WHO were the Fathers of Confederation?

The Fathers of Confederation were the men who represented the British North America colonies and went to one or more of three Canadian confederation conferences. These men were leaders in their communities and were all different. They were both English and French. Some were businessmen, already part of the government while others were lawyers or journalists, shipbuilders or soldiers and some were even poets. One of the most important and memorable Father of Confederation was Sir John A. MacDonald.

Sir John A. MacDonald was known for many things. He had a lot of political ambition, was an alcoholic, a lonely man, a gifted public speaker, had a great sense of humour, and most importantly the father of the Canadian nation.

He was all these things - and more.

He was born in Glasgow, Scotland, on January the 11th in 1815 and brought to Canada as a child by his father, Hugh. The family eventually moved to Kingston, where at the age of 21, John became a lawyer.

In 1844 his political career began. He won his first political campaign and became Kingston's member in the Canadian Parliament. At that time he was known as Kingston's favourite "son" and is still known as that today. Three years after he was first elected, he joined the cabinet and eventually became premier of the province of United Canada (Ontario and Quebec).John A. McDonald attended all of the Confederation meetings and in the end his leadership helped to convince others to form the union of the separate provinces. He was an important part of the beginning of our country and from 1878 until he died in 1891 was Canada's prime minister.