Francis Hincks

Francis Hincks

Sir Francis Hincks, KCMG, PC (December 14, 1807 – August 18, 1885) was a Canadian politician.

Born in Cork, Ireland, he was the son of Thomas Dix Hincks an orientalist, naturalist and Presbyterian minister and the brother of Edward Hincks orientalist, naturalist and clergyman.

He moved to York (Toronto) in 1832 and set up an importing business there. He rented property from William Warren Baldwin and his son, Robert Baldwin, becoming friends with the family. He accepted a job as manager for the Farmer's Bank but became manager of the newly formed Bank of the People after the management of the Farmers' Bank became dominated by Tories. When even moderate reformers were being persecuted following the Upper Canada Rebellion of 1837, Hincks considered moving to the United States. However, the appointment of Lord Durham in 1838 provided new hope and he chose to continue in Upper Canada. He established The Examiner in Toronto, with the aim of promoting responsible government; this newspaper merged with the Globe, the predecessor of the Globe and Mail, in 1855.

Hincks was elected to the 1st Parliament of United Canada in 1841, representing Oxford County. In 1842, He was appointed inspector general of public accounts. In 1844, he became editor of a new newspaper in Montreal, the Pilot, which supported Reformers in both Canada East and Canada West. Because he sought subscriptions for his paper in Canada West, he came into conflict with George Brown, editor of the Globe. In 1848, he sold the paper and accepted the post of inspector general. He was Premier of the Province of Canada from 1851 to 1854. Hincks' vision of a railroad linking British North America led to the establishment of the Grand Trunk Railway in 1852 and he helped negotiate the Reciprocity Treaty of 1854 with the United States. A scandal developed in 1854 as a result of profits made by Hincks and Mayor John George Bowes of Toronto from the sale of railway stock and the government fell as a result; when this matter was reviewed in the next parliament, no basis was found for allegations of corruption against Hincks.

In 1856, he accepted an appointment as governor of Barbados and the Windward Islands, and, in 1861, became governor of British Guiana. He was knighted in 1869. On his return to Canada, he was Minister of Finance from 1869 until 1874. In 1878, he represented the federal government on the Ontario-Manitoba boundary commission.

He was also an editor of the Toronto Express newspaper. He died in Montreal of smallpox in 1885.