Joseph Howe (1804 - 1873)

Born 13 Dec 1804 in Halifax, Halifax County, Nova Scotia

Ancestors

Husband of Catherine Susan Ann (McNab) Howe — married 3 Feb 1828 in Halifax, Nova Scotia

Descendants

Died 1 Jun 1873 at age 68 in Halifax, Halifax County, Nova Scotia, Canada

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Preceded by
William Young

5th Premier of Colony of Nova Scotia
August 3, 1860 - June 5, 1863

Succeeded by
James William Johnston

Biography

Joseph Howe is Notable.

Joseph Howe, PC (December 13, 1804 – June 1, 1873) was a Nova Scotian journalist, politician, and public servant. He is one of Nova Scotia's greatest and best-loved politicians. His considerable skills as a journalist and writer have made him a Nova Scotia legend.

He was born the son of John Howe and Mary Edes at Halifax and inherited from his loyalist father an undying love for Great Britain and her Empire.

At age 23, the self-taught but widely read Howe purchased the Novascotian, soon making it into a popular and influential newspaper.

Joseph Howe married Susan Ann McNab, daughter of Captain John McNab, Nova Scotia Fencibles, on February 2, 1828.^[1] A copy of their marriage bond is in the Nova Scotia Archives^[2] They had eleven children, five of whom did not live to adulthod.

He succesfully defended himself against a charge of seditious libel in 1835 in a case which established the independence of the press, in a battle against the ruling elite known as the Council of Twelve. His popularity soared with the outcome of the case (“the press of Nova Scotia is free,” he declared) and he went on to have a long political career based on Responsible Government.^[3]

He served as premier of Nova Scotia from 1860 to 1863 and led the unsuccessful fight against Canadian Confederation from 1866 to 1868. Having failed to persuade the British to repeal Confederation, Howe joined the federal cabinet of John A. Macdonald in 1869 and played a major role in bringing Manitoba into the union.

At the 1861 census, Joseph Howe was residing in Halifax, Nova Scotia with a family consisting of 1 male 10-15 [William], 1 single male 15-20 [Sydenham], 1 single male 20-30 [Joseph or Frederick], 1 married male 50-60 [himself] and 1 married female 50-60 [Catherine, his wife].^[4]

In 1871, Joseph, painter?, 66, born Nova Scotia, Catherine, 63, born Newfoundland, William, 24, civil service, born Nova Scotia, Mary Thomson, 17, born Nova Scotia, Johanna Doody, 22, servant, born Quebec and Catherine Gleason, 25, born Ireland, were residing in Wellington Ward, Ottawa, Ontario.^[5]

Howe became the third Lieutenant Governor of Nova Scotia in 1873, but died after only three weeks in office.

Joseph was buried in Camp Hill Cemetery, Halifax.^[6]

Joseph Howe was invited to give the Oration at the 1871 Howe Family Gathering in Harmony Grove, Framingham, Middlesex, Massachusetts. He accepted, and spoke under the title, "Secretary of State of the Dominion of Canada." His complete oration is captured in "The Howe Family Gathering", available online.

A sketch of his life is given here, as written by his son Sydenham Howe of Middleton, N. S. ^[7]

Joseph Howe at the age of 15 entered the office of the "Halifax Gazette" conducted by his father and brother, and served there until 1826. In company with J. D. Spike he published "The Acadian" during 1827. At the end of the year, Mr. Howe purchased "The Nova Scotian" and conducted that paper with marked ability until 1841.

In 1835, having published a letter reflecting on the magistracy of Halifax, and their management of public institutions, Mr. Howe was tried for criminal libel. No lawyer being willing to conduct his case, he defended himself in a speech of over six hours. "The Jury retired for ten minutes, when they returned with a verdict of Not Guilty!" The breathless silence in which it was heard was broken by shouts of applause from immense crowds in and around the court house. After receiving the congratulations of his friends who were immediately about him, the defendant begged leave to return thanks to the Court for the kindness and consideration which had been extended to him throughout the trial. ' He trusted he had taken no liberty to which a British subject was not entitled but he felt that the court might, as had been done elsewhere, have broken his argument by interruptions, and tied him up within narrower limits. On leaving the Province building he was borne by the populace to his home, amidst deafening acclamations. The people kept holiday that day and the next.

MusicaI parties paraded the streets at night. All the sleds in town were turned out in procession, with banners; and all the ranks and classes seemed to join in felicitations on the triumph of the press. The crowds were briefly addressed by Mr. Howe, from his window who besought them to keep the peace, to enjoy the triumph in social intercourse round their own firesides; and to teach their children the names of the twelve men who had established the freedom of the press.

The magistrates resigned in a body and the city of Halifax was shortly afterwards incorporated.

Up to this time Mr. Howe had been only known as a 'journalist, and not as a public speaker. A general election coming on in Nov. 1839,he was nominated as a member of the House of Assembly for his native county, and elected by a majority of upwards of a thousand. He immediately took a leading part in the business of the house, advocated changes in the constitution, and by voice and pen urged the abolition of the old "government by family compact" and the establishment of "Responsible Government." After some years of constitutional agitation, Mr. Howe and his friends had the satisfaction of seeing their views prevail and the system of Responsible Government firmly established in Nova Scotia and the neighboring provinces. Mr. Howe was accused of being disloyal and of sympathizing with the rebels in Canada, but defended himself in public letters and speeches from all such charges. He has been aptly named "The Father of Responsible Government" as it is largely to his exertions that the provinces are indebted for this great boon.

