b. 1805-02-16
d. 1868-01-28
Sir Edmund Walker Head, was born at Wiarton Place, near Maidstone, England, on 16
February 1805. He received his BA from Oriel College, Oxford, in 1827. He then travelled
and lectured at Merton College, Oxford, from 1827 to 1836, when he entered the civil
service as an assistant Poor Law commissioner. When the Poor Law Act lapsed in 1847, Head accepted the position of lieutenant governor
of New Brunswick, arriving in Frederickton on 11 April 1848.
On 20 May 1848, he formed the first responsible government in New Brunswick, and,
after a successful career there, became governor general of Canada on 19 December
1854. Head was a strong advocate of the union of the British North American colonies; he
also promoted improved relations with the United States. Head returned to England in October 1861. On 2 July 1863, he was elected governor of the Hudson's Bay Company, a post he held
until his death in
London on 28 January 1868.
- 1. James A. Gibson, Head, Sir Edmund Walker, Dictionary of Canadian Biography Online.
- 2. Ibid.
- 3. Ibid.
- 4. Ibid.
- 5. Ibid.
- 6. Ibid.