6th General Assembly of Nova Scotia

Last updated January 02, 2024

The 6th General Assembly of Nova Scotia represented Nova Scotia between November 1785 to 1793.

Sessions

In 1785, the Speaker of the House was Sampson Salter Blowers In 1789, the speaker was Richard John Uniacke. A writ for the election of the 6th General Assembly of Nova Scotia was issued on 21 October 1785, returnable by 1 December 1785. The assembly convened on 5 December 1785, held seven sessions, and was dissolved on 22 January 1793.

Governor and Council

At the convening of the assembly:

Governor: John Parr
- Lieutenant Governor: Edmund Fanning

After April 1786:

Governor-in-Chief of British North America: Guy Carleton
- Lieutenant Governor: John Parr -died 25 November 1791
  - Administrator: Richard Bulkeley -served as acting governor
- Lieutenant Governor: Sir John Wentworth -named 14 May 1792

Technically, Gov. Carleton was appointed not as governor general, but as Governor of Quebec, New Brunswick, Nova Scotia, and St. John's Island (four simultaneous appointments). Since a governor only has power when actually in their jurisdiction, the three additional appointments were effectively meaningless, with Lt. Gov. Parr serving as acting governor.

The members of the Council are currently under research.

House of Assembly

Officers

Speaker of the House:
- Sampson Salter Blowers of Halifax County -appointed to Council 3 January 1788.
- Richard John Uniacke of Halifax County -elected 5 March 1789.
Clerk of the House: James Boutineau Francklin
Sergeant at Arms: Adolphus Veith -appointed 10 March 1790

Division of seats

The customary assignment of seats was continued: 4 seats assigned to Halifax County, 2 seats to the other counties and to Halifax Township, and 1 seat to the other townships, for a total of 39 seats.

Sunbury County, Sackville Township and Cumberland Township were no longer represented, as they had become part of the Province of New Brunswick in 1784. Digby Township, Shelburne Township, Shelburne County, and Sydney County had been newly established and were granted representation.

Members

Amherst Township
- William Freeman -election declared invalid 9 December 1785, not an inhabitant.
  - Charles Hill -by-election, took seat 8 June 1786.
Annapolis County
- Thomas Henry Barclay
- David Seabury -election declared invalid 8 December 1785, re-elected, took seat 10 June 1786, election again declared invalid 15 June 1786.
  - Alexander Howe -declared duly elected, took seat 15 June 1786.^[1]
Annapolis Township
- Col. Stephen De Lancey -appointed to office in the Bahamas, seat declared vacant 6 April 1789.^[2]
  - James Delancey -by-election, took seat 26 February 1790.
Barrington Township
- Joseph Aplin -took seat 21 December 1785, seat declared vacant 6 April 1789, having been out of the province for two years.
  - Gideon White -by-election, took seat 1 March 1790.
Cornwallis Township
- Benjamin Belcher -took seat 8 December 1785.
Cumberland County
- John Butler Dight
- Christopher Harper -seat declared vacant 7 December 1785, not an inhabitant.
  - Philip Marchington -by-election, took seat 8 June 1786.
  - Thomas Watson -improperly elected due to error in the writ. He petitioned on 14 June 1786 to take Harper's seat, but Marchington had already been seated.
Digby Township
- Thomas Millidge -took seat 10 June 1786.
Falmouth Township
- Jeremiah Northup -apology for non-attendance accepted on 16 June 1791.
Granville Township
- Benjamin James
Halifax County
- Sampson Salter Blowers -appointed to Council 3 January 1788.
  - Charles Morris (1759–1831) -by-election, 22 February 1788, took seat 12 March 1789.
- Richard John Uniacke
- John George Pyke
- Michael Wallace
Halifax Township
- John Fillis
- William Cochran
Hants County
- Benjamin DeWolf
- Winckworth Tonge -died 2 February 1792.
  - George Henry Monk -by-election, took seat 18 June 1792.
Horton Township
- Gurdon Denison -apology for non-attendance accepted on 23 June 1791.
Kings County
- Jonathan Crane
- Elisha Lawrence -resolved 6 April 1789 seat to be declared vacant if he did not attend the next session, but he did attend.
Liverpool Township
- Ephraim Dean -died on 27 January 1787.
  - George William Sherlock -by-election, 14 March 1787, took seat 25 October 1787. Election declared invalid 13 November 1787, reelected 11 December 1787, took seat 5 March 1789.
Londonderry Township
- James Smith -seat declared vacant 6 April 1789 as a public defaulter.
  - Robert McElhinney -by-election, took seat 25 February 1790.
Lunenburg County
- Dettlieb Christopher Jessen
- John William Schwartz
Lunenberg Township
- Casper Wollenhaupt
Newport Township
- John Day Jr. -resigned 8 June 1791, appointed sheriff of Hants County.
  - William Cottnam Tonge -by-election, took seat 8 June 1792.
Onslow Township
- Charles Dickson -took seat 12 December 1785.
Queens County
- Simeon Perkins
- Benajah Collins -took seat 17 June 1786.
Shelburne County
- Alexander Leckie -took seat 17 December 1785 after election was contested and declared valid.
- Charles McNeal -took seat 17 December 1785 after election was contested and declared valid.
Shelburne Township
- Isaac Wilkins -took seat 17 December 1785 after election was contested and declared valid.
Sydney County
- James Michael Freke Bulkeley -took seat 8 June 1786.
- James Putnam -took seat 8 June 1787.
Truro Township
- Matthew Archibald
Windsor Township
- John McMonagle
Yarmouth Township
- Samuel Sheldon Poole

Note: Unless otherwise noted, members were elected at the general election, and took their seats at the convening of the assembly. By-elections are special elections held to fill specific vacancies. When a member is noted as having taking their seat on a certain date, but a by-election isn't noted, the member was elected at the general election but arrived late.

Related Research Articles

Events from the year 1786 in Canada.

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References

↑ Tulloch, Judith (1987). "Barclay, Thomas Henry". In Halpenny, Francess G (ed.). Dictionary of Canadian Biography . Vol. VI (1821–1835) (online ed.). University of Toronto Press.
↑ A website (Bielinski, Stefan. "Stephen De Lancey". exhibitions.nysm.nysed.gov. New York State Museum . Retrieved 2 November 2017.) claims he was named to Council in 1786, but this appears to be a case of confusion with his brother James.

David Allison; "History of Nova Scotia", Bowen, Halifax, 1916.
Journal and proceedings of the General Assembly of the province of Nova-Scotia ... summoned ... Halifax, the 5th December, 1785 ... (1785)
Elliott, Shirley B. (1984). "Appendix A: Assembly Lists". The Legislative Assembly of Nova Scotia, 1758-1983: a biographical directory (PDF). Halifax: Province of Nova Scotia. pp. 252–255. ISBN 0-88871-050-X.

Preceded by 5th General Assembly of Nova Scotia	General Assemblies of Nova Scotia 1785–1793	Succeeded by 7th General Assembly of Nova Scotia

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[1] Tulloch, Judith (1987). "Barclay, Thomas Henry". In Halpenny, Francess G (ed.). Dictionary of Canadian Biography . Vol. VI (1821–1835) (online ed.). University of Toronto Press.

[2] A website (Bielinski, Stefan. "Stephen De Lancey". exhibitions.nysm.nysed.gov. New York State Museum . Retrieved 2 November 2017.) claims he was named to Council in 1786, but this appears to be a case of confusion with his brother James.

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