Lawyer, writer, and cabinet minister, Alexander Morris was born in Perth, Upper Canada. Elected to the Canadian Legislature in 1861, he strongly assisted the Confederation movement and helped to forge the Great Coalition of 1864. Morris worked for twenty-five years to extend and then to consolidate Canada's hold over the West. He was Manitoba's first Chief Justice in 1872, but resigned to become the second Lieutenant Governor of the province and of the North-West Territories. As Indian Commissioner (1873-76) he successfully negotiated five Indian treaties ceding most of the prairies to the Crown. He died in Toronto. *Note: This designation has been identified for review. A review can be triggered for one of the following reasons - outdated language or terminology, absence of a significant layer of history, factual errors, controversial beliefs and behaviour, or significant new knowledge.