b. 1824-06-05
d. 1920-09-01
In his youth, Helmcken attended an English and German school in
London.
1 He apprenticed as a druggist
and chemist in
1839 and began his medical studies in
1844 at Guy’s Hospital in
London.
2 Towards the end
of medical school, Helmcken travelled on the Hudson’s Bay Company ship
Prince Rupert as a surgeon, and after graduating (in
1848) he spent 18 months aboard a vessel travelling
through India and China.
3
In
1849 Helmcken was posted as a surgeon and clerk with the HBC, and in
1850 he arrived in
Esquimalt to begin his life on
Vancouver Island.
4 James Douglas was the
Chief Factor of the HBC upon Helmcken’s arrival, and he stationed the doctor first
at
Fort Rupert, and then at
Fort Victoria.
5 Helmcken and
Douglas would remain close; Helmcken married Douglas’s eldest daughter, Cecelia Douglas,
in
1852.
6 In
1855 he transitioned from medicine to politics, becoming a speaker of the legislature
and
remaining in this post until the unification of the Colonies of
British Columbia and
Vancouver Island in
1866.
7 Helmcken was discerning and decisive, which allowed
him to thrive as a politician and be popular with voters.
8 One of only three confederation delegates to represent
British Columbia during discussions in Ottawa, he
fervently fought for good and fair terms for
British Columbia upon their union with Canada.
9
After Confederation in
1871, Helmcken retired from politics and returned to his post as a surgeon for the HBC,
though he continued to work behind the scenes during the first
few years of
BC’s political life as a Canadian province to ensure proper support and treatment of
British Columbians.
10 Helmcken then became director of the Royal Hospital
in
Victoria, (known today as the Royal Jubilee), and eventually became the first president of
the
BC Medical Society.
11 He died on
1 September 1920 at ninety-six years
of age. After his death, Helmcken’s House was turned into a museum to commemorate
his achievements and the profound mark he left on
Vancouver Island and
British Columbia.
12
- 1. Daniel P Marshal Helmcken, John Sebastien,
Canadian Dictionary of Biography.
- 2. Royal BC Museum, Dr John S Helmcken 1824-1920, RBCM.
- 3. Marshal Helmcken, Canadian Dictionary of Biography; Eric J. Holmgren Helmcken, The Candian Encyclopedia.
- 4. Ibid.
- 5. Ibid.
- 6. Ibid.
- 7. Ibid.
- 8. Helmcken, Royal BC Museum.; Marshal
Helmcken, Canadian Dictionary of Biography.
- 9. Eric J., Holmgren Helmcken, The Canadian Encyclopedia .
- 10. Marshal Helmcken, Canadian Dictionary of Biography; Holmgren Helmcken, The Candian Encyclopedia.
- 11. Marshal Helmcken, Canadian Dictionary of Biography; Holmgren Helmcken, The Candian Encyclopedia.
- 12. Holmgren Helmcken, The Candian Encyclopedia.