Robert Graham Dunlop Explained

Office:Member of Parliament, Upper Canada
Lieutenant Governor:Sir John Colborne (1828–1836)
Sir Francis Bond Head (1836–1838)
Sir George Arthur (1838–1839)
Lord Sydenham (1839–1841)
Constituency Mp:Huron
Term Start:1835
Term End:1841
Predecessor:New riding
Successor:Office abolished
Robert Graham Dunlop
Birth Name:Robert Graham Dunlop
Birth Date:1 October 1790
Birth Place:Greenock, Scotland
Death Place:Goderich, Ontario
Resting Place:Goderich, Upper Canada
Nationality:Scottish
Citizenship:British subject
Education:University of Glasgow
Occupation:Royal Navy, Captain
Party:Tory (moderate)
Spouse:Louisa McColl
Parents:Alexander Dunlop and Janet Graham
Relatives:William "Tiger" Dunlop (brother)
Allegiance: United Kingdom
Serviceyears:1803–1823
Battles:Napoleonic Wars

Robert Graham Dunlop (October 1, 1790  - February 28, 1841) was a British naval officer and political figure in Upper Canada.

He was born in Keppoch, Scotland in 1790 and joined the Royal Navy at the age of 13. He became a lieutenant while serving during the Napoleonic Wars; he later reached the rank of captain. He retired from the Navy in 1823 and came to Upper Canada in 1833 with his brother William "Tiger" Dunlop who was a general superintendent for the Canada Company. He was appointed a justice of the peace in the London District in the same year. In 1835, he was elected to the 13th Parliament of Upper Canada for the new riding of Huron. He tended to support the province's administration, including Lieutenant Governor Sir Francis Bond Head and was reelected in 1836. In 1837, he joined the Orange Lodge and became a member of its provincial executive in 1838. He was named a colonel in the Huron militia during the Upper Canada Rebellion, but his unit was not called to serve. He supported the redistribution of the clergy reserves among the Protestant churches and promoting immigration to Upper Canada. He also supported the campaign against slavery in the province.

He died on the family estate near Goderich in 1841.

Royal Navy Career

Robert Graham Dunlop joined the Royal Navy in 1803. In 1810 he took the exam for the rank of Lieutenant. he was promoted to Lieutenant in 1812 and later to Commander in 1822.[1]

Napoleonic Wars

See main article: Napoleonic Wars.

In 1813, Lieutenant Dunlop, in command of HMS Porcupine, captured or destroyed a number of French craft which had run ashore near Talmont-sur-Gironde.[2] With orders from Captain Trevenen Penrose Coode, Lieutenant Dunlop commanded the boats of HMS Porcupine (1807) in pursuit of a French flotilla. After the French flotilla ran ashore, Dunlop landed with a party of seamen and marines and captured significant French naval assets.[3]

Political Career in Canada

In 1833 Robert Dunlop emigrated to Upper Canada with his brother William "Tiger" Dunlop. The two brothers settled in Goderich, Ontario and shortly after Robert Dunlop was appointed to two offices:

As a justice of the peace in Upper Canada, one could be expected to issue warrants, conduct preliminary inquiries, investigate misdemeanours, try a variety of summary offences, and commit the convicted to jail.[4]

A Court consisting of two or more Justices of the Peace authorized to try any claim not exceeding 40 shillings, Quebec currency. The system of Court of Requests was repealed in 1841, by 4 & 5 Vict., ch. 3, which provided for Division Courts. Regardless of the changes, many of the same people continued in the similar capacities in these positions; Robert Dunlop being of them.[5]

Parliamentary Voting Record

Robert Dunlop's political career in the assembly was predominantly supportive of the Family Compact, although some of his views and votes were supportive of the Colborne Clique.

Tombstone

Robert Dunlop and his brother "Tiger" Dunlop have a joint tombstone, in Goderich, Ontario.

See also

Notes and References

  1. Web site: Sailing Navies, 1650-1850. September 24, 2010.
  2. Book: Clowes, William. William Laird Clowes

    . William Laird Clowes. 1997. The Royal Navy: a history from the earliest times to the present. Chatham Publishing. 5.

  3. Book: James, William. William James (naval historian)

    . William James (naval historian). 1837. The Naval History of Great Britain, from the Declaration of War by France in 1793, to the Accession of George IV.. R. Bentley. 6.

  4. Web site: Justice of the Peace in Historical Context. September 21, 2010.
  5. Web site: Some Early Legislation and Legislators in Upper Canada. September 21, 2010.
  6. http://www.biographi.ca/en/bio.php?id_nbr=3363 Peter A. Russell, "Dunlop, Robert Graham", Dictionary of Canadian Biography, Vol. VII (1837–1850).
  7. Kathleen Macfarlane Lizars, In the days of the Canada Company: The story of the settlement of the Huron Tract and a view of the social life of the period, 1825-1850. Toronto: William Briggs, 1896, pp. 17-23.
  8. Lorne Bruce. Free Books for All: The Public Library Movement in Ontario, 1850-1930. Toronto: Dundurn Press, 1994. p. 46.