JOHN BOWER LEWIS

John Bower Lewis was born in France on March 18, 1817, the son of Captain J. B. Lewis of the 88th Light Infantry. He came with his parents to Canada in 1820 and the family settled near Bytown, Upper Canada. Lewis studied law and was called to the bar of Upper Canada in 1839 and was later to be named a Queen’s Counsel in 1867.

He practiced law in the town of Bytown and first entered politics in 1847 when he was elected to the first Bytown municipal council. In 1848 he was elected as the second mayor of Bytown. After the town became the city of Ottawa in 1854 Lewis was elected as its first mayor.

He was appointed as Police Commissioner for Ottawa in 1863 and in 1872 he was elected to Parliament for the riding of Ottawa. He seemed a certainty to succeed Hincks as Minister of Finance but instead he chose to resign his seat over the government’s Canadian Pacific Railway scandal.

Lewis died at Ottawa on January 24, 1874 while serving as City Solicitor. At the time of his death he was in the midst of an election campaign in his attempt to return to the Federal Parliament.

John Rochester

John Rochester was born at Rouse’s Point, New York in 1822. He was heavily involved in the lumber industry and he founded Ottawa’s first brewery. He also owned a tannery and had considerable real estate holdings. As one of the wealthiest men in Ottawa he was first elected to the city council in 1855. He served as mayor of Ottawa, 1870 – 1871. He was elected to the House of Commons representing the riding of Carleton for the Conservative Party in 1872. He was re-elected in 1874 and 1878. Rochester was a member of L.O.L. No. 227 and served as lodge master for fifteen years. He died on September 19, 1894.

George Byron Lyon Fellowes

George Fellowes was born in Sorel, Quebec in 1815. His father, George Lyon had been a captain in the British army. Christened George Byron Lyon, he adopted his wife’s family name of Fellowes. He was the County Master of Russell, Ontario in 1857. An attorney, Fellowes was elected to the Upper Canada legislature in 1848 and held the seat until 1861. His brother, Robert Lyon, was elected as the Mayor of Ottawa in 1867 and following his brother’s example, Fellowes was elected as the mayor of Ottawa in 18876 and died during his term of office.

James Albert Ellis

James Ellis was born on June 1, 1864 at Lancashire, England. He came to Canada in 1885 and became involved in local politics. He was a Public School Trustee on the Ottawa school board for three years, 1888 - 1890. He was elected as an alderman to the Ottawa city council in 1901 and was re-elected in 1902 and 1903. He was elected as the mayor of Ottawa in 1904 and was re-elected in 1905 and 1906. He resigned as mayor in December of 1906 to accept the position of Assessment Commissioner. Ellis was elected to the Ontario Legislature in 1911 for the riding of Ottawa West and served until 1914. He was again elected as mayor in 1913 but in 1914 he was beaten at the polls by fellow Orangeman, Taylor McVeity. James Ellis died on December 27, 1934.

William Dowler Morris

William Morris was born on August 22, 1857(another source gives 1861 as his year of birth) in County Leitrim, Ireland. He came to Canada in 1877 and settled at Ottawa where he established a brickyard and also had huge real estate holdings, including eighty islands of the Thousand Islands. He was first elected to the Ottawa city council in 1892 as an alderman and was also elected, 1894 - 1896, 1898 - 1900 and was elected mayor in 1901. He infuriated Roman Catholic citizens of Ottawa when on July 12 of 1901 he had an Orange flag fly over the city hall. He resigned from the mayor’s chair when he was convicted of drinking after hours in an Ottawa hotel. Although he was over 50 years old when World War One broke out he enlisted with the 130th Battalion, C.E.F. and served as a transport officer. Morris died on April 13, 1931 in Bermuda.

Taylor McVeity, barrister and solicitor, Ottawa, Ontario was born on February 20, 1860 at Richmond, Carleton County, Ontario and received his education at the Collegiate Institute, Ottawa. In 1877 he commenced the study of law, entering the office of the Hon. John O’Connor, Ottawa. After a course of five years, he passed the examinations of barrister and solicitor at Osgoode Hall, Toronto and was admitted to the practice of law in Ontario. He opened a law office in Ottawa where he remained until 1891. The years 1891-1893 he spent in mining in Ottawa and Pontiac Counties, Quebec. About the close of 1893 he again resumed practice in Ottawa and now holds prominent positions in political and professional circles.

For many years he has taken an active interest in the municipal affairs of Ottawa and in 1888 he was elected alderman of that city. In politics he is a Liberal-Conservative, having from an early age taken a most active part in the interests of his party. In 1890 he took an active part in the Equal Rights Movement in Ottawa during which time there were two elections there: a by-election for the Commons, and a general election for the Ontario Legislature, in each of which the Equal Rights candidates were in the field with Mr. McVeity as one of their active supporters, doing an immense amount of work to secure the election. In 1894 he was a candidate for the Provincial Legislature, but after a hot contest, he was defeated by a small number of votes. In religion he is an Episcopalian. He is a member of the Orange Association, the Masonic Order, the I.O.O.F. and the I.O.F.

The above biographical sketch was written in 1895. He served one term as the mayor of Ottawa in 1914 and then moved to Windsor, Ontario where he died on March 21,1951.

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