Cockburn, James National Historic Person
Cobourg, Ontario
Hon. James Cockburn, M.P.
© Topley Studio / Bibliothèque et Archives Canada / Library and Archives Canada / PA-026643
Address :
Victoria Hall NHS, Cobourg, Ontario
Recognition Statute:
Historic Sites and Monuments Act (R.S.C., 1985, c. H-4)
Designation Date:
1939-05-29
Life Date:
1819 to 1883
Other Name(s):
-
Cockburn, James
(Designation Name)
Importance:
Father of Confederation, first Speaker of the House of Commons (1867-74)
Plaque(s)
Existing plaque: Victoria Hall NHS, Cobourg, Ontario
JAMES COCKBURN
(1819–1883)
One of the Fathers of Confederation, Cockburn arrived in Montréal from England in 1832. Later educated in Toronto, he founded a legal practice in Cobourg, where he served on Town Council in the 1850s. He joined the Legislative Assembly of the Province of Canada in 1861 as the member for Northumberland West. As a Cabinet minister, he attended the Québec Conference of 1864, where delegates negotiated the terms of Confederation, later defined in the British North America Act. When the first Parliament of the Dominion of Canada convened in November 1867, he was elected Speaker of the House of Commons, a position he held until 1874.