Sir Richard William Scott, PC

Queen's Privy Council for Canada

The Queen's Privy Council for Canada ), sometimes called Her Majesty's Privy Council for Canada or simply the Privy Council, is the full group of personal consultants to the monarch of Canada on state and constitutional affairs, though responsible government requires the sovereign or her viceroy,...

, KC (February 24, 1825 – April 23, 1913) was a Canadian

Canada

Canada is a North American country consisting of ten provinces and three territories. Located in the northern part of the continent, it extends from the Atlantic Ocean in the east to the Pacific Ocean in the west, and northward into the Arctic Ocean...

 politician and cabinet minister.

He was born in Prescott, Ontario

Prescott, Ontario

Prescott is a town of approximately 4,180 people on the north shore of the Saint Lawrence River in Leeds and Grenville United Counties, Ontario, Canada. The Ogdensburg-Prescott International Bridge, 5 km east of Prescott in Johnstown, connects it with Ogdensburg, New York...

 in 1825. A lawyer

Lawyer

A lawyer, according to Black's Law Dictionary, is "a person learned in the law; as an attorney, counsel or solicitor; a person who is practicing law." Law is the system of rules of conduct established by the sovereign government of a society to correct wrongs, maintain the stability of political...

 by training, Scott was admitted to the bar in 1848 and established a practice in Bytown

Bytown

Bytown is the former name of Ottawa, Canada's capital city. It was founded on on September 26, 1826, incorporated as a town on January 1, 1850, and superseded by the incorporation of the City of Ottawa on January 1, 1855. The founding was marked by a sod turning, and a letter from Governor General...

 (now 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...

). He became a member of municipal council in 1851, was mayor of Bytown in 1852, and held a seat in 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...

 from 1857 until 1863. With Canadian 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...

, Scott won a seat in the Ontario legislature

Legislative Assembly of Ontario

The Legislative Assembly of Ontario , is the legislature of the Canadian province of Ontario, and is the second largest provincial legislature of Canada...

 as a Liberal

Ontario Liberal Party

The Ontario Liberal Party is a provincial political party in the province of Ontario, Canada. It has formed the Government of Ontario since the provincial election of 2003. The party is ideologically aligned with the Liberal Party of Canada but the two parties are organizationally independent and...

 representing Ottawa from 1867 to 1871. He was Speaker

Speaker (politics)

The term speaker is a title often given to the presiding officer of a deliberative assembly, especially a legislative body. The speaker's official role is to moderate debate, make rulings on procedure, announce the results of votes, and the like. The speaker decides who may speak and has the...

 of the legislature briefly in December 1871 before being appointed to the provincial cabinet

Cabinet (government)

A Cabinet is a body of high ranking government officials, typically representing the executive branch. It can also sometimes be referred to as the Council of Ministers, an Executive Council, or an Executive Committee.- Overview :...

 as Commissioner of Crown Lands. Scott played a leading role in passing legislation ensuring the rights of separate school

Separate school

In Canada, separate school refers to a particular type of school that has constitutional status in three provinces and statutory status in three territories...

s in Ontario

Ontario

Ontario is a province of Canada, located in east-central Canada. It is Canada's most populous province and second largest in total area. It is home to the nation's most populous city, Toronto, and the nation's capital, Ottawa....

.

In November 1873, he left provincial politics when he was appointed minister without portfolio

Minister without Portfolio

A minister without portfolio is either a government minister with no specific responsibilities or a minister that does not head a particular ministry...

 by Alexander Mackenzie

Alexander Mackenzie

Alexander Mackenzie, PC , a building contractor and newspaper editor, was the second Prime Minister of Canada from November 7, 1873 to October 8, 1878.-Biography:...

 in the federal Cabinet. Mackenzie had become prime minister after Sir John A. Macdonald

John A. Macdonald

Sir John Alexander Macdonald, GCB, KCMG, PC, PC , QC was the first Prime Minister of Canada. The dominant figure of Canadian Confederation, his political career spanned almost half a century...

's government had been forced to resign due to the Pacific Scandal

Pacific Scandal

The Pacific Scandal was a political scandal in Canada involving allegations of bribes being accepted by the Conservative government in the attempts of private interests to influence the bidding for a national rail contract...

. Scott was appointed to the Canadian Senate

Canadian Senate

The Senate of Canada is a component of the Parliament of Canada, along with the House of Commons, and the monarch . The Senate consists of 105 members appointed by the governor general on the advice of the prime minister...

 by Mackenzie in January 1874, and became Secretary of State for Canada

Secretary of State for Canada

The position of Secretary of State for Canada was a Canadian Cabinet position with a corresponding department. It was established in 1867 as the official channel of communication between the Dominion of Canada and the Imperial government in London...

 and Leader of the Government in the Senate. A supporter of temperance

Temperance movement

A temperance movement is a social movement urging reduced use of alcoholic beverages. Temperance movements may criticize excessive alcohol use, promote complete abstinence , or pressure the government to enact anti-alcohol legislation or complete prohibition of alcohol.-Temperance movement by...

, he drafted the "Scott Act

Canada Temperance Act

The Canada Temperance Act was an Act of the Parliament of Canada in 1878, which provided for an option for municipalities to opt-in by plebiscite to a prohibitionary scheme...

" which allowed any county or municipality in Canada to prohibit the retail sale of liquor by majority vote. With the defeat of the 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...

 government in the 1878 election

Canadian federal election, 1878

The Canadian federal election of 1878 was held on September 17 to elect members of the Canadian House of Commons of the 4th Parliament of Canada. It resulted in the end of Prime Minister Alexander Mackenzie's Liberal government after only one term in office. Canada suffered an economic depression...

, Scott became Leader of the Opposition in the Senate until the return of the Liberals to government under Wilfrid Laurier

Wilfrid Laurier

Sir Wilfrid Laurier, GCMG, PC, KC, baptized Henri-Charles-Wilfrid Laurier was the seventh Prime Minister of Canada from 11 July 1896 to 6 October 1911....

. Scott resumed his old Cabinet position of Secretary of State. Scott retired from the cabinet in 1908, but remained in the Senate until his death in 1913.

Family

Richard William Scott married at Philadelphia, Pa., November 8th, 1853, Mary Heron, daughter of John Heron and Frances, his wife. She was born and educated in Dublin, Ireland. The couple had two sons William L. Scott, Local Master in Chancery, and D Arcy Scott, Barrister,
Ottawa and four daughters. Before her marriage, Mrs. Scott was a professional singer who toured in Canada and the United States as a member of "The Heron sisters." The couple lived at 274
Daly Avenue, Ottawa. She served on the Executive Committee of the National Council of Women, and as a Vice-President of the Local Council.