Hincks, Sir Francis (1807-1885), was co-premier of the Province of Canada from 1851 to 1854. He belonged to the Reform Party, a moderate alliance of English- and French-speaking Canadians that later became the Liberal Party. Hincks sought to further the material progress of the colony. He also believed in responsible government—that is, a political system in which the government is responsible to the people’s elected representatives. The administration of Hincks and his co-premier, Augustin-Norbert Morin, promoted railroad construction in the Province of Canada.
Hincks was born on Dec. 14, 1807, in Cork, Ireland. He moved to York (later Toronto), Canada, in 1830 and became manager of the People’s Bank there in 1835. In 1838, he founded the Examiner newspaper in Toronto. In 1841, Hincks won election to the first Legislative Assembly of the Province of Canada. He also served as inspector-general (finance minister) from 1842 to 1843 and from 1848 to 1851.
The government of the United Kingdom appointed Hincks governor of Barbados and the Windward Islands in 1855 and of British Guiana (now Guyana) in 1862. In 1869, he was knighted. From 1869 to 1873, Hincks served as finance minister of the Dominion of Canada. He played a key role in the passage of the Bank Act of 1871, which established federal control of Canada’s banking system. Hincks died on Aug. 18, 1885.
