John Simpson was a government official and political figure in Canada West.

He was born in England

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...

 in 1788 and came to Augusta Township

Augusta, Ontario

Augusta is a township in eastern Ontario, Canada, on the Saint Lawrence River in the United Counties of Leeds and Grenville.-Communities:The township comprises the communities of Algonquin, Bisseltown, Blue Church, Charlieville, Domville, Garretton, Glenmore, Herrons Corners, Lords Mills, Maitland,...

 in Upper Canada

Upper Canada

The Province of Upper Canada was a political division in British Canada established in 1791 by the British Empire to govern the central third of the lands in British North America and to accommodate Loyalist refugees from the United States of America after the American Revolution...

 in 1815. In 1819, he became a private secretary for Lord Dalhousie

George Ramsay, 9th Earl of Dalhousie

General George Ramsay, 9th Earl of Dalhousie GCB , styled Lord Ramsay until 1787, was a Scottish soldier and colonial administrator...

. He was appointed customs inspector at Coteau-du-Lac

Coteau-du-Lac, Quebec

Coteau-du-Lac is a small town in southwestern Quebec, Canada. It is on the north shore of the St. Lawrence River in the Vaudreuil-Soulanges Regional County Municipality....

 in 1822. In 1824, he was elected to the Legislative Assembly of Lower Canada

Legislative Assembly of Lower Canada

The Legislative Assembly of Lower Canada was the lower house of the bicameral structure of provincial government in Lower Canada until 1838. The legislative assembly was created by the Constitutional Act of 1791...

 in York County. Simpson organized volunteers from the area to help prevent the fort at Coteau-du-Lac from falling into the hands of the Patriotes during the Lower Canada Rebellion

Lower Canada Rebellion

The Lower Canada Rebellion , commonly referred to as the Patriots' War by Quebeckers, is the name given to the armed conflict between the rebels of Lower Canada and the British colonial power of that province...

. Simpson recommended amnesty for all political prisoners involved in the rebellion except the leaders, who were exiled. In 1841, he was elected to the Legislative Assembly of the Province of Canada

Legislative Assembly of the Province of Canada

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...

 for Vaudreuil

Vaudreuil (electoral district)

Vaudreuil was a federal electoral district in the province of Quebec, Canada, represented in the Canadian House of Commons from 1867 to 1914, and from 1968 to 1997.-History:...

. Simpson later served on the Rebellion Losses

Rebellion Losses Bill

The Rebellion Losses Bill was a controversial law enacted by the legislature of the Province of Canada in 1849...

 Commission. He retired to Brockville

Brockville, Ontario

Brockville is a city in Eastern Ontario, Canada, in the Thousand Islands region. Though it serves as the seat of the United Counties of Leeds and Grenville, Brockville is politically independent and is grouped with Leeds and Grenville for census purposes only.Known as the "City of the 1000...

 where his son was customs collector and later died in Kingston

Kingston, Ontario

Kingston, Ontario is a Canadian city located in Eastern Ontario where the St. Lawrence River flows out of Lake Ontario. Originally a First Nations settlement called "Katarowki," , growing European exploration in the 17th Century made it an important trading post...

in 1873.