A Cyclopaedia of Canadian Biography: Being Chiefly Men of the Time: A Collection of Persons Distinguished in Professional and Political Life, Leaders in the Commerce and Industry of Canada, and Successful Pioneers
History
A Cyclopaedia of Canadian Biography: Being Chiefly Men of the Time: A Collection of Persons Distinguished in Professional and Political Life, Leaders in the Commerce and Industry of Canada, and Successful Pioneers
=Reddin, James Henry=, Barrister, Charlottetown, Prince Edward Island,
was born at Kew, Surrey, England, on the 9th January, 1852. He is the
eldest son of James Reddin, formerly a merchant in Charlottetown, but
now holding the position of Government inspector of weights and measures
for Prince Edward Island. His mother, Louisa Anna Matthews, was a
daughter of John Matthews, a retired London merchant, and a freeman of
that city, related through his marriage with the widow of Henry Monk, a
scion of the family of Monk, of Albemarle, to the Kershaws, Millers,
Chadwicks, and other well known commercial families of Liverpool and
Manchester. James Reddin’s father, Dennis Reddin, was the son of a
manufacturer in Carrick-on-Suir, Tipperary county, Ireland, by his
marriage with Miss O’Meara, a daughter of an old established family in
the south of Ireland. Dennis Reddin emigrated to Prince Edward Island
during the latter portion of the eighteenth century, and having been
possessed of a better education than most Irish settlers of his day, he
taught school for some time on the island. He afterwards became engaged
in mercantile pursuits, notably in the building of ships, in which he
was very successful until the year 1847, when a great fall took place in
this class of property, and he, like many other shipbuilders, became
involved in the common ruin that ensued. The Reddin family have been for
nearly a century the leading Irish Catholic family of Prince Edward
Island, and one of the sons of the late Dennis Reddin has successively
held the position of solicitor-general and attorney-general of the
province, and is at present a county court judge,—he being the first
Roman Catholic in Prince Edward Island appointed to a judicial office.
James Henry Reddin, the subject of this sketch, was educated at a
private school, and then at the Prince of Wales and St. Dunstan’s
Colleges. After leaving school he occupied for some time the position of
clerk in his father’s office, and when that gentleman gave up business,
he commenced the study of law with his uncle, Richard Reddin, and
continued it in the office of the Hon. Neil McLeod. In July, 1885, he
was admitted an attorney of the supreme court, and a barrister the
following year. Mr. Reddin has been connected with several literary
societies, has written on various occasions for the press, and delivered
before the public lectures on literary and other subjects. Mr. Reddin’s
father is a Roman Catholic, and he has followed in his footsteps; his
mother, however, was a member of the Episcopal church. In politics he is
a Liberal-Conservative. In conclusion, we may add that Mr. Reddin’s
father for many years filled the position of president of the Benevolent
Irish Society, established by Lieut.-Governor Ready in 1825, and on his
retirement from office was elected patron of the society in the room of
the deceased Hon. Daniel Brenan.
* * * * *
Public-domain text, read in full here on John Shaqi.
Reviews
Reviews
No reviews yet
Be the first to share your thoughts on this work.
Elsewhere in the archive
Join the Discussion
Join the discussion
Sign in to leave a comment or review.
Sign InorCreate an account