Thomas Heath Haviland

Who was Thomas Heath Haviland?

Thomas Heath Haviland was a Canadian lawyer, politician and father of Canadian Confederation. He was born in, and died in Charlottetown, Prince Edward Island. He was appointed to the Canadian Senate on 18 October 1873, and represented Prince Edward Island as a Conservative until his resignation on 1 July 1879.

He was born in Charlottetown, the son of Thomas Heath Haviland, and was educated in Belgium. On his return, he studied law and was called to the bar in 1846. In 1847, he married Anne Elizabeth Grubbe. He was elected to the Legislative Assembly of Prince Edward Island for Georgetown and Royalty in 1846 and served until 1876. Haviland served in the provincial Executive Council from 1859 to 1862, from 1865 to 1867 and from 1870 to 1872. From 1863 to 1864, he was speaker for the assembly. He was also a colonel in the local militia. Haviland served as the third Lieutenant Governor of Prince Edward Island from 1879 to 1884. In 1886, he became mayor of Charlottetown after the death of Henry Beer, serving until 1893 when he retired due to poor health. Haviland died in Charlottetown two years later.