Tod, John
John Tod was a Hudson's Bay Company Chief Trader born in Dunbartonshire, Scotland.1 In 1849, Tod arrived at Victoria and, two years later, bought 100 acres to farm in Oak Bay.2 He was elected a Member of Council by Governor Richard Blanshard in 1851 and eventually became Deputy Governor of Vancouver Island.3 Tod officially retired from HBC in June 1852 and served in the Legislative Council of Vancouver Island until October 1858.4
Tod began his career with HBC at the Trout Lake post in the Severn District in 1811, moving north and west over the next decade. In 1823, Tod made the three-month journey west from the prairies to McLeod Lake. Between 1823 and 1826, Tod moved between posts in British Columbia, and finally settled in Fort McLeod, where he served the winter season alongside James Douglas. After receiving his commission as chief trader in 1834, he was granted a year's leave, during which he sailed to London. On the vessel, he met his soon-to-be wife, Eliza Yardley. Upon his return, Tod reassumed his position and regularly moved around the Pacific Northwest. After a stressful few years in Thompson's River Post and the mental deterioration of his first wife, Tod took a leave of absence from HBC from 1850-1852 on account of ill health.5
Tod married three times and had children with each wife, including seven children with his third wife, Sophia Lolo, whom he settled with after his retirement.6 The house that Tod built in 1851 on his Oak Bay farm remains and is designated a heritage house.7
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