Davis, Elihu James

  • DICTIONARY OF CANADIAN BIOGRAPHY ARTICLE: David G. Burley, “DAVIS, ELIHU JAMES,” in Dictionary of Canadian Biography, vol. 16, University of Toronto/Université Laval, 2003–. http://www.biographi.ca/en/bio/davis_elihu_james_16E.html
  • DCB profile notes:
    • Tanner, manufacturer, and politician; b. 2 Dec. 1851 in York Township, Upper Canada, eldest of the four children of Andrew Davis and Elizabeth Pease; m. 29 Oct. 1874 Margaret Johnston in King Township, Ont., and they had five sons and two daughters; d. 14 June 1936 in Toronto.
    • In 1868 Andrew Davis took back control of the Lowell Tannery and E. J. began his apprenticeship in the trade. Four years later he and his father became partners in a new company, A. Davis and Son, which owned and managed the Lowell Tannery. At first the tannery was a small, rural operation with only a few workers, but by the early 1870s the market for leather had begun to expand geographically, and with regular bank credit the Davises were able to start selling through wholesalers. They kept abreast of developments in the industry and installed a small steam engine, and by March 1884, when E. J. bought his father’s interest in the company for $37,903.74, A. Davis and Son employed about 25 men.
    • By this time Davis was not only a prominent figure in business, but a successful politician as well. He had first earned a favourable local reputation by participating in temperance debates around York County in the 1870s. Having built up a committed and lasting base of support, he quickly moved up the electoral ladder, becoming a school trustee at age 21, a councillor for King Township from 1877 to 1880, deputy reeve from 1881 to 1882, and reeve from 1883 to 1886. He also served in 1884 as the youngest-ever warden of York County. In December 1886 Davis lost the Liberal nomination in York North to the sitting mla, Joseph Henry Widdifield, who was re-elected in the provincial contest of that year. Widdifield kept his seat for just a year and a half before resigning to become sheriff of York County, and in May 1888 Davis received the Liberal nomination in the ensuing by-election and won by acclamation. He would be returned in 1890, 1894, 1898, and 1902.
    • Just 36 years old when he first took his seat, Davis brought new blood to the ageing Liberal government of Oliver Mowat, and in February 1898 the Toronto Globe remarked, “His rise to a commanding position has been rapid.” After demonstrating his abilities in committee work, most notably as chair of the committee on public accounts, Davis was rewarded in July 1896 with a cabinet post in the new government of Premier Arthur Sturgis Hardy. He was initially a minister without portfolio, but Davis succeeded him as provincial secretary and registrar, the cabinet member responsible for answering opposition criticism over the expenses and inefficiencies of government agencies.
    • In October 1899 the Liberal government was reorganized under the premiership of George William Ross, and Davis remained in the cabinet as commissioner of crown lands.
    • . J. Davis’s career demonstrated the success that could be achieved in small-town Ontario in the late 19th and early 20th centuries. In political life, his country roots, commitment to his Protestant religion, and temperance convictions appealed to Liberal supporters in the towns, villages, and rural areas of the province, while his obvious concern for ethical probity helped, for a time, to offset the public’s distaste for the more questionable practices of machine politics. In his business, Davis’s ability to adopt new technologies and processes in tanning, coupled with the financial support that his good character secured, enabled him and his talented sons to transform a rural craft enterprise into a modern industrial complex. Davis Leather would remain in the family’s hands until 1945, when Aubrey, Andrew, and Elihu Jr sold their controlling interest; they managed the Newmarket tannery for another year and then retired. The tannery stayed open until 1962. Elmer and Harold ran A. Davis and Son until the former’s death in 1959; Harold carried on with help from his sons Harold Polson and Neil C. until he died in 1971. By then the Kingston tannery had deteriorated into what historian Richard Harris describes as a “notorious sweat shop,” and it ceased operations later that year, bringing to an end a significant chapter in Canadian business history.
  • Second Great Grandson of Proven United Empire Loyalist listed in Loyalist Directory: https://uelac.ca/loyalist-directory/detail/?wpda_search_column_id=2085
  • Find a GRAVE: https://www.findagrave.com/memorial/106676557/elihu-james-davis