Thomas Parke

Who was Thomas Parke?

Thomas Parke was an architect, builder, journalist and political figure in Upper Canada.

He was born in County Wicklow in Ireland in 1793 and came to York in 1820. He worked with John Ewart as a master carpenter on a number of construction projects, including the new parliament buildings at York. He moved to London, Ontario in 1832. He invested in property and built a gristmill on the Thames River there in 1833. He was also involved in projects to establish a railway link to the city and improve navigation on the Thames below London. In 1834, he was elected to the Legislative Assembly of Upper Canada for Middlesex; he was reelected in 1836. In 1838, with other Reformers unhappy with the political environment of the time, he was involved in a project to plan the development of a settlement in Iowa; this project did not advance much further than initial planning. In 1839, he was a co-founder of the Canada Inquirer, later the London Inquirer, a reform-oriented newspaper. He was appointed justice of the peace in the London District in 1840. He supported the union of Upper and Lower Canada and, in 1841, was elected to the 1st Parliament of the Province of Canada. In the same year, he was appointed surveyor general, serving until 1845, when the office was abolished. He then was named customs collector at Port Colborne; he was named to the same post at Port Dalhousie in 1860.