John McMurrich
John McMurrich | |
|---|---|
 | |
| Ontario MPP | |
| In office 1867–1871 | |
| Preceded by | Riding established |
| Succeeded by | Alfred Boultbee |
| Constituency | York North |
| Personal details | |
| Born | February 3, 1804 Paisley, Scotland |
| Died | February 13, 1883 (aged 79) Toronto, Ontario |
| Political party | Liberal |
| Occupation | Businessman |
John McMurrich (February 3, 1804 – February 13, 1883) was a businessman and political figure in Canada West and later Ontario.
He was born near Paisley, Scotland in 1804 and came to Upper Canada in 1833 to work in a York (Toronto) dry goods business affiliated with a Glasgow-based firm. He became a partner in 1837. McMurrich served on Toronto city council in 1860. He was elected to the Legislative Council of the Province of Canada in an 1862 by-election. He served on the Public School Board in Toronto for a number of years and was chairman from 1865 to 1867 and in 1870. In 1867, he was elected to the Legislative Assembly of Ontario for York North as a Liberal; he was defeated in 1871. He was a member of the Toronto Board of Trade and served as president for a number of Toronto companies. He died in Toronto in 1883.
His eldest son, William Barclay McMurrich, was a mayor of Toronto. His second son, George McMurrich, was a long-time alderman on Toronto City Council.[1] Another son, J. Playfair McMurrich, became a distinguished zoologist.
Legacy
McMurrich name bears on a few places in Ontario:
- McMurrich/Monteith is a municipality and census subdivision in Ontario named after McMurrich.
- McMurrich Street and McMurrich Junior Public School in Toronto are named in his honour.
Electoral history
| 1867 Ontario general election: York North | ||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Party | Candidate | Votes | % | |||||
| Liberal | John McMurrich | 1,369 | 54.20 | |||||
| Conservative | Alfred Boultbee | 1,157 | 45.80 | |||||
| Total valid votes | 2,526 | 73.90 | ||||||
| Eligible voters | 3,418 | |||||||
| Liberal pickup new district. | ||||||||
| Source: Elections Ontario[2] | ||||||||
| 1871 Ontario general election: York North | ||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% | ||||
| Conservative | Alfred Boultbee | 1,306 | 50.10 | +4.29 | ||||
| Liberal | John McMurrich | 1,301 | 49.90 | −4.29 | ||||
| Turnout | 2,607 | 66.64 | −7.26 | |||||
| Eligible voters | 3,912 | |||||||
| Conservative gain from Liberal | Swing | +4.29 | ||||||
| Source: Elections Ontario[3] | ||||||||
References
- ^ "Ald. M'Murrich Lost Battle with Death", Toronto Daily Star (1900-1971); Toronto, Ontario [Toronto, Ontario]. 08 Sep 1913: 11.
- ^ "Data Explorer". Elections Ontario. 1867. Retrieved March 15, 2024.
- ^ "Data Explorer". Elections Ontario. 1871. Retrieved March 31, 2024.