James Webster (May 28, 1808 – February 6, 1869) was a Scottish-born political figure in Canada West. He represented West Halton and then Waterloo in the Legislative Assembly of the Province of Canada from 1844 to 1848 as a Conservative.
Scotland is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. Sharing a border with England to the southeast, Scotland is otherwise surrounded by the Atlantic Ocean to the north and west, by the North Sea to the northeast and by the Irish Sea to the south. In addition to the mainland, situated on the northern third of the island of Great Britain, Scotland has over 790 islands, including the Northern Isles and the Hebrides.
The Legislative Assembly of the Province of Canada was the lower house of the legislature for the Province of Canada, which consisted of the former provinces of Lower Canada, then known as Canada East and later the province of Quebec, and Upper Canada, then known as Canada West and later the province of Ontario. It was created by The Union Act of 1840. Canada East and Canada West each elected 42 members to the assembly. The upper house of the legislature was called the Legislative Council.
He was born in Balruddery, Forfar, the son of James Webster, and came to Upper Canada in 1833. With Adam Fergusson, Webster founded the village of Fergus. He was named a commissioner for Nichol Township in 1835 and later served as a district councillor for the township; he was also a commissioner for the Court of Requests. Webster married Margaret Wilson in 1838. His reelection to the provincial assembly in 1848 was appealed by Fergusson Blair and Webster did not run for reelection. In 1852, he moved to Guelph. Webster ran for the North Wellington seat in 1857 and again in an 1859 by-election but was unsuccessful. He was elected mayor of Guelph in 1859. Later that same year, he was appointed registrar for Wellington County. Webster also served in the local militia, reaching the rank of lieutenant-colonel.
Forfar is the county town of Angus, Scotland and the administrative centre for Angus Council. It has a population of 14,048.
The Province of Upper Canada was a part of British Canada established in 1791 by the Kingdom of Great Britain, to govern the central third of the lands in British North America, formerly part of the Province of Quebec since 1763. Upper Canada included all of modern-day Southern Ontario and all those areas of Northern Ontario in the Pays d'en Haut which had formed part of New France, essentially the watersheds of the Ottawa River or Lakes Huron and Superior, excluding any lands within the watershed of Hudson Bay. The "upper" prefix in the name reflects its geographic position along the Great Lakes, mostly above the headwaters of the Saint Lawrence River, contrasted with Lower Canada to the northeast.
Adam Fergusson was a farmer and political figure in Upper Canada and Canada West.
