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Macdonald papers at the archives of Manitoba.

Article Excerpt
Sir John A. Macdonald and his son Sir Hugh John Macdonald need no introduction to members of the Manitoba Historical Society. The father's memory is perpetuated by the Sir John A. Macdonald Fundraising Dinner held each January. Sir Hugh John's name is synonymous with Dalnavert, his residence at 61 Carlton Street, Winnipeg, now operated as a museum and visitor centre by the Society.

Sir John A. Macdonald's personal and political papers were sold to the then Public Archives of Canada in 1914 for $5,000. (1) His papers have been consulted extensively by historians and archivists and there is no lack of published material on his career. Sir Hugh John Macdonald's career, however, has been relatively unexamined by historians. An obvious explanation is the father's celebrity status, leaving his son in the shadows. The father served as first Prime Minister of Canada for about nineteen years, while the son shunned the lime light, serving reluctantly in the federal cabinet under Sir J. J. C. Abbott and Sir Charles Tupper, and as premier of Manitoba for less than a year. Another explanation is that, up to now, there has not been a significant quantity of original documentation on his career. Most of what has existed has survived in the papers of other individuals in repositories across Canada. This situation changed last year when the Archives of Manitoba acquired a small but vital cache of personal, legal, business, and political records of both men.

The records relating to Sir John A. Macdonald include material from his legal practice in Kingston and his personal affairs. The legal documents deal primarily with real estate, including indentures, certificates of title, correspondence regarding land for sale, notices of mortgage interest, rent and taxes due, and promissory notes. Most...

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