William Machin Stairs, Date of Birth, Place of Birth, Date of Death
TweetWilliam Machin Stairs
Canadian politician
Date of Birth: 
Place of Birth: Halifax, Nova Scotia, Canada
About William Machin Stairs
- William Machin Stairs, (January 21, 1789 – November 28, 1865) was a merchant, a banker, and a statesman.
- He was born and died in Halifax, Nova Scotia, Canada. William Machin Stairs was the son of John Stairs (1749–1797), a native of Grenada who had emigrated to Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, United States before moving to Halifax.
- John Stairs became involved in the shipping business but after some financial difficulties the family returned to Philadelphia in 1793.
- There, both John Stairs and his wife died and their five children, including the eight-year-old William Machin Stairs, returned to Halifax to be raised by a maternal uncle. In 1810, Stairs opened a small general store on the Halifax waterfront that marked the beginnings of a business dynasty that endured to 1975.
- In 1856, he helped found the Union Bank of Halifax.
- A major shareholder, he served on the bank's board of directors and as the bank's first president. Stairs was also active in politics, serving as a Member of the Nova Scotia General Assembly from 1841 to 1843, then as mayor of Halifax from 1847 to 1848 and later as a Legislative Councillor.
- He would become a strong supporter of Joseph Howe in his Anti-Confederation Party movement. A member of the Glasite Christian church, William Machin Stairs was married to Margaret Wiseman (1793–1850) with whom he had nine children.
- They are buried together at the Camp Hill Cemetery, in Halifax.
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