Title and statement of responsibility area
Title proper
Mackenzie Bowell fonds
General material designation
Parallel title
Other title information
Title statements of responsibility
Title notes
Level of description
Fonds
Repository
Edition area
Edition statement
Edition statement of responsibility
Class of material specific details area
Statement of scale (cartographic)
Statement of projection (cartographic)
Statement of coordinates (cartographic)
Statement of scale (architectural)
Issuing jurisdiction and denomination (philatelic)
Dates of creation area
Date(s)
-
1850-1917 (Creation)
- Creator
- Bowell, Sir Mackenzie
Physical description area
Physical description
0.4 m of textual records, 1 microfilm reel : positive
Publisher's series area
Title proper of publisher's series
Parallel titles of publisher's series
Other title information of publisher's series
Statement of responsibility relating to publisher's series
Numbering within publisher's series
Note on publisher's series
Archival description area
Name of creator
Biographical history
Mackenzie Bowell was born on December 7, 1823, at Suffolk, England. he came to Canada with his parents in 1832 and became a printer's apprentice in the office of the Belleville Intelligencer, a newspaper of which he was later to become the editor and proprietor. In 1847 he married Harriet Louisa Moore of Belleville.
Early in his life Bowell joined the Orange Order and served as Grand Master of the Orange Lodge of Ontario and as Grand Master of the Orange Association of British America. In 1867 he was elected to the House of Commons and served as Conservative representative for the Riding of North Hasting until 1892. Appointed Minister of Customs in 1878 by Sir John A. Macdonald, Bowell was largely responsible for putting the "National Policy" into operation. Early in 1892 he was appointed Minister of Militia and Defence and later the same year became Minister of Trade and Commerce, a position he held until 1894. In 1894, following the death of Sir John Thompson, Bowell was sworn in as Prime Minister, only to resign in early 1896 after several members of his cabinet also resigned. He remained Opposition Leader in the senate until his retirement in 1907. He died at Belleville on december 10, 1917.
Custodial history
The material in this fonds has come from three separate donors. The largest portion of the fonds (Acc. 1972-034) was found in the attic of a house in Belleville, badly damaged and in disrepair. The material was subsequently offered for sale to the Archives by an anonymous donor. The scrapbooks (Acc. 1969-054) were loaned for microfilming by the Hastings County Museum in Belleville, to which the original material was then returned. The final accrual (1984-074) was purchased from a donor located in Barrie, Ontario. Where this donor acquired the material is unknown.
Scope and content
The fonds consists of correspondence largely pertaining to the Orange Order and the role of patronage in nineteenth century Canadian politics, bills and receipts, and miscellaneous material pertaining to the Orange Order and militia. Of particular note is correspondence relating to the expulsion of a Lodge member due to accusations of fraternization(1875), three letters (1877-1878) from and about a Canadian (Thomas Cooke) imprisoned in Michigan for rape of a native woman, and a document on the ranking of Militia Schools in Kingston from David Shaw. On the microfilm are scrapbooks containing clippings from 1895 - 1917, concerning the life and career of Bowell clipped from contemporary newspapers. One volume deals primarily with political cartoons during his prime ministership. The other volume contains biographical material.
Notes area
Physical condition
Fair.
Immediate source of acquisition
Purchase Chancellor Richardson Memorial Fund - 1972
Arrangement
Accession 1984-074 was located in the Miscellaneous Collection but has been physically relocated to the last box of 2113 which is predominantly comprised of Accession 1972-034.
Language of material
- English
Script of material
Location of originals
2113
MF 120
Availability of other formats
Restrictions on access
Open
Terms governing use, reproduction, and publication
Public domain
Associated materials
Accruals
No further accruals are expected