Brown, George (1818-1880), was a Canadian journalist and politician. His newspaper, the Toronto Globe, became the leading reform journal in Canada. Brown also was one of the Fathers of Confederation. This group planned the union of British North American colonies that became the Dominion of Canada in 1867.
Brown was born on Nov. 29, 1818, in Alloa, Scotland, near Edinburgh. He moved to the United States in 1837, and he settled in Canada in 1843. He founded the Globe in 1844.
Brown served in the Legislative Assembly of the Province of Canada almost continuously from 1851 to 1867. The Assembly had equal numbers of representatives from the province’s two main sections, Canada East and Canada West. Problems arose when the population of Canada West exceeded that of Canada East. Brown championed the principle of representation by population. In 1864, Brown represented the Reform Party in the push to unite the Canadian colonies. He worked closely with John A. Macdonald and George Etienne Cartier, his political rivals. Brown was appointed to the Canadian Senate in 1873. He died on May 9, 1880.
