Luther Hamilton Holton was a Quebec

Quebec

Quebec or is a province in east-central Canada. It is the only Canadian province with a predominantly French-speaking population and the only one whose sole official language is French at the provincial level....

 businessman and political figure. He represented Châteauguay

Châteauguay (electoral district)

Châteauguay was a federal electoral district in Quebec, Canada, that was represented in the Canadian House of Commons from 1867 to 1917 and from 1979 to 2004.-History:It was created by the British North America Act of 1867...

 as a Liberal

Liberal Party of Canada

The Liberal Party of Canada , colloquially known as the Grits, is the oldest federally registered party in Canada. In the conventional political spectrum, the party sits between the centre and the centre-left. Historically the Liberal Party has positioned itself to the left of the Conservative...

 member in the Canadian House of Commons

Canadian House of Commons

The House of Commons of Canada is a component of the Parliament of Canada, along with the Sovereign and the Senate. The House of Commons is a democratically elected body, consisting of 308 members known as Members of Parliament...

 from 1867 to 1880.

Early life and education

He was born at Sheffield's Corners in Leeds County

Leeds County, Ontario

Leeds County is a historic county in the Canadian province of Ontario.The county was created in 1792, and merged with Grenville County in 1850 to create Leeds and Grenville County....

, 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 1817 and went to Montreal

Montreal

Montreal is a city in Canada. It is the largest city in the province of Quebec, the second-largest city in Canada and the seventh largest in North America...

 to live with his uncle after his father's death in 1826. At the age of 12, after completing his schooling, he became a clerk in his uncle's business. Seven years later, he joined the firm of Henderson and Hooker, who were involved in transporting goods and passengers along the St. Lawrence

Saint Lawrence River

The Saint Lawrence is a large river flowing approximately from southwest to northeast in the middle latitudes of North America, connecting the Great Lakes with the Atlantic Ocean. It is the primary drainage conveyor of the Great Lakes Basin...

 and lower Great Lakes

Great Lakes

The Great Lakes are a collection of freshwater lakes located in northeastern North America, on the Canada – United States border. Consisting of Lakes Superior, Michigan, Huron, Erie, and Ontario, they form the largest group of freshwater lakes on Earth by total surface, coming in second by volume...

; in 1845, he became a senior partner in the firm, now Hooker and Holton, on Henderson's death. In 1842, he helped found the Unitarian

Unitarianism

Unitarianism is a Christian theological movement, named for its understanding of God as one person, in direct contrast to Trinitarianism which defines God as three persons coexisting consubstantially as one in being....

 Society of Montreal. In 1846, he was elected to the Montreal Board of Trade. He supported reciprocity in trade with the United States

United States

The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...

 and, for a time, he supported annexation. During the 1850s, he became involved in railway development and played an important role in the development of the Grand Trunk Railway

Grand Trunk Railway

The Grand Trunk Railway was a railway system which operated in the Canadian provinces of Quebec and Ontario, as well as the American states of Connecticut, Maine, Michigan, Massachusetts, New Hampshire, and Vermont. The railway was operated from headquarters in Montreal, Quebec; however, corporate...

 in Canada. For a time, he was a director for the Grand Trunk and, in 1853, formed a firm with Alexander Tilloch Galt

Alexander Tilloch Galt

Sir Alexander Tilloch Galt, GCMG, PC was a politician and a father of Canadian Confederation.He was born in Chelsea, England, the son of Scottish novelist and colonizer, John Galt, and Elizabeth Tilloch Galt. He was a cousin of Sir Hugh Allan.Alexander Galt is interred in the Mount Royal Cemetery...

 and others which was contracted to extend their tracks from Toronto

Toronto

Toronto is the provincial capital of Ontario and the largest city in Canada. It is located in Southern Ontario on the northwestern shore of Lake Ontario. A relatively modern city, Toronto's history dates back to the late-18th century, when its land was first purchased by the British monarchy from...

 to Sarnia

Sarnia

Sarnia is a city in Southwestern Ontario, Canada.Sarnia may also refer to:* Sarnia, the Roman name for the island of Guernsey, Channel Islands** Sarnia Cherie, its national anthem**A piano suite by John Ireland, written about Guernsey....

