d. 1880
John Nugent, was an Irish-born, American journalist who had worked as the Washington
correspondent for the
New York Herald during
James Buchanan's tenure as secretary of state.
Buchanan went on to become president in 1856, and Nugent went to
San Francisco and became clerk of the first state legislature in California and editor of the
San Francisco Herald. Although described by a contemporary as
an Irishman with an inveterate and rabid hatred of England,
Buchanan appointed him special agent of the United States to protect the rights of American
citizens at the gold fields on
the Fraser.
Nugent arrived in
Victoria on 20 September 1858 and a few days later left for the
Fraser River mines, returning to
Victoria to present
Douglas with his concerns for American rights in the colony. Nugent was so frank in his criticisms
about the British government that
Douglas soon discontinued any direct communication with him.
Before returning to the United States permanently, he delivered an inflamatory Farewell Address,
which was published in the Victoria Gazette on 16 November 1858. In 1869, he tried unsuccessfully to revive the San Francisco Herald, and in 1878 he wrote some short articles for the Argonaut.
Nugent died in San Leandro, California, on 29 March 1880. His mission in
British Columbia has been described by Robie L.Reid:
John Nugent: The Impertinent Envoy, British Columbia Historical Quarterly 8 (1944): 53-76.
BCDES 40.4.