Henry Starnes
Henry Starnes ( born October 13, 1816 in Kingston, Upper Canada, † March 3, 1896 in Montreal ) was a Canadian politician, businessman and banker. He was twice mayor of the city of Montreal, 1856-1858 and 1866-1868. During the years 1858 to 1863 he sat in the House of the Province of Canada, from 1867 in the Upper House of the Province of Quebec. A bank presided by him was involved in the Pacific scandal in 1873 was the overthrow of the federal government result.
Biography
Starnes grew up in Montreal and received his secondary education at the Petit Séminaire de Montréal. In the 1830s he began for the food import company James Leslie and Company, which was founded by politician James Leslie. In 1849 he was Leslie's partner and the company was now as Leslie, Starnes and Company. From 1851 he also worked as a banker; he first two years director of the Banque du Peuple, and then to 1876 director of the Banque d' Epargne de la Cite et du District de Montréal. In 1859, he turned away from the import trade and opened the Montreal branch of the Ontario Bank, which he ran for twelve years. In 1871 he founded the Metropolitan Bank, which he was president.
1852 Starnes ' political career began with his election to the City Council of Montreal. In 1856 he was first elected mayor and held that post until 1858. In January 1858, the election was followed in the Legislative Assembly of the Province of Canada; in this he represented the constituency until 1863 Châteauguay. In 1866 he was elected for two more years to the Montreal mayor. The Government of Québec newly founded province appointed him in 1867 as a member of the Legislative Council ( upper house ). He had held for nearly three decades until his death in this office.
The Starnes presided by Metropolitan Bank served as an intermediary between the influential entrepreneur Hugh Allan and the nationally known politician George -Étienne Cartier. Allan left Cartier and other policies of the Conservative Party come secretly considerable funds to assist them in the general election in 1872. In return, Cartier had promised that Allan's consortium will get the contract for the construction of the transcontinental railroad. The discovery of this agreement triggered the Pacific scandal, which eventually led to the resignation of the government of Prime Minister Sir John A. Macdonald.
1876 had the Metropolitan Bank up its business activities, for which Starnes ' unorthodox and risky financing methods were blamed. The shareholders lost most of their investments, and accused Starnes, who was acquitted in court. He remained a member of the Legislative Council, he had been appointed for life and not elected. In the provincial government of Quebec, he was from 1882 to 1884 Chairman of the Railway Commission and 1887 Commissioner of Agriculture and Public Works.