. Both Holton and Galt were heavily criticized for taking advantage of their government connections to win the contract and gain government subsidies.

He was a member of the city council

City council

A city council or town council is the legislative body that governs a city, town, municipality or local government area.-Australia & NZ:Because of the differences in legislation between the States, the exact definition of a City Council varies...

 for Montreal from 1850 to 1851. In 1854, 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...

 representing the city of Montreal. He supported an elected Legislative Council

Legislative Council of the Province of Canada

The Legislative Council of the Province of Canada was the upper house 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 province of Ontario...

, secularization of the clergy reserves and putting an end to seigneurial

Seigneurial system of New France

The seigneurial system of New France was the semi-feudal system of land distribution used in the North American colonies of New France.-Introduction to New France:...

 tenure. In 1857, he retired from his association with the Grand Trunk with the intention of devoting his attention to politics but he was defeated in the next general election. In 1862, he was elected to the Legislative Council for Victoria district. In 1863, he resigned to become minister of finance in the government of John Sandfield Macdonald

John Sandfield Macdonald

John Sandfield Macdonald, QC was the first Premier of the province of Ontario, one of the four founding provinces created at the confederation of Canada in 1867...

 and Dorion

Antoine-Aimé Dorion

Sir Antoine-Aimé Dorion, PC was a French Canadian politician and jurist.-Early years:He was born in Lower Canada in 1818, the son of Pierre-Antoine Dorion, a merchant and member of the Legislative Assembly of Lower Canada who supported Louis-Joseph Papineau...

; when he ran for a seat in the Legislative Assembly, he was defeated in Montreal Centre but elected in Châteauguay. In 1864, Holton transferred the public accounts from the Bank of Upper Canada

Bank of Upper Canada

The Bank of Upper Canada was a Canadian bank established in 1821 under a Charter granted by the colony of Upper Canada in 1819. The incorporators were William Allan, Robert C. Horne, John Scarlett, Francis Jackson, William W. Baldwin, Alexander Legge, Thomas Ridout, his son Samuel Ridout, D’Arcy...

 to the Bank of Montreal

Bank of Montreal

The Bank of Montreal , , or BMO Financial Group, is the fourth largest bank in Canada by deposits. The Bank of Montreal was founded on June 23, 1817 by John Richardson and eight merchants in a rented house in Montreal, Quebec. On May 19, 1817 the Articles of Association were adopted, making it...

, which led to the failure of the Upper Canada bank a few years later. He opposed Confederation

Canadian Confederation

Canadian Confederation was the process by which the federal Dominion of Canada was formed on July 1, 1867. On that day, three British colonies were formed into four Canadian provinces...

 because of his concerns about its effect on Lower Canada, but, after 1867, helped promote its acceptance in Quebec. He represented Montreal-Centre

Sainte-Anne (provincial electoral district)

Sainte-Anne was a provincial electoral district in the province of Quebec, Canada. Located in the Greater Montreal Area, it was formed in 1890 from parts of Montreal-Centre. In 1994, it became part of Saint-Henri—Sainte-Anne after a merger with Saint-Henri. From 1890 to 1912 it was also known as...

 in the Quebec Legislative Assembly from 1871 to 1874, when it became illegal to hold seats both federally and provincially. He supported amnesty for Louis Riel

Louis Riel

Louis David Riel was a Canadian politician, a founder of the province of Manitoba, and a political and spiritual leader of the Métis people of the Canadian prairies. He led two resistance movements against the Canadian government and its first post-Confederation Prime Minister, Sir John A....

.

He also served as a governor of McGill University

McGill University

Mohammed Fathy is a public research university located in Montreal, Quebec, Canada. The university bears the name of James McGill, a prominent Montreal merchant from Glasgow, Scotland, whose bequest formed the beginning of the university...

 from 1876 to 1880.

He died in office at Ottawa

Ottawa

Ottawa is the capital of Canada, the second largest city in the Province of Ontario, and the fourth largest city in the country. The city is located on the south bank of the Ottawa River in the eastern portion of Southern Ontario...

 in 1880.

His son Edward

Edward Holton

Edward Holton was a lawyer and political figure in Quebec. He represented Châteauguay in the Canadian House of Commons from 1880 to 1891 as a Liberal member....

succeeded him as representative for Châteauguay in the House of Commons.