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John Hedley Bell
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Merchant, MLA (1883-1886).
Born in London Township, Upper Canada (now Ontario) on 6 September 1840, he was educated in the public and high schools of that town. He was trained for a commercial career, and for many years was a teacher in the London Commercial College. He left there in May 1871 for Manitoba, and upon arrival in July, settled on a farm in Kildonan on the east bank of the Red River.
He constructed the original Kildonan College / Manitoba College (1871-1874) and taught business classes for its first term. As a contractor, he constructed immigration sheds at The Forks (1872) and, by 1875, had partnered with a brother-in-law in the construction firm of Bell and Johnstone. He was head bookkeeper for James Henry Ashdown (1873-1883) and managed the Northwest Lumbering Company (1883-1884).
While living in Kildonan he was active in municipal affairs and was a member of the first council which was organized under the provincial statute. In 1883, during the brief period of existence of the county councils, he was Warden of the group of rural municipalities in the County of Kildonan. He established the Kildonan Glee Club (1872) and served as President of the Kildonan Literary Society (1876-1877) and Winnipeg Gun Club (1882). He was the first Grand Secretary (1875-1879) and Grand Master (1880-1885) of the Grand Lodge of Manitoba.
In the 1883 provincial general election, he was elected as a member of the legislature for the constituency of Springfield and represented it until the next general election. After this he was employed during the session of the legislature as assistant to the Clerk of the House. In 1891, he relocated with his family to a large tract of land near Roseland. He maintained ties in Winnipeg, working in the summer months in the office of the Winnipeg Exhibition Association. He was also a sessional writer during the sitting of the legislature.
In 1862, he married Margaret Scott (1838-1928) of London Township. They had five children who reached adulthood: Annie Isabel Bell (1863-1932), John Edwin Bell (1869-?), Allan Roger Bell (1876-?), Violet J. Bell (1878-?), and James Andrew Bell (?-?), one of whom was born a month after the family’s arrival in Manitoba.
In March 1897, he contracted a cold while attending a hockey game that led to lung inflammation. He died at Winnipeg on 16 March 1897 and was buried in the Kildonan Cemetery.
1881 and 1891 Canada censuses, Library and Archives Canada.
Death registration, Manitoba Vital Statistics.
“Death of John H. Bell,” Manitoba Free Press, 17 March 1897, page 1.
“Death of a pioneer,” Winnipeg Tribune, 17 March 1897, page 5.
[Woodcut illustration], Winnipeg Tribune, 17 March 1897. [Manitoba Legislative Library, Biographical Scrapbook B1, page 146.]
1901 Canada census, Automated Genealogy.
Pioneers and Early Citizens of Manitoba, Winnipeg: Manitoba Library Association, 1971.
Obituaries and burial transcriptions, Manitoba Genealogical Society.
We thank Keith Maitland, Stan Barclay, Oliver Bernuetz (Legislative Library of Manitoba), Sandy Jasper, and Marie Maitland for providing additional information used here.
This page was prepared by Gordon Goldsborough.
Page revised: 26 June 2024
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