THE STORY: In Ottawa, in early May of 1867, in the waning days of the Colonial Canada, Alex Campbell sat down to write Mr. James W. Bridgland, Esquire a letter. It was duly sent on the Ottawa & Prescott Railroad down the Ottawa River to Montreal. The letter was not deliverable as addressed as Mr. Bridgland was not to be found. The Montreal Post Office, following Post Office guidelines, advertised the letter, and, after another prescribed interval, they determined that Mr. Bridgland had not called for his letter. Accordingly, they returned the letter to its sender. However, when the letter was returned to Alex Campbell in August of 1867, it was returned to the 1st Postmaster General of the New Confederation of Canada. We are, of course, talking about Sir Alexander Campbell, Macdonald's right hand man and Commissioner of Crown Lands through June of 1867. A Father of the Confederation present at both the Quebec and Charlottetown Confederation Conferences and ultimately Four Time Postmaster General of Canada. Sir Alexander sent this fascinating cover to James W. Bridgland who was a Public Surveyor (see notes below), and who likely was out in the field at the time it was sent, hence the non-delivery and return.

This is a unique cover posted in the closing days of the Dominion and bearing a rare Canada Crown Lands Commission Departmental handstamp, "FREE", rare "Advertised", rare "Advertised and Not Called For" and Ottawa & Prescott Railroad Marks. In addition it is signed by Campbell and the address panel is in his hand. The fact that it was returned to him as Postmaster General following Confederation makes this a wonderful transition item and a gem of Canadian Postal History. So whether you collect Free, Advertised, Railroad, Early Confederation, Postmaster or Father of the Confederation covers, this item has it all. A capstone piece to any Canadian Postal History collection. See below for Biographical Notes.

GUARANTEED BY OUR 5 YEAR CERTIFICATE OF AUTHENTICITY

A UNIQUE CANADIAN POSTAL HISTORY COVER FROM, AND ULTIMATELY BACK TO,
THE 1ST POSTMASTER GENERAL OF CONFEDERATED CANADA
INITIALED & ADDRESSED IN HIS OWN HAND

FROM WINTHROP BOGGS, THE POSTAGE STAMPS AND POSTAL HISTORY OF CANADA, QUARTERMAN, 1975

BIOGRAPHICAL NOTES:

SIR ALEXANDER CAMPBELL was baptized 9 March 1822 in Hedon, England, son of James Campbell and Lavinia Scatcherd. His family moved to Canada in 1823 and first settled in Montreal. They later moved to Kingston, Upper Canada, in 1836. Campbell, although Anglican, was educated at the Roman Catholic Séminaire de Saint-Hyacinthe in Lower Canada, where he acquired a knowledge of French. He was first a law student for Henry Cassady and upon his death, at the age of 17, transferred his articles to John A. Macdonald. Macdonald’s first student had been Oliver Mowat, Campbell was his second. For a brief period the three young men, all destined for illustrious careers, worked together in Macdonald’s office in Kingston. In 1843 Campbell was admitted to the bar and became Macdonald’s partner. The partnership was dissolved in 1849, but an important political alliance had been forged amongst these three young men in the 1840s. They would remain intimate associates until Campbell abandoned politics in 1887.

Campbell’s public career began as an Alderman on Kingston’s city council: from 1850 to 1852, representing Victoria Ward. In 1858, and again in 1864, he was elected to the province’s Legislative Council for the Cataraqui division. He later served as Speaker of the Council from February to May 1863. On 30 March 1864 Campbell was appointed as Commissioner of Crown Lands in Macdonald’s Government, a position he held until 30 June 1867. As a member of this coalition Cabinet, he was a delegate to the Charlottetown and Quebec conferences of 1864, and is thus a Father of Confederation. Following Confederation, on July 1, 1867, Campbell was appointed as the First Postmaster General of the new Canada and was called to the Senate on 23 October of the same year, remaining in the upper chamber until 7 Feb. 1887. A consummate political professional, he held many Cabinet posts during those years: Postmaster General on four occasions (1867–73, 1879–80, 1880–81, 1885–87), Superintendent General of Indian Affairs and Minister of the Interior (1873), Receiver General (1878–79), Minister of Militia and Defence (1880), and Minister of Justice and Attorney General (1881–85). In addition, he was acting Minister of Inland Revenue (1868–69) and government leader in the Senate (1867–73, 1878–87). During the Liberal government of Alexander Mackenzie (1873–78), Campbell led the Conservative party in the upper chamber. He had become a Queen’s Counsel in 1856 and was created a K.C.M.G. in 1879. He represented Canada in 1887 in London at the first Colonial Conference, and in June, 1887 was appointed Lieutenant Governor of Ontario, a post he still held when he died five years later.

Our Research into the elusive Mr. James W. Bridgland is less complete, but we have located these references:

THE ROBINSON SUPERIOR TREATY On September 7, 1850, a treaty was concluded at Sault Ste. Marie between the Hon. W. B. Robinson, representing the government, and nine Ojibwa chiefs and head men. Under its terms the Ojibwa surrendered territory extending some 400 miles along the shore of Lake Superior, from Batchawana Bay to the Pigeon River, and northward to the height of land delimiting the Great Lakes drainage area. In return, the Indians were allotted three reserves, a cash settlement and a further small annual payment. Surveyor James W. Bridgland and J.W. Keating, acting for the Department of Indian Affairs as interpreter and arbiter, were appointed to survey the reserves mentioned in the Robinson-Superior Treaty. In July 1853, both men met with Chief Totomenai, who pointed out the limits of his reserve. Surveyor Bridgland produced a “Coast Sketch” map which showed the eastern boundary of the reserve one and a half miles west of the mouth of the Michipicoten River and the western boundary some distance east of the Doré River, the two natural boundaries the Chiefs had identified in 1849.The Fort William reserve, assigned to Chief Joseph Peau de Chat and his band, was laid out in 1854 by J. W. Bridgland, P. L. S., substantially as it is today.

A government grant was made in 1856 for the Bobcaygeon Road, which eventually ran from Bobcaygeon to the Oxtongue River north of Dorset by way of Kinmount and Minden. This was the first of the area’s many colonization roads. Construction began in 1857 and was plagued by problems including the challenge of rugged granite terrain, obstacles formed by numerous lakes and streams, and labor shortages during harvest time. It took five years, under the supervision of James W. Bridgland, to complete the road. He also worked on the Old Peterson Road. By 1861 Bridgland was the Superintendent of Colonization Roads and appears to have spent most of his time in Western Ontario.

Reverse has a mounting stain and a torn back flap

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