James Shannon Clift was an English

England

England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Scotland to the north and Wales to the west; the Irish Sea is to the north west, the Celtic Sea to the south west, with the North Sea to the east and the English Channel to the south separating it from continental...

-born merchant and political figure in Newfoundland. He was a member of the Legislative Council

Legislative Council of Newfoundland

The Legislative Council of Newfoundland was established in 1854 when the British Government granted a new constitution to Newfoundland establishing an Executive Council of not more than seven members of the majority party and a Legislative Council of not more than 15 members upon nomination of the...

 from 1861 to 1874 and served in the Executive Council from 1870 to 1874.

Clift operated a commission merchant and ship brokerage business in St. John's

St. John's, Newfoundland and Labrador

St. John's is the capital and largest city in Newfoundland and Labrador, and is the oldest English-founded city in North America. It is located on the eastern tip of the Avalon Peninsula on the island of Newfoundland. With a population of 192,326 as of July 1, 2010, the St...

 in partnership with James B. Woods

James B. Woods

James Bryan Woods was a merchant and political figure in Newfoundland. He represented Port de Grave in the Newfoundland and Labrador House of Assembly from 1869 to 1873....

, his brother-in-law. He was district grand master for the Freemasons from 1871 to 1877. Clift died in St. John's in 1873.