kerr	1,192	43.38
Total valid votes			2,748	100.0
Source: Canadian Parliamentary Companion, 1869[5]

1871 Ontario general election: Halton
Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Independent Liberal	W. Barber	1,194	55.98	N/A
	Liberal	W. D. Lyon	939	44.02	-12.60
Total valid votes			2,133	100.0
Source: Canadian Parliamentary Companion, 1874[6]

1875 Ontario general election: Halton
Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Liberal	W. Barber	1,609	52.48	+8.46
	Conservative	William C. Beatty	1,457	47.52	N/A
Total valid votes			3,066	100.0
Source: Canadian Parliamentary Companion, 1875[7]

References

"Death of Wm. Barber, Ex-M.P.P." The Acton Free Press. September 1, 1887. p. 2.
Pope 1877, p. 88.
Pope 1877, p. 83.
"Halton Election Trial". The Acton Free Press. September 24, 1875. p. 2.
Henry J. Morgan, ed. (1869). The Canadian parliamentary companion. J. Lovell. p. 159.
Henry J. Morgan, ed. (1874). The Canadian parliamentary companion. J. Lovell.
Henry J. Morgan, ed. (1875). The Canadian parliamentary companion. J. Lovell.

External links

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[1] "Death of Wm. Barber, Ex-M.P.P." The Acton Free Press. September 1, 1887. p. 2.

[FOOTNOTEPope187788-2] Pope 1877, p. 88.

[FOOTNOTEPope187783-3] Pope 1877, p. 83.

[4] "Halton Election Trial". The Acton Free Press. September 24, 1875. p. 2.

[5] Henry J. Morgan, ed. (1869). The Canadian parliamentary companion. J. Lovell. p. 159.

[6] Henry J. Morgan, ed. (1874). The Canadian parliamentary companion. J. Lovell.

[7] Henry J. Morgan, ed. (1875). The Canadian parliamentary companion. J. Lovell.