Cundall, Henry Jones

  • DICTIONARY OF CANADIAN BIOGRAPHY ARTICLE: Peter E. Rider, “CUNDALL, HENRY JONES,” in Dictionary of Canadian Biography, vol. 14, University of Toronto/Université Laval, 2003–. See full biography at: https://www.biographi.ca/en/bio/cundall_henry_jones_14E.html
  • DCB profile notes:
    • Land surveyor, estate agent, and philanthropist; b. 13 Jan. 1833 in New London, P.E.I., eldest child and only son of William Cundall and Sarah Louisa Haszard; d. unmarried 16 July 1916 in Charlottetown.
    • Henry Cundall was born into a family of considerable distinction, if not exceptional wealth. His father had migrated from England to Prince Edward Island in 1828 to manage the family’s extensive landholdings and, failing to garner enough income from his properties, became a businessman in Charlottetown and later headmaster of Central Academy there. In 1856 he was appointed cashier (general manager) of the Bank of Prince Edward Island. Henry’s mother came from a prominent Island loyalist family.
    • After studying surveying with an uncle, he began work at about age 16 in the Charlottetown office of Samuel and Edward Cunard, who were important estate owners on the Island, and by 1853 he had become surveyor for the Cunards. In a separate venture in 1851 Cundall completed a map of the colony, a cartographic achievement that won recognition as a benchmark of accuracy. He had opened his own office by 1863 and by 1868 he was an established surveyor and property agent, undertaking among other commissions survey work for the Prince Edward Island Railway
    • Cundall’s professional life was marked by competence and prudence but not flamboyance. Contemporaries recognized him as a major figure in the economic life of the community; however, he was renowned more for his involvement with a wide range of philanthropies. Some of these were religious in nature, a manifestation of his commitment as a low-church Anglican.
    • A man of Henry Cundall’s stamina, ethics, and perspicacity would likely have prospered anywhere. That he chose to remain on Prince Edward Island reflects a conservatism and a deep attachment to his native community. Typical of his social peers, when he looked beyond the Island, he looked to the United Kingdom and thence to the wider empire. His worldview was not parochial, but he was aware that there was much to do and accomplish at home. He turned to these tasks quietly and effectively so that in time his influence came to be felt throughout the economic and social life of his city and province.
  • Great Grandson of United Empire Loyalist listed in Loyalist Directory: https://uelac.ca/loyalist-directory/detail/?wpda_search_column_id=3646
  • Find A Grave: https://www.findagrave.com/memorial/35927722/henry-jones-cundall