Head was born at Wiarton Place,near Maidstone,Kent,the son of the Reverend Sir John Head,7th Bt. and Jane (née Walker) Head.[1] He succeeded to his father's title in 1838.
While Lieutenant Governor,Head authorized the creation of an engineering faculty at the University of New Brunswick (UNB). This was the first such programme in what would become Canada.
In 1854,Head was appointed Governor General of the Province of Canada.[7] He served until 1861. During his time in office,there was some controversy over his refusal to grant a dissolution to the Reform ministry at the time of the "Double Shuffle".[8]
He had married Anna Maria Yorke,daughter of Reverend Philip Yorke Prebendary of Ely,and his wife,Hon. Anna Maria Cocks,daughter of John Cocks,1st Earl Somers,on 27 November 1838. Anna Maria was born in 1808. The couple had three children. Their son accidentally drowned in Quebec's Saint-Maurice River in September 1859. One of their two daughters was born at Fredericton,New Brunswick on 6 February 1849.
Anna Maria was an artist,who sketched a picture of the view from Major's Hill,Ottawa,Ontario which she subsequently presented to Queen Victoria. Within a month or two after this event Her Majesty chose Ottawa as the seat of Government of United Canada. Lady Head volunteered and bestowed alms among the poor. A memorial of her Ladyship's visit to the Upper Ottawa,in a bark canoe,in 1856,stands at Portage-du-Fort,Quebec. In the county of Renfrew,a township Maria,was named in her honour. Lady Head died at Oak Lea,Shere,Guildford,England,25 August 1890.[10][11]
Legacy
Sir Edmund Head Hall is the name of the engineering building at the University of New Brunswick.[12]
↑"From the LONDON GAZETTE, Tuesday, Oct. 26". The Times. 27 October 1847. p.4. Retrieved 16 May 2013. The Queen has been pleased to appoint Sir Edmund Walker Head, Bart., to be Lieutenant-Governor of the province of New Brunswick.
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