Constitutional history of England, Henry VII to George II - Arthur B. Warburton

Biography

The Constitutional History of England, Vol. II – Alexander B. Warburton

Warburton, Alexander B. (05/04/1852 - 14/01/1929)

Alexander Warburton was born on Prince Edward Island in 1852 to his parents; lifelong resident Martha Compton Green (mother) and recent migrant from the Republic of Ireland James Warburton (father). Alexander grew up the third sibling of four in the PEI community of St. Eleanor’s. He showed much aptitude in his school life, attending Summerside Grammar School as a pupil, and later attending St. Dunstan’s College in his middle to late teens. Moving ever onward, he went to Windsor Nova Scotia to pursue an education at King’s College in 1969 (he would have been seventeen at the time). While there he won the General Williams prize in engineering in addition with the Almon-Welford prize for highest aggregate average.

But he did not return to the island just yet. After his time in Nova Scotia, he went over the Atlantic to the United Kingdom where he would first attend the University of Edinburgh in Edinburgh Scotland and then Walter Wren’s school in London England before getting his Bachelor’s degree in art at Windsor in 1874. Upon his return to the Island, he found himself working as the secretary to the Liberal Association in Queens County, reading law with Lawyer, Politician, and Judge, Lewis Davies who previously was a known voice in the anti-confederation movement. After doing that for a bit, he returned to King’s to get his Bachelor’s in civil law, winning another award known as the Bishop’s Prize.

He ended up reading law again, this time with Welsh lawyer George Baugh Allen in London. When he returned to the Island in 1879, he was admitted to the bar and later became associated in law with several other people, such as Donald Alexander Mackinnon and D. Edgar Shaw. Alexander had a large impact on island law when he, in collaboration with Francis Longworth Haszard, wrote a two volume set containing a series of supreme court cases that took place on the island. Particularly including the cases of the judge Peters James Horsfield who, around thirty years prior, controlled approximately one-sixth of the land on Prince Edward Island.

What most people know about A.B. Warburton best nowadays, is that he was the seventh Premier of Prince Edward Island. He ran as a member of the Liberal party, advocating for free-trade. Initially, he lost the election, but was successful in the first district, Queens County in 1891. Eventually, he won the seat of Premier in 1893 and got re-elected in 1897 when Premier Frederick Peters stepped down, stepping down himself from the position soon after when he was offered the position of a judge in the supreme court.

By the time of the early 1900s, Alexander Warburton was continuing to contribute to the Island in the ways he knew best. He published several articles on the history of Prince Edward Island. His academic career was not the only thing he maintained either; in 1901, he won the Charlottetown mayoral election, staying in office until 1904 when he was asked to step down from the bench to run as a federal liberal alongside Lemuel Ezra Prowse. He did not end up winning this election. However, he did end up winning the subsequent election four years later only to lose again in 1911. Finally, he worked as a judge of the Probate Court from 1920, up to the point of his death in 1929.

From census records we can see that A.B. Warburton married at some point between 1881 and 1891. He married Isabelle Cogsworth Longworth (later Warburton). Together they had three children; Olga/Alga Warburton (daughter), Constance/Conotona Warburton (daughter), and Nach/Noah Warburton (daughter). By 1921, all of their children had left home, leaving only Alexander and Isabelle and a couple of domestic servants.

While A.B. Warburton’s political career may have been lackluster when looked at from a larger scale, he never stopped helping the island in smaller ways. In the middle of the 1880s, He and judge Fitzgerald put into effect a tree planting effort, some of those trees were found still standing in 2020, over 130 years old. In 1904, Alexander was part of the PEI school board during his time as mayor. In 1905, he wrote “Prince Edward Island – Past and Present” which filled a large gap in the Island’s history. He also wrote a follow-up book called “A History of Prince Edward Island” in 1923. Alexander Bannerman Warburton was a well educated man, who put it to use best in service of the people.

References:

Bumstead, J.M., “Dictionary of Canadian Biography, Alexander B. Warburton University of Toronto, accessed: 29/08/2024.

Government of Prince Edward Island, and By: Government of Prince Edward Island. n.d. "Alexander Bannerman Warburton." Flickr. Accessed: 30/08/2024.

"Martha Compton Green Warburton (1815-1890) - Find." n.d. Findagrave.com.
Accessed: 30/08/2024.

Bumstead, J.M., "Dictionary of Canadian Biography, Henry L. Davies University of Toronto, accessed:
30/08/2024.

Bumstead, J.M., "Dictionary of Canadian Biography, James H. Peters" University of Toronto, accessed: 30/08/2024.

Province of Prince Edward Island, and Canada. n.d. "Public Archives and Records Office."
RG19, Series3, Subseries4: Marriage Licenses, 1889. Gov.Pe.Ca. Accessed: 30/08/2024.

Photograph:

Warburton, et al. 1905. Past and Present of Prince Edward Island: A concise review of its early
settlement, development, and present conditions, written by the most gifted authors of the province. Charlottetown: B. F. Bowen & Co.

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