Perth County Parliamentary Elections 1835 to Confederation

In 1835 the first parliamentary election in the district was held, Captain Dunlop^* and Col. VanEgmond being candidates.   Dunlop was elected.   Although a Tory, he was opposed to the Family Compact in Toronto.   This clique, aided and supported by the Governor, devoted their energies and their talents to promoting their own material interests as far as possible at the expense of the province.   This county at that period had half a dozen voters who walked to Goderich and recorded their votes, one half in direct opposition to the other, and both, of course, in the interest of good government.   It is said that the hustings for the nomination was thrown down and burned the evening previous to that event by a set of jolly boys who were not favorable to, or rather did not care for, either party.   Ah, those were grand old days when a gentleman could be a gentleman and exercise his prerogative as a free citizen by burning the hustings or helping out the phrenological development of a prosy candidate by the application of a stout cudgel!

In 1841 Dr. Dunlop was again a candidate, being opposed by James McGill Strachan (son of Bishop Strachan), a lawyer in Goderich.   The doctor, as the result of a protest, was declared elected.   In 1844 Dunlop, who had in the meantime been appointed superintendent of canals, was succeeded by William Cayley, who defeated Mr. Longworth, an old officer of the Canada Company.   In 1851 Mr. Cayley was defeated by Mr. Malcolm Cameron.   This was the last contest in the United Counties.

Previous to the next election in 1854 Perth had become an independent county, and was now entitled to send a member to Parliament.   On this occasion the candidates were Thomas Mayne Daly, who was inclined to support the Reform side, and Mr. Alexander Mitchell of Shakespeare, who was defeated.   At the general election of 1857, Mr. Daly, who was now a very pronounced Conservative, defeated William McDougall by a large majority.   In 1862 the Hon. Michael Foley was elected, defeating Mr. Daly.   Mr. Foley was also elected for Waterloo at this period, and chose to sit for that county, when another contest took place for the vacant seat in Perth.   In 1863 Mr. Robert McFarlane, a partner of the late Judge Lizars, compelled Mr. Daly to retire, although the majority against him was not large.

This was the last election previous to Confederation in 1867.   In accordance with that change, Perth was divided into north and south ridings, each returning a member to the House of Commons at Ottawa, and a member to the Legislature in Toronto.   The north riding was composed of the townships of North Easthope, Mornington, Wallace, Ellice, Elma, Logan, and the towns of Stratford and Listowel.   The south riding comprised the townships of Blanshard, Downie, South Easthope, Fullarton and Hibbert, with the towns of St. Marys and Mitchell.   These boundaries have been changed, however, as party or political exigences demanded, each party transforming the constituencies to suit its own purpose, a most iniquitous system and a disgrace to Canadian politics.

^* Dr. William 'Tiger' Dunlop (1792-1848).

Source: History of Perth County: 1825-1902 by William Johnston published in 1903