In 1838 Mr. Howe drafted a memorial to the British Government, asking for the establishment of steam communication between Great Britain and her possessions in North America, which led to the establishment of the well known "Cunard" line.

In 1835 he had published a series of articles pointing out the advantages to be derived from railway communications between the several parts of the Province, but it was not till 1854 that he secured the necessary legislation. In that year he became Chief Commissioner of Railways, and in 1855 opened to traffic the'first section of the railway from Halifax to Windsor.

Mr. Howe took a deep interest in the cause of Education and though unable when in power, to secure an act establishing a free school system, he nobly supported the measure when it was introduced by his political opponents and thereby put this great blessing within the reach of all.

Mr. Howe's aim through life was to advance the interests of his native Province and of the great Empire of which she forms a part. He was intensely loyal to the British Crown, but did not hesitate to assert that colonists were entitled to all the rights and privileges enjoyed by residents of the British Isles, and as early as 1854, in a speech which attracted much attention on both sides of the Atlantic, advocated the "Organization of the Empire" by granting colonists the right to share in the Imperial Councils, and to become eligible to the highest positions in the Army, Navy, Diplomatic and Civil Services. He never failed to impress upon the Imperial authorities the fact that unless the colonists were fairly treated, they would be led to assert their independence, not by becoming annexed to the United States, but by setting up for themselves. Lorenzo Sabine,'in his "Loyalists of the American Revolution," says of Mr. Howe "His speeches and Public Letters" published in Boston in 1858; contain demands upon the Home Government for the extension of Colonial rights and privileges which have no parallel in the documentary history of the Revolution. In a word this son of a loyalist speaks in bolder tones than any whig of 76 dared to do in his loftiest mood."

Mr. Howe sat in the House of Assembly of Nova Scotia from 1837 to 1854 and 1859 to 1863, a large portion of which time he was the recognized leader of the liberal party and for some years leader of the Government. In 1862 he was appointed British Fishery Commissioner under the Reciprocity Treaty with the United States, and served until the abrogation of the treaty. In 1867 he was elected member of the House of Commons of Canada, but being opposed to the terms of the "Confederation Act" and to the manner in which Nova Scotia was forced into the union, he spent two years in striving for a repeal of the Act, finding this impracticable he negotiated for "Better Terms" and having secured to the Province a large sum of money, he entered the Dominion Government and remained a member of it till May 1873, when he was appointed Lieutenant Governor of Nova Scotia. This position he did not long fill, 'His health had been failing for some time and on the 1st of June 1873 he passed suddenly away. His death was universally regretted. " Joe Howe" was known and loved in every hamlet and he was sincerely mourned by thousands, A public funeral was accorded him. A life size portrait hangs in the Legislative Hall of Nova Scotia and his native city is about to erect a statue of her honored son.

As a litterateur Mr. Howe was known in all the provinces as well as in the neighboring republic and the Mother Country. His speech on Reciprocity at the Detroit convention in 1863 ; at the Burns Centenary in Boston in 1857; Shakespeare Oration in Halifax in 1864 are productions of which none need be ashamed, while his speech at the Family Gathering in 1871 will be of more immediate interest to members of the "Howe" Family. ^[8]

Mr. Howe was also a poet and some of his pieces attracted attention when the author was only 16. A volume of "Poems and Essays" published after his death contains many of his best productions, and shows the versatility of his genius and his intense love for his native land.

As a statesman and an orator it is doubtful if British America has produced his equal. He swayed audiences at will, moving them to laughter or tears, while his political foresight appears simply marvelous. He had read largely, travelled extensively and lost no opportunity of gaining knowledge. His unfailing good humor gained personal friends even among political opponents.

He never forgot a face, rarely a name, and was accessible at all times to the humblest citizen. He sought power and influence, not for his own benefit, but for the good of his country, and died poor because he was too honest to consider his own interests.

Sources

1. ↑ marriage notice
2. ↑ Marriage bond for Cathe. S.A. McNabb and Joseph Howe, Registration Year: 1828, Book: 1800, Page: 5572, Nova Scotia Historical Vital Statistics.
3. ↑ National Film Board of Canada: Joseph Howe: The Tribune of Nova Scotia: https://www.nfb.ca/film/joseph_howe_tribune_nova_scotia/
4. ↑ 1861 census page 1, page 2, page 3, page 4, Halifax, Nova Scotia
5. ↑ 1871 census, Ottawa, Ontario
6. ↑ Find A Grave: Memorial #10944
7. ↑ Daniel Wait Howe, Howe Genealogies, NEHGS, Boston, 1929, Vol. 2, pages 66-69
8. ↑ The Howe Family Gathering at Harmony Grove, South Framingham, Thursday, August 31, 1871, Rev. Elias Nason, MA, published by Elias Howe, 1871 Joseph Howe's speech is recorded on pages 14-20 of the linked document.

See also:

• Beck, J. Murray, Joseph Howe: Conservative Reformer 1804–1848. (v.1). Kingston & Montreal: McGill-Queen's University Press (1982) ISBN 0-7735-0387-0
• Beck, J. Murray, Joseph Howe: The Briton Becomes Canadian 1848–1873. (v.2). Kingston & Montreal: McGill-Queen's University Press (1983) ISBN 0-7735-0388-9
• Lawson, WIlliam, The Tribune of Nova Scotia.
• Saul, John Roulston, Joseph Howe.
• Wikipedia: Joseph Howe
• Wikidata: Item Q512882, en:Wikipedia